Okay, technically Jared had kissed me first, but then he’d given me the chance to end it right there. I could have walked away and laughed it off later, but instead I’d crossed the line, passed the point of no return, and all those other clichés. There was no going back to the way things were before unless we both admitted it had been a mistake. Except…it hadn’t felt like a mistake. It had felt like fate, like every moment since I’d met Jared had led me to this surprising, yet inevitable, conclusion.

I never wanted to get out of bed because then I’d have to face him again and figure out what to do about us. Luckily, the show’s medic had told me to rest with my foot elevated until we had to be at the Nokia Theatre for the results show. The bands didn’t perform tonight, so we only had to show up and pray we’d gotten enough votes to move on. They’d probably want to interview us again, too, because they never seemed to have enough interviews of us saying how great being on the show was.

I called Julie and then Carla to give them the update, but I didn’t mention kissing Jared. I’d tell them eventually, but for now it was too new, too raw, too uncertain. Maybe last night had been a fluke, a one-time thing. Maybe today he’d regret it ever happened. Maybe tonight he’d be with someone else.

I shoved those thoughts to the back of my head. There was one other call I couldn’t put off any longer, no matter how much I dreaded it.

“Hey, Mom,” I said when she picked up.

“Madison, I was just thinking about you. How are things?” I heard the TV on behind her, with noises that sounded like a game show.

“Things are…good.” I wasn’t sure how much she knew about, well, anything. Even when I told her something important, she often didn’t listen or forgot it soon after. It was easier to keep silent about my life most of the time. “There’s something I have to tell you. I’m not doing that internship I mentioned before. I’m actually um…in a band. And we’re on that TV show, The Sound.”

She sighed. “I know.”

“You know?” Why hadn’t she called me? Never mind—that would have taken effort on her part.

“Of course. I watch the show. I didn’t realize you still played the guitar.”

“Oh. Yeah.” I paused for her to say something else, to tell me how I was wasting my talent and how guitar wasn’t a real instrument, but it never came. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner, about the band and the show and…everything. It just happened so fast and everything got crazy and I’ve been so busy…”