Mikey didn’t quite know what to make of the fact Luke had called him in the middle of the night. He was awake, of course, because he always had trouble sleeping and, honestly, he was still stressed about Luke. When he’d told Tricia and Damian about it, they’d acted just as he thought they would. Tricia acted sympathetic and gently suggested it might be time to pull the plug on the whole thing, while Damian just sneered and said something very unkind about both Luke and West Virginia.
Why can’t they just…get it?He wondered for probably the thousandth time, as he lay in his bed in his hotel room and mindlessly scrolled his phone.
When it started buzzing in his hand and an unknown West Virginia number appeared on the top, he almost ignored it. He’d learned the hard way never to answer calls from unknown numbers. However, something told him this time would be different: he should take a chance and see just who it was who was calling him.
“Hello?” he answered.
“Hi.”
His heart almost stopped. It was Luke.
“Uh, hi!” he said, far too loudly and far too cheerfully. He knew he sounded very fake, but he couldn’t seem to find a more sincere way of answering. “What’s up?”
He was aware of the fact the two of them had parted on less than great terms after lunch, and he was unpleasantly reminded that the last thing he’d said to Luke was he was going to pull out of the concert before it even started.
Why do I always have to say the wrong thing at the wrong time?He thought.
Luke, however, went right on.
“So, uh, Brenda gave me your number, in case I wanted to coordinate with you on the concert.”
“Oh, okay. It’s fine with me. I guess we should have each other’s numbers anyway,” Mikey said, pleased Brenda had done him a favor.
“I was thinkin’...” Luke went on.
Mikey’s heart did another little stutter at hearing the unique way Luke spoke, the slow little drawl he always had, the way he still sometimes dropped the “g”s off the ends of his words.
“Oh yeah?” Mikey said, so eager to hear just what he was thinking he didn’t give Luke a chance to go on. “What were you thinkin’ about?”
He realized too late he probably sounded like he was mocking the way Luke spoke. He knew all too well how prickly Luke was about…well, about everything, and he could’ve kicked himself.
Luke, however, just kept on talking.
“Yeah. I was thinkin’ the two of us have to find a way to cooperate for the whole concert thing. It’s not just Brenda who’s countin’ on us. It’s the whole community. NACA’s been a good place for too long and for too many young people. We can’t let that end just because of what’s between the two of us.”
Mikey was sorely tempted to ask him just what he meant by the last comment, but he kept it to himself. Luke was offering him an olive branch, so he was going to take it.
“You know what? You’re right. We can’t let our egos get in the way of helping a really good organization. I’m willing to put all of it aside if you are.”
Luke didn’t say anything, and Mikey wondered what he’d said wrong this time. Finally, though, Luke spoke.
“Sounds good to me,” he said, and then went on. “Listen, I have an idea. My friend Katrina leads music history tours of the Valley. Maybe the two of us could go on one. I know you think we should go all modern with the concert, but I want you to see a bit of the history and the heritage I see, then see if it changes your mind any.”
Mikey was starting to feel the first stirrings of something he might even call curiosity. It couldn’t do any harm to see what this was all about, could it? He might not change his mind about what form the concert for NACA would take–in fact, he was pretty positive he wasn’t going to change his mind no matter what Luke said or what he saw on the tour–but he could at least show Luke he was willing to entertain the idea.
I’m such a hypocrite sometimes.
“Sure, sounds like a good idea,” he said with far more enthusiasm than he felt. “What time do you want to meet?”
“Well,” Luke said, “lucky for us the tour doesn’t start until the afternoon. Be there at 1.”
“Sure!” Mikey said with what he hoped was enthusiasm.
“Okay,” Luke said. “The tours usually meet at the Centre Market in Wheeling. Do you remember where it is?”
Mikey sighed very loudly and obviously into the phone.
“I know I’m not a real local like you, and I know it’s been a long time since I was back here but yes, I do remember where Centre Market is.” He waited a beat. “Smartass.”
