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DAD DIDN'T TALK THE whole car ride home. Julie and I were walking toward the front door, angrily, when he stopped us. "Julie, Belle, we need to talk. So, after missing school, skipping a lab," He looked to me. "and a test, you decided to sneak out even though I told the two of you to go to your room and study?"
Julie and I looked at one another before looking to dad. "We're sorry." We both said at once.
"Yea, you keep saying that. If you'd just... let me in, I could've been excited about tonight instead of having this conversation we all hate. Why didn't you tell me you were in a band?" His eyes were darting back and forth between Jules and me.
"We tried. It's just, you and tía with all your coming up with rules and punishments- there was no right moment." I shrugged, looking at Julie who nodded in agreement.
"And as for the band, it all happened so fast. These last couple of weeks have changed our lives, well mine anyway." Julie started.
"Mine too." I reached for her hand and wrapped my pinkie around hers in a comforting manor.
Julie smiled at me before continuing. "When I play music, I feel so much closer to mom."
"And I love that. You know I do. But your tía is right, school needs to come first."
"We know, but without the band, I would've never made it back into the music program. They played with us when I was trying to earn back my spot." Julie argued.
"They did?" I gave dad a reassuring nod.
"I think this is our thing dad." Julie had a look of vulnerability on her face.
"Well, I'd be a jerk of a dad if I took that away from you. Look, if you two are gonna stay in this band, you need to keep up with school. And you need to keep me in the loop." I stood up straight, now in a much better mood.
"Thank you, dad." I hugged him tightly while Julie stood back, not breaking our pinkies apart.
I felt dad chuckle under my embrace. "You guys still do that, huh?" He was staring at mine and Julie's connected pinkies.
"Why wouldn't we?" Julie smiled.
"You girls are just like your mother. I remember she used to do that all the time." I stood back next to Julie once again, listening to his story. "Whenever she was worried or anxious, or even happy. She would just take her pinkie and wrap it around mine. You girls too. Belle, did your mom ever tell you about that time at the ice cream shop?" I furrowed my eyebrows, shaking my head.
"It was right after you just got your ice cream cone, you were seven at the time. When you came home, your mom told me the story. She said she was sitting down on a bench and you were in front of her, balancing yourself on a plank of wood while walking back and forth. Then, she said, for a few seconds you froze, looking up at something that wasn't there. You dropped your ice cream cone and started crying, walking over to your mom. You told her that you'd seen a scary tall man dressed in a black shirt and a long purple jacket with jeans and purple shoes. That's when she wrapped her pinkie around yours and told you that nothing would happen as long as she was there by your side."
