A Window to the Past – Chapter 7
Brenda and Dylan get to the airport and past security. They say little to each other as they board the plane and wait for it to take off.
'Dylan? Are you alright?' Brenda asks him.
Dylan nods his head in her direction, but keeps staring at the back of the seat in front of him.
'I hate the takeoff, I'll be better when it's over,' he says.
Brenda smiles at him and nods her head. 'Okay.'
The plane takes off and Brenda watches Dylan's entire body tense up. As the plane levels off and begins to fly at altitude, he relaxes a little bit.
'I'm going to nod off for a bit,' he tells her and closes his eyes.
Brenda looks at him and then down at her hands. She thought that he was acting a little strange since the taxi picked them up, but couldn't figure out what might be bothering him.
She shrugs her shoulders figuring that he'll tell her eventually if it was really important and rifles through her bag for a book to read.
Dylan starts to dream about Brenda and their former life together. He sees Brenda standing before him in her dress at the Spring Dance. They were so happy together during that time, until they found out that her family was going back to Minnesota. Even after they got back together he felt as if their relationship had changed and that it would never go back to the way it was before she broke up with him. He watches images of the good times and the bad times float through his brain.
What if she hadn't broken up with him? What if her father hadn't found out that early in their relationship that they were sleeping together? He starts to dream of a life where the tension between her family and him didn't exist. Would they have stayed together this whole time? If no one was pushing her, would she have still gone to Paris? Would she have even considered the University of Minnesota? Would she have gone with him on a tour around Europe that summer? Would she even be in London right now?
Brenda watches Dylan's body relax and then tense up over and over again as he sleeps. He jerks violently for a few seconds, but doesn't wake up. Brenda watches him for a few minutes to make sure that he wasn't going to hurt himself and when he calms down again, she goes back to reading her book.
Dylan dreams of opening the door to his house and seeing her standing there to greet him. He sees her smile and jump into his arms. He imagines them having great adventures together, traveling all over the country, all over the world, just being with each other. He hears her voice talking about subletting her apartment in London and the realization that she was probably there to stay comes back to him. He slowly comes out of his dreams when he feels a sharp pain in his chest. The pain dulls to an ache and when he hears her voice in whispering something in his ear as his eyes start to tear up.
'Dylan?' he hears her clearly say.
He opens his eyes slowly and tries to avoid showing her the emotional trip he had just been on, but can't stop one tear from rolling down his cheek.
'The plane is about to land. I tried to wake you up when the food came, but you wouldn't open your eyes,' she says, watching him wipe his face quickly.
He doesn't say anything back to her. He sits up in his seat and stares straight ahead.
Brenda doesn't ask him what he might have been dreaming about. She decides that if he was dreaming about Toni again, he might not want to discuss it with her.
They get off of the plane and walk down to the baggage area to pick up the luggage. She pulls out her phone and sees that there is a message. She dials her voicemail and after a few seconds starts to laugh out loud.
Dylan turns his head and sees her hang up the phone.
'What was that?' he asks her.
'That was Donna, she called to say that they were leaving Nashville and heading up to D.C. and that if she could find the perfect moment she was going to open the door to the car while it was moving and shove Kelly out onto the highway somewhere,' Brenda says with a smile.
Dylan starts to laugh with her. 'She must really be getting on Donna's nerves for her to say that,' he says.
'I am so glad that I am not in the car right now,' Brenda says, spotting her luggage and pulling it off of the conveyor belt.
Dylan grabs the rest of the bags and they make their way to the main terminal to find the driver.
'Ms. Walsh?' a voice says from behind them.
Brenda turns around to see a middle aged man holding her picture in his hand.
'Um,' Brenda eyes him.
'I was sent by Mr. Timmons to escort you to the Circle in the Square theatre,' he says.
'Oh, yes, of course,' she says and shakes his hand.
'This way,' he says, grabbing two of her bags and walking to the car parked outside of the airport.
They get the bags into the car and start to drive away from the airport.
'They asked that I bring you right to the theatre before stopping at the hotel. Is that alright with you?' the driver asks her.
'Of course, thank you,' she says.
Dylan smiles at Brenda, seeing the excitement in her face as the car gets closer to the city.
The car stops in front of the theatre and the driver gets out to open the door for Brenda.
'I will wait here for you and then we will go to the hotel,' he says.
'Okay, thank you,' Brenda says. She takes Dylan's hand and leads him into one of the most glamorous theatres she had ever seen.
They walk into the lobby and start looking around. Dylan looks straight up and works his way down the walls to the floor.
'Wow,' he says.
'Brenda, I'm so glad you're finally here. How was the flight?'
Brenda turns to see two men walking toward them. 'Hello, the flight was fine. It's great to be here,' she says.
'My name is Bob Shay, the producer and this will be your director, Jonah Marsh,' he says.
Brenda shakes both of their hands.
'We saw you perform in Ireland and I have to tell you, I was so impressed by your performance, I just had to find something to cast you in,' Bob says.
'Oh, well, thank you very much. This is an amazing opportunity for me and I'm so glad to be a part of it,' she says.
