Author's Note: Second chapter as promised. Not really sure how I feel about this one. I don't think I did Brian and Kiwi justice.
Next chapter: move-ins! It will be nice to be back with the Dragons.
And a note to the "real" Nicole: most of the stuff you asked for is coming. It's just not posted yet. Have patience.
It was weeks after what was now being referred to simply as "the incident" (because my parents still didn't know what "the incident" was) and I was blinking hard trying to focus on the alarm clock. After blinking a couple more times, I realized that it was 5:45.
Damn, I thought, it can't be time to get up already.
I really shouldn't have been complaining. Today was Friday, which meant I got to sleep in (if you could call a quarter to six sleeping in). Monday, Wednesday, and Friday I got up a 5:45, ran four miles, went to school, went to work, came home slept for an hour, did homework and went to bed. Tuesdays and Thursdays were not quite as pleasant. I got up at five, ran two miles followed by an hour or so of calisthenics, and then went on with my day. Saturday was a little different. I got to sleep until whenever (or until whenever I had to go to work), but then I came home and had a five to six mile (or more) run. Sundays were my favorite. I got those off.
I came down stairs and started working on eating breakfast. Mark came down and inhaled his bagel before I got even half way through my cereal.
I hate the appetite of a teenage boy, even if that boy was my brother.
Mark waited until I was done with my breakfast and then I asked if I was ready. I told him I was and we headed out.
Next to Sunday, Friday was my favorite because Mark came with me. Actually he came with me on Thursdays also, but my hate of the hour of calisthenics overshadowed that. I liked running, and as I was discovering that, that was about all I liked. I loathed the hour I spent in the mock gym in garage twice a week, even if Mark was there.
This whole thing was Marks idea to begin with. Since I had gotten clearance from the doctor after "the incident" Mark had been a different person. He had sat down, told me that he understood how much marching corp meant to me (that was shocking), and that he wanted me to get there without getting hurt again. In these past weeks, he had become a different person. He now had time to help everyone. He ran with me twice a week, despite his grueling track schedule. He was the caring brother that I had seen occasionally all the time now. He started turning in articles, real articles, to the school paper. His grades were decent for the first time in probably his entire life. He was having a great season; he was a co-captain and a lot of people were looking at Mark and saying "state." He was now semi-seeing a girl in my AP physics class, Parker, who both I and my parents liked very much. And to top it all off, he was the happiest I had seen him in a long time.
We continued onward, up and down a series hills on the road. I turned towards Mark, who was smiling ear to ear at six a.m., despite being a total anti-morning person.
"What are you thinking about?" I asked, even though I was pretty sure I knew
Mark blushed like a third grader.
"I knew it," I said, laughing, "you've got Parker on the brain."
Mark turned a deeper shade of red.
"What?" he asked innocently.
"Nothing. I think it's cute. I'm happy for you."
"Don't jinx me. I have a date tonight."
"Ohhh…" I said, "where are you going?"
"Dinner. And then were going to see a movie."
"What movie?"
"I don't know," Mark said, "I told her she could pick."
"You know you're going to end up seeing some chick flick."
"Shut up," Mark said, punching me in the shoulder, "Parker's not that cruel."
I laughed and then we went back to being quiet. Mark picked up the pace, and I followed without too much problem. I had to hand it to Mark. He knew what he was doing. I was now able to run further and faster and felt about a million times better doing it than I had before the fiasco started. I was pretty sure that if everything continued as planed, I was going to be in pretty good shape when move-ins rolled around.
We were about a half mile from home when Mark issued the challenge.
"Race you back," he said.
I looked at him sideways, unsure of whether to take him up on it or not.
"All right," I said finally, "I will. Winner gets first shower."
"It's on!" Mark shouted, loud enough to wake the entire world.
He sped off down the street, and I following right behind. Even though we had been getting along better recently, we hadn't lost our natural competitiveness that came with being twins. We stayed on each others heels until the very end, when Mark was able to sprint ahead and beat me.
"I win!" Mark shouted, doing a little victory dance in the front yard. I simply nodded, too out of breath to answer.
Mark looked at his watch.
