November 10, 2013 New Story ***True Beauty*** I covered my head with my pillow and dove as far down under the covers as I could. The noise was killing me, and I couldn’t escape from it. “Make it stop,” I thought to myself. After another full minute I heard footsteps, and the noise finally stopped. The alarm clock was off. I breathed a soft sigh of relief, but it was short lived. Soon I heard really loud music, and I groaned. I sat up in my bed. “Stephanie, could you please turn that down?” “Man, you must’ve woken up on the wrong side of the bed,” she replied nastily, but she did turn it down a little bit. “Do me a favor and don’t turn it off while I’m in the shower. ‘Kay? Thanks!” She grabbed her towel, turned on her bathroom light, and closed the door behind her. You would think that as her twin, I would like being around with my sister. Well, after 16 years, I still didn’t like it. She was loud, rude, and the complete opposite of me. We had nothing in common except for our looks. Well, almost nothing. When we were little kids, perfect strangers had a really hard time of telling us apart. But when I was seven, I had a horseback riding accident and fell on my face. A tiny scar on my cheek is all that’s left of that, but Stephanie’s always had the perfect, mark-free face. How she has no acne, I don’t know. But I still struggle with it occasionally like normal people. There. Now that Ive gone through the basics, let’s go on with the rest of the story. I got out of bed and turned on my bedroom light. Another thing that we had in common was that we liked getting dressed while music was playing, but our tastes were completely different. Stephanie liked pop and techno, but I sided towards country and classical. After a ten-minute shower, I looked at the clock and felt my jaw drop. I only had 30 minutes to get dressed and eat. I quickly pulled out my favorite skinny jeans, the only ones that never needed to be ironed. I rubbed Japanese Cherry Blossom lotion on my arms and found a purple American Eagle sweater and white tank top to layer it with. By the time ‘You Belong with Me’ was playing on my radio, Stephanie had come into my room. “Hey, Sarah,” she stopped and crinkled her nose. “Oh God, it stinks in here!” “If that’s the case, then why are you always in here?” My room wasn’t messy or smelly; I had just cleaned it the night before and put in vanilla incense. And she wasin my room a lot. I could never figure out why. “I just came to tell you that mom wants us down at breakfast aysap.” She scratched at the silk scarf that she wore around her head at night. “Is that it?” I spritzed Paris Hilton perfume on my neck and wrists. It was faint, but it got the job done. “Well,” she hesitated, “I was gonna ask if I could borrow that shirt. The audition calls for a simple outfit, but since you’re wearing it, never mind.” “I don’t see anything wrong with what you’re wearing, Stephanie.” Her jeans were pitch black, the sweater was deep red and from BCBG, and a black scarf was wrapped around her neck. “It just might be too cold for that shirt. But if you kept everything else, it wouldn’t match.” She scowled at me. I shrugged. “It’s true.” I went into my bathroom and started brushing my hair, hoping that by the time I came back out she would be sitting at the breakfast table or at least out of my room. I pinned my bangs to the middle of my head and caught the rest of my hair in a ponytail. My black UGG boots were by the door, and I slipped them on before I went downstairs. I smelled the food before I saw it. There were two empty chairs at the table. At one place setting sat a plate with homemade pancakes, my dad’s specialty scrambled eggs, and bacon, with an empty smaller plate for the nearby fruit salad. The placemat next to it just had a bowl of Special K cereal and a plate of strawberries and apple slices. I knew that it was for Stephanie. I sat down to my warm breakfast and breathed deeply. “Morning, Sarah,” my parents said. “Try to eat fast, honey.” My mom rushed me while my dad opened cupboards, looking for another plate. “I have to leave in less than fifteen minutes and you will too if you’re still coming with us.” “I still want to, mom. I’ll be finished soon.” True to my word, I was done in less than eight minutes. By that time Stephanie had come downstairs. Her hair smelled burnt, so I knew that she had at least used her blow dryer. This time, she was wearing a creamy white belted V-neck sweater with the same black skinny jeans tucked into short, shiny black boots. She was still eating her cereal when I was putting my dishes away. “You