A Cool Fall-Chapter 3
Disclaimer: I don't own the show So Weird or the cast. I wish I did, but I don't.
Tough luck for me! "Kiss" doesn't belong to me either. It's by Prince.
A/N: I just want to say thanks to Laura, Tablynvan, and Angellinda for actually
being kind enough to post reviews. I really appreciate it. It's an enormous
ego-boost for me considering that I've never written So Weird fics before,
but for those of you who didn't review, that's not cool guys! Please R+R!!!!
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
That next morning, Fi was in the bathroom, getting ready for the day. Suddenly,
she heard a knock on the door. "Who is it?"
"It's me!"
"Me who?"
"You know who it is. It's Clu. As long as you're decent, I'm coming in. So, are you?"
"Yeah. Sure."
The door opened and in walked Clu wearing nothing but a pair of satin pajama pants.
(OH YEAH!) She felt her cheeks getting warm, but PRAYED that he didn't see her
blushing. Clu looked at her and asked, "Where's your hair gel?"
"Oh, it's over there."
She pointed to a corner on the counter. That one corner had more hair products
than Clu had ever seen in one place.
"Uh, Fi. I'm not sure I want to go digging in there soooo, could you please
get it for me?"
"Sure. No prob."
She automatically pulled the one in the very back. 'Go figure,' thought Clu,
'Girls always make things difficult.' Clu opened the bottle and poured a little
bit out. Along with the normal hair gel, there was gold glitter. Uh-uh, he thought,
no way. I'm NOT looking like I'm gay!
"Uh, Fi. "
"Mmm?"
"I hate to bother you again, but do you perhaps have gel without all this sparkly
stuff, whatever its called?"
"Oh, oops! Sorry. Just a sec."
She fished through the products and after what seemed like five minutes to Clu,
she pulled out plain hair gel.
"Thanks!"
"It's nothin'!"
Fi just then noticed a kind of nasty smell. "Um, Clu, when was your last shower?"
"Uh, yesterday morning."
She grimaced and said, "How about I leave so you can take one now?"
"Okay. Lemme get a towel first."
He reached over her toward a rack with towels. Fi took her brush, gold glittery gel,
and a few little hair things, and left the bathroom. Once she closed the door, she heard the water run
and Clu start singing "Kiss" by Prince. She giggled as she walked to her room.
She made her beds and threw her pajamas and towel into her hamper. She did her hair,
listening to Clu singing. He could have given Prince a run for his money! It was HILARIOUS!
"You don't have to be beautiful to turn me on
I just need your body, baby, from dusk till dawn
You don't need experience to turn me out
You just leave it all up to me, I'm gonna show you what it's all about
"You don't have to be rich to be my girl
You don't have to be cool to rule my world
Ain't no particular sign I'm more compatible with
I just want your extra time and your . . . . . kiss
"You got to not talk dirty, baby, if you wanna impress me
You can't be to flirty, mama, I know how to undress me (Yeah)
I want to be your fantasy, maybe you could be mine
You just leave it all up to me, we could have a good time
"You don't have to be rich to be my girl
You don't have to be cool to rule my world
Ain't no particular sign I'm more compatible with
I just want your extra time and your . . . . . kiss
"Yes, oh
I think I wanna dance, uh
Gotta, gotta, oh
Little Girl Wendy's Parade
Gotta, gotta, gotta
"Women, not girls, rule my world, I said they rule my world
Act your age, mama, not your shoe size, maybe we could do the twirl
You don't have to watch Dynasty to have an attitude, uh
You just leave it all up to me, my love will be your food (Yeah)
"You don't have to be rich to be my girl
You don't have to be cool to rule my world
Ain't no particular sign I'm compatible with!
I just want your extra time and your kiss"
A couple minutes after Clu's little "concert," Fi heard the shower shut off.
She finished doing her hair and worked on cleaning her room. Clu walked by her room,
and as he did she called out, "Hey Clu, loved the music. Very cool!"
He just popped his head into her room, grinned at her, and walked off. She
thought about him for a moment, suddenly processing the sight she had just seen.
Clu, a towel, dripping wet. Man, she wished she had camera when he walked past.
Then again, she didn't really need it! She'd remember that sight forever!!! She laughed
quietly to herself, shaking her head. Now SHE needed a shower, a COLD shower!
