Falling for Forever (Before Forever)

by Melissa Chambers

  We stop kissing and start hugging, and he lifts me up and spins me around, my skirt flying up all around us. He sets me down and puts his forehead against mine. “I love you for so many reasons. I love that you’re brave and bold and won’t take an ounce of shit from me. I love that you teach me stuff about myself when you’re not even trying. I even love your taste in music.”

  I laugh, my heart so huge it’s getting ready to lift us both up like a hot air balloon.

  His expression turns serious again. “You make everything interesting. I don’t always like what you say and do, but I’m never bored, and it’s like when I’m not with you, I’m not all there…or something. I don’t know. It’s like there was life before you, and now there’s life with you, and the idea of a world without you here with me doesn’t seem real anymore.”

  My heart soars like it’s floating away on a magic carpet. I brush a tear away from my eye with the back of my hand and then throw my arms around him. “I love you, too, you huge dork.” He lifts me into his arms, and we walk off the stage. But as soon as he sets me down, Barclay is there gathering us all for the curtain call. We’re all shoved into the order that we performed, and I turn around and wave at Miles and Shane at the end of the row.

  The Wading Birds guys lead us out, and we wave as we walk onto the stage one act at a time. We all hold hands across the stage, looking out at the lights and the mass of our friends, family, and the other kids at our school and all the younger siblings who can’t wait to be on this stage performing one day.

  We take an elaborate bow as a group and then wave good-bye.

  Chapter Thirty-Nine

  Jenna

  The guy working the door at the Glass Vortex holds up his hand. “Private party.”

  I point to his piece of paper. “I should be on your little list there. Jenna Quigley plus Dad.”

  He reviews his list and then pulls back the velvet rope.

  “I feel L.A. already,” I say.

  My dad opens the door. “I’ve got six more months to figure out how to get you to stay.”

  “Oh yeah? Well, you better come up with something really good.”

  On cue, Miles turns around and faces me with a huge smile. “Hey.”

  I go in for a hug, inhaling him for all he’s worth.

  He pulls away and holds out his hand to my dad. “Hello, Mr. Quigley.” He nods, all formal. Such a dork. A precious one, but a dork nonetheless.

  My dad shakes his hand. “Quite a performance tonight.”

  Miles nods, his face filling with color. “Yes sir.”

  My dad leans in. “That picture of me was terrifying. Was I really all that bad?”

  Miles looks at me for help, and I roll my eyes. I grab my dad’s bearded cheeks. “How could this face possibly be terrifying?”

  Nicolette, Greta, and Jasmine walk up. Nicolette puts her hands on her hips. “Okay, Jenna, so maybe you deserved to be on that stage tonight.”

  Jasmine backhands her on the arm. “Maybe? Try she deserves to win.”

  “When do you find out the winner?” my dad asks.

  “Monday at assembly,” Greta says. “The judges go to painstaking measures to decide the winner.”

  Dev and Nat walk up. “Nice job, Quigley,” Dev says. “Everyone’s talking. They were all so sure Miles was going to take it. But now…” He lifts his shoulders.

  Miles smiles at me. “She deserves to win.”

  “Everyone who performed deserves to win,” I say.

  They all give their agreement to that.

  “I noticed the production of the show went off smoothly,” I say in Nat’s direction.

  He takes a bow. “You’re so welcome.” He glares at Miles. “I’d say the day was perfect if my mom hadn’t somehow found out about the monitor I broke. I’ve got to figure out how to pay for it now.”

  Dev holds up a finger. “It’s called work. You get money for it. It’s this new concept.”

  Nat scowls at him.

  Shane walks through the door looking around like he’s never seen the place before. I imagine he hasn’t.

  Miles holds out his hand. “Phenomenal performance, dude.”

  Shane shakes it, keeping his eye on Miles. “I could have guessed a million things, and I wouldn’t have figured out what you were doing.”

  Miles shrugs. “Would it have mattered if you had?”

  “Just would have intimidated me even further.”

