Free Impossible by Komal Lewis Page B

conversation with Stace. She was shaking her head at him and he seemed to be trying to convince her about something. They were so into their discussion that they didn’t look around until they reached us.
    “Oh, hey, guys.” Stace’s face was flushed and she seemed out of breath. She shot me a seductive smile and sat down beside me.
    “Hey, Stace!” Riley said a little too enthusiastically. He jumped to his feet—maybe in an attempt to be chivalrous—and gawked at her.
    I rolled my eyes and addressed the only normal person in our group. “Eddie, are you free to jam this afternoon?”
    Eddie shook his head. “Nah, I can’t. My mom’s working a double shift tonight so I gotta babysit Hailie.”
    Hailie was Eddie’s six-year-old sister. Eddie’s dad was in the army so he was away a lot, and his mom worked full-time at the hospital, so Eddie had to step in and take care of his sister. That’s how Eddie and I’d first met. Both our moms worked as nurses at the hospital and had introduced us. If people weren’t so fixated on the amount of piercings Eddie had, they’d see what an awesome guy he was.
    That’s what pissed me off the most. We were all cool guys; we just wanted to make music, but people couldn’t overlook something as petty as our appearances. We were labeled freaks because we dared to be different. Everyone called us nuisances and troublemakers because we liked rock music and were in a band. It was fucking stupid. This town was seriously going to the shits.
    “Well, we gotta practice a lot more. We have that gig coming up at Berkeley in a month,” I said, even though they didn’t need reminding.
    It was impossible to forget about our upcoming gig. When I thought about it, my stomach twisted into knots. Sure, we’d performed at a few bars around town, but the people there didn’t appreciate our music. They didn’t get us. But Berkeley was a bar where the underground music scene was popular. We had to cross the state line, and drive for a couple of hours to get there, but it was all worth it. People in the music industry scouted Berkeley for the latest up and coming bands. We had to nail our performance.
    “We need some new material,” Riley said, turning his attention away from Stace, “You got anything in the works?”
    “I’m playing around with a few ideas, but nothing that I’m happy with yet. You can’t push the musical genius,” I said with a smirk.
    Eddie spit out the energy drink he’d just taken a gulp of. “Yeah, you’re a real Mozart, Luca.”
    Riley and Stace started laughing, and I scowled. “Some friends you guys are.” A few seconds later, I couldn’t help but join in.
    As our laughter died down, I noticed a small crowd gathered around the benches where the jocks and cheerleaders always sat. They never let anyone else sit there unless they were considered “popular”. Those people seriously suffered from a superiority complex.
    That’s when I noticed Ash standing with her back to me. She was speaking to that bitch, Kance, who was sneering at her. Even though I couldn’t see Ash’s face, my instincts told me that something was wrong.
    “I wonder what’s going on with the Barbies today. Don’t they know how to play nice?” Stace remarked. She’d also noticed the hostility between the supposed best friends.
    That body language was unmistakable. There was tension in the air, and all eyes were on them. People around here could sense a fight the way a shark could sense a drop of blood in water.
    Were they going to have a stand-off, Mexican style?
    “Ashton got kicked off the cheerleading team,” a quiet voice said to our left. It belonged to Elly, who was standing a few feet away, her eyes trained on Ash and Kance.
    “She what?” My mouth fell open at the unexpected news. I knew Ash was upset yesterday, but I’d never asked her why. I figured it was because of her mom.
    “I think that’s the best thing I’ve heard all year,” Stace said at the same