Disclaimer: ASP is my Hero – But I'm not her… so I will now tell you that I take no credit for any of the characters here (except those not mentioned in the TV series)
This chapter title is property of Queen.
Thanks to Sum41rocks, who kindly betaed this fic for me, and was still willing to do so after my complete lack of frequent update.
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Chapter 2: Spread your Wings
"Move it!" A voice called from behind me, as I stood frozen in place at the foot of the bus exit.
"Oh, sorry," I mumble, as a progression of people push past me.
Clutching the strap of my bag I begin to walk. It was midday, and the streets were busy with people scurrying from place to place. It could have been overwhelming, but for some reason I felt so high with excitement that I wasn't feeling much of anything.
Words flew by me, along with people of so many different races, and what I would guess as backgrounds.
A man, legs crosses, playing the flute.
An elderly woman holding a baby while calling to a young girl across the street.
Two children in school uniforms holding hands as they walked towards the subway.
This is what I've been waiting for!
"OW!" yelled the man playing the flute.
"Get out of here! You're scaring away business! Take your hat, and your
wooden stick and get off my front step!"
"She's my baby!" called the young girl
"Well according to the government hoes ain't good mothers!"
"Let me at least hold her!"
"Not without a court order you ain't!"
"Please Mark, let's just talk"
"Listen you little bitch, you said you could pay, and you can't. Money's not the only currency in this town."
"My eight o'clock didn't show; it's not my fault."
"Well looks like I'm your two thirty."
"Mark…" she called as they clambered down towards the subway.
I stood there stunned. This was nothing like Stars Hollow. These people –
"HEY!" I yell, feeling a hand on my butt.
"I've got twenty minutes for lunch…" the man trailed off.
"Okay, well you need to eat during that break, and you need hands for that, so kindly take yours off my butt." I get out in one breath.
"You're a tease, you know that? Bitch." He muttered before continuing down the street.
Sighing, I made my way to a bakery I had seen a block back. Slipping inside I reached for my wallet and pull out a twenty. I may as well eat something while I figure out what to do.
"May I help you?" The woman asks kindly.
"Sure, I'd like a hot chocolate and a chocolate explosion croissant."
"That's eight fifty." Passing over the twenty, I watched my hot chocolate stream out of the machine. It wasn't cold out side, but I had so many emotions spinning that I needed comfort food. Rory taught me that. Ground yourself with chocolate, ice cream, and coffee. "And your change," the teller said, passing me back some money along with my croissant and hot chocolate.
I took a seat at one of the stools facing the window, my bags on the floor, and just people watched.
Time went by. I never realized how much having nothing to do sucked. I mean, after a while, all the people started to look the same, and all I could do was move the crumbs around on my plate.
Hearing a chiming noise, I pulled my eyes away from the streets of New York. I looked around and noticed a little boy hitting buttons on an ancient pinball machine. Smiling, I watched him play until his mother pulled him away.
Lifting my bags, I walked over to the machine. I pulled out a quarter from my pocket, and felt the edges for a little. Sliding it into the slot I smiled as the machine lit up and chimed music – just for me.
I'm not sure how long I played pinball… but I spent a good seven or eight dollars worth of quarters before I was interrupted.
"Hey," came a sweet voice from behind me.
"Oh, sorry did you want the machine?"
"What? Oh no." she giggled. "I'm trying to save my money." Which is what I should be doing I thought. What kind of an idiot am I spending my money on pinball!
"You new around here?" she asked. "I come in here a lot, and I've never seen you before."
"Yea…" I said a little tentatively.
"Well, you hungry? I know a great place."
"Okay," I said happy for the opportunity to speak to a local.
"By the way, I'm Ashley." She said extending her hand.
"Lane," I replied shaking her hand.
As we walked down the street, her carrying one of my bags, she pointed out all the major sites.
"How are your feet?" She asked, laughing as I stopped to catch my breath at the top of a hill.
"A little sore," I admitted.
"You'll get used to it." She said smiling. "Were almost there." I tried not to let my relief show. Failing miserably we broke out laughing.
She opened the door of a pizzeria a couple blocks down. As the door chimed a man looked up from behind the counter.
"Any preference?" Ashley asked me.
"No fruit," I said smiling.
"Amen to that sista!"