  “Ugh,” Nat says. “These two and their mutual respect.”

  “I know, right?” I say.

  “Hey,” my dad says, and I turn around to find Chloe and Landon walking in.

  “Oh my god!” I shout and then wrap my arms around Landon. “Are you alive?”

  He smiles. “Always so dramatic. It was just a little bump.”

  Shane points at him. “Is this Landon?”

  “Yes. Landon, this is Shane.”

  Landon nods. “The friend, right?”

  “Yeah.”

  Landon leans in to him. “Trust me, you made the right decision.”

  I hit him a million times on the chest, and Chloe giggles. I put my arm around her. “And this is Chloe.”

  “Ah,” Shane says. “The best friend. My competition.”

  I hug her to me hard. “She wins. Hands down.”

  I turn to Miles, and he looks a little nervous, his Adam’s apple shifting as he swallows. I hold out my hand. “And this is Miles…the boyfriend.”

  Landon offers his hand. “May God be with you.”

  I introduce the rest of the crew and then Kelly gathers us all to eat. After we’ve danced for days, eaten cake, and drank sparkling cider from champagne glasses, Miles pulls me to the side and puts his hands on my waist. “I’m not going to Belmont.”

  I lower my chin. “Really? Why?”

  “What happened last night…that was a good thing. I mean…it wasn’t, but it helped me see something. I can’t live my life for anyone but me. And you’ve helped me see that I can’t stay in Nashville because it’s comfortable or safe. I need to get uncomfortable.”

  My heartbeat speeds up. “Oh yeah? Exactly where are you planning to get uncomfortable?”

  He shrugs. “I don’t know yet. But I’m putting in a lot of applications. Curtis, Manhattan School of Music, San Francisco Conservatory of Music…USC.”

  I perk up. “As in University of Southern California?”

  He nods. “But I’m not guaranteeing I’m going to go there. I’ll see where I can get accepted, really study the programs at all the schools, and make sure I’m going to the right school for me.”

  I nod, grinning like a madwoman. “Yes, definitely. I wouldn’t want it any other way.”

  He grins back at me.

  I look over to where his mom and dad are dancing together to a slow song. “What does your dad think?”

  He shrugs. “Couldn’t be worse than what he already thinks about Belmont. And besides, my mom’s got my back.”

  “And she has him wrapped around her little finger,” I add.

  He nods. “Pretty much.” His expression turns serious. “How about you? How are you doing?”

  I inhale a deep breath. “I’m good. I’m not going to lie, it’s not been a fun week, but I got through it, and so did my dad. We actually got our apartment fixed up today. I think this is going to be good for us. A new apartment. A new start.”

  He smiles. “Yeah. Sounds like a plan.”

  I take his hand and pull away from him, swinging out and letting him spin me around. “So, Miles Cleveland, we’ve been building toward something for a couple of months now. Focusing on this competition, exercising tremendous restraint.”

  He shifts his gaze around, making sure nobody’s listening. “Mmm-hmm.”

  “But now that this competition is over and out of the way, I’m thinking we can…”

  I waggle my eyebrows, and he smiles, his cheeks coloring. He’s so cute, and I’m so freaking crazy about him.

  “I can�
�t imagine anything or anyone I’d rather do more,” he says.

  Now my cheeks are all hot. Oh my gosh. I’m so screwed…literally.

  “Then it’s settled.” I take his hands and lower my chin, all serious. “Miles, on this special night, when everyone leaves and it’s just the two of us…will you write a song with me?”

  He breaks out in a smile, running his tongue along his bottom teeth, which he knows makes me insane and is no fair.

  He nods. “One thing’s for sure. It will be anything but basic.”

  NASHVILLE’S ACADEMY OF CREATIVE ARTS PROMOTIONAL VIDEO

  Setting – Front lawn of school in front of pillars leading to entryway.

  [Jenna enters frame.]

  Hi! I’m Jenna Quigley. You might recognize me from the top ten of last season’s America’s Newest Sensation. These days, I sing in the choral program here at Nashville’s Academy of Creative Arts. In case you didn’t know, we’re a magnet school right here in downtown’s Gulch district.

