Worldwide
Chapter 09: On the Floor
Hi! I would love to thank the amazing people: Rhett9, Kogan4Ever, TheClaire24, Sir RCCS, and Curlylocks4232 for their AMAZING reviews. You guys really are the best, and I am so glad you've stuck by this story for so long! I promise, the plot will pick up soon, and to just scare you, we are almost half-way done with Part I of this story! This is the beginning of the 'Dance-Arc', which is pretty important, and it's about four-chapters long, starting with this one. By the way, the reason this was uploaded so late was because FanFiction would not let me upload any documents last night...This was written in October 2011.
"Carlos, stand still!" Sra. Knight fumbled, as she attempted to straighten the salmon-colored tie on Carlos's chest. He squirmed slightly, feeling uncomfortable. He loved the freedom of loose clothing, where he could move and act in whatever behavior he wanted. The tight, constricting clothing made Carlos feel like a prisoner, stuck within the fancy clothing. Granted, he was grateful for Sra. Knight's loaning of the suit, but he still felt saddened by the heavy clothing. Carlos stood elegantly in a sky blue shirt, with a bright colored tie. His slacks were neatly ironed, and his suit was likewise preened for any loose threads or hair. Carlos smiled for a second as he glanced into the mirror, and saw his father; Carlos had seen many photos of his father when he was Carlos's age, and while Carlos lacked the necessary amount of facial hair and bulky bones to completely emulate his father, Carlos was sure his mother would become emotional upon seeing Carlos like this. Instantly, Carlos turned and smiled at Sra. Knight.
"Picture? Por favor? Please?" Carlos quickly added the last word, as he blinked. For a moment, he had envisioned himself back in Spain, basking in the warm weather, and that the gentle face of Sra. Knight was actually the loving face of his own mother. Lately, Carlos had become neglectful of checking his emails. Marisol had failed to reply to his emails, and Carlos grew tired of hearing his parents yawn whenever he called them on the land-line of the Knight household. He found comfort and solace in Sra. Knight's warm and loving nature, and Carlos inwardly enjoyed the moments where she would talk to Carlos about customs in America, and allowing him to come along shopping with her (strangely, Kendall and Katie both seemed to mysteriously disappear whenever the word shopping came into play). While he would never admit it, Sra. Knight was almost like a segunda madre for Carlos; a second mother to him. He felt childish for thinking so, but the love he received from the woman made him feel as if he was her own son.
Sra. Knight quickly returned with a digital camera, and Carlos instantly posed. Katie, who had been standing outside her room the entire time, grinned, and after several snapshots, Carlos motioned for Katie to come over and stand by him. Katie instantly blanched, and chuckled and tried to walk her way out of the situation, but Sra. Knight's forceful affection propelled Katie to pose next to Carlos. Eventually, the elegant photos were reduced to photos of funny-faces and funny-poses. The laughter between Sra. Knight, Katie, and Carlos filled the foyer, and lit the atmosphere with a jubilant and jovial light.
That is, of course, until Kendall walked out of his room, and glared at Carlos, before walking into the kitchen to fetch himself a glass of water. Instantly, the light was extinguished, and Katie zipped back into her room, presumably to write something. Carlos had started to notice that, whenever Kendall's brooding nature would enter the atmosphere, Katie would fly into a silent flight, and suddenly a light tapping noise of rapid clicking could be heard. Carlos suspected that she typed up her feelings into a diario, or diary. Carlos wanted to comfort her, but he felt as if she was a princesa, princess, locked in the torre, or tower, guarded by the dragón, or dragon, named Kendall. He felt as if he were to try talking to her again, he would be called a name, and Carlos personally did not want to start any quarrels among the family. However, what disturbed him most was when Sra. Knight would instantly pull out scrapbooks and albums of photos and gaze at them, as if wishing to return to the moments of each snapshot. It was an utmost feeling of sadness to see such a lovely mother hurt by her own child.
However, Carlos, for once, could somewhat understand Kendall's sentiments. From what he had heard, Kendall was denied permission to attend the dance for 'Homecoming', much to the dismay of Jo, James, Stephanie, Camille, and Logan. Tal vez, Carlos thought, él cree que estoy tomando su lugar. Maybe he thinks I am taking his place with his friends.
