TJ

TJ

Chapter 14

John did show up for school Monday morning. He had to serve his week of In-School Suspension, so I was surprised when I walked into the auditorium for second period and saw him in front of the stage speaking with Lori and Robert. I saw Robert place his hand on John's shoulder and give him an encouraging shake. If you knew what to look for, you would've been able to see the nervousness oozing from John. I didn't want to interrupt them, so I just waited around the back of the auditorium and ran interference with anyone who came in. I knew without hearing what they were saying, John was apologizing to Lori for his comments on Friday.

By the time he was finished with what he had to say, he was wrapped in Lori's embrace and his shoulders were shaking. When they pulled away from each other, John was wiping his cheeks. Robert placed his hand on John's shoulder again and started guiding him out of the auditorium. When they passed by me and some of the others hanging around the doors, we made eye contact and nodded to each other. As he walked out the door, I turned to him and said, "Don't forget, I loathe you!"

He gave me a sickenly sweet smile and said, "I loathe you, too!" Then he mumbled something under his breath that caused Robert to ask him what he just said. He looked at Robert and said, "I called him a freaking jerk."

Robert asked, "Are you sure you said `freaking'?"

John smiled and said, "Of course! What else would I have said?"

Robert urged him forward saying, "Oh, and you shouldn't call people jerks."

Before they turned the corner, I heard John say, "Why? You live with him. You know it's true!"

Robert's laugh echoed through the halls as the bell to begin class rang. I thought we might have to have a little chat later during my free period or when he got home. Traitorous big brother/dad/whatever-the-fuck-I-think-of-him-as-today. He's supposed to have my back.

Anyways, nothing exciting happened, except the fact just about everyone was wearing pajamas to school. It was Homecoming week and Monday's spirit day was pajamas day. Josh and I ordered some footsie pj's (you know the kind that are onesies with feet) for him, Kevin (yes, they make them in his size), Sean, and myself. They were all matching. Tuesday would be beach day, Wednesday-80's day, Thursday-twin day (you and someone else dressed in the exact same outfit), and Friday-formal day. To get ideas on what to wear, Lori and Robert suggested we watch a movie called "The Breakfast Club" for 80's day. All I'm going to say is, "You mess with the bull, you get the horns."

On Friday, we didn't have to wear a suit and tie but, a nice dress shirt and pants would pass. The girls all wore their corsages, and the guys wore boutonnieres. We had to go to a flower shop and order them like two weeks earlier and those things aren't cheap. The one Sean got for me had drama masks on it as well as a ribbon with yearbook staff spelled out on it. Since I knew he wouldn't be playing baseball in the spring because of his arm, I didn't want to rub it in and get anything with baseball related on it. I did get the florist to spell out coach's assistant on one ribbon though. Overall, I think he liked it.

As far as nominations for Homecoming King and Court went, Kevin, Sean, Castro, Mark, a basketball player named Steve, and a random guy (general goof off/class clown type) named Tanner were in the running. Josh, Jarrod, and Mike were all nominated for Junior class representative. I didn't know anyone nominated for the Sophomore and Freshman class reps. For Queen, Amber, Jenny, and unfortunately Rachel was nominated. Stacey was in the running for Junior class rep as well. The winners were announced during the pregame ceremonies and in the end, Sean was named King, Josh and Stacey both won the Junior class rep spots, I can barely remember who was nominated for the Sophomore and Freshman class reps, so I couldn't tell you who won anyways.

You might have noticed I left out who won Queen. That's because I don't want to acknowledge it happened. Because if she won, then that would mean on Saturday night at the school dance she danced with my boyfriend during a slow song. And during said slow dance, she smiled over at me before she tried to nuzzle in closer to Sean. The silver lining if that really did happen was Sean pushing her away and keeping her at arm's length the rest of the dance. Another positive was him dropping his arms and walking straight over to me as soon as the song ended. Then the icing on the hypothetical cake was Jenny coughing a word that sounded a lot like bitch as Rachel walked by.

Okay I'll admit all of it did happen and the worst part was, Rachel was hanging out with our group because her date was Pauly. Turns out he did like someone and wanted to ask her to Homecoming and decided to go for it after I gave him a pep talk. Damn my mouth and the smart and inspiring words that come out of it. I know she pulled that shit during the dance just to fuck with me, but still I felt bad for Pauly. When it happened, I looked over at him and he just shrugged and smiled at me. Then he laughed when Sean pushed her away. When they came back to the group, I saw Pauly whispering something in her ear. She turned beet red and slapped his arm. He laughed and pulled her into a hug, which she reluctantly returned but looked genuine in the end. I decided to focus on my date and dragged him out to the dance floor. Once we were out there, I removed the crown from his head and placed it on my own crookedly. He smiled at me and told me I looked ridiculous. Robert told me I looked like someone named Jughead. I had to look that one up and it's a character from some old comic named Archie. Evidently, Jughead wears a crown in the comic books. I told Robert he looked like an asshole and that earned me a slap to the back of my head.

I guess I should mention the football team won the game, so they are still undefeated. The rest of October flew by and before I knew it, Halloween was coming up. I'm a huge fan of Halloween. I go all out with my costumes. However, since this Halloween snuck up on me, I had to pull out a costume I've done a few times over the years. A zombie with full rotting corpse makeup. I even have contacts that make my irises extremely pale. Sean told me he wanted his costume to be a surprise for me, so he wouldn't tell me anything. No matter how much I begged, pleaded, annoyed, or ignored him. Josh was going to dress up like a Roman emperor. Kevin said he was going to go as a Roman centurion.