  Do you love music? Do you play an instrument? Or is dancing your beat? Drawing? Painting?

  If you love any form of creative arts, we want you here! Come join us for an informational meeting and open house on January 12. Meet some of the teens who go here including…

  [Shane enters the frame with a guitar strapped across his shoulder]

  Shane McCollough, touted by Guitar Universe as one of the hottest high school guitarists in the country.

  [Shane hits a lick. Frame moves to Jasmine in a leotard.]

  Or meet Jasmine Littlefield, child star of Nashville’s Nutcracker production.

  [Jasmine pirouettes and poses. Frame moves to Miles, hands in pockets.]

  Or Miles Cleveland. Composer, Mashup Artist, and winner of this year’s talent contest and fifty-thousand-dollar grand prize of scholarship money to the school of his choosing.

  [Miles waves at camera awkwardly.]

  So come on down and meet our staff and our students and find out if you have what it takes to be a student of the arts! We’ll see you here!

  [Jenna points at the camera, and then waves as the others come into the frame with her.]

  JENNA’S & MILES’S MUSIC COLLIDES:

  “America’s Sweetheart” — Elle King

  “eez-eh” — Kasabian

  “Run” — AWOLNATION

  “Unapologetic Bitch” — Madonna

  “Tongues” — Joywave, KOPPS

  “Dance Like Yo Daddy” — Meghan Trainor

  “Into You” — Ariana Grande

  “High Enough” — K.Flay

  “Alice” — Pogo

  “Blue Sky” — The Allman Brothers Band

  “Wannabe” — The Spice Girls

  “The Twelve Days of Christmas” — Gary Hoey

  Did you love this Entangled Teen book? Check out more of our titles here!

  Don’t miss another book by Melissa Chambers. Sign up for the Entangled Teen newsletter here!

  Acknowledgments

  Massive thanks and hugs go to my editor, Stacy Abrams, who is so good at pointing me in the right direction. Much gratitude for your extremely hard work!

  Thank you to Heather Howland for believing in this series, for brainstorming Jenna’s story with me, and for adding the finishing editing touches. You are so in tune with YA!

  Ella Cain and Lily Davidson, thank you both for answering all my questions no matter how confusing or random they may sound!

  Holly Mathis, thank you for your input on songwriting techniques and for generally being an inspiring and profoundly interesting friend. There’s nobody on the planet I’d rather read DFW with.

  Gina Kelley, thank you for keeping me up-to-date on high school life and for being a continuous light in my life.

  Greg Howard, thank you keeping me honest and accountable on a daily basis and for getting excited about the little victories with me.

  Beth Pattillo and Cate Hart – my Venus and Serena. Thank you for keeping me writing and striving to impress you. And bless you, Beth, for feeding me delicious meals on Tuesday nights.

  Lindsey Anderson, thank you for inviting me to that first critique group meeting way back when and for continuing to be a part of my writing world.

  Jess Calla, thank you for always being the first one to ask to read my books! I treasure you, my friend.

  Collin, I’m always so proud of you. Thank you for making me laugh all the time and for constantly impressing me with your vast knowledge of all things numbers and music.

  And finally, sincere thanks goes to Jody for more things than I can name, but with regard to this book, for your music and performance expertise. You’re my sounding board, my brainstorming partner, my advisor, my one and only true love.

  About the Author

  Melissa Chambers writes contemporary novels for young, new, and actual adults. A Nashville native, she spends her days working in the music industry and her nights tapping away at her keyboard. While she’s slightly obsessed with alt rock, she leaves the guitar playing to her husband and kid. She never misses a chance to play a tennis match, listen to an audiobook, or eat a bowl of ice cream. (Rocky road, please!) She’s a member of RWA and serves as the president elect of the Music City Romance Writers.

  To stay tuned for updates on new releases and other news, please sign up for her newsletter here!

  www.melissachambers.com

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