On the roof of her apartment building, I let out a scream. If anyone had told me that a theatre thesis would be this hard, I would have… Well, I would have done it anyway, but at least I would have known beforehand to buy lots of alcohol for the nights after long sessions with my thesis advisor. Raising a glass to my lips, I let out a sigh. Bourbon and coke burned going down, but it warms my veins. It was only four pm on a Thursday, but I just spent the last four hours practicing lines, songs and dance moves with Professor Thadson. I chose Chicago for my thesis because it had equally challenging roles for acting, singing and dancing. Top that off with an extensive research paper on the relationship between crime and gender and its historical accuracy, needless to say I found it increasingly difficult to relax these last two semesters. Bourbon and coke did the trick, despite Derek's jabs about my "alcoholic tendencies."
"I only know one person who screams on rooftops while drowning herself in bourbon before 5 pm on a weekday."
I smiled. Over the years, I learned that he will always show up when I need him, even if I didn't know he's the one I need.
"I only know one person who sneaks up on someone screaming on a rooftop while drowning herself in bourbon before 5 pm on a weekday." I heard his breathy chuckle and turned around. I looked a mess, still in her dance flats, leggings and leotard, but that didn't stop him.
"You look beautiful, Case." I rolled my eyes and took another drink. "Though you are really sweaty." He walked up to me and tucked a strand behind my ear.
"Wow, Derek. You really know the way to a girl's heart. How do you do it?" Sarcasm dripped from my words.
After all the time we spent fighting in high school, I was horrified when I first learned Derek and I were going to university together. At the time, it was my worst nightmare. The first semester, we barely saw each other. We wanted to find ourselves and make our own friends, which we did. But when we came home for Christmas, the ride home together was filled with laughter and stories of our semester. He had joined the intramural hockey team and gotten into film studies. I was surprised he didn't study something sports-related, but he said he didn't want to risk the joy he found in hockey by mixing it with work. Film was something that he wanted to put work into to create something meaningful. On the other hand, I had gotten a role in the university's production of The Laramie Project, which inspired some classmates and me to start a tradition on campus. Each semester, the theatre department puts on a production revolving around a social issue to raise awareness and collect donations based on the needs. I was surprised to hear that Derek had come to see The Laramie Project, but he simply said that he wanted to be able to tell Nora about it since she couldn't come. Over the holidays, I realized how much I missed my family. Over a few months, Edwin, Lizzie and Marti had grown into little adults, and Simon was so beautiful. My mom and George glowed over the six of us.
Our self-imposed separation ended two days into spring semester. We ran into each other in a coffee shop on campus and made plans to have dinner that night. After that, Derek and I grew closer over the next three and a half years. After freshman year, I found an apartment a few blocks away from campus. There was another apartment two floors down that Derek moved into. We had dinner a few nights a week. We had our more than our fair share of drunken clubbing, only to get waffles the next morning. When he had to do a documentary project sophomore year, he did it on the theatre department's Social Awareness Theatre. We would coop up in either one's apartment during mid-terms and finals to help each other study and binge on various take-out. To impress a girl named Annie, I taught him how to quickstep. He was camera man for my audition tapes. It just made sense. We're the only family we have here at Queens, and nobody understands me better than Derek. He's not perfect but without all the pressure of who he was back home, he's quieter. He doesn't have to impress anyone anymore. And I think, even though he's never said it, that when Derek needs someone who make assumptions about him, he's glad I'm only a few floors away.
"Well, I have had lots of practice." He smirked. As great as he is to me, he's still an egotistical womanizing jerk. And I'm still a crazy shrieking control freak. That will never change.
"You're gross," I grimaced.
"Yeah, but I'm still cuter than you." He took my glass and took a sip. "Jesus, Case. Did you want any coke with your bourbon?" He frowned and gave the glass back to me.
"It's not my fault you're lilly-livered. Literally." I stuck my tongue out at him. He came at me but I danced away, shaking my hips to the edge of the roof. I turned around to face the sky again. The sun was coming down slowly. It was low enough to glance of the buildings, making the skyline into diamonds. I could feel Derek's body heat behind me, and I knew what he was going to say.
"Let's go for a drive." Turning around, I looked into his eyes and nodded. Twining our fingers, we bypassed going inside and climbed down the rickety fire escape. For one of my audition tapes, Derek suggested I dance on the fire escape. Ever since, the fire escape had been special to me.
Derek jumped down first; I clenched my eyes shut and let myself drop into his arms. Leaning into him a little longer than necessary, his arms were tight around me. Soft half curls brushed my cheek as he pulled away from me and I took his arm instead. He was wearing his signature leather jacket and blue jeans. I have no doubt we looked very strange: the boy in leather gentlemanly opening the car door for the girl in the blue leotard.
Merging onto the highway a few minutes later, Derek turned and grinned at me before pushing past the speed limit. Rolling down my window, I pulled my hair down and laughed. Wind tore past my face, biting my cheeks and tangling my hair. We flew past the limits of the city, the road becoming one lane. The hills rising before us hid the gold being laid over the earth and I shivered. Derek slowed down so that he could grab my hand and hold it over the stick shift. Reaching the top of the hill, the sky looked painted on. Pink clouds sat on a sea of blue and orange, purple dancing off in the distance.
I leaned over and turned on the stereo, not really caring what was going to play. The end of Eric Clapton's "Cocaine" played through the speakers. With the sky looming before us like a treasure to be collected, the beginning chords of "Wonderful Tonight" fill the car. I've always loved this song. Mom danced to this song at her high school prom, and it played at her and George's wedding. This has always been my idea of how a man should talk when he's in love.
Derek slowed the car even more, crawling past the trees as the sky is overtaken with blue and the sun says its final goodbyes. Clapton's words float around us.
I feel wonderful because I see
The love light in your eyes
And the wonder of it all
Is that you just don't realize how much I love you
"This road goes on for miles," Derek whispers. I look over at him and his eyes catch mine. He doesn't need a reply. There's no reason to complicate this with words. The lights of the next town glow below us, and that's enough.
And my darling, you were wonderful tonight