Halloween was on a Monday this year, so everyone dressed up on Friday since the spirit day theme was Halloween. When Josh and I arrived at school, I didn't see Sean's truck in the parking lot yet, so we decided to wait for him and Kevin in the cafeteria. About ten minutes later I saw Kevin in full Roman centurion armor walking next to...I found myself speechless. I never knew someone wearing full Scottish garb could be so fucking hot. Sean was wearing a kilt and his legs looked amazing. I swear he looked like some god from an old Scottish tale.

When they arrived at the table, Kevin placed his right fist over his heart and knelt on one knee with his head bowed in front of Josh and said, "I am yours to command, my Emperor."

Josh was just as speechless as I was once he heard that. I was still staring at Sean. Thank the gods I was a zombie today so I didn't really need the power of speech and I could get away with grunting. Sean looked behind me and a huge smile spread across his face. He made eye contact with me and said, "Holy shit, Teej! Your eyes are creepy as hell. But you gotta turn around and see who's walking in."

When I turned and looked, I was certain I would never regain the ability to speak again. Mark was dressed identical to Prince Charming from Cinderella. Next to him, wearing a beautiful silvery-blue ballgown was Chasity, complete with a tiara. She had her hair in an updo with baby's breath weaved through it. Since she had to carry the skirt of the gown as she walked, the heels she was wearing were visible. I know they couldn't have been really made from glass, since that shit would break, but they looked like they were. By the time they made their way to us, I finally found my voice. I was curious as hell and had to ask, "Girl, how the fuck are you going to be able to sit at a desk? There's no way in hell that skirt with all those petticoats will fit under one."

She stepped away from Mark's side and said, "Like this!" She then proceeded to unzip a zipper that magically appeared on the side of the skirt and then unsnapped some buttons around her waist and the skirt and petticoats were in her hands, free from the top of the dress. The top was actually part of another dress that ended just past her knees. This dress was just as elegant as the other but didn't scream Cinderella like the skirt and petticoats did.

"Holy shit!" I exclaimed loudly. "That is fucking genius. Did you make it yourself?"

She nodded and said, "Designed it and everything. I've designed and made some pieces over the years, but this was the first time I tried to do something this elaborate."

I suddenly had another brilliant idea and looked at the clock to make sure there was enough time. I grabbed her hand and verified, "You like doing things like that? Designing and making clothes and even costumes?"

She laughed as I dragged her away from the cafeteria with everyone else following us. "Yeah, why? Where are you dragging me?"

As we turned a corner I saw the person I was looking for. I called out, "Lori! Come here! You've got to see this. I think you're going to love it and I might have found a seamstress for the musical." I turned to Chasity and said, "Reattach the skirt and show Lori how it works." I noticed I was getting a little bossy, so I quickly added, "Please, if you don't mind helping us out with the musical that is."

Chasity laughed and said, "That sounds like fun. Here Ms. Simmons, let me show you how this works."

It's weird how when you're not paying attention time seems to zoom past you. Next thing I knew it was mid-November and I was at another football game. This was different though; because I was cheering a team who went undefeated in their district and was now in the playoffs. Texas high school football playoffs are no joking matter. It's all single-loss elimination, which means if the team makes it to the state finals and won, they would have played a perfect season. But, I'm getting ahead of myself. First, let's make it through the playoffs and Sean finally getting that damned cast taken off. Well, technically that happened closer to the beginning of November. Just pretend I told that in chronological order.

So, when the cast came off, you could tell Sean had lost some muscle mass. from atrophy. He went to a physical therapist who gave him daily exercises to do and put him on a scheduled weightlifting routine. He didn't have to go to physical therapy daily, but he did have to do the exercises four times every day. He was a little discouraged when he was told it would take at least three months before he could compare his results to how the arm had been previously. But being the eternal optimist he can be, he got motivated to be at full strength by that three-month mark.

Like I said, the playoffs were no joking matter, but the team made it through the first two rounds. Then we were out of school for a week due to Thanksgiving. There was still a game that Friday night, so Doris invited everyone over to her house for Thanksgiving dinner Thursday night. She had Pauly ask Sean, Kevin, Josh, and myself as the core guests.. In the end, I think there were about twenty-five people there. Among them were John and his mom, Rachel (Pauly's idea) and Coach Wilson, Hunter, and Pauly's other cousin Katie. The invitation was extended to any of the parents who wanted to come along with their kids; however, the only adults there were Doris, Robert, Lori, Jacob, Aaron, Coach Wilson, and Robin. The dinner ended up being a potluck with everybody bringing a dish. I convinced Jacob, Lori, and Robert to all pitch in and order enough fried turkeys for everyone. I made four pecan pies. I can't remember what everyone else brought; all I know is I had fried turkey, rolls, corn, mac and cheese, pecan pie, and rolls. (Yes, I realize I said rolls twice, but let's be honest- the most important thing on the table at Thanksgiving are the rolls.)

The dinner went off without a hitch. Of course, we had to set up extra tables and spread out throughout the house, but it was an enjoyable evening. I was surprised when I met Pauly and Hunter's cousin Katie. She was a sophomore at the same school Hunter went to. What surprised me was her style. She was full-on goth/emo. Black clothes, black eyeliner and lipstick, pale skin like porcelain, she even had a small stud in her right nostril. However, she was one of the nicest people I think I've ever met. And she was incredibly close to both Hunter and Pauly. The person she spent most of the evening with though was John. They just clicked as soon as they were introduced. She also wasn't afraid to put him in his place when he went too far.

