Thursday's Tears
A Drake & Josh fan-fic created for the older fan (ages 17-adult)
A short story by Alison Lydon
Told in both the first and third person formats.
Lead characters:
Drake Parker & Josh Nichols
Disclaimer: I do not own the characters. No copyright infringement is intended.
Chapter 1: Thursday's TearsSpring 2005
A Thursday night
I was hungry at midnight for some cheddar cheese and crackers. Plus I wanted to
check my e-mail messages on the family computer so I wouldn't wake up my sleeping
brother. I didn't think I was gone long at all. It couldn't have been no more than twenty-
five minutes max. Even though the computer crashed when I tried making a banner in
Photoshop. I was taken aback when I came back into our room. The silence would
have been eerie if weren't for the sound of my brother crying. I wasn't sure at first.
Maybe, he was just making sounds in his sleep. But, no there he was his back to me,
clutching his pillow, and crying.
I couldn't embarrass him and make him feel more uncomfortable, as I knew this
surely would. For those same reasons I couldn't tell Mom and Dad. I quietly turned
around to concoct the "I fell asleep on the living room couch watching Ghost
Monsters." lie.
I never saw him like that before. Was this the first time he cried in bed? And not the
five-year-old tummy ache cries to Mommy but real tears. Just like I used to a few
years back. I couldn't imagine why he'd be crying. He has everything going for him. All
I know is I couldn't let on that I witnessed it. It would only humiliate him and I love him
too much for that.
Next Day: Friday
It was a typical Friday morning at the Nichols-Parker house in San Diego, California.
Mom Audrey left early because she had a meeting that she was late for and Dad Walter
left ten minutes ago because the station was doing a live feed from a busy downtown
restaurant for a contest leaving the kids to make their own breakfast.
Megan Parker, "evil" sister extraordinaire laughed as the Boob sat on a strawberry
cream pie. It was for tonight's dessert but all Megan had to do was create one of her
parent proof fibs and it'd be her brothers who would be in trouble rather than her.
"Megan! Look what you've done. Now I have strawberry butt!"
"What a Boob!" Megan took her plate of waffles into the living room.
"Nice look, Josh." Drake laughed.
"It's not funny, Drake. Now I have to change my pants. I can't be late. Mindy and I are
having a coffee before school."
"Because you love her." Drake replied making kissy-face noises between bites of his
self-made waffle cake.
"Yeah. I do!" Josh wasn't about to deny it.
"Well before you leave. Don't forget to wash the dishes. It's your turn."
"Drake! Mom said it was your turn."
He always did this.
"No. It's your turn, Josh!"
"Fine," he sighed. "I'll do the stupid dishes."
"Thanks, Brotha."
"Knuckle touch?"
Drake rolled his eyes as they knuckle touched. Megan was right. Josh was a Boob—
but a good one.
SaturdayIt was family night around the TV for the final results show of Canadian Idol. Drake was
waiting for the phone to ring to see if he made the final cut for the local talent show. He
couldn't concentrate on eating and his and Josh's special recipe of Cola and Dr. Fizz
was making his stomach nauseous.
"Megan! If you don't put down that phone. I'm going to throw a dinner roll at you!"
"Drake, don't torment your sister." Mom replied.
"We've been over this." Dad added for good measure.
Man, she had them hoodwinked.
I think I might have made too big a deal in my own head about last night. Everything
is fine and dandy.
Let's face it if something were wrong I think we'd all know about it by now.
"Oh don't tell me you are voting for Alicia." Drake tugged on Josh's arm.
"What's wrong with her?"
"She doesn't write her own music. It's obvious that Bryan should win."
"How come you aren't voting for him then?"
"Duh, Josh! I'm waiting for the phone to ring. You can vote online."
"Fine."
Drake was hoping to be a fourth-peat. Although it was going to be hard to top the cover
of The Blues Brother's "Soul Man" that he did with Josh and his band.
If he passed the final cut of the auditions then he'd be in the talent show. It didn't seem
as important as the other three. The doorbell rang and Mom asked Drake to answer it
as Josh was on the family computer racking up votes for pop-star wannabe Alicia.