"Not bad," he said "29:19"
"That's almost a full minute better than last week," I said, both happy and surprised.
"Don't look so shocked. You've put in a ton of work this week. I think you could show a couple of the guys on the team a thing or two about work ethic."
Mark was now not only my coach, but my motivator also.
"You still think I can get it under twenty-five before I leave?" I asked. That was my goal before I left. I wanted to be able to run the four miles in under twenty-five minutes.
"Work like you did this week," he said, "and as long as you stay healthy, I see no reason why not."
I was in a good mood when I got to school that day. I had gotten an acceptance letter from Boston University the night before, and I had even gotten a scholarship that would pay for about half my tuition. It still meant I had to come up with fifteen thousand dollars for the first year, but it sure as hell beat the alternative.
I was thrilled.
"I hear that congratulations are in order," said a voice behind me while I was putting my horn in my locker.
"Thank you Brian," I said without turning around, "Heard from anywhere yet?"
"Nope," he said, "still waiting."
He seemed to be doing an awful lot of waiting.
"But on a different note," he said, "I was wondering if you would be interested in going to Prom with me. That is, if someone hasn't come and beat me to it."
"Brian," I said, still digging bric-a-brac out of my locker, "I would have told you if I was going with anyone. And yes, I would love to go with you. I had a great time at homecoming." Brian and I had gone to homecoming as friends, and for some reason, I had really been hoping that he would ask me to Prom.
"Well, in that case…"
I turned and there stood Brian holding a single red rose.
"For you."
"Brian it's beautiful. Thank you."
I inhaled the fresh sent of the flower. I loved roses.
"Told you," I heard Em say as she came towards me and Brian.
Brian turned completely red in the face.
"He didn't know what flower to get you. I told him roses always work."
Brian stood motionless. I laughed.
"Well then, I thank you on behave of myself and Brian, who seems to have temporarily lost the ability to speak."
Em laughed and Brian became even redder. He looked so funny that I couldn't help but laugh.
That's when he finally smiled.
I went through school on autopilot. It was the middle of April and most of my teachers we freaking out because we were three weeks away from the AP exams. I was trying to juggle regular homework, review session, and all of the work I was missing because of move-ins. Life was slightly insane.
I had finished most of my work for both Physics and English. Physics was an AP class so we weren't doing a lot after the AP exam (which I was really concerned about) and my English class was all seniors, so our teacher had given up teaching in about February. Miss Lauro hadn't even given me anything. She told me to have a good time. As of the moment all of my grades were above a C so it was looking like I wouldn't have to take exams (seniors who had a C or better in the class didn't have to take a final). I still, unfortunately, had a pile of German to do.
My dad had been so angry when he heard that Frau Wasser was refusing to let me make up the work that he had called the school and demanded to have a meeting with both Frau Wasser and the principal. He went on a long tirade about how unfair it was to punish a student who had never been a behavior problem, always did their work, and got good grades for missing the last three weeks of school because of a perfectly legitimate excuse. He said that if I had been an athlete missing for some athletic excuse, that there wouldn't have been any problem. Mr. Darby, the principal, only had to give Frau Wasser one look before she said that she might have spoken to soon and that she would see if she could work something out. She gave me all the assignments the next day.
I contemplated staying for a Calc review, but I decided to be a bad student and head home. It was a beautiful day and I was looking forward to going home and not doing anything.
I got into my car, rolled down the windows and put Michael Bublé's It's Time into the CD player. Brian had given it to me for my birthday last month and was quickly falling in love with it. I drove home, thankful for the beautiful day and not having anywhere to go or anything to do.
My cell phone rang at a red light halfway between school and home. I debated whether or not to answer it before finally digging it out of my bag.
It was Brian.
"Talk to me."
"Hey, I forgot to ask you what color your dress was."
Crap. I was supposed to do something tonight.
"I'll get back to you on that."
The light turned green.
"Hey," I said "I got to go. I'll call you tonight."
I hung up and made a U-turn in the closest parking lot, feeling like a total idiot. I had been so excited that Brian had asked me to prom that I forgotten that I was supposed to go dress shopping with Emmy that afternoon. I sent Em a quick text telling her I would be late and headed towards the mall as Michael sang on.