At the end of dinner, Lori came to speak to all of the students. She reminded us auditions for the spring musical were going to be held the week after we got back from break and all were welcome. She told us anyone who wanted to try out needed to pick up the audition music from the choir director and prepare a short (less than one minute) narrative piece. It could be anything from a poem to a monologue from a play. She also let us know if we had any questions to come by and speak with her. She surprised me then when she pulled Ethan to the side to talk to him alone. Well, as alone as you can be in a room full of people. They were right next to me, so I heard the whole conversation. Lori asked him if he was interested in being the musical. He smiled and managed to get out, "I w-w-would love to b-b-be in the musical. But, it w-w-w-would have to be a s-s-singing p-part on-only."

Lori smiled back and said, "What if you were to sing any lines you had? I have you in mind for a specific part and if you're interested, there aren't many lines to be delivered."

Ethan's grin spread across his face when he sang out, "You mean like this?" in a melodic if tuneless voice. You could tell he was using his singing voice, but there was no recognizable tune to go with the words.

Lori nodded. "That's exactly what I mean. Do you think you'd want to do that?"

Ethan nodded and shyly asked, "What p-part did you ha-have in m-m-mind?"

Lori leaned in a said in a softer voice, "I think you make a perfect Chip. But don't say anything to anyone. I don't want people to think I have roles already picked for certain people. I'll still have do the call backs and I'll make sure you fit with whoever I might cast as Mrs. Potts and Belle."

Ethan walked back over to Patrick with a huge smile plastered on his face. Lori was going to go back to Robert, who was speaking with Doris and Jacob, but then she noticed I was innocently eavesdropping on the conversation and turned to me. "TJ, you know I don't have the cast predetermined, right?"

I smiled. "Yeah, I know. I'm glad you talked to Ethan, though. I would love for him to be on stage and shine. That was a good idea about singing the lines, where did you get the idea from?"

"There was a singer my grandparents loved named Mel Tellis and I had to listen to them listening to his records growing up. When he spoke, he had a stutter, but when he sang he didn't. And I know Ethan doesn't stutter when he's singing; so, I wondered if it was possible for someone with a stutter to deliver lines if they sang them. I looked it up online and found it is possible."

"Wow, that's pretty cool to know. I'm glad he's going to have a chance to show everyone what he can do. He's a good guy." I then went to find Sean and figure out if he was spending the night with me or not.

I found him hanging out with Pauly, Kevin, Castro, Mark, Patrick, and Hunter. Josh was hanging out with Chase, Ethan, Jenny, Amber, Jarrod, Mike, and Stacey. I joined Sean's group and heard Hunter say, "Yeah, since my team's out of the playoffs now, I guess I'll come and support y'all. It will just be weird sitting in the stands with Gramma. She gets way too excited during the games and god forbid a ref makes a bad call. I'm surprised she's never been kicked out of a game for some of the things she says."

Little did Hunter know, Doris was passing behind him and he was surprised when she whacked him on the back of his head and said, "Watch it, buddy. Besides, you don't have to sit with me if you don't want. I'll have Jacob, Robert, Lori, and Officer Aaron to sit with. Hmm, I wonder if I can convince Aaron to wear his uniform to the game and take the seat in front of me..."

I laughed and said, "I try to convince him to let Sean borrow it so he can model it for me all the time. Sean thinks I'm crazy and Aaron thinks it's hilarious."

Doris made a show of looking around everyone to see Sean's ass and said, "I think he could model it just fine." She then winked at Sean and continued, "If you want, once you turn eighteen, you can model it for me. It would make an old woman's day."

I grabbed Sean and pushed him behind me. "Hey, old woman, this one's mine. Find your own. Try the Luby's by the mall. There seems to be guys more in your age bracket there." My face might have turned green since I suddenly felt nauseated. "Oh god! Ew! Ew! Ew! I need to get the thought of octogenarians having...relations...out of my head."

Doris crossed her arms and said, "I'm not an octogenarian yet. I'm a sexagenarian and it's okay for me to have relations as you called it. Sex is right there in the word."

She then turned on her heels and walked away, leaving everyone speechless. Finally, Pauly said, "Ladies and gentlemen, that's my grandmother. Gotta love her!" which made everyone break out in laughter.

I looked at Hunter and told him, "Don't worry. You can sit with us. In fact, aren't you staying here tonight?"

He nodded. "Yeah. I was going to stay here and ride to the game with Gramma. Why?"

"Do you think she would mind if you rode with us instead and she can ride with Lori and Robert or Jacob and Aaron. That way you don't have to look everywhere for us once you're at the game."

"I think that would be fine. As long as Mr. Kennedy or Mr. McNair doesn't mind picking her up and bringing her back," Hunter agreed.

I smiled and said, "Well, there's only one way to find out. Come on, let's go ask them."

So, Hunter and I sought out Robert or Jacob and when we found them together, they happily agreed with our plan. Even Doris went along with it when she said, "Thank god I don't have to drive and deal with all those assholes on the road."

Hunter laughed. "Gramma, you wouldn't have driven anyways. You were planning on making me drive you, remember?" He turned to look at me and said, "They say memory is the first thing to go." He turned back to Doris and continued, "Don't worry Gramma. Pauly, Katie, and I will be here to help you through your twilight years. We've already found a lovely home for you over in Louisiana."

Doris smiled at him sweetly and said, "Just try to put me in a home somewhere. We'll see what happens. Remember, I know where you sleep, and I know where you park your car every night and every day. It would be a travesty if somehow your brakes suddenly stopped working or you randomly stopped breathing in your sleep. Warn your cousins, too. But remember, I love each and every one of you. As long as you don't piss me off."

