Okay so. This started off as a one-shot and then totally spiralled out of control. I've got three chapters written so far, but I'm not going to update it unless I feel like I get a great response and it's worth continuing. Plus the chapters are really long so they take a while to write.
I like it, to be honest. I was going to wait until I finished Geek Chic to post it, but I want to know if it's going to go down well before I write much more so I'm going to publish this first chapter and get some feedback.
Please review, because if I don't get many reviews I won't be continuing because I really need some feedback regarding the plot and where I could go with it :)
Thank you, love you!
Enjoy!
Chapter 1
Ally Dawson sighed loudly as, yet again, the small digital wall clock in the kitchen reached 24:00 and there was no sign of her mother. Not surprising. Not at all. But still, Lester Dawson shook his head dejectedly, avoiding his daughter's gaze so that she wouldn't see the tears in his.
"I'm sorry, Ally-gator. I guess she missed Christmas again." He muttered, shuffling around the island to engulf her in a bear hug. She leant her head on his chest and sobbed silent tears into his shirt, wondering why they even bothered anymore. Every year they did this; sat around the counter in the kitchen until Christmas Day was officially over, waiting for the moment that Dianna Dawson would walk through that front door, all smiles and bearing gifts.
Or even without gifts. Ally didn't care, really. She just wanted her mom.
But it never happened. Every year, they reached midnight and there was still no sign of the woman. And every year, Ally would make a silent promise that it would be the last. That next year, she'd just go to bed. Finally break the ever-ending cycle that only succeeded in causing them pain. But every year she would break that promise, because her dad would never make a promise like that, not even to himself, and she would never leave him alone with his heartbreak on Christmas. She was all he had left; she would never, ever make him feel like she was abandoning him as well.
"Ally, are you okay? Do you want to go to bed?" he asked, pulling away and searching her face. She shrugged. It didn't matter to her; sleeping wouldn't erase the pain, or the anger, or the constant 'why?' running through her mind.
"I don't mind. I'm not tired. We should open our presents; Christmas day is over and we haven't touched them." She pointed out. He rubbed his face and nodded.
"Yeah, you're right." He agreed and led her into the lounge. He took a seat on the couch while Ally sat cross-legged on the floor, the same way they had sat every year of Ally's life for the present-opening ceremony. Only, for the past eight years, there'd been someone missing from the other side of the couch, and for the past seven there'd been a certain excited buzz missing from the atmosphere.
Opening Christmas presents had become a chore in the Dawson household. No longer something they looked forward to. But not something they dreaded. Just another thing that had to be done, but they would never enjoy it, not really. They appreciated the gifts, of course. But opening presents is something supposed to be done as a family. A whole family.
You see, ten years and six months ago, Dianna Dawson was finally offered the recording contract that she'd been dreaming of all her life, and it seemed like things couldn't get any better for her and her family. Then, nine years and seven months ago she had released her first single, Dreaming of Something You, which shot straight to the top of the charts and launched her into stardom, earning thousands and things were even better. Nine years and one month, her first album, Dreams and Clouds, became an international success and launched her into superstardom, but by now she was always busy, hardly at home, and there was something significantly wrong in the Dawson years and four months ago, she had set off on her first world tour, leaving behind her family and friends, leaving behind a hold the size of Jupiter in the large house the family had bought after the success of her first single. And eight years ago exactly, she had, for the first time ever, missed Christmas. Something, as an unspoken rule in the Dawson home, you never did.
And neither her husband nor her daughter had seen her since.
Well, that's not strictly true. They had seen her; on TV, album covers in the stores, face plastered all over commercials, and even in person a couple times at the concerts they had attended every few months as an unacknowledged show of support for the woman who had so callously thrown them aside when offered a better deal.
And Ally knew that was what happened. Lester, she worried, still deluded himself into thinking she was just busy, that she'd be back some day. That she was still monogamous. That she still loved them. But Ally knew better. She knew that Dianna probably didn't spare a thought for the man and child she was supposed to love all her life. And she knew, from the stories and photos in all the tabloids and newspapers, that the woman certainly wasn't faithful to her father. But if denial helped her dad deal with the heartbreak, she wasn't about to ruin it for him.