"Oh, it's you, Creature." Drake said to Mindy.
"It's nice to see you, too, Drake."
Everyone said their 'hellos' and asked Mindy if she wanted to join them for dinner and
watch Canadian Idol with the family.
It looks like Josh forgot to inform everyone that he and Mindy were going to see the
astronomy exhibit at the local museum.
"Have fun you two." Mom and Dad waved goodbye to Josh and Mindy.
Drake couldn't believe it! Here he was on a Saturday night at home waiting for the
phone to ring.
Torey was supposed to be different. But she had plans with her mother and couldn't go
out on a date tonight. Drake tried to respect that she had a bond with her mother and all
that…but come on! He was Drake Parker! He wasn't supposed to be home on a
Saturday night waiting for the phone to ring! He won the talent show three years in a
row, what in the Hell was the committee waiting for? Let's face it he was the talent show!
Yet it was stepbrother Josh on yet another date with his steady and formal class rival
Mindy Crenshaw who tried to get him suspended for a stunt that she pulled by putting
Hafer's car in her classroom and trying to frame him for it.
And he was supposed to like her now because she was all lovey-dovey with Josh? No
way.
No fricking way.
SundayEverything is still fine. I'm not sure about dandy though. He sure is being extremely
moody lately. I don't understand why. It's like something in him is changing. But I
haven't heard him cry since I caught him a few night's ago.
I can't talk to him about it all. How could I? . He hates it when I talk about my problems.
It would only be embarrassing for him and me too. Plus most likely it would cause a
fight between us.
We should be doing our usual Sunday after Church routine before dinner and that is
play with the Gamesphere. But we're not. He's being all quiet and moody pretending
to watch TV on the bedroom sofa and I'm supposed to be installing the new anti-virus
software program on our computer. But all I can do is look at my brother and know that
something in his world is not quite right and there is nothing I can do about it.
MondayJosh and Mindy started eating their lunch together. It just seemed like the natural
progression in a relationship. They didn't want to share a table with anyone but
themselves. There was a small side table that became their lunch haven. Drake nodded
and said he didn't mind. After all not only did he have his girlfriend Torey, but a bunch of
friends, including his band mates, as well as his female admirers who were all waiting
for him to break up with that "Torey witch." so that they could date the one and only
Drake Parker, Belleview's coolest high school junior.
"Josh, are you okay?" asked Mindy, who Josh was amazed could study to be on the
honor roll and all of her other class activities, date him, and still find time took as fresh
and beautiful as she did in her matchy preppy ensembles from J. Crew and the Gap.
"I'm fine. Why?"
"Because you haven't touched your apple slices. And I did remember the car-mel
dipping sauce."
"You say car-mel. I say cara-mel, but whatever." Josh laughed.
But Mindy could tell. Hey she was able to put a car in a classroom and clone her own
cockapoo so she could obviously tell when Josh was upset.
"Josh, I think—" Mindy started but something else grabbed her and everyone else's
attention when Drake stood on the lunch table with his electric guitar.
"May I have your attention, PLEASE?"
"Drake?" Josh stood up but couldn't move from his spot in the cafeteria.
"What's your brother doing on top of the table?" Mindy asked
Josh's first thought was that Drake was going to be in serious trouble for just breaking
into song while standing on top one of the lunch tables. But as Josh noted a few months
ago "it was good to be Drake" (until he got a real girlfriend of his own. And then Josh
thought it was good to be just Joshie.) and sure enough what teacher could get angry
over a kid in a vintage button-down blue striped shirt, faded jeans, and rock star
approved boots who could play the guitar better than some of the college kids they saw
in the under 21 clubs? Josh knew Drake was upset over not passing the audition for the
annual talent show. They finally got back to him on Sunday night after dinner. It wasn't
because Drake was bad. It was because Drake was too good. And the committee who
judges these things thought it wasn't fair to the other kids who wanted to enter the
contest if Drake was always the winner even if it was an audience applause determining
talent show. The drummer might have been using the salt and pepper shakers as
impromptu drumsticks, but it was Drake that was the real talent.
