Georgie wished it had been a while since she could say she'd cried herself to sleep, however, it hadn't. That April, the grunge and alt rock scene was in mourning after the death of Kurt Cobain. She'd cried so many nights after that, because she was in shock, she couldn't believe that the world had lost someone so talented. And she would never get the chance to meet him. He was her idol.
But she cried herself to sleep the night before because she missed her momma, her voice and smile, and she knew she wasn't going to wake up to her singing in the kitchen.
Instead, Georgie woke up to a crying baby, screaming at the top of his lungs. Her baby brother sounded like someone was trying to murder him. She descended the attic stairs to find the bathroom that Josie had pointed out the night before.
Her reflection in the bathroom mirror gave her quite the jumpscare. Her eyes were red and puffy, her under eyes ringed with black. Her makeup had smudged down her cheeks and over her temple into her hairline. Georgie washed her hands and face, the water clearing away the makeup but it didn't sooth her eyes as much as she'd hoped it would.
When she headed down the stairs, she noticed the crying had stopped and the only noise she could hear now was something sizzling. Eggs? She could smell eggs. Her stomach growled and started to hurt as she paused on the stairs.
She hadn't seen it the night before, but there was a space in between a couple of the portraits on the wall. Had they taken some down? That was odd.
Ignoring that oddity, Georgie headed to the kitchen, following the scent of the eggs and now, coffee.
The house layout was nothing like her house in Edenton, but it didn't take a genius to navigate. Once at the bottom of the stairs, she just had to turn right and follow the hallway that led into the kitchen. To the left, there was another room that must have been a den or something, or maybe just their equivalent of a living room. It was empty, no one was watching TV or reading the morning paper. She passed a dining room as well on her short walk.
She and her mother didn't have a dining room. They just had a small table in the kitchen that they sat at to eat dinner and breakfast. But in this house, she imagined they sat at a long dining table, in the room specifically set up for them to eat in. They probably spoke about their days, they probably said grace, and she could only imagine what special occasions would be like.
Unbearable.
In the kitchen, Georgie found her stepmom and the baby sitting together. They had a breakfast table in here as well? How well off were they now?
She cleared her throat to get Melinda's attention and the woman almost fell out of her seat at the sudden noise. "Oh, sweetheart, did we wake you up?" she asked, wiping something off of the baby's face. Leo was set up in a high chair and Georgie could only see the back of the Harpy's head. "I was making some breakfast, if you want some. Sit, I'll put some on a plate."
"Thank you," she said quietly, taking a seat at the small table and finally seeing the baby's face. He stared at her like she was something out of a Sci-Fi movie, with a second head sprouting out of her shoulder. He didn't cry like he had the night before, he just screwed up his face and sneezed. "Bless you," she said to the baby and somehow, she got a laugh out of him. He laughed at being blessed.
"How do you like your eggs?" she was asked, but Georgie didn't really care how they were made, as long as they were cooked and she could eat them. Her stomach growled again, loudly and Melinda raised her eyebrows. "I'll grab some bacon, as well."
"I can make it myself, I don't wanna put you out," she insisted, but Melinda just brushed her off as she went to the fridge to get bacon. She probably made breakfast for the kids and her husband most mornings. It gave Stepford Wives and made Georgie a little uncomfortable. Something about that movie made her skin crawl. She made her own breakfast, she made her momma's breakfast. They took it in turns, really, but most of the time, her momma was still asleep when she got up for school. "Where is everybody?" she asked, turning back to Leo who was hitting the tray of his highchair to get someone's attention. Maybe he was trying to get hers. Who knew?
"Oh, Chase had an early shift at work, so he headed out a couple hours ago," Melinda began, putting scrambled eggs on a plate and setting aside as she started the bacon. "And your dad took Josie to her dance class before heading down to work for a little bit. He'll probably be on his own way home for lunch soon."