She knew, though, that Dianna was never coming back. But still, every year, she waited for her. Because despite everything she knew, on the inside she was still a little girl who missed her mom.
That year she received a few books and movies from random family members, (none, coincidentally, from anyone on her mother's side of the family), some clothes and beauty products from her friends, a necklace from her boyfriend and from her father some money for driving lessons and two tickets to the Rihanna concert next month.
Her breath hitched when she read the label on this present. Her father was a truly terrible present-wrapper, which was why she usually ended up wrapping all the presents for other people. But he always wrapped hers personally. He'd put the money and the tickets together and hastily taped a label on the side.
To: Ally-Gator
Love: Mom and Dad x
That he still signed it from Dianna as well after all these years made Ally angry, no, furious. Not at him, at her. For leaving, and for being there in the first place. For making him love her so much that he still waited for her every Christmas after ten fucking years.
"I have to go, dad." She got to her feet, stumbling slightly, and stormed out of the room. Lester sighed, but didn't try to follow her. This happened every year. She'd open her present from him and then re-read the label, sit there in silence for a minute or so and then suddenly get up and storm off. Sometimes she'd run to her room, sometimes go out to the garden, sometimes she'd even leave the house and walk around the block once or twice. He knew why; he knew exactly how much it got to her to see that small word on the label.
But he couldn't bring himself not to write it.
…
It wasn't until New Years that Ally realised the significance of the concert tickets. She hadn't questioned her father, just thanked him profusely, (the day after, obviously, once she had cooled down and choked out an apology for her behaviour), but she'd been immensely confused. She liked Rihanna, but not really enough to go to a concert. She hoped she hadn't accidentally given her father the impression that she was a huge fan and wanted the tickets, but then again, she would rather he thought that than knew she didn't really like her present all that much.
But then came New Year's Eve and she was with her best friend Trish , Trish's boyfriend Dez and her boyfriend Dallas at Cassidy Johnson's house for the party that she hosted every year to celebrate that she found out the real reason behind the gift.
"Oh, Dallas, I forgot to ask. Dad got me tickets to Rihanna for Christmas on the twentieth; you wanna go?" she asked him between kisses. They'd snuck outside fifteen minutes ago when Dallas started complaining of a headache and had been sharing slightly heated kisses ever since. He frowned, thinking, then shook his head, looking apologetic.
"I can't, Ally. I'm going to see Dianna D with Trish and Dez, remember? We invited you, but you didn't want to…." He looked concerned at the look of shock on her face as it hit her.
Of course. Nobody knew that 'Dianna D' (as she now went by) was Ally's mother. When asked, Ally just said she left when she was little and most people, even her best friends and boyfriend, didn't pry. So when they had invited her to the concert, she had no right to be angry at them for the insensitivity. But she'd still been pissed, though she knew they hadn't really done anything wrong. So she blamed her anger at the suggestion on a deep-rooted hatred for Dianna D and her music, and her friends had seemed to buy it.
But then, of course, she'd told her father all about it, and of course, he had only gone and searched for concerts on the same night. She almost started sobbing at the hidden message; it was like he was giving her his blessing to move on. Telling her to stick it to the woman. Ally had stopped going to her mother's concerts about two years previously, but her father still went to any one that he could. And Ally always stayed home on those nights, waiting for him to get in so that she could comfort him when he came home in tears.
But this time, he was telling her to go out. Go to another concert.
Stop letting her mother ruin her life.
But the whole epiphany/moment of clarity was soured slightly by the knowledge that, no matter where Ally was, her father would still be at the Dianna D concert. Still be watching his wife (Dianna hadn't even contacted them for a divorce; almost as if she'd forgotten her husband) as she went on with her new, glamorous life without him.
