absolutely truthfully, I’ll tell you everything. Okay?”

Absynthe nodded thoughtfully. “Deal,” she said.

“Some friends from my old neighborhood, Julie and Laura, are coming to town this weekend. They’re having a punk night at an all-ages club downtown. You’re invited, too, if you want.”

Absynthe looked at her appraisingly. “Sounds like fun,” she said. With two fingers, she flicked the remains of her cigarette away. “So, do you ever listen to music recorded in, I don’t know, your lifetime?”

“Not so much,” Zoe said. She’d been so nervous about going back to school that she’d only had some toast for breakfast. Her stomach rumbled with hunger. “Do you want to get some lunch?”

“Sounds good,” said Absynthe.

Zoe stood up and said, “I guess I don’t know that much about any new bands.”

Absynthe smiled one of her big feral smiles and looped her arm in Zoe’s. “Will you let me play you some? As much as I love old-school punk, living in the past is kind of a dead end, don’t you think?”

“Yeah, I do,” said Zoe. “I’d really like to hear something new.”