Chapter 2 – One Word
"You should have let me drive some of the way," Alex chided Blake as he rubbed his neck. They'd flown into Washington State but Blake had spent the best part of three hours driving to a hotel they were going to stay at in Seattle, which was a few blocks from Andie and Chase's college. He cast a reproachful look in her direction, and lifted the boot of the rental car to gather their bags.
"I drive," he insisted. "It's a tradition."
"I think it's a control thing," Alex remarked, pulling on a sweater. It was a colder climate in Washington, and the skies were overcast.
"It is not a control thing," Blake retorted quietly, unzipping his own bag to find a sweater, riffling through in a hurried manner. "I always used to drive you around. It's something I like doing." He sounded a little dejected, talking through his teeth, and Alex couldn't tell whether she'd really bothered him or if he was still snarky because of the long journey. She came up behind him and squeezed his shoulders gently to calm him before kissing him on the cheek.
"I was only joking," she said quietly. He looked at her over his shoulder and shook his head.
"I know."
"So," she said, letting go of him to take a bag from the concrete floor where he'd put them. "We're checking in, and then walking to meet Chase and Andie?"
"That's the plan." He slammed the boot shut and clicked the keys, slinging his bag over his shoulders and gesturing for hers for him to carry. She took his hand instead.
XXXXX
The Washington School of Dance was much larger than they both remembered; it had been well over ten years since Alex was last there, looking round on an open day to see if the college would be the next step in her dance career. She liked it, but she'd had her heart set on London or New York when she was younger, and she'd been lucky enough to see one of those come to fruition. But it had never been this big, she thought, rounding a corner and going up some more steps to reach the reception area. It had undergone some extension work, and been modernised. The reception itself was completely visible through large glass windows that kept the foyer open and bright.
Blake bunched his jacket around him against the chill; it had started to drizzle a little on the way there, on and off, and he was walking briskly, clearly eager to get inside. He hadn't spoken much since they'd checked in – which had proved a little difficult, and resulted in him having some stern words with the hotel manager over the arrangements. They'd gotten a free bottle of champagne out of it all, but Blake seemed to be in a state of excited nervousness and the only way he could fight it was to keep quiet. Alex knew him well enough to know he was looking forward to seeing Chase, but anxious not to let his little brother how much he was missing him. She had to laugh; he'd never been any different with regards to his emotions.
"We'll need to get visitors badges," she remarked at his side. "And a map of the college might be good, seeing as I have no idea where anything is anymore."
Blake smirked. "Good idea."
The receptionist was helpful, pointing out on their map exactly where they were heading and how best to get there. Chase and Andie were in their last class for the day, or so they'd told them they would be when they'd last spoken. The plan was for them to give them a tour of the school, and their rooms and then for them all to get a meal together.
"When's your Mom getting here?" Alex asked, frowning at the map.
"She's already here," Blake replied, trying to fix his bad to his jacket and pausing midstride to do so. "She...got in...yester- would you mind? I can't fix the pin."
Alex gave him a look, and walked back to him, tucking the map under her arm so her hands would be free. She didn't say a word as she clipped it on, but flashed him a knowing smile which he furrowed his brows at.
"There you go," she smiled, standing inches from him, straightening his visitor's badge for him. "All done."
"Thank you," he sighed. "I don't know what's wrong with me."
"Don't be too hard on yourself. It was a really tricky pin."
He looked down on her with a withering expression. "You're hilarious."
"And you're an idiot. Look," she said quietly, as if Chase could hear them, "You have nothing to be worried about. This weekend is going to be great. For you, Chase...everybody. So relax. Enjoy yourself."
He paused and she could see he was clenching his jaw. "You're right."
"I usually am," Alex smiled, handing him the map and taking his free hand. "And the sooner you realise that, the easier our fights will be."
He laughed quietly to himself and kissed the top of her head in a shy gesture before they carried on walking, and headed to the studio where they would find Chase and Andie.
"Alex?"
Someone calling her name made her turn sharply in the direction it was coming from, just in time to see a woman sprinting towards her with a wide smile. "Alexandra Hale?"
"Jane!" Alex cried with surprise when she recognised her, letting go of Blake's hand and raising her arms. "What...why are you here?"