"Right, sorry, I forgot. Don't worry about it. I'll go on my own." She sighed. Dallas frowned.
"I still don't get why you hate Dianna D so much."
"I just do. Can you let it go please?" she snapped, harsher than she intended. Dallas looked hurt, pushing her away when she tried to kiss him again.
"Right, sorry. I forgot that the mention of her name is enough to send you into super-bitch mode." He hissed. She winced, and then took a deep breath.
"Sorry, baby. I just…I can't explain it. I just never liked her, and I never will. I'm sick of people asking me why. It's like she's some kind of God. Even Dianna D can't be loved by everyone."
"I know. Sorry, Als. I shouldn't keep asking. Look, go to your Rihanna concert, have fun, okay? I wish I could go, but you know how long I saved up for this ticket, and it's non-refundable…"
"I know, Dal, don't be stupid. I'd never ask you to change your plans for me." She reassured him, smiling and kissing him on the cheek.
"Okay. Thank you." He kissed her again and they stayed like this for another half an hour or so before Trish and Dez found them and they all decided to go home. The party was lame anyway.
When she got home, she found her dad in the lounge, watching some documentary about fish or dogs. She didn't really pay attention.
"Hey, dad."
"Hi, sweetie. How was the party?" he asked, pausing the TV for a moment. She shrugged.
"Okay. Kind of lame, but I was with Dallas and Trish and Dez so it didn't completely suck. Actually, I invited Dallas to go see Rihanna with me." She said nonchalantly. Lester's eyes widened almost imperceptibly, but his expression remained neutral.
"And?"
"He's busy."
"Ah. Are you going to go anyway?" he asked, and they both stayed silent for a moment. He wanted her to say yes, she knew. But she also knew that he would be a little hurt if she did. It would be, to him, yet another sign of her moving on from her mother while he was still in the same place he had been that first Christmas. Eventually she let out the breath she didn't realise she'd been holding.
"Yes. Yeah, I'm going." She nodded, as if to emphasize her point. He smiled.
"Good."
"Yeah, good. I'm going to bed, dad. See you in the morning." She kissed him on the cheek and headed upstairs.
"Probably not, Ally-gator. I picked up an early shift at work. Hope you don't mind."
"Not at all, dad. But you should cut back; you work too much lately."
"Well, it's not like I have a lot else to do."
Ally sighed. Some people turned to alcohol or drugs when they lost someone. Not Lester Dawson. No, he became addicted to work, instead.
…
January passed slowly, in a blur of school-homework-weekend, until the twentieth finally rolled around. Strangely enough, Ally found herself incredibly nervous, and her stomach was doing somersaults as her dad pulled up outside the arena. He glanced back at her and smiled.
"You gonna be alright, sweetie?" he asked, concerned, but not willing to offer to go with her. He wouldn't miss Dianna's concert, not for anything. Knowing this full well, she nodded and smiled.
"Don't worry about me, daddy. I'll be fine." And with that she climbed out of the car and nervously made her way into the building.
This was the first concert Ally had been to since she stopped going to Dianna's, but as soon as she stepped inside she got caught up in the all-too-familiar crowds and sense of excitement and anticipation.
She was waiting with everyone else, but standing slightly apart from the masses, careful not to lose her place in line. A few people shot her funny looks, which was fair enough; it was rather unusual to go to a concert alone. But, she reminded herself, it's not like she was actually there for the concert, so what did it matter?
"Oh my Gosh, no way! Sydney? Is that you?" her head snapped up at the loud voice from in front of her, curious as to who this guy was referring to with his rather over-enthusiastic greeting. She was quite surprised, of course, when her gaze met someone else's and she realised that this guy was talking to her. "I don't believe it! And to run into you here, of all places!" he grinned ecstatically and she found herself glancing from side to side, to make sure she wasn't mistaken; but no, there was no doubt about it. This guy was definitely talking to her.