Everyone within earshot burst out laughing. Except for Hunter, Pauly, and Katie. They looked like they couldn't decide if she was joking or serious. I clapped Hunter on the shoulder and said, "Don't worry. She's mostly harmless. I think. Maybe. Actually, I would worry if I were y'all. In fact, be afraid. Be very afraid."

Needless to say, Patrick led the football team to yet another victory the following night. The drive home after the game took about an hour and a half and there was supposed to be a victory party somewhere out in the boonies. By the time we got back to the house after dropping Hunter off at Doris' it was already eleven thirty at night. Sean and Kevin talked about wanting to go to the party, but I was hungry and tired and wanted nothing else but to eat leftovers from the night before and crawl into bed. Plus, I just didn't have a good feeling about going out that night. Something felt off and I let them know. It took a little convincing, but finally they agreed to stay in with Josh and me. I sent a group text out to everyone asking them to please not go out and get some rest.

Thankfully, everyone agreed they were too tired to go out; besides, our group isn't really the party type of crowd. Sure, we like to get together and hang out, but I think we'd rather talk, watch movies, play games, or something along those lines rather than go out and get drunk or high. That night, the party was busted by the cops. A few seniors received minor in possession of alcohol charges as well as public intoxication. Thankfully, none of them were starters on the football team. A couple were second or third string, but the starting line-up is made up of some pretty decent guys who are smart enough not to go out and get drunk at a huge party. Well, at least not during the football season.

Monday during Drama class, we spent most of the period hanging signs up around the school announcing the open auditions for Disney's Beauty and the Beast. We also hung up a sign-up sheet that had specific times for groups of ten to do their reading and sing the audition song. Each group was in thirty-minute intervals beginning at three. (There was a note that read to see Ms. Simmons for a pass to get out of class early to attend the audition at that time.) Auditions were held on Monday, call backs were on Tuesday and Wednesday, and final cast list was announced on Thursday morning. Then on Thursday after school we would have our table read.

I signed up to audition at four o'clock. My group included Josh, Sean, Ethan, Amber, Jenny, John, Stacey, another guy and girl from our Drama class, and myself. The song we had to sing was actually from The Sound of Music. Since it has both a male and female solo, we sang You are Sixteen Going on Seventeen. Everyone made it through the song individually, which was surprising since the other guy from our Drama class couldn't carry a tune in a bucket- even if that bucket was the size of a swimming pool. I noticed everyone from our group tensed up a little when Ethan was told to take the stage and do his one-minute reading. Even John looked like he felt sorry for Ethan or something. I just smiled at them all and whispered, "Just relax and watch. It will be okay."

They all thought I must have lost my mind. Jenny looked like she was about to speak up and tell Lori not to make him go through with it. I placed a hand on her arm and told her to look at Ethan. He was grinning from ear to ear and walking more confidently than we've ever seen. He stood center stage and, in a voice higher than normal, delivered his one-minute reading flawlessly. He didn't stutter one single time. I realized he couldn't communicate like this all the time. Nobody would be able to handle singing every word that comes out of their mouth. This isn't Les Misérables and he certainly isn't Jean Valjean. When he finished his reading, he received a standing ovation. We were all so proud of him. I did Puck's final lines from A Midsummer's Night Dream for my reading.

Call-backs for certain roles were posted Tuesday morning and would be held Tuesday and Wednesday after school, depending on what role or roles you were called-back to read for. I was called-back for both days along with Josh, John, Amber, Jenny, Rachel, and Sean. Everyone else was one day or the other. On Tuesday, they had Sean and me read for Gaston with Josh and John as LeFou. We switched out so everyone read with everyone else. Amber, Jenny. and Rachel read for Mrs. Potts and then Babette. On Wednesday, they had Sean and me read for The Beast while Josh and John read for Lumiere. The girls read for Belle.

Once call-backs were finished on Wednesday, Lori told us she would post the cast list outside the auditorium at seven forty-five on Thursday morning. She also reminded us that just because we were called-back to read for certain roles didn't mean we would be cast in one of those roles.

So, the next morning, Josh and I met up with Amber, Jenny, Sean, Ethan, and the rest at seven thirty. Fifteen minutes can take forever sometimes. I think I checked my phone for the time about every two minutes. Finally, at seven forty-five on the dot, Lori taped a piece of paper to the wall next to the auditorium. As soon as she stepped away, everyone swarmed. The leads were listed at the top of the list beginning with The Beast. It will probably be easier if I just show y'all what the list looked like.

The Beast- TJ Kennedy

Belle- Rachel Wilson

Gaston- Sean McNair

Lumiere- Josh Kennedy

Cogsworth- Brian Wright (a junior in our Drama class)

Mrs. Potts- Amber Thompson

Chip- Ethan Marsh

Babette- Jenny Landrum

LeFou- John Naples

The list went on to include Maurice, the townspeople, the rest of the people in the castle, and who the stage manager was going to be (Stacey). I was in such a state of shock I got the lead; I didn't fully register who was cast opposite of me. It wasn't until I heard Jenny's gasp and she muttered, "That fucking bitch is going to play Belle?" that I reread the list. My world zeroed in on the name. Rachel Wilson. I immediately turned to find Lori and noticed she was heading upstairs, I guess to her classroom/office.

I caught up with her just as she was opening the door, so I followed her inside. As soon as the door closed behind me, she cut me off before I could say anything. "Yes, I really did cast Rachel Wilson as Belle and I'm not going to have any of my students question me about it. Now, if you want to listen to my reasons, I'll tell you. But, if you're here just to throw a tantrum, turn around and walk out. I'll find someone else to play your role and you can run the spotlight."

