Rowan tongued the top of the beer bottle, licking off the wet drops. "So
that's Gabe?" asked Patrick, coming to plop next to him.
"Yuh huh."
"He's cute!" said Aisling; coming to sit on Rowan's other side. "Good thing he doesn't take after his brother in that area." Good naturedly Rowan pushed her, keeping his eyes on Gabe who was running around Nate, Evelyn and Owen. He knew Jasper was inside hanging out with Mrs. Galloway, probably discussing the good old days when they all took naps.
"Distracted much?" asked Patrick, eyes averted.
"Hmm?"
"Forget it."
"Sorry. It's just I don't know what to say."
"Explanation please."
"Being back here. it's all just kind of setting in. You know?"
"Yeah I guess." Patrick sound quiet, defeated.
"Just. there's so much I wanted to tell you guys and say and come off as so changed and whatever and now that the moment is here."
"The Moma Dance!" Evie came over and sat down, leaned against the other wall, the boom box closest to her.
"You're a Phish fan now? Patrick! How could you lead your sister so astray?!"
"Quiet you," said Nate. "If Evie wants to be out of her head then fine. She's just not the same as all of us and for that we must be nice to her."
"Yeah!" Owen joined them, Gabe running off inside. "We speak quietly around her."
"We keep to gentle topics." Aisling was getting in on it now.
"And we file down all the rough spots on all the furniture in case she has another one of her spills." Patrick laughed.
"Piss off all of you!" Evelyn tried to act dignified and put out but she couldn't help smiling. Hello good all days where she was always the source of their amusement. Hello memory book.
They all laughed and Rowan perked as the next song's opening riffs began. "Know this song. I sent you all the CD."
"And we took this song and put it on a mix, just for you!" Aisling batted her eyes lashed and smiled innocently.
"Really?"
"No." Aisling gave a true grin and kissed his cheek. "Only kidding. Sort of."
"Love you all too." Rowan sang softly the first chorus- "Whatever poisons in this bottle/Will leave me broken sore and stiff/But it's the genie at the bottom whom I'm sucking at/He owes me one last wish/So here's a present to let you know that I still exist/I hope the next boy that you kiss/Has something terribly contagious on his lips."
"So Rowan- who is this Kat that you wrote about?" said Owen leaning in. "This is why I should learn to write short emails." muttered Rowan.
"But we love to try and decipher your rambling! We've got it down to an art form!"
"Uh huh."
"Yuh huh," said Nate, leaning to turn up the song. "Drink a lot of beer and read it backwards."
"Sure, ok," said Patrick. "And for the rest of us."
"But I've got a plan/I've got a plan/To drink for forty days and forty nights/A sip for every second hand tick/And every time you fed the line/"You mean so much to me"/I'm without you," sang Evie, off key and oblivious.
"Sing it out Evie!" yelled Jasper from inside "I can't quite hear you!"
"Shut up!"
"Tell all the English boys you meet/About the American boy back in the states/The American boy you used to date/Who would do anything you say/Tell all the English boys you meet/About the American boy back in the states/The American boy you used to date/Who would do anything you say" sang Patrick and Nate.
Gabe came running out. "Rowan! Can I drink your beer! Jasper said I could!"
"What?!"
"He's lying! He came up with the idea on his own!"
"Bull!"
"And even if her plane crashes tonight/She'll find some way to disappoint me/ By not burning in the wreckage or drowning at the bottom of the sea/ Jess I still taste you and thus reserve my right to hate you/ And all this empty space you create/ Does nothing for my flawless sense of style/ It's 8:45/ it's 8:45/ the weather is getting better by the hour/ rains all the time/ I hope it rains there all the time/ And if you ever said you miss me then don't say you never lied/ I'm without you," yelled Owen and Aisling, dueting, over Rowan and Jasper, Rowan thanking Jasper for putting the idea into Gabe's head while holding the bottle out of Gabe's reach and Jasper denying all accusations.
"A sip! K? Just a sip! And don't the rest of you let him have anything!!!" Gabe put the bottle to his lips and took a small sip. He swallowed and tried not to grimace. Ewwwww. Why would grown ups drink this? Like coffee. Nasty.
He plastered on a smile. "Yummy. Can I have more?"
"No! Not till your 16."
Gabe turned to Nate. "I get to smoke and curse then too!" Gabe ran away, back inside, to the kitchen to get a cup of soda to wash the taste of the beer out of his mouth. Gross.
Everyone looked at Rowan who looked away and sang, pretending nothing had happened, "Tell all the English boys you meet/ About the American boy back in the states/ The American boy you used to date/ Who would do anything you say/ Tell all the English boys you meet/ About the American boy back in the states/ The American boy you used to date/ Who would do anything you say."
"Sixteen?" asked Patrick as the rest of the gang laughed. Rowan shrugged and smiled.
