(Andy’s POV)
“Erica Marie Gonzalez, you are the most amazing person I have ever met. You complete me. I love you. I love you.” My heart was pounding in my head. I really hoped Erica couldn’t hear how nervous I was saying that to her. Finally, she pushed me away from her.
“You love me?” She said with a hint of disgust in her voice.
“More than anything in the world baby, don’t you feel the same way?” I tried to reason with her. I stared deep into her eyes and tried to read what she was thinking but all I could see were walls that weren’t there before.
“Uh…”
“Uh…. What?” I asked defensively. I know she loves me. I saw it in her eyes when I stormed into the house earlier tonight.
“I just.. I just.. can’t love you right now.” Erica stood up and ran into the bathroom. Whenever I went and tried to reason with her or talk with her she would ignore me. After about an hour, I decided to leave. I called Alex right away.
“Dude, There you are. We were worried about you after you stormed away from our meeting earlier today with Ned. He seems like a really great guy and has a lot…”
“I DON’T WANT TO HEAR ABOUT EFFING NED” I screamed at Alex.
“Woah. Damn, if you’re going to be like this I don’t even want to talk to you. So spit out what you have to say and then I’m going.”
“I called because something happened between Erica and me. I finally told her I loved her.”
“That’s great. She’s a really great girl, we all love her a lot.”
“Yeah, she couldn’t say it back. As I said it she ran into the bathroom and away from me. I have no idea what to do. I want her to be in my life and she has never shut down on me like that. I am so confused right now. Do I go back and wait for her or do I give her space?”
“Wow. Uhm. I am really sorry to hear that, but I don’t know. You know her better than any of us. Would you normally give her space or would you try and get her to talk to you? From what I’ve seen of Erica, you need to give her space and she’ll come around eventually.”
“I hope you’re right man. I just don’t want to lose her. I really do love her more than anything”
“I know you do. I know. Just be careful around her. Give her space. She’ll come around to you.”
After hanging up with Alex, I felt a little bit better about the whole Erica situation. I know she loves me but I don’t want to pressure her to say something when she isn’t ready. I head to the subway to get home and as I’m walking to the house I see her again. Jessica.
“What are you doing here? You moved out. We had determined it wasn’t mine right? Why are you here again?” I was irritated. I had a bad day with Erica and I didn’t really want to see the girl who almost broke us up right now.
“Well, we had never actually determined it and that’s what I came to talk to you about.”
“What do you mean?” A knot formed in my stomach. I kept on reassuring myself that I was not the father.
“Well, remember when I got the swab of stuff from your mouth and I had said I had gotten a paternity test. Well I never actually got the results until a few days ago.”
“And…”
“And you are the father.”
(Erica POV)
I heard Andy shut the door from the front of the house. Tears still running down my face, I slowly pick myself back up and head out into the room. Memories of what had happened flood back into my mind. I was just trying to calm Andrew down from the whole Ned fiasco and kissed him. One little kiss led to deeper kissing, deeper kissing led us going upstairs, and going upstairs led to Andrew saying I love you. Why didn’t I say it back? I really have no idea. I just can’t say it to him. After seeing what happened to my mom and then to me I just cannot deal with being in love with someone. I do care for Andrew more than anything but there are things he still doesn’t know about me. Things I know he’s going to find out soon but I just can’t tell him. Instead, I decide to call the one person who does need to know.
“Hello?” The person answered, the obviously don’t recognize the number anymore.
“Hey Ned, It’s Erica.”
“Oh, Hey! How are you? I’ve wanted to talk to you. I’m a manager for a band named Honor Society now and they’re awesome. I’m living my dream. I cannot believe…”
“Yeah I know,” I felt bad for cutting him off but I really didn’t want to be on the phone with him for longer than I needed to be. “My boyfriend is the bassist.”
“Andrew? That explains a lot.” He said that with a tinge of hate in his voice. I think he was jealous.
“Yeah. Well I’m actually calling for one reason and one reason only. Remember that one night?”
“Remember? It was an amazing night! Wasn’t it the same for you?”
“Oh yeah, being taken advantage of is amazing. Yeah. Fuck no.”
“What?.”
“I told you to stop but you continued to push yourself on me. You took advantage of me. It’s not fun. And anyways, from that, I’m now pregnant.”
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
Chapter 11
Chapter 11
(Ned’s POV)
So it’s been about 2 months now since I saw Erica. I might have been a little more forceful than I wanted to be with her, but I know that she enjoyed the night as much as I did. She was in tears it was so enjoyable. I left my job at Abercrombie & Fitch and now work for my uncle. He works at a music label and he asked me to help with this new up and coming band they had just signed. Their name was Honor Society and it turned out they were from New York and were all seniors at St. Claude’s. I know that’s the school Erica goes to. I wonder if they know her. Maybe if they do, they can hook me up so I can hang out with her again and do a repeat of that night 2 months ago. I am finally meeting them today. I am excited to meet all of them. They are doing a smaller tour around NYC and Long Island in a few weeks just at local bars and pizza places to get some of a fan base. I am supposed to meet the guys at Starbucks in 15 minutes, so I need to run and catch the subway. I finally make it and see them all sitting around a table.
“Hello, are you guys Honor Society?” I asked hesitantly.
“Yeah that’s us” One of them said energetically. “Are you our new manager Ned?”
“Indeed I am. It’s great to meet you all! So who’s who?”
“Well I’m Alex. I am the drummer.”
“I’m Mike. The lead singer and I play guitar.”
“I’m Jason. I play keyboards, guitar, and sing some.”
“Oh awesome, multi-faceted! And you are?” I turned to the tall blonde but I don’t think he is going to answer me. He was giving me the death glare.
“I’m Andrew. I play bass and sing.” He answered coldly. If looks could kill, damn I don’t think any part of my body would be around anymore. I wonder what I did to have him hate me already.
“Well, uh, hello Andrew.” I answered. I walked away from him and decided to sit down near Mike instead of Andrew. I feared for my life if I stood anywhere near him. “Well, I’m going to get some coffee and then we can talk some.” I start to walk away and I can hear them begin to argue about something. I walk back in time to catch the end of the conversation.
“If he’s our manager, you are losing your bassist.” I heard Andrew say red-faced to Mike.
“Come on man, give it up, everything will be okay.”
“No it won’t. I do not want to be around him.” He got up and walked out of the shop. He did that death stare to me again. What did I do?
“Did I do something wrong?” I asked Jason.
“No, you didn’t do anything wrong. Andrew is just making assumptions and you know what happens when you assume. You make an ass out of you and me. So he’s just making an ass out of himself. He’ll be back.”
“Oh, alright.” I responded. The rest of us sat and talked for about an hour getting to know about each other. I still though Andrew’s behavior was different. We’ll figure it out at rehearsal later today. He has to be there.
(Erica’s POV)
Andrew called me in a rage.
“Are you home? I need to see you and talk.” He said angrily to me. I wasn’t sure if he was mad at me or something else. I told him yes and he said he’d be there in about 15 minutes. 30 have passed already and he is still not here. I am really worried about him. I’ve never seen him angry before and I do not know what to expect in any way. I finally heard loud knocking on my door. It’s a good thing I was right there because I thought he would have broken down the door if I waited any longer. Andrew stormed into my house. His face was beet-red and if he could blow smoke, I think he would have.
“Andrew, what’s the matter?” I asked. I was completely confused as to why he was so angry. He didn’t really answer me just sort of muttered to himself.
“That jerk, jackass, what does he think coming around me?”
“What are you talking about? Who’s a jerk? Andrew.” He still didn’t answer me. Finally I took his face in my hands and placed my lips upon his. I could feel himself relax and I asked again. “Andrew, what is the matter?”
“That jerk is back. The one who hurt you. He’s going to be in our lives again.” He answered through clenched teeth. I saw his fists tighten and his knuckles turn white as he said this to me.
“What jerk? Landon? Andrew, he’s gone. He isn’t even allowed near me. We can call the police and they can deal with it.” I said going towards him and rubbing his back.
“No, not that one. The one that almost broke us apart. The one who hurt you. The one who I want to kill. I cannot believe that Mr. Jonas is related to him. Such a nice guy is related to such a jerk.” The realization of who it was made my face go pale. My stomach began to turn and I could feel myself becoming nauseous. I hadn’t heard from Ned for two months, since that one night where he forced himself on me.
“Wait, how did he come back into our lives though.” I asked. I didn’t want him anywhere near me, but how did he enter my life again.
“He’s our manager. Mr. Jonas wanted to hire someone who he felt was around our age, but he never said he was hiring such a jackass.” I had to agree with him. In the past 2 months, Andrew and his friends went from just a high school band who rehearsed in Jason’s basement to now a band who was working on a record. Mr. Jonas was the nicest man you would ever meet. He was always willing to help anyone and had an eye for raw talent. I could tell that the guys had taken a liking to Mr. Jonas and they would do wonderfully because of what he has provided or them but the fact that Ned will be a part of it, I do not like.
“Baby, we can make it through this. We made it through it before and we’ve made it through the whole Jessica fiasco. We’ve been together for 2 amazing months with a lot more to go. Just because he is back doesn’t mean we have to stop being together.”
His eyes bulged out of his head. I think I interrupted what he was saying. “I don’t want to break up with you, but I do want to quit the band. There is no way I can tour with that man on the same bus specifically in the next bunk with me. I would be in jail afterwards for strangling him.” I couldn’t help but laugh at that. Andrew was as dangerous as a butterfly. He had no mean bone in his body.
“Baby, this is the first time I’ve ever seen you this mad, but I know you will calm down. Firstly, you would not strangle him. You are a bigger person than that. Secondly, we made it through the Jessica fiasco; we can make it through this. I know that you will be okay. Don’t let one idiot stop you from pursuing your dreams. I will be by your side every step of the way.” I leaned in and kissed him. I could tell he wasn’t going to quit the band. He was going to stay with them and as long as I am near him, we will be able to get through this interesting twist in our love story.
We ended up getting a little carried away with our kisses and 30 minutes later we were on top of each other in a full out make-out session. I always needed a few minutes after these to make sure I was alive. The way Andrew kissed me was more than I could handle. He took me to another place, a place of warmth and safety. His kisses were my drug and I could never get enough of them.
Andrew whispered in my ear, “You want to go upstairs?” My heart skipped a beat, I had never been asked that before but the answer was yes. The only thing that could come out of my mouth was a ‘mhmm.’ Andrew picked me up and carried me upstairs to my room. He still had maneuver himself around some boxes since my mom hadn’t unpacked them yet. As we had just begun to kiss more passionately, Andrew pulls back and looks me straight into my eyes.
“Erica Marie Gonzalez, you are the most amazing person I have ever met. You complete me. I love you. I love you.” The second time he said it, he breathed it in my skin. I didn’t know what to say. I pulled away from him and sat up.
“You love me?” was the only thing that could come out of my mouth.
“More than anything in the world baby, don’t you feel the same way?”
“Uh….”
(Ned’s POV)
So it’s been about 2 months now since I saw Erica. I might have been a little more forceful than I wanted to be with her, but I know that she enjoyed the night as much as I did. She was in tears it was so enjoyable. I left my job at Abercrombie & Fitch and now work for my uncle. He works at a music label and he asked me to help with this new up and coming band they had just signed. Their name was Honor Society and it turned out they were from New York and were all seniors at St. Claude’s. I know that’s the school Erica goes to. I wonder if they know her. Maybe if they do, they can hook me up so I can hang out with her again and do a repeat of that night 2 months ago. I am finally meeting them today. I am excited to meet all of them. They are doing a smaller tour around NYC and Long Island in a few weeks just at local bars and pizza places to get some of a fan base. I am supposed to meet the guys at Starbucks in 15 minutes, so I need to run and catch the subway. I finally make it and see them all sitting around a table.
“Hello, are you guys Honor Society?” I asked hesitantly.
“Yeah that’s us” One of them said energetically. “Are you our new manager Ned?”
“Indeed I am. It’s great to meet you all! So who’s who?”
“Well I’m Alex. I am the drummer.”
“I’m Mike. The lead singer and I play guitar.”
“I’m Jason. I play keyboards, guitar, and sing some.”
“Oh awesome, multi-faceted! And you are?” I turned to the tall blonde but I don’t think he is going to answer me. He was giving me the death glare.
“I’m Andrew. I play bass and sing.” He answered coldly. If looks could kill, damn I don’t think any part of my body would be around anymore. I wonder what I did to have him hate me already.
“Well, uh, hello Andrew.” I answered. I walked away from him and decided to sit down near Mike instead of Andrew. I feared for my life if I stood anywhere near him. “Well, I’m going to get some coffee and then we can talk some.” I start to walk away and I can hear them begin to argue about something. I walk back in time to catch the end of the conversation.
“If he’s our manager, you are losing your bassist.” I heard Andrew say red-faced to Mike.
“Come on man, give it up, everything will be okay.”
“No it won’t. I do not want to be around him.” He got up and walked out of the shop. He did that death stare to me again. What did I do?
“Did I do something wrong?” I asked Jason.
“No, you didn’t do anything wrong. Andrew is just making assumptions and you know what happens when you assume. You make an ass out of you and me. So he’s just making an ass out of himself. He’ll be back.”
“Oh, alright.” I responded. The rest of us sat and talked for about an hour getting to know about each other. I still though Andrew’s behavior was different. We’ll figure it out at rehearsal later today. He has to be there.
(Erica’s POV)
Andrew called me in a rage.
“Are you home? I need to see you and talk.” He said angrily to me. I wasn’t sure if he was mad at me or something else. I told him yes and he said he’d be there in about 15 minutes. 30 have passed already and he is still not here. I am really worried about him. I’ve never seen him angry before and I do not know what to expect in any way. I finally heard loud knocking on my door. It’s a good thing I was right there because I thought he would have broken down the door if I waited any longer. Andrew stormed into my house. His face was beet-red and if he could blow smoke, I think he would have.
“Andrew, what’s the matter?” I asked. I was completely confused as to why he was so angry. He didn’t really answer me just sort of muttered to himself.
“That jerk, jackass, what does he think coming around me?”
“What are you talking about? Who’s a jerk? Andrew.” He still didn’t answer me. Finally I took his face in my hands and placed my lips upon his. I could feel himself relax and I asked again. “Andrew, what is the matter?”
“That jerk is back. The one who hurt you. He’s going to be in our lives again.” He answered through clenched teeth. I saw his fists tighten and his knuckles turn white as he said this to me.
“What jerk? Landon? Andrew, he’s gone. He isn’t even allowed near me. We can call the police and they can deal with it.” I said going towards him and rubbing his back.
“No, not that one. The one that almost broke us apart. The one who hurt you. The one who I want to kill. I cannot believe that Mr. Jonas is related to him. Such a nice guy is related to such a jerk.” The realization of who it was made my face go pale. My stomach began to turn and I could feel myself becoming nauseous. I hadn’t heard from Ned for two months, since that one night where he forced himself on me.
“Wait, how did he come back into our lives though.” I asked. I didn’t want him anywhere near me, but how did he enter my life again.
