~A Once and Again series~
Now and Then
Hey, welcome! This is an idea I came up with that I want to try out. The story takes place two years or so after Once and Again ended. Grace is now 18 and a freshman in college. Eli is 21. Jessie is 16. And the new edition to the happy family is baby Dominic, 1. Judy and Sam are married, but I don't know if they will even be in the story. I'm not sure what it will all concentrate on. Most likely Grace and her loves (Mr. Dimitri!/Eli maybe). I am just making it up as I go. Enjoy!!
Chapter one// Memory Drive
"Grace, don't you have to go to school today?" Rick asked as he came into the kitchen cradling crying Dominic and saw Grace sitting at the table in her pajamas.
Grace raised her eyebrows at her stepfather, "I know you have been busy with a new baby, but I graduated high school, remember? You were there."
"I know that." Rick assured her, "I meant your classes at the college."
"Oh, yeah. Well, they don't start classes with the 1st and even then my schedule is different on Mondays and Wednesdays than it is on Tuesday and.." Grace trailed off as she realized Rick wasn't listening to her anymore. He was busy trying to get Dominic to stop crying and eat some baby food. Grace wouldn't be surprised if her half brother was crying because of the baby food. He may only be one, but who ever wants to eat mushed up spinach?
"Hey, can someone drive me to school?" Jessie asked as she entered the kitchen. She walked over to the crying baby and gave him a kiss on the forehead. "What's wrong with him?"
"Nothing's wrong," Rick insisted. "He's giving up crying for any reason now. He's just doing it for the fun of it now."
Jessie shrugged, "Bye bye Dom Dom. So, Grace, will you drive me? Dad looks like he has a handful with chuckles over here."
"Sure Jessie, I just have to get my shoes." Grace began searching through the pile of shoes near the door.
"Wait, you're going like that?" Jessie looked at Grace's blue sheep covered pajamas and messy hair.
"So?" Grace asked, but self-consciously ran a hand through her hair anyways.
Jessie sighed, but looked at the clock, "Whatever. I can't be late on the first day, let's go!"
"Alright, alright," Grace found two pairs of matching sandals and walked out to her prize possession. Her beautiful red Honda. It wasn't new. But, her mom, her dad, and even Rick had chipped in to buy it for her as her graduation/18th birthday present. She loved it.
"Don't you have school today too?" Jessie asked as they began the drive towards the high school.
"No, not until the 1st." Grace didn't mind driving Jessie places as much as she used to, now that she got to use her own car. "When do you get your license?"
Jessie groaned, "I wish people would stop asking me that! They assume that since I'm 16 now, I have to have my license. It's not like they just hand you a license at 16! You have to take the test, and I don't think I'll ever take the test."
"Why not?" This was the first time Grace had heard of this. But than again she had been pretty busy working fulltime this summer. And Jessie had always been with Katie, and with the new baby.. the house had been crazy. Grace understood why Eli had moved out to his own apartment, and that had left her with her own nice garage apartment! It was almost like living in a dorm. Nah, Grace was kidding herself; it wasn't anything close to having the freedom of living in a dorm. But when push came to shove, Grace had realized her parents just didn't have enough money to pay for her college tuition and dorm fees. So, she chose to go to a two-year school and hopefully save up the money to go to a nice college for her final two years.
"I can't drive!" Jessie answered her. "My dad's trying to teach me, but I'm horrible! If I took the test right now, I think I'd fail."
"Oh," Grace said. She had pulled up at the school. "Jessie, if you want, I'll try and help you.. with the driving thing."
Jessie turned to her, "Really?"
"Yeah."
"Okay," Jessie smiled, "I just can't take any more of my dad yelling at me! 'Brake! Slow down, Jessie! Brake!'"
They laughed. "Yeah, it's not very fun to learn with your parents," Grace said.
There was a tapping at the door and Katie's face greeted them. "Thanks, Grace," Jessie climbed out of the car and she and Katie hugged. Grace watched from within as the two shared a quick kiss. She was happy they had each other. But thinking about them made Grace remember her lost chance Mr. August Dimitri. Just about the same time Jessie and Katie got together, Grace had fallen for her teacher.
Grace pulled away from the curb and instead of turning around she drove further into the parking lot. She didn't know what she was doing until she came to the section marked "Faculty". Of course, she was looking for Mr. Dimitri's car. The car she had been given a ride home a few times. The car in which August had told her that things couldn't be any more than teacher/student between them. Grace drove slowly as the words came back to her.