She walked downstairs to see Clu, now fully dressed, and Carey wrestling
on the floor in the family room. She walked up to them and asked, "So, who's winning?"
They both said "ME!" and laughed. She shook her head and walked into the kitchen where
everyone else was sitting down, waiting for the breakfast that Ned was cooking.
Fi thought about it for a second and said, "Hey, Ned, do the guys know that you're making breakfast?"
"No. I figured I should give myself at least some peace."
As if on cue, Clu and Carey ran into the kitchen with their heads up in the air as if they
smelled something. Clu was the first one to speak. "Oh yeah! Bacon! Bacon! Hehe!"
He ran up to his dad and hugged him from behind. "I love you, daddy! Now, where's my food?"
Ned shook his son off, laughed, and said "You'll get it in about ten minutes if you sit down and behave."
Clu jumped over the counter and right into a seat, grinning like a maniac and sticking his
tongue out at Carey. Fi looked at him and laughed. "What? I'm a growing boy! I need minerals."
"Uh, Clu! Minerals?"
"Yeah! You know, the stuff that's good for you!"
Fi laughed. "Nope. Sorry. That's nutrients."
"Oh... Well, those too!"
Everyone laughed and then slowly the laughter died, leaving a strange silence. Not liking or
accepting the eerie silence, Clu called out to his dad, "Hey pops! How long till breakfast?"
"About a minute!"
"Cool!"
Fi made her way to the refrigerator and pulled out some orange juice. She took it over to the
table and got seven glasses out of the cabinet. Everyone poured their drinks and waited for Ned to bring the
food over. As soon as he did, the place was a zoo. Everyone was talking and grabbing food and being the
happy family they always were. Something was different. Carey noticed that Fi wasn't as animated as
she had been as a child. She was just acting like this space-case out of some old silent movie. She was
just so quiet. He decided to talk to her about it later.
After breakfast, Fi went out back to the deck and sat down on the old steps. She was so absorbed
in her thoughts about Clu and relationships, and even just life, that she didn't hear Carey walk up to her and sit down beside her. "Fi?"
She didn't respond, only stayed in that silent trance. "Fiiiii?"
Still nothing. 'Man, this ain't cool,' thought Carey. 'I gotta do somethin'. Clu won't like it if his chick is acting
like a zombie.'
"FI?"
She snapped her head back. "Yeah? Huh? Whaaaa?"
"Fi, are you okay?"
"Oh, yeah. Hi. I didn't see you there."
"What's up?"
"Nothing. I've just got a lot on my mind right now. That's all."
"Oh, what about?"
"Nothing."
"Boy troubles?"
Fi glared at him. "I don't see how it this is any of your business!"
"Hey! I'm just being a good friend. "
"It's not boy trouble!"
"Oh. Okay. Is it girl trouble?"
She laughed laughed a little. "No. I just- I don't know! I'm so confused."
"About what?"
"About everything. I-have you ever had this feeling where your palms were sweaty whenever you saw someone,
someone you've known your whole life? And it just suddenly happened?"
He looked down. "Yeah."
"Oh, sorry. I forgot. You have a crush on-uh, yeah!"
"Geez. Does everyone know?"
"Well, it is kind of obvious! Lemme guess. You're afraid she'll laugh in your face and say you're just a kid?"
"How'd you know? Oh-wait. No duh! That's how you feel. But, tell me. Who is it?"
He already knew who it was but once she admitted it to him, it'd be easier to help them. Even though Clu would
end up dead, but still, he might die happy.
"Well, you kinda know him."
"And?"
"He's um, well, you have to promise not to tell ANYONE!"
"Okay. Yeah. I PROMISE."
"It's um-it's kinda-"
"Kinda who?"
"It's kinda your brother."
"Huh. You and my bro, together. Interesting. I like it. It works. You two should get together."
"Yeah, when pigs fly! I mean- come on! What are the chances of that happening?"
"Better than me and Molly. That's for sure!"
"Well, yeah. I mean, what would your parents say?"
"They'd kill the both of us!"
"Well, okay. "
"But, then again, if you and Clu get together, then JACK will go on a killing spree. And frankly, it'd probably
be worse than my parents freaking out. Your brother masks a WHOLE lot of anger. Trust me. I know these
things. It wouldn't be cool!"
"Well then, both of us have a problem. We'll never get the ones we love. Oh well! Life sucks!"