“He’s our manager. Mr. Jonas wanted to hire someone who he felt was around our age, but he never said he was hiring such a jackass.” I had to agree with him. In the past 2 months, Andrew and his friends went from just a high school band who rehearsed in Jason’s basement to now a band who was working on a record. Mr. Jonas was the nicest man you would ever meet. He was always willing to help anyone and had an eye for raw talent. I could tell that the guys had taken a liking to Mr. Jonas and they would do wonderfully because of what he has provided or them but the fact that Ned will be a part of it, I do not like.
“Baby, we can make it through this. We made it through it before and we’ve made it through the whole Jessica fiasco. We’ve been together for 2 amazing months with a lot more to go. Just because he is back doesn’t mean we have to stop being together.”
His eyes bulged out of his head. I think I interrupted what he was saying. “I don’t want to break up with you, but I do want to quit the band. There is no way I can tour with that man on the same bus specifically in the next bunk with me. I would be in jail afterwards for strangling him.” I couldn’t help but laugh at that. Andrew was as dangerous as a butterfly. He had no mean bone in his body.
“Baby, this is the first time I’ve ever seen you this mad, but I know you will calm down. Firstly, you would not strangle him. You are a bigger person than that. Secondly, we made it through the Jessica fiasco; we can make it through this. I know that you will be okay. Don’t let one idiot stop you from pursuing your dreams. I will be by your side every step of the way.” I leaned in and kissed him. I could tell he wasn’t going to quit the band. He was going to stay with them and as long as I am near him, we will be able to get through this interesting twist in our love story.
We ended up getting a little carried away with our kisses and 30 minutes later we were on top of each other in a full out make-out session. I always needed a few minutes after these to make sure I was alive. The way Andrew kissed me was more than I could handle. He took me to another place, a place of warmth and safety. His kisses were my drug and I could never get enough of them.
Andrew whispered in my ear, “You want to go upstairs?” My heart skipped a beat, I had never been asked that before but the answer was yes. The only thing that could come out of my mouth was a ‘mhmm.’ Andrew picked me up and carried me upstairs to my room. He still had maneuver himself around some boxes since my mom hadn’t unpacked them yet. As we had just begun to kiss more passionately, Andrew pulls back and looks me straight into my eyes.
“Erica Marie Gonzalez, you are the most amazing person I have ever met. You complete me. I love you. I love you.” The second time he said it, he breathed it in my skin. I didn’t know what to say. I pulled away from him and sat up.
“You love me?” was the only thing that could come out of my mouth.
“More than anything in the world baby, don’t you feel the same way?”
“Uh….”
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Chapter 10
Chapter 10 (Andy’s POV)
My mom seemed to hold onto me for what felt like 30 minutes but it had only been about 30 seconds. I felt her tears seep through my clothes. I had no idea why she was crying but she just wouldn’t stop. “Mom, I think we should get off the steps and head back to grandmother’s house.” I told her. All she could do was shake her head. I helped her up the stairs and we got on the subway to grandmother’s house. While on the subway, I just stared at mom. In seven years, she looked like she had aged about 20 years. The drugs were taking a toll on her. I was glad she wanted to go into rehab.
About 30 minutes later, we finally make it to grandmother’s house. She had some food ready for mom and me even though it was 11 at night. I helped my mom unpack some and while doing so, I checked all her stuff to make sure she didn’t bring any drugs with her. I didn’t find anything. She left for rehab in 2 days and I’d rather her go in sober then high. After all the unpacking, I attempted to head to bed.
“Where are you going?” My mom called after me. “We’ve barely had any time to talk. We need to catch up.” Great, after 7 years NOW my mom wants to be a mother.
“Mom, I really do not want to talk right now. I have to get to bed since I have rehearsal tomorrow.” I didn’t want this conversation right now, can’t it wait until tomorrow.
“Just a few questions, hun. I haven’t had a real conversation with you in over 7 years.” I breathed deeply but just shook my head showing her that I would answer the questions she had. “Well, How’s high school? How did you meet the guys in the band? Have you had any performances? Are you dating anyone? What’s her name? Are you being safe with her? Remember darling, no glove no love!” I didn’t think she could get so many questions out in just one breath. I decided to ignore the girl questions and just answer about the band.
“Uh, high school is nice. I’m glad grandmother could send me to St. Claude’s. Do you remember Alex from when I was younger? Well him, two guys we met freshmen year, and I decided we wanted to start a band. We had our first gig yesterday and it went really well. Some producers were there. We hope to hear back tomorrow or the next day.” I replied. I hope she would forget the whole girl thing.
“Well, isn’t that sweet. Now the girl. You didn’t answer those questions. What’s her name? I can tell you care about her, but remember to be safe. It only takes one time.” Boy didn’t I know that. One mistake and now I’m losing the girl who has changed my life in just one week.
“Mom, do we have to talk about this now?” I just looked at her pleading her to not make me answer the questions.
“No, we can discuss it tomorrow. But remember, mistakes may happen but always follow your heart.” I said thank you and walked out the door. How did she know that I was dating someone and what was up with the no glove no love thing? Did she know that I had made a mistake with Jessica? How did she know about Erica? What did she mean follow my heart? I fell asleep with all these questions on my mind. I knew it was going to be a rough night sleeping.
I woke up the next morning at 9:30. I needed to be at Jason’s house at 10. Crap! I am always late. I jumped out of bed, took the fastest shower known to man and rush to the subway. I get to Jason’s at 9:58. 2 minutes to spare.
“Where the hell have you been?” I hear Jason screaming at me from behind.
“I’m sorry. I had something last night and I didn’t get to bed until late.” I still hadn’t told them my mom situation, that could wait until after practicing.
“Yeah ‘something’ to do!” Alex replied taking his fingers and making air quotes while he said something. I was about to tackle him when Mike stepped in.
“Alright, whatever. Let’s get to rehearsal. We might be hearing from a record producer today!” We all mumbled in agreement and got to rehearsing. We had been going at it for about 2 hours when the phone rang. We all stopped and stared at each other. Michael looked at the phone and noticed it was a number he didn’t recognize. My heart was racing as fast as possible. This phone call could change our career.
“Hello.” Mike answered hesitantly. His voice cracked while he said it. We couldn’t hear what the man was saying on the other end of the phone call. All we could hear was Mike’s yes sirs, mhmm, and his nodding. “We can definitely do that sir. Thank you so much for this opportunity.”
Alex, Jason, and I just stood there standing at us while Mike got off the phone with the producer. We figured it was good news but what type of good news. Were we signed or did we have more stuff that we needed to do for that to happen?
“Well, that was Mr. Jonas from Jonas Records. He was there last night and said that he really liked our sound. He wants us to record ‘See U in the Dark’ and send it to him. He is going to give it to the people higher up, but he said it looks good.” We didn’t know what to say. All of a sudden we were hugging each other and giving each other high fives. Alex, Mike, and Jason called their parents and families. I was about to call Erica but I couldn’t yet. I needed to see her and tell her in person. We decided to end practice there since it was such a good day, but I needed to tell them about mom.
“Guys, I hate to damper this mood, but there is something I need to tell you.”
“Don’t tell me you got someone else pregnant.” Alex said sarcastically. I glared at him.
“Ha ha, very funny but no. It’s about my mom.”
“Your mom? But you said you haven’t seen her in about 7 years.” Mike stated.
“I haven’t but she came back into my life a few days ago.” I proceeded to tell them about the whole situation with my mom and how she returned and was going into rehab.
“Well, your life has been fun lately Andrew?” Jason replied with a little attitude.
“Is that what fun is these days? I wouldn’t know,” was all I could say. The guys seemed to understand and they weren’t mad at me in any way for keeping it from them. They understood now why I was late for practice. After the conversation we went and got some pizza and then headed our separate ways. I went right to Erica’s house. I needed to see her and I wanted to talk to her more than anything.
As I walked up to Erica’s house I became nervous. I hadn’t seen her since Friday night and our last conversation was very um.. dramatic to say the least. After about 2 minutes, she finally answered the door. Her eyes were bloodshot and red all around them. It looked like she hadn’t stopped crying for the past 2 days. Before I said anything, I grabbed her by the waist and pulled her into the tightest hug I could ever think of. I felt her tears fall on me but could tell she was happy I was there. I was her support. I was the first guy she had opened up to.
“I’m here now baby, for you and only you.” I whispered into her ear.
“What about Jessica?” She mumbled into my shirt.
“You’re the one I want. I will support the baby but you are the one I choose. I will not leave you.”
“Andrew, you are the best thing that could have happened to me.”
“I’ve heard that a lot.” I said sarcastically while I added a wink. Erica looked at me with an evil stare and smacked me at the back of the head. “What did you do that for?” I said rubbing the back of my head.
“For being a smartass, that’s what.” Erica said. She then pulled away from my hug and started running from me. She already knew me well enough to know that I was going to get her for that comment. She ran away laughing and I finally caught up to her. I tickled her like crazy. Our tickle fight turned into some kisses. Just like Friday night, the kiss shot fireworks through my veins and woke up the butterflies in my stomach. In a matter a days we have gone through so much which has brought us closer. I never thought it was possible that the new girl could be the one.
My mom seemed to hold onto me for what felt like 30 minutes but it had only been about 30 seconds. I felt her tears seep through my clothes. I had no idea why she was crying but she just wouldn’t stop. “Mom, I think we should get off the steps and head back to grandmother’s house.” I told her. All she could do was shake her head. I helped her up the stairs and we got on the subway to grandmother’s house. While on the subway, I just stared at mom. In seven years, she looked like she had aged about 20 years. The drugs were taking a toll on her. I was glad she wanted to go into rehab.
About 30 minutes later, we finally make it to grandmother’s house. She had some food ready for mom and me even though it was 11 at night. I helped my mom unpack some and while doing so, I checked all her stuff to make sure she didn’t bring any drugs with her. I didn’t find anything. She left for rehab in 2 days and I’d rather her go in sober then high. After all the unpacking, I attempted to head to bed.
“Where are you going?” My mom called after me. “We’ve barely had any time to talk. We need to catch up.” Great, after 7 years NOW my mom wants to be a mother.
“Mom, I really do not want to talk right now. I have to get to bed since I have rehearsal tomorrow.” I didn’t want this conversation right now, can’t it wait until tomorrow.
“Just a few questions, hun. I haven’t had a real conversation with you in over 7 years.” I breathed deeply but just shook my head showing her that I would answer the questions she had. “Well, How’s high school? How did you meet the guys in the band? Have you had any performances? Are you dating anyone? What’s her name? Are you being safe with her? Remember darling, no glove no love!” I didn’t think she could get so many questions out in just one breath. I decided to ignore the girl questions and just answer about the band.
“Uh, high school is nice. I’m glad grandmother could send me to St. Claude’s. Do you remember Alex from when I was younger? Well him, two guys we met freshmen year, and I decided we wanted to start a band. We had our first gig yesterday and it went really well. Some producers were there. We hope to hear back tomorrow or the next day.” I replied. I hope she would forget the whole girl thing.
“Well, isn’t that sweet. Now the girl. You didn’t answer those questions. What’s her name? I can tell you care about her, but remember to be safe. It only takes one time.” Boy didn’t I know that. One mistake and now I’m losing the girl who has changed my life in just one week.
“Mom, do we have to talk about this now?” I just looked at her pleading her to not make me answer the questions.
“No, we can discuss it tomorrow. But remember, mistakes may happen but always follow your heart.” I said thank you and walked out the door. How did she know that I was dating someone and what was up with the no glove no love thing? Did she know that I had made a mistake with Jessica? How did she know about Erica? What did she mean follow my heart? I fell asleep with all these questions on my mind. I knew it was going to be a rough night sleeping.
I woke up the next morning at 9:30. I needed to be at Jason’s house at 10. Crap! I am always late. I jumped out of bed, took the fastest shower known to man and rush to the subway. I get to Jason’s at 9:58. 2 minutes to spare.
“Where the hell have you been?” I hear Jason screaming at me from behind.
“I’m sorry. I had something last night and I didn’t get to bed until late.” I still hadn’t told them my mom situation, that could wait until after practicing.
“Yeah ‘something’ to do!” Alex replied taking his fingers and making air quotes while he said something. I was about to tackle him when Mike stepped in.
“Alright, whatever. Let’s get to rehearsal. We might be hearing from a record producer today!” We all mumbled in agreement and got to rehearsing. We had been going at it for about 2 hours when the phone rang. We all stopped and stared at each other. Michael looked at the phone and noticed it was a number he didn’t recognize. My heart was racing as fast as possible. This phone call could change our career.
“Hello.” Mike answered hesitantly. His voice cracked while he said it. We couldn’t hear what the man was saying on the other end of the phone call. All we could hear was Mike’s yes sirs, mhmm, and his nodding. “We can definitely do that sir. Thank you so much for this opportunity.”
Alex, Jason, and I just stood there standing at us while Mike got off the phone with the producer. We figured it was good news but what type of good news. Were we signed or did we have more stuff that we needed to do for that to happen?
“Well, that was Mr. Jonas from Jonas Records. He was there last night and said that he really liked our sound. He wants us to record ‘See U in the Dark’ and send it to him. He is going to give it to the people higher up, but he said it looks good.” We didn’t know what to say. All of a sudden we were hugging each other and giving each other high fives. Alex, Mike, and Jason called their parents and families. I was about to call Erica but I couldn’t yet. I needed to see her and tell her in person. We decided to end practice there since it was such a good day, but I needed to tell them about mom.
“Guys, I hate to damper this mood, but there is something I need to tell you.”
“Don’t tell me you got someone else pregnant.” Alex said sarcastically. I glared at him.
“Ha ha, very funny but no. It’s about my mom.”
“Your mom? But you said you haven’t seen her in about 7 years.” Mike stated.
“I haven’t but she came back into my life a few days ago.” I proceeded to tell them about the whole situation with my mom and how she returned and was going into rehab.
“Well, your life has been fun lately Andrew?” Jason replied with a little attitude.
“Is that what fun is these days? I wouldn’t know,” was all I could say. The guys seemed to understand and they weren’t mad at me in any way for keeping it from them. They understood now why I was late for practice. After the conversation we went and got some pizza and then headed our separate ways. I went right to Erica’s house. I needed to see her and I wanted to talk to her more than anything.
As I walked up to Erica’s house I became nervous. I hadn’t seen her since Friday night and our last conversation was very um.. dramatic to say the least. After about 2 minutes, she finally answered the door. Her eyes were bloodshot and red all around them. It looked like she hadn’t stopped crying for the past 2 days. Before I said anything, I grabbed her by the waist and pulled her into the tightest hug I could ever think of. I felt her tears fall on me but could tell she was happy I was there. I was her support. I was the first guy she had opened up to.
“I’m here now baby, for you and only you.” I whispered into her ear.
“What about Jessica?” She mumbled into my shirt.
“You’re the one I want. I will support the baby but you are the one I choose. I will not leave you.”
“Andrew, you are the best thing that could have happened to me.”
“I’ve heard that a lot.” I said sarcastically while I added a wink. Erica looked at me with an evil stare and smacked me at the back of the head. “What did you do that for?” I said rubbing the back of my head.
“For being a smartass, that’s what.” Erica said. She then pulled away from my hug and started running from me. She already knew me well enough to know that I was going to get her for that comment. She ran away laughing and I finally caught up to her. I tickled her like crazy. Our tickle fight turned into some kisses. Just like Friday night, the kiss shot fireworks through my veins and woke up the butterflies in my stomach. In a matter a days we have gone through so much which has brought us closer. I never thought it was possible that the new girl could be the one.