'I also saw you perform in 'The Glass Menagerie' a while back. I thought this would be a great chance for you to try some comedy,' Jonah says.
'I'm ready to try anything,' she says. She sees Jonah looking at Dylan, who was trying to hide behind her.
'Oh, I'm so sorry. Bob, Jonah, this is Dylan,' she says.
Dylan smiles and nods as he shakes both of their hands.
'Well, it's great that you're finally here, let me show you around,' Jonah says.
They walk around the theatre with Jonah as he shows them the set plan, the lighting plan, and a rack full of costumes.
'Oh, before I forget,' Jonah says, rifling through a folder of papers, 'here is the production and rehearsal schedule for you and a list of really good realtors to help you find a permanent home. I know how much living out of a hotel can wear on a person. You should be able to find something reasonable if you call one of these guys,' he says.
'Great, thank you so much,' she says.
'Well, I'll let you get settled in. You'll be staying at the Michelangelo Hotel a few blocks from here for the time being,' he says as they walk back up to the lobby.
'How long do I have to find an apartment?' Brenda asks.
Jonah smiles at her. 'Brenda, we want you here to vault this production into something great. I'm sure they'd be willing to put you up for,' he says and then pauses, 'ever, but if you're anything like me or any other theatre person, you'll be yearning for your own place quickly.'
Brenda smiles back at him and tries to figure out where this deep admiration for her acting was coming from. She knows that she is a good actor, but she still wasn't convinced that she deserved any of this.
She looks down at the schedule to figure out when she had to be at her first rehearsal.
'I will see you soon. Get a good night's sleep,' Jonah says and closes the door to the theatre behind them.
They get back into the car and the driver takes off to go to the hotel.
'Dylan, did any of that seem weird to you?' she asks him.
'In what way, Bren?'
'Look, I'm not saying that I'm not a good actor, because I know that I am, but he saw two shows that had me playing very serious characters and then thinks I'd be perfect for slapstick comedy. I just don't get it,' she says.
'Try not to over think it, Bren. You'll drive yourself crazy for no reason. You're a good actor, just leave it at that. You are here for a reason and whatever he asks you to do, I'm sure you'll be able to do it with no problems,' he says.
She turns to look into his eyes to see if he was just blowing smoke up her ass. He looked completely serious and sincere, so she smiles and nods her head.
The car stops in front of a beautiful hotel and the driver opens the door for her. He starts taking their bags out of the trunk and puts them on a cart the bellhop wheeled out.
'Good afternoon,' the bellhop says to them as he helps the driver put their bags on the trolley.
Brenda and Dylan exchange glances and can't help but start to laugh as they walk into the hotel.
'Wow,' Brenda hears Dylan say again, as they look around the lobby.
'I was just about to say that,' she says and goes to the counter.
'Checking in, Brenda Walsh,' she says to the desk clerk.
'Ah, yes, Ms. Walsh,' the clerk says, picking up a piece of paper. 'We've been expecting you.'
He puts the paper on the counter and points to the bottom.
'Please sign here,' he says and gets two keys for her. 'Here are your keys, take the elevator to the fourth floor and turn left down the hall.'
'Oh, thank you very much,' she says. The bellhop smiles when Brenda turns around and follows them to the elevator.
They get in the elevator and get off on the fourth floor. They walk down the hall and Brenda opens the door to the room. She walks in the see a beautifully decorated suite with every amenity she could possibly image.
'Thank you,' Dylan says to the bellhop, giving him a tip.
'Enjoy your stay,' he says and leaves the room.
'Dylan, look, there's a television in the bathroom,' she says. 'This is incredible!'
Dylan walks to the windows and opens the curtains to look out on the city. 'And a great view of the city,' he adds.
She joins him by the window and looks out on her new home. 'I can't believe I'm really here,' she says.
He puts his arm around her and smiles. 'Well, believe it, because you just made it to the big time.'
She moves to get her bags and puts one of her suitcases on the bed. She opens it and starts to unpack her things.
He watches her move around the room and sees her face light up as she discovers things about the room.
He looks back out the window and struggles with the idea of telling her what he was dreaming about on the plane. He knows that he wasn't quick enough to wipe his face and that she saw the tear roll down his cheek.
Brenda finishes with one of her suitcases and sits on the bed with a loud sigh.
Dylan turns his head and sees her stretched out on the bed with her arm over her eyes.
'Tired, Bren?'
'Exhausted. I think I'm going to take a nap or I will not be able to function.'
Dylan sees her yawn and then yawns himself. 'That sounds like a fantastic idea.'
He joins her and she curls up next to him and closes her eyes.
Washington D.C.
Brandon and Amy sit on the couch watching some television together.
'So, what do you want to do this weekend?' she asks him.
'Um, I don't know, I'm waiting to see if George springs something on me,' he says.
'Yeah, I've been working on this stupid Senate bill for the last three weeks and it's killing me. I know that the paper needs the coverage since it looks like this is an important bill, but it's such boring work,' she says.
'Well, somebody has to do it. I'm sorry the person happens to be you, but at least it's not me,' Brandon says with a smile.
