Hey guys! Remember me? I don't know why this chapter wasn't posted sooner as it's been sitting on my computer for a while. But anyway. Hope you like it!
Enjoy!
She sits in the audience with her mother, father and grandparents. Her heavy winter coat hangs on the back of the fabric covered theater seat. She looks down the cast list once again and can't help but smile when she sees her sister's name.
Everyone's voices in the theater seem to bounce and echo off the walls and make Victoria's ears ring. Luckily the lights dim and everyone falls silent.
The classical score begins out of the speakers from the tape someone up in the lighting booth had pushed play on. The stage lights go up and Victoria watches the play start: the dancers moving in time with one another, their choreography in perfect synch.
She's seen this play so many times she could dance it perfectly, but it's for her sister, so she stays.
Since Lanie started dance class at age three, she has been in The Nutcracker nearly every year. Lanie loves everything about it: the lights, the costumes, and the dance. Victoria can see how it makes her light up and fill with such joy and self-confidence.
If Lanie didn't have dance, Victoria doesn't know where her sister would have ended up.
At eleven year old, Lanie is the youngest to go en pointe at her ballet studio in a long time. She practices constantly, when she's not in class, she's dancing in her sneakers to the music in her mind.
After intermission, the well-known bell music starts up. Lanie and the other four girls in this part of the play come out in their white and pink tutus. Lanie is front and center in their line as she is dancing the lead part in this song.
Victoria's chest fills with pride for her sister. She's worked so hard for this part, and deserves to have the chance to show her stuff in front of a packed audience.
The song ends and the audience claps for the dancers, Victoria especially loud, even Daddy lets out a whistle that embarrasses Victoria a little bit, but she knows it's meant for her sister.
Once the show ends and the cast lines up for their curtain call, everyone in the audience is standing, clapping and cheering and whistling. Even Victoria is standing cheering for the little kids who are doing the play for the first time and then her sister steps up to take her bow and Victoria goes crazy. She claps and cheers harder than she has all night.
She can see Lanie's hundred watt smile and has a smile of her own. The cast takes one final bow, the curtain closes and the stage lights go off and a second later the house lights come back on and Victoria and the rest of her family wait to get out of their seats and into the lobby to meet Lanie.
Lanie runs out of the door leading backstage, a huge smile on her face. She still has her stage make-up and tights on, having only changed out her costume and dance shoes.
"You did so well honey!" Daddy says as he accepts Lanie's flying hug.
"I'm so proud of you!" Mama's smile is almost as big as Lanie's.
Victoria stands back, lets her sister have a moment with her parents and grandparents.
Lanie breaks the hug with her grandfather when she sees her sister standing in the background.
"'Toria!" she runs up and throws her arms around her sister's neck. "Did you like it?"
"I loved it Lanie, you did so well. I am very proud of you."
Victoria realizes they're still hugging and pulls her sister off, but hooks her arm through Lanie's elbow like they used to do when they were younger.
"How about we go get some ice cream? My treat," Grandpa says, leading the family out of the theater and into the cold December night.
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Lanie sits on the hard bleachers of the high school football stadium. She's next to Nana and in front of her younger cousin, Alex, who doesn't know how to sit still.
It is really hot out and Lanie can't seem to drink enough water to keep up with the amount she's sweating.
"They had to pick the hottest day we've had yet to graduate on, huh?" she asks turning towards her dad's mother, her Nana.
Nana just laughs and puts an arm around Lanie's shoulders. "They didn't know it would be this hot when they planned it, baby girl."
Lanie tries to shrug Nana's arm off, it's too hot to keep it there, but she's doesn't move so Lanie just has to sit and bear it.
The band starts up the graduation march and Lanie watches the end zone for the two long lines of high school seniors in either green or yellow caps and gowns.
They start walking forward in time to the music, weaving in and out of the rows of folding chairs until they find their designated spot.
Daddy catches sight of 'Toria first and begins to cheer for her and slowly the others in their group see her too and cheer as well.
The music ends and the principal invites everyone to sit down. He goes on for a long time giving a speech that feels like a hundred hours long, but is probably only ten minutes.
Lanie looks around and sees people fanning themselves and guzzling down gallons of water; even Mama is doing it; it must be hot for Mama to need a fan or some water.
Lanie offers her half empty bottle, but Mama waves her off.
"Thank you baby," Mama whispers to her. Lanie smiles, nods and finishes the water herself, but a minute later she's in need of more.
More people from the school and school district stand up to speak, the choir sings a song dedicated to the senior class, even the band and the seniors who are in band get to play a song.
But finally after what seem like forever, the principal gives the signal and the entire senior class stands up and gets ready to get their diplomas.
They were going in alphabetical order and it takes forever to get to 'Toria's name. But finally they do.