The ironic aspect of Carlos's thoughts were that Carlos inwardly believed, or was insecure, about the relationship between himself and the group. Sure, Camille, Stephanie, and Jo were always eager to having conversations with Carlos through text messaging, and James was always kind to Carlos whenever he saw him, and Logan and Carlos basked in their Spanish glory whenever they helped each other answer questions for their class. But, it felt superficial; perhaps to Carlos, but it felt as if that the group was compelled to like him, and once he left, they would forget about him as soon as he left. It worried Carlos to lose such friends; such a valuable group of friends that seemed to all look out for one another.
Carlos's train of thoughts were broken again when Sra. Knight sniffed and suddenly embraced Carlos, surprising the boy. She released the embrace reluctantly, and gazed at Carlos lovingly.
"Carlos," Sra. Knight whispered, as her eyes remained moist, "Usted ve muy guapo." Sra. Knight grinned, as Carlos blinked for a second. He then laughed, along with Sra. Knight, as they embraced again.
"I used an online translator to look up how to tell you that you're handsome," Sra. Knight smiled through her tear-stricken face, "did I do it right?" She smiled, as Carlos nodded and continued to hold the embrace. It was such a powerful moment for Carlos, an empowering moment that made him feel as if he could conquer any obstacle in his path. It made Carlos feel majestic and unique. He enjoyed this loving feeling he received from Sra. Knight, and he felt as if he never wanted to disappoint her. The two shared another look, as Sra. Knight cleared her throat, and went to go grab her keys.
"Katie! You're in charge! If anything happens, let me know!" Sra. Knight yelled, as Katie yelled back something incoherent. Carlos grinned, as he stepped out of the house and walked toward the vehicle of Sra. Knight. His heart was beating excitedly, as he waited eagerly for Sra. Knight to start the vehicle and take him to the house of James Diamond. It was going to be his first social outing in America, and he was beyond excited.
Completely forgetting about the fact that Carlos was going to a dance in America, he was completely breathless when he saw the illustrious 'house' of James Diamond. It was beautifully majestic. It resonated the word palacio, or palace. Architecturally, it was remarkably unified, with Mediterranean arches and a real gold tile roof. The exterior of the house was beautifully decorated with large windows and golden linings to every possibly inch of marble. It seemed as if Carlos was in a fairy tale, and James was the royal king, or rey, of the area. It suddenly dawned upon Carlos as to why the group decided to congregate at the Diamond Estate.
"Are you ready Carlos? Do you need anything? If you do, you have my number!" Sra. Knight called out, as she proceeded to back out of the long parking lot. Carlos stood awkwardly as he waved to Sra. Knight until she was out of view. Turning, Carlos took a deep breath and began to walk up the beautifully cleaned marble stairs leading to the grand golden door of the mansion. A stout butler arrived at the door, and let Carlos into the house before disappearing into the dark oblivion of the bright manor.
Carlos entered onto the stellar-golden quarry tile floor into the four-story-high hall. Carlos was shocked to see, simply in front of him, a majestic and curved stairwell. Above the stairwell, Carlos noticed three chandeliers reflected in a mirrored wall behind the polished stairs. The custom woodwork of the staircase was exquisite, and Carlos found himself entranced by the attention to detail and precision. The stair treads were carpeted with the same golden-colored carpet that seemingly adorned the rest of the palace. It was both luxurious and practical.
For a moment, Carlos felt completely lost. The butler had disappeared, and left Carlos to fend for himself, and Carlos pondered for calling out to James until he heard a source of noise coming from the living room. While the Knight house directly connected the living room, the kitchen, and the foyer, the Diamond manor seemed to stretch miles between the familial rooms.
"Why are you talking to me like this? This is supposed to be a great night for me!" A familiar voice called out, as Carlos edged closer and closer toward the source of the noise. Carlos managed to tip-toe silently enough to reach an opened door. From his covert peeking, Carlos saw James in a pair of lounge pants and a black tank-top, arguing with a tall and dressed woman.
"James Isaac Diamond," the woman replied curtly, "please explain to me how you expect me to let you go out and dance with these grades?" The woman made a tutting noise with her teeth, and with the combination of her tapping of her foot, Carlos already felt slightly annoyed by the superiority exhibited by this strange woman.
