"Exactly." Raven paused. "You're doing really well."
"Really?"
"Really. And I'll keep teaching you after the fundraiser, yeah? We'll keep going."
The smile that spread across Jamie's face was like watching the sun come out. Sudden and bright and completely transforming.
"Thanks, Miss Raven."
"Just Raven is fine. I sound like a Marvel character otherwise."
"Thanks, Raven."
She watched him hop off the stage and head toward the snack table, his shoulders a little less hunched, his steps a little lighter.
And then she felt it, that prickling awareness that meant someone was watching her.
She turned her head and found Annabelle standing a few feet away, clipboard forgotten at her side, staring at Raven with an expression that was equal parts wonder and something else. Something soft and aching and far too tender.
Their eyes met.
For a moment, the chaos of the hall faded away. The shrieking children, Gloria's voice, the general mayhem, all of it just… disappeared.
There was only Annabelle, looking at Raven like she was some kind of jewel.
Raven's heart stuttered.
Then Annabelle blinked, seemed to remember where she was, and quickly looked away, her cheeks flushing pink.
Raven turned back to the stage, her pulse hammering against her ribs.
Shit.Shit.Was this always going to happen? Was Annabelle always going to make her feel this way?
"Right!" Gloria clapped her hands. "Back to positions, everyone! We have a show to prepare!"
The chaos resumed. Raven forced herself to focus on the music, on the children, on anything except the way Annabelle had looked at her.
By the time rehearsal finally, mercifully ended, Raven was exhausted. Not from the music, that was fine, easy even, but from the constant low-level anxiety of being in a room full of people while tabloid photographers might be lurking outside.
She'd spotted two this morning. Just standing on the street outside her cottage, cameras ready, waiting for a glimpse of the "reclusive rockstar" to sell to the highest bidder.
Annabelle was by the door, seeing parents off, thanking them for coming, still smiling even though she looked like she might keel over at any moment.
Raven waited until the crowd had thinned before approaching.
"Hey," she said quietly.
Annabelle turned, and her smile brightened. "Hi! That was wonderful today. The children really respond to you, you know. Jamie especially. I saw you talking to him."
"Yeah, about that." Raven shoved her hands in her pockets. "He told me about his dad. That he moved out."
Annabelle's smile faltered. "Oh. Yes. It's been… difficult for him."
"He's struggling," Raven said bluntly. "Like, really struggling. And I think…" She hesitated. This wasn't her place. She barely knew these people. But Jamie's face kept flashing through her mind. "I think you might be too. I think maybe you're trying to do too much. With the fundraiser and everything else."
"I'm fine," Annabelle said quickly. Too quickly. "Everything's under control. Just a bit tired, that's all."
"Annabelle…"
