Chapter 4: Forgiven on Stage

My name was the seventh on the list.

By the time the card magician finished, my hands had gone cold again.

Ben looked down from the booth and held up one finger, a small signal that the stage was mine.

I walked out into the light with my guitar.

Forty phones were already pointed at me, and ten of them were in the front row.

"Hi," I said into the mic. "I'm Rory."

Someone in the front row whistled.

"Yes, that Rory," I said. "I'm not going to talk about it. I'm going to sing."

The room laughed, a small surprised laugh.

I started the song.

It was a slow one about a house I used to live in, and I had never sung it in front of anyone.

My voice shook on the first line and steadied on the second.

By the chorus, the room had gone still.

Then Brooks shouted from the front row, "Say yes to him, Rory!"

His friends laughed.

Another boy yelled, "Jacket Girl!" and held his phone higher.

I lost my place in the lyrics.

The lights in the room came up all at once, white and hard.

Ben's voice came through the speakers, calm and loud.

"Next person who shouts leaves the building. The same goes for the next ten. Rory, take your time."

Nobody said anything.

I found the line again, and I finished the song.

When I stopped, the applause was short and real.

A girl at the back called out, "Again!"

I was smiling before I could stop myself.

Then Preston stood up in the front row, and the smile went away.

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