"Yeah. Well, I'm going in now but any time you wanna talk, I'm here. But then again, there's someone else
you should talk to instead."
"HA! You know I'll be able to have a good conversation with him. Clu: Hey, what's up, Fi-ster?, me: Duh,
er, um! Yeah, THAT'LL happen."
"You never know till you try! See ya!"
Carey pulled her into a hug and then walked inside. Neither of them saw Clu watching them
from a window upstairs. Carey walked upstairs to Jack's room to get his CD player and go for a walk to
sort out what was going on. When he got there, he was met by a VERY angry Clu.
"DUDE! I thought you DIDN'T like her! And you really had to do that AFTER I told you I like her."
"Huh? Clu, what are you talking about? Dude, you're crazy!"
"I want to know something."
"Yeah?"
"How come I can't make her laugh like that any more? It's like you're her best friend now instead of me.
What's going on between you two?"
"Nothing. Bro, do you think I'd do that to you?"
"I don't know. Would you?"
Carey grabbed his CD player and jacket, walked out of the room, and, as he was walking out, said,
"I'm goin' out. I need to go clear my head."
He walked out of the house, turned on his CD player, and began jogging down the street. He had been jogging for a while, not caring where he was going, just going, getting rid of the stress from his brother.
Finally, he stopped in front of a little duck pond. He sat down on a nearby bench and just pondered his life. How had his life gotten so difficult in so little time? The really big problem was no matter what happened, he couldn't
avoid him. If they still stayed at the Phillips, they'd share a room with Jack. If they got back home, he'd STILL have to share a room. He couldn't escape the little bugger.
He couldn't tell Clu the truth, that he had just recently become Fi's confidante because of her interest with his brother.It'd make life easier, but Fi'd be PRETTY mad if, correction: WHEN, she found out. No matter what, he'd
rather have Clu on his tail than Fi. That was for sure. Clu would get mad, but Fi would get PISSED! And, he couldn't
lie and tell Clu that, yes, he was flirting with her. There wasn'tany right way of doing this. No matter what, he'd have someone mad at him.
Maybe he could tell Clu the truth, but have him NOT tell Fi. No, that wouldn't work! Clu would say it
without even realizing it. It was no use. Carey didn't know what to do. Maybe he should ask somebody, someone
who wouldn't have any opinion. He pondered for a while on who it should be.
He knew who it should be. It should be Molly. She wouldn't worry about her daughter being in a relationship with Clu. She's too cool of a parent to do that! Besides, it'd mean spending more time with her.
Carey spent the rest of the day hanging out by the pond, tossing stones in every once in a while, and making soft ripples. Funny, he thought, it seems like I'm doing the same thing to my own life and the lives of those who
surround me. He saw the sun begin to set and immediately set off toward the Phillips residence, back to where his problems were. Back to a place filled with trouble. Hopefully, he could fix things, and all the problems would
be gone. He saw the house come into sight and dashed toward it.
As he got closer, he saw Clu and his did packing luggage into the small car. "Hey dad!"
His father turned around, looked at him, and hugged him. "Carey! Your mother and I were SO upset. We didn't know where you were. Finally, we thought of asking Clu and he explained you had taken a walk. If I were you, I'd go see
your mom NOW! I'll bet she's already called the police wondering where you were. Why would you run off for
five and a half hours without telling one of us where you were?"
"I did tell one of you. I told Clu."
"No! I mean, your mom and me."
"Sorry dad! I just began to feel really claustrophobic, stuck up in there. I just had to go out for a run."
"Okay. It doesn't make sense, and I don't buy it, but okay. Now go tell your mother so she can stop worrying.
All right?"
"Sure dad. See ya. Oh, yeah. Why are you packing the car?"
"We're gonna leave soon. We figured Molly and her family should have some time alone without you guys causing trouble."
He laughed, meaning it as a joke about how his two sons normally acted. The two of them didn't laugh. Instead, they just glared at each other. Carey walked inside only to be embraced by his mother whose face was filled
with worry. She took a look at him. Maybe she was making sure he was okay. Maybe she was checking to make
sure it was him. Who knows! She just hugged him again and walked with him to the kitchen where Molly was sitting.