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Chapter 9
Chapter 9 (Andrew’s POV)
What is happening to me? Why does everything go wrong in my life just when it is going right? Jessica sprang me with the biggest news a guy could ever get in his life and Erica doesn’t even want to talk to me anymore. 12 hours really does change someone’s life. I’ve gone from the happiest person to the most depressed person in a span of a day. I needed to talk to the gents and pick up my mom from the airport. Jessica was staying with me and I haven’t been able to get away from her. She picked up the phone when Erica called a few minutes ago and now Erica won’t talk to me. When Jessica finally fell asleep, I called the guys. I knew they were all together because we were supposed to be having a rehearsal in 15 minutes.
“Hello,” It was Jason. He must have Alex’s phone.
“Where’s Alex?” I asked.
“He’s getting some water? Why aren’t you here yet man?” Jason asked suspiciously. “You are supposed to be here already.”
“Something came up and I need to talk to you. Is everyone there now?”
“Yeah, we’re here. What’s up man?” Mike responded. Jason must have put me on speaker phone already.
“So what happened last night, dude?” Alex asked. “Lindsay when out and said goodbye to you and then you and Erica disappeared.”
“We were talking the whole time. It was amazing. She is the perfect girl, but I’ve screwed it up.”
“Already?! How did you do that, it’s only been a little over 12 hours. Did Jessica come back in your life or something?” Mike asked jokingly.
“Uhhh…” It was the only way I could respond. He meant it as a joke, but it was true. She was back in my life. I didn’t like it but I guess I had to deal with it.
“WHAT?” They all screamed simultaneously.
“How the hell” “What happened” “WHAT?” Alex, Jason, and Mike were all speaking at the same time.
“SHUT UP!” I screamed into the phone. That seemed to make them be quiet. “She’s pregnant.”
“How can she be pregnant, we never cross that line man. That’s part of our Gentleman’s code.” Jason responded matter-of-factly.
“Do I really have to go through all of this now?”
“You bet you do, explain yourself.”
“Ugh, okay. I know you guys didn’t like Jessica,” a huge no crap came from the other end, Michael most likely. “but I had fallen in love with her. Right before she left me, we had one night together. I didn’t think anything of it because I used protection, but I guess it didn’t work.”
“How do you know you’re the father? Everyone but you thought she was a whore.” Alex said.
“I don’t know right now, but I believe her that she hasn’t been with anyone else except me.” I was getting angry. “If you aren’t going to be here to support me through this then fine, I’ll be on my way and you can find a new bassist. Go call Garbowsky or something he said he wanted to be in a band.” I didn’t mean to say that but that’s how I felt. If they couldn’t support me even though they didn’t like Jessica, I didn’t want them in my life anymore. I thought we were all best friends.
“Dude, we’re sorry if it came off that we aren’t going to be there for you. We’re your best friends. We wouldn’t be anywhere but by your side during all of this.” Jason responded slowly. I could tell that he was trying to make sure his words came out right. I needed to tell them about my mom coming back into town as well.
“Thanks. I have other interesting news as well. My mom is coming home tonight. I actually need to leave and go pick her up from La Guardia. She called me the other day and told me that she wanted to come home and sober up. So with Jessica, my mom, and the crap going down with Erica, I need you guys here if I fall apart.”
“We’ll be here Andrew.” They said that simultaneously and the load that was on my shoulder felt like it was lifted off.
“Alright, well I am going to go. I NEED to get a hold of Erica and explain things to her.”
“Good luck man, don’t worry about rehearsal today. We’ll fill you in with what you miss.”
“Thanks guys, I love you all.” I didn’t want to be so sentimental, but they really are my family and I don’t know what I’d do without those guys.
“Love you too man, see ya tomorrow.” I hang up the phone and try and call Erica. I just want her to pick up the phone. I need to explain to her everything that happened. The phone rings and she finally picks up.
“Hello,” she said. Her voice sounded like she had been crying for a long time. I feel horrible. I hope I can make things up to her. I need to tell her about Jessica.
“Hey, how are you?” I responded. I spoke slowly trying to not get her upset.
“Why are you calling me? I don’t want to talk to you anymore.” She said. I thought she was going to hang up the phone.
“Please don’t hang up, I really need to talk to you about some stuff.” I begged, almost pleaded from Erica.
“Okay, 5 minutes, what do you want?” I could tell she was crying because I heard the sniffling coming from her end of the phone.
“I need to tell you who Jessica is. I couldn’t tell you earlier but I need to explain myself now.”
“Okay, go ahead.” I could tell she was going to listen so I took a deep breath and went into explaining how Jessica and I had dated a few months back and the night before she abandoned me we slept with each other. I hadn’t seen her until last night when she was on my doorstep. She was pregnant and I was pretty sure it was mine. Silence was on the other end.
“Erica, are you there?”
“I don’t know what to say to you.” She huffed into the phone.
“I’m sorry. I am going to be there because I’m the father, but you are the one I want, not her. I want to be with you.”
“I don’t think that can happen anymore. “
“Why not?”
“Well…. Something just happened to me.”
“What? Are you okay? Are you moving?”
“Well, I was angry with you and had a guy I just met come over. And well, he sort of attacked me and took advantage of me. It was a Landon repeat.” She sighed loudly and I could hear her breaking down. She was crying very hard, but trying to cover it up.
“WHAT?” I was angry. Infuriated was probably the better word for what I was feeling at the moment. “What is his name? I am going to kick his ass. He deserves hell.”
“It is nothing now Andrew. Just leave it alone.”
“You aren’t going to report him. ERICA. You were just effing raped and you aren’t going to report him for it. Come on Erica, protect yourself. What if he comes back into your life somehow?” I was worried for her. I wish she would tell me his name. I wanted to kill the guy.
“I can’t. Not right now, please understand. I just need some time to myself.”
“Fine, okay. I am coming over to your house tomorrow morning. I have some things I need to take care of tonight. I never told you, but my mom is coming back into town.”
“Oh no, Andrew. I am so sorry. Are you going to be okay?”
“I’m fine, you should be worrying for yourself not me. I have to go. I will call you tomorrow about more details.”
“Alright bye.” I hang up and run to get to the subway. I needed to meet up with my mom in 30 minutes. I knew this was going to be interesting. It has been 7 years and I honestly can’t remember what exactly she looks like. She was a wreck when she abandoned me. Knots began to form in my stomach. I wasn’t ready for this. I felt like I was going to barf and throw chunks everywhere. I get to the subway and see an older lady sitting on the steps. She seemed to look like my mom. I walked up behind her.
“Mom?” I asked hesitantly
“Andrew..” She looked like she had been crying. She grabbed me and pulled into a hug. “I can’t believe it’s been 7 years.”
What is happening to me? Why does everything go wrong in my life just when it is going right? Jessica sprang me with the biggest news a guy could ever get in his life and Erica doesn’t even want to talk to me anymore. 12 hours really does change someone’s life. I’ve gone from the happiest person to the most depressed person in a span of a day. I needed to talk to the gents and pick up my mom from the airport. Jessica was staying with me and I haven’t been able to get away from her. She picked up the phone when Erica called a few minutes ago and now Erica won’t talk to me. When Jessica finally fell asleep, I called the guys. I knew they were all together because we were supposed to be having a rehearsal in 15 minutes.
“Hello,” It was Jason. He must have Alex’s phone.
“Where’s Alex?” I asked.
“He’s getting some water? Why aren’t you here yet man?” Jason asked suspiciously. “You are supposed to be here already.”
“Something came up and I need to talk to you. Is everyone there now?”
“Yeah, we’re here. What’s up man?” Mike responded. Jason must have put me on speaker phone already.
“So what happened last night, dude?” Alex asked. “Lindsay when out and said goodbye to you and then you and Erica disappeared.”
“We were talking the whole time. It was amazing. She is the perfect girl, but I’ve screwed it up.”
“Already?! How did you do that, it’s only been a little over 12 hours. Did Jessica come back in your life or something?” Mike asked jokingly.
“Uhhh…” It was the only way I could respond. He meant it as a joke, but it was true. She was back in my life. I didn’t like it but I guess I had to deal with it.
“WHAT?” They all screamed simultaneously.
“How the hell” “What happened” “WHAT?” Alex, Jason, and Mike were all speaking at the same time.
“SHUT UP!” I screamed into the phone. That seemed to make them be quiet. “She’s pregnant.”
“How can she be pregnant, we never cross that line man. That’s part of our Gentleman’s code.” Jason responded matter-of-factly.
“Do I really have to go through all of this now?”
“You bet you do, explain yourself.”
“Ugh, okay. I know you guys didn’t like Jessica,” a huge no crap came from the other end, Michael most likely. “but I had fallen in love with her. Right before she left me, we had one night together. I didn’t think anything of it because I used protection, but I guess it didn’t work.”
“How do you know you’re the father? Everyone but you thought she was a whore.” Alex said.
“I don’t know right now, but I believe her that she hasn’t been with anyone else except me.” I was getting angry. “If you aren’t going to be here to support me through this then fine, I’ll be on my way and you can find a new bassist. Go call Garbowsky or something he said he wanted to be in a band.” I didn’t mean to say that but that’s how I felt. If they couldn’t support me even though they didn’t like Jessica, I didn’t want them in my life anymore. I thought we were all best friends.
“Dude, we’re sorry if it came off that we aren’t going to be there for you. We’re your best friends. We wouldn’t be anywhere but by your side during all of this.” Jason responded slowly. I could tell that he was trying to make sure his words came out right. I needed to tell them about my mom coming back into town as well.
“Thanks. I have other interesting news as well. My mom is coming home tonight. I actually need to leave and go pick her up from La Guardia. She called me the other day and told me that she wanted to come home and sober up. So with Jessica, my mom, and the crap going down with Erica, I need you guys here if I fall apart.”
“We’ll be here Andrew.” They said that simultaneously and the load that was on my shoulder felt like it was lifted off.
“Alright, well I am going to go. I NEED to get a hold of Erica and explain things to her.”
“Good luck man, don’t worry about rehearsal today. We’ll fill you in with what you miss.”
“Thanks guys, I love you all.” I didn’t want to be so sentimental, but they really are my family and I don’t know what I’d do without those guys.
“Love you too man, see ya tomorrow.” I hang up the phone and try and call Erica. I just want her to pick up the phone. I need to explain to her everything that happened. The phone rings and she finally picks up.
“Hello,” she said. Her voice sounded like she had been crying for a long time. I feel horrible. I hope I can make things up to her. I need to tell her about Jessica.
“Hey, how are you?” I responded. I spoke slowly trying to not get her upset.
“Why are you calling me? I don’t want to talk to you anymore.” She said. I thought she was going to hang up the phone.
“Please don’t hang up, I really need to talk to you about some stuff.” I begged, almost pleaded from Erica.
“Okay, 5 minutes, what do you want?” I could tell she was crying because I heard the sniffling coming from her end of the phone.
“I need to tell you who Jessica is. I couldn’t tell you earlier but I need to explain myself now.”
“Okay, go ahead.” I could tell she was going to listen so I took a deep breath and went into explaining how Jessica and I had dated a few months back and the night before she abandoned me we slept with each other. I hadn’t seen her until last night when she was on my doorstep. She was pregnant and I was pretty sure it was mine. Silence was on the other end.
“Erica, are you there?”
“I don’t know what to say to you.” She huffed into the phone.
“I’m sorry. I am going to be there because I’m the father, but you are the one I want, not her. I want to be with you.”
“I don’t think that can happen anymore. “
“Why not?”
“Well…. Something just happened to me.”
“What? Are you okay? Are you moving?”
“Well, I was angry with you and had a guy I just met come over. And well, he sort of attacked me and took advantage of me. It was a Landon repeat.” She sighed loudly and I could hear her breaking down. She was crying very hard, but trying to cover it up.
“WHAT?” I was angry. Infuriated was probably the better word for what I was feeling at the moment. “What is his name? I am going to kick his ass. He deserves hell.”
“It is nothing now Andrew. Just leave it alone.”
“You aren’t going to report him. ERICA. You were just effing raped and you aren’t going to report him for it. Come on Erica, protect yourself. What if he comes back into your life somehow?” I was worried for her. I wish she would tell me his name. I wanted to kill the guy.
“I can’t. Not right now, please understand. I just need some time to myself.”
“Fine, okay. I am coming over to your house tomorrow morning. I have some things I need to take care of tonight. I never told you, but my mom is coming back into town.”
“Oh no, Andrew. I am so sorry. Are you going to be okay?”
“I’m fine, you should be worrying for yourself not me. I have to go. I will call you tomorrow about more details.”
“Alright bye.” I hang up and run to get to the subway. I needed to meet up with my mom in 30 minutes. I knew this was going to be interesting. It has been 7 years and I honestly can’t remember what exactly she looks like. She was a wreck when she abandoned me. Knots began to form in my stomach. I wasn’t ready for this. I felt like I was going to barf and throw chunks everywhere. I get to the subway and see an older lady sitting on the steps. She seemed to look like my mom. I walked up behind her.
“Mom?” I asked hesitantly
“Andrew..” She looked like she had been crying. She grabbed me and pulled into a hug. “I can’t believe it’s been 7 years.”
Chapter 8
Chapter 8 (Erica’s POV)
I did not get home until about 2 in the morning. I could not stop smiling. I had one of the best nights of my life. Andrew’s band Honor Society were wonderful. I really enjoyed their music. After the show is what made the night. Andrew and I talked for hours and we kissed. I ended up telling him about Landon and everything that happened, but he took it really well. He is wonderful. I will always be worried that something bad will happen between us, but right now I’m just going to keep on smiling and think about our kiss. I have never had one like that. It sent fireworks through my body. I ended up falling asleep with a smile on my face.
I woke up around 1pm and called Sarah right away. It was 11 in Albuquerque and I hope she was awake.
“Hello,” a groggy voice said.
“Oh my gosh! Sarah I’m so sorry, I figured you would be awake by now.”
“No it’s okay, I need to wake up anyways, what’s up?” I needed to tell her about Andrew and everything and I figured a phone call would be better than an IM conversation.
“Well, Last night I went out with Andrew.”
“What? Seriously. Details now!” You could tell that woke her up.
“Well, he invited me to see his band at a local pizza place. I ended up bringing my friend Lindsay from school. Their show was really good and afterwards Andrew and I ended up talking for hours.”
“That’s awesome, did he kiss you?” Of course, she thinks about me kissing him. That’s always the first thing on her mind!
“Well yes he did. It was wonderful. I can’t even begin to describe how I felt afterwards.”
“Awwww. Wait, have you told him about what happened with Landon?” Her excitement dropped drastically when she asked the question.
“Yes I did. It was hard for me to get through, but he seemed to handle it very well. He comforted me and said he wouldn’t judge me because of what happened in my past. “
“See, I told you once you find someone who is perfect for you, he wouldn’t care about it.”
“Yeah I know. He is wonderful Sarah. I barely know him, and I’m falling for him. I love this feeling.”
“Good! Well I am sorry to cut this short, but I need to get ready for the day. I love you girl and keep me updated on you two.”
“I will, don’t worry!”
