Awakening: Second Stage
Chapter Twelve
"Reflection"
Sunday
Tino awoke feeling disoriented. There were no covers on him. Odd. He felt cold. Struggling, Tino refused to open his eyes. He had been having such a nice dream, it would seem a shame to let it go. He could almost feel the soft threads between his fingers, the generous scent of Tish's hair still fresh in his memory. Right, he had spent the last of the night brushing her hair out, carefully following her instructions. He had found it a rather satisfying, if not complicated experience, more than fair when he thought of how she had fallen into the lake because of his carelessness. Sometimes, he knew, she tolerated him too much. What rational woman would put up with him? Wait, had he just referred to Tish as rational? Tino found himself chuckling. Perhaps he was more awake than he had thought. Groaning, Tino forced his eyes open, ripping through the fibers of eyeball crustiness webbing his eyes. His sheets lay on the floor, apparently the product of someone's attempt to wake him. Rubbing his eyes while sitting up, Tino yawned, then tried to find his voice.
"Oh, hey, Tino here. Okay, you'll pardon my appearance, but I'll bet you don't look so hot in the morning either. Do you? Huh?! Yeah, that's what I thought. Anyway..." Tino scratched at his hair, it stood on end in many places. "...where was I? Right, Tish, being rational. Um, you guys haven't been doing that creepy mind-reading thing like my mom, have you? On second thought, I don't want to know. Anyway, yeah, Tish rational. There's a scary thought. Remember when I was brushing her hair last night? She thinks I didn't see, but I saw her slip around outside and brush another seventeen times. Do you know why? Because two hundred thirteen isn't divisible by ten. Two hundred thirty is. Oh yeah, I know all about it. She let that one slip like a year and a half ago. I find it kind of cute. Crazy, unbelievably weird, but cute. You know Tish, she tries hard, but I say all those idiosyncrasies are what makes her Tish. Believe me, I've seen her at her worst. Specifically, there was that time I had only two tickets to Chum Bukkit. Two tickets, four friends. Now obviously, I was going, since I had won them. But who was I going to take? I wasn't dating Tish then, so she had no edge over the others. Not even a factor. I remember how they each went crazy for those things. Carver tried to use some kind of legal reasoning on me. Lor kept offering to do my chores. That is, if you count messing up my house and ruining the landscape as chores. Which brings us to Tish, who, I'd like to point out, took a completely different tactic. The guilt trip. No, actually, this was more like a first class guilt cruise, with catered cuisine and All-You-Can-Drink Wetbar. This, guys, was the act of a desperate woman. She stood outside on my porch, telling me not to take her to the concert because it wouldn't be fair to the others. Clever, maybe even selfless enough to work. But Tish doesn't do anything halfway. She then told me to pay no attention to any moans I might here. I think she said something about them being manifestations of the inner turmoil she felt over being denied the chance to see Chum Bukkit. Yeah, then she started howling every five seconds or so, pressing her face against my window all the while. I know, it was sick! Sneaky and diabolically clever, but sick! I almost gave in and took her just to stifle the noise. That girl can make all matter of disturbing noises. Ask Lor. There's this one sound Tish can make that has the ability to turn poor Lor into a puddle of goo. It stops her in her tracks!"