The table had a set of cards covering it. The two of them must have been playing poker again. They did that when they were worried. It was strange but no one ever questioned it. Carey sat down in the chair at the head of the table
so that he was sitting next to both of them. A few minutes into the next game, which now included Carey, Irene left the table to use the restroom.
Carey looked at Molly and quietly said, "Molly, I need your advice."
"About what?"
" A really big thing, so can I stay for dinner after my parents leave and talk about it afterwards?"
"Um, sure. I guess. If it's something really important."
"Oh trust me! It IS!"
Irene walked back to the table and the game resumed without another mention of him staying for dinner. Soon, Ned came in and said that it was time for them to go. Carey walked with his parents out to the car, but right as
they were getting into it, he told them he'd be staying, but that he'd walk home after dinner. They were a little hesitant but decided he was old enough to make decisions. So, his parents said goodbye and drove off with Clu in the car, scowling at Carey out of the window.
Carey just shook his head and ignored it, walking back into the house. He walked over to the counter where Molly had begun making dinner. Without even having to say he was back to speak to her, she said, "So, what's so important that you need to talk to me but can't talk to your brother or the rest of your family about? And why
are you and Clu having a sulk fest anyway? What happened?"
"Well-ah. It's kind of hard to explain."
"Well, you're here to talk to me, so talk, before I call your parents and tell them you changed your mind and want to eat dinner with them."
"Okay, see..."
He began the story, leaving out the part about him having a crush on her. He didn't talk about it during dinner since he knew Fi would be mad if she found out that he told someone, anyone. After dinner, Molly and Carey continued the discussion and finally, Carey finished talking about it. Molly thought for a second and then looked at him.
"You know, Carey, this is a STRANGE situation!"
"Oh, trust me. I know! I know better than anyone else does. I just need to know how to fix it. I mean, no matter what I do, I'm gonna get beef from Clu. But if Fi finds out I told you, she's gonna hate me."
He ran his fingers through his thick blonde hair. "God, Molly. I don't know what I'm gonna do. Whatever I do is automatically wrong, and I can't handle it! I probably shouldn't have even tried to help the two of them. It'll just blow up in my face, no matter WHAT I do. What am I gonna do Molly? If I go home, my brother will accuse me of spending more time with her and of liking her, but if I go and spend the night somewhere, he'll accuse me of doing something with her."
"Well, Carey. I'm glad you told me this but I don't know what to do. If you really can't bear facing your brother, I could call at about 11 O'clock and tell your parents that you fell asleep on the couch and that I don't think you should be walking out in the cold at night. Do you think that'd work?"
"Maybe. Thanks Molly! You're the best."
He gave her a hug. "Hey, I'm happy to help out one of my boys. It's nothing. Now let's go have a slumber party. What movie do you wanna watch? We've got 'em all!"
Carey thought a second about what she called him, 'one of her boys'. He was still just a child to her. Talk about sucky! "Um, I dunno. You choose!"
"Okay, but you have to promise not to whine, okay?"
"Okay. I promise."
Molly went to a cabinet that had only one thing in it, one single tape. "Uh, Molly? What are we watching? And WHY was it the only tape in that cabinet?"
She showed him the tape box. It was the original SHAFT. "What? Okay, look. The kids don't like this movie. They said if they ever found it, they'd get rid of it. This is one of my favorite movies!"
He sat on the couch for a minute, just stunned. Then, a smile broke out on his face. "Mrs. P, you are the COOLEST! SWEET! I always wanted to watch this movie, but my parents weren't cool enough to rent it for me, and, well, it's not like I have any money!"
Molly put the tape in the VCR and sat down on the couch next to Carey. They started the movie. About halfway through, Jack came downstairs to get a glass of water and saw Carey and his mom on a couch together, in the dark. NOT a good combination, he thought. He walked over to them and said "Hey, what's up?"
Molly looked at him and answered, "We're watching the movie you hate!"
"Huh? I don't hate SHAFT; it's just that the movie's so old. I mean, who watches it anymore?"
Carey laughed and Molly cleared her throat. "Okay. Look, you can watch this ANCIENT movie with us, OR you can go do something else."
He thought about it for a second, and then said "I think I'll watch it with you guys!"
After the movie was over, Molly told both boys good night and went upstairs to call Carey's parents and then, go to bed. Jack went back up to bed, and Carey put everything up, got a blanket from a chest by the couch and went to sleep.