Sarah and I hang up and I begin to get ready for the day. I need to go out and find a job because I am lacking in the money department. About an hour later, I take the subway and end up in Times Square. This is my first time walking around New York since I’ve moved here. The hustle and bustle of the city is amazing. My mom is supposed to be on Broadway for rehearsals. She ended up getting a spot in the show Curtains. She’s just an understudy and part of the basic cast, but it is something. I’m proud of her for it, even if she did make me move. I see a NOW HIRING sign in the Abercrombie and Fitch store in NYC. I walk in and talk to the manager. I get an application, fill it out there, and turn it in. He ended up doing an interview there and said he’d call me in a few hours after he talks to my references. I decided to walk around the city a little more. I see Nokia Theatre and wonder if Honor Society will perform there. That’d be pretty amazing. I was getting a little bored, so I decided to call Andrew.
“Hello.” It was Andrew who picked up the phone; it was another lady’s voice. My heart starts pumping and I try to figure out who could pick up the phone. Andrew told me that his mom doesn’t live with him and his grandmother is never around anymore.
“Uh.. who is this?”
“I’m Jessica.” Jessica, who is Jessica? I started to get infuriated. It hasn’t even been 24 hours and he is already with another girl. I couldn’t believe it. I thought we had something special last night. I guess not. I hear Andrew in the background.
“Jess, who is that?”
“I don’t know, some girl.”
“Jess, give me that phone, NOW!” I hear him yell.
“Okay, Okay, sorry I was just trying to be helpful.
“Don’t ever do that again. Hello, Erica. Are you there?”
“Andrew, who was that?”
“No one, just someone I know. I’m sorry what’s up?”
“I tell you all about Landon and you can’t tell me who that girl is and why the hell is she picking up her phone.” I started to get mad at him.
“Erica, it’s a complicated situation, I can’t talk about it right now.”
“YOU CAN’T TALK ABOUT IT RIGHT NOW. I TELL YOU HOW A JERK RUINED MY LIFE AND YOU CAN’T TALK ABOUT SOMETHING SMALL. SCREW YOU.” I hung up the phone. In 12 hours, I went from the happiest girl alive to crushed. My phone went off again. I looked down at it. It was Andrew. I didn’t want to talk to him, so I ignored the call. Throughout the rest of the day, he kept on calling but I didn’t want to talk to him. I finally got a call from the manager.
“Hello”
“Hello Erica, this is Ned from Abercrombie and Fitch. I would like to offer you a position at A&F. You can start tomorrow. Are you still in the city?”
“Yes, Yes I am definitely. I am actually only a few blocks from the store. Do you want me to stop by?”
“Yes, please. I need to get you to sign some forms. I look forward to seeing you again and Congratulations.”
“Thank you so much.” We hang up the phone and I head towards the store. Everything that needed to be done there took about 3 hours. Afterwards, I head back to the subway. Ned ended up giving me his personal number and I gave him mine. He was pretty cute. I started thinking about cute, then starting thinking about Andrew. Even if he was being a jackass, I couldn’t get him out of my mind. He just seemed to implant himself on my brain. I shook my head trying to get him out of it and decided to text Ned.
Hey.
Hey. What’s up? He responded.
I was just thinking about you. What are you up to tonight?
Nothing. I get off work at 7. I’d love to spend some time with you and get to know you. Where do you live?
I’m actually from Queens.
Oh.. Well I could come and hang out at your house.
That’d be amazing. My mom isn’t home since she has a show tonight.
Cool. I can probably be there by 8. Is that okay?
That’s perfect.
Well, I hope Andrew calls me while Ned is at my house tonight. I’ll pick up the phone and let him see that I’ve moved on too. I get back to the apartment and start cleaning up. Ned calls and asks for directions. I give them to him and wait for him to get here. He finally shows up.
(Ned’s POV)
When I saw Erica walk into the store today, I knew I was going to hire her. She is gorgeous. I didn’t think I’d find a girl so attractive right away, but I did. After her training and orientation today, I gave her my personal number. I wanted to hang out with her more. She texted me and now we’re hanging out. I can’t wait. I showed up around 8:15. She looked amazing. I couldn’t help myself. I kissed her. She kissed back at first, but then started to pull away. I didn’t want to stop so I held on to her tighter. I started to push her back towards her couch. I heard her moaning. Maybe she liked it more than she put on. I stopped kissing her for a moment.
“Ned, Stop. Get off me.”
“I thought you liked it beautiful.”
“Get Off me NOW.”
“Oh come on, this is fine.”
I pushed further and ended up winning the wrestle.
I did not get home until about 2 in the morning. I could not stop smiling. I had one of the best nights of my life. Andrew’s band Honor Society were wonderful. I really enjoyed their music. After the show is what made the night. Andrew and I talked for hours and we kissed. I ended up telling him about Landon and everything that happened, but he took it really well. He is wonderful. I will always be worried that something bad will happen between us, but right now I’m just going to keep on smiling and think about our kiss. I have never had one like that. It sent fireworks through my body. I ended up falling asleep with a smile on my face.
I woke up around 1pm and called Sarah right away. It was 11 in Albuquerque and I hope she was awake.
“Hello,” a groggy voice said.
“Oh my gosh! Sarah I’m so sorry, I figured you would be awake by now.”
“No it’s okay, I need to wake up anyways, what’s up?” I needed to tell her about Andrew and everything and I figured a phone call would be better than an IM conversation.
“Well, Last night I went out with Andrew.”
“What? Seriously. Details now!” You could tell that woke her up.
“Well, he invited me to see his band at a local pizza place. I ended up bringing my friend Lindsay from school. Their show was really good and afterwards Andrew and I ended up talking for hours.”
“That’s awesome, did he kiss you?” Of course, she thinks about me kissing him. That’s always the first thing on her mind!
“Well yes he did. It was wonderful. I can’t even begin to describe how I felt afterwards.”
“Awwww. Wait, have you told him about what happened with Landon?” Her excitement dropped drastically when she asked the question.
“Yes I did. It was hard for me to get through, but he seemed to handle it very well. He comforted me and said he wouldn’t judge me because of what happened in my past. “
“See, I told you once you find someone who is perfect for you, he wouldn’t care about it.”
“Yeah I know. He is wonderful Sarah. I barely know him, and I’m falling for him. I love this feeling.”
“Good! Well I am sorry to cut this short, but I need to get ready for the day. I love you girl and keep me updated on you two.”
“I will, don’t worry!”
Sarah and I hang up and I begin to get ready for the day. I need to go out and find a job because I am lacking in the money department. About an hour later, I take the subway and end up in Times Square. This is my first time walking around New York since I’ve moved here. The hustle and bustle of the city is amazing. My mom is supposed to be on Broadway for rehearsals. She ended up getting a spot in the show Curtains. She’s just an understudy and part of the basic cast, but it is something. I’m proud of her for it, even if she did make me move. I see a NOW HIRING sign in the Abercrombie and Fitch store in NYC. I walk in and talk to the manager. I get an application, fill it out there, and turn it in. He ended up doing an interview there and said he’d call me in a few hours after he talks to my references. I decided to walk around the city a little more. I see Nokia Theatre and wonder if Honor Society will perform there. That’d be pretty amazing. I was getting a little bored, so I decided to call Andrew.
“Hello.” It was Andrew who picked up the phone; it was another lady’s voice. My heart starts pumping and I try to figure out who could pick up the phone. Andrew told me that his mom doesn’t live with him and his grandmother is never around anymore.
“Uh.. who is this?”
“I’m Jessica.” Jessica, who is Jessica? I started to get infuriated. It hasn’t even been 24 hours and he is already with another girl. I couldn’t believe it. I thought we had something special last night. I guess not. I hear Andrew in the background.
“Jess, who is that?”
“I don’t know, some girl.”
“Jess, give me that phone, NOW!” I hear him yell.
“Okay, Okay, sorry I was just trying to be helpful.
“Don’t ever do that again. Hello, Erica. Are you there?”
“Andrew, who was that?”
“No one, just someone I know. I’m sorry what’s up?”
“I tell you all about Landon and you can’t tell me who that girl is and why the hell is she picking up her phone.” I started to get mad at him.
“Erica, it’s a complicated situation, I can’t talk about it right now.”
“YOU CAN’T TALK ABOUT IT RIGHT NOW. I TELL YOU HOW A JERK RUINED MY LIFE AND YOU CAN’T TALK ABOUT SOMETHING SMALL. SCREW YOU.” I hung up the phone. In 12 hours, I went from the happiest girl alive to crushed. My phone went off again. I looked down at it. It was Andrew. I didn’t want to talk to him, so I ignored the call. Throughout the rest of the day, he kept on calling but I didn’t want to talk to him. I finally got a call from the manager.
“Hello”
“Hello Erica, this is Ned from Abercrombie and Fitch. I would like to offer you a position at A&F. You can start tomorrow. Are you still in the city?”
“Yes, Yes I am definitely. I am actually only a few blocks from the store. Do you want me to stop by?”
“Yes, please. I need to get you to sign some forms. I look forward to seeing you again and Congratulations.”
“Thank you so much.” We hang up the phone and I head towards the store. Everything that needed to be done there took about 3 hours. Afterwards, I head back to the subway. Ned ended up giving me his personal number and I gave him mine. He was pretty cute. I started thinking about cute, then starting thinking about Andrew. Even if he was being a jackass, I couldn’t get him out of my mind. He just seemed to implant himself on my brain. I shook my head trying to get him out of it and decided to text Ned.
Hey.
Hey. What’s up? He responded.
I was just thinking about you. What are you up to tonight?
Nothing. I get off work at 7. I’d love to spend some time with you and get to know you. Where do you live?
I’m actually from Queens.
Oh.. Well I could come and hang out at your house.
That’d be amazing. My mom isn’t home since she has a show tonight.
Cool. I can probably be there by 8. Is that okay?
That’s perfect.
Well, I hope Andrew calls me while Ned is at my house tonight. I’ll pick up the phone and let him see that I’ve moved on too. I get back to the apartment and start cleaning up. Ned calls and asks for directions. I give them to him and wait for him to get here. He finally shows up.
(Ned’s POV)
When I saw Erica walk into the store today, I knew I was going to hire her. She is gorgeous. I didn’t think I’d find a girl so attractive right away, but I did. After her training and orientation today, I gave her my personal number. I wanted to hang out with her more. She texted me and now we’re hanging out. I can’t wait. I showed up around 8:15. She looked amazing. I couldn’t help myself. I kissed her. She kissed back at first, but then started to pull away. I didn’t want to stop so I held on to her tighter. I started to push her back towards her couch. I heard her moaning. Maybe she liked it more than she put on. I stopped kissing her for a moment.
“Ned, Stop. Get off me.”
“I thought you liked it beautiful.”
“Get Off me NOW.”
“Oh come on, this is fine.”
I pushed further and ended up winning the wrestle.
Thursday, March 4, 2010
Chapter 7-- Warning.. this chapter has some intense scenes
Chapter 7 (Andrew’s POV)
That was the most amazing kiss that I have ever experienced. It was not have been a full out tongue in the mouth type kiss, it was much better. Our lips had barely touched but the energy the flowed through my veins afterwards was indescribable. I knew after that kiss that Erica was a special girl. When she pulled away, my heart fluttered as I looked into her eyes, but that feeling faded away quickly. She had a face of pure horror. She told me that she needed to talk to me.
“What’s wrong? Did I do something wrong?”
“No, it’s not you at all. You are wonderful. But my past always comes to haunt me. It is happening right now.”
“How is your past haunting you now? Your past should never dictate who you are.”
“I understand that Andrew, but you just don’t know what happened to me and what is happening to me.” She began to walk away from me. I saw one tear drop roll down her face. She was trying to hold back the tears but couldn’t. I grabbed her and pulled her into my chest. She pushed back.
“No, Andrew. You would never want to do that to me if you realized what has happened and what I have done.”
“Erica, talk to me. I want to know more about you.”
“I know about the game you play. All the girls at our school have seen the way you act around me. They’ve warned me about you.”
“Are you really going to trust a bunch of girls over me, Erica?”
“I don’t know who or what to trust anymore. It seems like what they say is true. Every girl, besides Lindsay, has told me what you do. You sweet talk a girl for a few days, kiss her, spoil her, make her fall in love with you, then when you get tired of her, you just dump her. Throw her to the side like she’s worth nothing. I don’t need that in my life Andrew.”
“I am not like that. Have I done that to a few girls? I will not lie, yes I have. But I know you are different. Please trust me. Tell me what’s wrong. I’m not going to leave you, not going to hurt you.” I was practically begging. I turned her around and looked into her eyes. I could tell that she wanted to tell me but was scared to. I didn’t know what to do. What the girls had told her was true. I was like that. That was my past now. All I wanted was Erica. It might have only been a few days but I could tell this was going to be a relationship that I will remember and will impact me for the rest of my life. I saw Erica take a deep breath.
“You are going to want to sit down Andrew.”
“Okay….” I said confused. I walked over to a nearby bench, sat down, and waited for her to begin.
“As I told you before, I live with my mom in Queens. I never told you what happened to my dad. My dad passed away when I was 5 in a severe car crash. He was driving around when we used to live in L.A. and was hit head on by a paparazzi person. The paparazzi person was chasing around Michael Douglass and wasn’t paying attention that he had crossed the median. He hit my dad head on at 60 mph. My dad was pronounced dead at the scene…”
I interrupted her. “Is that all that’s bothering you? Oh Erica, my dad has passed away as well. I understand the hurt that you feel.”
“There’s more to it than that. I am giving you the whole background. Please don’t interrupt me again.”
“I’m sorry Erica, I just thought...”
“Shut up! This is hard enough to tell you, I don’t need you to be making comments.” I sat up straight and prepared myself to just listen. “My mom was crushed and left her job and move to Albuquerque. While there I moved about 6 times because my mom could not decide on job that didn’t remind her of dad. About 3 years ago, my mom met a man named Landon. He seemed nice at first and my mom and he ended up getting married 6 months after meeting. I wasn’t too happy about this, but he made my mom happy so I just had to deal. About 3 months into their marriage, I noticed that Landon would always make comments about the way I looked. Just sly little comments like, ‘You’re looking good,’ and ‘hot damn Erica.’ I was a little uncomfortable but never said anything to my mom. It kept on getting worse. He would walk into the bathroom while I was taking a shower, or he’d always come into my room while I was getting dressed. It was like he was trying to find any way to see me without my clothes. One weekend, while my mom was away with some friends, Landon came on to me. Full force. Landon was about as tall as you and about 50 more pounds so I trying to fight him was useless. I lost the fight and ended up with bruises on my face and arms. The whole time all I wanted to do was scream but I was so horrified I couldn’t. When my mom came home, I couldn’t tell her. I was disgusted. I could not be in the house with Landon for more than 5 minutes. I ended up only sleeping at my house. I went over my friend Sarah’s for everything else. About a month later, I realized changes happening in my body and I was always getting sick. I called my doctor explained to him what was wrong and he scheduled the appointment. My mom took me because I wasn’t able to drive yet. Within minutes the doctor knew what was wrong. I was pregnant. My mom was disgusted with me. She thought I was sleeping around. I was hurt that my mom didn’t believe me when I told her. I cried the whole 9 months of the pregnancy. Once my little girl, Faith, was born I couldn’t give her up, but Landon forced me to. About 2 months after giving birth, Landon ended up attacking my mom. My mom kicked him out. About a year and a half later, we moved to NYC, and I met you.”