Tino pulled himself off the bed, straightening his pajamas. Grinning, he reached up and pulled a cord, bringing a pull-down diagram to eye level for all to gaze upon. "See this? This is a special project Lor, Carver, and myself started working on in the fifth grade. We call it Project: TEA, which stands for Tish Equals Alien. It's been a long time since we updated it. Easy to talk about in code, though. Like, 'Hey Carver, could you get us some iced tea?' And then Carver would slip off and try to snoop something of Tish's for evidence. Once we all went to her house and had to distract her while Lor looked through the medicine chest. She reported some pretty scary stuff, but nothing incriminating enough to prove that Tish is an alien. Still, the signs are there. The way too big vocabulary, her encyclopedic brain, her fascination with stuff that makes most of us fall asleep like its Monday morning homeroom. Not to mention the weird noises, a name you can't properly pronounce if you haven't known her for at least a year, and the creepy stare she can give you for what seems like hours on end, rendering you helpless and stupefied. And that doesn't even start on her family. Nice people, mind you, but they yodel. For fun. Most rational people won't yodel except under fear for their life. You'd think that these people would be the same way, but oh no, they enjoy it. Heck, even Tish thinks yodeling is uncool. How's that for irony? She isn't even rational! Anyway, that's the gist of the situation. So Tish probably isn't an alien. Well, I mean, she is, just not the kind that arrive in UFOs. I think her dad had a Gremlin when they moved here. Of course, there's a lot of my childhood I can't remember. Years of eating my mother's cooking will do that to you. Trust me, it's purely a defense mechanism. Between the whacked cooking and keeping me in touch with my sensations, it's amazing that Mom hasn't managed to bleed all the testosterone out of me."
"Don't you think you're being even a tad bit melodramatic?" Dixon asked cheerfully.
"Well, this was a private conversation."
"I hadn't noticed." Dixon shrugged. "Anyway, I think you're obsessing."
"Obsessing?"
"Yes. You know, there's a word to describe people who feel that everyone is out to get them."
"Right. Perceptive."
"Very droll, Tino."
"Who's being witty? I'm totally serious here!"
"Tino, you never fail to make me smile. Anyway, today's the last day, so you might want to think about packing up. You don't want to wait until the last minute and leave a lot of work for yourself."
"What time do we have to leave?"
"Well, it is a school night, so sometime between two and three o'clock should get us in at a reasonable hour. You might even get to catch up with your friends before the end of the day. Grab a little pizza, live a little..."
"I hadn't even thought of that! Y'know, I'll be that Carver and Lor miss us like crazy!"
Lor was lying crumpled in a heap on her couch, outfit wrinkled and hair matted beneath her head as a makeshift pillow. Carver was lying on the perpendicular angle of the sofa, feet a foot or two from Lor's head. Sawing more wood than a lumber mill, both teens lay in defiance of the new day, despite the commotion of Lor's brothers plowing by, playing a different sport with each new pass. Most of said sports had been upgraded to full contact rules. Occasionally, one of the boys would jump onto the couch and vault themselves over the back, creating a breeze that shifted strands of Lor's hair.
Her entire body felt tired, like she couldn't get up. It was a strange sensation, like she was sound asleep but aware of the outside world. Living in the MacQuarrie household necessitated the ability to sleep with one eye open, as it were. Those who couldn't were too weak to survive.
Lor turned in her sleep, strange visions running through her head. She clenched the fabric of the sofa cushion tightly as she dreamed, a crease in her forehead appearing and disappearing at regular intervals.
The Bahia Bay Middle School gymnasium was a place well known to Lor, the location where she had sunk the majority of her official baskets. Official meaning they occurred during a sponsored game. The arena seemed empty now. A drumming sound reverberated at regular intervals. It was a sound she knew all too well.
In tune with her recognition, the court seemed to light up at one end. A lone figure stood, dribbling a basketball at the foul line, the beat only interrupted for the occasional foul shot, which never seemed to go in. Lor squinted for a better look, spying a blue jersey like her own and blonde hair. Tino? That would explain the apparent lack of skill that was being demonstrated. "Hey Tino, want me to show you how it's done?" she asked, trotting over to the boy.
"Come to humiliate me?" was Tino's only response as he continued in vain to make a basket, although Lor noted that he seemed to be making some progress. The ball was actually bouncing off the backboard towards the hoop, though it usually missed by a mile.
"No way. Just thought I'd give you some pointers. Y'know, you're throwing the ball too hard."
"I said I don't need your help!" Tino pushed the girl out of his way, then grabbed the rebound and resumed his dribble and shot routine.
"Dude! What's wrong with you? We having a fight or something?"
