He opened his eyes slowly, and as if awakening from a dream, everything was a little blurry. His head was pounding. The smell of pizza hit his nose and he lifted his head up off the table. He was sitting in the lunch room at their regular round table in the corner. He looked around and saw his brothers and Brittany's sisters sitting in their usual spots at the table. 'It worked! Oh crap, it really worked! I'm here.' He looked up to see Brittany walking towards the table with her lunch bag in hand. He sat stunned, staring at her. Her auburn hair which was up in a pony tail, bobbed as she walked to the table. She was wearing a short white skirt with a plain pink baby tee. Her sparkly pink high heels clicked on the linoleum floor. She was so young, just 15, no, wait, not 15 yet. He pulled out his cell phone and checked the date. It was October 12, three days before her birthday. 'I did it! I have to cancel all my plans and spend her birthday with her! Yes! I can fix this!' He smiled brightly as Brittany sat down beside him and gave him a curious look.
"Are you okay, Alvin?" She asked, tilting her head.
"Um, yea. I'm fine. Of course." He coughed, realizing how silly he sounded. He blinked as he realized that Simon was trying to talk to him and looked towards his brother.
"What's that, Si?"
"So, after school, what are we going to do?"
"Um, I have some stuff to do." Alvin said.
"Well, what's that?"
"Nothing. It's nothing." Alvin's eyes widened and he waved his arms in front of his chest. "Nothing at all."
"You are such a bad liar." Simon said, rolling his eyes. "If you don't want to tell us, then forget it." He turned towards Jeanette, "So, wanna go to the diner after school? We can grab some shakes."
"Sure, sounds great!" Jeanette smiled shyly at Simon, pushing her glasses up her nose.
"Can Ellie and I come too?" Theodore asked.
"Of course. Brittany, do you wanna come too?"
"Nah, I have some stuff to do."
"Oh…just like Alvin, huh?" Eleanor looked at Brittany suspiciously.
"Uh, yea. Just like Alvin. Just some stuff." Brittany smiled at Eleanor, a challenge in her eyes. "Baby sister, we'll talk about this later."
"Of course we will." Eleanor met the challenge and smiled back at Brittany.
Alvin reached down and grabbed an apple off his lunch tray and took a big bite of the apple. 'I can do this. I can fix this.' He thought, smiling.
After school, Alvin went to his locker and pulled out his hat and his black backpack. He placed his hat on his head (hating the fact that he's not allowed to wear his hat during school hours) and sat down on a bench across from his locker. He pulled a small notebook out of his backpack. The notebook had a calendar in the front, which was where he used to keep his schedule. 'Let's see, let's see, October 15. Here it is.' He placed his finger on the date and his mouth dropped open in shock. 'There's nothing scheduled!' He slammed the notebook closed and threw it at his locker. 'What happened? Why did I miss her birthday? Why can't I remember what the concert was for? Where it was at? Did I skip her birthday for something so trivial that I can't even remember what it was?' Alvin was so angry he was shaking and couldn't see straight. He threw his backpack towards his locker, spilling papers and books out across the hallway. Suddenly he felt a hand on his shoulder and he reached up and grabbed someone's wrist.
"Always making a mess, huh, Alvin?" Brittany laughed.
"What? Oh, sorry, Britt." He released Brittany's wrist and sighed. He lifted his hat and ran his hands through his hair and then sat with his elbows on his legs.
"What's wrong?" She sat down beside him and put her hand on his knee. "You've been acting weird since lunch. You can talk to me, you know." She said quietly.
"I know." He placed his hand over Brittany's hand, looking up into her concerned ice blue eyes. "Don't worry about it, okay? You wanna go to the park?"
"Um, I, um, have something to do. I can't right now. I can meet you there. In about an hour?" She asked hopefully.
"Sure. Sounds great. I'll see you there." Alvin smiled at her. "I can't wait." She pulled her hand away from his and stood up.
