A/N: Heyy everybody! I'm back, and I've decided to continue this. I've done a lot of thinking, and I'll probably end up cutting out most of the unecessary chapters that would have made this story too long. But I figured it deserved a second chance, I felt bad for just dumping it before. So here is my attempt at a continuation of "Tomorrow For Them", starting us off with a song title by...well, I'll let you figure it out.
Chapter Nine: Still I Can't Be Still
A few days went by, and finally it was New Years Eve, and the mood was certainly brightened up. New Years was always a very important celebration for the bohemian family, and every year the celebration got more and more wild.
It was 11: 45 on New Year's Eve. Jason was filming around the extremely decorated loft, as Maureen and Joanne fussed over streamers. Roger was strumming happily on his Fender guitar, and Collins sat on the couch, blowing up balloons. Suddenly the phone rang.
"SPEAK,"Mark and Roger's voices rang out on the answering machine. The two exchanged a grin. They hadn't changed it in twenty years.
"Maaaaark! It's your mother! Just calling to wish you, Rebecca and your friends a happy New Year, from all of us here in Scarsdale. Will you be bringing Rebecca up any time soon for the holidays? It's been so long since I've seen you two. Make sure to call Cindy and wish her a Happy Hanukkah! I'll talk to you soon, honey."Mark sighed as the message came to an end.
"Just a few more years, and she won't be around any longer..."he reassured himself. Roger grinned.
"Come on, Mark, she's not that bad,"he said. Mark's mother had been a great help when Rebecca had first arrived. She had sent him all kinds of things that he couldn't afford, and had even offered to let Rebecca live with her in Scarsdale for a while. Of course, Mark hadn't taken her up on the offer, but it was something he would never forget.
"Yeah, I know,"he insisted. "Where's Becky, by the way?"
"She went to visit Mimi,"Jason replied. Often times Becky would go to her Aunt Mimi's grave. What exactly she did there, the others were unsure of, but she went whenever she was feeling down, or uncomfortable, or just needed to talk. And she always came back much happier.
"Oh, right,"Mark said. "Any idea when she'll be back?"
"Nope. It all depends on how much she needs to talk,"Jason replied. Mark nodded, trying to understand.
"Okay. Right. She needs to talk...to Mimi..."he said, more to himself than to the others.
Jason filmed his rock star father as he sang softly along to a song he was playing.
"Your eyes...as we said our goodbyes..."Jason stopped, slowly lowering the camera.
"That's the song you used to play for mom,"he realized. Roger stopped, looking up, a grin on his face.
"That's the song I wrote for her,"he replied.
"Really?"Jason asked, feeling a twinge of sadness in his heart. Roger nodded.
"Yeah..."He saw Jason's hurt expression, and walked over and hugging his son closer, as he remembered what Mark had told him.
"Look, I know it's hard to celebrate without her, Jase. It's hard for me too,"Roger assured him.
"New Years is always the worst,"Jason admitted.
"I know it is,"Roger agreed. "But we've got each other, right?"Jason was hesitant to answer. He looked up into his father's pleading emerald eyes, and nodded.
"Yeah. We do."Roger was practically beaming, as his son grinned up at him. Then a thought hit him...
"Look Jason, I don't want you to think that you have to force yourself to play the guitar to impress me. I love that you're filming. Mark loves that you're filming, we both do. I'm sorry if I've been giving Becky any more attention than you, it's just...music is my thing, and I want to help her, since, you know, Mark couldn't figure out a C scale to save his life,"he explained. Jason laughed a little.
"I know, I just...I want to make you proud,"he said.
"You do, Jason. All the time. I love you, you're my son. And I couldn't have asked for a better son,"Roger assured him, squeezing Jason tightly. "I love you, Jase."
"Love you too, dad."
Roxie was next through the door, her hair tied into a tight bun, a leotard on under a flimsy pink sweater, and a little skirt on over white tights.
"Roxanne Johnson-Jefferson! Were you running around the streets dressed like that!"Joanne demanded.
"I was coming from class!"Roxie argued.
"You could have changed before you came,"Joanne snapped.
"I didn't have time, we got out late!"Roxie insisted. "It's not even that cold out..."
"It's only below freezing! Go put some pants on right now, missy!"Joanne commanded, pointing towards the bathroom. Roxie groaned.
