A/N: I'm gonna give another whack at writing a full-blown Hairspray fic! This is, of course, another Peaweed fic, and I am SO HAPPY to be writing these two extensively again I can't even put it into words. Inspired by the tour cast of the musical, especially Alyssa Malgeri and Christian White.

-sigh- Guess I have to… Hairspray: not mine. Marc Shaiman's. "In the Midnight Hour" lyrics: not mine. Wilson Pickett's. I own NOTHING except a laptop, and that was a gift.

Our Lady of Sorrows

By Nor of Kiamo Ko

Chapter One:

The Punishment

"Hey, baby."

Penny felt arms slipping around her waist from behind as she closed her locker and grinned. "Hi, Seaweed."

He turned her around to face him and gave her a quick kiss on the lips. "How was your night?"

She groaned softly and held him closer to her. "Not so great."

He sighed. "Your momma yell at you again?"

"It was the usual stuff; you know, I'm such a sinner for turning against my own kind, 'God will punish you'… nothing different." Penny tried to sound nonchalant, but she could tell Seaweed wasn't buying it.

"Don't listen to her, baby," he whispered in her ear. "She'll come around eventually."

"Yeah… eventually," she replied distantly. Quickly, she tried to change the subject. "Anything going on tonight?"

Seaweed's face reverted back to its usual grin. "We're having a platter party at the record shop. You wanna come?"

She tried to make her smile look genuine. "Of course, Seaweed."

"Great! I already talked to Tracy and Link, and they're coming, too." He looked like he was about to say more, but the bell rang, signifying the two-minute warning. "My next class is on the other side of campus. I better get going." He kissed her again and headed off in the opposite direction.

Penny sighed and leaned her head on her locker. Yes, her mother had said all the usual things, but there was one part of the argument that she hadn't told Seaweed about.

"Penny Lou Pingleton, if you see that Negro boy again, I swear on God's word that I will make you sorry!"

Of course she was worried, but when she thought about it, she had to admit that being tied to her bed for a week would be better than never seeing Seaweed again. Her mother would just have to get used to it.

With that, she hurried off to her Geometry class, and arrived just before the late bell rang.

Penny couldn't remember being happier than she was right then.

Four months ago, before everything had happened with Tracy and the Corny Collins Show, she never would have guessed that she would be here, dancing at a party in a record shop on North Avenue with the love of her life. Well… trying to dance. She was still a little stiff.

"Come on, baby, loosen up a little," Seaweed urged her, placing his hands on her hips and moving them in time with the music.

She smiled shyly and tried to relax her muscles. It worked—her arms and legs felt so much less tense.

"Good girl," he encouraged her, grinning. She beamed back, grateful for his praise whether it was deserved or not.

Penny looked across the room at Tracy and Link, who hadn't taken their eyes off each other for hours, even to talk to the other people at the party. They were dancing together, of course, and appeared to be playfully trying to top each other. She chuckled and turned back to Seaweed.

There was a scratching sound on the record player, and suddenly a slower song poured out of the machine and flowed around the room, changing the mood from fast-paced and euphoric to slower and sweet.

I'm gonna wait till the midnight hour

That's when my love comes tumblin' down

I'm gonna wait till the midnight hour

When there's no one else around

Every couple in the record shop slipped closer to each other, and it wasn't long before Penny felt Seaweed wrapping her up in a warm embrace.

They swayed gently to the music, absorbing each other without saying a word. Penny wanted that moment to last forever, and maybe it might have if one unbidden (and certainly unwanted) thought hadn't broken through her happiness.

Her eyes snapped open and she pulled away from Seaweed, who by now looked very confused. "What's wrong, baby?"

"What time is it?" Penny looked frantically at the clock on the wall that read 9:30. "Oh, no, Seaweed!"

"What is it?" Seaweed crossed the room to where she was standing and took one of her hands.

"My mother gets off work at nine-thirty! She'll be home in fifteen minutes! That's not nearly enough time for me to walk back!"

Seaweed's eyes widened. He thought for a minute, and then had an idea. "Link has a car, he can drive you. I'll get him."

"Hurry!"

A moment later, Seaweed came back across the room, dragging Link by the arm and hurriedly explaining Penny's situation.

"Would you mind driving me home?" Penny asked desperately.

"Of course not! I'll get the car started." Link ran out of the record shop, Penny and Seaweed following close behind.

Penny found the car and was about to get in the passenger seat when she noticed that Seaweed was loading himself into the back. "What are you doing?"

"I'm coming with you."

"You can't! If my mother gets home before we do, and she sees you in the car, what do you think she'll do to you?"

"If your momma gets home before we do and I'm not in the car, what do you think she'll do to you?" he shot back.

"I don't care about me, Seaweed." She hugged him. "I've dealt with my mother for sixteen years. I'll be fine." With that, she gave him a fast, deep kiss and got into the car. "I love you!" she called as the '62 Plymouth drove away into the dark.

Seaweed headed back to the record shop, thinking silently, I love you, too.

Ten minutes later, Link and Penny stopped in front of the Pingleton house. "Do you think she's home?" Link asked nervously.

"She doesn't have a car, so I wouldn't know if she was." Penny slowly got out of the car.

Link leaned out the passenger window. "Are you sure you'll be okay?"

"If she's home, I'll just sneak up the fire escape. She'll never know," she assured him.

"Okay," Link said with an air of nervousness. "Call the record shop if anything goes wrong, all right?"

"I will." Link and Penny had become good friends over the last few months. She knew she could count on him on the off chance that her mother knew anything.

She heard the car rev up behind her and drive away as she slowly made her way to the side of her house. Stealthily, she climbed up the fire escape and managed to make it through her bedroom window without hurting herself.

Just as she was closing the window, her mother barged in.

"Where have you been, young lady?"

"I've been here, Mother, I swear—"

Prudy grabbed Penny by her ear with her fingernails. "I know you have not been in this house all night. I just watched you get out of your friend's car! Now tell me the truth, you disobedient little witch," she spat. "Were you with that Negro boy?"

"I was with Tracy, Mama, really!" Well, I was, she thought to herself.

"LIAR!" Prudy raised her hand, and Penny flinched… but there was no blow. Penny looked up and saw that her mother had put her hand down.

"Go to bed," Prudy snapped. "I'll deal with you in the morning." She let go of Penny's ear and stalked out.

Penny sighed and dressed for bed. I should either consider myself lucky or dead.

The next morning, Prudy was waiting for Penny at the breakfast table. "Sit," she snapped, pointing at a chair.

"Mother, if I don't leave for school soon, I'm going to be late."

"You're not going to school today. Sit."

Oh, no… Penny sat, looking warily up at her mother. Wordlessly, Prudy handed her a brochure of some kind, emblazoned with the words "Our Lady of Sorrows in South Gate" and showing a picture of three girls in plaid skirts walking in front of a large building.

"What's this?" Penny was almost afraid to ask.

"Your new school. Start packing; you're leaving tomorrow."

A/N: So... whatcha think? Feel free to say so in the form of a review. :)