CHAPTER SEVEN
(chapter title -Rush Hour)
Jules, Eileen and John were sitting in Jules room during a thunderstorm later that evening. Roger and Mark were sleeping in their rooms, unaware of the storm.
"I've never been so scared in my life." Eileen confessed. She had never liked thunderstorms to begin with.
"It's okay, girl. Here." Jules handed her a miniature Hershey's candy bar and hugged Twiggy closer to her.
"Where in the world did you get that giraffe?" John asked, taking a mini Hershey's candy bar and stuffing it into his mouth. He was sitting on Jules' beanbag chair while the girls sat on the bed. They were in the middle of watching Finding Nemo on Disney Channel.
"My dad gave him to me when I was born." Jules told him, smiling. Eileen went to a corner of the room and got Rain out from her hiding spot.
"Where'd you get that?" Jules asked, setting Twiggy down so that she could pet Rain.
"Dad gave it to me for my eleventh birthday." Eileen said, smiling.
"Does it have a name?" John asked.
"Yeah - her name's Rain from the movie Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron." Eileen told them, setting Rain in between her and Jules.
"She's pretty." Jules commented.
"Gracias." Eileen thanked her in Spanish. John smiled and looked out the window - the rain was falling harder outside. Suddenly, there was a flash of lightening and the power went out. Jules and Eileen screamed as the lights went out.
"Everything okay?" John asked.
"Yeah." Eileen answered from somewhere behind him. At that moment, Roger and Mark ran into the room.
"Everything okay?" Roger asked, squinting into the darkness of the room.
"Yes!" Jules, Eileen and John answered in unison.
"Anybody scared?" Mark inquired.
"Why?" Eileen piped up.
"We just want to make sure you're okay." Roger answered just as the lights came back on. Seeing John on the beanbag chair and the girls on the bed, he smiled.
"Lights out in five minutes." Roger and Mark told the kids in unison.
"Okay." The kids responded. Mark and Roger took turns kissing the kids goodnight before heading back to their rooms and going back to sleep. After Roger and Mark left, Eileen got up from the bed and went to the couch. John said goodnight to the girls and went to his room.
"I'm tired." Jules confessed, getting under the covers. Eileen nodded and hugged Rain close to her.
"That horse looks a lot like Oreo, only she's brown and white - not black and white." Jules commented, yawning.
"Yeah, she does." Eileen said, yawning.
"Goodnight, Eileen. Goodnight Rain."
"Goodnight, Jules. Goodnight Twiggy."
Both girls fell asleep two minutes later, listening to the sound of the rain falling outside.
It was the next morning. Mark and Roger were squished in the tiny kitchen. Roger was making breakfast while Mark made lunches for the kids while John, Jules and Eileen got dressed and ready to go to school. Eileen emerged from her and Jules' room a few minutes later. She was wearing jeans with a tye-dye wrap around skirt and a tye-dye T-shirt. Her mouse-colored hair was pulled into a ponytail and on her feet, she wore white tennis shoes.
"You look cool, Eileen." Mark commented, handing her a bowl of Captain Crunch cereal. She smiled and ate her cereal just as Jules emerged from the room. She was wearing a floor-length white skirt, a blue shirt and sandals. Roger smiled at his daughter as Mark handed her a bowl of Cheerios.
"I'm coming!" John exclaimed, running out of his room. He was wearing jeans, a red sweatshirt and sneakers. Mark and Roger laughed as he ran to the kitchen. Mark handed him a bowl of Cinnamon Toast Crunch as Roger made coffee for him and Mark.
"I'm done!" Eileen announced, putting her dishes in the sink and ran to the bathroom to brush her teeth. Roger and Mark exchanged confused looks and shrugged their shoulders.
"We're getting our English project partners today." Jules explained, smiling at her dad and uncle.
"Eileen is hoping to get assigned with Matthew Cassidy." John added, sipping his glass of orange juice.
"Who's Matthew Cassidy?" Mark asked, sipping his coffee.
"He's this really cute, funny, sweet, wonderful guy that Eileen has had a killer crush on since forever. He has brown eyes, spiky brown hair and glasses. He's about the same height as John." Jules explained just as Eileen came out of the bathroom.
"Chica! You promised you wouldn't say anything!" Eileen yelled, grabbing her backpack and heading out the door. Jules put her dishes in the sink and went to brush her teeth and hair.
"It's okay - aunts Maureen and Joanne are driving us today and I know they won't leave without us." John reassured his dad and uncle just as Jules came out of the bathroom and grabbed her backpack. She headed out the door and went to wait in the van for John. Maureen and Joanne smiled as Jules climbed in and sat next to Hannah and Anna. A short while later, John came outside and sat next to Eileen in the back.