I was flabbergasted. Finally, I crossed my arms over my chest petulantly and said, "I wasn't going to throw a tantrum. I just want to know why her?"

"Didn't you notice yesterday when you two read the scene as The Beast and Belle, everyone in the room stopped and paid attention to you. You two have a natural chemistry that works for these roles in the beginning. Plus, I know you're a good actor and can pull off becoming friendlier with her and eventually falling in love with her. But the base of the whole relationship is how the two start off as bitter enemies. Just please trust me on this. You two will do fine up there. I would never sabotage my own show."

"Fine. I can see I can't talk you into seeing the light. I'll go along with your cockamamie plan. But if this all goes to sh...poop can I at least say I told you so?"

She laughed and replied, "Nope. Now get out of here and get to your first period class. You're about to be late if you don't haul as...butt."

I walked into English class seconds before the final bell rang. People were still talking while the teacher took roll, so I sat next to Sean and said, "Congratulations! You get to play an egotistical asshole stalker who tries to kill me at the end. Oh, and John gets to play like he's in love with you and follows you around everywhere like some lost puppy. Meanwhile, I get to fight with and then fall in love with Rachel. Sounds like fun huh?"

Sean gave me an indulgent smile. "Come on, Teej. She was fine at Homecoming and Thanksgiving. Give her a chance. She's a good actor and has a nice voice."

I raised my eyebrow in question. "She was fine at Homecoming? Am I the only one who remembers her trying to dance all up on you in front of both of your dates only to have you push her away in the end?"

"She was just playing around. She told me she seriously likes Pauly and wants it to work out. She did that mainly to see what he would do. I pushed her away because I knew it would upset you. Besides, I think Lori knows what she's doing and she probably told you so when you went to talk to her."

Before I could respond, Mrs. Waters started class. I glanced over at Rachel and noticed her looking at me too. Both of our eyes narrowed at the same time. Then, we both looked away at the same time. Anyone watching us would've probably found it funny; which was proven true when I looked back at Sean and saw him trying to suppress a smile. When the bell rang, I saw Rachel leave with John while having a conversation. They both were smiling and laughing. I thought to myself that this could lead to trouble.

People who had seen the cast list congratulated me the rest of the day. After the last bell rang, I made my way to the auditorium with Sean. We met up with Josh and Ethan on our way and found Jenny and Amber waiting for us. For the table read, we all literally sit at some tables that are set up in a horseshoe and read our parts from the script. During the songs, Lori had the soundtrack from the Broadway production, and she would play the song and we could sing our parts if we wanted. This gave the people who have never heard the songs before the chance to hear the tunes.

The table read took about two and half hours to finally get through. Because it was already so late, I said bye to Sean in the parking lot, then Josh and I headed home with Lori following us. Luckily, Robert had pizza on the way to the house when we got there, so we didn't have to wait too long to eat. After dinner, Josh and I did the little bit of homework we had and by that time, it was time for us to start getting ready for bed. I went out to the living room to tell Robert and Lori goodnight and walked in on them making out on the couch. They jumped apart so fast when I cleared my throat, I thought they might end up on opposite sides of the room. I laughed so hard my stomach and sides started hurting. They finally joined in the laughter and once everyone calmed down, Lori told us goodnight and headed home.

I headed back to my room and stopped by Josh's room to check on him. I was surprised he didn't come out and see what we were all laughing about earlier. I knocked on his door and opened it when he said, "Yeah?" and found him on the phone.

I chuckled and said, "Just wanted to say goodnight," then I spoke a little louder. "Goodnight, Kevin. See you in the morning."

Josh threw one of his pillows at me while he said, "Yeah, goodnight. Kevin says, `Goodnight, Teej,' now get out of here so I can finish talking to him."

I tossed his pillow back at him and went to my room. I checked my phone and saw I had a message from Sean from a few minutes earlier. I texted him back telling him goodnight and that I would see him in the morning. As I laid there trying to go to sleep, I thought about everything Lori and Sean had said about Rachel. I decided I was going to try to make it work no matter what. I know I'm a pretty good actor, so I would just act like we got along. Hopefully that would work.

The next day, since we were still in the playoffs, there was no rehearsal. We left for the game as soon as school let out since it was outside of Houston in Baytown. There was the added bonus that the stadium is about two miles from a Bucc-ee's! If you've never been to a Bucc-ee's, then you haven't lived. You can't call it a truck stop, since no eighteen wheelers are allowed in the parking lot. So, it's more like a glorified gas station. But, they have been voted the cleanest bathrooms in the nation. I was happy because I could get my Beaver Nuggets and Hill Country Bohemian Garlic Beef Jerky fix.

Once we loaded up on snacks, we went to the stadium to cheer on the football team. We didn't have anything to worry about, the team pulled off the win with no problem. Once we got back home, Josh and I spent the night at Sean and Kevin's. Saturday morning, after we woke up and Jacob made us breakfast, Josh and I headed home. Later that night, we were meeting back up with Kevin and Sean to go to dinner and then go play mini golf. We figured it would be more fun to play mini golf so we could have a conversation rather than see a movie where we wouldn't be able to talk for two to three hours.

Well, I can officially say I hate fucking mini golf. I was trying to do my best, but the more I played the more frustrated I got. The ball just did not want to go in the fucking hole. Like, at all. Or at least I should say MY ball didn't want to go in the fucking hole. I couldn't even get par on most of the holes, while the other three were racking up hole-in-ones and birdies left and right. To top it all off, they couldn't stop laughing at me. Well, they were laughing at how mad I was getting after each hole. The more they laughed, the madder I got. The madder I got, the worse I played. I almost got us kicked out the mini golf place by calling the three of them creative names. My best one, in my opinion, was an infected-cum- bubble-on-the-penis-wrinkle-of-an-eighty-year-old-herpes-infected-former- gutter-whore. That's the title I gave to Kevin after his fourth hole-in-one.