She was even further convinced of this when they guy stepped closer to her and threw an arm around her shoulders. It was then that she noticed he smelled good. Like, really good. There was a slight hint of cologne, but a much stronger scent of saltwater and grass and something that she could only describe as blond. No joke, the guy smelled blond.
Looking up at him in surprise, she couldn't help but notice that he was pretty damn hot, too. And the bleach blonde mop on top of his head explained the smell. Well, as much as anything can explain how someone can smell like a hair colour…
"Um, I'm sorry, I think you've got the wrong person." She muttered quietly, trying to subtly wriggle out of his embrace. He just shook his head and held tighter. She was beginning to feel uncomfortable.
"No, I'm pretty sure I've got the right one." He retorted, and she opened her mouth to sternly send him packing, but then his mouth was by her ear. "Just play along, yeah? You looked lonely and there's a couple skeeve's back there eyeballing you, and I figured they wouldn't try anything if I was with you."
She glanced over in the direction he pointed and saw that he was right. Only, it was less 'a couple' and more like 'a group'. There were about seven of them, piercings and tattoos galore, and they were all staring right at her. She felt a sudden rush of gratitude towards this random stranger, and beamed up at him.
"Oh, yes, of course! You're Danny, right?" she said the first name that popped into her head, and he nodded enthusiastically, putting on a show. She had to fight laughter as they continued their conversation, catching up and sharing memories about a camp they'd never been to, laughing and eye-rolling about people they'd never met, and just, for a little while, pretending to be two people that didn't exist.
It was twenty-five minutes later that the doors were finally opened and people started pouring into the arena. They were both standing and, feeling a rush of courage completely alien to her, she linked hands with the stranger and tugged him forwards and the two of them pushed and shoved their way to the very front, grinning maniacally at each other and ignoring the shouts and curses directed at them.
"So, Sydney…are you looking forward to the concert?" he asked, smiling. She suddenly found herself feeling nervous again; previously their conversation had been complete and utter nonsense, and that was easy. But now they were veering off-course, into actual real conversation, which scared her. Still, she smiled and answered him honestly.
"Nope, not at all." She shrugged. He looked surprised, and then confused.
"Right. Okay. Um…are you joking or…?" he asked, frowning. She laughed, shaking her head.
"No, I'm genuinely not looking forward to it. I mean, I don't really care. I don't like Rihanna that much, to be honest." She explained. He just looked even more confused.
"Okay, so…are you here to pull?"
"Excuse me?"
"Are you here to pull?"
"Pull what?"
"You know…guys?"
"Um…is that an innuendo?" she looked suspicious, stepping away from him slightly. He chuckled and rolled his eyes.
"No, I mean…are you here to pick up guys?" he rephrased his question and she seemed to understand him this time, because her eyes widened and she shook her head vigorously.
"Oh, no, not at all!" she assured him, relaxing and stepping closer to him again. There was a sudden surge from behind them and suddenly everyone was pressed a little tighter together and the lights dimmed a little.
"Oh, I think the place is almost full. The opening act should be on in a minute." He said coolly, smiling. She just nodded, trying desperately to control her racing heart as the sudden movement of the crowd forced the two of them closer together. Sure, the guy was attractive, but really. She had a boyfriend; now was not the time to get all sweaty over a guy whose name she didn't know. Unless it really was Danny. She'd be majorly impressed with herself if it was.
They chatted a little more, until the noise of the crowd got too loud, and danced along with everyone else to the opening act that most people seemed to recognise but her. Then, finally, Rihanna came on. And suddenly Ally found herself incredibly glad to be there.
And no, it had nothing to do with the fact that 'Danny' had grabbed her hand and didn't let go throughout the whole concert.
…
"Wow. That was…"
"Amazing!" Ally finished his sentence, grinning, and he glanced over, eyebrows raised.
"I thought you didn't like Rihanna?"
"I don't. But I knew most of the songs, and…I don't know, it's the atmosphere, mostly. I've missed it. I haven't been to a concert for a long time." She shrugged and he looked surprised.
"Really? Why not?"