"It justifies everything I do and gives me 10 years to think of a really good excuse for him not to."
"Good example you set."
"Better than me mum did. Not a hard act to follow though."
"So, are you and Gabe gonna go see your Da? I mean, since you're here and all?" Owen didn't sound like he was meddling or trying to be rude, just stating a simple question yet Rowan grew defensive anyway.
"Why would I want to do that? Why would anyone want to visit him? Gabe's a little kid! I'm not going to take him to Mountjoy!"
"Christ, sorry! Meant nothing by it."
"Rowan, it's not like he said he should hang out with the in mates or something," said Evie, trying to be the voice of reason.
"Yeah k," Rowan sounding deflated, taking a small sip of his drink.
"Has Gabe ever seen his Da?" Nate waited for an answer as did everyone, Rowan looking like he really didn't want this conversation to be happening.
"No. Mean to keep it that way."
"Oh."
"Never gonna get it right, you're never gonna get it /Never gonna get it right, you're never gonna get it," mumbled Rowan waiting for someone to change the subject. Owen began to laugh, all looking at him, scandalized.
"I just remember how even though Rowan was only first class and was hardly ever there he still had the most detentions in the whole school!"
"What can I say? I was an individual."
"I think the correct term is hell raiser," said Jasper, coming out to lower slightly the volume of the stereo.
"Well, that too."
"How about the time you told the teacher to piss off?" asked Nate, laughing.
"I was seven! It was my last day in class! She told you all that it was a good thing I was leaving because it meant you all could study now instead of goofing around with me!"
"Correct memories say that she had already asked all of us to get back in our desks 4 times and that she really said that the class would miss you but we all needed to get back to our studies anyway," said Owen, trying to break it to Rowan gently.
"Shut up Owen."
"Did she really say that?" asked Jasper, evidentially fed a different story.
"Think so," said Owen to him, dodging Rowan's swipe.
"Well hey, the office gave me going away candy. Guess they were upset because they would be out a bit of excitement."
"The school was quiet without you and Sara," remarked Aisling softly.
"And America got louder."
"Well Gabe is here now so. I think the two are pretty evenly matched. I mean, I've only known him for a whole hour and a half but he seems a lot like you when you were little," observed Patrick, watching Gabe play his mother in checkers through the window.
"How would you know Patrick? You were the same age!"
"Do we really have to bring out the picture albums?"
"I'll get 'em!" Nate raced inside and Rowan groaned.
"Feck."
"Yuh huh."
"He's cute!" said Aisling; coming to sit on Rowan's other side. "Good thing he doesn't take after his brother in that area." Good naturedly Rowan pushed her, keeping his eyes on Gabe who was running around Nate, Evelyn and Owen. He knew Jasper was inside hanging out with Mrs. Galloway, probably discussing the good old days when they all took naps.
"Distracted much?" asked Patrick, eyes averted.
"Hmm?"
"Forget it."
"Sorry. It's just I don't know what to say."
"Explanation please."
"Being back here. it's all just kind of setting in. You know?"
"Yeah I guess." Patrick sound quiet, defeated.
"Just. there's so much I wanted to tell you guys and say and come off as so changed and whatever and now that the moment is here."
"The Moma Dance!" Evie came over and sat down, leaned against the other wall, the boom box closest to her.
"You're a Phish fan now? Patrick! How could you lead your sister so astray?!"
"Quiet you," said Nate. "If Evie wants to be out of her head then fine. She's just not the same as all of us and for that we must be nice to her."
"Yeah!" Owen joined them, Gabe running off inside. "We speak quietly around her."
"We keep to gentle topics." Aisling was getting in on it now.
"And we file down all the rough spots on all the furniture in case she has another one of her spills." Patrick laughed.
"Piss off all of you!" Evelyn tried to act dignified and put out but she couldn't help smiling. Hello good all days where she was always the source of their amusement. Hello memory book.
They all laughed and Rowan perked as the next song's opening riffs began. "Know this song. I sent you all the CD."
"And we took this song and put it on a mix, just for you!" Aisling batted her eyes lashed and smiled innocently.
"Really?"
"No." Aisling gave a true grin and kissed his cheek. "Only kidding. Sort of."
"Love you all too." Rowan sang softly the first chorus- "Whatever poisons in this bottle/Will leave me broken sore and stiff/But it's the genie at the bottom whom I'm sucking at/He owes me one last wish/So here's a present to let you know that I still exist/I hope the next boy that you kiss/Has something terribly contagious on his lips."
"So Rowan- who is this Kat that you wrote about?" said Owen leaning in. "This is why I should learn to write short emails." muttered Rowan.
"But we love to try and decipher your rambling! We've got it down to an art form!"
"Uh huh."
"Yuh huh," said Nate, leaning to turn up the song. "Drink a lot of beer and read it backwards."