Monday when we got back to school, I pulled John aside before first period English to ask him what happened with the report he filed with Aaron. He told me the guy was arrested that night and had been in jail since his arrest because none of his "friends" would bail him out. I then asked him how he was doing and he sarcastically asked, "Why, TJ? Do you actually give a fuck about me? Or are you just being polite?"

Before I could answer him, Rachel walked up to us and grabbed his arm and started dragging him away. She said back over her shoulder, "Don't bother pretending TJ. I've heard what you've said about John in the past. He doesn't need people like you bothering him. Let his real friends help him.

John looked back at me and half smiled. "Oh and Tj don't forget. I loathe you!"

I yelled back, "I loathe you, too, cum-breath!"

Unfortunately, Robert was walking up behind me and heard me say that. He actually took me back to his office. Once he closed the door behind us and took a seat behind his desk he asked, "Teej, you know you can't yell out and call someone cum-breath in the hallways, right?"

Hearing Robert say cum-breath caused me to start laughing and it took me a minute before I could answer him. When I said, "Well, if you weren't lurking around corners eavesdropping on people's conversations like some sort of creeper, we wouldn't have an issue right now," he didn't look impressed.

He cocked an eyebrow and said, "I wasn't lurking or eavesdropping. I was walking back to my office from talking to Lori."

I smirked and replied, "Oh, so that's why you've got lipstick on the side of your mouth."

He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, causing me to laugh again. "I just totally got you! You just gave yourself away! How about this. You love me, so you let me off with a warning and I won't let everyone at lunch know you and Lori were making out in her room."

He chuckled and said, "We weren't making out and I was going to give you a warning anyways. Besides, you have no proof of anything going on anywhere on schoolgrounds. Have a seat and wait a second for the other three to get here."

I must have had a confused look on my face because he continued, "Kevin, Sean, and Josh should be on their way and be here any second now."

I shrugged and sat down on the couch. Less than a minute later, there was a knock on the door and Sean, Kevin, and Josh walked in together. Robert told them to take a seat as well. He then said, "I just got a call from Jacob. He received a call from Patrick Landrum this morning letting him know Kevin's dad took a plea deal. He'll serve eighteen months in county jail and then be on probation for two years. The deal was he would plea guilty and they would reduce the charges from felonies to misdemeanors. So, none of y'all have to testify at a trial and this saves you, Kevin, from having to see your father. I know you weren't looking forward to that. Do any y'all have any questions?"

Kevin had a slight smile on his face when he asked, "So, he won't be out of jail for at least a year and a half and I don't have to go on the stand in court, right?"

Robert smiled and nodded. "Yup! That's right! Are you happy with the outcome?"

Kevin shrugged. "It would've been nice if he had gotten the felony charges, but as long as he stays out of my life, I'm good."

Robert handed each of us a pass and said, "Alright. Now get out of my office; some of us have work to do. Here's a pass to excuse your tardy."

Our first rehearsal was scheduled for after school on Monday. We knew rehearsals were going to be on Monday through Thursday from six till we finished for the day. Lori told us she started them that late to give us time to go home, eat dinner, work on our homework, go to any club meetings or practices that were scheduled, and then come back to the school. Each week we were given a schedule of what scenes we were working on each day. On the day with musical numbers in the scene, we had both blocking and choreography to deal with. It wasn't easy watching Sean and John rehearsing their scenes together, given the fact that John, as LeFou, had to flirt unashamedly with Sean in just about every scene. Luckily, Gaston is clueless to LeFou's advances.

My scenes with Rachel were easy to act through in the beginning. However, when we got to the part where the cast is singing Something There, our interactions have to change. Lori noticed Rachel and I needed to rehearse those scenes a little more, so she asked the two of us to come to every rehearsal, regardless if we were supposed to be there or not so we could go over those scenes together in private. This happened after the break for the holidays.

Before those private rehearsals began, the football team kept winning and next thing we knew, we were heading to the Dallas area to play in the state finals, against my former school. I called Scott as soon as we won the game before the finals to see if he and his boyfriend wanted to meet up while we were in the area. I called him in time to hear the roar of the crowd in the background and asked what was going on. He told me the football team had just won and the next week they were playing in the finals. I laughed and said, "Well, I know who y'all are playing against. Guess we'll be on opposite sides of the stadium to cheer on our teams. I was going to ask if you wanted to meet up with us while we were in the area and maybe go to the game with us."

Scott laughed. "Well, Ryan and I are going to the game. Do you want to maybe meet up before or after the game and get some dinner?"

"Well, I wanted to introduce you to Sean, but he'll be traveling with the team more than likely. Let me talk to Robert and see if we're going to get some rooms up there to spend the night. If we do, then Sean can leave with us, as long as he gets permission from his coach and his dad. Same thing with Kevin."

"Who's Kevin?" Scott asked.

"He's Josh's boyfriend. You won't believe how huge he is compared to Josh. It's almost funny. I'll call you back tomorrow and let you know what Robert says," I responded.

"Okay, I'll talk to you then. I'm looking forward to next week. It will be so good to see you again!" Scott then hung up.