"I don't need your pity, Lor. Or you making fun. Leave me alone, I can handle this myself."
"Who's making fun? There's no one here but us."
"Well, it's nice to know how little you regard me." Sad an all-too-familiar voice. Tish emerged from the dark recesses of the court. "I always suspected, but I never really believed until now."
"Tish? I totally didn't even see you. I'm sorry. What are you guys doing here anyway?"
"Tino is trying to broaden his horizons despite the obstacles he faces. He never could handle sports very well at all, but he's decided he needs to at least make the effort. For too long, he says he hasn't even tried. And I am here to be supportive of his goal. It's part of being a good girlfriend, to be supportive. And Tino means a lot to me. It's very exciting to watch him grow as a person."
"And you think I don't care about that kind of thing? Tino's my friend, Tish."
"Is that true? Then why do you betray him by wishing bad on us? Is that was a friend does?"
"I don't know what you're talking about."
"Oh, but you do. I know because you're the jealous type, Lor, and it takes one to know one. It's who we are. And I know you've been quagmired in jealousy since the moment Tino and I revealed to you that we're a couple. Why? Do you really feel that strongly against us? We're supposed to be your friends. Why can't you just be happy for us?"
"Friends." Lor murmured. "Friends don't do what you two are doing. You guys are breaking like a hundred unwritten rules of friendship. You think I don't know what will happen? Either you two will get all involved with each other and forget about you friends, or else you'll break up and try to get Carver and I to take sides. Tell me how that's fair! Why? Why couldn't you just leave well enough alone? If you have to hook up why can't you go outside the group? Everything was going fine before. I was crushing on Thompson, and Tino had a thing for Tasha. What happened there?
"Things change." Tino ceased dribbling the basketball, looking at Lor with sadness in his eyes. That was just a crush. They come and go. It happens all the time. Everyday. It's not like that with Tish. She and I have something important.......that's it, isn't it?"
"Huh?"
"Tish and I have something important together, and it scares you. It makes you feel threatened."
"Of course!" Tish chimed in. "It's all so simple! You're feeling lonely and isolated. It worries you that we have something good together, because you think it's going to turn Tino away from you."
"That's not true!" Lor hollered.
"Yes it is! You're jealous of what we found because what you really want is to be in my place!"
No! I...I want you guys to be happy!"
"You want us to fail." Tino said coldly.
"Just leave me alone!" Lor wailed, turning away from her friends. "What would you know about it?"
"Is that what you really want, Lor?" a new voice asked. "Because I don't think it is."
Lor's gaze whipped around, confirming her suspicions. "Well, looks like I was right. The gang's all here. What do you want, Carver?"
"To be your friend. That's all. You really need to step back and see the bigger picture, Lor. There's nothing going on here that you should be against."
"Y'know, this is exactly what I'm talking about. It's like the three of you just don't get it at all."
"What's to get? So two of our friends like each other. It happens all the time. It's called growing up. Or do you plan to be a perpetual tweenager? Just what do you think life is all about? Didn't they teach us in history class about the pursuit of happiness. I don't pretend to be mature enough to understand that fully, but what I do get is this--I wouldn't appreciate one of my friends telling me they didn't appreciate me going out with someone. You know what your problem is? All you can see is one side of an issue. You're all worried about what might happen. What about what has happened? You see two friends who could end up hurting each other, or maybe us. I see two friends who happened to find what they were looking for in each other. And you're right, maybe it won't last, and there could even be bad stuff to come out of it. But we don't know that. It's their business, and we owe it to them to let them handle it as they see fit. Remember what happened when we tried to come between Tino and his crush Tasha? We just made a mess, until we admitted we were being selfish. Well, that's what you're doing right now, being selfish. All you care about is your own feelings."
"All I have are my feelings! All I know is what I feel. Why can't anyone understand that? You're all supposed to be my friends, but the truth is you don't even know me." Heaving, Lor let herself sink to the floor, legs stretched out. "Am I the person you see in front of you? Because the truth is I don't really know. The way you know me is who I've been for so long that I can't really imagine being any other way."