"Are you sure you're okay?"
"Yea. I'm better than I've been in a long time." He smirked and winked at her. Brittany giggled.
"If you're sure." She turned and jogged off down the hall.
Alvin watched her go before standing to pick up the mess he had made. He picked up the papers and books and shoved them all into his backpack before rushing out the door. He ran down the street until he reached the ice cream shop. He checked his watch. '20 minutes until I have to meet Brittany at the park.' He went inside and sat down on a stool, straightening the books and papers in his backpack while he waited. After 10 minutes had passed, he ordered two strawberry vanilla milk shakes and headed to the park.
The park was mostly empty. There were three kids playing on the jungle gym, but no one was on the swings. Alvin walked to the swings and sat down on one. He took a drink out of his milk shake, looking around for Brittany. He thought about all the times they had spent together at the park. It had been forever since he and Brittany had come here. Then again, in high school they came here all the time, so in his current, 15 year old body, it had probably only been a week or so since they were last at the park. He remembered the first time they had come to the park together. They were barely 7 years old.
The park was full of kids their size and a few adults sitting on park benches watching their children. Brittany had pushed her new bike all the way to the park. Alvin had followed her since he saw her leaving her house. He was curious to see why she was sneaking off all by herself and why she was pushing a bike rather than riding it. He hid behind a big tree as he watched her push the bike over to the basketball court. She slowly climbed onto the bike and then pushed off. The bike jerked to the side and fell over. Alvin giggled quietly into his hands, not wanting Brittany to hear him, as he watched her try to ride the bike without training wheels. She got back on the bike and pushed off again. She swerved and the bike fell over. He laughed a little too loud this time. Brittany pushed the bike off her and looked around for the noise. She saw a red cap peeking out from behind a tree and jumped up. She ran over to the tree and shoved Alvin. He landed on his back, still laughing.
"Jerk! Don't make fun of me!" She pulled his hat down over his eyes and turned around in a huff, headed back towards her bike. Alvin straightened his hat with a frown and jumped up to chase after her.
"I can help you, Britt! I know how to ride a bike without training wheels! I'll teach you." He said, eagerly.
"No. I don't need your help. Besides, I'm going home now!" She picked up her bike and started to push it off of the basketball court.
"I won't laugh, I promise." Alvin grabbed her shoulder and turned her around to face him. "I'm sorry." Sincerity shined through his eyes and she smiled.
"Okay!"
Alvin helped Brittany up onto her bike and held onto the handle bars, steadying her as she started to pedal. He jogged alongside the bike as she swerved.
"You're doing it, Brittany!" He laughed.
"I'm doing it!" Brittany laughed with him. Alvin let go and watched as she rode in circles around him. "You let go!" She panicked and started to swerve. The bike tipped and Alvin jumped to grab the handle.
"I've got you." He said, steadying her again as she stopped the bike. She climbed off the bike and threw her arms around Alvin's neck.
"Thank you for catching me…"
"I'll always catch you…" Alvin said quietly. Brittany leaned up against him and kissed him on the cheek. Alvin blushed brightly. Brittany just laughed and climbed back on her bike to practice some more.
"Hey." Brittany said, sitting down on the swing beside Alvin. He held out a milkshake to her, taking another sip from his.
"Remember when I taught you to ride the bike?" He asked, smiling.
"Of course! How could I forget? You were actually nice that day!" Her eyes sparkled with laughter and she bit her lip to try and hide her smile.
"Hey! I'm always nice! I bought you this milkshake, right?"
"Oh, that's right, my hero!"
"Oh, shut up, Brittany."
"You shut up, Alvin." Brittany said quietly and nudged Alvin with her shoulder. "I got my first kiss that day too." Brittany looked at Alvin from the corner of her eyes. He coughed into his hands, trying to hide the fact that he was blushing Changing the subject, she said, "Why'd you want to meet here anyways? I thought you had plans."