No, you don't know the one
Who dreams of you at night
And longs to kiss your lips
And longs to hold you tight
Oh I'm just a friend
That's all I've ever been
'Cause you don't know me
The mall was packed with people. While most of the girls had already gotten their dresses, they were now in a flurry to find matching shoes, matching purse, matching whatever. Em and I had been so busy with school, rehearsal camps, and work that we really hadn't even had time to go get our dresses yet. Em wasn't sure if she was even going until Sammy, the pit assistant section leader and her on and off boyfriend since Nationals, asked her. They were currently off, but it looked like Em was hoping that they might be on again after Prom.
"Took you long enough," Em said when I finally made it to the food court.
"Sorry," I said, "I guess it slipped my mind or something."
Em pointed me in the direction of the closest store.
"We have a lot of work to do."
We spent the next few hours bouncing from store to store, trying on dress after dress. Em finally decided on a lavender dress with a puffy skirt. I somehow wound up getting a green halter dress with a ridiculously low back.
"It looks fantastic," Em said as I paid for the dress, "I think Brian's eyes will pop out of his head."
"First off, I don't care what Brian thinks. We're just friends. I don't like him or anything. And second, it's so low cut; I feel like I'm exposing myself to the world."
"Stop being so over dramatic," Em said, rolling her eyes, "It looks great."
I wasn't so sure.
"Kiwi, will you come out? Brian and Sammy are going to be here any minute."
I pulled my dress up again. Why in god's name did I let Em talk me into buying this?
"KIWI!"
I couldn't procrastinate any longer. I unlocked the door.
"You look amazing," Em said as I emerged from the bathroom.
"I feel like a slut."
"Shut up. You look great."
I guess you could say that. Minus the slightly skimpy dress (it really wasn't that skimpy. I was just horrible self-conscious.) I looked alright. Em had done my hair this morning and it looked fantastic. I was wearing make-up and even had my nails done.
I guess I didn't clean up too bad.
"The boys are going to be here and I think your mother is going to flip if she doesn't get to take pictures," Em said, dragging me down the stairs.
Oh yes, I thought, that would be my mother.
Brian, Em, Sammy, myself, Mark, and Parker were all meeting at my house to take pictures before Em and our dates had dinner at a local Italian restaurant and Mark took Parker to where ever they were going. It was a big secret.
Parker and my brother were now official. He had finally gotten the nerve to ask her out about a week ago. Mark was head over heals for her and it was hilarious. She wasn't Mark's typical girlfriend; she was smart and funny and not a cheerleader (or equivalent). Regardless, he was happy.
The doorbell rang and I opened the door, fearing what was about to happen.
"Holy Crap! Who are you and what did you do with Kiwi?"
What a great way to be greeted.
"Nice to see you too Brian," I said, turning away. I couldn't help but feel slightly disappointed.
"No," Brian said, grabbing my hand and pulling me back, "I didn't mean it like that. You look beautiful."
I could feel myself turning red.
"Thanks," I said quietly, "you don't look so bad yourself."
Tall and slender Brian looked great in his black suit and dark green tie that matched my dress. He had always cleaned up well, but it seemed that I was just noticing it now.
We took about a million pictures (thank you Mom) before we finally headed out to dinner. Dinner was enjoyable; we were cracking jokes and discussing college and our upcoming summers on tour. Actually, Em, Brian and I talked about that. Sammy was a junior, so he was just starting to think about all of that. As we finished dinner though, you could tell that there was only one thing on Sammy's mind tonight: Em. I laughed quietly to myself. We were in a wild ride.
The theme this year was "Once Upon a Prom". The gym had been made to look like scenes from the fairytales we read as children. Repunzle's braid was hanging in one corner with a fierce dragon in the other. In the dark light, it didn't look as hokey as I had predicted in the car ride over. Maybe it was the fact that school was almost over, or that it was one of the last times I would have with my friends before I left for tour, or maybe it was the just the fact that it was my senior prom, but something that night made our sweaty old gym seem magical.
