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Post by mesquite75 on Nov 23, 2009 12:58:16 GMT -5
About a week later, I was on the phone talking to Beth.
“So is everything all set?”
“Yes, everything’s ready. I talked to Michael about it, and we worked out all the details. All you have to do now is show up.”
“Thanks, Beth.”
“You’re welcome, Damian. I needed to have a meeting with the intern anyway. Plus I was getting a little behind with keeping up on our inventory since the girls came, so you actually called at a pretty good time.”
“So I’ll see you in a minute then.”
“I’ll have Sasha answer the door.”
“Thanks.” _______________________________________________________
Ding dong!
“Hey Sasha, can you get that?”
“Sure.”
I set down the knife I was using to chop celery, wiped my hands on my jeans, and went to answer the door.
When I opened the door, there stood Damian.
“Good afternoon, Dr. Sasha. Do you think you could take my stitches out for me? They itch.”
I giggled.
“Sure, come on in.”
“Mmm, what’s that smell?” he asked.
“Soup!”
I led him to the kitchen table.
“You want to sit down? I need to go get a couple things real quick.”
“Sure.” _______________________________________________________ I sat down and patiently waited for her to come back. After a minute, she returned with a pair of scissors and some tweezers.
“This isn’t going to hurt is it?”
“It will, but I’ll try my best to be gentle.”
I braced myself for the worst.
“I was kidding. You can stop being all tense now. It’s not going to hurt at all.”
“Hey! What’s going on in here?” Cassie asked, walking up.
“I’m taking out his stitches,” Sasha answered.
“Eeeeww.”
“Yep,” I said. “So what have you two been up to since you got here?”
“Well, we saw Beth and Michael’s jewelry store—“
“And I decided I wanted to buy every bracelet they had in there!” Cassie cut in.
“Went to the Giant’s Causeway—“
“It was huuuuuge!”
“And we’re going to see the wall around the city sometime next week I think….”
“Sounds like you’ve both been busy!”
“Yep!” Cassie proudly stated.
“So are you going to go to the Tower?” I asked innocently.
Great lead in, Damian. I gave myself a mental high-five.
“What’s the Tower?” Sasha asked.
“It’s a museum telling Derry’s history and stuff like that. It’s a pretty neat place actually.”
“Sounds like fun,” Cassie said.
“Yeah,” Sasha agreed.
“Want to go?”
“Love to! But we’ll have to run it over by Beth and Michael first,“ Sasha said.
“YOU CAN GO!” Beth yelled from the other room
“Never mind then! There’s your answer! When should we plan this thing for?”
“How about Saturday around nine thirty? Ethan and I will meet you two at the jewelry store, and then we can drop you back off there when we’re done. “
“How long will we be gone?” Cassie asked.
“How long do you want to be gone?”
“You’re the master planner!”
“Okay, how about we drop you back off at the jewelry store around four?"
“Sounds great! Sasha said.
All right then! I huge smile lit up my face.
“Are you nearly done with those stitches yet?” I asked.
“Nope. You keep talking so it’s taking longer.”
“How long is it going to take?”
“A while if you keep talking.”
I immediately shut my mouth.
“What’s the matter? Are you in a hurry to go somewhere?”
“Yeah, my mum was nearly done with supper when I left.”
“So you’re trading us out for supper? I was going to invite you to stay for supper here, but since you’re in such a hurry to get home…”
Forget supper. I started talking again.
Okay, here's the thing with the Tower. I was on the Internet looking up places in Derry, and I saw the Tower Museum. I thought it looked interesting, so I kinda threw it in there and forgot that y'all have no idea what it is. So when I looked at your comments about the Tower, I thought "uh oh." So sorry if the Tower is a bit of a let-down...
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Post by saerphe on Nov 23, 2009 16:01:24 GMT -5
Neat. Derry's got a lot of history behind it, so there should be a fair amount of stuff at the Tower, eh?
Cute chapter, can't wait for more! I bet Damo will be happy when his hair starts to grow back in again. ;P
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Post by mesquite75 on Nov 30, 2009 11:59:36 GMT -5
The diamond rings all reflected the morning sun. It was nine o'clock, and Cassie and I were in the jewelry shop with Beth, Michael, and the intern Emma. Beth was having a meeting with Emma, and Michael was grilling us about this trip to the Tower.
"Do you have your lunches?"
"I don't know if we'll need them. He didn't say."
"There's a convenience store across the street if it turns out you were supposed to bring your own."
"I don’t think we'll need it. I'm pretty sure they're going to take us somewhere."
"Do you need money then?"
"Don't worry about it. I think they would have told us if we were going to need any money, but I’m bringing my purse just in case I see a have-to-buy-it souvenir."
"Okay good."