I couldn’t say anything. Erica allowed me to sit there in silence for a few minutes. I felt anger towards this Landon dude. How dare he do something like that to Erica and her mom. He deserved to have his balls cut off. A man like that doesn’t deserve to live. I felt sympathy for Erica. She had to give up a child. She created a connection with a small human being, and had to give her up. I don’t know if I’d be able to handle that.
“Erica, I’m so sorry.”
“I understand if you don’t want to talk to me anymore. I’m tainted, abused. I don’t deserve anything like you.”
“Erica. I would never judge you for what happened. That guy is an ass and that should not reflect who you are. You are beautiful, wonderful, and your personality always shines through your eyes. Don’t let him change your views of guys. I understand your hesitancy when it comes to getting close. I’ll respect that but please don’t shut me out completely.” Those were the best words that could come to my mind. I just sat there waiting for her reaction.
Erica didn’t respond with any words but with a kiss. Just another soft peck, but it sent fireworks through my body. She really was a lot different than any other girl I have ever dated. I checked my watch and saw that it was 12:30 in the morning.
“Oh crap, I have to go. It’s 12:30 in the morning.”
“Oh yeah, me too.”
“Erica, I just want to thank you for coming to my show and for opening up to me like that. We’ve barely known each other. You could have shut me out, but you didn’t. Thanks!”
“Yeah, I know. There is just something different about you. I will still constantly worry that you will leave me, not going to lie, but I will try my best to not ruin things.”
I gave her another kiss goodbye and ran to the subway. I do not think that smile would ever be able to leave my face. I was falling for someone that I had only met 5 days ago. What was wrong with me? I need to talk to the guys about this. I need their opinion.
It was about 1 when I was almost to my house. I saw someone on my porch just waiting for me.
“Hey Andy, what’s up?”
“Jessica, what are you doing here?”
“Nothing, just here.. to talk.” Not again, I don’t need anyone more big information.
“Well I’m kind of tired and have a big day ahead of me tomorrow, so can it be quick.”
“Andy, I’m pregnant.”
That was the most amazing kiss that I have ever experienced. It was not have been a full out tongue in the mouth type kiss, it was much better. Our lips had barely touched but the energy the flowed through my veins afterwards was indescribable. I knew after that kiss that Erica was a special girl. When she pulled away, my heart fluttered as I looked into her eyes, but that feeling faded away quickly. She had a face of pure horror. She told me that she needed to talk to me.
“What’s wrong? Did I do something wrong?”
“No, it’s not you at all. You are wonderful. But my past always comes to haunt me. It is happening right now.”
“How is your past haunting you now? Your past should never dictate who you are.”
“I understand that Andrew, but you just don’t know what happened to me and what is happening to me.” She began to walk away from me. I saw one tear drop roll down her face. She was trying to hold back the tears but couldn’t. I grabbed her and pulled her into my chest. She pushed back.
“No, Andrew. You would never want to do that to me if you realized what has happened and what I have done.”
“Erica, talk to me. I want to know more about you.”
“I know about the game you play. All the girls at our school have seen the way you act around me. They’ve warned me about you.”
“Are you really going to trust a bunch of girls over me, Erica?”
“I don’t know who or what to trust anymore. It seems like what they say is true. Every girl, besides Lindsay, has told me what you do. You sweet talk a girl for a few days, kiss her, spoil her, make her fall in love with you, then when you get tired of her, you just dump her. Throw her to the side like she’s worth nothing. I don’t need that in my life Andrew.”
“I am not like that. Have I done that to a few girls? I will not lie, yes I have. But I know you are different. Please trust me. Tell me what’s wrong. I’m not going to leave you, not going to hurt you.” I was practically begging. I turned her around and looked into her eyes. I could tell that she wanted to tell me but was scared to. I didn’t know what to do. What the girls had told her was true. I was like that. That was my past now. All I wanted was Erica. It might have only been a few days but I could tell this was going to be a relationship that I will remember and will impact me for the rest of my life. I saw Erica take a deep breath.
“You are going to want to sit down Andrew.”
“Okay….” I said confused. I walked over to a nearby bench, sat down, and waited for her to begin.
“As I told you before, I live with my mom in Queens. I never told you what happened to my dad. My dad passed away when I was 5 in a severe car crash. He was driving around when we used to live in L.A. and was hit head on by a paparazzi person. The paparazzi person was chasing around Michael Douglass and wasn’t paying attention that he had crossed the median. He hit my dad head on at 60 mph. My dad was pronounced dead at the scene…”
I interrupted her. “Is that all that’s bothering you? Oh Erica, my dad has passed away as well. I understand the hurt that you feel.”
“There’s more to it than that. I am giving you the whole background. Please don’t interrupt me again.”
“I’m sorry Erica, I just thought...”
“Shut up! This is hard enough to tell you, I don’t need you to be making comments.” I sat up straight and prepared myself to just listen. “My mom was crushed and left her job and move to Albuquerque. While there I moved about 6 times because my mom could not decide on job that didn’t remind her of dad. About 3 years ago, my mom met a man named Landon. He seemed nice at first and my mom and he ended up getting married 6 months after meeting. I wasn’t too happy about this, but he made my mom happy so I just had to deal. About 3 months into their marriage, I noticed that Landon would always make comments about the way I looked. Just sly little comments like, ‘You’re looking good,’ and ‘hot damn Erica.’ I was a little uncomfortable but never said anything to my mom. It kept on getting worse. He would walk into the bathroom while I was taking a shower, or he’d always come into my room while I was getting dressed. It was like he was trying to find any way to see me without my clothes. One weekend, while my mom was away with some friends, Landon came on to me. Full force. Landon was about as tall as you and about 50 more pounds so I trying to fight him was useless. I lost the fight and ended up with bruises on my face and arms. The whole time all I wanted to do was scream but I was so horrified I couldn’t. When my mom came home, I couldn’t tell her. I was disgusted. I could not be in the house with Landon for more than 5 minutes. I ended up only sleeping at my house. I went over my friend Sarah’s for everything else. About a month later, I realized changes happening in my body and I was always getting sick. I called my doctor explained to him what was wrong and he scheduled the appointment. My mom took me because I wasn’t able to drive yet. Within minutes the doctor knew what was wrong. I was pregnant. My mom was disgusted with me. She thought I was sleeping around. I was hurt that my mom didn’t believe me when I told her. I cried the whole 9 months of the pregnancy. Once my little girl, Faith, was born I couldn’t give her up, but Landon forced me to. About 2 months after giving birth, Landon ended up attacking my mom. My mom kicked him out. About a year and a half later, we moved to NYC, and I met you.”
I couldn’t say anything. Erica allowed me to sit there in silence for a few minutes. I felt anger towards this Landon dude. How dare he do something like that to Erica and her mom. He deserved to have his balls cut off. A man like that doesn’t deserve to live. I felt sympathy for Erica. She had to give up a child. She created a connection with a small human being, and had to give her up. I don’t know if I’d be able to handle that.
“Erica, I’m so sorry.”
“I understand if you don’t want to talk to me anymore. I’m tainted, abused. I don’t deserve anything like you.”
“Erica. I would never judge you for what happened. That guy is an ass and that should not reflect who you are. You are beautiful, wonderful, and your personality always shines through your eyes. Don’t let him change your views of guys. I understand your hesitancy when it comes to getting close. I’ll respect that but please don’t shut me out completely.” Those were the best words that could come to my mind. I just sat there waiting for her reaction.
Erica didn’t respond with any words but with a kiss. Just another soft peck, but it sent fireworks through my body. She really was a lot different than any other girl I have ever dated. I checked my watch and saw that it was 12:30 in the morning.
“Oh crap, I have to go. It’s 12:30 in the morning.”
“Oh yeah, me too.”
“Erica, I just want to thank you for coming to my show and for opening up to me like that. We’ve barely known each other. You could have shut me out, but you didn’t. Thanks!”
“Yeah, I know. There is just something different about you. I will still constantly worry that you will leave me, not going to lie, but I will try my best to not ruin things.”
I gave her another kiss goodbye and ran to the subway. I do not think that smile would ever be able to leave my face. I was falling for someone that I had only met 5 days ago. What was wrong with me? I need to talk to the guys about this. I need their opinion.
It was about 1 when I was almost to my house. I saw someone on my porch just waiting for me.
“Hey Andy, what’s up?”
“Jessica, what are you doing here?”
“Nothing, just here.. to talk.” Not again, I don’t need anyone more big information.
“Well I’m kind of tired and have a big day ahead of me tomorrow, so can it be quick.”
“Andy, I’m pregnant.”
Monday, March 1, 2010
Chapter 6
Chapter 6 (Erica’s POV)
Well today was Friday and I have to say I was very excited about it. Andrew had invited to his band’s gig and I wanted to go but I just needed to find someone who wanted to go with me. I was planning on asking this girl Lindsay, who I sat next to in my English class. We seemed to get along well and I hoped she wanted to go with me. Today was also the Geometry test and I was nervous for myself and for Andrew. I wanted him to do well and I could tell from yesterday that something else was distracting him. I would make an effort to try and talk to him after the test. The bell ringing distracted my thoughts and I headed to 1st period.
I walked into class and saw Andrew sitting in his seat. Butterflies began to develop in my stomach and all I can do was take a deep breath and walk to my seat.
“Hey.” Andrew said nervously. He was already breaking into a sweat and the class hadn’t even started yet.
“Deep breath Andrew, deep breath.”
“I’m trying to but I feel like there is too much information that I don’t know that’ll be on the test.”
“During our review yesterday you did wonderfully. You’ll be fine today. Have confidence in yourself. Think about this: Once your done with this test, your gig is the next big thing that you have!”
“Are you coming?” Andrew said a little bit too excited. I might have only known him for a few days but I could tell that he gets excited about everything.
“I have to ask a friend but then I’ll let you know. I am hoping I can come yes.”
“Sweet!” As Andrew responded the bell rang and Mr. Opaque started the class and passed out the test.
Throughout the test, I kept on watching Andy to see what he was doing. I could tell he was stressing but I had confidence that he would do well.
The bell rang showing the end of the period. Andy walks me to my English class.
“How do you think you did?”
“I can honestly say that I think this will be the first time I get above a C on a math test. Thanks so much Erica.” Andy gave me a huge hug and I didn’t want him to let go. I really enjoyed being in his arms.
“No problem. Well, I probably should go so I’m not late.” I said breathlessly. I knew it would take me awhile to catch my breath after that hug. We said goodbye and I walked into my English class. Lindsay was already there and I was excited to ask her if she wanted to go.
Lindsay seemed to be a nice girl. She had brown hair and was quiet when I first came into class. We started to talk more and I could tell if we continued to sit next to each other we were going to be good friends. I had asked her about Andrew right after he asked me to tutor and she seemed to think that he was okay. She had started here in the beginning of the year so she was also a newer student. We seemed to have a lot in common and I was excited to be able to get to know her outside of school.
“Hey Lindsay!”
“Hey Erica, how was your test this morning?” I knew she was really asking how I thought Andrew did.
“I did well and He seemed okay. I could tell he was nervous but afterwards he said he thinks this is will be the first time he will do better than a C.”
“That’s amazing!”
“Thanks. So I have a question. You doing anything tonight?”
“No and I hate it. I hate being bored on Friday nights.”
“Want to go to a concert with me tonight?”
“Are you serious? Absolutely YES! I love concerts. I will go to any of them! Who’s the band?”
“Honor Society. Andrew is in it. He invited me to go yesterday. I want to go just not by myself you know.”
“I totally understand. Yes I will go. I have heard some of my other friends talk about the concert I just never thought about going to it. Where is it?”
“Uh I forget the name of the restaurant, but some place around here I think.”
“Is it Pizza Amore?”
“I think that’s the name yeah.”
“Oh yeah that’s a little pizza place. A lot of high school bands play there. It’s cool. What time do you want to get there?”
“Well the gig starts at 7, so how about 6:30?”
“That sounds good. I’ll meet you there at 6:30!”
I was excited. I get to be out in New York for the first time, I get to see Andrew outside of school, and I get to hang out with Lindsay. I could tell this was going to be a good weekend.
The rest of the day sort of went by in a blur. I didn’t see Andrew for the rest of the day so it was going to be a surprise that I was going to be at the show. Before I knew it, it was 5:45 and I needed to leave so I wouldn’t be late meeting Lindsay. I arrived right around 6:30 and Lindsay was outside the restaurant waiting for me.
“Hey. I put our name down and requested a table near the stage. They said it should be about 15 minutes.”
“Okay cool. Is it crowded in there?”
“There are a lot of people from school but besides that not really. There are definitely a lot of girls in there”
“Oh wonderful! Andrew told me about how everyone calls them the Gentlemen and the reputation that they’ve gotten.”
“Yeah. Girls like to fawn over them that’s for sure. I sort of think Alex is cute but so does every other girl.
“I understand. I think this will be harder to be here than I thought. Oh well, Andrew and I are just friends right?”
“Of course you are.” Lindsay rolled her eyes as she said that. I saw it and was about to respond but the hostess called our name and we headed to our table. We were literally right next to the stage and near Andrew as well. He told me he’s always to the right of Mike and that’s where we were. I started to get excited again. Before I knew it, the gig had begun and was over. It was amazing. They did so well. I was not sitting at the table for long. I was up and dancing with Lindsay and the other girls right in front of the guys. I could tell that they were ready for this show. During their last song, I looked around and saw smiles on everyone’s faces. I saw a guy wearing a business suit and writing down some notes. He didn’t seem to quite fit but I just ignored it. After the set was over, the guys came out. All the girls ran over to them telling them how amazing they were. Mike, Alex, and Jason seemed to love the attention but Andrew looked a bit distracted. I caught his eye, a smile spread on his face and he practically ran over to me and enthralled me in one of those hugs again.
“You came! Did you like it? What did you think? Were we good?”
“Slow down cowboy. You guys were wonderful. I really enjoyed it. I’m glad I could come. By the way, this is my friend Lindsay. Lindsay, this is Andrew.”
“Nice to meet you.”
“Nice to meet you as well.”
“Did you enjoy the show?”
“I liked it a lot. I have to say Alex goes a little crazy sometimes. His leg up in the air and everything. I couldn’t help but laugh.” Lindsay said continuing the conversation
“That’s Alex for you. Let me get him and you can tell him yourself.” Andrew called Alex over and before I knew it, they were in deep conversation and Alex was showing Lindsay how to get your leg up like he did while playing the drums.
“Want to go for a walk?” Andrew asked. He was looking deep in my eyes. I couldn’t say anything but just nod my head.
“So you really did enjoy the show?”
“Yes Andrew I did. It was really good. I enjoyed that one song No Win Situation. It had a catchy beat.”
“Yeah that is a good one. My favorite is See U in the Dark. We have a dance that goes with it. Want to learn what it is?”