I found out the game the following week was scheduled on Saturday. All state final games were going to played back-to-back all day beginning at nine in the morning. That's a total of eight games and our game was the last one scheduled. In theory, it would start about eight or nine that night. Some games in the past didn't start until eleven or almost midnight. Since the following Monday was the first day of the Winter Break, Friday was going to be let out at noon. Robert said he was going to reserve a couple of rooms for us to stay in. Lori and him would be in one and Sean, Kevin, Josh, and I would be in the other. Sean and Kevin got permission from Jacob and Coach Wilson to travel to and from the game with us instead of riding on the charter bus the booster club got for the team.

Robert wouldn't tell us where we were going to be staying, so when I called Scott to let him know I would be in the area Friday night but unsure of where we would be, he told me to call him as soon as we got to the hotel and we could make plans from there. The only thing Robert told us was for us to bring our bathing suits, because there was an indoor pool we could use while staying there. When we pulled up in front of the Great Wolf Lodge in Grapevine, all four of us were excited. The rooms included admission to an indoor water park for each day of our stay including check-out day and all guests staying in the room got passes for the park. I was even more surprised when I saw Scott and Ryan waiting in the lobby both carrying duffle bags.

I ran over to Scott, and he pulled me into a tight hug. I couldn't help it, I started crying a little. I didn't think seeing him again would be so emotional. The memories that were brought back weren't of our fight, but of how he was there for me and held me all night and let me cry on his shoulder the night my parents died. When we finally released each other from the hug I looked at him and asked, "What the hell are you doing here? Are you staying here too?"

He smiled and said, "Earlier this week, I got a weird message on Facebook Messenger from some guy named Robert Kennedy asking me to call him as soon as I got the message. When I called him, he said, `I know you and Teej were planning on meeting up while we were up in the area. How would you like for you and your boyfriend to stay at the Great Wolf Lodge from Friday night till Monday morning? If you need to have your dad and or Ryan's parents call me, that's fine, just give them my number. After I talked to my dad, he jumped at the idea and he called Ryan's parents and cleared everything with them and then called Mr. Kennedy back and set everything up for this weekend. I found out later, he was so excited because he was planning a weekend getaway for him and his boyfriend across the street at the Gaylord."

I turned to Robert with a huge smile on my face and asked, "We're staying here till Monday? And you invited my friends to join us? Thank you so much!" I then wrapped him in a bear hug and picked him up and spun him around. It wasn't easy, he isn't a lightweight. When I put him down, he went to check in at the front desk. He came back over to us with keycards for our room- all six of us were in one room, what the actual fuck?- and passes for the waterpark. He told us our room number and so we went to the elevator and went up to our floor. On the way up to our floor, I introduced everyone to each other. When we found the room and opened the door, I was shocked. The six of us were in a loft suite with three queen beds!

I looked at Scott, Ryan, and Sean and asked, "Do y'all want us to take the two beds down here and let Josh and Kevin have the loft?"

We agreed to that. I then added to Scott, "That way, you can sleep comfortably knowing that the midget who attacked you is upstairs and not in the bed next to yours."

Josh turned so red, I thought he was turning into a tomato. He turned to Scott and said, "I'm sorry. Not really, but yeah."

Thankfully, Scott laughed it off and told him he deserved it and not to worry about it. Josh turned to me and called me an asshole for bringing it up. Scott looked at me and started to apologize, but I stopped him and said, "You've already made amends for that to me. Remember? It's more than just saying you're sorry, it's proving you've changed and stopped the behavior that led you there. Just keep proving to me you've changed and we're good. Now, let's get changed into our bathing suits and check out this waterpark!"

Once we got changed into our bathing suits, we headed to Robert and Lori's room. Maybe we should have called before showing up at their room, because it took quite a while for Robert to finally answer the door. When he did, his hair was completely messed up and his clothes were a little disheveled. He looked at the six of us and asked in a slightly annoyed voice, "What's up? Why are y'all here?"

Josh snickered and I was trying to keep a straight face but was miserably failing. "We stopped by to see if y'all wanted to go down to the waterpark with us."

Robert rolled his eyes and grunted, "You could've called and asked us. That way I could've ignored your call and I would still be enjoying not having any annoying teenagers around. We'll meet y'all down there in about an hour or so. We were just about to lay down for a nap. Remember I've been driving all afternoon. Goodbye!"

He shut the door without even waiting for a reply. How rude! As soon as I turned around and looked at everyone, we all started laughing. We made our way down to the waterpark and had a lot of fun going down the slides, floating in the lazy river, getting tired as eff in the wave pool, and standing under the huge bucket and having one thousand gallons of water fall on you.

Sean and Scott hung out by themselves talking while sitting at a table by the snack stand. Ryan and I sat back and watched them for a bit from a distance. We couldn't hear what they were saying, but we saw them comparing one of their arms to the other. Both of Scott's were about the same size, but Sean's right arm was still a bit smaller than his left. I looked at Ryan and said, "Sean just had his cast removed at the beginning of November. He's going to rehab to strengthen it back up, but he's afraid it won't be as strong as it was before. Not that that matters since he won't be playing football again. He can't risk another concussion. But with his arm the way it is now, he can't play baseball in the spring. He says he's okay with that, but sometimes I think it still gets to him."

Ryan waited a few moments and then asked, "How did he break his arm, and how many concussions has he had?"

So, I told him the story about how Smith and Pauly manipulated Pauly's cousin into hurting Sean during a game. I told him the whole story about how Pauly finally separated himself from Smith and became one of our really good friends. "He's had a total of four concussions in the past three years. But, the last one he got was on top of one he didn't tell anyone about. He shouldn't have been playing at all with the concussion, but to get one on top of that one put him at a higher risk for permanent damage. But he didn't let losing football and baseball get him down. He was upset at first and lashed out a bit, but it set him on a path. Now, he wants to be a coach after he graduates from college. He'll be on the sidelines tomorrow calling plays working closely with the head coach who is the offensive coordinator."

