Chapter 4: Staging It
My chest is rising as my hands run down the velvety curtain. I can feel the presence of my mom and dad and I feel secure knowing they are in the audience; my dad with his big dimples sitting upright in his seat and my mom with her deep chocolate eyes, tiny stature, and beaming smile. They are my home and no matter where they are I am.
Puckerman says I look fantastic and coming from him a man with very few words I know it's true. My skin is so soft and glittery from my body lotion and my unruly curly hair actually formed perfect curls (thanks to my mom's secret hair potion) like Nicole Kidman before she started straightening her hair. I guess you could say I sort of look like a toned down version of Haley Reinhart from American Idol (more subdued).
The shaky legs of mine that seem somewhat detached walk in a straight line across the stage. Puckerman's eyes are burning a hole through me. We have this communication where no words are necessary and Puckerman's look is telling me to kick some you know what. This is my firefly moment and I know that this is one of my dreams to fly across that stage and just pulverize the audience into a state of excitement. Can I do it?
The emcee says my name and the audience makes some genuine surprise sounds. My being able to sing was not something I advertised so I'm sure many of them were wondering if I was going to bomb or be the bomb. I am ready to answer their question. The curtains go up and the audience and I make our connection. The music starts and it's so natural how my voice interacts with the audience. Puckerman gives it his all and shows some real attitude from his facial expressions to his fingers working the guitar. We work the stage and magic happens.
The spotlight becomes softer as I set my serious face. My eyes look up, down, then all around. I whisper my last words and make my dramatic exit. The curtains close and I count the seconds that the audience claps. Over thirty seconds of clapping and I know that Puckerman and I killed it. My mouth lets out a squeal and Puckerman and I can't help but embrace.
You know what it's like after you put yourself out there for the world to see. You start to analyze every moment and before you know it, you wonder what their reaction will be. I couldn't get myself to walk off the backstage back to class. I kept imagining all the different scenarios and to tell you the truth, it was downright scary. My jump off the diving board into the big pool didn't seem like such a good idea after all. Oh, well it wasn't like I didn't deserve some wait time but before I set my tush down I heard the oohs and aahs of my mom and dad.
"Hey kiddo", said my dad as he wrapped me in his arms.
My mom kept on doing her cheerleader dance, a sort of bounce up and a bounce down. All I could silently think was seriously, mom!
"We are so proud of you Mia. You were wonderful!"
"Thanks, Mom".
As much as I don't care to admit it, my parents are the best. They always make me feel like I can accomplish anything. They continued on and on as I walked them to the front door of the school. At least, they made the walk to the hallway much easier!
It was really cool to be stopped by teachers and students I barely know to tell me how well we did. Puckerman seemed to be also basking in the sunlight as a bunch of girls were swarmed around him. I was so happy that I didn't even care that I would be passing the bad boy corner.
Mac was there standing in his usual corner making conversation with his crew. That is until he saw me and didn't stop staring at me. His eyes were like daggers and our eyes "caught" frozen. If you have ever seen Pride and Prejudice with Kiera Knightly it was like that dance scene when Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth are dancing in the ballroom. All those people are there but for them it's like they are the only people in the room. Their eyes are glued to each other and the tension between them just explodes on the screen. I'm feeling this with Mac and I don't know why. His eyes follow mine as he watches me walk toward my next class. I can sense his surprise that I put myself out there for the whole school to see. I'm dazed, amazed, and especially unsure of why he is even looking at me.
Our "moments" continue for the next few weeks, as I find myself gravitating towards his corner. Our eyes follow each other as we openly stare and assess each other but never speak. I find myself looking for his brown eyes, cocky smile, and swagger walk that I know is hiding a lot of baggage. Sometimes I feel his gaze fall on my lips and my fingers long to touch the ends of his hair curling around his face. I'm not sure his game or mine for that matter.
One day I'm in the cafeteria buying my lunch when I run into Mac. With a deep breath, I find the nerve to say hi and give him a big smile. For some reason, when I smile he seems sort of mad like he can't catch his breath. He doesn't even say a word. I'm confused and embarrassed because right as he walks away a bunch of jocks see his hasty exit. The snickers ensue.
As I walked out of the cafeteria in complete embarrassment, I promised myself that I would stay away from Mac Wilson for the rest of my life. He wouldn't be seeing me in his corner of the world for the life of me! So, for the rest of the week I avoided his corner even if it meant leaving class early or late for that matter. If I did spot him, my eyes quickly darted to the ground or at my newly acquired fan base. Secretly, I hoped he would spot me talking to some guys and get that I had moved on from his little mind games.
But as fate had it we would eventually collide. I was walking down a section of hallway where I was sure Mac would not be located when all of a sudden I felt two arms wrap around my waist and nudge me toward a secluded entryway to a classroom door never in use. I turned to see who it is was and lo and behold it's Mac. I'm in total shock.
His arms rest against the wall that my back is against. His eyes are two soft pools of light and they are facing mine. He is wearing soft worn out jeans and a button down blue shirt with stripes. Mac leans towards my face and smiles his dimple appearing at the sides of his cheeks.
He is so close that I see the unfair length of his eyelashes and the soft red of his lips. The problem with Mac is that he is so darn cute but at the same time so sexy. I want to keep my eyes off of him and I try (really). His deep voice echoes into the silence of our eye contact.
"Hello, Mia."
His voice sounds so damn delicious and shivers are seriously running down my spine. And for a moment, his face dips towards mine and I feel like he is going to kiss me, sure of it quite actually. His eyes are searching my face for permission and his smile is seriously killing me. And I can't speak so I do the only thing any self-appreciating female would do, run like hell. Boys, time to talk to dad!