Craig sighed as he tossed around in his bed, sweat soaking his night
clothes and sheets bunched down to the end of the mattress. He soon gave up
his feeble attempts at sleep and, laying on his back, stares at his
ceiling. He felt nauseated; his conscious eating him alive and making him
sick. Craig was growing so tired of having to juggle Marilyn and Ashley,
knowing in the end that he was only going to hurt Marilyn. Sighing again,
he sat up and looked at the clock... it was 5am.
He trudged downstairs and sat down on the couch, staring at nothing in particular until he heard Joey walk downstairs for his wake up cup of coffee. Joey didn't see Craig at first, not until he started the coffee maker and looked into the living area to see what coughed. "Craig? What are you doing up so early?" He asked concerned.
"Couldn't sleep." Craig responded in monotone.
Joey frowned, "You don't look good at all."
"I feel about 20,000 times worse." Craig laughed dryly.
"Go back upstairs, you're staying home today. I'll call the school as soon as it opens, okay?"
Craig shook his head, "I'm fine enough to go to school. I'm just tired--"
"--Now!" Joey commanded, pointing to the staircase. "If you go to school you're going to infect everyone else, let alone make yourself worse."
Craig nodded, "Yeah, yeah." He got to his feet and started to walk towards the kitchen, grabbing a Nuta-Grain bar from a basket on the counter.
Joey gave Craig a stern look, "Shoo. I'll be up to check on you soon."
An hour later, Joey walked into Craig's room. He snapped his fingers to get his foster son's attention, "You should be in bed."
Craig sighed and shut his book, getting up from his desk and heading to his bed. "I'm not tired." He groaned, getting situated under the covers.
"I'll bring in the TV from my room if you'd like, give you something to do than just laying there in bed." Joey volunteered, walking over and sitting on the edge of Craig's bed, "How are you feeling?"
Craig shrugged, "Awful."
"Think it's the flu?"
Shaking his head, Craig sighed, "I'm just really confused and frustrated I guess. I mean, I've been hanging out a lot with Marilyn and... I'm not suppose to like her like I do because I'm going out with Ashley, but..." He trails off again.
"I see, and your feelings are making you sick?" Joey nodded, answering his own question, "No one ever said you can't like two people, you just have to know who you like better and try not to hurt anyone."
Craig felt a lump rise in his throat, "Ashley's great, but so is Marilyn. It's just... what if something you think is great, really is great, but it's not as great as something greater?"
"Sounds like you already know who you have stronger feelings for."
~*~
The next weekend, Craig feeling better yet still dating both Marilyn and Ashley, he takes Marilyn to the mall. Killing an hour before a movie starts, they walk into FYE and start poking around the rock isle, rating some of the cds out of sheer boredom. "Come on!" Craig half whines, "Everyone knows that this is the best album Pink Floyd's ever released." He states, holding up Dark Side Of The Moon.
Shaking her head, Marilyn hands Craig Wish You Were Here, "How can you even like them? Queen on the other hand--"
"--Queen?" Craig almost laughed, raising his eyebrows.
"There's nothing wrong with Queen, just because they weren't metal in later years doesn't mean I can't listen to them."
Craig shakes the look off of his face, "But Queen? Why not..." He starts looking through a line of CDs in front of him, "The Smiths?"
Marilyn scoffs, "Please."
"And what's wrong with The Smiths?"
"Oh, I don't know... everything." Marilyn pulls out a package looking CD box and hands it to him, "The Grateful Dead can beat The Smiths butt any day of the week."
Craig smiles, "You think that." He casts his eyes over to the entrance and his face goes pale. Ashley walks into the store, heading over to the sweatshirts. "Do you want to go? Maybe get something to eat or mix all the smells together at Bath Works?"
Not looking at him, Marilyn reads the back of a random CD, "We just got here."
"I know, but..." He let his voice trail off, panicking slightly.
"Are you okay? You look awful pale." Marilyn asks.
Trying to think of something, anything, Craig blurts out, "No, not really. I think I need to sit down or get some food in my stomach." He shifts his eyes around wildly, but Ashley's gone just a soon as she arrived. Craig sighs in relief.
Marilyn gives him a worried, yet confused, look. "Craig?"
"On second thought, I feel fine." He says casually, quickly picking up an Oasis CD and studying the front cover.
"You're acting really weird, is something wrong?"
Craig laughs, "Nothing's wrong." He sets the CDs in his hands back where it belongs and decides that he doesn't want to take another chance if Ashley shows up again. Turning to face the doors, Craig takes another look around, "Do you want to get a cookie? I'm starving." He turns around and bumps into Marilyn, who was walking up behind him.
For some reason Craig wouldn't let Marilyn pass, he'd stay in front of her and block her so she couldn't move forward. "What are you doing?" Marilyn asked almost in a whisper.
"I don't know..." Craig replied, his voice even softer. He was looking down into her eyes, which were yellow cat's eyes at the moment, and soon his body became a large mass of jell-o. He began to lean in, having no control over himself, and soon his lips were pressed against Marilyn's. There was a delay before Marilyn kissed him back, a feeling that never happened around Ashley flowing through his veins.