"Well, I used to go all the time, but eventually I got sick of it and stopped." She looked a little sad and he patted her shoulder.
"How could you get bored? You just said you love the atmosphere…" he pressed, and she froze up. She'd momentarily forgotten that she was talking to someone who didn't know her full story, but now that she remembered she clammed up.
"It's a long story. Can we talk about something else please?" she met his gaze, eyes pleading, and he nodded, though she could tell he was dying to ask more questions.
"Sure, anything. How are you getting home?" he asked.
"My dad's picking me up in about…twenty minutes." She sighed, glancing at her watch and realising she still had so long to wait.
"Okay then. Come on, let's go find somewhere to sit down." He gestured towards a low wall a few metres away and she nodded, following him over there.
"Don't you have to go?" she asked. He shrugged.
"I've got my car, and my parents aren't expecting me. I told them I might be late. Besides, it's gonna be hell getting out with all these cars. What's twenty minutes on top of the hour it'll take just to get out of the parking lot?" he shrugged. She frowned.
"Well, where do you live? If you're nearby, I'm sure my dad can give you a lift and you could just come pick your car up tomorrow?" she offered. He narrowed his eyes in mock suspicion.
"Is this just a ploy to get my address so you can stalk me?" he asked. She threw her head back and roared with laughter, shaking her head vehemently.
"Of course not! I'm a good girl, honest!"
"Hmm…okay. If you're sure you're not going to stalk me…I understand that I'm pretty hot and all, but…"
"Oh shut up, cocky, before I retract my offer." She rolled her eyes, making him chuckle.
"Okay. I live about fifteen minutes away, on Whitehaven Lane, near the mall…" he described and she nodded, smiling.
"I know the place! It's only a couple minutes out of the way, I'm sure my dad won't mind at all. I live about twenty minutes away from there, near the beach."
"That's cool, thank you. I'd really appreciate it if your dad doesn't mind…"
"He won't, not at all. Especially if I tell him about how you saved me from a group of creeps." She pointed out. He chuckled.
"True. I'm a bit of a hero, aren't I?" he joked. She nodded, meeting his gaze, and suddenly the jokey mood was gone and they just stayed there, looking into each other's eyes for what felt like seconds but must have been much longer because suddenly they heard a loud honk and jumped. Ally would have fallen backwards off the wall if it wasn't for Danny's hand on her back, helping her to regain her balance. She glared at the car that had pulled up in front of them, about to yell at the jerk, but she recognised it as her dad's car and grinned, grabbing Danny's hand and pulling him towards the car.
"Hey, dad!" she greeted him brightly as she yanked open the passenger side door. He smiled in greeting, before looking bemusedly at the boy stood behind her, twiddling his thumbs awkwardly.
"Hey, sweetie. Who's this?" he asked, nodding at Danny. She smiled.
"This is my friend, Danny. He lives on Whitehaven road, and his car is in the parking lot. I said you'd probably give him a lift, so that he doesn't have to wait forever to get out, and he can pick up his car tomorrow…is that okay?" she asked. Lester nodded, smiling, albeit a little warily.
"Sure, I guess I can do that."
"Great, thanks Daddy!" she leant over to kiss his cheek and then shut the passenger door. She clambered into the backseat and Danny followed her.
"Thank you, um…"
"Lester."
"Right, thanks Lester." He smiled gratefully at Ally's father as he buckled his seatbelt. Ally grinned at him.
"So, Danny, are you-" she stopped as he burst out laughing, shaking his head. "What's so funny?"
"I totally forgot! My name's not Danny, Sydney." He informed her. Her jaw dropped as she realised that she'd forgotten too.
"Oh, yeah. And mine isn't Sydney." She added. They both laughed loudly, and Lester watched them quizzically in the rear view mirror.
"Why does he think your name is Sydney, Ally?" her father asked.
"Long story, dad." She replied, smiling at him. "Anyway, yeah. I'm Ally Dawson. You?"
"Austin. Austin Moon."
