At First Sight by Catherine Hapka Read Free Book Online Page B

pix from their last show down in VA.
    I sent the message. “There,” I said. “Maybe that’ll make him realize it’s really me. I bet all those other girls have never even heard of the Beast.”
    â€œYeah,” Britt said dubiously. “Unless they actually, you know, read Riley’s info page. There’s stuff about that crazy band all over it, including a link to their site and a bunch of downloads. Guess he’s really into them. But then again, nobody’s perfect.”
    Glancing back at her, I saw that she had BBB out. She was lounging on mybed, scrolling away, having clearly logged onto FB using my password. I guess that’s what I get for giving it to her. Chairman Meow, who had reappeared once again, was sitting there watching her intently, probably wondering if BBB was some kind of exotic mouse that he should attack and wrestle away from her. For his sake I hoped he didn’t try it. Britt would fight a cougar to keep BBB safe, let alone a spoiled Siamese.
    â€œOh,” I mumbled, as what Britt was saying sunk in. “Guess I never thought of that.”
    At first I felt kind of stupid. Of course. Any girl who was willing to lie like a rug about being Planetarium Girl was probably willing to put in a little research effort to make her story sound good. In fact, when I clicked back to Riley’s profile page and scrolled down a little farther, I saw that Britt was right. Several of the earlier responders had mentioned MTIAB somewhere in their posts. And when I got back to the first few alleged Planetarium Girls—the ones Riley had actually replied back to a few times—I saw that there had been a few conversations about the band. Including at least two whoclaimed that “Squid for Breakfast” was, like, their favorite song ever in the history of the universe.
    My heart sank. It seemed it might not be easy proving I was the real deal after all.
    But I quickly shrugged that off. “It doesn’t matter,” I told Britt. “He’ll realize soon enough that I’m a real fan and not a poser. The main thing is getting to know him, and him getting to know me. That’s the only way we’ll be able to tell if we’re right for each other.”
    â€œYou already know that.” Britt glanced up from BBB and waggled her eyebrows. “Love at first sight, remember? Pheromones never lie.”
    â€œWhatever.” I turned back to the screen as I heard a blip. Riley had just written back!
    Hi Lauren! Saw those pix on the blog. 2 funny! I can’t believe someone squirted Ty w/shaving cream! So great that he kept it on his head 4 the rest of the show. Those guys r a blast! So I guess ur really into the band, huh?
    I smiled. He sounded a lot friendlier already. Better yet, he sounded every bit asenthusiastic about the Beast as I was. That made him seem even cooler.
    Britt stood up and stepped closer to read over my shoulder, leaving BBB defenseless on the bed with Meow. The cat crouched down and stared at the helpless PDA with narrowed blue eyes, his long, slender gray tail twitching. But I barely spared that little drama a glance before turning my attention back to Riley’s words.
    â€œSounds like he’s a true fan,” I murmured.
    â€œWhat are you waiting for? He’s obviously hanging on your every word. So write back already!” Britt poked me in the arm.
    â€œOw!” I slapped her finger away. Then I turned back to the keyboard.
    Def. way into the Beast. I’ve been a fan ever since I first heard their demo last year. Been 2 at least 5 shows since then. They r great live! Have u been?
    â€œAren’t you going to talk about anything but that wacked-out band?” Britt complained. “You should try saying something romantic. Maybe tell him how cutehe looks in his profile pic. Or remind him how sexy his manly arms felt when he held you at the planetarium.”
    â€œYeah, right.” I rolled my