"I work here, what's your excuse?" Jane replied with a laugh, running her fingers through her red hair; she didn't look much older than she had last time Alex had clapped eyes on her which had been when they'd both left MSA. They'd been good friends growing up, but somehow they'd lost touch. She was still pale and freckly – the stereotypical redhead that she had been at school – but she looked smarter in her shirt and trousers, holding a clipboard.
Jane suddenly clocked Blake standing awkwardly behind the women and her mouth gaped. "Blake Collins!" she practically squealed. Blake gave her a polite smile – he'd known Jane when she'd attended MSA but she'd always been Alex's friend, and more of an acquaintance of his. "I haven't seen you in...what? Ten years? Last I heard you were off to London to join the Royal Ballet..." She paused, and looked at them both with a crooked grin. "Are you two still together?"
Blake looked at Alex, who looked up at him and they exchanged a smile. "Er...no...We weren't..."
"We broke up..."
"New York and London..."
"Long distance..."
"But we got back together..."
"Four months ago..."
"We're co-directors..."
Jane stared at them both as they tried to explain, talking over one another, and laughed again. "I can't believe it. Why are you here in Seattle?"
"My brother is one of the students here," Blake explained.
She nodded slowly, with a pensive look. "Right, you'll be here for the showcase then – I was just working with a group of first years. It's going to be awesome. Who's your brother?" she asked.
"Blake!"
Another voice cried out in the corridor, and they all turned to see Chase jogging towards them, with Andie in tow, not looking any different from when he had left a few months prior in a pair of sweatpants, a t-shirt and his hat slightly askew. He met Blake in a hug that took his brother by surprise, so much so he nearly lost his balance and squeezed him tightly as he laughed.
"You made it then, bro," Chase said with a beaming smile, pulling back and holding his brother by the shoulders. Andie waved at Alex, both of them smiling at the Collins reunion, sharing a knowing smile that while they were both very proud, Chase and Blake had missed each other. As was evident from the broad grin on both their faces.
"Chase? Chase is your brother?" Jane interrupted, her face wild with surprise. "I would never have made that connection."
"No, well," Blake answered a little stiffly, though he had a small smile on his lips. Chase's arm was draped over his brother's shoulders. "We're at the opposite ends of the spectrum."
"Chase is in my Contemporary Dance Class," Jane explained carefully and adopting a tone that Alex would expect from a teacher talking to family members. "He's extremely talented and works very hard. But thinking about it, I'd expect nothing less from a Collins," she added with a wink, returning to her more familiar self.
Chase gave her a crooked grin and waved a hand. "You're making me blush."
"How do you guys know Mrs. Peterson?" Andie asked, speaking for the first time, and muscling into the group of them that were huddled in the corridor. Other students were milling around, moving to new classes or heading back to the dorms, and no one paid them any attention.
"Mrs. Peterson?" Alex frowned, eyes instinctively falling to Jane's ring finger and spotted a gold wedding band.
"Oh! Yeah, married three years now," Jane said, blushing a little herself. "He's an art lecturer here. I would have invited you but..." she grimaced awkwardly with a shrug but Alex waved her hand to dismiss her apologies. She understood. She'd lost contact with so many of her old friends from when she was growing up in pursuit of dance, so much so she hadn't got a clue who was married, divorced, who had kids, or dead even. She supposed that was what Facebook was for, but she had very little time for that these days. "If you're in town for a while, maybe I could introduce you?" Jane asked, looking from Blake to Alex for approval.
"Why don't you join us for dinner this evening?" Blake offered, speaking for Alex. "It'll give you and Alex a chance to catch up." His girlfriend smiled at him gratefully and then looked to Chase and Andie.
"If it's alright with you guys?"
"Hey, I'm just happy we're eating out. My fridge is poorly stocked and I am starved," Chase joked, raising his arms.
"If you're sure?" Jane said, raising an eyebrow.
"It'll be a blast," Andie assured her with a wink. "We can reminisce, talk dance, Blake and Chase will fight, Alex or Mrs. Collins will break it up, and there's gonna be pizza. Just like old times."
The redhead laughed and held her clipboard to her chest. "How can I say no to that?"
XXXXX
"Blake, darling," Frances cooed, kissing her son on the cheek. "I wish you'd wear more colour."