"Victoria Leanne Parish." The principal says it into the microphone slowly and clearly like he's announcing the final score in a very tense basketball game.
Everyone in the family cheers. Mamma cries, Daddy snaps pictures and Lanie screams and cheers so loud she nearly loses her voice.
The rest of the ceremony, to Lanie, goes by faster than the first part and before she knows it, it's over.
They wait by the concession stand for 'Toria to find them. Lanie is the first to see her and runs up to her sister and wraps her in a huge hug.
"I love you 'Toria," is all she says. They don't need to say anything else. Those four words say enough words to fill a book.
Lanie hooks her arm through Victoria's and together they walk back to their families.
There is more hugging, pictures and crying (mostly from Mama, Grandma and Nana) before 'Toria hands her cap, gown and diploma to Daddy and runs off to go to a party with her best friend Cassandra.
Lanie feels hurt. Not even graduated for ten minute and 'Toria is already leaving. She walks behind her family, sulking. She doesn't want to talk to anyone, just wants to be alone.
Is this how it will feel all the time now that 'Toria is leaving?
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"I'm Telling you 'Toria, I am done wither her," Lanie says using the childish nickname once again in their conversation. "I swear if she makes one more crack about the way I dress or about how I shouldn't have given up dance, I will probably smack her."
They had been on the phone for two hours. The sixteen year old was on one of her rants and had called the one person she could trust no matter what: her sister.
Victoria can only roll her eyes and rub the bridge of her nose and push up her glasses that have fallen down her face.
"Have you tried talking to her? You how you two can get."
"'Toria! I can't believe you're taking her side!" Lanie's shouting now, which is never a good thing.
"I never said anything about picking sides. All I am saying is that maybe you should take a breath and go talk to Mama. I know you know that you both have the same personality and sometimes with the two of you things can get blown out of proportion." Victoria braces herself for the shouting match that will happen if Lanie takes what she says the wrong way. But the shouting doesn't come.
Lanie sighs loudly and Victoria can hear her take a long, slow, deep breath.
"Maybe you're right. Maybe I am blowing this out of proportion. But she was out of line saying that."
"I know she was."
"I miss you."
Well that changed quickly.
"I miss you too baby girl." If Lanie gets to use old nicknames, so can she.
"I just need to get out of here," it sounded like she was nearly crying. Lanie had been saying the same thing for the past two and a half years, but somehow Victoria knew it was different this time.
"So come out here."
Whoa, did she really just say that?
"What are you talking about?"
"Lanie move out here. Live in my apartment; take classes at the local high school. Get away from everything."
"'Toria, are you serious?"
"Of course I am. I would love for you to come out here."
There wasn't really much room in Victoria's small two bedroom apartment in central Florida, but it was prefect for two poor college kids trying to get by on minimum wage jobs and a lot of school debt.
"I can't just move in the middle of the semester. I have school and my friends."
Oh yea, there was that.
"Then once the semester is over in three months, you come back with me after Christmas. We'll start you in a new school; it will be a clean slate.
"What about Mama and Daddy?"
"Don't worry about them, I'll handle our parents. Just make sure you have all of your school things taken care of, alright?"
"Okay, I will."
"Good."
"Hey 'Toria?"
"What?"
"Thank you."
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Lanie watches as the movers take the last few boxes out of the apartment and into the truck. The three of them: Lanie, Victoria and their friend Brooke have lived in their apartment together for the last three years. Enough time for the older two to finish college and start their lives and for Lanie to finish high school and enroll at the same central Florida university that her sister their friend had gone too.
Victoria had gotten an offer from The Department of Internal Affairs in D.C. to come work for them. She accepted even though she was barely out of her rookie year on the police force.
Her captain at the police department where she was working had said she had great potential and would do great things as a cop. So taking this job was a great opportunity for her. But that didn't mean Lanie had to like it.
She tried not to cry as they were getting ready to leave, but the tears still fell.
"Listen," Victoria said, pulling her sister in for a tight hug. "You finish school and become a famous doctor. Don't worry about me. I'll be fine." Victoria smiled sweetly at her sister, trying to get Lanie to smile back.
"But I still worry about you. I worry you will get hurt and not come home," Lanie said through her tears.
"I'll always come home for you," Victoria promises. The two sisters hug one more time before Victoria breaks away and moves to her car. Brooke is already waiting in her car, a hand-me-down Mazda form her older brother that has seen better days.
Lanie watches as her sister and friend drive off down the street, in opposite directions, and waits on the sidewalk long after she loses sight of them, and the music blaring from their radios has long since faded away.
Only then: standing outside of her apartment complex, wearing no makeup and ratty old clothes, does Lanie cry. Big, hot tears that make marks down her cheeks; and she doesn't even care who sees.