Man, did he enjoy his dreams!
Disclaimer: I don't own the show So Weird or the cast. I wish I did, but I don't.
Tough luck for me! "Kiss" doesn't belong to me either. It's by Prince.
A/N: I just want to say thanks to Laura, Tablynvan, and Angellinda for actually
being kind enough to post reviews. I really appreciate it. It's an enormous
ego-boost for me considering that I've never written So Weird fics before,
but for those of you who didn't review, that's not cool guys! Please R+R!!!!
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
That next morning, Fi was in the bathroom, getting ready for the day. Suddenly,
she heard a knock on the door. "Who is it?"
"It's me!"
"Me who?"
"You know who it is. It's Clu. As long as you're decent, I'm coming in. So, are you?"
"Yeah. Sure."
The door opened and in walked Clu wearing nothing but a pair of satin pajama pants.
(OH YEAH!) She felt her cheeks getting warm, but PRAYED that he didn't see her
blushing. Clu looked at her and asked, "Where's your hair gel?"
"Oh, it's over there."
She pointed to a corner on the counter. That one corner had more hair products
than Clu had ever seen in one place.
"Uh, Fi. I'm not sure I want to go digging in there soooo, could you please
get it for me?"
"Sure. No prob."
She automatically pulled the one in the very back. 'Go figure,' thought Clu,
'Girls always make things difficult.' Clu opened the bottle and poured a little
bit out. Along with the normal hair gel, there was gold glitter. Uh-uh, he thought,
no way. I'm NOT looking like I'm gay!
"Uh, Fi. "
"Mmm?"
"I hate to bother you again, but do you perhaps have gel without all this sparkly
stuff, whatever its called?"
"Oh, oops! Sorry. Just a sec."
She fished through the products and after what seemed like five minutes to Clu,
she pulled out plain hair gel.
"Thanks!"
"It's nothin'!"
Fi just then noticed a kind of nasty smell. "Um, Clu, when was your last shower?"
"Uh, yesterday morning."
She grimaced and said, "How about I leave so you can take one now?"
"Okay. Lemme get a towel first."
He reached over her toward a rack with towels. Fi took her brush, gold glittery gel,
and a few little hair things, and left the bathroom. Once she closed the door, she heard the water run
and Clu start singing "Kiss" by Prince. She giggled as she walked to her room.
She made her beds and threw her pajamas and towel into her hamper. She did her hair,
listening to Clu singing. He could have given Prince a run for his money! It was HILARIOUS!
"You don't have to be beautiful to turn me on
I just need your body, baby, from dusk till dawn
You don't need experience to turn me out
You just leave it all up to me, I'm gonna show you what it's all about
"You don't have to be rich to be my girl
You don't have to be cool to rule my world
Ain't no particular sign I'm more compatible with
I just want your extra time and your . . . . . kiss
"You got to not talk dirty, baby, if you wanna impress me
You can't be to flirty, mama, I know how to undress me (Yeah)
I want to be your fantasy, maybe you could be mine
You just leave it all up to me, we could have a good time
"You don't have to be rich to be my girl
You don't have to be cool to rule my world
Ain't no particular sign I'm more compatible with
I just want your extra time and your . . . . . kiss
"Yes, oh
I think I wanna dance, uh
Gotta, gotta, oh
Little Girl Wendy's Parade
Gotta, gotta, gotta
"Women, not girls, rule my world, I said they rule my world
Act your age, mama, not your shoe size, maybe we could do the twirl
You don't have to watch Dynasty to have an attitude, uh
You just leave it all up to me, my love will be your food (Yeah)
"You don't have to be rich to be my girl
You don't have to be cool to rule my world
Ain't no particular sign I'm compatible with!
I just want your extra time and your kiss"
A couple minutes after Clu's little "concert," Fi heard the shower shut off.
She finished doing her hair and worked on cleaning her room. Clu walked by her room,
and as he did she called out, "Hey Clu, loved the music. Very cool!"
He just popped his head into her room, grinned at her, and walked off. She
thought about him for a moment, suddenly processing the sight she had just seen.
Clu, a towel, dripping wet. Man, she wished she had camera when he walked past.
Then again, she didn't really need it! She'd remember that sight forever!!! She laughed
quietly to herself, shaking her head. Now SHE needed a shower, a COLD shower!