guys have five minutes to be in the car,” my mom called out. I looked up and saw her scarf flowing behind her, followed by her long hair. I went back to my bathroom, brushed my teeth, and grabbed my white leather purse. It was big and a two year old Christmas present from Stephanie. Amazingly, it was the best present she had ever given me. I stuffed it with my cell phone, wallet, iPod, lip balm, and my house keys, just in case. My white wool scarf was hanging on the doorknob, and I wrapped it around my neck. My mom was honking the horn outside. I ran to the coat rack and slipped into my black pea coat. “Bye Dad,” I yelled in the direction of the kitchen. “Have a good time, Sarah,” he replied. “Tell Stephanie that I wish her luck.” I could barely hear the last few words as I tore out of the living room and through the open garage door. I just assumed that that was what he was trying to tell me. I slid into the car next to Stephanie. “It’s about time,” she sighed impatiently. “We were about ready to leave you behind. You know I can’t be late.” “Chill, Stephanie. You’re too stressed.” I took out my iPod and clicked around until I found my favorite David Archuleta song. Hey, it may not be my type of music, but I’m usually open to exceptions. I looked on the ground and saw Stephanie’s white knit hat lying near my feet. “Hey, do you mind if I borrow this?” “Sure, I don’t care.” She looked out the other window and chewed her gum, loudly. I could smell the spicy cinnamon flavor on my side of the car. Stephanie didn’t do anything except tighten the black leather belt around her hips. Her eyes were anxious and filled with worry. I pulled her hat on my head, paying no attention to what it would do to the pins. Besides, in the middle of an upstate Alabama December, no one seemed to worry about appearances as much. Frost covered a lot of the places we were driving past. I wanted to take a nap, but my music called to me. Our mom didn’t talk much on the way there. She just gave Stephanie some last minute pointers as we got closer to our destination. The building was red brick and bleak-looking against a gray sky. But I had too much experience at this, so I knew it would look very different on the inside. By the time mom found a parking spot, Stephanie was taking deep breaths and trying to maintain her calm. I looked across the street and saw a warmly lit Starbucks. My mouth watered at the taste of their cupcakes and iced coffees, but I would have needed something warmer at that time. I shook the thought from my mind as we walked into the building. Oh, I forgot to mention this: Stephanie’s an aspiring model. She’s already had contracts with three different agencies, and this time she felt like a change. This was supposed to be a really long and important go-see. I’d say she was pretty successful, but who am I to judge? I was just there because I wanted to get out of the house. The reception area was all white and black with a modern vibe. A pretty Asian woman was sitting at a desk, taking calls, and jotting down notes. Once my mom and sister were done checking in I followed them to hair and makeup. The room was just a dressing room, with pink walls, five bright light bulbs above every mirror, and a rotating chair at every station. “Hey, Emmett,” Stephanie greeted her stylist. I looked closer at the skinny blonde and discovered that he was wearing a nametag. “Hey, Stephanie.” They hugged and she sat down in his chair. “What shall we do with it today?” I pulled off my hat and felt the pin digging into my scalp, so I took them out and pulled my bangs loose. On a whim, I shook all of my long red hair out and looked in the mirror. I thought I actually looked kind of pretty. “I think a ponytail would look best, with a lot of curls,” she replied. “Oh, how could I forget my manners?” I was very familiar with the innocence act. “You know my mom slash manager, and my sister Sarah.” I said hey with a smile, but he paid no mind. This didn’t really bother me, though. I had been through it plenty of times. Instead of sulking, I walked closer to the entrance and sat in a white couch while Emmett worked on my sister’s appearance. Stephanie’s act always made me feel uncomfortable; as she gabbed about her week at school, I French-braided my hair. I was looking for anything to distract myself. By the time he took off her wrap, he had brushed, sprayed, and gelled her hair so much that it reflected more light than a mirror. Despite this, Stephanie’s hair looked effortlessly pretty. Her makeup made her face look fresh. I tapped her on the shoulder. “Dad