"You are still unstable." Tish crooked an eyebrow. "You are stronger than you think, you merely convince yourself otherwise. Break through, Lor. If you would only face what you really fear, you would be stronger than ever." The girl disappeared with those words.
"You can make excuses, but like everyone else, only you can take care of you." Carver said as he vanished.
"Tino?" Lor looked anxious.
"Some things you have to face alone, Lor. Why don't you just try believing in yourself? I've never seen you fail when you do that." Tino tossed his basketball straight into the hoop, disappearing before the ball hit the floor.
"I want to! But not if you're all going to leave me alone! Please don't leave me alone! No!"
Dream faded to reality as Lor awoke to a new day, feeling dirty. "Maybe it's true." She whispered. "Everyone always leaves me alone. No, it's worse than that. They know I'm here, but they ignore me. They don't see me. Not even in my own home." She looked over at Carver, who was still sleeping soundly. "At least you stayed with me all weekend. It's nice to know there's at least one person I can count on." Lor smiled at her friend, lightly ruffling his dreadlocks with her right hand. "I'm gonna go make us some waffles, okay?" Carver snored in response. "Yeah, that's what I thought. Trust me dude, once you smell them going, you'll perk right up." She slid off the couch and walked into the kitchen, where at least half of her brothers had a game of soccer going. Grabbing a whistle off the wall, Lor opened the back door and blew the instrument, yelling for the boys to get outside. As they made their way out, game still in play, Lor shut the door behind them and locked it. Gathering her ingredients, she started strategizing on how to reconcile her differences with Tino and Tish when she saw them next.
"I feel pretty, oh so pretty! I feel pretty, and witty, and gay! And I pity...any girl who isn't me today! La la la la la la la la la la!" Tish glided about the bedroom as she tidied up the bed and started repacking her things, folding everything nicely. She mulled over what she would wear for the day before finally deciding on purple all around, still humming her happy song. She grinned as she closed the last drawer on the dresser, catching a glimpse of her cheerful self in the mirror. "See that pretty girl in the mirror there..."
"What mirror, where?" Miss Tonitini mocked as she stepped into the bedroom to begin packing her own things.
"Hey! That's not the melody!" Tish complained.
"I'm sorry. Chorus wasn't really my thing when I was in school. You're not too bad. I, uh, wouldn't quit my day job if I were you, but still, not too bad."
"Um, thanks, I think."
Tino's mother shrugged. "I don't sugar coat much. You have a nice voice, but I don't think it's your calling, y'know?"
"Yeah, it's okay. My goal is to be an actress, not a singer. One of my goals, anyway. I don't think I could be satisfied with doing just one thing in life. I need to stretch my wings."
"And how will high school play into that?"
"Well, I intend to do a lot of personal exploring while I'm in there. And of course, get my diploma so I can go to college. But I've always been interested in acting. Even moreso after being in that production of 'A Midsummer Night's Dream' last year. So I'm going to join the drama club."
"Right. Maybe we've had this conversation before."
"Probably. But I rarely get bored talking about the future. Unless of course it stands in the way of me living my present."
"So tell me," Tino's mother began as she slipped the remainder of her clothes into the suitcase and closed it, "did you have a good time this weekend?"
"Wonderful." Tish smiled. "There were a few, um, speedbumps, but overall, I couldn't have asked for much more. Thank you."
"You're welcome. We'll come again, and you're welcome to stay with us."
"I'd like that. I wonder if I could get my parents to come up here?"
"I was under the impression that they liked the outdoors."
"They do. They might think it odd that there's no livestock though." Miss Tonitini looked at her bemusedly. "Did I say that out loud?!"
"It's okay."
"Great. And to think, I'm the one who's supposed to make my family seem more American."
"Well, I think it's cool that they didn't lose touch with their roots when they moved here."