"Everyone ready?" Maureen asked from the front seat. Everyone muttered a response and buckled their seatbelts. Joanne put the van in drive and headed for Mount Vernon Junior High and Mount Vernon Elementary Schools. Nobody said a word, not even Hannah and Anna - who were usually talkative.
"Who wants to hear a joke?" Maureen inquired. Nobody said anything.
"Honeybear, probably now isn't a good time." Joanne whispered, looking in the rearview mirror. Maureen sighed and turned on the radio. Diana DeGarmo came on, singing her latest hit - Don't Cry Out Loud.
"Baby cried the day the circus came to town,
'Cause she didn't want parades just passing by her.
So she painted on a smile and took up with some clown,
While she danced without a net upon the wire.
I know a lot about her, 'cause you see,
Baby, is an awful lot like me.
Don't cry out loud,
Just keep it inside,
And learn how to hide your feelings.
Fly high and proud.
And if you should fall,
Remember you almost had it all.
Baby saw that when they pulled that big top down,
They left behind her dreams among the litter.
And the different kind of love she thought she'd found,
There was nothing left but sawdust and some glitter.
But Baby can't be broken, 'cause you see,
She had the finest teacher, that was me.
I told her:
Don't cry out loud,
Just keep it inside,
And learn how to hide your feelings.
Fly high and proud.
And if you should fall,
Remember you almost had it all.
Don't cry out loud,
Just keep it inside,
And learn how to hide your feelings.
Fly high and proud.
And if you should fall,
Remember you almost made it.
Don't cry out loud,
Just keep it inside,
And learn how to hide your feelings.
Fly high and proud.
And if you should fall,
Remember you almost had it all." Maureen sang. Jules, Anna, Joanne and Eileen eventually joined in.
"Moms." Hannah whined.
"What is it, baby?" Joanne asked, turning the volume down a bit.
"I don't feel good." Hannah answered, close to tears.
"Why didn't you say something after we left the house, mini-me?" Maureen inquired.
"Because I just started to not feel good just now." Hannah explained.
"What hurts, baby?" Joanne asked.
"My stomach, my head and my throat." Hannah told her.
"Okay, hold on. We're at the Junior High. After Jules, Eileen and John leave, I'll come back and sit with you, okay?" Maureen said, climbing out of the front seat and sat in back with Hannah while Anna climbed up front.
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"Today." Ms. Hanson started as soon as everyone for her third hour English class was in their seats, "I will be assigning you your English partners for our Around the World project. Together, you and your partner will come up with a country of your choosing and study it - the language, the food, the clothes, the music, etc. You and your partner have eight weeks to work on the project. When the eight weeks is up, we will host an Around the World dinner - inviting your families and friends to sample the dishes you cooked from your country."
"This should be fun." John whispered in Jules' ear. She nodded and looked at everyone in the class.
"Okay, these are the partners - John Cohen and Jules Davis, Eileen Collins and Matthew Cassidy…" Ms. Hanson's voice trailed off as she assigned the rest of the class partners.
"Yes!" John and Jules gave each other high-fives as they exited the class. They had decided to do their Around the World project on Italy. Eileen and Matthew were doing their Around the World project on Ireland. The four of them had agreed to get together after school on Thursday and meet in the library.
"This is gonna be so cool!" Jules squealed as she climbed in Joanne's van after school.
"Totally! You and me working together!" John added, climbing in next to her. Eileen smiled and climbed in between them.
"So, how was school today, guys?" Joanne asked.
"Good - the school musical that we're putting on this year is Wizard of Oz. Auditions start next week." John and Jules announced in unison.
"That's wonderful. I'm going to drop you guys off at the loft and then I'm going to go home. Maureen is taking care of Hannah - she has strep throat. Anna's going to come over to the loft, too." Joanne explained as she drove out of the parking lot and headed to the loft.
"Poor Hannah." Jules whispered.
"She'll be okay, chica. Don't worry." Eileen comforted her, smiling slightly.
"But, Eileen. What if she doesn't turn out okay?" John asked, looking out the window.
"John, you gotta have faith - believe." Eileen told him. John rolled his eyes and continued to stare out the window. Jules sighed and looked out her window. They drove the rest of the way to the loft in silence. Joanne got sick of the silence and turned on the radio to a talk show. Other than that, the car was completely quiet.
A/N: Don't own the lyrics to Don't Cry Out Loud.