I searched the gym for my other friends. I found most of them in the back corner which had been known as the "bandie corner" at every dance since freshman year. Most of the girls were clumped together giggling and admiring each others' dresses while their dates stood back and watch. I participated in the chaos while Em and Sammy danced every song like it was a slow song. Brian disappeared shortly after seeing the giggling mess of girls, so I had to go find him after I finished comparing dresses, shoes, hair, and whatever else was prom related.
I wondered out to the back commons area in search of my missing date. I didn't see him, but I did see Sammy standing in the corner drinking punch.
"Have you seen Brian?" I asked.
"Nope," he said, staring of into the distance.
"Where's Em?"
"Bathroom."
That gave me just enough time.
"Sammy, you and I need to have a little chat."
He finally looked at me, eyes wide with fear.
"Sammy, I think you're a good guy, I really do. But Em's my best friend. And you don't get many people as kind and wonderful as her. She deserves a little more than good guy. She deserves a great guy.
"I'm not telling you that you're not good enough for her. I'm just saying that she deserves to be treated better than you treat her now. She is not a light switch; you can't simply be her boyfriend when it's convenient and then dump her when it's not. Neither Em nor I have a lot of time left here before we leave and neither one of us want to look back on this time and have regrets. So if you're going to get back together with Em tonight, you're going to have to shape up. Are we clear?"
Sammy nodded slowly.
"And if you break her heart again, I will break every last bone in your body."
The junior looked up at me, terrified.
I could be very scary when I wanted to be.
Em emerged from the bathroom with a very quizzical look.
"Are we ready to go?"
Em took Sammy's hand and we all walked down the hall. I laughed quietly as I watched Em and Sammy walk out the door to the outside that was connected to the gym. Who knew what would happen to them, and in truth it didn't matter (as long as Em didn't get hurt). For now, they were happy and that was all I could ask for.
The DJ announced that this would be the last song of the night. The song started playing and everyone screamed.
How appropriate, I thought, Carrie Underwood's Ever Ever After.
Brian reappeared from where ever he had been.
"May I have this dance?" he asked.
"Of course."
Because Brian was much taller than I was, it felt awkward to put my hands on his slender shoulders. He didn't seem to mind though; he just carefully wrapped his hands around my waist and we started to dance (or something similar to it).
"Have you seen Em?" he asked after a few moments.
"I think she's outside with Sammy."
"Oh…" Brian said, confused, "did they lose something?"
"No," I said, looking over Brian's shoulder and out the open door, "I think they found something."
We continued on, the music filling the gym.
No wonder your heart feels it's flying
Your head feels it's spinning
Each happy ending's a brand new beginning
Let yourself be enchanted
You just might break through
"Do you believe in happy ever after?"
Leave it to Brian to go on yet another philosophical voyage in the middle of prom.
"I don't know," I answered honestly, "I haven't found mine yet."
I looked into Brian's green eyes, filled with emotion. He had that same expression he had when I told him he looked nice in the garage. He was searching for something.
"Kiwi…" Brian said, leaning a little closer to me.
The music stopped and all the lights in the gym went on. Brian looked severely disappointed as he pulled himself away from me.
"Should we go get Em and Sam?" he asked.
I turned him around and he saw them standing outside.
"Never mind."
I laughed as Brian took my hand and led me out of the gym, just like a gentleman.
"What do you say we scrap after-prom and just head to Starbucks for a while? My treat."
"I think that sounds great." I really didn't want to go to after-prom anyways.
"Can I borrow your cell real quick?" I asked.
"Why?"
"Because Em and Sammy will be looking for us at after prom and I want to let them know where we are. And I left my phone in your car."
"I doubt they'll even make it out of the car, let alone inside to look for us."
"Brian!" I said, punching him in the shoulder, "that's horrible."
Brian shrugged and didn't let go of my hand.
We made our way through a maze of couples who didn't realize how well lit the parking lot was towards Brian's car. Brian, still being a gentleman, went and opened my door for me before getting in on the drivers side.
I could get used to this.
"Did you have a good time?" Brian asked as we pulled out.
"Fantastic," I said laying my head on the head rest, "You?"
He turned and looked at me.
"This was the best night of my life."