and I wanted to wish you luck. Knock ‘em dead.” We bumped fists. Mom followed her past the red velvet curtain that led to the photo shoot. I stayed behind. I already made the mistake of going through those doors before, and I had nearly been kicked out of the building. Soon I was all alone except for the few stylists that were on duty. I took my iPod back out and starting listening to my favorite Brad Paisley song, “Anything Like Me”. In the middle of the second chorus, I felt someone tap me on the shoulder. I quickly paused the song, took my headphones out of my ears, and turned around in my seat. I blinked my eyes to make sure I was seeing correctly. A boy about my age was staring into my eyes. He was a few inches taller than me, with slightly darker skin, dark brown hair, and big chocolate brown eyes. Color aside, they looked just like mine. He was one of the cutest boys I had ever seen, even cuter than many of the boys I had seen Stephanie model with. “I’m sorry,” he said, “I thought you were one of the models.” No one had ever told me that before, even though Stephanie and I were twins. He blushed. “They were calling for them, and my mom asked me to look in here, in case someone was still getting ready. And you didn’t respond to anything I said, so…” I nodded with a smile. “It’s fine. Um, I’m not a model, but my sister is.” He looked like he didn’t believe me. I stood up to meet his gaze. “She should already be out there. Do you work here?” He smiled back. “No, my mom does. I needed to get out of the house, and she said I could go with her. I figured that since there was nothing else to do, I might as well.” He extended his hand. “I’m Sean, by the way.” I shook his hand. It was really warm. “I’m Sarah.” Our hands disconnected. “Do you go to school around here?” I put my other arm around my back and turned off my iPod. “I used to, but there’s been a lot of drama going on there, and my mom transferred me to the Allendale School upstate as a boarder. It’s closer to my dad, so my mom’s letting me stay with him on the weekends when she’s working. What about you?” “I go to Allendale, too. I’m a day student.” I couldn’t hide my smile. “No way. Are you a junior, by any chance?” I nodded. “This is awesome! What’s it like there?” “Well, you might want to sit down for this. The general run-down is pretty long.” I reclaimed my seat on the couch and he joined me. “For starters, it might feel like a lot of classes, but they’re really short, only about fifty minutes apiece. There are different classes each day, so it’ll take some work to keep up. The work actually isn’t that bad. You’re only doing homework for about two or three hours a night and I’m taking some AP classes. The teachers are pretty cool and understanding about things that may come in the way of homework. Our sports teams are some of the best in the state, and we get a few professionals in different fields to come a lot.” “Wow, it sounds like the perfect school.” “It is pretty great,” I replied. “And the best part is that there’s almost no dress code.” “That’s awesome,” Sean said. “People don’t usually dress up or anything, do they?” “No, they don’t,” I assured him. “A lot of people just wear Nike shorts and T-shirts when the weather’s warm enough. My sister has been pushing it lately, though. The administration doesn’t especially like her.” Sean laughed. “Wow. How old is your sister?” “Fifteen, we’re twins,” I told him. “Cool.” He looked up at the nearby clock. “The go-see should be a while longer.” I looked in that direction and saw that he was right. I must’ve been listening to my iPod for a really long time. “Would you like to go to Starbucks with me?” Sean asked me hesitantly. “I have an addiction to coffee,” he added. I smiled at him. “That would be great,” I told him sincerely. “Just let me tell my mom. I think she has my coat.” He was smiling back. “Alright, I’ll meet you in the lobby.” We got up and I went off to find her. She was watching the other hopeful models, and Stephanie hadn’t even gone up yet. “Mom, is it okay if I go to the Starbucks across the street? I’m not going alone,” I assured her. She was too focused on the other models. “Sure, Sarah, that’s fine.” She turned to face me. “Do you have money?” “Yeah, I do.” “Okay. I’ll call you if we’re done before you get back.” “Thanks mom,” I said with a hug. “Where’s my stuff?” “Over on that bench,” she replied. I wrapped the scarf around my neck, slid into the coat, and grabbed my purse. “Ready to go?” I was back in the reception area and face to face with Sean. He already had on a black puffy