"Well, um, they were cancelled."
"Oh." Brittany said, taking a sip of her milkshake. The straw made a slurping noise and she laughed. They sat there on the swings, swinging slightly, drinking their milkshakes in silence.
"Hey, Brittany?"
"Yea, Alvin?"
"What are you doing on Saturday?"
"My birthday, you mean?" She looked at him and he nodded. "Um, well, I think that my sisters were going to get some cake and we were going to meet you and Simon and Theodore at the diner around six."
"Ah, well, do you have any plans that morning? About 9:30?"
"No…" Brittany was looking down at the ground, chewing on her straw.
"Can I pick you up at 9:30 then?" Alvin watched her closely. First she took a deep breath and held it.
"Pick me up? With what? Your bike?" She released the breath in a big laugh. She was laughing so hard. He rolled his eyes. She covered her mouth with her hands and looked at the ground, trying to stop laughing.
"No. I've got that covered." He said, once she calmed down. Then, slowly, she lifted her head towards his and looked him in the eyes. Finally, she smiled brightly and nodded. Alvin returned the smile. 'Now, all I have to do is make sure that nothing gets in my way on Saturday.'
Alvin spent the next day trying to recall what had happened to make him forget Brittany's birthday. They had spent so many birthdays together and he seemed to have no problem recalling them. He finally decided to consult Dave. It was late Thursday night. Theodore was already in bed and Simon was working on some science project. Alvin found Dave sitting in his office, the door cracked, working on some sheet music. He knocked quietly on the door, to get Dave's attention, and then pushed the door open.
"What's up, Alvin?" Dave asked, looking up at Alvin from behind his desk.
"Um, Dave. I need your help. I need to cancel the concert on Saturday." Alvin pulled on his shirt collar and shrugged. He was a little nervous.
"But why, Alvin? You've been so excited about this concert! All the big names will be there!" Dave stood up and walked around his desk and motioned for Alvin to sit in the chair in front of him. Dave leaned against his desk. "The record company will be there! And your contract is almost up! It's such short notice!" Dave shook his head. Then Alvin remembered. This concert was important. He could lose his career as a singer if he skipped it. Cancelling this concert could be devastating to his career and his brothers careers.
"Is there any way to reschedule it?" Alvin pleaded. He was desperate.
"I'm afraid not, Alvin. To cancel it, with such late notice…well, it won't look good." Dave sighed. "Why do you want to cancel it anyways?"
"I..I just have to. It's really important. You know I wouldn't do this if it weren't!"
"Well, you're going to have to give me more than that, Alvin. This won't just look bad on you, but on your brothers and on me!" Dave said sternly.
"I knew you wouldn't just let me get away with it. Why will it look bad on you, Simon, and Theodore anyways? This is a solo gig." Alvin groaned.
"Because you're in a band with them, Alvin. This may be solo, but you're still in the Chipmunks. Well…are you going to tell me? Or are you going to suck it up and perform?"
"Dave…can't you just trust me?" Alvin begged. Dave shook his head and frowned. "Okay, okay. It's Brittany's birthday and I have to be there for her! I have to! I tried to think of ways around it, and it just doesn't work. They both don't fit on the same day! I can't do all the promotions and photos in the morning and then the dinner and then the concert and still have time for Brittany! There's just not enough time for both!"
"Hold on. You're cancelling this concert, for a girl?" Dave asked in disbelief. "I guess I should have expected this…it is you after all."
"No! It's not just for a girl! It's for Brittany! She's so much more than just a girl to me! I have to be there on her birthday. I can't miss it. And what is that supposed to mean anyways? Hmph." Alvin crossed his arms over his chest and frowned.
"Well, I'll do what I can, Alvin. I'll see if we can reschedule, but I doubt it. You have to tell your brothers then." Dave threw his hands up in the air and got off his desk.