"Hmm…Austin suits you more than Danny." She noted. He laughed.
"And Ally suits you much more than Sydney. I never liked the name Sydney. I actually dislike any names that are the same as places. Like, why name your kid after a place? Especially if they've never been there. It's cool, I suppose, if that's where they were conceived or born or whatever, but…" he trailed off, puzzled by Ally's sudden uncontrollable laughter. "What?"
"Oh, Austin. Your name is a place!" she told him. He looked surprised.
"Seriously?"
"Yes, you idiot! Austin, Texas. Ring a bell?"
"Oh, shit. I never realised…That doesn't count though."
"Why not?"
"Because it was a name first."
"How could you possibly know that?" she scoffed. He shrugged.
"Just do. But, anyway, regardless, Sydney is a stupid name." he insisted. Ally nodded, agreeing, although to be honest she didn't really have an opinion. It was just a name, after all. They talked some more about names, and what names were stupid and what names were cool, until they found the car slowing down and Lester turned around to talk to them.
"We're here, Dan-Austin. Which one is yours?" he asked. Austin looked out the window and smiled.
"I live on that one on the end of the road. If you just pull up here, I'll walk the rest of the way. It's difficult to turn around when you go right down there." He said. Lester nodded and pulled onto the side of the road. Austin thanked him again and jumped out, surprised when Ally muttered something to her dad and jumped out behind him.
"I'll walk with you."
"I don't know if that's safe, Ally…you'll have to walk back alone." He frowned. Ally rolled her eyes.
"Oh, come on, my dad will be able to see me and no doubt you'll watch me from the door anyway. I'm walking you." She said stubbornly and he sighed, nodding, and threw an arm around her shoulders.
"Let's go, then." He smiled and they began strolling slowly down the street towards his house. "So, Ally. Is there any chance I could have your number?" he asked after a minute or so of comfortable silence. She smiled, relieved, and nodded.
"Yes, of course. I thought you'd never ask." She laughed, and held out her hand for his phone. He handed it over gladly, and watched as she typed in the number, stored it under the name 'Sydney ;)' and passed it back. He chuckled.
"Great. Now I'm never going to remember to call you Ally." He joked. She chuckled.
"You will. You'll see the name, and it'll make you think 'what a stupid name. Why would I get the number of someone with such a stupid name?' and then you'll remember." She explained. He nodded.
"I guess. I'll text you, then."
"Yeah, you do that." She smiled, a little sad to see that they'd already reached the little gate at the end of his garden. He noticed the spark of disappointment and smiled, glad that she felt the same as him.
"I'll see you again, Ally." He said seriously. She smiled, nodding.
"Definitely."
They stood there for a moment or two, not quite sure what to say, neither of them wanting to be the first to say goodbye. Then, completely out of nowhere, Austin leant down and kissed her quickly on the lips. She gasped, hand flying up to cover her mouth. He took that as a good sign and turned to jump over the gate and speed-walk down the path, reaching the front door and opening it, turning to wave enthusiastically. She smiled a little, but she was still reeling. He'd kissed her. Slowly, her shocked expression morphed into a wide smile and she waved back, before setting off back in the direction of the car. When she was about halfway there, she felt her phone buzz in her pocket and pulled it out quickly, hoping it was Austin.
Have fun tonight baby? X
She frowned, a little confused by the message and the nickname, before taking in the sender and freezing.
Dallas :)
Feeling numb with shock at the fact that, not only had she been kissed by another guy, but she had actually forgotten she had a boyfriend, she forced herself to keep going, opening the passenger door and jumping in, refusing to look at her dad whom, she knew, had seen the whole exchange.
"Ally…"
"I know."
"He kissed you."
"I know."
"What about Dallas?"
"I don't know."
Realising that that was all he was going to get out of her, Lester sighed and shook his head at his daughter, before pulling away from the sidewalk, turning the car around, and driving them home.
So, yeah, review if you want more! :)
Song of this chapter is: The Time of Our Lives, by Miley Cyrus