jacket. “Yeah, definitely.” I replied. “Secretly, I have an obsession for coffee shops, too.” He held the door open for me and we went into the cold winter air. “There are a lot of really cool ones in Westhaven, which is pretty close to Allendale. Some of them are the only ones of its kind.” “That sounds awesome. There weren’t that many places like that near me except for Starbucks.” A huge gust of wind nearly blew me straight into a street lamp. Sean grabbed my arm and wrapped his other arm around my waist. I felt my scarf come loose and my hair blowing away from my face. “Maybe we should walk a little faster,” he said with a laugh. “Yeah, you’re right.” I smiled. He let me go and I fixed my bangs. “Thanks.” We walked across the street. “So, what kind of work does your mom do?” “She’s one of the photographers,” he told me. “Normally she takes nature shots, but she said she wanted a change. She works for National Geographic.” “I read National Geographic all the time.” I put a hand on my chest. “What stories has she covered?” “She’s been to the poles, Malaysia, Switzerland, Hawaii, and the Amazon.” With each location, I could remember every story and I knew that the pictures were very realistic. They hardly looked like pictures at all. I also knew that his mom must’ve been a great photographer and that the pictures she took of my sister would turn out to be amazing. “Wow, your mom sounds really cool. She must travel a lot.” A car passed us with really loud hip-hop music. “Yeah, she does. My parents are divorced, so she used to take me with her a lot. She’s been to so many places, but now she wants me to stay with dad so I don’t miss out on school.” “Trust me; you’re not missing much. There’s homework, more lockers than we know what to do with, rivalries with other schools, lots of stuff like that. Beneath all the prestige, it’s just a normal high school.” “I was hoping for that. I need some normal in my life.” Sean held the door open for me and we walked into Starbucks. The smells of cinnamon and chocolate made me breathe deeply and close my eyes. “I’m gonna go to the rest room.” I told him. “Sure, what would you like?” I thought carefully. “A white chocolate mocha, please,” I told him. The restaurant itself was warm, but the bathroom was even warmer. I took off my jacket and did my business, and then splashed water on my face after I washed my hands. I didn’t know why, but I felt more self-conscious around Sean than I did around other boys. “It may just be because he’s so good looking,” I thought as I put on my lip balm, patted my hair and dried my face. When I came out of the restroom, I couldn’t find Sean anywhere. I looked closer to the exit, and I heard, “Sarah! Over here!” At first I thought it was Stephanie or my mom. I turned around reluctantly and saw Sean beckoning me to an empty couch. I walked over to him. “I hope it’s the right size,” he said to me. “I got a medium, to be safe.” “It’s fine,” I told him. “I always get a medium.” I took the Styrofoam cup from him and moved closer to the couch. “Wait,” I stopped dead in my tracks, “did you already pay for these?” I asked him, referring to our white chocolate mochas. “Yeah, don’t worry about it. It’s on me.” “This won’t come back to haunt me, will it?” I asked him jokingly. He laughed. “No, it won’t.” By this time we were already sitting down. I sipped my coffee and he asked me, “So, would you say that you’re close to your sister?” I brought my cup away from my lips. “Don’t tell her this if you ever get the chance to meet her.” Sean toasted to it. “Stephanie won’t admit it, but I think we are. We’re completely different from each other except for the fact that we look the same. And Stephanie can be a little mean, but when we’re alone, we share those heartwarming sister moments that I swore not to tell anyone about.” I paused for another drink. “I wish I could say the same about my sister,” Sean told me. “You have a sister, too?” He nodded as he drank some of his white chocolate mocha. I could smell it from my seat, and boy, did it smell amazing. “How old is she?” “Amy’s only seven. She lives with my dad, so I’ll be seeing her again by tomorrow.” “Awww, that’s such a good age for having a sister. What’s she like?” “She’s kind of cute, rebellious, talented, and she’s actually really smart. She knows a lot of things that most people my age don’t know.” I took a long drink of my coffee, which was finally starting to cool. “That’s nice. What do you mean by that?” He looked me squarely in the eyes, and I couldn’t look away. “Well for one thing, she already knows plenty about the