"I promise this is worth it! Thanks, Dave!" Alvin grinned and pulled Dave into a quick father-son hug and ran upstairs to talk to his brothers. Once he got upstairs though, he stopped He thought about what he was going to say and then approached the door to their bedroom cautiously. He noticed the light was off and then remembered how late it was. He pushed the door open slowly and saw both of his brothers in bed, snoring lightly. He groaned and decided to talk to them first thing in the morning.
The talk with Simon and Theodore had gone better than Alvin had expected. To his surprise, they completely understood and even offered to talk to Dave to see if they could do something on Saturday instead. Simon had to leave for school early for some sort of science project and Theodore was at home finishing up his culinary assignment, so Alvin had decided to ride his bike to school alone. He almost always walked to school, but today, he had things to do after school, and walking was just not fast enough. He was whistling as he pedaled, excited and even a little surprised for how well everything was working out for him. He was so caught up in his thoughts about what he would do for Brittany's birthday that he didn't notice her standing right in front of him, tapping her foot on the sidewalk.
"Alvin." She called out and he slammed on his brakes, right before running into her. Brittany giggled into her hand. "You know, you shouldn't think so hard, you could hurt yourself." Alvin glared at her and then smirked.
"You would know."
"As if." Brittany gasped and turned on her heel and started walking swiftly towards the school. Alvin rolled his eyes but slowly pedaled after her.
"Britt! Come on. You know I'm joking."
"Uh-huh." She flipped her hair and continued walking.
"I've got a big surprise for you tomorrow."
"Oh really, Alvin? I can't wait! I'm so glad that you asked me to spend the day with you!" Brittany rushed back towards Alvin and threw her arms around his shoulders, pulling him into an awkward hug from his seat on the bike. "So, where are you going to take me?"
Alvin just smiled at her and they continued on their way to school, with Brittany launching questions at him like a firing squad.
The day continued as normal. In between classes, whenever Alvin got time alone, he made phone calls, preparing for the next day. He had to get everything finished before he went to bed tonight to make sure everything was ready for Brittany's birthday surprise, and he had to make sure that she didn't find out what he was planning. Keeping his planning a secret was a lot harder than it sounded. Brittany was too cunning and could talk anyone into telling her anything, so he needed to keep his planning private. With his curious friends, it was just safer to keep it to himself, and that was nearly impossible. Every time he decided to try to make a call, he would triple check to make sure that he was alone in the hallway. Simon and Theodore knew that he was planning a surprise for Brittany, but they had no idea what he was planning and he was going to keep it that way. By lunch time, Alvin was ready for the school day to be over so he could finish his planning. Sitting at his normal table with his friends and brothers, he picked up his soda can and took a drink. He had a plate full of Eleanor and Theodore's cooking and was picking at it with his fork. He loved Theodore's cooking (and Eleanor's cooking too), but he was too nervous to eat. Theodore and Eleanor had brought their culinary assignment left-overs for their siblings and friends to eat. Eleanor had made kimchi and Theodore had made eggplant lasagna. In their culinary class, they were currently learning about different world cuisines, so everyone in the class was assigned to a different country. Eleanor had chose South Korea, and Theodore had been absent the day they picked countries and had been assigned Italy. Brittany still had not made her appearance in the lunch room and Alvin was somewhat relieved. He was nervous about seeing her, because he knew that she would just pester him about tomorrow.
"Alvin, are you okay? You're not eating." Theodore looked at his oldest brother with concern shining through his eyes.
"Uh, yea. I'm fine." Alvin looked at his brother and smiled, scooping up a large fork-full of lasagna and shoving it in his mouth. Theodore smiled, but still seemed as if he knew something was wrong with Alvin. Alvin chewed the food and scooped up another big bite. Theodore frowned, but decided to let it go.
"Jeanette!" Brittany said, sitting down beside Alvin, looking towards her sister, who was seated across the table, next to Simon. "Did you get the notes from history?"