She walked downstairs to see Clu, now fully dressed, and Carey wrestling
on the floor in the family room. She walked up to them and asked, "So, who's winning?"
They both said "ME!" and laughed. She shook her head and walked into the kitchen where
everyone else was sitting down, waiting for the breakfast that Ned was cooking.
Fi thought about it for a second and said, "Hey, Ned, do the guys know that you're making breakfast?"
"No. I figured I should give myself at least some peace."
As if on cue, Clu and Carey ran into the kitchen with their heads up in the air as if they
smelled something. Clu was the first one to speak. "Oh yeah! Bacon! Bacon! Hehe!"
He ran up to his dad and hugged him from behind. "I love you, daddy! Now, where's my food?"
Ned shook his son off, laughed, and said "You'll get it in about ten minutes if you sit down and behave."
Clu jumped over the counter and right into a seat, grinning like a maniac and sticking his
tongue out at Carey. Fi looked at him and laughed. "What? I'm a growing boy! I need minerals."
"Uh, Clu! Minerals?"
"Yeah! You know, the stuff that's good for you!"
Fi laughed. "Nope. Sorry. That's nutrients."
"Oh... Well, those too!"
Everyone laughed and then slowly the laughter died, leaving a strange silence. Not liking or
accepting the eerie silence, Clu called out to his dad, "Hey pops! How long till breakfast?"
"About a minute!"
"Cool!"
Fi made her way to the refrigerator and pulled out some orange juice. She took it over to the
table and got seven glasses out of the cabinet. Everyone poured their drinks and waited for Ned to bring the
food over. As soon as he did, the place was a zoo. Everyone was talking and grabbing food and being the
happy family they always were. Something was different. Carey noticed that Fi wasn't as animated as
she had been as a child. She was just acting like this space-case out of some old silent movie. She was
just so quiet. He decided to talk to her about it later.
After breakfast, Fi went out back to the deck and sat down on the old steps. She was so absorbed
in her thoughts about Clu and relationships, and even just life, that she didn't hear Carey walk up to her and sit down beside her. "Fi?"
She didn't respond, only stayed in that silent trance. "Fiiiii?"
Still nothing. 'Man, this ain't cool,' thought Carey. 'I gotta do somethin'. Clu won't like it if his chick is acting
like a zombie.'
"FI?"
She snapped her head back. "Yeah? Huh? Whaaaa?"
"Fi, are you okay?"
"Oh, yeah. Hi. I didn't see you there."
"What's up?"
"Nothing. I've just got a lot on my mind right now. That's all."
"Oh, what about?"
"Nothing."
"Boy troubles?"
Fi glared at him. "I don't see how it this is any of your business!"
"Hey! I'm just being a good friend. "
"It's not boy trouble!"
"Oh. Okay. Is it girl trouble?"
She laughed laughed a little. "No. I just- I don't know! I'm so confused."
"About what?"
"About everything. I-have you ever had this feeling where your palms were sweaty whenever you saw someone,
someone you've known your whole life? And it just suddenly happened?"
He looked down. "Yeah."
"Oh, sorry. I forgot. You have a crush on-uh, yeah!"
"Geez. Does everyone know?"
"Well, it is kind of obvious! Lemme guess. You're afraid she'll laugh in your face and say you're just a kid?"
"How'd you know? Oh-wait. No duh! That's how you feel. But, tell me. Who is it?"
He already knew who it was but once she admitted it to him, it'd be easier to help them. Even though Clu would
end up dead, but still, he might die happy.
"Well, you kinda know him."
"And?"
"He's um, well, you have to promise not to tell ANYONE!"
"Okay. Yeah. I PROMISE."
"It's um-it's kinda-"
"Kinda who?"
"It's kinda your brother."
"Huh. You and my bro, together. Interesting. I like it. It works. You two should get together."
"Yeah, when pigs fly! I mean- come on! What are the chances of that happening?"
"Better than me and Molly. That's for sure!"
"Well, yeah. I mean, what would your parents say?"
"They'd kill the both of us!"
"Well, okay. "
"But, then again, if you and Clu get together, then JACK will go on a killing spree. And frankly, it'd probably
be worse than my parents freaking out. Your brother masks a WHOLE lot of anger. Trust me. I know these
things. It wouldn't be cool!"
"Well then, both of us have a problem. We'll never get the ones we love. Oh well! Life sucks!"
