Friday, Sept. 13th
Ashley
It was lunchtime the next day and I was at a meeting of the dance committee planning our annual fall fling which wed been planning ever since school started which was Sept. 2. The dance was this Saturday the 21st. I wanted to have a before and after party bc I didn't really know anyone in the school even though id been going to it since last year. The meeting on the 1st had been an imropmtu one anyone who wanted to come could. We were halfway done planning the dance. We had the decorations and food we just needed to put the decorations up in the gym which was what we were doing now. Rachel and another girl Tina were there among others. There were posters all over the school for the dance and the following one in October the Halloween dance. And for the glee club show which was the 28th a week from this Saturday. Following that was the school performance of cabaret. I knew that they were also performing at sectionals this year.
The ballet school I went to was performing Dracula around Halloween and the Nutcracker this winter.
I wondered why Rachel had joined the dance committee. I'd never said a word to her but decided now was the time.
I went over to her. She was hanging a leaf on a wall.
"Yeah?" she asked when she felt me approach.
"um. I was just wondering why you joined the committee," I said.
"So I could become more popular since people don't like me."
"Oh. You take the same ballet class I do. You're really good."
"Thank you."
"So I don't really know anyone here and want to. Though I haven't asked Jesse I was also wondering if you'd want to come to a before and after party this Satuday for the dance."
"Yeah ok though I'll have to ask my dads. Thank you for inviting me. You should come see cabaret. I'm going to be in it. And I'm going to be the star. I might be the star of Dracula too."
"um ok. Your dads?"
"Yeah I have 2 gay dads."
"Oh."
"Who's Jesse?"
"My adoptive dad."
"oh."
"I'm Ashley btw."
"Yeah I know."
"Oh."
I went over to Tina who was also hanging a leaf.
"Yes?" she said quietly.
"Hi I was wondering if you wanted to come to a before and after dance this Saturday at my place. They're for the dance."
"Ok."
Wow that was easy.
"Ok cool. I'm Ashley btw."
She smiled: "tina nice to meet you."
"Yeah you too."
Well she was nice.
I then went over to Hannah, Lily, Rose and Alexa.
"Hey so I want to have a before and after party at our place this Saturday for the dance if you do. I've already invited Rachel and tina who I just met," I told my sisters.
"ok I'll invite Tom," Alexa told me.
Tom was her 20 yr old boyfriend. They'd been going out for a year.
"And I'll invite Lucy," Rose said.
"Lucy?" I asked.
"This girl I know from here. She's nice. She has 6 siblings. I think evan knows one of them."
"oh ok cool."
"I do," Hannah said.
"As do I," Lily said.
"Ok cool. I'll talk to evan and Jesse about it today."
"Ok."
I pulled out my phone and texted evan.
Puck, Cory, Rachel, Dianna, Amber, Chris and myself were all in a classroom for our first glee club meeting. A small Asian young woman with long straight dark hair came in and sat next to Chris. She was wearing a dark purple long sleeve sweater and skirt and fishnets, as did a blonde cheerleader. The blonde cheerleader had blue eyes. She was in her cheerleading uniform. Puck was in jeans and a long sleeve button shirt.
We were all sitting on the bleachers. There was a piano near the middle of the room.
Mr. Schue came in and passed out sheet music then sat down in a blue plastic chair a few feet from the piano.
"Before we begin I'd like to tell you about your assignment," he said.
We looked at him expectently.
"I'd like each of you, to choose a song or several songs representing your lives up to now. You'll be singing it here in a few weeks. Now let's get started."
We looked at the sheet music; 'You're The One I Want".
"Grease? Seriously?" Amber asked.
"Yeah it'll be super!" Rachel cried perkily.
"Super? This isn't the 1950's honey," Chris reminded her, with a bit of attitude.
"Hey I'm the one with the attitude, not you," Amber reminded him.
"And you're not a housewife," Rachel reminded Chris.
We laughed.
"Ok let's see...Ashely and..." Mr. Schue began.
"Me?" Serena asked eagerly.
"No, sorry. Homosexuality wasn't evident in the 1950's. How 'bout...Chris?"
"Oh but it's perfectly ok for a gay man to sing with a...?" Chris began.