"Yeah, but I wish they would be a bit more American. I mean, I love my mom and dad, and they want the best for me. They want me to be an American girl. But is it wrong of me to want the same for them?"
"I think it all depends. I guess what matters is that they're happy with who they are and how they've lived. As a mother, I can tell you that's what I want most for Tino, for him to be happy. And sometimes that isn't easy for me to cope with. I don't feel like I'm completely out of it, but I'm from a different generation. And what makes me happy isn't necessarily going to make Tino happy. That isn't always easy to accept. But I try never to stand in Tino's way so long as I feel its appropriate."
"But sometimes you have to slap his hand when he goes to touch the hot stove?"
"Comes with the territory." The older woman smiled. "My point is, you're going to grow up to be a different person than either of your parents. In all likelihood, you'll be on both sides of this thing during the course of your life. From where I'm sitting, it's easier on your side than mine. If and when you have your own children someday, you'll understand."
"When they want to go play with their friends instead of being with me?"
"I was thinking more along the lines of when they quit college on you, but yeah, you're getting the picture."
"You're very kind to me, Miss Tonitini."
"Yeah, well, I like to pretend I'm a nice person from time to time."
"Right." Tish grinned sarcastically. "So, think we should meet the boys for some breakfast?"
Tino's mother sighed. "Well, it probably won't be the healthiest food in the world, but I think I've earned a day off from cooking."
"Definitely! Besides, this will be fun!" Tish cheered, mentally heaping praises on whatever deity had delivered her from Miss Tonitini's cooking. "Let's go pay them a visit!"
"Yeah, I do owe Dixon a little something for one of his comments last night. Did you forgive Tino yet?"
"Yeah, he was looking kind of pitiful. Although I probably would've been a lot angrier with him if we had been back home. But it just seemed wrong to have a fight on our anniversary."
"That's mature of you."
"Yeah? It also means I can hold it over his head when the need arises."
"Now you're getting the hang of it." Both women laughed uproariously as the headed towards the cabin next door.
Okay, I realize it's been a few weeks since I updated this story. Rest assured that I haven't lost interest in it. It's just a case of things being rather tense at work these past few weeks. It's really been eating into the time I can spend writing while I'm there. I've also had some personal issues, and I was sick a good portion of this past week, which delayed the release. I had hoped to have this out on August 29. Ah well, what's a week between friends?
As you no doubt noticed, I finally took the plunge and brought things around to Sunday. This means that there shouldn't be too many chapters left in this stage. Fear not, the story will not be coming to an end. For those not in the know, as of this writing, I am planning on their being six stages overall. There MAY be a seventh stage featuring a sidestory at some point, but if this is the case, it will not be written until the six primary ones are all complete. This is a big story, but I'm sticking with it. I have a lot to say. You'll also see me steep up Carver's involvement as the stages progress, so for those of you who feel that I don't do enough with him, sit tight, I'll come around. Lor will also play a bigger role as well.
Because work has been so demanding and it appears that it will be for some time to come, I feel it's only fair to warn to warn the readers that Awakening will probably be on an every other week rotation rather than weekly. I do want to keep the installments coming regularly instead of whenever I feel like it. I have no intention to leave this go unfinished by any means.
Once again, thanks to everyone who continues to support me in this project, especially through the rough patches. It's also nice to see other long, ongoing Weekenders fics, like WIH. It means that we authors have an audience. Some of you who do not get Toon Disney may be in despair that Disney seems to have aired its last Weekenders episode today. Don't lose heart, we authors will be here to provide you with continued quality stories that hopefully will make you run the gamut of emotions. I know it's a goal of mine. And if you have Toon Disney like me, well...keep reading anyway!
Okay, it looks like I'm starting to ramble here. You know I love to hear from you folks out there, so I beseech you to do more than read. Review. E-mail. IM me. You're always welcome, lords and ladies.
Until next time,
Lord Malachite
9/6/03
12:39 AM, EST
E-mail: ranger_writer@yahoo.com
AIM: Asukaphile26