Georgie glanced up at the clock on the wall. She couldn't believe the time, it was almost eleven o'clock. How had she slept so late? Almost eleven o'clock in California was almost two o'clock in North Carolina. She never slept this late at home! She had chores and a job of her own to get to.
But…here, she didn't. At least, not yet.
"Why didn't anyone wake me up?" asked Georgie as she wiped the baby's face, yogurt on his cheek from the spoon he was chewing on.
"We just thought you'd like a lie-in."
Lie in? She'd slept for practically twelve hours straight but they thought she wanted to stay in bed longer? She shook her head. She didn't like lying in. She never got the chance to do that back home.
"No, I… I appreciate that, but it's almost two in Edenton, I should have been up so I could get started on my chores," she said to her stepmom, glancing down at the plate of food that was placed in front of her.
"I will remember that for tomorrow. But just eat and enjoy a day of rest," she was told with a smile.
Georgie almost inhaled the food from her plate. She hadn't realized how hungry she was, but then, she hadn't eaten much the day before, she didn't even have dinner before going to bed. The eggs were perfect, much better than her own, and the bacon was just right. Whenever she cooked them, one or both would end up a little bit burnt. The skillet they cooked on must have been better than what Georgie and her momma had back home.
When she'd cleared her plate, she felt stuffed but kind of content. At least her stomach was full. She took her plate and cutlery to the sink, only for Melinda to tell her to stop. "We have a dishwasher," she told her, nodding to the slightly ajar appliance door beside the sink. Georgie was used to being the dishwasher. Again, it was something she and her momma took turns on doing. "Just rinse it and then place it inside. I'll do a load before your father gets home."
So much was different in this house. It was like she'd walked in on a family that not only spoke another language, but also had an entirely different culture, they had their own way of doing things. It made her uncomfortable. How was she going to fit in?
"Is it okay if I go for a walk?" she asked Melinda, only to receive a shocked look from the woman. "If I don't have chores, I don't have much else to do. I kinda feel like I need some air," she explained.
"You don't have to ask," Melinda said with a short laugh. "As long as you're home for dinner, we don't mind you going around as you please. The neighborhood is quite safe and it's pretty easy to navigate. You can't really get lost. But if you do, there's plenty of people to help you find your way home."
Well, that wasn't unlike what Georgie was already used to. In Edenton, everyone knew everyone, you couldn't really get lost because there was always a landmark here or there to indicate where you were. And in the event of getting turned around, there would be a neighbor or two who would make sure you got home safely, to either give directions or to call someone to pick you up.
She'd been so scared of the differences, she hadn't imagined that maybe it wouldn't be too different. That being said, Georgie still figured there would be other things that would remind her that she wasn't back home in the comforts of the place she grew up, more stark things that would jump out at her.
Melinda held out a small cup with a toothbrush in it and smiled softly at Georgie. It had the letter 'G' on it, so she guessed this was for her, "I know you probably brought a toothbrush, but just in case, we had spares." Georgie did have a toothbrush but it was on its last legs, so to speak. She never could remember to buy new ones.
With her cup and new toothbrush, Georgie went up to the toilet and brushed her teeth, gave her face another wash, and then stared at herself in the mirror for a few minutes. The puffiness around her eyes had lessened, the red in them had also lessened, she no longer looked like she was having a bad allergic reaction to something. But the one thing that hadn't changed, no matter how much she waited, would be the permanent frown on her face.
There was no sparkle in her eyes. Her momma loved telling people that her baby's eyes glittered in the sunlight, but Georgie couldn't see the sparkle or the glitter. Maybe, in time, it would come back. But for now, they were two dull pools of brown.
She made a disgruntled expression at herself, before taking a deep breath and brushing out her hair with her fingers. Any other day, she'd have put on a little bit of sunscreen and then makeup, and she'd do something nice with her hair. However, she didn't feel the need to do that today. She didn't have anyone she wanted to impress, not that the settling depression gave her the want to do so even if there was. She imagined the only people she'd see today would be neighbors or extended family.