"I'll improve them! It's just an interim! Not even a big deal," James mumbled, as he looked slightly downcast. For a moment, Carlos thought James spotted him, but his actions indicated otherwise. However, when the sound of the heeled footsteps of Sra. Diamond entered Carlos's ears, he was surprised to see the aplomb woman angrily clenching the arm of James, who was obviously in discomfort.
"How dare you say it's not a big deal! You will be leading the Diamond Cosmetics business one day, and we can't have a three-point-three student as the CEO," the woman angrily hissed, as James struggled to free himself of her painful grasp. Carlos cringed as he could almost feel the sharp nails of the woman digging into James's wrist.
"M-Mom, stop!" James tried to yelp, but the woman seemed to gaze hellfire into the eyes of James, as he looked positively stricken with fear. For a moment, Carlos could not recognize the boy in front of him; he was no longer the confident and cocky male looking to score a smile from a woman, but instead, a scared boy, simply yearning for acceptance from his mother.
Suddenly, Sra. Diamond released her grip on James's wrists, and shook her head. She glanced around, as if she had heard Carlos's breathing, and glared at James with a dispassionate swallow. From what Carlos could see, he saw the word 'perfection' when he saw the face of Sra. Diamond. He would not deny that she had a strange sense of beauty and exhilaration that Sra. Knight lacked, but her face was nowhere near as gentle as Sra. Knight's; instead, it was sharp and cutthroat. Her perfect hair-strands seemed to not accept anything less than impeccable conditioner and shampoo, and the jewelry placed onto her fingers and neck suggested a vast amount of wealth—the exquisite quality of the jewelry seemed to rival the jewelry Carlos had seen on the portraits of Spanish monarchs.
"James, you are nothing but a disappointment to me, like your father. You will improve your grades, or else I will not hesitate to send you to the Hawk School of Entrepreneurship." Sra. Diamond hissed, as her dangerous glower continued to remain miraculously intact after all this time had passed.
"That's not fair! I'm trying my best mom! Why can't you see that?" James bemoaned, as he continued to look away from the glower. Carlos felt bad for eavesdropping on such a personal conversation, but he felt as if his entry at any moment would ruin the atmosphere even further than it already had been ruined.
"Because your best is disgusting. You're becoming more and more like your father everyday," Sra. Diamond shook her head, simply staring at James with a look of loathing. "If you want to be like him so much, then get out of my house and live on the streets." Sra. Diamond threatened, as James seemed to blanch. Carlos had initially figured that Sra. Diamond was simply making a loose threat, but from the look on James's face, it seemed as if jokes were not ever present in the words of Sra. Diamond.
For a moment, Carlos compared Sra. Diamond and Sra. Knight. Sra. Knight was a gentle, caring, and sophisticated woman dedicated to the well-being of her family. Sra. Diamond was an intelligent, beautiful, and deadly woman dedicated to the well-being of her company. It was remarkably strange as to how James could have been so lax and positive when he had to deal with the treatment Carlos was witnessing.
Finally, Sra. Diamond threw her hands up in the air in frustration, and stomped away, not before shaking her head at James and whispering the syllables of 'failure'. Once Carlos found the coast to be clear, he slowly emerged from his hiding spot. He watched James visibly shudder as he fell to the floor, sobbing into his knees. Carlos, for a moment, felt awkward to come into the room, but thought it was better now than before; he then cleared his throat, which caught the attention of James.
Somehow, there was a spark. The tears in James's eyes were met with the understanding in Carlos's eyes, as the boys exchanged a silent exchange of emotions. James sniffed, and wiped his face with his muscular arm, and immediately got up and tried to muster a smile, although the tears continued to fall. Carlos paused for a moment, before running and embracing James. He had felt so strongly motivated by the hug from Sra. Knight, that he figured James deserved one as well, especially after having been berated so harshly by his own mother.
"T-Thanks Carlos," James sniffed, as he slowly released the hug, which prompted a wave of slight disappointment to erupt within the Hispanic boy. The two shared another glance, as James continued to clear his throat.
"She's not always like that," James tried to fib, although Carlos could easily through his bluff. He, however, pretended to accept the lie and nodded his head understandingly. James sniffed again, as if he was trying to rid himself of any other sad emotions.