reproductive system.” “Which one?” I asked slowly. “Both of them,” he replied sheepishly. The drink went down the wrong pipe, and I choked. After five seconds, Sean had to slap me on the back, and some clear lukewarm liquid shot out of my mouth and onto my jeans near my knee. “Oh God, are you okay?” He handed me some of his napkins. I wiped my mouth. “Yeah, the tea just went where it shouldn’t have.” “Are you sure?” He took another napkin and wiped off my cheeks. Coughing too much always did make me tear up uncontrollably, and this time was no exception. I looked into my lap and pressed my napkin on my knee where the tea landed. “I’m sure.” I finished my coffee. “Are you up for a walk? I mean, if you don’t mind the cold.” “Sure, just let me text my mom.” I reached into my bag and pulled out my LG Xenon. In seconds she replied that it was okay as long as I got back before it got too dark. “I’m good to go. She just wants me back before the streetlights come on.” “I’m sorry, but can I see your phone? I’ve seen one before, but never touched it.” “Sure, go ahead.” I gave him my phone. “I’ll be right back.” I threw away the rest of my coffee across the restaurant and came back. Sean gave me my phone back. “Life is so unfair,” he told me. “I wish I had a phone like that.” “Yeah, it is pretty cool. I couldn’t believe that Stephanie didn’t want this one.” I stood up and wrapped my scarf around my neck. “Our parents surprised us with a Xenon and a Razor and said we could pick which one we wanted. Stephanie really wanted the Razor because she thought it would make a ‘comeback’ even though it was already old.” “How long ago was that?” Sean asked me. He helped me into my jacket. “A few months ago, I think. It was really a present for Stephanie because she did so well on a modeling job, but they wanted to include me, too.” I tried grabbing my bag, but my wallet, keys, and iPod fell out. It switched on and started playing the last Selena song I had been listening to. I stooped to the ground and put everything back in, except for my iPod, which I put in my pocket. I was so glad that Sean didn’t laugh or do anything stupid. He was probably too busy zipping up his own jacket. Once we were out of the restaurant, it started to snow. I took my hair out of its ponytail and slipped on Stephanie’s hat. “What kind of music are you into?” Sean inquired. “Anything that isn’t really loud. I love classical, country, some R&B and pop, and a little bit of Latino, mostly just Selena. What about you?” He looked at me in my face. “I’m into everything that you just said. I’ve never listened to Selena’s music before. Do you have any of it on your iPod?” “I have almost every song,” I told him, giving him the left ear bud. I scrolled until I found her album, and pressed play when I found ‘Amor Prohibido.’ While the song was playing, he scrolled through my playlists and kept talking about the music. Thank goodness I charged the battery overnight. We passed a lot of little kids playing in the snow. A few of them invited us to play with them, and it was hard to say no to them. We passed a movie theatre and checked out which movies we would want to see, which led to us sharing our favorite movie memories and who our favorite actors were. There were many matches, including Sandra Bullock, Jennifer Aniston, and Will Smith. A nearby candy store was giving out free samples of fresh peppermint bark, so we couldn’t resist. Sean had a pretty big sweet tooth, just like me. We ended up buying one bag apiece. “I could never do this with my sister,” I told him later. “Everything she eats is low calorie, no sugar, low fat, the list goes on.” “Then maybe you should start hanging out with different people.” As he said this, he reached into my bag and popped a piece of bark into my open and waiting mouth. The bark itself was sweet, slightly cooled, and melted in my mouth. And when my bag was done Sean didn’t mind giving me some of his. Both of us donated to the Salvation Army, which I loved to do every year. The man in the Santa costume thanked us many times. Over time, I felt snowflakes brush my face as the snow came faster, but I wasn’t completely aware of it. By the time we were listening to ‘El Chico Del Apartamento 512’, something struck the top of my head. I looked up and saw hail coming down hard and fast. Actually, hail wasn’t even the right word for it. It looked like the sky was having a snowball fight with everyone on earth. I stuffed my iPod into my purse, and Sean and I ran under a building with a slanting roof. He stayed very close to me, and I could feel body heat