Tying her hair up, Georgie made the decision that all she'd need for a short walk around the block would be some sunscreen and nothing much. She didn't even feel the need to fish out clean clothes from her bag, she just pulled on the jeans she'd worn to the airport and tucked her pj shirt into them. The shirt was a Metallica 'Ride The Lightning' tour shirt that her momma had bought her. She'd wanted it in white, but she could only get it in black…and in a men's extra, extra large. It was huge on Georgie, which was why she mainly only wore it to bed, but she wouldn't trade it for the world. It had lost some of its coloring over the years, so it wasn't really black anymore. It had a cool distressed gray look to it now.
She pulled on her chucks, grabbed a baseball cap from her bag, and then went down to let Melinda know she was going out. She had her cassette player in her hand, but she wasn't sure it would still play, she was just hoping that it would.
Melinda was distracted with Leo as Georgie tried to say goodbye, the woman managing a wave over the shoulder to the girl before she left the house. If Georgie was inclined to, she could have run away from home and Melinda wouldn't be any of the wiser.
Back home, Georgie would have taken her bike out or her skateboard, but she had neither here. She instead borrowed the skateboard that was beside the front door─probably Chase's─and figured she could ask later for one, or even a bike. Hopefully the high school wasn't too far away, because she preferred riding her bike to school in Edenton, or on days when it was nice enough, she would skate to school with Max.
Her momma hated her riding the skateboard, she was always scared of her hurting herself, but Georgie had been riding for a while, and she knew what she was doing. She'd had accidents before but they were all her own fault for not paying attention.
There was barely any traffic on the street, her momma would be thankful for that. Kids were running up and down the sidewalk though, running back and forth between their friends' houses and yards. The majority of the kids looked to be about Josie's age, maybe a little younger, some a little older. But she'd yet to spot any teenagers.
Turning at the end of the street, Georgie spotted a long stretch of road that she guessed would lead toward a main street, and she continued riding on, skidding to a stop when her headphones would stop working. She'd been bending the cord and managing to get it to play, but after a few minutes, it'd cut out was frustrating her. She should have taken a pair of Chase's headphones, not his board.
She was stopped halfway up the street when she heard music playing again. She thought for a moment that it was her cassette player, but she realized that wasn't likely. She had paused the tape while trying to fix her headphones. No, the music was coming from behind her.
Georgie glanced back in time to see two boys on bikes ride past her, both singing loudly along to a boombox in one of the boy's baskets on the front of his bike. For a moment, she thought one of the boys looked slightly familiar, however, what were the chances of that? She didn't know anyone here. Aside from…
The bikes stopped, a blond boy turning back and waving his arm in the air. Georgie instinctively looked behind her for any other bikes coming along, but there were none. When she glanced back around, she saw the blond turning his bike. He seemed to be telling the other boy to do the same thing. Panic rose in her chest.
If Georgie had to guess, they were probably teenagers. They were taller than her, she didn't have to see them face to face to know that. They were probably stronger than her, as well. And the only thing she had to hand to protect herself was Chase's skateboard. But one skateboard wouldn't defend herself against two boys.
That panic that she'd felt was in her throat as the blond got closer. She bent down to pick up the skateboard, unhooking her headphones in the process. They were not going to use the thing she loved most against her.
"Gee!" shouted the blond, waving his arm again. When she glanced up, he'd cocked his eyebrow as he looked down at her. "Don't tell me it's been so long, you don't recognize me anymore?"
Alex.
Her cousin! He looked the same, the same broad smile on his face, the same fanny pack over his left shoulder. But he was taller.
"Lex!" she exclaimed, the skateboard weapon forgotten as she pounced to hug him, Alex gladly embracing her.
She hadn't seen him in years. When she'd visited the last time, he'd been only an inch or so taller than her. One of her favorite photos that her momma had pride and place on the mantle was of the two of them, her standing on her tiptoes so that she was taller than him. But now, even if she stood on her tiptoes, she would only reach his shoulder. He had really stretched out, not just in height. His shoulders were broader as well.
