Finding Me

Chapter 15

We walk into the dining room when Emma calls us, and Nick sits down beside me. When I sit down, I feel some pain shoot up in my side, making me forget about the fun time I just had and remember that I'm not exactly okay.

"Nick, tell me when you think you'll get into the studio," my uncle says as we pass the food around the table.

"Well," Nick clears his throat, "I'm almost finished writing another song. I'm planning on having it finished and recorded by the time the Clearwater Bay Festival comes around so that I can perform it for everyone. I hope that works within my contract?"

My uncle pauses and then replies, "It would be a great way to get an even bigger fanbase here. I think we can deal with that. Do you want to release it before or after the festival?"

Nick pauses and then replies, "I think either way would work. Why don't we wait for a little while before deciding?"

"Okay. Just remember that we have to start promoting it before you release it," my uncle tells him.

Nick nods, and Emma turns her attention to me and asks, "How was school?"

Everyone puts their attention on me, so I slightly cheerfully say, "It was fine. School is school."

They all just nod before taking a bite of their food. I just surprised them with my somewhat cheerful response, so I guess they're trying to hide their surprise. Too bad I'm too smart to not notice what they're trying to do.

The conversation starts back up again in a few minutes, and the pain in my side starts to grow a little more. When I reach for the salt shaker, I feel a sudden burst of pain, and I grimace and let out a small groan.

Emma turns to me and worriedly asks, "Are you alright?"

I look at Nick and my uncle and see that both of them are also looking at me worriedly. I just nod and grab the salt shaker and relax back in my seat. Emma and my uncle start their conversation again, but Nick looks at me with suspicion.

I look away from him and season my food with the salt. The rest of the meal isn't so bad, and I don't get asked very many questions. When the meal is over, Emma tells us to go sit in the living room, so, naturally, we do what she says.

I feel more pain when I stand up, but I cover it up and follow my uncle and Nick into the living room. I sit down on a couch and lean back on the pillows, allowing me to have some support that eases some of the pain because I can relax and not have to sit up straight.

Nick sits down next to me and continues to stare at me with suspicion. I ignore him. My uncle sits down across from us, and we awkwardly sit in silence and look around the room. I never realized it until now; Emma is the one who gets the conversations going.

Before the silence can get any more awkward, Emma walks in and cheerfully says to my uncle, "Sam, I need your help with something. Could you please come with me?"

My uncle smiles at her and jumps up from his seat, leaving me alone with Nick. Nick clears his throat as though he wants me to say something. I look over at him, and he's still staring at me with suspicion. I roll my eyes and stare back.

It takes a few minutes, but he finally sighs and asks, "Are you going to actually tell me what's wrong with you? You can't cover up that groan you made earlier."

I sigh. "Nothing's wrong. I'm just a little sore from some exercising I did. And, that wasn't even a groan."

I look over a him, and he shakes his head. "You can't get a lie past me, Maya. I'm observant, remember?"

I roll my eyes at him again. "You think you know me so well. I've only known you for a few weeks. Plus, you're not always right."

His eyes twinkle as he replies, "Oh, I'm definitely always right."