Before I knew it, I was learning what he calls the ‘Honor Roll’ and we were dancing and laughing in the middle of a New York sidewalk. We ended up talking for almost an hour and I didn’t even realize it. Lindsay came out and said she needed to leave and I gave her a hug and said I’ll see her on Monday. I didn’t want to leave quite yet so I spent some more time with Andrew. We talked for about another hour and I could tell that Andrew was getting antsy for something. All I wanted to do was give him a kiss. Andrew started to lean in. I began to close my eyes and lean in as well. Before I knew it, our lips had touched. It was just a quick peck but the feeling that ran through my body was something I never felt before. I should have been happy but all I could feel was guilt
“Wow, that was amazing.”
“Andrew, that shouldn’t have happened.”
“Don’t you like me Erica?”
“I do, but that just shouldn’t have happened.”
“Why? I don’t understand.”
“Andrew, there is something I need to tell you.”
Well today was Friday and I have to say I was very excited about it. Andrew had invited to his band’s gig and I wanted to go but I just needed to find someone who wanted to go with me. I was planning on asking this girl Lindsay, who I sat next to in my English class. We seemed to get along well and I hoped she wanted to go with me. Today was also the Geometry test and I was nervous for myself and for Andrew. I wanted him to do well and I could tell from yesterday that something else was distracting him. I would make an effort to try and talk to him after the test. The bell ringing distracted my thoughts and I headed to 1st period.
I walked into class and saw Andrew sitting in his seat. Butterflies began to develop in my stomach and all I can do was take a deep breath and walk to my seat.
“Hey.” Andrew said nervously. He was already breaking into a sweat and the class hadn’t even started yet.
“Deep breath Andrew, deep breath.”
“I’m trying to but I feel like there is too much information that I don’t know that’ll be on the test.”
“During our review yesterday you did wonderfully. You’ll be fine today. Have confidence in yourself. Think about this: Once your done with this test, your gig is the next big thing that you have!”
“Are you coming?” Andrew said a little bit too excited. I might have only known him for a few days but I could tell that he gets excited about everything.
“I have to ask a friend but then I’ll let you know. I am hoping I can come yes.”
“Sweet!” As Andrew responded the bell rang and Mr. Opaque started the class and passed out the test.
Throughout the test, I kept on watching Andy to see what he was doing. I could tell he was stressing but I had confidence that he would do well.
The bell rang showing the end of the period. Andy walks me to my English class.
“How do you think you did?”
“I can honestly say that I think this will be the first time I get above a C on a math test. Thanks so much Erica.” Andy gave me a huge hug and I didn’t want him to let go. I really enjoyed being in his arms.
“No problem. Well, I probably should go so I’m not late.” I said breathlessly. I knew it would take me awhile to catch my breath after that hug. We said goodbye and I walked into my English class. Lindsay was already there and I was excited to ask her if she wanted to go.
Lindsay seemed to be a nice girl. She had brown hair and was quiet when I first came into class. We started to talk more and I could tell if we continued to sit next to each other we were going to be good friends. I had asked her about Andrew right after he asked me to tutor and she seemed to think that he was okay. She had started here in the beginning of the year so she was also a newer student. We seemed to have a lot in common and I was excited to be able to get to know her outside of school.
“Hey Lindsay!”
“Hey Erica, how was your test this morning?” I knew she was really asking how I thought Andrew did.
“I did well and He seemed okay. I could tell he was nervous but afterwards he said he thinks this is will be the first time he will do better than a C.”
“That’s amazing!”
“Thanks. So I have a question. You doing anything tonight?”
“No and I hate it. I hate being bored on Friday nights.”
“Want to go to a concert with me tonight?”
“Are you serious? Absolutely YES! I love concerts. I will go to any of them! Who’s the band?”
“Honor Society. Andrew is in it. He invited me to go yesterday. I want to go just not by myself you know.”
“I totally understand. Yes I will go. I have heard some of my other friends talk about the concert I just never thought about going to it. Where is it?”
“Uh I forget the name of the restaurant, but some place around here I think.”
“Is it Pizza Amore?”
“I think that’s the name yeah.”
“Oh yeah that’s a little pizza place. A lot of high school bands play there. It’s cool. What time do you want to get there?”
“Well the gig starts at 7, so how about 6:30?”
“That sounds good. I’ll meet you there at 6:30!”
I was excited. I get to be out in New York for the first time, I get to see Andrew outside of school, and I get to hang out with Lindsay. I could tell this was going to be a good weekend.
The rest of the day sort of went by in a blur. I didn’t see Andrew for the rest of the day so it was going to be a surprise that I was going to be at the show. Before I knew it, it was 5:45 and I needed to leave so I wouldn’t be late meeting Lindsay. I arrived right around 6:30 and Lindsay was outside the restaurant waiting for me.
“Hey. I put our name down and requested a table near the stage. They said it should be about 15 minutes.”
“Okay cool. Is it crowded in there?”
“There are a lot of people from school but besides that not really. There are definitely a lot of girls in there”
“Oh wonderful! Andrew told me about how everyone calls them the Gentlemen and the reputation that they’ve gotten.”
“Yeah. Girls like to fawn over them that’s for sure. I sort of think Alex is cute but so does every other girl.
“I understand. I think this will be harder to be here than I thought. Oh well, Andrew and I are just friends right?”
“Of course you are.” Lindsay rolled her eyes as she said that. I saw it and was about to respond but the hostess called our name and we headed to our table. We were literally right next to the stage and near Andrew as well. He told me he’s always to the right of Mike and that’s where we were. I started to get excited again. Before I knew it, the gig had begun and was over. It was amazing. They did so well. I was not sitting at the table for long. I was up and dancing with Lindsay and the other girls right in front of the guys. I could tell that they were ready for this show. During their last song, I looked around and saw smiles on everyone’s faces. I saw a guy wearing a business suit and writing down some notes. He didn’t seem to quite fit but I just ignored it. After the set was over, the guys came out. All the girls ran over to them telling them how amazing they were. Mike, Alex, and Jason seemed to love the attention but Andrew looked a bit distracted. I caught his eye, a smile spread on his face and he practically ran over to me and enthralled me in one of those hugs again.
“You came! Did you like it? What did you think? Were we good?”
“Slow down cowboy. You guys were wonderful. I really enjoyed it. I’m glad I could come. By the way, this is my friend Lindsay. Lindsay, this is Andrew.”
“Nice to meet you.”
“Nice to meet you as well.”
“Did you enjoy the show?”
“I liked it a lot. I have to say Alex goes a little crazy sometimes. His leg up in the air and everything. I couldn’t help but laugh.” Lindsay said continuing the conversation
“That’s Alex for you. Let me get him and you can tell him yourself.” Andrew called Alex over and before I knew it, they were in deep conversation and Alex was showing Lindsay how to get your leg up like he did while playing the drums.
“Want to go for a walk?” Andrew asked. He was looking deep in my eyes. I couldn’t say anything but just nod my head.
“So you really did enjoy the show?”
“Yes Andrew I did. It was really good. I enjoyed that one song No Win Situation. It had a catchy beat.”
“Yeah that is a good one. My favorite is See U in the Dark. We have a dance that goes with it. Want to learn what it is?”
Before I knew it, I was learning what he calls the ‘Honor Roll’ and we were dancing and laughing in the middle of a New York sidewalk. We ended up talking for almost an hour and I didn’t even realize it. Lindsay came out and said she needed to leave and I gave her a hug and said I’ll see her on Monday. I didn’t want to leave quite yet so I spent some more time with Andrew. We talked for about another hour and I could tell that Andrew was getting antsy for something. All I wanted to do was give him a kiss. Andrew started to lean in. I began to close my eyes and lean in as well. Before I knew it, our lips had touched. It was just a quick peck but the feeling that ran through my body was something I never felt before. I should have been happy but all I could feel was guilt
“Wow, that was amazing.”
“Andrew, that shouldn’t have happened.”
“Don’t you like me Erica?”
“I do, but that just shouldn’t have happened.”
“Why? I don’t understand.”
“Andrew, there is something I need to tell you.”
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
The New Girl: Chapter 5
Chapter 5 (Andrew’s POV)
Erica and I finished tutoring around 4:45 and I had to run home to make sure I made practice on time. For the first time all year, I actually understood math homework. I really had a great tutor. It took me a few minutes to get focused on the math and not on Erica’s smile and eyes. I was glad I had to leave and get my textbook. It gave me the opportunity to calm down my nerves. When I got back, she was day-dreaming about something. I have a hunch it was about me. I get to practice just in time to start rehearsing. I hook up my bass, do some quick tuning and turn to Mike.
“Are you okay, dude?” Mike asked just looking at me.
“Yeah I’m fine. I just ran here from school. I’m a tad winded.”
“Oh, alright. Well us 3 think we’ve finalized the set list for Friday. Want to check it out?”
“Really?! Sweet! Let me see it!”
Mike handed me the set-list and I looked down on it. The fact that our first gig is on Friday made me nervous and excited at the same time. I was ready for this.
“Here Comes Trouble, No Win Situation, Sing for you, Heartache in the Suburbs, Two Rebels, Over You, Why Didn’t I, Down, Nobody has to Know, and See U in the Dark.”
“Yeah, those are it. Anymore you think we could add?” Jason asked after I had read them out loud.
“These are awesome. I really hope everyone likes them.”
“Me too,” Alex added. “I also heard that supposedly there are going to be some record producers there. The school called for us and they’re coming to hear our set.”
Mike and Jason had already heard this news so they were ready for it. I wasn’t. My jaw dropped and I started jumping up and down. I had my bass around my shoulders so I couldn’t jump too much, but a record producer?! What an opportunity. Now, I was ready to rehearse.
“Okay, let’s get this going. I’d love to get a contract!”
“You’re not the only one.” Mike said sarcastically.
We decided to play through our set list. It took us about an hour and then we finished for the night. I needed to get home and do some homework. When I finally got home, I headed to my bedroom. I get out my math homework to review it a little bit. Erica’s handwriting was all over my paper. She had beautiful penmanship. Nothing could stop a smile coming onto my face. I was planning on asking her to hang out after our show tomorrow. My cell phone goes off and I look down at caller ID to see who it is. ‘Mom’ was flashing on the screen.
“Hello.”
“Hello darling. How are you?” My mom never calls unless she needs something.
“Fine. What do you want Mom?” I didn’t want to deal with her. She was probably stuck in Detroit or something, high as all get out, and needed my money so she could buy more drugs. My mom had not been a part of my life since I was 11. My father had passed away because of prostate cancer and my mother went haywire when she lost him. She started sleeping around and getting into drugs. One of her drug dealers was moving to somewhere in the Mid-West and my mom followed. She left me with my grandmother. I have never fully healed since. I will never trust my mother again.
“Oh honey, just because I call doesn’t mean I want something.”
“I haven’t talked to you in 6 months, Mom. That usually means you want something. You know I won’t give you money, so don’t even try.”
“Andy,” only my mom and the guys can really get away with calling me Andy, “I don’t want money, I want to come home. Lawrence left me and I need to get sober. I’m coming back to NYC for rehab and to be back in your life.”
I couldn’t say anything. 2 surprises in one day. 1 wanted and 1 unwanted. This one was the unwanted one. I did not want my mom back in my life. She would ruin it somehow. I didn’t even know what to say to her and I must have been quiet for awhile, because she kept on making sure I was there.
“Sweetheart, are you there? Is the line dead?”
“No, Mom. I’m here. Well, have you talked to Grandma? Does she know you’re coming?”
“Yes. I talked to her this morning. She told me I needed to tell you not her.”
“Well I appreciate it Mom. But don’t think you can just walk back into my life. You abandoned me because Dad died. I had no mother for 7 yrs of my life. It’s not going to be easy, but I will try. When are you coming back into town.”
“Saturday.”
“I will see you Saturday.”
“Bye darling. Love you.”
“Bye, Mom.”
I could not believe this. My day went from a complete high to a complete low. My mom was coming home. This brought a lot of new complications into my life. I wasn’t ready for this and I sure as hell hope I can handle the next few days.
Erica and I finished tutoring around 4:45 and I had to run home to make sure I made practice on time. For the first time all year, I actually understood math homework. I really had a great tutor. It took me a few minutes to get focused on the math and not on Erica’s smile and eyes. I was glad I had to leave and get my textbook. It gave me the opportunity to calm down my nerves. When I got back, she was day-dreaming about something. I have a hunch it was about me. I get to practice just in time to start rehearsing. I hook up my bass, do some quick tuning and turn to Mike.
“Are you okay, dude?” Mike asked just looking at me.
“Yeah I’m fine. I just ran here from school. I’m a tad winded.”
“Oh, alright. Well us 3 think we’ve finalized the set list for Friday. Want to check it out?”
“Really?! Sweet! Let me see it!”
Mike handed me the set-list and I looked down on it. The fact that our first gig is on Friday made me nervous and excited at the same time. I was ready for this.
“Here Comes Trouble, No Win Situation, Sing for you, Heartache in the Suburbs, Two Rebels, Over You, Why Didn’t I, Down, Nobody has to Know, and See U in the Dark.”
“Yeah, those are it. Anymore you think we could add?” Jason asked after I had read them out loud.
“These are awesome. I really hope everyone likes them.”
“Me too,” Alex added. “I also heard that supposedly there are going to be some record producers there. The school called for us and they’re coming to hear our set.”
Mike and Jason had already heard this news so they were ready for it. I wasn’t. My jaw dropped and I started jumping up and down. I had my bass around my shoulders so I couldn’t jump too much, but a record producer?! What an opportunity. Now, I was ready to rehearse.
“Okay, let’s get this going. I’d love to get a contract!”
“You’re not the only one.” Mike said sarcastically.
We decided to play through our set list. It took us about an hour and then we finished for the night. I needed to get home and do some homework. When I finally got home, I headed to my bedroom. I get out my math homework to review it a little bit. Erica’s handwriting was all over my paper. She had beautiful penmanship. Nothing could stop a smile coming onto my face. I was planning on asking her to hang out after our show tomorrow. My cell phone goes off and I look down at caller ID to see who it is. ‘Mom’ was flashing on the screen.
“Hello.”
“Hello darling. How are you?” My mom never calls unless she needs something.
“Fine. What do you want Mom?” I didn’t want to deal with her. She was probably stuck in Detroit or something, high as all get out, and needed my money so she could buy more drugs. My mom had not been a part of my life since I was 11. My father had passed away because of prostate cancer and my mother went haywire when she lost him. She started sleeping around and getting into drugs. One of her drug dealers was moving to somewhere in the Mid-West and my mom followed. She left me with my grandmother. I have never fully healed since. I will never trust my mother again.
“Oh honey, just because I call doesn’t mean I want something.”
“I haven’t talked to you in 6 months, Mom. That usually means you want something. You know I won’t give you money, so don’t even try.”
“Andy,” only my mom and the guys can really get away with calling me Andy, “I don’t want money, I want to come home. Lawrence left me and I need to get sober. I’m coming back to NYC for rehab and to be back in your life.”
I couldn’t say anything. 2 surprises in one day. 1 wanted and 1 unwanted. This one was the unwanted one. I did not want my mom back in my life. She would ruin it somehow. I didn’t even know what to say to her and I must have been quiet for awhile, because she kept on making sure I was there.
“Sweetheart, are you there? Is the line dead?”
“No, Mom. I’m here. Well, have you talked to Grandma? Does she know you’re coming?”
“Yes. I talked to her this morning. She told me I needed to tell you not her.”