Carlos was beginning to see the perfect piece of glass he had seen as the friendship between the stellar six was cracked and faulted. Whether it be from the behavior from Kendall, or the self-esteem of Logan, or James's oppression, the group was struggling to keep their heads above the water, and while they were all close with one another, they were seemingly afraid to burden each other with their problems, as if afraid that the glass would break if they decided to unload their burdens. However, from an external perspective, Carlos could see that the glass, while slightly cracked, was still thick and formidable; it could withstand many things, and suddenly Carlos wanted to enforce the strength of this glass. He wanted to prove to Camille, Jo, Stephanie, Kendall, James, and Logan that the glass that represented their friendship was stronger than they thought; that their constant love and constant concern made it a force to be reckoned with in any situation.
Carlos was inside James's bedroom, as the boy laxly began to disrobe his clothing in front of Carlos. While the Hispanic boy tried to distract himself with the cleanliness, elegance, and beauty of the room, he could help but feel slightly inclined to see James walk around the room without his shirt and pants, leaving him only in a pair of boxers. Carlos felt an uncomfortable tingling sensation erupt within his chest, as he tried to concentrate on the X-Box on the floor. But Carlos could not deny that James had a beautiful body for a man, that was sculpted like a statue of a God. Moreover, the clothing James had in his closet were all fancy and decadent, and suddenly made Carlos feel as if he lacked in comparison.
However, James seemed to notice Carlos's saddening, and strangely seemed to understand.
"You look great, Carlitos," James winked as he finished zipping his pants. Carlos nodded silently, afraid his voice would betray him. He was unsure as to how this feeling came within him, but he wanted to tell James that he looked beautiful and amazing; but he had to save those sentiments for Stephanie when she arrived.
According to James, as he continued to comb his hair, the girls were getting ready at Jo's house, and then they would head over here. Carlos asked who all the girls were, although he already had a better idea.
"There's Jo, who's coming with Jett," James wrinkled his nose in a moment of disgust, as he continued to comb his hair, "Then there's you and Stephanie," James winked at Carlos, before turning to face the mirror again, "There's Camille and Steve, Logan and Peggy, and oh yeah—Annie!" James grinned cheerfully, as he turned to face Carlos.
Carlos mustered on the biggest smile he could upon seeing James, which normally would not have been a difficult task to do, but upon hearing Annie's name, Carlos felt strangely envious. He could not mark these feelings, but they resonated around jealousy and envy, although Carlos hardly even knew the girl and was at a loss as to what he could have been jealous.
"You'll love her Carlitos, she's so nice." James grinned as he began to tie his golden tie around his neck. He then turned to face Carlos again, who was trying his best to suppress the odd urges his body was starting, and smiled.
"Oh, and I give you my permission to hook up with Stephanie; she's like a sister to me, but she's definitely hot." James continued as he finished tying his tie, and turning to face the mirror again. Carlos smiled, although the smile seemed to be crestfallen and broken. However, James was too engrossed in his own looks to notice. Carlos then cleared his throat, to ask an obvious question.
"What does hooking up mean?" Carlos asked innocently, as he stared at James. James looked at him and smiled, as he joined to sit on the bed next to Carlos.
"Well, it's basically used to imply any sort of nice encounters between a girl and yourself," James winked, as Carlos continued to look confused. James chuckled, and continued. "For example, some people consider heavy making-out—or kissing—to be hooking up, while others," James cleared his throat, "consider things like head to be hooking up. It all depends on your definition." James shrugged, as he began to tie his dress shoes.
Carlos then cleared his own throat, and peered at James curiously.
"What is head?" Carlos asked, as James suddenly began to cough uncomfortably, before standing up and excusing himself to the restroom for a glass of water. Carlos felt his cheeks burn up, as he wondered what he had said incorrectly. James did use the word head, right?
James returned quickly, slightly flustered, but nonetheless positive, and smiled at Carlos.
"Head is oral; where a girl goes down on a guy and..." James moved his hands around slightly, as if it would finish the motion. But Carlos continued to remain confused, as he slowly grasped the concept of hooking up.
"It's where a girl sucks a guy's dick." James stated blandly, as he realized Carlos wasn't understanding his innuendos. Carlos made an 'o' with his mouth, and proceeded to look away, his cheeks blushing. He should have figured that's what the term meant.