"I don't care about the stupid dance! I don't care about the gay- straight alliance."
And Mr. Dimitri, speaking so quiet, she barely heard, "I know you don't."
"What else do you know?"
"I know you took my book," A pause, "It was stupid of me not to just let you borrow it."
Grace had been hopeful at this point, but Dimitri had continued, "The thing is Grace, we're not friends."
"I know that."
"I mean you can't just drop by my house like that."
Grace remembers how tough it had been to speak, "I know."
"If circumstances were different, I'd like nothing more than to be your friend. I'd want you to drop by my house. I'd lend you my book of poems I wrote when I was in my twenties, which I'm now embarrassed by. I'd want you to call me August and not Mr. Dimitri and we would sit and talk for hours, but we CAN'T do that. We can't be friends."
Grace remembers how painful the tears had been and how she tried to wipe them away. "I know, I know. Just stop saying it. Please." And then the question she couldn't stop herself from asking, "So, that was your girlfriend last night?"
"And you shouldn't be asking me questions like that!"
Grace had turned away, looking out the window, crying. How hopeful she was when Dimitri had continued.
"She was my girlfriend, a long time ago, in college. Now we're just friends."
"Oh," Grace had turned and looked back at him. Their eyes had met and things had been intense. There had been so much sexual tension in the car, and Grace knew it hadn't all been on her side. All she could think of was kissing him. She had kept looking at his lips. His full soft lips.
"You better get out of the car now." His voice had been heavy.
"Why?" Grace still doesn't know where she got the courage to say that simple 'why'. If she hadn't maybe things would have ended between them right there. Their feelings would have been covered up and hidden away. They would have never kissed. Of course, they hadn't kissed that day, no. Her mother came and knocked on the window and ruined everything.
Grace realized what an idiot she must look like, driving in circles around the teacher's parking lot in her pajamas. The school bell had rung though so no one was around to see this weird event. Besides, what she was doing was hopeless. Mr. Dimitri had left the high school, after rumors had fled about the two of them. She never learned where he went. He left her here with only a kiss and a book to remember him by. Almost two years had passed since their kiss and here Grace was, still looking and hoping for him.
* * *
Now and Then
Hey, welcome! This is an idea I came up with that I want to try out. The story takes place two years or so after Once and Again ended. Grace is now 18 and a freshman in college. Eli is 21. Jessie is 16. And the new edition to the happy family is baby Dominic, 1. Judy and Sam are married, but I don't know if they will even be in the story. I'm not sure what it will all concentrate on. Most likely Grace and her loves (Mr. Dimitri!/Eli maybe). I am just making it up as I go. Enjoy!!
Chapter one// Memory Drive
"Grace, don't you have to go to school today?" Rick asked as he came into the kitchen cradling crying Dominic and saw Grace sitting at the table in her pajamas.
Grace raised her eyebrows at her stepfather, "I know you have been busy with a new baby, but I graduated high school, remember? You were there."
"I know that." Rick assured her, "I meant your classes at the college."
"Oh, yeah. Well, they don't start classes with the 1st and even then my schedule is different on Mondays and Wednesdays than it is on Tuesday and.." Grace trailed off as she realized Rick wasn't listening to her anymore. He was busy trying to get Dominic to stop crying and eat some baby food. Grace wouldn't be surprised if her half brother was crying because of the baby food. He may only be one, but who ever wants to eat mushed up spinach?
"Hey, can someone drive me to school?" Jessie asked as she entered the kitchen. She walked over to the crying baby and gave him a kiss on the forehead. "What's wrong with him?"
"Nothing's wrong," Rick insisted. "He's giving up crying for any reason now. He's just doing it for the fun of it now."
Jessie shrugged, "Bye bye Dom Dom. So, Grace, will you drive me? Dad looks like he has a handful with chuckles over here."
"Sure Jessie, I just have to get my shoes." Grace began searching through the pile of shoes near the door.
"Wait, you're going like that?" Jessie looked at Grace's blue sheep covered pajamas and messy hair.
"So?" Grace asked, but self-consciously ran a hand through her hair anyways.
Jessie sighed, but looked at the clock, "Whatever. I can't be late on the first day, let's go!"
"Alright, alright," Grace found two pairs of matching sandals and walked out to her prize possession. Her beautiful red Honda. It wasn't new. But, her mom, her dad, and even Rick had chipped in to buy it for her as her graduation/18th birthday present. She loved it.