"Yeah. Well, I'm going in now but any time you wanna talk, I'm here. But then again, there's someone else
you should talk to instead."
"HA! You know I'll be able to have a good conversation with him. Clu: Hey, what's up, Fi-ster?, me: Duh,
er, um! Yeah, THAT'LL happen."
"You never know till you try! See ya!"
Carey pulled her into a hug and then walked inside. Neither of them saw Clu watching them
from a window upstairs. Carey walked upstairs to Jack's room to get his CD player and go for a walk to
sort out what was going on. When he got there, he was met by a VERY angry Clu.
"DUDE! I thought you DIDN'T like her! And you really had to do that AFTER I told you I like her."
"Huh? Clu, what are you talking about? Dude, you're crazy!"
"I want to know something."
"Yeah?"
"How come I can't make her laugh like that any more? It's like you're her best friend now instead of me.
What's going on between you two?"
"Nothing. Bro, do you think I'd do that to you?"
"I don't know. Would you?"
Carey grabbed his CD player and jacket, walked out of the room, and, as he was walking out, said,
"I'm goin' out. I need to go clear my head."
He walked out of the house, turned on his CD player, and began jogging down the street. He had been jogging for a while, not caring where he was going, just going, getting rid of the stress from his brother.
Finally, he stopped in front of a little duck pond. He sat down on a nearby bench and just pondered his life. How had his life gotten so difficult in so little time? The really big problem was no matter what happened, he couldn't
avoid him. If they still stayed at the Phillips, they'd share a room with Jack. If they got back home, he'd STILL have to share a room. He couldn't escape the little bugger.
He couldn't tell Clu the truth, that he had just recently become Fi's confidante because of her interest with his brother.It'd make life easier, but Fi'd be PRETTY mad if, correction: WHEN, she found out. No matter what, he'd
rather have Clu on his tail than Fi. That was for sure. Clu would get mad, but Fi would get PISSED! And, he couldn't
lie and tell Clu that, yes, he was flirting with her. There wasn'tany right way of doing this. No matter what, he'd have someone mad at him.
Maybe he could tell Clu the truth, but have him NOT tell Fi. No, that wouldn't work! Clu would say it
without even realizing it. It was no use. Carey didn't know what to do. Maybe he should ask somebody, someone
who wouldn't have any opinion. He pondered for a while on who it should be.
He knew who it should be. It should be Molly. She wouldn't worry about her daughter being in a relationship with Clu. She's too cool of a parent to do that! Besides, it'd mean spending more time with her.
Carey spent the rest of the day hanging out by the pond, tossing stones in every once in a while, and making soft ripples. Funny, he thought, it seems like I'm doing the same thing to my own life and the lives of those who
surround me. He saw the sun begin to set and immediately set off toward the Phillips residence, back to where his problems were. Back to a place filled with trouble. Hopefully, he could fix things, and all the problems would
be gone. He saw the house come into sight and dashed toward it.
As he got closer, he saw Clu and his did packing luggage into the small car. "Hey dad!"
His father turned around, looked at him, and hugged him. "Carey! Your mother and I were SO upset. We didn't know where you were. Finally, we thought of asking Clu and he explained you had taken a walk. If I were you, I'd go see
your mom NOW! I'll bet she's already called the police wondering where you were. Why would you run off for
five and a half hours without telling one of us where you were?"
"I did tell one of you. I told Clu."
"No! I mean, your mom and me."
"Sorry dad! I just began to feel really claustrophobic, stuck up in there. I just had to go out for a run."
"Okay. It doesn't make sense, and I don't buy it, but okay. Now go tell your mother so she can stop worrying.
All right?"
"Sure dad. See ya. Oh, yeah. Why are you packing the car?"
"We're gonna leave soon. We figured Molly and her family should have some time alone without you guys causing trouble."
He laughed, meaning it as a joke about how his two sons normally acted. The two of them didn't laugh. Instead, they just glared at each other. Carey walked inside only to be embraced by his mother whose face was filled
with worry. She took a look at him. Maybe she was making sure he was okay. Maybe she was checking to make
sure it was him. Who knows! She just hugged him again and walked with him to the kitchen where Molly was sitting.