"Yea. Didn't you take notes?"
"No! Tiffany was telling me about what happened at the party with Jason!" Brittany raised her eyebrows and leaned in as if she were about to tell Jeanette what happened, but Jeanette held up her hand to stop Brittany's advancement.
"And that's what you were writing? You were passing notes."
"Well, duh." Brittany sighed. Jeanette and Simon both rolled their eyes. "Don't you want to know?"
"No, but don't worry, Brittany, you can copy my notes."
"Thanks! You're the best sister!" Brittany smiled and reached to hug Jeanette across the table. "Now, Alvin, what were we talking about this morning? Oh yea! Tomorrow!" She turned her gaze to Alvin and he held up his hands, palms facing Brittany.
"Don't start. I'm not saying anything. Besides, why do you think I even have anything planned? I'm the king of procrastination!" He smirked. Brittany just rolled her eyes and chewed on her bottom lip.
"You do know something…I just have to figure it out."
"Well, you're not going to! I'm not saying anything! To anyone!" Alvin crossed his lips and threw away the key.
"Whatever, you're so childish!"
"Says the girl who can't wait 12 hours!"
"Says the boy who can't count!"
"Shut up, you two!" Eleanor said. "Eat!"
"Ellie, you stay out of this. I have a right to know."
"And there she goes, with her big head thinking she has a right to everything!"
Brittany stood up and turned away, flipping her hair over her shoulder
"And don't think this means we're off for tomorrow, Alvin Seville. You're not getting out of it. It's still on. I'm just not talking to you right now." She walked away.
"You always have to fight, huh?" Simon sighed.
"That went exactly as planned." Alvin said and laughed. Everyone threw him with a questioning glance, but he just ignored their glances and continued eating.
The day seemed to be even longer than normal school days and once the final bell rang, Alvin ran out the doors of the school as fast as he could. The first thing he had to do was go to the bank. He would have to withdraw some cash to pay for the things he needed. 'Good thing Dave forced me to save part of the money from my performances.' He thought as he rode his bike to the nearest bank. That night he rode his bike all over town, tying up loose ends and making sure that everything was prepared for Brittany's birthday the next morning. When he finally got home, it was almost 7:30. He had skipped dinner, to make sure he had time to get everything done before places started closing, and he was exhausted from all the errands he had run. He headed to the kitchen to make himself something to eat and grab a drink. Theodore was sitting at the dining table with school books and papers spread out in front of him. A bowl of popcorn and a sprite were sitting next to a pile of books.
"Hey, Theodore," Alvin said as he walked to the fridge.
"Hey, Alvin," Theodore responded, without looking up from his work. "Where have you been?"
"Out getting stuff ready for Brittany's birthday tomorrow." Alvin grabbed some lunch meat, cheese and a coke from the fridge and went to the cabinet to get a plate and some bread.
"You won't forget that we're meeting at the diner, right? Eleanor would be devastated if Brittany didn't spend a little bit of her birthday with her sisters!"
"I know, Theo. We'll be there about 5:30 probably. Is that good?" Alvin finished making his sandwich and sat down at the table across from his little brother to eat.
"Perfect. I'll make sure everyone else is ready by then." Theodore looked up at Alvin and smiled, then went right back to his homework. Alvin finished his sandwich and put his empty coke can in the recycle bin. He headed up the stairs and down the hall to the room he shared with his brothers. He talked to Simon for a minute before setting the alarm on his phone, changing clothes, and crawling into bed, exhausted.
'Changing the future is hard…I hope this works.' Alvin thought as he drifted off to sleep.
This is just part 1 of chapter 2, but I thought you deserved an update! Thank you to all those who reviewed! I really appreciate it!
I'm still working on the second part of this chapter, but it should be up in a week or two!
Could you guys please help me out? I would like some reviews on content and writing style! Do you like the way I write? Do you hate it? What can I do to improve? Thanks!