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head.   She didn’t like
wearing dresses when she covered concerts because she needed to be able to move
around without restriction, especially if she was taking pictures.  
    She walked over to the small desk where her bag was sitting, took
her notepad and a pen and slid them into the back pocket of her jeans. She
slung her camera bag over her shoulder and glanced at the time on her phone
again just as it rang.
    “Are you drinking yet?” Raven prodded the second Destiny answered.
    She rolled her eyes and sighed loudly. “I had one drink, Ray. Are
you happy?”  
    “Yes,” Raven answered, “I actually am.”
    Raven was probably more excited than anyone that Destiny had
gotten to cover the festival. Not because she was even into jazz like that, but
because she said New Orleans is the best city to get drunk in. She’d tried to
explain that she was there to work, not stumble around like a drunken tourist.
Since Raven was a middle school teacher she was forced to keep her wild side
bottled up during the school year. She planned on coming to Miami for a couple
of weeks after school got out for the summer and she was counting down the
days.
    “Are you having fun yet?” Raven was asking now.
    “Yep,” Destiny smiled, thinking of Brian. “I’ve been hanging with
Brian all afternoon. I really missed him more than I thought I did. And guess
what?” She didn't wait for her to answer. “He’s moving to Miami!”
    “What?” Raven squealed. She knew him from the many trips he took
to Tallahassee while they were all in college together.
    “I know, right?” Destiny smiled again. “The job he was
interviewing for is based in Miami, not here.”
    “And so it begins.”
    “And so what begins?” Destiny asked, wrinkling her face at Raven’s
cryptic tone.
    “Nothing, Grasshopper,” Raven sighed. “Are you guys hanging out
tonight?”
    Destiny shook her head. “No, he had to go to dinner with his new
bosses to meet some clients or something. I’m not even sure if I’ll see him
again while I’m out here.”
    “That kinda sucks,” Raven replied.
    “I know,” she frowned. “But he’s moving to Miami!”
    Raven laughed. “Shit… okay, I gotta go,” she said, suddenly
hurried. “It’s freaking Parent-Teacher night… I can’t wait until this year is over,” she sighed, irritably. “Have fun for
me.”
    “I will,” Destiny said just as quickly. She was so late.  
    After she hung up, she hurried into the bathroom and quickly put
on some eyeliner and eye shadow. Studying herself, she grabbed her blush and
lightly swept her cheeks. She put on some lip-gloss as she rushed out of the
bathroom. She did a quick sweep of the room to make sure she wasn’t forgetting
anything important and hurried out the door.

 
    *
* *
    She was drunk. Dammit. She said she wasn’t going to get drunk and
yet here she was… drunk. Well, not really all the way, totally drunk. Maybe
just a little drunk. Like, a little lot drunk. She walked down the cobblestoned
pathway of the French Quarter toward the direction of her hotel, her bag hung
securely over the front of her chest like a sash.
    The night had gone extremely well. The shows she covered were
probably the best she’d ever seen. Gabe had pretty much let her choose which
shows she was going to cover because he said he wanted the story to be as
authentic as possible. She’d mostly chosen to cover local jazz bands. She
figured she’d either already seen the bigger acts, or could see them any time.
She wanted this experience to be as authentically New Orleans as possible.
      It was so easy to get
caught up in the vibe of the city, the music, the culture, the people. From
what she could tell, she was one of the few female journalists covering the
Festival and was definitely the youngest. But at this point, she was used to
it. It made her feel good that Gabe trusted her with such a big assignment.
    She’d taken notes on the music and experienced being in the venue
with