He looked like a man and that was not okay.
"What are they feeding you?" she asked with a laugh, squeezing his shoulders as she looked up at him. Alex's friend stood awkwardly behind them, but chimed in with, 'Street dogs'. "Do I even want to know what that is?" she raised her eyebrow but Alex shrugged his friend's statement off.
"I swung by your dad's but Mel said you'd gone for a walk," he told her, glancing down at the skateboard. "We were just heading over to the garage, but if you want, we can swing by the skatepark." Garage? "Oh, by the way, this is Reggie," Alex introduced his friend, who leaned forward with a hand out to shake hers.
"World's greatest bassist, at your service," Reggie grinned as Georgie shook his hand, unable to stop herself from laughing. He was kind of cute. "Love your shirt. Did you go?"
Georgie looked down at her shirt before looking back up at him. "Um, no…I could only wish." She wasn't sure her parents would be okay with her attending any kind of metal or rock concert. She'd love it, of course. She and Alex had even swore that they would attend a Nirvana concert together, but now, it wouldn't be the same without Cobain.
"What do you say?" Alex intervened, as though he knew she was going to make a comment about his claim of 'world's greatest bassist'. "Bobby and Luke should be there already. They'll have their bikes, too."
Were they his elusive band members? She'd heard about Sunset Curve and had been looking forward to hearing their music, but Alex hadn't sent any photographs along with the tapes. Most of what he'd recorded were covers. Georgie was quite excited to hear their originals.
On the back of Alex's bike, with the skateboard in his basket along with his boombox, Georgie didn't take much notice of the streets they were turning down or houses that they were passing. Reggie had started them off with a singalong, belting out at the top of his lungs one of his favorite Metallica songs, and Alex had joined in. Before she could think twice about it, she was singing along with them.
They were riding for about fifteen minutes, jumping from one song to the next like they'd practiced for the bike ride singalong. And she had to admit, they were pretty good. She could only imagine what they'd be like with the remainder of their band involved. She knew Alex's taste in music was as eclectic as her own, but Reggie's was the same. Being friends, she guessed they listened to the same songs and bands, gaining inspiration from them.
Georgie only started paying attention to where they were when they turned onto a street that had tall trees all down the sidewalks. They only passed one house before Alex's bike came to a stop, and so did their singing. She could hear music playing, guitars maybe, and she wondered if it was coming from the 'garage' that her cousin had said they were on their way to.
"Okay, so…wait out here for a moment," Alex said as he dismounted and held it still so that she could get off herself. Why did she have to wait out on the street? "Reg and I will go in and get Bobby and Luke, and we can head to the skatepark."
"Can't I come inside? It's pretty hot," Georgie asked, wiping sweat from her neckline and using her baseball cap to fan her face. Her cheeks were probably going rosy red. She was hoping that she would be offered some water. "I'm kinda thirsty."
Alex looked at her sympathetically, glancing over to Reggie. The two boys had a silent conversation, Reggie shrugging his shoulders and Alex rolling his eyes. "I'll ask one of the guys to go into the house and get you something to drink…but you still need to wait out here."
She couldn't fathom why she had to wait outside, when it was hotter than Satan's asscrack. But Alex insisted, promising that they would only be a few minutes, five tops. And she wouldn't be enduring the heat for too long. She only relented because…well, she assumed there was some kind of reason. Maybe their bandmates were inside the garage in their underwear, because it was so hot.
It may have seemed unlikely, but that's what she told herself. No one wanted their initial introductions to someone new to be in their underwear. That had to be it.
∞༺ ༻∞
Why was it so hot? Luke had checked the weather report that morning and had swore that it was supposed to be mild out. However, he was sure it was closer to 100 than the weather guy had said it would be. He and Bobby had been practicing dual riffs, trying to get their timing perfect, when Alex and Reggie arrived, and Reggie looked like the cat that had got the cream.
"Reg, did you meet the new love of your life?" asked Bobby, placing his guitar on its stand and ruffling his own hair.