"And hello to you too Mom," Blake replied sarcastically, looking down at his dark shirt and sighing heavily. Alex squeezed his arm reassuringly before greeting his mother in a warm hug and walking her to the table the rest of their party were sitting at. The restaurant was near the hotel and fairly busy; the noise boiled down to a low hum and the chink of glasses meeting and cutlery on plates. They'd been able to easily accommodate their large table of seven, even though Blake had called before they'd arrived to check. Andie was next to Chase wearing a light blue dress, and even Chase had put on a crisp white shirt for the occasion.
"Mom," Blake said. "This is Jane Peterson, and her husband – Jane teaches Chase and she went to school with me and Alex." The older woman shook hands with the pair, apologising for not remembering Jane - who simply smiled politely at her, still feeling the teenage awe of being introduced to Frances Collins – before taking her seat at the head of the table. "I'll let you sit between us," Blake whispered to Alex, ushering her to the seat beside his mother.
"Scaredy-cat," she hissed back, but she sat there all the same.
"Good evening," their server smiled as they all glanced over the menus. "Can I take your order?"
"Oooh, crab cakes," Andie remarked. "I'll have those. They sound good."
"Oh they are," Jane agreed. "Make that two," she told the waiter. Her husband – a tall thin man called Greg who was very blond with horn rimmed glasses – lay down his menu. He was the last person on earth that Alex had pictured her old friend with, but once they started talking, it was impossible to imagine them separately; they were one of those couples who were very good at finishing each other's sentences and pre-empting the other's wishes.
"I'm going for the linguine," he announced.
"The carbonara could be good," Blake mused quietly, but Frances gave him a reproachful look.
"Blake – pasta? Cream? Bacon? You may not be at RBS now but that's no reason to let yourself go."
"At nearly thirty," Blake sniped, without looking at her, "I think I'm quite capable of picking my own meal, Mom."
"I'm having the cheeseburger," Chase said loudly. "With fries."
His mother shook her head as the rest of the table fought their smirks. "I don't know. I raised you boys to eat well. We didn't have a nutritionist for nothing you know."
"You had a nutritionist?" Alex said, staring hard at Blake. "I did not know that."
"Yes, well. I took a lot of trouble to conceal it from you," Blake sniffed. "From everyone. It was embarrassing," he shot at his mother.
"You say that Blake, but thanks to Marcel, you had good skin, strong bones and an excellent constitution," Frances said over her menu at him. "Not to mention he taught you to cook."
Chase snorted. "Excellent constitution? Blake gets a cold at the first sight of rain."
Blake put down his menu with some force and glowered at his brother. "I was caught in a torrential downpour. Twice. It wasn't a little bit of rain. I got very wet and very cold," he said haughtily, snatching up his menu again as some kind of shield. "For other people, I might add. You being one of them."
"I told you they'd fight," Andie said in a sing song voice, nose buried in the menu too.
"I'll have the salmon," Alex told the server loudly over them all, smiling at the poor young man who's eyes were darting from one individual to another as he tried to keep up. She'd worked in a restaurant and she knew how difficult customers could be sometimes.
"Me too," Blake added sullenly.
The waiter jotted down their order quickly, taking great pain to make sure he caught every part of Frances', who wanted parts of her dish taken away and other parts added. He promised them more drinks while they waited, and returned shortly with a tray and complimentary breadsticks, which Chase and Andie dived upon.
"Hey Blake..." Chase said, already laughing at his own joke. "What am I?" He promptly stuck a long breadstick under his top lip, and then another to create long tusks. "Mba-Mba!" he managed to say.
"Hmmm, I don't know – an idiot?" his brother said with a simper. Chase's face dropped as he feigned sadness, and he yanked out the sticks and started munching on them.
"You two are hilarious," Jane laughed, pointing a long finger at the brothers as she reached for her wine glass. "Are you always like this?"
"Pretty much," Alex said across the table, brushing down her dress and leaning forward to rest her elbows on the table. "It's their way of showing they care." Chase grinned and tossed a breadstick end her direction, which she shot up to dodge.
They fell into easy conversation until the food arrived – talking about MSA, and Baltimore, discussing Chase and Andie's progress. Jane talked freely about how well they were doing, and Chase remained very nonchalant as she praised him, uncharacteristically shying away from the attention. It wasn't until Blake spoke up and said something along the lines of having expected him to do well, that Chase perked up, and a look passed between the brothers of silent gratitude and pride.
"So, Jane," Frances started, pouring herself a glass of water from the jug on the table. "You were at school with Alex and Blake?"