"You're ruining my life!"she called back over her shoulder to her mother as she stormed off.
"Happy New Years everyone!"The door opened again and Becky came bursting through happily, guitar on her back, piles of sheet music in her arms.
"Hey Becky, there you are!"Mark greeted. Becky turned, smiling at her father.
"Hey dad,"she replied. She seemed to be her normal, cheerful self again.
"Grandma called. She wants a visit soon,"Mark explained. Becky rolled her eyes a little, earning a laugh from Mark, as Becky began setting her guitar down.
"So, you er...visited Mimi, huh?"Mark asked awkwardly. Becky nodded.
"Yeah. I do that sometimes,"she replied, also rather awkwardly.
"Right,"Mark said, nodding. "So uh...how do you feel? You know, now that you've talked to her?"Becky smiled.
"Better,"she replied. Mark grinned too.
"Okay. Good. That's good,"he said. He patted his daughter's back comfortingly."Happy New Years, Becky."
"Happy New Years, dad,"Becky replied smiling up at the man she adored so much.
"Hey Becky!"Jason came over, camera up to his face, filming. "What are your New Years resolutions?"Becky grinned at Jason's camera, pulling out her guitar as she spoke.
"To finish my song,"she announced, strumming a chord. Then her guitar hit a flat note. She frowned. "Or at least tune this damn thing..."Jason laughed, as Becky began tuning.
Maureen had already broken into the stash of champagne being set aside for midnight. She made a face as she took a swig of it.
"Oh God...hey Mark, what's the shit of the year for '09? Because this is a real winner..."she called out, trying to brush off her tongue. Mark sighed, snatching the bottle from her.
"This was for midnight, Maureen!"he scolded. Maureen shrugged, taking the bottle back.
"Well, in Australia, midnight has probably already happened, so I'm not breaking any rules!"she replied.
"I thought you said it tasted like shit,"Mark pointed out.
"Yeah. But it's shit with MY germs on it now!"Maureen shrugged.
"Where's Aaron? He should be here by now, it's almost 12:00!"Collins said.
"He'll be here, he's probably still studying for mid-terms,"Jason answered.
"Not that he needs it,"Roxie added. "The kid's a frigging genius."
"He's a hard-working boy who earns his grades,"Joanne corrected, tugging on her daughter's curls.
"He's--"Suddenly the door opened.
"Today for you, tomorrow for me!"
The room was filled with gasps, cheers and shrieks as Aaron entered the room...dressed head to toe in drag, complete with wig, makeup and pumps. He grinned, spinning around as Roger, Maureen, Mark, Jason and Becky clapped. Collins was beside himself, laughing hysterically at his son as he pranced around the room.
"This ensemble courtesy of Aunt Mo's closet!"Aaron announced, strutting around the loft as everyone erupted in more laughter.
"Oh Aaron, I knew there was a reason I brought you home!"Collins laughed. Aaron ran over, hugging his dad around the neck.
"Don't worry dad, I don't go around like this all the time,"he assured his father, as everyone continued to laugh.
"I wouldn't have any problem if you did!"Collins assured him. "Aw, you're amazing, Aaron. You really are."Aaron just giggled, sounding shockingly like Angel to those who knew her. Becky ran over, hugging Aaron.
"You're the best big brother a girl could have...you double as a big sister!"she teased. Aaron laughed.
"Is my lipstick smudged?"he asked. Becky shook her head.
"Not at all, you look positively gorgeous!"she assured him.
"What do you think Roxie? Would I make a hot drag-queen or what?"Aaron asked. Roxie just rolled her eyes.
"Don't quit your day job,"she snorted. Aaron pretended to look offended, as Becky and Jason laughed.
"Close on Aaron, one of the most creative guys, or should I say, girls we know!"Jason narrated through laughter. Aaron blew a kiss to the camera.
"Let's toast!"Collins cried out suddenly, holding up a bottle of champagne. Everyone grabbed paper cups from the table, holding them up together, all grinning and hugging.
"To a Happy New Year, and many more to come!"Collins announced.
"To a Happy New Year!"the others all repeated. And they smashed cups together, laughing happily as they spent this celebration together.
A/N: So what do you think? Should I bother continuing this at all? Let me know what you guys think. If you don't like the way I'm writing this story, I got an offer from someone else to continue it too. Send me your thoughts!