"We'll take two slices of the works." I pulled out my wallet to pay but Ashley passed a twenty to the guy before I had a chance. "My treat," she said smiling.
"Thanks," I said, feeling slightly guilty. I didn't know this girl a whole day and already she's giving me the grand tour, and buying me lunch.
Taking a seat at a round table, we start to eat.
"Oh my god!" I said after taking my first bite. "This is amazing!" She just laughed in reply. "We have this place back home, Al's Pancake World. He serves pizza, only it's horrible stuff. Kind of tastes like what you would think plastic tastes like." Ashley snorted in response.
"Where are you from?"
"Connecticut."
"Wow." She said eyes wide with surprise. "You're not even from state."
"Nope," I said sadly, suddenly remembering Stars Hollow. Ashley picked up on the sudden mood change.
"Miss it?" she asked.
"Yea," I replied in a daze. "My best friend there, Rory, we had this thing where if things ever got tough, that I could run away from home and stay with her and her mom. Lorelai was the coolest. She'd buy me pizza, and ice cream, and invite me over for Godfather and Molly Ringwald marathons."
"You hung out with your best friend's mom?"
"Yea, she was really cool. She had Rory when she was sixteen, so she was more like a big sister than a mother." Ashley's face darkened at this, but I didn't notice. "There was this one time," I said with a laugh. "at the Dance Marathon, when Lorelai came to get one of my tofu-egg sandwiches, and asked if she could borrow me to help carry sandwiches to the guests. I don't know if I've told you or not, but my mother is really strict."
"Oh yea?" Ashley asked, as if she'd heard it a million times.
"No, everyone thinks their parents are strict. But mine, mine are like strict, strict. My mother wouldn't let me eat chocolate bars – chocolate covered death she said. Dancing? For the devil. Boys! Boys are evil demons." I concluded. "Unless of course pre-approved, and Korean." I added as an after thought.
"Wow," she said. "So, is that why you left?" she asked quietly.
I looked down. "How do you know I'm not visiting? I could have relatives here. I mean, I could have just moved here."
"You wouldn't be carrying your bags around, and spending your afternoon in a bakery playing pinball." She said sadly. "You'd probably be at school."
"Well why aren't you at school!" I asked, angry that this stranger could read me so well.
"Hey, I'm sorry. I'm just calling it as I see it." She said, instantly making me feel childish and stupid. "I skipped today, didn't feel like going."
"Do that often?" I snapped. Instantly biting my tongue in regret.
She smiled. I slowly smiled back, wonder why she was smiling as if I'd just shared a secret with her, and we knew something the world didn't.
"You got a place to stay tonight?" she asked.
Panic stuck me. I hadn't really thought that far. I had enough money for a hotel for the night. But beyond that I had no plan. For someone who was so quick to rush out, I had been pretty stupid.
"Well…" I began.
"Listen, a friend of mine is having a sleepover tonight. Why don't you come along? I'm sure she won't mind, and maybe in the morning I could help you find a job, or a place to stay. I have some friend who could hook you up. What do you say?"
Mama Kim's voice echoed in my head, warning me not to go. But one look at Ashley's kind face, and I realized that Mama was a paranoid mother.
Spread your wings and fly away. Fly away, far away. Spread your little wings and fly away. Fly away, far away. Pull yourself together. 'Cos you know you should do better. That's because you're a free man.
I pulled a Rory and made a list in my mind. Pros on one side Cons on the other. It basically came down to whether or not I wanted to sleep on a bench or under a roof with gummy worms and a movie.
"Lead the way," I said, hauling my bag onto my shoulder, and following her out the door.
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A/N: I know you all hate me for not updating sooner. Not to mention updating this story instead of the more popular Improbabilities or Push, however I have the worst case of well you name it. Writers Block, Procrastination, lack of time what ever you call it. I physically do not have enough hours in the day to update as frequently as I would like. I know you at present hate me more than I could ever imagine… I mean… I don't think I've updated some stories since June… So I am sorry. But know that I'm working on it. And after I finish my story Mary for my song fic collection (I've been working on it for 8 months) I will begin updates on my other chapter. I am soooo sorry. Please don't hate me more than avoidable.
Push is currently with my beta, and will arrive as soon as it is returned…
Leave me a review, motivation always helps!