"Sure, ok," said Patrick. "And for the rest of us."
"But I've got a plan/I've got a plan/To drink for forty days and forty nights/A sip for every second hand tick/And every time you fed the line/"You mean so much to me"/I'm without you," sang Evie, off key and oblivious.
"Sing it out Evie!" yelled Jasper from inside "I can't quite hear you!"
"Shut up!"
"Tell all the English boys you meet/About the American boy back in the states/The American boy you used to date/Who would do anything you say/Tell all the English boys you meet/About the American boy back in the states/The American boy you used to date/Who would do anything you say" sang Patrick and Nate.
Gabe came running out. "Rowan! Can I drink your beer! Jasper said I could!"
"What?!"
"He's lying! He came up with the idea on his own!"
"Bull!"
"And even if her plane crashes tonight/She'll find some way to disappoint me/ By not burning in the wreckage or drowning at the bottom of the sea/ Jess I still taste you and thus reserve my right to hate you/ And all this empty space you create/ Does nothing for my flawless sense of style/ It's 8:45/ it's 8:45/ the weather is getting better by the hour/ rains all the time/ I hope it rains there all the time/ And if you ever said you miss me then don't say you never lied/ I'm without you," yelled Owen and Aisling, dueting, over Rowan and Jasper, Rowan thanking Jasper for putting the idea into Gabe's head while holding the bottle out of Gabe's reach and Jasper denying all accusations.
"A sip! K? Just a sip! And don't the rest of you let him have anything!!!" Gabe put the bottle to his lips and took a small sip. He swallowed and tried not to grimace. Ewwwww. Why would grown ups drink this? Like coffee. Nasty.
He plastered on a smile. "Yummy. Can I have more?"
"No! Not till your 16."
Gabe turned to Nate. "I get to smoke and curse then too!" Gabe ran away, back inside, to the kitchen to get a cup of soda to wash the taste of the beer out of his mouth. Gross.
Everyone looked at Rowan who looked away and sang, pretending nothing had happened, "Tell all the English boys you meet/ About the American boy back in the states/ The American boy you used to date/ Who would do anything you say/ Tell all the English boys you meet/ About the American boy back in the states/ The American boy you used to date/ Who would do anything you say."
"Sixteen?" asked Patrick as the rest of the gang laughed. Rowan shrugged and smiled.
"It justifies everything I do and gives me 10 years to think of a really good excuse for him not to."
"Good example you set."
"Better than me mum did. Not a hard act to follow though."
"So, are you and Gabe gonna go see your Da? I mean, since you're here and all?" Owen didn't sound like he was meddling or trying to be rude, just stating a simple question yet Rowan grew defensive anyway.
"Why would I want to do that? Why would anyone want to visit him? Gabe's a little kid! I'm not going to take him to Mountjoy!"
"Christ, sorry! Meant nothing by it."
"Rowan, it's not like he said he should hang out with the in mates or something," said Evie, trying to be the voice of reason.
"Yeah k," Rowan sounding deflated, taking a small sip of his drink.
"Has Gabe ever seen his Da?" Nate waited for an answer as did everyone, Rowan looking like he really didn't want this conversation to be happening.
"No. Mean to keep it that way."
"Oh."
"Never gonna get it right, you're never gonna get it /Never gonna get it right, you're never gonna get it," mumbled Rowan waiting for someone to change the subject. Owen began to laugh, all looking at him, scandalized.
"I just remember how even though Rowan was only first class and was hardly ever there he still had the most detentions in the whole school!"
"What can I say? I was an individual."
"I think the correct term is hell raiser," said Jasper, coming out to lower slightly the volume of the stereo.
"Well, that too."
"How about the time you told the teacher to piss off?" asked Nate, laughing.
"I was seven! It was my last day in class! She told you all that it was a good thing I was leaving because it meant you all could study now instead of goofing around with me!"
"Correct memories say that she had already asked all of us to get back in our desks 4 times and that she really said that the class would miss you but we all needed to get back to our studies anyway," said Owen, trying to break it to Rowan gently.
"Shut up Owen."
"Did she really say that?" asked Jasper, evidentially fed a different story.
"Think so," said Owen to him, dodging Rowan's swipe.
"Well hey, the office gave me going away candy. Guess they were upset because they would be out a bit of excitement."
"The school was quiet without you and Sara," remarked Aisling softly.
"And America got louder."
"Well Gabe is here now so. I think the two are pretty evenly matched. I mean, I've only known him for a whole hour and a half but he seems a lot like you when you were little," observed Patrick, watching Gabe play his mother in checkers through the window.
"How would you know Patrick? You were the same age!"
"Do we really have to bring out the picture albums?"
"I'll get 'em!" Nate raced inside and Rowan groaned.
"Feck."