Jane finished her mouth full and nodded. "Yes, Mrs. Collins."
"Ah, maybe you can tell us what these two were like at school," Andie probed. "The mystery surrounding them is a bit of enigma."
"Hardly..."
"Well...I met Alex when she was fifteen – she joined MSA around that time. She was very different from a lot of the other MSA girls," Jane chuckled over Alex's protests, settling herself into the story she was telling. "You know, a bit of a wild card."
"That's not true..."
"It is. She was very determined and focused, but she used to goof around and make us all laugh. Bit of a joker when she wanted to be," Jane added, smiling at her old friend who was rolling her eyes. "She used to do a great impression of Blake, before they started dating."
Alex sunk a little in her chair as Blake's head turned slowly towards her. He didn't say a word but his look said it all. She grinned apologetically.
"And Blake..." Jane trailed off pensively searching for the words. "Well, Blake was pretty much the same as he is now," she said carefully.
"Uptight and cranky?" Chase offered, earning look that could kill from the man across the table.
Jane raised an eyebrow, but he noticed she didn't deny it. "They were a really great team actually, dance wise. I mean, their choreography was legendary in the corridors of MSA. You could pretty much count on them pulling something out of the bag. Didn't you guys used to go to some kind of ice cream parlour for inspiration?"
"Ice cream?" Frances interjected, with a surprised look at her son, putting down her knife and fork.
"You were saying," Andie said, shoving some crab cake into her mouth as she listened, saving Blake from the wrath of his Mom.
"They were actually more famous for having some of the greatest fights in MSA history. Talk about chalk and cheese," Jane continued, oblivious to Alex's awkward expression and Blake's irritated drumming of his fingers on the table. "Seriously, there was this one time where there were people actually at the door to the studio watching these two argue about something ridiculous like point work. Noses pressed against the glass. You know, one time, they had a fight in our history of dance class..."
"Jane," Alex warned, laughing nervously. "Not now."
"Sorry," her friend said softly. "I can just remember how shocked I was when you first started dating. I mean, I thought you hated the guy and you used to bicker all the time, and then suddenly Little Miss Casual strolls over and tells me she's going on a date with Blake Collins!"
"That's a point," Andie mused with a frown. "How did you two end up dating in the first place?"
"I'm not getting into that," Blake started. "It's a long story..."
Everyone at the table started to protest except for Blake and Alex who simply exchanged an awkward glance. "Oh come on," Andie chirped. "I mean, you were obviously totally different people when you first met. People who shouldn't have ended up together. What changed?"
Blake clenched his fists and sighed exasperatedly. "Look, it's nothing extraordinary - we didn't really get along, and then we got to know one another and started dating. That's really all there is to it."
Alex raised an eyebrow and set down her cutlery. "Wow," she said, stunned. "You've just managed to summarize two long years worth of relationship into a sentence."
"So much for 'it's a long story'," Chase muttered, earning a withering glance from his brother.
"Ok, how about 'it's a private story'?"
"Oh come on," Andie pleaded. Blake shook his head stubbornly. "Ok, ok," Andie sighed, knowing Blake wouldn't budge. "But answer me this – if you could sum up what changed it all in one word, what would it be?"
There was quiet at the table as they all looked at Blake expectantly, Alex included, as he seemed to be debating over whether to answer or not. He sat back, holding his glass thoughtfully and smiled crookedly.
"Ok..." he said quietly. "Baseball."
His brother blinked at him and frowned. "Baseball?"
"Yes."
"You don't even like sport."
"I like baseball," Blake shrugged.
"But how does that connect you two..." Andie tried but Blake raised a hand to cut her off.
"You didn't say I had to explain it, you just asked me to give you a word that changed mine and Alex's relationship. I've done that. Now go back to your crab cakes and drop the point," he lectured with a triumphant smile. The young girl shook her head and laughed to herself. She should have known Blake wouldn't play fair. She'd been hoping he'd say something that would give it all away, or that Chase would at least know the significance to, but then again he had been quite young when his brother and the woman beside him first got together. But still, baseball? What did that mean to Blake Collins, who had only ever thought of dance?
Alex fought her smile and returned to her salmon as the conversation drifted towards Greg's art classes at WSD. Baseball meant very little to the others at the table, but to her and Blake, and to some degree Frances – who had cast he a knowing smile – it had changed everything.