Beth walked in with the intern following behind her.
"What time did they say they'd be coming?"
"Nine thirty."
"Do you have money?"
"Yes, Beth, we have money."
"Is the interrogation over?" Cassie asked.
Beth looked at her.
"I gotta take care of my little sister. I can't bring you back home to the states starvin' can I? Mum and Dad would kill me!"
"But YOU'D never lose a night's sleep over it?" I asked.
"Okay, Sasha. You’ve found me out."
"You got a little Irish accent goin' on there, Beth!" I commented.
"Kind of hard not to after two years."
"Yeah I guess so."
The bells above the door jingled. Someone was walking in.
"What are you ladies talkin' about?" Ethan asked.
Needless to explain, Ethan and Damian entered the jewelry store.
"Irish accents," Cassie replied.
"Oh."
"So do you two have money with you?" Damian asked.
"Yes," I replied.
"Well, put it away because you won't need it."
Michael smiled at him.
"Take good care of them Damian. You hurt my treasures, I hurt you."
"Yes, sir, Mr. Sheridan."
Flaming at the roots, I said, "Okay! Let's go!"
The bells above the door jingled again.
"May I help you?" Beth asked.
"Yes," the customer replied. "I'm looking for a Claddagh ring for my girlfriend. Do you have any?"
"Yes, we do! They're over here. We have a lovely selection. Would you like gold or silver?"
"Gold."
"We have a lot of pretty ones in gold. What size ring does she wear?"
"Ooooo. I'm not sure."
I nudged Damian who was watching this whole thing take place. "Oh, right. Bye! We'll take good care of them Mr. and Mrs. Sheridan!"
"You can call us Beth and Michael, and have a good time!" Michael called back.
With one final wave, we left the jewelry store.
"So did you lassies already eat breakfast?" Ethan asked.
"Yes," I replied.
"Well that's good. We did too, and the earlier we get there, the better."
"How are we getting there?" Cassie asked.
"The bus," Ethan replied, as if it was the most logical thing in the world. I mean, who doesn't take the bus everywhere they go? _______________________________________________________ Everything was going according to plan. Right now we were at the Tower looking at the Armada exhibit.
"Wow, all these things are gorgeous!" Sasha said.
"They are aren't they?"
"Hey Sasha!" Cassie yelled from the other side of the room. "Look!"
She was pointing to a pair of ancient, weather-beaten shoes.
"Love 'em Cassie."
A smile was lighting up her face. Even after she turned back around, it was still there.
"Are you having a good time?" I asked.
"Oh yes! Thank you so much for bringing us."
I grinned.
"You're welcome. Thanks for coming!"
Ethan was with Cassie on the other side of the room, looking at all the artifacts found on the Spanish ship. He was talking as fast as Cassie could understand his accent.
"He's not usually this much of a flirt," I said.
"Could have fooled me. Cassie's a little freaked out."
"She looks pretty fine to me."
She did. She was smiling and talking right back to Ethan as fast as he could understand her accent.
"You know what? You're right!"
"And you doubted me? You need to stop doing that, Sasha."
She laughed.
"So where are we going next?"
"You're not aching to leave yet are you?"
"No, not yet. This place is great! I was just wondering what all is on the agenda."
"It's a surprise."
"Come on, you can tell ME can't you?"
She tried her best to look cute and convincing.
"No, not even you. Only Ethan knows."
"And I'll bet HE'S going to be telling Cassie," she muttered under her breath.
I burst out laughing.
"I'll try my best to make sure he doesn't tell."
"Good luck on that one, Mr. McGinty," she said winking.Just in case any of y'all are curious, here's a link that tells about the Tower: www.derrycity.gov.uk/museums/tower.asp
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Post by mesquite75 on Dec 1, 2009 12:18:29 GMT -5
Three hours later we were again in the bus, and I had no idea where we were going. We had just come back from eating lunch at a lovely Italian place, and right now we were heading to our next location. I saw Damian lean over to whisper something to Ethan. Ethan furiously whispered something back, and then they both looked out the window. After a minute, Damian pulled the cord that told the bus driver we wanted to get off at the next stop. Once the bus stopped, Cassie and I followed the boys’ lead and stepped off the bus.
They began walking on the sidewalk, and we trustingly followed them. After about fifteen minutes of this, I whispered something to Cassie.
“Do you think they know where we are?”
“I don’t know. Ethan looks a little confused if you ask me.”
“I don’t think they are going to tell us they’re lost.”
“Of course not! They’re guys. It’s against the guy code.”
“We can hear you!” Damian shouted. “You two can’t whisper to save your lives!”
“So are you going to tell us we’re lost then?” Cassie asked.
“Nope. We can’t say anything like that; it’s against the—what did you call it?—‘guy code’ thing.”