'Ha ha, very funny,' she says, playfully hitting him in the chest.
'Oh, cheap shot,' he says and tries to grab her hands.
They both start to laugh and then Brandon leans in to capture her lips.
'Mmmmm,' she says after they part, 'that's more like it.'
She leans in further and wraps her arms around his neck. Brandon breaks their embrace when his phone starts to ring.
'Hello?'
'Hi Brandon,' he hears in stereo.
'Whoa,' he says holding the phone a little bit from his head.
'Hey, Brandon,' Steve says. 'I'm with Kelly and Donna and we have a surprise for you.'
'A surprise for me? Great, what is it?'
Amy's head turns quickly when she hears a car honking loudly outside the building.
'Wait, hold on a second, Steve, I can barely hear you,' Brandon says and moves to the window to see what was happening on the street.
He moves the curtain and looks down to see Steve, Kelly, and Donna standing on the other side of the street waving at him.
'Oh my God!' Brandon says and quickly turns and runs for the door. Amy watches him move faster than she's ever seen him move and gets up to investigate what he saw. She sees him running out of the building and embracing three people standing on the street.
'This really is a surprise. What are you guys doing here?' Brandon asks after hugging all of them.
'We thought we'd take a road trip during Spring Break and what better place to be, but our nation's capital with you,' Steve says.
Brandon smiles from ear to ear. 'This is so great! Come on up,' he says and leads them into his apartment.
Brandon walks back into his apartment and sees Amy standing in the middle of the living room looking as surprised as he was when he ran downstairs.
'Oh, hey, I want you guys to meet someone. This is Amy,' he says pointing to her. 'Amy, this is Steve, Donna, and Kelly. They're my friends from California. They decided to come and surprise me, isn't that great?'
'Yeah, great,' Amy says feigning excitement. 'It's nice to meet all of you.'
Kelly's face turns a bright shade of red as Steve and Donna introduce themselves to Amy. She politely shakes her hand and then steps as far away from Amy as she can possibly get.
'Are you guys hungry or thirsty? Tell me about your trip!' Brandon says.
They sit down in the living room together and Steve and Donna elaborate on the route they took and everything they saw on the way here.
'I don't know, I have to say that driving through Memphis was probably my favorite part,' Donna says.
'Really? I thought North Carolina was nice,' Steve says.
They all look in Kelly's direction, who hadn't said much of anything since they sat down.
'Kel?' Brandon says.
'Hmm?' she says looking up at him.
'What was your favorite part of the trip?'
'Oh, I didn't really have one. The whole thing was pretty dreadful,' she says flatly.
'Kel, are you okay?' Brandon asks her. 'You look a little tired or something.'
'Oh, yeah, I'm fine,' she says trying to produce a smile for him.
Amy also sits quietly watching Brandon interact with his friends. She looks up all of a sudden and the wheels start to turn in her head.
'So, how long will you guys be staying?' she asks with a smile plastered on her face.
'Well, we don't have to be back in California until next Sunday, so we can stay until at least Thursday,' Steve says. 'If you want us to,' he adds quickly, looking at Brandon.
'You guys can stay as long as you want. There's not much room in this apartment, but we will make it work. I am just so happy that you're all here,' Brandon says looking from Steve to Donna to Kelly.
He lingers on Kelly for just a few seconds and feels a jolt when he finally catches her eye.
'Man,' Steve says, 'I really wish we could have gotten a hold of Dylan. If we get a chance to go up and visit Brenda in New York it would be like a mini high school reunion.'
'Yeah, that would have been great if we could have pulled that together,' Donna says.
'Did you call his mother's house?' Brandon asks.
'Yeah, but she said he had taken a little trip and that she wasn't sure when he'd be back,' Donna says.
'I'm sure he'll turn up,' Brandon says.
'Well, I better go and let you guys settle in and get reacquainted,' Amy says.
'Oh, so soon?' Steve asks as she passes him to get her jacket from the kitchen chair.
'Let's do dinner or something tomorrow, that way we can get to know you better,' Steve suggests.
Amy smiles again and nods in his direction. 'Sure,' she says. 'Goodnight.'
Brandon watches her walk out the door and then turns his attention immediately back to his friends.
'Have you guys heard anything from Brenda?' he asks them.
'I called her before we left this morning, but I haven't heard anything back,' Donna says.
'She was supposed to be in New York today. I hope she made it alright,' Brandon says.
'We should definitely try to go up there and surprise her too!' Steve says.
'Ah, I don't think that would be a good idea. Brenda is not too fond of surprises,' Brandon says.
'Well, we'll call her tomorrow or something. I'm sure she's really tired from the flight and everything,' Donna suggests.
'Good idea,' Brandon says. 'Well, let's break out some wine or something and then you can tell me everything that's going on at school that I am missing.'
They sit around the living room and start talking just like old times. The smile on Brandon's face seems endless as he listens to Steve tell stories about the semester so far. Kelly gets lost in her thoughts and tunes Steve's voice out as she tries to stare at Brandon without making it too obvious.