Kevin and Josh walked up to us just I finished telling Ryan everything. Kevin grinned and added, "We've had an undefeated season thanks to him helping the back up quarterback for the past two years and now he's calling all the offensive plays. He's going to make an awesome coach."

I looked at Ryan and finally asked him the question I hadn't been able to ask Scott. "So, how are things at school for him now? Did his old friends stick by him or are they talking the shit about him they used to say about me? And what has Kimmie been like? I'm sure she's giving both of you shit, lord knows she used to try to make life hell when I lived up here."

"His friends," Ryan growled out with a fierce look, "decided they didn't want to be around him much anymore. Nick started dating Kimmie like two days after he kicked her out of the house, which was immediately after what happened between the two of you. They've been giving him the hardest time. The rest of the group tends to ignore him instead of saying anything to him. But he doesn't let anything they say get to him. He just ignores them, which pisses them off. When I asked him if he missed them or anything he said, `Not at all. If they were really my friends they would've supported me, not abandoned me.'"

We looked back over at our boyfriends to see them staring at us with dopey smiles on their faces. Sean waved us over and we went and joined them. We had to pull another table over so there was enough room for everyone the sit. About two minutes later, Robert and Lori finally joined us, which meant we had to pull another table over. I looked at Robert and asked in an innocent voice, "So, did y'all have a nice nap?"

Robert looked at me completely deadpan and replied, "I think it was probably the best nap I've ever had."

"Gross! I don't want to hear about how good your nap was. Why do you insist on embarrassing Josh and me in front of our friends?"

"I don't know what you're talking about, Teej. I'm telling you I had an amazing nap," Robert said with a smile.

We went for another round on the slides; this time with Robert and Lori joining us. Finally, about half an hour later, we decided to go get ready and grab some dinner. We went right down the street and had some delicious hamburgers at Fuddruckers. Once we got back to the room, we sat around and talked for a while; finally, we decided to head to bed and get some rest. Afterall, Kevin had an important game to play in the next day.

We were woken up by a pounding on the room door. I went to answer it, wearing only my basketball shorts, morning erection leading the way. I couldn't even tuck it up in the waistband, since then the head would show. Maybe I should've grabbed a shirt. Lori and Robert were on the other side of the door, smiling way too big. "Come on, Teej! Get everyone up and dressed. We're going to have some breakfast, spend some time in the waterpark, then get ready and head to the stadium around five. We'll grab dinner on the way over there. Kevin and Sean don't need to meet up with the team and Coach Wilson till seven," Robert encouraged with too much energy.

Without saying a word, I let the door close in their faces. However, I'm sure they heard me when I turned around and yelled, "Alright, you lazy asses. Get the fuck up and get ready for breakfast with the old folks who are waiting in the hall."

Once everyone was moving around and getting ready, after I grabbed a shirt and slid into a pair of jeans, I opened the door again and saw Robert and Lori sitting on the floor in the hallway. I looked down at them and asked, "I'm sorry, did y'all want to come in and wait?" with a smirk on my face.

Surprisingly, it was Lori who answered. "You know sometimes Teej, you can be a little shithead."

I beamed at her. "But that's why y'all love me. Admit it. I keep y'all on your toes."

They followed me into the room and took a seat on the couch. That's when Kevin walked out of the bathroom wearing only a pair of boxer briefs followed by Josh wearing a towel around his waist. We discovered when Kevin turns the adorable shade of red whenever he blushes, it goes almost all the way down to his waist. Josh just walked past them, waved and said, "Good morning Dad and Lori. Give us five minutes and we'll be ready to go." He then walked over to me and said, "You're an asshole. I know you waited till we were about to get out of the shower to let them in."

I tried my best to look as innocent as possible. "I would never do something like that Joshy. I'm surprised you think so little of me. I'm truly hurt."

Sean came up from behind me and wrapped me in a hug. "Josh, he told me he was letting them in because he noticed y'all didn't bring clothes down with you. He is an asshole. But he's ours, and I figure we should just love him the way he is because there are no returns without receipts and I looked the other day and couldn't find it. So, we're stuck with this one."

I turned in his embrace and looked at him with a beaming smile. "Actually, I found the receipt and shredded it so you wouldn't have the option to return me. That's how much I know you love me."

After breakfast, we went to the waterpark again. Only Kevin didn't ride any rides or get in the wave pool. He didn't want to tire himself out too much before the game that night. So, instead, he and Josh stayed in the lazy river on inner tubes for the majority of the day. After riding a few slides with us, Robert and Lori decided to join them.

We went upstairs to our rooms and changed around four and left to eat dinner before Sean and Kevin had to meet up with the team at seven. Once we were at the restaurant, we found Doris, Hunter, Katie, Aaron, and Jacob standing together talking in one group. In another group right next to them was Scott's dad and his boyfriend, and Ryan's brother Pete and his girlfriend. I walked up to Doris and threw my arm around her shoulders and planted a big kiss on her cheek. In response, she whacked me with her purse and tried to get Aaron to arrest me for assault. Thankfully, Aaron told her it was out of his jurisdiction and there was nothing he could do about it. Scott and Ryan were surprised to see their families there and everyone exchanged hugs. When the two groups realized we were all together and everyone was introduced to each other, we headed in and sat down for dinner.

After we left the restaurant, we got to AT&T Stadium about six forty-five. Sean and Kevin left us to meet with the team while we all found seats inside. The games, of course were running late. So, our game that was supposed to start at eight thirty wasn't going to start till probably ten or ten thirty.