"Bi," I supplied.
"Bi woman?"
"Sexuality has nothing to do with it. Everyone, at the piano please."
We stood up and gathered around the big shiny black piano.
"Ashley?" Cory asked.
I looked over at him; "yeah?"
"Grocery shopping after?"
"Yeah."
The fair pianist struck the first chords of the song and Christ began in his high soprano voice; "I've got chills, they're multi- I'm sorry."
The pianist stopped playing. Mr. Schue looked at Chris.
"Why?" he asked.
"I can't pretend to be straight when I'm not. I'm sorry Mr. Schue. Excuse me."
He left the room, Amber starting to go after him. Mr. Schue looked at her.
"No Amber," he told her.
She heaved a big sigh; "ok."
Mr. Schue looked at the Asian; "Tina?"
She nodded and left the room.
"Sorry about that guys," Mr. Schue said; "um, let's start again. Ashley and...Puck."
"Ok," I agreed.
The piano started again. Puck began in a low, controlled voice the first lines of the song. As we sang I noticed how good-looking he was. There was something about him that seemed broken, dark, somehow. Now that he was in glee club he also seemed softer.
As the group began to dance Serena put her arm around my slim waist.
"You've not been at ballet as much," she noticed.
"Yeah, well. After you getting the lead...and I can't talk now honey I have to sing and dance."
"Oh. I get it."
Her arm slid from my waist and she also left the room. Mr. Schue sighed. We resumed our singing.
After we were done we sat back down.
"Good job everyone, with the exception of Serena, Chris and Tina leaving, though I told Tina to leave."
"Thank you," Rachel said from her spot next to Cory.
He had his arm around her.
"Why not me?" Amber asked.
"I'll need to see you after to explain."
"Ok."
"I have another announcement. The Friday before winter break we'll be having an open mic night, which will include poetry readings and singing."
Puck was sitting next to me, his hand resting on the bleacher behind me.
"Hey," he whispered.
"Yeah?"
"Is it ok if I put my arm around you? Cuz I know you're with Serena and..."
I sighed heavily; "yeah. I could use some comfort right now."
"Me too."
"You guys are free to go," Mr. Schue told us.
We stood up and left the room, Amber staying behind to talk. Rachel and Cory had their arms around each other, Puck had his around me. Dianna was walking with us.
"Hey, can I come?" he asked me.
"Grocery shopping?"
"Uh huh."
"Sure."
"Can I?" Dianna asked.
"Yeah."
We walked out to Puck's big black jeep. He opened the door of the passenger side for me. I got in and he went over to the driver's side. I set my stuff on the floor and buckled. Behind us Cory and Dianna got in the backseat.
"Sorry there's not much room and...that it smells like smoke," Puck apologised.
"That's ok. It actually reminds me a lot of my brother's."
"Oh. How old's your brother?"
"19, the oldest out of all of us."
He turned the key in the ignition and adjusted the rearview mirror.
"Oh. Where's the nearest grocery store?"
I told him. He started driving.
"Wow big family?"
"Yeah, and you?"
"Uh...no. Just me and my mom who has to work 2 jobs just to pay the bills. So she's not around much."
I got the feeling he was hiding something.
"Oh. What about your dad?"
"He...uh..." he cleared his throat uncomfortably.
"No, I get it."
"Oh."
He rounded a corner.
"What about your family?" he asked.
"Oh. Well, about a year or so ago I came here. I was born in New Orleans, to an Irish mother who my daughter's named after. She died when I was young, my mother. My daughter's 3 and living up in the city with my best friend."
"Your, daughter?"
"Yeah, my dad..."
"Oh. Wow."
"Yeah."
"He and I moved to Brooklyn after my mom died."
"Oh. What was up with Serena?"
"She's got a lot going on at home and I think she took it out on me."
"Yeah I get that. Would you like to come over later?"
"Yeah ok."
We found a parking spot in the grocery store parking lot and parked, then got out and went into the store.
That day after school Jesse and Karen called evan, Hannah, Alexa, Rose, Lily and I into Jesse's room. Karen and Jesse had separate rooms. It was between 3 and 4 in the afternoon and I hadn't yet left for ballet. And Hannah and Alexa hadn't yet left for work. Karen and Jesse were all sitting on Jesse's bed the rest of us on the floor.