being generated between us. As we waited for the hail to stop, I called my mom to let her know that I was okay. For a while she went out of her mind with worry, but she had to attend to Stephanie, and she decided to let it go. When I hung up, Sean reached into his paper bag and took out his last star-shaped piece. “Want some?” he asked me. I snapped my head around; I hadn’t really been paying attention. He was staring intently at me, his eyes seeming to repeat the question. “Sorry, I just noticed something.” I told him dumbly. He broke the bark in half, holding one piece in each hand. “What’s that?” “Your eyes,” I said simply. He looked amused. “What do you mean? Is there something wrong with them?” “No, not at all,” I assured him. “It’s just that they look exactly like mine, almost as if we were brother and sister.” He handed me my piece. Then, with his free hand, he gently grasped my chin and tilted it so that he could see each eye more carefully. “So,” he whispered, “you must mean I have incredibly gorgeous eyes.” I blushed. “Yeah, I do.” Both of us smiled and I finished the piece of candy that he gave me. All of a sudden we heard barking. I whipped my head around saw a pack of dogs running towards us, and they didn’t seem happy. “I think they’re chasing something,” Sean said quickly. “Run!” We were breathing hard and laughing by the time we got back inside the agency building. “That was so much fun!” Sean panted. “Yeah, that was crazy,” I giggled. Just then I spotted my mom and Stephanie coming out of the dressing rooms, and they were smiling. I figured that the go-see went well. “Hey, mom. Why didn’t you text me to say that you were done? I would’ve been back by now.” “I did,” she said. I looked in my purse and couldn’t find my phone. “Uh-oh,” I whispered. “Oh yeah,” Sean said, “This fell out of your pocket when we were being chased.” He pulled my phone out of his jacket pocket. “I must’ve forgotten about it.” He dropped it in my open hand and closed my fingers over it when I didn’t move. “Oh my God, you’re a life saver!” I hugged him, ignoring my sister’s suspicious looks. “Thank you so much,” I said to his ear. “You’re welcome,” he replied, wrapping one arm around my waist. Now, both mom and Stephanie were giving me weird looks. I backed away and out of his embrace. “Oh, mom, this is Sean. Sean, this is my mom and my sister Stephanie.” My sister stepped forward and shook his hand. “Nice to meet you,” she said sweetly. I couldn’t tell if she was being genuine or not. She turned to me. “Are you ready to go? I’m starving.” “Yeah, I guess so.” I turned back to Sean. “Thanks so much for getting me out of here. I hope I get some classes with you at Allendale.” “I hope so, too,” he replied. “See you around.” He turned and went towards the photo shoot. “He goes to Allendale?” Stephanie asked me. Her wide eyes instantly started bugging out. “I’ve never seen him there before. Is he in our grade?” “Yeah, he’s starting this month. Sean is a junior, just like us.” I checked my phone for scratches, and was relieved to know that Sean had kept it in perfect condition for me. I wondered when and where I had dropped it. I caressed the screen with my thumb. “Let’s go, girls.” My mom was finished getting her things together. “I saw a Longhorn Steakhouse up the road.” “Oh, I love their salads,” Stephanie commented as we walked to the car. The hail had already stopped. She leaned closer to me. “Do you like him?” Stephanie whispered in my ear. “I’ll tell you later.” One thing that always enticed her was gossip. She smiled and we got in the car. “How was the go-see,” I asked her. “Pretty good,” she told me. “Half of the other models were amateurs with no experience and took forever to understand their given directions, and the other half weren’t confident enough, so I think I’ll get a contract soon enough.” “That’s good.” I gazed out the window and kept thinking about the time I spent with Sean. By the time a glass of raspberry lemonade was set in front of me, I was able to get him out of my mind. I chugged. “So, Sarah, where did you and Sean go today?” Stephanie asked nonchalantly, stabbing at her strawberry and pecan salad. I almost choked on an ice cube. The moment had been short-lived. “Um, we just went to Starbucks. He bought me some coffee and we went for a walk around the area. It was actually a lot of fun. We listened to music, gave to the Salvation Army, got bags of peppermint bark, and some of the local kids asked us to play with them in the snow.” “He seems like a nice boy,” mom said, chewing on a bite of a mozzarella stick. “How