“Damian, have you ever even seen this part of Derry before?” Ethan asked.
“Not exactly…..”
“Then step aside! All this looks vaguely familiar to me.”
“Okay then.”
He let Ethan take the lead. Damian slowed down in step with us. We continued this way for about forty-five more minutes.
“What time is it?” I asked after a while.
“Two thirty,” Damian replied.
“I’m getting kind of tired. Can we rest over there?”
I pointed to a park we could just barely see across the street.
“For a minute,” Ethan said.
When we got to the park, I immediately sat down on top of a merry-go-round. Cassie and Ethan sat down beside me. Damian, however, got a mischievous look on his face.
“What are you up to Damara?” Ethan asked.
“Damara?” Cassie asked half laughing.
I was thinking the same thing.
“It’s what my Dad used to call him when he was up to something.”
Damian, however, said not a word. He simply walked over to the merry-go-round and began pushing it round and round as hard as he could. Of course, the first few times you push a merry-go-round, it doesn’t do much, and in those first few pushes, I bolted off of that thing! Merry-go-rounds make me sick. So I helped him push.
Cassie and Ethan were loving it though. Cassie almost fell off at one point, but then Ethan pulled her closer to the middle.
After a couple minutes of this, my arms started to hurt, so I let Damian take over, and I headed for the swings to sit down (which was our original plan anyway). Damian apparently did not like pushing the merry-go-round by himself much, so he followed me.
“Hey! Where are you two going?!?!” Cassie yelled from the merry-go-round.
I just waved at her from the swings and started swinging.
Just then, as Cassie and Ethan were about to jump off the still-moving merry-go-round, I felt a drop of rain. Oh great.
Damian felt it too.
“Do you want to go to those covered benches over there?” he asked.
“Yeah.”
It started raining harder. We made it to the benches before it started pouring, but Cassie and Ethan didn’t. They were still running from the merry-go-round (which was further away from the benches then the swings were).
“Are you going to tell me what we’re doing now?” I asked Damian.
“Wait it out, I guess.”
“Wanna play cards? I have a deck in my purse.”
“Sure, if you’ll let me beat you at Go Fish.”
“Fat chance.”
By this time, Ethan and Cassie had made it to the bench.
“Hey do y’all want to play Go Fish?” I asked them.
“Go Fish?” Ethan asked incredulously.
“Sure, deal me in,” Cassie said.
Since Cassie was playing, Ethan decided he could swallow his pride and stoop down to play Go Fish. We played about eight games before the rain finally let up. After we left the park, Ethan again reclaimed the lead. Just as I was starting to think I’d never see Beth and Michael’s jewelry shop ever again, he exclaimed,
“I know where we are!! There’s a library just around the corner here! There should be a bus stop a couple blocks away.”
I smiled very much relieved. But now that we were on our way back home (for sure this time), I didn’t want the afternoon to end! I guess there would be plenty of time to do this again later on though. I mean, we had all summer didn’t we?
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Post by saerphe on Dec 1, 2009 15:54:47 GMT -5
Bahaha, the guy code! XD For some reason, I sense something ominous coming up.
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Post by mesquite75 on Dec 8, 2009 8:45:42 GMT -5
“How are ya feelin’?”
“Nervous, excited, scared, happy. Mostly nervous.”
“Don’t be. Just focus on the excited and happy.”
“I’m in a tuxedo. If I have to wear a tux, something big and most likely serious and important is always about to happen. It either means someone died, I’m going to a prom, or someone’s getting married. Now tell me none of those are an emotional tidal wave.”
“I dunno. Prom doesn’t sound too bad. You make no sense at all when you’re nervous. You know that, right?”
“What guy isn’t a nervous wreck right before his wedding?!?!”
“One who knows for sure he’s making the right choice and that the people there all love him, know him, and are supporting him. Now stop stressing out.”
“Thanks, but I can’t promise that one.”
“When does it start again?”
“Eight minutes.”
“You ready?”
“We just went through that.”
_______________________________________________________
The first thing I did after coming home that first summer was buy every Celtic Thunder CD and DVD they’d come out with. I thought it was really cool that someone I knew was actually on my IPod. Every time I was sad, in would go the DVD, and every time I was happy, in would go the ear buds. Sometimes when I was watching the DVD, I would text Damian and say something like, “Hey midget! Guess what I’m watching? ” or “Cue you falling off the stage…… NOW!”
I went with Cassie to Ireland every summer until my senior year. Even after Cassie’s Dad retired and her family moved to Ireland to be closer to Beth and Michael, I still went to see Cassie until what happened to Mom. Even now, we’re the best of friends. Every time I was up there, Damian, Ethan, Cassie, and I would always get together. I got a chance to meet the other lads too. It wasn’t until the second summer because of their crazy tour schedule and everything, but when I finally did meet them, I loved them all immediately…although Paul had to beg me a little first.
