tect it. But she is a singer, so she would be

alian,"

Italiano?"

plied, surprise c

lora possiamo parlare

heard my name! Great, now you two can talk about me and I won't

" Richard assured her. "But how do

, remember?"

w you actually learn all

wise, how can you reall

ght of that," Richa

to pronounce the words, and they know wha

stopping suddenly and peering int

prices weren't exactly like cheap

," he

ged and open

d salads, and then five or six cooked dishes that weren't the typical café food either. Emily sugge

ave a good wine selectio

're old enough, Richa

se red?" Emily aske

at each other. The server

If she suspected otherwise,

ack at the dorm, Richard thought.

t. The server smiled knowin

ght?" Emily asked quie

said. The two girls look

t do you think?" Richard s

id, eyes flashing.

ce I can remember," he said. Richard let out a short laug

y parents had been cool l

and smiled. Show off,

and poured the wine,

y said, holdin

iends," Sa

greed. The three clinked

und. The dark wood paneling made the high-bac

eating cafeteria food in

to think about that ri

from?" Richard asked

bus, Ohio,"

hite House,

resident or someth

ght. My dad ha

live in Was

anywhere? That's wher

does h

ucts Bal

ly as if he worked in

?" Richard exclaimed, eyes al

ea

hat's really cool! His recording with Reston o

he'd never admit it," Emily said. "He ta

ce where he'd meet some incredible musicians, but the reality suddenly hit him full on. I'm sit

dismissively, as if reading his mind

"I'm sorry, of course. I didn't m

all the time." She took

d with me? Ri

out her dad," Sandra added. Emily rolled he

and decided not to bring

last bit of the wine into their glasses.

ine. Paying for the entire meal was out of the question now, although he wanted to do so out of

Richard vacillated for a moment, and then decided that he wouldn't even have

wenty down on

o's the rest of the we

gotten bubbly over the course of the second bottle. Any

every week," Sandra

at be cool?"

have like fifty dollars left for the ne

Domino's is right

ooth for two next time," E

d. "So my family doesn't have a l

teasing you," Sandra

t you some cash until you start working

front d

un," Emily sai

studying at work st

Emily

usher for co

stuck answering phones

lechers to their seats while they try t

d Richar

chard's eyes inadvertently dropped to Sandra's chest for a moment, before he caught himself and looked back

one voice than me, I'm sure. And no one will want to look d

rls gi

Emily asked. Sandra l

them for a moment

. She laughed wildly. "Maybe the whole ush

m on! Easy for you to say, Mi

t least should do

Brenda is the usher coordinator and

, one ca

glass unsteadily over

The people at the next table looked

they clinked their glasses together. Bu

me was nois

he Wexford Conservatory, she had changed her internal language, and yet her accent was as thick as the day she first stepped foot through the glass doors of the school.