He should know by now that Kimmie and I would never tell his dad we’re here to help him prepare for an audition, but I can’t blame him for being a little nervous.

Either way, Mr. Caruso seems distracted. “Good, good,” he says. “Is your nonna home?”

“She’s upstairs.”

Judging by the look on Mr. Caruso’s face, he just might be in trouble with Nonna. “I’ll see you all in a bit,” he says, and then he turns to run up the stairs.

The air around us shifts all of a sudden. The excitement from a moment ago is gone, and the silence that fills the kitchen feels heavy somehow.

Kimmie speaks up first. “You haven’t told your parents about the audition, have you?”

Adam shakes his head, looking down at his plate. “I’ll only tell them if I get it… which means they’ll probably never have to find out!” He laughs as though it was funny, but I know what’s going on behind his smile.

Adam’s parents have never been very supportive of his acting dreams. No matter how many times he’s tried to tell them how much he loves Broadway, his dad insists that he and his two brothers will take over the family business one day. What started with his grandfather bringing back suitcases of Italian goods to New York turned into an import company. Now they bring food, and leather, and all sorts of other stuff over from Italy, and acting and singing aren’t relevant skills for the job.

“You’re gonna kill the audition,” I say, because I know he needs to hear this. “You know the script so well, and they already liked you. Just do what you did last time.”

“Matt’s right,” Kimmie says, turning toward him. “I think you’re gonna get the part.”

Adam blushes in that moment, looking away from both of us.

“You’re gonna have to invite us to opening night if you do get it,” Kimmie adds, which makes Adam blush even more.

Suddenly, my phone buzzes. Looking down, I see a text from Maria: Are you coming to get Sophie soon?

My legs start shaking under the table. According to the clock on the wall, it’s almost five, which means I’m already late.

I feel wide awake all of a sudden, as I realize I can’t waste any more time. While Adam recites dialogue to himself and Kimmie smiles down at her phone, reading a text from Darryl, my sister is waiting for me, Erika is alone at the bodega, and my parents are in detention centers. I have more important things to do—things that actually matter.

“I have to go.”

Kimmie and Adam turn to look at me with deep frowns.

“What?” says Adam. “Why?”

“Don’t you wanna go see a movie or something?”