Josh knew that it was Drake's way to show the faceless THEM that nothing was going
to stop him from being a rock and roll star someday.
Only his brother could do this and not get suspended. When you not only have your
girlfriend amazed by your talents but the Principal snapping her fingers and dancing
then you don't have to worry about any bad marks on one's record. He really knew how
to take a sad song and make it better.
Yes, it was good to be Drake.
TuesdayJosh had to work at the Premiere from five to nine tonight. Helen and the rest of the
management dropped the assistant "gold vest" manager employee incentive. But since
he started working there Josh Nichols was making an extra ten cents an hour. Wow. A
whole extra ten cents to take home in his paycheck so that he could definitely buy a new
tanning bed now. Not.
It was starting to get to him that Drake wasn't getting harped on by Mom nor Dad to find
a job. Yes, he was a talented musician and all that, but he wasn't a famous one yet and
there were no guarantees that he'd even make it big. It wasn't fair that he didn't have to
earn his own money. At least he stopped selling his personal possessions on Ebay.
Sometimes Josh was jealous of Drake, especially regarding matters of the opposite
sex. But that was pre-Mindy so it wasn't a point of contention anymore. He wished he
had Drake's good poster-boy looks, ability to play the guitar, and the smooth
confidence that he had where he could talk to just about anybody about almost anything
and not be twitchy or nervous about it like he could be. But Mindy was helping with
Josh's self-esteem a great deal and he was glad that their rivalry and short term feud
ended with them becoming more than friends. Although (and Josh could never tell
Drake about this) that he was keeping a Mindy journal to post all of his private
relationship thoughts in for his own private eyes only. He even kept it in his school locker
so Megan couldn't steal it. Granted it was just a single bound red spiral notebook from
the pharmacy, but it was still a place where he could write his secret thoughts in and not
get laughed at by anyone. He didn't even tell Mindy about the journal.
It might have been good to be Drake, but it was also awesome to be Josh.
WednesdayIt was a bright and sunny eighty-degree day and the Nichols-Parker house was having a
small pool party in their backyard. It was like a pretty picture postcard. A moderately
family sized in-ground pool and the lemon trees by the kitchen window made it look like
a page out of decorating magazine. Megan sat on her favorite lawn chair and pretended
to be reading her Highlights magazine but smiled as she looked up. She had a great
practical joke set up and couldn't wait to see results. It didn't matter which brother got it.
They were both Boobs. Walter and Audrey said the boys could invite their girlfriends if
they wanted but because tomorrow was still a school night the festivities would be over
at nine. Torey's Mom said that she had to be home at 9:30 and Mindy's Mom and Dad
didn't seem to care what hour she got home.
Josh and Mindy wanted get a team together to play volleyball before the barbeque.
"Is Drake afraid of the water?" Mindy asked in her best snark.
Drake seemed to think that he was the only one who couldn't like the other one, but
Mindy didn't exactly think highly of Drake either.
"He doesn't want to get his hair wet."
Which was why he was dressed in his jeans and yet another international football
(soccer) t-shirt with fancy team emblems. Rather than bright orange swim trunks and a
blindly matching Hawaiian inspired shirt ala Josh.
"Is that fair to Torey? I mean it's a pool party." Mindy rolled her eyes.
Couldn't Drake see that Torey was dressed in a teaberry colored one-piece? She was
there to use the pool too.
"Drake! Come on! Get in the pool! We want to play volleyball. Guys against the girls."
Those were the kind of stakes that Mindy liked. No offense to Josh, she just wanted to
cream Drake. It was the competitive nature of a girl who always beat Josh in the
science fairs.
"Come on, Drake—change into your swim trunks." Torey asked. She tried not to mind.
Besides, he did play a song for her on his acoustic guitar before, but it was ruined by
Megan's heckling.
He looked into her eyes and figured that he'd better. But God help him if he got his hair
wet.
Megan put her magazine down and stood up. How come her latest maneuver wasn't
working? The Boob (in this case Josh) should have gotten it by now!
"Josh, I hope you won't find it offensive if I say I want to beat Drake in volleyball." Mindy
said before Torey came into the pool.
