Disclaimer: I own nothing except the writer's block that haunted me FOREVER.
A/N: IT'S FINALLY HERE. I'M SO SO SO SORRY. And I know the song I chose is not your typical high school graduation song, but it can be one if you look at it from the right angle. I was lucky enough to find that angle and finally break through my writer's block! However, the next chapter is going to be wayyy better; man you guys are gonna LOVE it. ;)
This is also very appropriate, considering I recently graduated high school myself. I look back on all four years (not to mention the twelve years in the same small town), all my friends, the mistakes I made and achievements I accomplished, and there is absolutely nothing that I would change. :) Gah, I'm gonna start crying if I don't move onto the story! Gahh here we go. :') (As always, the chipmunked version of this song is in my profile!)
*I apologize for the weird breaks in the lyrics. I guess even ff is mad at me for not having updated in so long. :/
Chapter Three: Like a Skyscraper
~*~ Nine Months Later ~*~
"ALVIN! C'mon Alvin, let's go! We're going to be late if you don't get your furry butt out of bed!" Simon exclaimed to his still-sleeping sibling as he burst open Alvin's door.
"Mmrph…" Alvin groaned and rolled over in his bed.
"Alvin, need I remind you that today is graduation day, and if we're late to the practice this morning, we don't get to graduate?" Simon smugly smiled and crossed his arms, leaning back against the doorframe to watch one of his favorite spectacles – a frantic Alvin.
"SHIT!" Alvin exclaimed, wide-awake, and burst out of his bed covers. He then began rushing around the room, whipping off his pajamas and hopping on one foot as he tried to put his jeans and shirt on at the same time.
"Oh shut up," a bleary-eyed Alvin mumbled as he walked by Simon, who was chuckling at his older brother's dysfunctional methods.
"You'll never shut me up," Simon said with a smirk as he clapped Alvin on the shoulder and passed him to slide down the staircase railing.
Alvin shook his head and yawned as he trudged down the stairs, grabbed a bagel from Dave's open hand, and walked out the door. Dave smiled at his sons as they left.
"Good luck boys, and behave Alvin!" Dave yelled out the last part as Theodore shut the door to Simon's blue Kia Soul.
"This is it. This is the real thing," Simon said to himself as he straightened out his tie.
Graduation practice went off without a hitch that morning, much to Simon's surprise. Alvin walked across the stage during practice without so much as a kiss to the fake crowd, which was better than many alternatives.
Maybe Alvin is…God forbid that I jinx myself…realizing that this is a serious event, and doesn't want to do something stupid and find himself without a diploma. And maybe, just maybe, he's growing a little more mature.
"Damn Simon, lookin' sexy!" Alvin said as he walked by Simon's room and down the stairs in a flaming red suit.
…Or not…Simon moaned in his head.
After making sure that his traditional blue tie was completely straight, Simon put on his freshly ironed blue graduation gown and matching cap with a brilliant gold tassel. Theodore stepped out of his room into the hallway at the same time as Simon. Seeing the worried look on Theodore's face, Simon put a paw on his brother's shoulders before walking down the stairs.
"Are you okay, Theodore?" Simon asked quietly.
"I'm fine, just a…just a little, uh, nervous I guess," Theodore said, casting his eyes downward.
"Why? Today is the day we leave high school behind us!" Simon smiled at his little brother.
"Well, it's more of the, uh, ceremony itself…what if I do something stupid, like trip on my gown as I go to get my diploma? Or shake the superintendent's hand too hard? Or forget to shake his hand at all? Or what if - " Theodore rambled on before Simon stopped him.
"Ted, you are going to be fine. As long as you believe that you will walk across that stage with all the confidence in the world, you will; and I know you can," Simon smiled warmly.
"Yeah…yeah you're right. I can do this…right?" Theodore said confidently, faltering on the last word.
"Right," Simon said, grinning at Theodore. "Let's go get those diplomas!"
"BRITTANY! Brittany I swear to the high heavens that if you don't get your butt down here in two seconds I'm coming up there to get you!" Eleanor yelled up the stairs to the ever-fashionably late Brittany Miller.
"Yeah yeah I'm coming! Jeez, can't a girl put on her make-up in peace?" Brittany yelled back down.
"Not when we have to be at school in ten minutes so that we don't miss our own graduation!" Jeanette butted in.
"Not to mention I'm still supposed to warm-up with the choir before the ceremony starts…" Jeanette trailed off as she put on her white graduation gown over her light lilac dress.
"You are going to do beautifully, my dear," Miss Miller said. "You've been practicing since the day you found out that you were chosen to sing at graduation!"
"I know, but I'm still a little nervous! I have the lyrics down-pat, but the pitch ranges so far; I don't know how Demi Lovato does it!" Jeanette said before singing a low range of warm-up vocals yet again as she paced back and forth in front of the door.
"Jean, you'll do great. I know you will," Eleanor smiled as she put on her own white graduation gown.