"So David called today," Karen told us.
David was her brother. Well one of them.
We all looked at her expectantly.
"About thanksgiving. Our mom wants to get together w/ Andrew, Charlie, Emily, Stacey, Sam, Grace and us. I've told David I don't want to be there if Mom and Andrew are there and that we could have 2 thansgivings."
Andrew, Charlie, Emily, Sam and Grace were Karen's other siblings. She barely talked to her mom, Andrew or Charlie. Things still weren't good between them. Mom had a dark past that she rarely talked about. Evan, Hannah, Alexa, Rose, Lily and I all knew this but I don't know if Mandy, Louisa, Kate and Anna did.
"Mom?" evan asked.
She turned to him: "yes?"
I flexed my feet back and forth. I'd forgotten to put ben gay on my tendons after ballet this morning.
"Ben gay?" Lily asked noticing this.
I nodded.
"I have some you can use."
"Ok."
We turned back to Jesse, evan and Karen.
"You haven't told us why you and your mom don't talk. Or why you and Andrew don't. or you and Charlie," evan pointed out.
"um," Karen looked toward the door making sure it was closed, "you see Charlie drinks. And Andrew hadn't been good to me. Kristy and I haven't talked in ages and my parents were awful to me. However I get on w/ the rest. You're not to tell the younger ones this. They shouldn't know untill they're 16."
"Oh. Wow. Ok. We won't."
"Yeah I want to see aunt Emily. And aunt Grace. And uncle Sam," I said.
"And uncle david too," Hannah said.
"Ok I'll let them know," Karen said.
"is Maureen coming?" Jesse asked.
"Who's Maureen?" Alexa who hadn't spoken asked.
"Your aunt stacey's mom," Jesse told her.
"Oh."
"And I don't know," Jesse told Karen.
"Ok I'll invite her," Karen said.
"Oh my mom called. She wants to get together for thanksgiving too I told her it'd be easier for her to come to us than for us to see her since there are more of us."
"Ok and Suzanne and Kelly too."
"Who are they?" Rose asked.
"My mom's sisters," Jesse said.
"Oh."
"Yeah it'll be good for her to get out," Karen said.
"Yeah I know," Jesse said.
I knew that ever since her husband had passed 20 years ago Jesse's mom hadn't been the same.
"So looks like it'll be Emily, Grace, Sam, David, Stacey maybe Maureen, maybe Sara, Suzanne and Kelly here," Karen said.
I presumed Sara was Jesse's mom.
"Yeah ok," he said: "um and mark wants to come."
"Who's Mark?" I asked.
"My friend from college."
"Oh."
"Yeah it's ok if he comes. Ok any other news?" Karen asked us.
"Yeah um we want to have 2 parties this weekend a before and after for the dance. We're inviting some friends from school. Tom's coming. I'm inviting some friends from work Ruby and Ariel. Um. If that's ok w/ you," I said.
"Well that sounds like a good idea good way to get to know people. And i'll invite Bobby's kids too. What time is the dance?"
"At 7. So the party could be like…well well need time to get ready and all…..um that'll take about 2 hrs. I don't know how long the dance is going to be. So the party could start at 11. Um. We've asked for the day off work and Rose, Lily and I don't have ballet that night or the following morning which means Sunday night and Monday well put in some extra time which means we wont be in school," I informed them.
"Ok. If there's going to be alcohol here I want Jesse and evan to be here. I might be here I might not i'm not sure yet."
"Ok fair enough."
After the meeting Mandy and I were in my room looking at the songs on my windows media player. We were picking the tracklist for Mandy's CD. I was the best person for Mandy to come to since I had a multitude of music in my media player.
"Hey what about the money you got from your mom? Wasn't she like really rich or something?" Mandy asked.
She was referring to my biological mom who'd died when I was little.
"Um, no. But she was careful w/ money always."
"So…?"
"Well. Don't tell anyone but I've been writing anonymous checks to our dad to help pay the hospital bills."
"Oh. Ok. And I wont."
