I told myself the empty seat meant nothing, which would have been more convincing if I hadn't looked at it at least four times in the photograph. The championship results had been announced hours ago. I had advanced with one of the highest scores in my group, my mother had already called half our relatives, and Mr. Ferris had spent breakfast discussing the next stage as though I might forget I'd qualified if he stopped reminding me. There were plenty of things I should have been thinking about. Instead, while everyone else packed for the trip back to Westbrook, I sat on the edge of the hotel bed looking at the picture from the auditorium. I knew Luca couldn't have been there. His game had started while I was competing, scouts had come specifically to watch him, and his father had planned h