“Well I appreciate it Mom. But don’t think you can just walk back into my life. You abandoned me because Dad died. I had no mother for 7 yrs of my life. It’s not going to be easy, but I will try. When are you coming back into town.”
“Saturday.”
“I will see you Saturday.”
“Bye darling. Love you.”
“Bye, Mom.”
I could not believe this. My day went from a complete high to a complete low. My mom was coming home. This brought a lot of new complications into my life. I wasn’t ready for this and I sure as hell hope I can handle the next few days.
The New Girl: Chapter 4
Chapter 4 (Erica’s POV)
When he first asked me to be his tutor, I knew there had to be ulterior motives. I had looked into his eyes and I just couldn’t say no to him. I knew I shouldn’t trust him. I had observed him in lunch yesterday, and his temperament was that of my step-dad’s and after what he did, I would never be able to trust a guy again.
Andrew walked into the library and I saw him looking for me. I put my head down hoping he couldn’t see where I was, but I saw him as he started walking to me. I took a deep breath and tried to put on a smile.
“Hey,” he said nervously. I don’t know why he was nervous. “Thanks again for helping me.”
“No problem. So what do you want to go over first?”
“All of it.” He laughed with a little quiver in his voice. I couldn’t help but get butterflies in my stomach. I noticed he had really pretty blonde hair that fell just over his eyes. He would always do a head flick to move it.
“Let’s start with surface area. I really don’t get that and since that’s what our test is on, I better learn it.”
I snapped back into reality after he said that. “Okay why don’t we go over the homework for today?” He had to grab his textbook from his locker and while he was gone I couldn’t help but get lost in my thoughts of him. His smile was something that put a smile on my face. He had a cute little gap between his two front teeth that most people have fixed with braces, but he didn’t. I am glad he didn’t because it made him that much cuter to me. He also had gorgeous blue eyes that I can see myself getting lost in a lot. I can’t wait until I get home so I can IM Sarah and tell her all about Andrew.
I was still lost in my thoughts when Andrew returned. I kept hearing someone calling my name in the distance and I looked up to see him sitting down looking at me with the ‘what-were-you-thinking-about’ type reaction. He had a cute little smirk like he knew I was thinking about him.
About an hour later, we had finished all the homework and I headed towards the subway so I could get home. I ended up not getting home until around 630pm and I headed right upstairs to do the rest of my homework. I checked my computer first and luckily Sarah was online. I NEEDED to talk to her.
movinggirl: hey ! how r u?
xoxNMxox: HHEEEYYY!! i’m great! How r u?
movinggirl: good…… soo I have some details for you!!
xoxNMxox: ooohh details, I love details. Are they about a boy?!
Again there so goes again with a boy. Of course, she was right this time, but her mind was always on the boys.
movinggirl: u n ur boys. Yes, it’s a boy. His name is Andrew.
xoxNMxox: Andrew. I like that name. how old is he? What does he look like? When’s the date??!!??
movinggirl: Slow down girl. I’m just tutoring him. He’s a senior and very cute.
xoxNMxox: let me guess, you’re tutoring him in….. math.
movinggirl: haha yeah, I have to take geometry again even though I aced it at our school. He has the most gorgeous blue eyes and the cutest smile in the world. I love it.
xoxNMxox: that’s good! Do you know if he likes you too?!?!
Movinggirl: there is a chance. He tried talking to me yesterday, but I had blown him off. But he tried again today, and I couldn’t say no.
xoxNMxox: oohh.. just be careful girl… i don’t want you to get hurt again.
Movinggirl: I know. I have told myself I will not fall in love with him…
xoxNMxox: well.. it looks like you are on your way. So either make sure the relationship is just tutoring and not more or really protect your heart. I do not want to see anything happen to you again. Oh and if he hurts you, let him know your BFF will come and castrate him!
Movinggirl: bahaha oh Sarah,… thank you! I miss you soooo much.
xoxNMxox: miss you too.. okay I have to get to some homework.
Movinggirl: me too.. it’s 6:30 here.. and I have a lot
xoxNMxox: bye hun.. love ya!
Movinggirl: love ya too!
My computer made the sign-off sound on IM. I shut it off and started working on my Social Studies project. I wasn’t able to concentrate for long because all I could think about was Andrew and his eyes. I knew I was going to have good dreams tonight.
When he first asked me to be his tutor, I knew there had to be ulterior motives. I had looked into his eyes and I just couldn’t say no to him. I knew I shouldn’t trust him. I had observed him in lunch yesterday, and his temperament was that of my step-dad’s and after what he did, I would never be able to trust a guy again.
Andrew walked into the library and I saw him looking for me. I put my head down hoping he couldn’t see where I was, but I saw him as he started walking to me. I took a deep breath and tried to put on a smile.
“Hey,” he said nervously. I don’t know why he was nervous. “Thanks again for helping me.”
“No problem. So what do you want to go over first?”
“All of it.” He laughed with a little quiver in his voice. I couldn’t help but get butterflies in my stomach. I noticed he had really pretty blonde hair that fell just over his eyes. He would always do a head flick to move it.
“Let’s start with surface area. I really don’t get that and since that’s what our test is on, I better learn it.”
I snapped back into reality after he said that. “Okay why don’t we go over the homework for today?” He had to grab his textbook from his locker and while he was gone I couldn’t help but get lost in my thoughts of him. His smile was something that put a smile on my face. He had a cute little gap between his two front teeth that most people have fixed with braces, but he didn’t. I am glad he didn’t because it made him that much cuter to me. He also had gorgeous blue eyes that I can see myself getting lost in a lot. I can’t wait until I get home so I can IM Sarah and tell her all about Andrew.
I was still lost in my thoughts when Andrew returned. I kept hearing someone calling my name in the distance and I looked up to see him sitting down looking at me with the ‘what-were-you-thinking-about’ type reaction. He had a cute little smirk like he knew I was thinking about him.
About an hour later, we had finished all the homework and I headed towards the subway so I could get home. I ended up not getting home until around 630pm and I headed right upstairs to do the rest of my homework. I checked my computer first and luckily Sarah was online. I NEEDED to talk to her.
movinggirl: hey ! how r u?
xoxNMxox: HHEEEYYY!! i’m great! How r u?
movinggirl: good…… soo I have some details for you!!
xoxNMxox: ooohh details, I love details. Are they about a boy?!
Again there so goes again with a boy. Of course, she was right this time, but her mind was always on the boys.
movinggirl: u n ur boys. Yes, it’s a boy. His name is Andrew.
xoxNMxox: Andrew. I like that name. how old is he? What does he look like? When’s the date??!!??
movinggirl: Slow down girl. I’m just tutoring him. He’s a senior and very cute.
xoxNMxox: let me guess, you’re tutoring him in….. math.
movinggirl: haha yeah, I have to take geometry again even though I aced it at our school. He has the most gorgeous blue eyes and the cutest smile in the world. I love it.
xoxNMxox: that’s good! Do you know if he likes you too?!?!
Movinggirl: there is a chance. He tried talking to me yesterday, but I had blown him off. But he tried again today, and I couldn’t say no.
xoxNMxox: oohh.. just be careful girl… i don’t want you to get hurt again.
Movinggirl: I know. I have told myself I will not fall in love with him…
xoxNMxox: well.. it looks like you are on your way. So either make sure the relationship is just tutoring and not more or really protect your heart. I do not want to see anything happen to you again. Oh and if he hurts you, let him know your BFF will come and castrate him!
Movinggirl: bahaha oh Sarah,… thank you! I miss you soooo much.
xoxNMxox: miss you too.. okay I have to get to some homework.
Movinggirl: me too.. it’s 6:30 here.. and I have a lot
xoxNMxox: bye hun.. love ya!
Movinggirl: love ya too!
My computer made the sign-off sound on IM. I shut it off and started working on my Social Studies project. I wasn’t able to concentrate for long because all I could think about was Andrew and his eyes. I knew I was going to have good dreams tonight.
The New Girl: Chapter 3
Chapter 3 (Andrew’s POV)
Today was the day. It was 7:00. Damn I was late like always. I knew I was going to be rushing to get to school like always. The guys tell me I like to be Fashionably Late. I called Alex and told him to tell the guys to not wait for me.
“Hey, running late again.”
“Andy, this is the 3rd day in a row, what are you doing?”
“I just don’t hear my alarm, sorry. I’ll see ya in homeroom.”
“Alright, bye.”
I rush to get ready. I grab the classiest thing that I have. I always seem to be complimented on this outfit. Maybe Erica will like it. It’s a skinny tie and Army-styled shirt. I grab my backpack and rush out. Practically at a full speed run, I made it to school with 1 minute to spare. As I’m stepping into the school, the bell rings.
“Mr. Lee, you’re late.” I whip around to see Mr. Opaque standing in the Main Office’s door.
“I was here before the bell rang,” I said as I quickly try to make it to homeroom.
The guys are already seated around one of the tables. I sit quickly into my seat and luckily missed the attention of Sister Sherry. She always seemed to go after my group. She wanted to catch us in trouble, but we always seemed to JUST avoid it! Geometry was first and I was ready. I already told Jason that I wasn’t going to be sitting with them at Geometry. He just gave me the “are you picking up a girl” look and I just shook my head yes. A huge smirk came over his face. I wanted to explain to him that it was different not the normal hook up that our group was famous for. Erica’s eyes and hair were implanted in my head and I couldn’t get them out.
The bell finally rings and I book it out of homeroom. I’m the first one into Mr. Opaque’s classroom and I head to the seat where Erica was sitting at yesterday. I take a deep breath and act like nothing is wrong as I see her walk into the room. She stops as she enters and looks over to where I am. I see her take a deep sigh and slowly roll her eyes. She has to sit next to me because all the other seats are taken by other students in the class. The table we were at was the only open spot. As she sat down, I said hello.
“Hi.” She responded back coldly. This was going to be harder than I thought.
“How was your evening? Did you understand the homework?” I was trying to make some sort of conversation.
“Yeah, it was easy.” I would have loved to know what she was thinking, she seemed so aloof. Mr. Opaque walked into the classroom and the class got quiet. Mr. Opaque might have been a little odd but we all respected him because he respected us. Throughout the whole class, I noticed Erica slowly was moving her chair away from me. Her back was also facing me and she had her feet in the aisle instead of under the desk. I start to drown Mr. Opaque out again and just stare at the back of Erica’s head. I noticed she would do quick look backs at me throughout the class while she was taking notes. The bell rang and I noticed that Erica was packing up slower than she did yesterday.
“What was the homework again?” I asked. I really didn’t know the homework but I also wanted to talk with her.
“Pages 230-231 in the textbook, all the odd problems.”
“Oh, thanks. Are you really good at math?” This was all a part of my place
“I’m decent. I got all A’s at my school in Albuquerque.”
“Would you want to help me some? I never get it and really need some help.” I was holding my breath. If she said yes, I would be okay. If she said no, I had NO idea how to get her to talk to me more.
“Well, I’m really busy getting used to the city…”
“Please!” I interrupted her. She looked up at me with tons of questions in her eyes. I could tell she was trying to figure me out.
“Okay. Can you do today after school? Meet in the library?”
“Yeah, that’s fine!” I tried not to show the excitement in my voice but it was hard to hide. Part 1 of the plan was crushed. “Thank you so much. I will you see later, have to get to gym class.
I ran into the locker room with the cheesiest smile on my face.
“Uh oh, someone’s got a hot date.” Mike said hitting me in the arm.
I laughed nervously. “No, just a math tutor.” I was hoping it would turn into a hot date, but I don’t want to resort to my old ways.
“A math ‘tutor’” Jason said mockingly. He moved his fingers like he was putting quotation marks over tutor, implying something more. His mind was always in the gutter.
“Guys, seriously, she’s just helping me with math. I need to pass the class to graduate. I don’t think you want me to be stuck here while you guys are off getting all famous.”
The guys simultaneously agreed with me. I knew they needed me in the band. The rest of the day passed by slowly as I continued to watch the clock for 3:43 to come so school was over. The bell rang and I booked it out of my History class, to my locker, and finally made it to the library. I looked around at all the tables and found her. I took a deep breath and sat down.
Today was the day. It was 7:00. Damn I was late like always. I knew I was going to be rushing to get to school like always. The guys tell me I like to be Fashionably Late. I called Alex and told him to tell the guys to not wait for me.
“Hey, running late again.”
“Andy, this is the 3rd day in a row, what are you doing?”
“I just don’t hear my alarm, sorry. I’ll see ya in homeroom.”
“Alright, bye.”
I rush to get ready. I grab the classiest thing that I have. I always seem to be complimented on this outfit. Maybe Erica will like it. It’s a skinny tie and Army-styled shirt. I grab my backpack and rush out. Practically at a full speed run, I made it to school with 1 minute to spare. As I’m stepping into the school, the bell rings.
“Mr. Lee, you’re late.” I whip around to see Mr. Opaque standing in the Main Office’s door.
“I was here before the bell rang,” I said as I quickly try to make it to homeroom.
The guys are already seated around one of the tables. I sit quickly into my seat and luckily missed the attention of Sister Sherry. She always seemed to go after my group. She wanted to catch us in trouble, but we always seemed to JUST avoid it! Geometry was first and I was ready. I already told Jason that I wasn’t going to be sitting with them at Geometry. He just gave me the “are you picking up a girl” look and I just shook my head yes. A huge smirk came over his face. I wanted to explain to him that it was different not the normal hook up that our group was famous for. Erica’s eyes and hair were implanted in my head and I couldn’t get them out.
The bell finally rings and I book it out of homeroom. I’m the first one into Mr. Opaque’s classroom and I head to the seat where Erica was sitting at yesterday. I take a deep breath and act like nothing is wrong as I see her walk into the room. She stops as she enters and looks over to where I am. I see her take a deep sigh and slowly roll her eyes. She has to sit next to me because all the other seats are taken by other students in the class. The table we were at was the only open spot. As she sat down, I said hello.
“Hi.” She responded back coldly. This was going to be harder than I thought.
“How was your evening? Did you understand the homework?” I was trying to make some sort of conversation.
“Yeah, it was easy.” I would have loved to know what she was thinking, she seemed so aloof. Mr. Opaque walked into the classroom and the class got quiet. Mr. Opaque might have been a little odd but we all respected him because he respected us. Throughout the whole class, I noticed Erica slowly was moving her chair away from me. Her back was also facing me and she had her feet in the aisle instead of under the desk. I start to drown Mr. Opaque out again and just stare at the back of Erica’s head. I noticed she would do quick look backs at me throughout the class while she was taking notes. The bell rang and I noticed that Erica was packing up slower than she did yesterday.
“What was the homework again?” I asked. I really didn’t know the homework but I also wanted to talk with her.
“Pages 230-231 in the textbook, all the odd problems.”
“Oh, thanks. Are you really good at math?” This was all a part of my place
“I’m decent. I got all A’s at my school in Albuquerque.”
“Would you want to help me some? I never get it and really need some help.” I was holding my breath. If she said yes, I would be okay. If she said no, I had NO idea how to get her to talk to me more.
“Well, I’m really busy getting used to the city…”
“Please!” I interrupted her. She looked up at me with tons of questions in her eyes. I could tell she was trying to figure me out.
“Okay. Can you do today after school? Meet in the library?”
“Yeah, that’s fine!” I tried not to show the excitement in my voice but it was hard to hide. Part 1 of the plan was crushed. “Thank you so much. I will you see later, have to get to gym class.