Luckily, to save the two boys from any more awkwardness, Logan arrived with Jett, both of whom had arrived at the same time. The boys headed downstairs into the living room, all dressed up in tuxedo's and suits. They turned on the television to watch a football game, which Carlos found slightly boring but slightly interesting at the same time, and continued to pass time. Carlos felt that if Jett had not been in the room, the trio could have gotten along just fine.
"So I heard Kendor—I mean, Kendall got suspended?" Jett grinned, as Logan, Carlos, and James gave him a curious look. James flatly ignored Jett, as Logan simply nodded his head in a vague confirmation.
Luckily, the awkwardness was further prevented when the giggling group of girls entered the grand hallway, all dolled up and looking beautiful. Carlos paused for a moment, as he saw Stephanie in a long, dark mauve dress. Her hand were covered with spider-web-like sleeves, and her necklace was in the shape of the moon. Her eyeshadow matched the shade of her dress perfectly, and she looked the Queen of the Moon. Carlos was breath-taken, and he immediately stood up to smile at her. Stephanie walked over, and smiled at Carlos, winking at him.
"Looking good, Mr. Spain." Stephanie giggled, as she placed her hand gently onto Carlos's hand and leaned up to kiss him a slight kiss on the cheek. However, before the two could continue any more moments, Jo called the group over for photographs. The group moved as a whole cohesive body, although Carlos was beginning to feel sick.
Next to James was a beautiful girl, with crisp golden locks and a radiant smile. He could not deny that she seemed to complement James's high level of beauty, but strangely, Carlos felt as if he wanted to be next to James in the picture.
Oddly enough, when the group shuffled around for the next picture, Carlos found himself in between Stephanie and James, as both stood next to Carlos grinning. Carlos matched their grins with one of his own, as a butler continued to snap photos. Finally, the group decided that they had taken enough pictures for the 'pre-game' and decided to head out. James nodded toward one of his butlers, who stalked into the garage. Once the group walked outside into the setting sun, they were all shocked to see a pristine white-limousine with golden edges. It was beautiful, and the group eagerly sat inside.
The ride to the school was full of jubilant quips and flashes from the camera, and it was a bright environment for Carlos, despite the incomplete feeling he was experiencing...
The group entered the recreational room, where the dance was occurring. It was dark, sultry, and strangely exhilarating. Already, Carlos could smell the scent of alcohol rising from several dancing students, but chose to ignore it. After selecting a table to drop off their coats and purses, the group decided to head into the floor to dance.
Logan and Peggy were moving next to each other, smiling as they danced awkwardly. It was somewhat sweet, although the incomplete feeling returned when Carlos saw them dancing. Similarly, Camille seemed to be leading the dance between herself and Steve, which was somewhat entertaining, but it was nonetheless a feeling of incompleteness. Carlos wondered if he had somehow gotten high, for all of the weird feelings that were existing within him were seeming to all spring into action during this night.
Carlos watched out of the corner of his eye as Jo and Jett danced, or at least Jett was grinding himself into Jo, who continued to dance as well, although the movement of her hips were nowhere near as passionate or as thrusting as Jett's thrusts. Similarly, James and Annie were already dancing rapidly with each other as the music blared, and it made Carlos feel weird when they began to kiss randomly during their dancing.
Meanwhile, Carlos and Stephanie were slightly awkward. Carlos was not sure as to how to dance with the exquisite Stephanie, and even Stephanie admitted that her dress was not made for dancing.
"I should have worn a shorter dress, for you Carlos," Stephanie winked as Carlos held onto her hips as they danced with each other. Carlos simply grinned, as he slowly felt the heat of the room getting to him. It was slightly intoxicating to be dancing in a room full of high amount of intensity, passion, and lust. It was strangely petulant as well, but Carlos wanted to enjoy himself, and not worry about his weird thoughts for once in his life.
The music continued to play as the night continued to dance, and suddenly Carlos found himself enjoying himself. The group often congregated together for hilarious group movements of dancing, and a lot of the fast-paced songs really appealed to Carlos, as he found himself slowly becoming more and more liberated as the music sped up. It was invigorating and amazing; Carlos felt free and great. He was completely sober, but the fun environment was slowly intoxicating him to a point of blissful inebriation. It was, above all, perfect.
However, Carlos was slowly depleting his energy, as he found himself growing tired. There was a thin film of sweat layered upon Carlos, as he and Stephanie took their seats to catch their breaths. Stephanie instantly rolled up her hair, to push it back, and Carlos scrunched his face, as he suddenly saw something he had never seen prior to this night.