Mom and Dad went back into the house to get everything ready for the picnic.
"I know Drake doesn't like you, but I thought you'd try to like him." Josh just wanted
everyone to get along.
"In the next life."
But Mindy did like Torey and they did share some girl bonding when they changed into
their swimsuits earlier by trying on lip-glosses and comparing the boys. She let Torey
keep the 'cinnamon fire' lip-gloss, because if she was going to reapply after kissing
Drake then Mindy certainly didn't want the tube back.
"I wanna play." Megan announced as she dove into the pool.
"But then it'll be three to two and that's not fair."
"Life is short, Josh. Let Megan play."
The little runt owed her fifteen dollars for shaving half of Josh's ill-fated moustache off
and she was going to collect it before she left the house tonight.
Mindy continued the eye rolling as Drake wouldn't jump in the pool and used the ladder
because he didn't want to get his hair wet. She couldn't wait to win this game and beat
his butt!
"Let's do this." Josh said as the game began.
The score was tied at 4-4. Even Megan scored a point. But she said she was tired and
wanted out of the water. Plus she wondered why her booby-trap was not working? The
parents called out that dinner was almost ready, but no one wanted to leave the pool
until the game was over.
It was up to Mindy. She could win this for herself and all of womankind. But she was at
first speechless and then quite angry when Megan proceeded to take her little yellow
sand pail and dump the contents of the pool water over Drake's head.
"She's evil. EVIL!" Josh said
"Megan! You better start running now!"
Drake pushed his hair out of his eyes.
"We're not finished playing." Mindy reminded. Gosh, why was Drake such a baby when
it came to superficial things like his own looks? Didn't he realize that he was going to
grow up wrinkled and old? It happens to everyone.
"Yeah, we are."
"Drake."
He turned around, "What?" and in spite of himself started to laugh.
"It's not the end of the world you know." Torey said
He kissed her on the cheek as Mom Audrey called the kids and their guests one last
time for dinner. They were going to have to eat inside because it looked like it was
about to rain.
When everyone was gone from sight Megan went back into the pool to carefully put her
hand in the jet. And that's when she got it with her very own washable yellow paint filled
ball.
"Darn it! I have to re-read the manual!" Megan wiped the paint from her face as she
quickly got out of the pool as she heard the sound of thunder in the sky.
Now her only goal was going through the front door and quickly taking a shower so that
no one would see that the joke was literally on her. But she was satisfied that she ruined
Drake's day and that was enough for now.
"I demand a rematch." Mindy said in the kitchen out of her swimsuit and in another
preppy outfit. This one was a pink v-neck shirt and green skirt.
"Mindy get new priorities." Drake said as he held Torey's hand under the table.
Mom and Dad were smartly eating in the living room to give the kids their privacy.
"Drake, I bet you can't even spell it."
"Mindy, Drake—do you guys have to fight?"
"No. I have new priorities." Drake replied, smiling as he continued holding Torey's hand.
ThursdayI love left over fried chicken and I knew now if I didn't have a midnight snack Megan
would scarf it for her lunch today.
She's selfish like that. How come Mom and Dad don't notice her obvious scheming
ways?
It was 11:00pm and I didn't think it would be happening again. But it was. As soon as I
came back upstairs at around 11:45 there he was his back towards me, holding onto
his pillow, and crying again. I was this close to saying something out loud this time. I
really was. But what good would come of it? He'd be embarrassed and I wouldn't really
know what to say. Does he do this every Thursday? And if so, how come I only noticed
these two times?
I don't know if I should hide in the guest room for a few hours and then worm my way
back into my own bed or if I should just be as quiet as possible and go back into my
bed right now? I'm opting for the guest room. I think I understand people and yet this
has me thrown for a loop. We all seemed to have a good time yesterday at the pool
party, despite Megan, well being Megan. So why? What is the reason that my brother
seems to cry every Thursday night when he thinks no one sees him doing it? I really
don't know what I'm going to do about it. I better sleep on it. I can't take the sound of
him crying. I hate seeing him like this.
What is the purpose behind Thursday's tears?
I don't know. But I'm going to find out.
To be continued…