The table had a set of cards covering it. The two of them must have been playing poker again. They did that when they were worried. It was strange but no one ever questioned it. Carey sat down in the chair at the head of the table
so that he was sitting next to both of them. A few minutes into the next game, which now included Carey, Irene left the table to use the restroom.
Carey looked at Molly and quietly said, "Molly, I need your advice."
"About what?"
" A really big thing, so can I stay for dinner after my parents leave and talk about it afterwards?"
"Um, sure. I guess. If it's something really important."
"Oh trust me! It IS!"
Irene walked back to the table and the game resumed without another mention of him staying for dinner. Soon, Ned came in and said that it was time for them to go. Carey walked with his parents out to the car, but right as
they were getting into it, he told them he'd be staying, but that he'd walk home after dinner. They were a little hesitant but decided he was old enough to make decisions. So, his parents said goodbye and drove off with Clu in the car, scowling at Carey out of the window.
Carey just shook his head and ignored it, walking back into the house. He walked over to the counter where Molly had begun making dinner. Without even having to say he was back to speak to her, she said, "So, what's so important that you need to talk to me but can't talk to your brother or the rest of your family about? And why
are you and Clu having a sulk fest anyway? What happened?"
"Well-ah. It's kind of hard to explain."
"Well, you're here to talk to me, so talk, before I call your parents and tell them you changed your mind and want to eat dinner with them."
"Okay, see..."
He began the story, leaving out the part about him having a crush on her. He didn't talk about it during dinner since he knew Fi would be mad if she found out that he told someone, anyone. After dinner, Molly and Carey continued the discussion and finally, Carey finished talking about it. Molly thought for a second and then looked at him.
"You know, Carey, this is a STRANGE situation!"
"Oh, trust me. I know! I know better than anyone else does. I just need to know how to fix it. I mean, no matter what I do, I'm gonna get beef from Clu. But if Fi finds out I told you, she's gonna hate me."
He ran his fingers through his thick blonde hair. "God, Molly. I don't know what I'm gonna do. Whatever I do is automatically wrong, and I can't handle it! I probably shouldn't have even tried to help the two of them. It'll just blow up in my face, no matter WHAT I do. What am I gonna do Molly? If I go home, my brother will accuse me of spending more time with her and of liking her, but if I go and spend the night somewhere, he'll accuse me of doing something with her."
"Well, Carey. I'm glad you told me this but I don't know what to do. If you really can't bear facing your brother, I could call at about 11 O'clock and tell your parents that you fell asleep on the couch and that I don't think you should be walking out in the cold at night. Do you think that'd work?"
"Maybe. Thanks Molly! You're the best."
He gave her a hug. "Hey, I'm happy to help out one of my boys. It's nothing. Now let's go have a slumber party. What movie do you wanna watch? We've got 'em all!"
Carey thought a second about what she called him, 'one of her boys'. He was still just a child to her. Talk about sucky! "Um, I dunno. You choose!"
"Okay, but you have to promise not to whine, okay?"
"Okay. I promise."
Molly went to a cabinet that had only one thing in it, one single tape. "Uh, Molly? What are we watching? And WHY was it the only tape in that cabinet?"
She showed him the tape box. It was the original SHAFT. "What? Okay, look. The kids don't like this movie. They said if they ever found it, they'd get rid of it. This is one of my favorite movies!"
He sat on the couch for a minute, just stunned. Then, a smile broke out on his face. "Mrs. P, you are the COOLEST! SWEET! I always wanted to watch this movie, but my parents weren't cool enough to rent it for me, and, well, it's not like I have any money!"
Molly put the tape in the VCR and sat down on the couch next to Carey. They started the movie. About halfway through, Jack came downstairs to get a glass of water and saw Carey and his mom on a couch together, in the dark. NOT a good combination, he thought. He walked over to them and said "Hey, what's up?"
Molly looked at him and answered, "We're watching the movie you hate!"
"Huh? I don't hate SHAFT; it's just that the movie's so old. I mean, who watches it anymore?"
Carey laughed and Molly cleared her throat. "Okay. Look, you can watch this ANCIENT movie with us, OR you can go do something else."
He thought about it for a second, and then said "I think I'll watch it with you guys!"
After the movie was over, Molly told both boys good night and went upstairs to call Carey's parents and then, go to bed. Jack went back up to bed, and Carey put everything up, got a blanket from a chest by the couch and went to sleep.
Man, did he enjoy his dreams!