"You have something on your back?" Carlos asked, although he moved closer, much to Stephanie's reluctance to move her hand. Carlos moved the strands of her hair to see a tattoo of a cat. He moved back slightly, noticing a look of worry spread across into Stephanie's eyes. However, Carlos shrugged and smiled, motioning his head toward the dance floor. Carlos figured that Stephanie had a personal reason for having a tattoo, and it was none of Carlos's business to ponder her body markings.
The duo returned to the dance floor, and continued to dance to the beats. At this time, as the clock was striking closer and closer to the darkest depths of the night, the amount of people dancing became a fluctuating value; at some times, there were more dancers, while at other times, the dance floor became dangerously empty. However, as Carlos continued to dance with Stephanie, he noticed that he had not seen James or Annie for a while, and wondered if everything was alright. Excusing himself to the bathroom, Carlos skipped off to see if he could find James.
"James, no!" A voice screamed, as Carlos walked toward the restroom. Instinctively, Carlos ran toward the source of the noise, which was coming from the hallway to his left. He instantly paced himself, to try and find the source of the noise, but it was silent again.
"Why not Annie?" James's familiar voice echoed in the hallways, as Carlos immediately located the source of the noise, wondering what was occurring.
To his surprise, James and Annie were grinding against each other, and kissing passionately. For a moment, Carlos wanted to leave, as he felt an odd feeling in his heart, but he stayed put as Annie broke the kiss.
"I told you! I'm remaining pure until marriage!" Annie complained, as James tried to grind his hips into hers, but she yelled, and attempted to push James off. Suddenly, James huffed, and stared at Annie.
"That can't be it! Why wouldn't you want to sleep with me?" James yelled, as he held onto Annie's hand as Sra. Diamond had held onto his. Annie whimpered slightly, although the danger in her eyes continued to remain present.
"I'm not having sex with you, and that's final." Annie warned, as she struggled to release herself from James's grip. However, James continued to hold onto her wrist tightly. "Let me go James! Or I will scream!" Annie threatened, as she continued to struggle.
James grinned, as he tried to dive in for a kiss, but Annie turned her face. Instantly, James pouted and stared at Annie.
"Okay, what did I do wrong this time?" James barked, as he suddenly released his hold on Annie. Both students were staring at each other, panting heavily. Annie's eyes were obviously moist, but Carlos could only see the back of James's head.
"N-Nothing! Just, I'm not doing this with you!" Annie yelled, as she tried to walk past him. However, James stood in her way.
"What is this about? Last night, you weren't saying anything about abstinence," James glowered, as he continued to stare into Annie's face. However, this time she didn't meet James's eyes, and both Carlos and James realized that she just exposed herself.
"I-I talked to Rachel..." Annie mumbled, as James groaned and ran a hand through his hair, panting heavily. He glared at Annie, who returned the dangerous glower to James. There was a terse amount of silence.
"F-Fine, so then she must have told you how amazing it was. Now, come here!" James yelled, as he tried to grab onto Annie's hips. However, Annie screamed, and slapped James right on the face—where it hurt most for the boy. Instantly, Carlos cowered beneath the nearby water fountain, as Annie stormed out, her tears ruining her make-up.
For the second time in the day, Carlos heard James begin to sob, and awkwardly walked into the room, hoping not to create too much noise. Instantly, James saw Carlos and latched himself onto him, sobbing. Carlos sensually rubbed James's back, feeling happy that he was able to service his friend.
"A-All I wanted was to prove—I mean, I just—I don't know!" James continued to sob into Carlos's shirt, as Carlos patted his back. Carlos was not sure what exactly James wanted to prove by 'hooking up' with Annie, but he assumed it was something precious to the boy.
"I'm sorry to hear that James," Carlos whispered, realizing how awkward it was that James was several inches taller than Carlos was. For a moment, Carlos and James released the embrace, and they stared into each other's eyes as their faces grew closer and closer. However, Carlos quickly realized what was about to happen, and instantly looked away, prompting James to come to his senses as well. There was a moment of silence, as James awkwardly retracted himself to sitting on a desk, placing his head into his hands.
"Carlos, ever since Marcos came here...nothing has been right..."