"Don't you have school today too?" Jessie asked as they began the drive towards the high school.
"No, not until the 1st." Grace didn't mind driving Jessie places as much as she used to, now that she got to use her own car. "When do you get your license?"
Jessie groaned, "I wish people would stop asking me that! They assume that since I'm 16 now, I have to have my license. It's not like they just hand you a license at 16! You have to take the test, and I don't think I'll ever take the test."
"Why not?" This was the first time Grace had heard of this. But than again she had been pretty busy working fulltime this summer. And Jessie had always been with Katie, and with the new baby.. the house had been crazy. Grace understood why Eli had moved out to his own apartment, and that had left her with her own nice garage apartment! It was almost like living in a dorm. Nah, Grace was kidding herself; it wasn't anything close to having the freedom of living in a dorm. But when push came to shove, Grace had realized her parents just didn't have enough money to pay for her college tuition and dorm fees. So, she chose to go to a two-year school and hopefully save up the money to go to a nice college for her final two years.
"I can't drive!" Jessie answered her. "My dad's trying to teach me, but I'm horrible! If I took the test right now, I think I'd fail."
"Oh," Grace said. She had pulled up at the school. "Jessie, if you want, I'll try and help you.. with the driving thing."
Jessie turned to her, "Really?"
"Yeah."
"Okay," Jessie smiled, "I just can't take any more of my dad yelling at me! 'Brake! Slow down, Jessie! Brake!'"
They laughed. "Yeah, it's not very fun to learn with your parents," Grace said.
There was a tapping at the door and Katie's face greeted them. "Thanks, Grace," Jessie climbed out of the car and she and Katie hugged. Grace watched from within as the two shared a quick kiss. She was happy they had each other. But thinking about them made Grace remember her lost chance Mr. August Dimitri. Just about the same time Jessie and Katie got together, Grace had fallen for her teacher.
Grace pulled away from the curb and instead of turning around she drove further into the parking lot. She didn't know what she was doing until she came to the section marked "Faculty". Of course, she was looking for Mr. Dimitri's car. The car she had been given a ride home a few times. The car in which August had told her that things couldn't be any more than teacher/student between them. Grace drove slowly as the words came back to her.
"I don't care about the stupid dance! I don't care about the gay- straight alliance."
And Mr. Dimitri, speaking so quiet, she barely heard, "I know you don't."
"What else do you know?"
"I know you took my book," A pause, "It was stupid of me not to just let you borrow it."
Grace had been hopeful at this point, but Dimitri had continued, "The thing is Grace, we're not friends."
"I know that."
"I mean you can't just drop by my house like that."
Grace remembers how tough it had been to speak, "I know."
"If circumstances were different, I'd like nothing more than to be your friend. I'd want you to drop by my house. I'd lend you my book of poems I wrote when I was in my twenties, which I'm now embarrassed by. I'd want you to call me August and not Mr. Dimitri and we would sit and talk for hours, but we CAN'T do that. We can't be friends."
Grace remembers how painful the tears had been and how she tried to wipe them away. "I know, I know. Just stop saying it. Please." And then the question she couldn't stop herself from asking, "So, that was your girlfriend last night?"
"And you shouldn't be asking me questions like that!"
Grace had turned away, looking out the window, crying. How hopeful she was when Dimitri had continued.
"She was my girlfriend, a long time ago, in college. Now we're just friends."
"Oh," Grace had turned and looked back at him. Their eyes had met and things had been intense. There had been so much sexual tension in the car, and Grace knew it hadn't all been on her side. All she could think of was kissing him. She had kept looking at his lips. His full soft lips.
"You better get out of the car now." His voice had been heavy.
"Why?" Grace still doesn't know where she got the courage to say that simple 'why'. If she hadn't maybe things would have ended between them right there. Their feelings would have been covered up and hidden away. They would have never kissed. Of course, they hadn't kissed that day, no. Her mother came and knocked on the window and ruined everything.
Grace realized what an idiot she must look like, driving in circles around the teacher's parking lot in her pajamas. The school bell had rung though so no one was around to see this weird event. Besides, what she was doing was hopeless. Mr. Dimitri had left the high school, after rumors had fled about the two of them. She never learned where he went. He left her here with only a kiss and a book to remember him by. Almost two years had passed since their kiss and here Grace was, still looking and hoping for him.
* * *