"Alright, let's go! I'm all ready!" Brittany exclaimed as she clacked down the stairs in her heels and bolted out the front door, graduation cap and gown in hand.
Eleanor and her sister laughed and followed, ready for their big night.
"And now, without further ado, we have our very own Jeanette Miller singing "Skyscraper"!" The superintendent announced after the Valedictorian speech was finished.
Jeanette stood from her assigned seat and walked toward the stage with her cane that she had to continue using until her rehabilitation therapist said otherwise, where Simon was waiting with the keyboard that had been set-up at graduation practice. The school choir stood behind him in their assigned rows, and Jeanette gulped once she turned around and faced the audience. Simon gave her a smile and her hand a quick squeeze before sitting down at the keyboard. Jeanette smiled back, leaned her cane against the choir stand, and stood before the microphone; then recited the words she had practiced for so long.
"This is for those who have had someone tell them that they will never be able to accomplish anything, for those who worked hard to be where they are, and to remind my fellow classmates and friends that you are in charge of your futures. Don't ever allow anyone to tell you otherwise; stand tall and keep your ground, because you know exactly who you are."
Simon began to play at the keyboard, and Jeanette opened her mouth to sing after the first set of notes.
"Skies are crying, I am watching
Catching tear drops in my hands
Only silence, as it's ending
Like we never had a chance
Do you have to make me feel like
There's nothing left of me?
You can take everything I have
You can break everything I am
Like I'm made of glass
Like I'm made of paper
You go on and try to tear me down
I will be rising from the ground
Like a skyscraper
Like a skyscraper…"
Jeanette felt good as she belted out note after note. It felt…natural.
"…As the smoke clears, I awaken
And untangle you from me
Would it make you feel better
To watch me while I bleed?
All my windows still are broken
But I'm standing on my feet
You can take everything I have
You can break everything I am
Like I'm made of glass
Like I'm made of paper
You go on and try to tear me down
I will be rising from the ground
Like a skyscraper
Like a skyscraper
Go run, run, run
I'm gonna stay right here, watch you disappear
Yeah, oh
Go run, run, run
Yeah, it's a long way down
But I am closer to the clouds up here
You can take everything I have
You can break everything I am
Like I'm made of glass
Like I'm made of paper
Oh oh
Go on and try to tear me down
I will be rising from the ground
Like a skyscraper
Like a skyscraper…"
The chorus backed her up, and an up-and-coming sophomore vocalist ghosted Jeanette's chorus.
"…Like a skyscraper…"
Jeanette looked out on her mother, who was already dabbing at her eyes. Miss Miller knew the hidden significance of this song to Jeanette, and how important the song had been to her recovery. The school had by "chance" (or some persuasion by Jeanette's music teacher) chosen the song for graduation this year.
"…Like a skyscraper
Like a skyscraper."
Simon played the last few chords on the piano, but before he could even finish, the crowd erupted with cheers. Miss Miller, among many others, wiped tears from the moving performance. Jeanette had filled in so much emotional energy that the crowd of parents, family, and teachers felt every ounce of passion that Jeanette tried so hard to convey with just her voice.
After the cheers finally died down, the superintendent announced that they would begin handing out diplomas. It was a little while before the "M's" were called up.
"Brittany Miller!"
The eldest sister shone her brightest smile as she was given her diploma.
"Eleanor Miller!"
Eleanor shook the superintendent's hand enthusiastically and almost waltzed off the stage.
"Jeanette Miller!"
A determined Jeanette leaned her cane against the stage wall, and began taking slow steps toward the superintendent.
"What is she doing?" Alvin muttered to Simon.
Simon smiled and said, "She's being her own skyscraper."
Jeanette made it to the middle of the stage, shook the superintendent's hand as he gave her the diploma with an earnest smile, and began to walk off the stage. With each defiant step she took, she laughed to herself at all the doctors' preliminary statements saying that she may never walk again.
Soon enough, the "S's" were called and each of the Seville boys were being called.
"Alvin Seville!"
Alvin, as predicted, gave a sweeping kiss across the audience after receiving his dimploma, to which many parents chuckled in amusement and just as many of the female classmates swooned.
"Simon Seville!"
Simon walked across the stage with his head up high, and thanked the superintendent in a low whisper so that only he would hear.
"Theodore Seville!"
Theodore gulped and began taking careful steps across the stage, took his diploma and shook hands with the superintendent, and very painstakingly took step after careful step until he was back in his seat; breathing a sigh of relief.
After the "Z's" were called, the ceremony was closed in a final statement and all the graduates cheered as they threw their caps up into the air.
Simon made his way over to Jeanette after grabbing her cane from the stage, sweeping her into gentle, yet powerful kiss.
"We made it," Jeanette whispered happily into his gown as she hugged him tight.
"Yes, we did. And we have many more adventures in store for us, I can feel it," Simon said before kissing her temple. High school graduation day marked that Simon and Jeanette truly survived and could start moving onto the next chapter of their lives.
And all was right with their world…
For now.