"I don't know if it's love but I'm sure you guys are going to love it," stated Reggie as he stood right next to the only cool air source they had in the garage; an old fan that Bobby's parents were going to throw out but Luke had convinced the adults to allow them to use it.
"Why does he sound like he has heat stroke again?" Luke asked Alex, throwing a balled up piece of paper at Reggie to make him move. Reggie had had heat stroke the year before after he thought it was a good idea to sit out in the blazing heat of July with nothing but a pair of swim shorts and sunglasses on. If Luke's mom hadn't been a nurse, Reggie would have been in real trouble.
"Oh, you know how he gets," was all Alex said in response, rummaging around the cooler that Bobby had brought in the night before. It was practically empty. "Hey, Bob, do you have any more bottles of water? Kinda need a drink before we head out again."
Luke and Bobby exchanged a glance. They'd drunk what they'd brought out, because it was so hot…and they were maybe a little bit hungover. "Luke, can you grab some from the house?" Bobby said to his friend. Even though it was his own home, Bobby's parents liked Luke. Bobby had once drunkenly insisted that his parents liked Luke more than they liked him. Whether it was true or not, the boys had swore it was fine, because they were all brothers, and in turn, they were all their parents' kids. "Where are we heading out to?"
Luke didn't wait around for the answer as to where they were going. He honestly needed something cold to drink…to pour over his head if need be. It was too hot to care about things like shirts and wasting perfectly good water. He was in and out of the Shaw home quickly, both of Bobby's parents were out so he didn't have to worry too much about them seeing him.
He grabbed five bottles of water, one for each member of the band, and one that he could pour over his head before he headed back inside. He stood at the top of the stairs that headed down to the garage and sat four bottles down on the ground. He'd seen Alex and Reggie's bikes before he'd headed inside, but he hadn't noticed the guy with the skateboard. He had his back to Luke as he sat on the board at the edge of the sidewalk, a baseball cap and headphones on his head.
Immediately, Luke guessed this must have been Alex's little cousin, George. He'd mentioned that he was coming in for the Summer, maybe a little longer, and they would probably hang out some. But When Alex had mentioned him, he had said his cousin wasn't that much younger than they were. This kid looked like he was going into middle school, not high school after the summer.
"Urgh, work, goddammit!" shouted George, hitting the side of the walkman in his hand. His voice also sounded like a kid going into middle school. Maybe Alex had been kind in saying he wasn't much younger than them.
"Hey, do you need a hand with that?" Luke asked him, walking up behind him. George must not have heard him. He didn't respond. Luke tapped his shoulder and almost fell backward when George let out a scream. The skateboard he was sitting on rolled to one side sharply and George fell off of it, hitting his back on the curb. "Oh my god, I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to─"
"What the hell?" George snapped, rubbing his back and twisting to see who had startled him. And that was when Luke saw his, well her, face. "Why would you scare someone you don't know like that?" This was not Alex's cousin, it was a random girl.
Luke took a step back as she got to her feet, a seething expression on her face. She looked pissed. "It was an honest mistake. I thought you were someone else."
Her expression didn't soften any as he explained himself and Luke felt very put on the spot. It had been a genuine mistake, he honestly had mistook her for someone else. She just wasn't buying it. Or, he thought she wasn't.
"Oh really? Just who did you think I was?" she asked, checking her elbow for scrapes. "Oh no, the board!" she exclaimed, her expression flitting from seething to panicked in a matter of seconds. The board in question had rolled into the street and she darted toward it, not caring that she was in the middle of the road as she inspected it. Relief seemed to wash over her as she realized it wasn't damaged.
As Alex, Reggie and Bobby came up from the garage, the girl was still standing in the middle of the road, and she didn't see the car.
"Georgie, get out of the road!" Alex shouted at her, but Luke darted out and grabbed her by the arm, just barely managing to pull her clear out of the car's way as it drove by them. Its horn blared when it disappeared around the street corner. "What the hell were you thinking?"