|
|
Chapter 27
~ August 16~ 2 Days before the concert~
The past 3 weeks had been the best in my life. A few days after we had gotten
news of the concert we got a call saying we could move back into the apartment.
Of course, we missed living with the guys, but it was nice being on our own
again. Together with all the guys, Stacie, Deb, and I went to Disney World
(which brought back some memories Kevin would rather forget), Universal Studios,
the Everglades, and we even spent a weekend in the Florida Keys. We had enough
memories from those three weeks to last a lifetime. It wasn't all fun and
games, of course. I began to notice undercurrents of hostility between Deb
and AJ and on top of that we had rehearsals every day, starting a week ago,
for the concert. Everyone was feeling the stress when everything came to
a head between AJ and Deb two days ago. I heard the shouting of angry voices
coming from the living room and went downstairs to see what was going on.
When I recognized the voices of AJ's and Deb's, however, I didn't enter the
room, not wanting to get in the middle of it and being close to both of them.
No one knew what had happened until dinner when they announced that they
were no longer a couple. Later I went to talk to Deb in her room. She seemed
to be taking the whole thing very well.
Before I could even ask what happened, Deb burst, "Flirtatious? He says I'm
flirting with other guys?! He's the one flirting with other girls!"
Suddenly, I felt the strange desire to laugh. Those two were too alike for
their own good. That's probably why it didn't work out. One can be just as
stubborn as the other. I waited for Deb to calm down a bit.
"Did you two have anything serious?" I questioned concerned.
"I don't think so. It probably would've just turned into a summer fling.
We're too alike to be in a serious relationship. You probably figured that
out. I'm fine really. I think AJ is too. By the end of our argument, we both
decided to break up." And that's how their relationship, as boyfriend, and
girlfriend anyway, ended. "Meliss? Yo! Gigi!" Deb said waving her hands in
front of my face.
"Huh?"
"Snap out of it! It's time to go to practice!"
"Oh, OK," I said standing up.
"Did you get Stacie yet?"
"No, I'll get her..."
"Ding dong!" the doorbell interjected.
"Never mind, I'll get her. You answer the door. It's probably the guys."
I heard the guys walk in and greet Deb as I made my way to the door of Stacie's
room. She was still on the phone from 2 hours ago!
"Hey Frack! Come on , we've got to practice! Get off the phone with Frick!"
"OK, OK," Stacie responded.
"You call me?" Nick asked from down the hall.
"No. Why?" I asked.
"I thought I heard someone call Frack."
"Oh," I giggled.
"I meant Stacie. Frack is her nickname too. She and her friend became Frick
and Frack in day camp when they were kids. She's talking to her Frick. I
forgot you and Brian were Frick and Frack as well."
Nick chucked. "Wait till I tell Brian he's gotta deal with 2 of me now!"
After Practice
"So, how'd practice go?" I asked Stacie and Deb when I caught up with them
outside I practiced with Mindy and the rest of the band while Deb, Stacie,
and the guys had been working separately with background tapes.
"It went great, except for one minor detail," Deb answered.
"They want to know what our group name is. We don't have one, and we have
to think of one in less than 2 days. They need to announce us as something
at the concert!"
"Hmm... That is a tough one." I noticed that Stacie had been awfully quiet,
which was unusual for her. "OK, Stace, what's up? I know you've got something
you're pondering."
"Well, I think I have an idea for the name if Deb likes it, of course. Ever
since high school I wanted to make a group called 'One Way.' What do you
think Deb?" Stacie questioned.
Deb's face lit up. "That's it! I love it!" Stacie smiled too.
"Hey girls!" Kevin interrupted.
"We're goin' out for dinner. You want to come?"
"Sure!" we all chimed as we raced to join them.
Later That Night
After dinner we decided to go back to your apartment and watch a movie while
pigging out on popcorn. The guys and Stacie had no idea what movie we were
going to watch or what Deb and I were planning to do. We had decided that
it was time to expose them to a little "Rocky Horror." While Stacie was making
the popcorn, Deb and I excused ourselves. Deb left to get changed (she had
been wearing a skirt), and I left to go to the bathroom, supposedly. Ten
minutes later, Deb and I entered the living room together to six jaws swinging
freely from six faces. Deb and I grinned. This was the reaction we had hoped
for. Deb was wearing fishnets, black, short, tight, pleather shorts, knee
high army boots, a black halter-top, and a shiny, see through, silver jacket.
I too was wearing fishnets, boots, and the same type of pleather shorts,
but with a black spaghetti strap shirt with criss-crossings in the back.
"Since when did you wear clothes like this?" Stacie questioned finding her
voice.
"Since sophomore year of high school," I replied.
"You did NOT!"
"Remember the weekends we went out without you and the summers we went to
camp together?" Deb asked.
"Well, this is what we were like." Stacie looked like a fish with her mouth
gaping open like that.
From there, Deb went into one of her Rocky Horror modes, explaining what
the Rocky Horror Picture Show was about while all the guys sat stunned. Suddenly,
I felt eyes on me. It was AJ. I didn't know why, but he was making me
uncomfortable. I moved and sat down on the other side of Brian on the floor.
Brian barely noticed me though. He was too busy staring at Deb. After her
explanation, Deb sat down on the other side of Brian while AJ put the movie
on. Then he sat down next to me. As the song "Time Warp" began to play, Deb
signaled to me. The two of us jumped up and danced like crazy. At the end
of the song, we crumpled to the floor with laughter. From then on, without
warning, Deb or I would say a bit of the dialogue (i.e.- "I'm lucky, you're
lucky, we're all lucky!") or belt out a piece of a song. (That was mostly
Deb) At the end of the movie, Stacie and the guys all sat wide-eyed in shock.
"Well, what'd you think?" Deb pushed.
"Actually, that was one of the best movies I've ever seen!" AJ exclaimed.
"I never saw that side of either of you before! I love it!"
One by one the other admitted that they had enjoyed the movie too, as well
as our antics. The conversation continued late into the night.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~