After getting off the bus and walking three blocks to the concert venue, Lia felt a thrill! A long line of concertgoers had already formed, other kids in their Levis, torn T-shirts, vintage dresses, dyed hair, and devil-may-care posturing. X was playing and it was going to be big!
She shuffled up to the end of the line with the stance of someone who didn’t want to be noticed, who only wished to blend in as though she were camouflaged. She clutched the journal tight inside her hand and threw back her shoulders, distinguished from the crowd by the loftiness of her mission, like a clergyman clutching a bible. While holding out hope about Ryan up until the final moment, Lia had worked furiously to complete the book for Exene—the same book Ryan had abandoned and Mrs. Green had nearly cast to t