He then felt a tap on his shoulder. Breaking away from the kiss, thinking that the person behind him was the manager, he turned around to see Ashley standing there with her arms crossed. "Hey, Craig."
He trudged downstairs and sat down on the couch, staring at nothing in particular until he heard Joey walk downstairs for his wake up cup of coffee. Joey didn't see Craig at first, not until he started the coffee maker and looked into the living area to see what coughed. "Craig? What are you doing up so early?" He asked concerned.
"Couldn't sleep." Craig responded in monotone.
Joey frowned, "You don't look good at all."
"I feel about 20,000 times worse." Craig laughed dryly.
"Go back upstairs, you're staying home today. I'll call the school as soon as it opens, okay?"
Craig shook his head, "I'm fine enough to go to school. I'm just tired--"
"--Now!" Joey commanded, pointing to the staircase. "If you go to school you're going to infect everyone else, let alone make yourself worse."
Craig nodded, "Yeah, yeah." He got to his feet and started to walk towards the kitchen, grabbing a Nuta-Grain bar from a basket on the counter.
Joey gave Craig a stern look, "Shoo. I'll be up to check on you soon."
An hour later, Joey walked into Craig's room. He snapped his fingers to get his foster son's attention, "You should be in bed."
Craig sighed and shut his book, getting up from his desk and heading to his bed. "I'm not tired." He groaned, getting situated under the covers.
"I'll bring in the TV from my room if you'd like, give you something to do than just laying there in bed." Joey volunteered, walking over and sitting on the edge of Craig's bed, "How are you feeling?"
Craig shrugged, "Awful."
"Think it's the flu?"
Shaking his head, Craig sighed, "I'm just really confused and frustrated I guess. I mean, I've been hanging out a lot with Marilyn and... I'm not suppose to like her like I do because I'm going out with Ashley, but..." He trails off again.
"I see, and your feelings are making you sick?" Joey nodded, answering his own question, "No one ever said you can't like two people, you just have to know who you like better and try not to hurt anyone."
Craig felt a lump rise in his throat, "Ashley's great, but so is Marilyn. It's just... what if something you think is great, really is great, but it's not as great as something greater?"
"Sounds like you already know who you have stronger feelings for."
~*~
The next weekend, Craig feeling better yet still dating both Marilyn and Ashley, he takes Marilyn to the mall. Killing an hour before a movie starts, they walk into FYE and start poking around the rock isle, rating some of the cds out of sheer boredom. "Come on!" Craig half whines, "Everyone knows that this is the best album Pink Floyd's ever released." He states, holding up Dark Side Of The Moon.
Shaking her head, Marilyn hands Craig Wish You Were Here, "How can you even like them? Queen on the other hand--"
"--Queen?" Craig almost laughed, raising his eyebrows.
"There's nothing wrong with Queen, just because they weren't metal in later years doesn't mean I can't listen to them."
Craig shakes the look off of his face, "But Queen? Why not..." He starts looking through a line of CDs in front of him, "The Smiths?"
Marilyn scoffs, "Please."
"And what's wrong with The Smiths?"
"Oh, I don't know... everything." Marilyn pulls out a package looking CD box and hands it to him, "The Grateful Dead can beat The Smiths butt any day of the week."
Craig smiles, "You think that." He casts his eyes over to the entrance and his face goes pale. Ashley walks into the store, heading over to the sweatshirts. "Do you want to go? Maybe get something to eat or mix all the smells together at Bath Works?"
Not looking at him, Marilyn reads the back of a random CD, "We just got here."
"I know, but..." He let his voice trail off, panicking slightly.
"Are you okay? You look awful pale." Marilyn asks.
Trying to think of something, anything, Craig blurts out, "No, not really. I think I need to sit down or get some food in my stomach." He shifts his eyes around wildly, but Ashley's gone just a soon as she arrived. Craig sighs in relief.
Marilyn gives him a worried, yet confused, look. "Craig?"
"On second thought, I feel fine." He says casually, quickly picking up an Oasis CD and studying the front cover.
"You're acting really weird, is something wrong?"
Craig laughs, "Nothing's wrong." He sets the CDs in his hands back where it belongs and decides that he doesn't want to take another chance if Ashley shows up again. Turning to face the doors, Craig takes another look around, "Do you want to get a cookie? I'm starving." He turns around and bumps into Marilyn, who was walking up behind him.
For some reason Craig wouldn't let Marilyn pass, he'd stay in front of her and block her so she couldn't move forward. "What are you doing?" Marilyn asked almost in a whisper.
"I don't know..." Craig replied, his voice even softer. He was looking down into her eyes, which were yellow cat's eyes at the moment, and soon his body became a large mass of jell-o. He began to lean in, having no control over himself, and soon his lips were pressed against Marilyn's. There was a delay before Marilyn kissed him back, a feeling that never happened around Ashley flowing through his veins.
He then felt a tap on his shoulder. Breaking away from the kiss, thinking that the person behind him was the manager, he turned around to see Ashley standing there with her arms crossed. "Hey, Craig."