I ran into the locker room with the cheesiest smile on my face.
“Uh oh, someone’s got a hot date.” Mike said hitting me in the arm.
I laughed nervously. “No, just a math tutor.” I was hoping it would turn into a hot date, but I don’t want to resort to my old ways.
“A math ‘tutor’” Jason said mockingly. He moved his fingers like he was putting quotation marks over tutor, implying something more. His mind was always in the gutter.
“Guys, seriously, she’s just helping me with math. I need to pass the class to graduate. I don’t think you want me to be stuck here while you guys are off getting all famous.”
The guys simultaneously agreed with me. I knew they needed me in the band. The rest of the day passed by slowly as I continued to watch the clock for 3:43 to come so school was over. The bell rang and I booked it out of my History class, to my locker, and finally made it to the library. I looked around at all the tables and found her. I took a deep breath and sat down.
The New Girl Chapter 2
Chapter 2
Erica couldn’t get that blue-eyed boy out of her head for the rest of the school day. She heads on the subway to Queens to get to her parent’s new apartment. She lived about 30 minutes from the school because her parents didn’t want to send her to a public school and St. Claude’s was the closest school that they could afford. She finally gets home and walks in the door. She has to walk around tons of boxes and bubble wrap just to get to the kitchen. She gets a glass of lemonade and head up to her bedroom. She gets on her laptop and checks her email. Nothing. Checks her buddy list and sees her best friend from Albuquerque online. She IMs her.
movinggirl: Hola.
xoxNMxox: Hey!!!!!!!! How was ur 1st day of school?!?!?!?!?!?!?!
Sarah was a little too enthusiastic about everything.
movinggirl: It was my first day. Same old. Awkward. Evry1 starin @ me. The classes seem a lot easier than Western though.
xoxNMxox: AWESOME! So.. any cute boys?!?!
Of course. The first thing she asks is about a boy. Erica doesn’t want to talk about this Andrew kid because she knows Sarah will take it out of proportion and will have me off and married within 5 minutes from now.
xoxNMxox: I need ALL the deets. I miss ya!
movinggirl: Nah. No1 that caught my eye. I g2g 2 much hw.
xoxNMxox: kk. Call me asap! Luv ya lots!
movinggirl: luv ya 2.
Erica takes a deep breath. She avoided that conflict. Now she just needs to avoid her mother. Erica’s mom and dad met their freshmen year of high school and were married when they were 19. Her mom wants Erica to have the same life and since she’s 18 she’s running out of time to find that perfect one. Erica gets to doing her Geometry homework then begins reading the first few chapters of Pride and Prejudice for English. Luckily she’s read the book about 20 times and knows the story backwards and forwards. Erica always thought she would find her Mr. Darcy: a charming, allusive, handsome, and sweet man. She had yet to find that boy but it seemed that whenever she thought of Mr. Darcy, Andrew came to her mind instead of her usual picture, Colin Firth. Erica shakes her head trying to get Andrew’s face out of her mind and goes to make dinner before her parents get home.
***
Andrew and the rest of the gentlemen head to Jason’s house for band practice. They’ve just started a new band called Honor Society and have their first gig, St. Claude’s homecoming. Andrew is a little disappointed because he couldn’t find Erica the rest of the day. Even at lunch, he looked for her and didn’t see her sitting at any of the tables. Michael and Jason began tuning their guitars as Alex played a few beats on the drums. Andrew tried to tune his guitar but he just can’t seem to concentrate. He can’t get that picture of Erica out of his mind as she raced off to her English class.
Jason throws a pick right at Andy’s head. “What is with you today?” “Yeah Dude,” Mike adds, “You’ve been out of it since gym class. Where has your mind been?”
“Just thinking about the Geometry test on Friday,” Andrew said nervously, hoping that no one notices what he is really thinking.
“Well that’s 3 days away. Our show’s on Saturday that’s what we need to be focusing on right now!” Alex responded enthusiastically! It seemed like everyone else was ready for the show, so Andrew shook it off and began rocking out with the rest of the band. It turned out to be one of the best practices the band has had in awhile.
Practice ended about an hour later and they all headed off to their respective houses. Alex and Andy live on the same block so they took the Subway together to get to their houses.
“Alright, I’ve known you almost my whole life, who is the girl?” Alex states matter of factly while they were waiting for the train to come.
“I, uh,um,” Andy begins to studder, “It’s uh.. no one..”
“Like I’m ever going to believe that. Name. Where did you meet her.” For a guy, Alex was always the one who was most interested in the other guys’ relationships. It was just part of his personality. He was always willing to share everything and expected the same from his friends.
“Well, you know that new girl, in our Geometry class.”
“Yeah, Brenda or something.”
“No. Erica. Well I went to talk to her after class.”
“You go. So did you get her number, when’s the date.”
“Well…” Andy sighs, shaking his head. He was still upset about what had happened earlier today. “She sort of blew me off. I tried to find her the rest of the day but I couldn’t. I can’t get her off my mind, man. This has never happened. What do I do?
“Woah. Just get over her. Maybe try and see other girls or something. There are about 50 other girls at our school who would want to be with you man.” Alex was right. Out of all 4 guys, Andrew was the one most girls wanted to be with.
“I don’t know. I’ll figure something out.”
Andy and Alex arrived to their block and headed into their houses. Andrew already had a plan formulating in his head of how he was going to get Erica to talk to him. Hopefully it will work. Andrew finishes his homework and tries to sleep as the plan keeps playing in his head.
Erica couldn’t get that blue-eyed boy out of her head for the rest of the school day. She heads on the subway to Queens to get to her parent’s new apartment. She lived about 30 minutes from the school because her parents didn’t want to send her to a public school and St. Claude’s was the closest school that they could afford. She finally gets home and walks in the door. She has to walk around tons of boxes and bubble wrap just to get to the kitchen. She gets a glass of lemonade and head up to her bedroom. She gets on her laptop and checks her email. Nothing. Checks her buddy list and sees her best friend from Albuquerque online. She IMs her.
movinggirl: Hola.
xoxNMxox: Hey!!!!!!!! How was ur 1st day of school?!?!?!?!?!?!?!
Sarah was a little too enthusiastic about everything.
movinggirl: It was my first day. Same old. Awkward. Evry1 starin @ me. The classes seem a lot easier than Western though.
xoxNMxox: AWESOME! So.. any cute boys?!?!
Of course. The first thing she asks is about a boy. Erica doesn’t want to talk about this Andrew kid because she knows Sarah will take it out of proportion and will have me off and married within 5 minutes from now.
xoxNMxox: I need ALL the deets. I miss ya!
movinggirl: Nah. No1 that caught my eye. I g2g 2 much hw.
xoxNMxox: kk. Call me asap! Luv ya lots!
movinggirl: luv ya 2.
Erica takes a deep breath. She avoided that conflict. Now she just needs to avoid her mother. Erica’s mom and dad met their freshmen year of high school and were married when they were 19. Her mom wants Erica to have the same life and since she’s 18 she’s running out of time to find that perfect one. Erica gets to doing her Geometry homework then begins reading the first few chapters of Pride and Prejudice for English. Luckily she’s read the book about 20 times and knows the story backwards and forwards. Erica always thought she would find her Mr. Darcy: a charming, allusive, handsome, and sweet man. She had yet to find that boy but it seemed that whenever she thought of Mr. Darcy, Andrew came to her mind instead of her usual picture, Colin Firth. Erica shakes her head trying to get Andrew’s face out of her mind and goes to make dinner before her parents get home.
***
Andrew and the rest of the gentlemen head to Jason’s house for band practice. They’ve just started a new band called Honor Society and have their first gig, St. Claude’s homecoming. Andrew is a little disappointed because he couldn’t find Erica the rest of the day. Even at lunch, he looked for her and didn’t see her sitting at any of the tables. Michael and Jason began tuning their guitars as Alex played a few beats on the drums. Andrew tried to tune his guitar but he just can’t seem to concentrate. He can’t get that picture of Erica out of his mind as she raced off to her English class.
Jason throws a pick right at Andy’s head. “What is with you today?” “Yeah Dude,” Mike adds, “You’ve been out of it since gym class. Where has your mind been?”
“Just thinking about the Geometry test on Friday,” Andrew said nervously, hoping that no one notices what he is really thinking.
“Well that’s 3 days away. Our show’s on Saturday that’s what we need to be focusing on right now!” Alex responded enthusiastically! It seemed like everyone else was ready for the show, so Andrew shook it off and began rocking out with the rest of the band. It turned out to be one of the best practices the band has had in awhile.
Practice ended about an hour later and they all headed off to their respective houses. Alex and Andy live on the same block so they took the Subway together to get to their houses.
“Alright, I’ve known you almost my whole life, who is the girl?” Alex states matter of factly while they were waiting for the train to come.
“I, uh,um,” Andy begins to studder, “It’s uh.. no one..”
“Like I’m ever going to believe that. Name. Where did you meet her.” For a guy, Alex was always the one who was most interested in the other guys’ relationships. It was just part of his personality. He was always willing to share everything and expected the same from his friends.
“Well, you know that new girl, in our Geometry class.”
“Yeah, Brenda or something.”
“No. Erica. Well I went to talk to her after class.”
“You go. So did you get her number, when’s the date.”
“Well…” Andy sighs, shaking his head. He was still upset about what had happened earlier today. “She sort of blew me off. I tried to find her the rest of the day but I couldn’t. I can’t get her off my mind, man. This has never happened. What do I do?
“Woah. Just get over her. Maybe try and see other girls or something. There are about 50 other girls at our school who would want to be with you man.” Alex was right. Out of all 4 guys, Andrew was the one most girls wanted to be with.
“I don’t know. I’ll figure something out.”
Andy and Alex arrived to their block and headed into their houses. Andrew already had a plan formulating in his head of how he was going to get Erica to talk to him. Hopefully it will work. Andrew finishes his homework and tries to sleep as the plan keeps playing in his head.
The New Girl: Chapter 1
It’s the first day of school and Erica is beyond nervous. Her parents picked up and moved her from her comfort zone in Albuquerque and moved her to NYC so her mom could pursue a Broadway career. Erica was infuriated. It was another ‘dream’ of her mother’s which she knew would fade in the next year just like everything else: becoming a painter, becoming a writer, and taking a whack at professional volleyball. Well, here she goes. Erica starts her first day at St. Claude’s Catholic a little nervous. It seems like everyone has their eyes on her. Erica does not like being the center of attention and has always gone through school being the invisible one. I HATE being the new girl, Erica thinks as she heads to her first class. Geometry, she’s already taken this course but for some reason St. Claude’s wanted her to take it again. She knew this would be a breeze and didn’t really pay attention as the teacher started to rant about surface area. 15 minutes into the class and the teacher sounded like the teachers in Charlie Brown. Erica starts to look around and sees a few cute boys in the back of the class. They all have their ties loosened up and are sitting back with the ‘I rule the world’ type attitude and stance. Their chairs are back on their hind legs and Erica rolls her eyes. She’s dealt with guys like that before and she wasn’t about to get herself in trouble. She takes one more, quick look back then starts to focus on taking notes.
***
Andrew hates this class. He has always struggled with math and the only thing that got him through was the fact that his 3 best friends were in the class. Mr. Opaque was talking about surface area and Andrew begins to drown him out like he does every other day. He sits in the back so he can scan the class and still look like he’s paying attention. Mike is to his right, Jason to his left, and Alex next to Jason. Everyone in the school calls them the Gentlemen. They are always dressed to the nines and are known to treat girls like princesses. They are also known to have a different girlfriend every week. They were players but every girl wanted to be with them. In the corner of his eye, Andrew sees someone staring at him. He turns quickly to see a new girl. Andrew has never seen her before. The way her brown, wavy hair flows down the back is kind of pretty. For the rest of the period, Andrew thinks of a way he can talk to her. Maybe the same suave and debonair way he talks to every girl or maybe another way. All Andrew has seen is the back of her but every time he looks at her gorgeous locks, a knot forms in his stomach.
***
“Hey,” Andrew says approaching the new girl. His voice cracked. That hasn’t happened in 2 years.
Erica turns around. “Oh, Hey.” She starts to walk faster. Andrew has to walk at a speedwalk just to keep up.
“I saw you in Mr. Opaque’s Geometry class. Just want to introduce myself. I’m Andrew.” “Oh hi, I’m Erica. Love to chat but got to get to English.”
Andrew just stands there. He’s never been rejected like that before. Andrew made it his goal. He will get Erica to talk to him by the end of the day. Andrew runs to catch up with the rest of the Gentlemen. They head off to gym together. Thank the Lord for being seniors. They all have the same classes together. As he begins to change though, he just can’t get those chestnut brown eyes out of his mind.
Erica can’t believe it. The reason she did a double take in Geometry had talked to her. It took her until she sat down in Miss. Lamstead’s for her to catch her breath. She was able to compose herself on the outside but she was like mush on the inside. Focus Erica. He’s just a boy, is what she kept repeating to herself. Erica wasn’t going to let her get caught up in a romance when she knew her mom would be changing her mind in the next few months.
Erica and Andrew start their next classes trying to pay attention but they couldn’t get each other out of their minds.
***
Andrew hates this class. He has always struggled with math and the only thing that got him through was the fact that his 3 best friends were in the class. Mr. Opaque was talking about surface area and Andrew begins to drown him out like he does every other day. He sits in the back so he can scan the class and still look like he’s paying attention. Mike is to his right, Jason to his left, and Alex next to Jason. Everyone in the school calls them the Gentlemen. They are always dressed to the nines and are known to treat girls like princesses. They are also known to have a different girlfriend every week. They were players but every girl wanted to be with them. In the corner of his eye, Andrew sees someone staring at him. He turns quickly to see a new girl. Andrew has never seen her before. The way her brown, wavy hair flows down the back is kind of pretty. For the rest of the period, Andrew thinks of a way he can talk to her. Maybe the same suave and debonair way he talks to every girl or maybe another way. All Andrew has seen is the back of her but every time he looks at her gorgeous locks, a knot forms in his stomach.
***
“Hey,” Andrew says approaching the new girl. His voice cracked. That hasn’t happened in 2 years.
Erica turns around. “Oh, Hey.” She starts to walk faster. Andrew has to walk at a speedwalk just to keep up.
“I saw you in Mr. Opaque’s Geometry class. Just want to introduce myself. I’m Andrew.” “Oh hi, I’m Erica. Love to chat but got to get to English.”
Andrew just stands there. He’s never been rejected like that before. Andrew made it his goal. He will get Erica to talk to him by the end of the day. Andrew runs to catch up with the rest of the Gentlemen. They head off to gym together. Thank the Lord for being seniors. They all have the same classes together. As he begins to change though, he just can’t get those chestnut brown eyes out of his mind.
Erica can’t believe it. The reason she did a double take in Geometry had talked to her. It took her until she sat down in Miss. Lamstead’s for her to catch her breath. She was able to compose herself on the outside but she was like mush on the inside. Focus Erica. He’s just a boy, is what she kept repeating to herself. Erica wasn’t going to let her get caught up in a romance when she knew her mom would be changing her mind in the next few months.
Erica and Andrew start their next classes trying to pay attention but they couldn’t get each other out of their minds.
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