Ch. 7: Rose Tint My World
"Roxanne!" My mother's voice was better than any alarm clock.
"Please don't call me that!" I all but groaned back. Seriously, how was anyone in the city awake? After everything that happened last night (granted only my friends and I knew what had taken place during the final act), I would have thought everyone in New York would want to sleep in. But, judging from the sound of large machines somewhere in Central Park, I was wrong.
"Roxy?" My mother opened the door, quite dressed up and with make-up on.
"Hmmm?" I rubbed sleep out of my eyes.
"Come on; you have to get up and get dressed. Nice clothes by the way."
"So, no fishnets?" I was joking, but Mom rolled her eyes.
"I'm sure you heard about what happened last night, Roxy." I nodded.
"Well, there was a lot of confusion, but those women who showed up turned out to be lying about a lot of what they said and the police have taken them into custody."
"Yeah, I know."
"Oh. My, I guess news travels fast. Anyway, the, er, unusual travelers and that little boy are going to be living in Central Park. They'll be our neighbors."
"Is that right?" Today was looking up.
"Yes. The mayor had a team working all through the night setting up a house, along with all the comforts of a home."
"On the house right?" I grinned, but Mom looked embarrassed. Well, side with two evil women (even if just for a little while) and wake up feeling uncomfortable.
"The point is, Roxy, is that today is going to be a kind of welcoming party for them. An all day event in the Park, so hurry up and get ready. Your sisters are nearly set and your father's downstairs." Mom left the room and, like the good little girl I am, I got up and made my bed.
Oh, the joke wasn't lost on me, not by a long shot. Mom didn't know that our new neighbors and I were already well-acquainted, so she wanted to take precautions when it came to my unique hobby. Too late.
But I decided to humor my mother. So I picked out a white sleeveless blouse and a green summer skirt. After washing my face and brushing my teeth, I put my hair up into a ponytail and picked out a pair of earrings Keith had given me for my birthday last year: a tiny pair of red lips. Fishnets were forbidden, but lips were allowed.
After everyone in the house was ready, we walked across the street to the Park, which was already crowded. My younger sisters, Katie (13), and Jenny (11) ran ahead of me and my parents walked behind me. Unbeknownst to my mother, I had slipped a little housewarming gift of my own into the bag I was carrying, but I would get to that later.
I have to admit that I was impressed at the sight of the new house, obviously crafted from the pit of the giant peach. A nice sorry-for-almost-getting-your-kid-killed present.
My parents and sisters drifted off, leaving me alone. Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted who else, but the police chief from the night before. Perfect.
"Morning, Chief," I trilled. I swear the guy jumped about a foot at the sound of my voice. Obviously, he knew who I was.
"Morning, miss, uh…"
"Roxy. Just Roxy." I grinned at him, pushing my hair behind my eras and displaying my earrings. "So, did you enjoy the show last night?"
"Well, I-"
"Oh come now, I'm sure you saw something you liked." The Chief's face was turning red as a tomato and I was just getting warmed up.
"And, as I informed one of your fellow officers, I am actually a girl, so-"
"Hey, I wasn't even there when… that happened."
"You sure?"
"Roxy!" The Chief managed to slip away as James approached me, followed by a group of kids. He looked better, having gotten a full night's sleep and wearing a new outfit.
"Morning, James. Doing well?" He nodded and turned to his friends.
"This is Roxy, the girl who helped me last night."
One of the group, a little girl with braids and glasses, smiled shyly at me.
"I like your earrings," she said. Excellent, an opening.
"Thanks. Official symbol of 'The Rocky Horror Picture Show!'"
"Are you really a Rocky Horror girl?" another little boy asked me.
"Yeah. Why?" The boy looked a bit uncomfortable.
"Well, my big brother told me that people from the Rocky Horror show are all weird and completely crazy. But you don't look crazy."
"Roxy's not crazy," James said, giving me a smile. "She's really nice and she's not weird at all."
"Rose tint my world, keep me safe from my trouble and pain," was my reply.
"What?" the little girl asked.
"Nothing. But, thanks, James, I kinda needed to hear that." I wasn't kidding about that; it was nice to know that no matter what the future held for me, there would be one family who didn't think I was a complete psycho.
I watched James and his friends run off, intent on having a good time. Well, good for him; the little guy deserved it.
As I moved through the crowd, I still got a decent number of stares, mainly from people who knew me or my family. But I ignored them, as I now had a mission to complete.
I had to search for fifteen minutes before I finally found who I was looking for. The newly-formed family was gathered on the newly-built back porch, talking to numerous people, including my own parents. Hmm, this could be fun.
"Oh," my mother said as I approached. "This is our older daughter-"
"Hey, Roxy," Centipede greeted me.
"Hi." Now, I can't be sure, but I think some one snapped a picture of my parents' faces. Gotta remember to track that person down, as I need a copy of that picture.
"Roxy was a huge help last night," Mrs. Ladybug was kind enough to tell my parents. "If it wasn't for her and the rest of her theater group, well, I don't know what we'd have done."
"Oh, you… know about Roxy's performing?" my mother asked carefully. Please, keep this up!
"Well, from what we saw, it was certainly an interesting show," Mr. Grasshopper replied with a slight chuckle. "And Roxy is an excellent performer."
""What was that dance called again?" Earthworm asked, raising his head to about the level of my shoulder.
"The Time Warp. Oh, by the way," I reached into my bag and pulled out a tape. "Thought you might like a copy of the show last night." I handed it to Centipede. "Courtesy of Sam Kendal, our tech master."
Amidst the chorus of "thank you's," I glanced at my parents once more. They looked both proud and uncomfortable and I had a feeling that any bad feelings about my participation in the Rocky Horror show were more or less gone.
But when I look back on the events of that summer, that wasn't my proudest moment. Nor was it when, later that evening, I was given a public thanks by James and his adoptive family. And nor was it when, two years later, I landed the part of Columbia in a traveling show of Rocky Horror. No, for me, the best part came when the newest club opened in New York City (The Spider Club is now the top of the list in terms of classy places to go). And what was the first act performed there? Why, it was 'Time Warp,' performed by my theater group. And as we took our bows, I met the eyes of the seven people I called friends and neighbors knowing that, thanks to them, neither I nor any followers of Rocky Horror would never be considered crazy.