did you meet him?” I reached for a boneless wing on the appetizer platter. “His mom was one of the photographers,” I told her. “He actually thought I was one of the models! But then that just led to talking, and I found out that he’s going to our school. I started telling him about it. Soon we were hanging out at Starbucks.” I set down my glass of lemonade. “He seemed nice,” Stephanie said, “and he was very cute.” “Oh, you think so?” I turned to her. She had a dreamy look in her eyes. I set my wing on the plate and looked her deliberately in the eye. “Stephanie, what are you thinking?” I asked suspiciously. She came back to reality and smiled. “You’re being ridiculous. Besides, it’s obvious that he likes you.” “Okay, it’s official. You’ve gone crazy. I think those lights did something to your head.” She laughed. “I’m serious. It was nothing like that. He’s just a really cool guy to hang out with. Besides, I think he already has a girlfriend. It’s nothing serious.” Stephanie shrugged and left me alone for the rest of dinner-lunch. I took a quick nap in the car, and it was dark by the time we got back to the house. Normally when I got back from one of Stephanie’s go-sees, we would make brownie sundaes and eat them in the sunroom during the summer or cups of hot chocolate with marshmallows in the winter. But since it was so cold outside and Stephanie was still gushing over her go-see, I figured that it wouldn’t be the best time. Instead, I made a turkey sandwich and took it up to my room with a little bag of potato chips. After a while, I caved in and checked on my Facebook profile. A bunch of friends were online, but I didn’t feel like talking. I was just about to open one of my songs when my phone started blaring a series of bell harmonies. It was my general way to signal a new message, but I didn’t know who it was. I opened the text. ‘Hey, it’s Sean,’ it read. I looked at the bottom of the text and saw his name. I replied. ‘Hey! When did u put ur # in?’ I took the last bite of my sandwich. ‘I have my ways :).’ ‘Lol’. I opened the document and started writing. My Facebook profile was still up, and I set my music playlist to shuffle. ‘What r u up 2?’ he asked me. ‘Nuthin much, I’m just working on one of my songs. U?’ ‘Same! I play the guitar. What about u?’ ‘I tried guitar, but it was 2 complicated 4 me. Mom still keeps it here. Ive been playing the piano for as long as I could remember, tho. Mom tried teaching Stephanie 2, but she just couldn’t get it. How long have u played guitar?’ ‘About 7 yrs. Oh man, inbox is full 2 bursting. Mind if I call u?’ ‘No, go ahead,’ I replied. My phone was ringing in seconds. “Hey,” I said. “Did you have to stay long at the go-see?” “No,” he answered. “By the time you and Stephanie left, there were only a few models left to audition, and my mom didn’t have to stay long after they were gone.” He paused. “What’s that song playing in the background?” I switched back to Facebook. “Oh, it’s ‘Red Light’ by David Nail. Why do you ask?” “I thought it sounded familiar,” he told me. “I learned it just now, actually. The chords are really easy.” “I wish I could say the same. Ive tried playing it on the piano, but it just doesn’t sound right.” I covered my phone and took a deep breath. “Do you think you could teach it to me sometime?” “Yeah, definitely. It should be really easy, since you’re already a musician.” “Sarah!” I heard my mom’s voice easily; I knew that she was close by. “Hold on one second,” I told Sean. I covered my phone with my palm. “Yes, mom?” She came into my room. “You might want to get some sleep, sweetie,” she advised me. “We still have church in the morning.” “Oh, you’re right,” I said glumly. “Good night, mom.” She gave me a hug. “Night, Sarah,” she replied. I turned in my chair and took my hand away from my phone. It was almost eleven, to my surprise. How long had I been on Facebook? “That was my mom,” I told him. “She says I need to go to bed, or I might fall asleep at church tomorrow.” “That’s fine. I’ll talk to you tomorrow.” The last sentence sounded more like a question than a statement. I stifled a yawn. “Yeah, sure. Bye, Sean.” “Sweet dreams, Sarah,” he whispered, and then I heard the click. I pressed the ‘End’ button and set my phone down, but I couldn’t bring myself out of that chair. I turned off my computer, changed into my pajamas, and went to bed, but Sean still wouldn’t get out of my mind. This had happened to me before many times, but for once, I didn’t mind it at all.
Posted on: Sun, 10 Nov 2013 12:23:27 +0000
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