After I got back from Ireland the third time, Mom and Dad told me the wonderful news that I was going to be a big sister! I was so excited. We all were. I had been an only child for so long, and I was lonely. That's probably part of the reason Cassie and I are so close. Anyway, since Mom was older, it was a high-risk pregnancy. We all tried not to think about that and just be happy that we were going to have another member of our family. It wasn’t to be though. Neither Mom nor the baby made it through the delivery. Let’s just say Dad and I got to know the Celtic Thunder DVD by heart after that.
Now, I always knew I wanted to be a doctor, but I never knew what kind exactly. After that day, I no longer had any doubts in my mind. I was going to work with little babies and their mothers all throughout the pregnancy and delivery. So, I am now a qualified obstetrician. In fact, I’m starting my first job as one in a month. Because it’s not in San Antonio, Dad and I moved to a smaller apartment in Kirby, a suburb of San Antonio, just for the occasion.
I walked slowly down the aisle. My heart was thudding. All eyes were upon me as I little by little, one step at a time, made it to the front of the church. I looked up at Damian, and he smiled at me. This helped calm my shaking hands a bit. As the maid of honor, I attracted quite a bit of attention, and I didn’t like it. When I finally got to the altar I took my position at the end of all the bridesmaids and waited for the bride.
Cassie was radiant. She too, was nervous out of her wits, but after one look at Ethan, who was grinning like a madman, her shaky smile became one of sheer delight.
The wedding was absolutely gorgeous. The flowers, the cake, the colors, everything! I didn’t cry when Cassie and Ethan took their vows, but it came close. Call me a sentimental, I know.
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Post by saerphe on Dec 8, 2009 15:54:27 GMT -5
Wow, heck of a time-skip there. Was not expecting that. XD
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Post by mesquite75 on Dec 31, 2009 14:24:53 GMT -5
Life hasn't changed much for me in these past, what, eight years? I'm still with the guys, and, like always, we have great craic. Now, I don't know how tired our fans are of us, but after six CDs, they're still begging for more. What can I say? Sharon just can't say no. The hardest part now is finding what to do with myself between tours. I'm thinking about maybe doing what Paul did a while back with a Sleeping Beauty kind of thing, or maybe something else? I dunno. I haven't quite got that worked out yet. I have several ideas, but that's about it.
But now is not the time to be explaining such things! I'm still at the wedding! The toasts are all done, and Cassie and Ethan just cut the cake. I grabbed two plates and scanned the room for Sasha. I hadn't really talked to her yet, and I haven't seen her in years! Where is she? I found her at the head table.
"Hey, mind if I join you?" I asked holding up the cake.
She looked up at me and smiled.
"Go ahead. How could I say no when you brought me cake?"
"You're one smart girl," I said as I sat down beside her.
"I haven't seen you in a while," she said, "I mean, I saw you at the wedding rehearsal and stuff, but we haven't actually had a chance to talk yet, have we?"
"Nope. This calls fro some catching up. What have you been up to since you went off to college? That was the last I heard from you."
"Well, I got my degree! I start practicing in about a month!"
"Are you excited?"
I already knew she was. I saw the way her eyes lit up when she started telling me about it.
"Oh, more than you can imagine!"
"Is it at the same hospital?"
"No. It's just outside San Antonio in Kirby."
"Do you miss the old hospital?"
"Yes, terribly. In college, I didn't have the time to volunteer anymore, but Dad kept me informed on what was going on until he retired. You know, with the nurses and the rest of the staff. I still keep in touch with most of them."
She put her hands in her lap and started twisting a ring on her finger around and around.
"But what about you? I haven't had the chance yet to ask how you're doing."
"Well, I'm pretty much doing the same old thing."
"When do you go back on tour?"
"May."
"Will you be stopping by my way?"
"I don't know yet. I hope so. Maybe you could make it to one of the shows."
Hint hint, wink wink.
"Maybe! I haven't seen you guys since, wow, Hurricane wasn't it?"
"I think so."
"So what's it called now?"
"Thunder and Lightning."
"Where Sharon gets all these original names, I will never know."
I laughed.
"I'm guess they just look up words in the thesaurus and take it from there!"
"I can just SEE them doing that," she said giggling. "So what do you do when you're away from the States?"
"Eh, try to find something to do with myself to be honest."
"Any luck?"
"Not really. I've been doin' gigs at different places, but I want to try something different."
"Like what for instance?"
"Well, I was thinking about maybe giving voice lessons or participating in a production or something."
"Damian, that's a great idea!"
"Which one?"
"Both of them, but I think you'd be a great teacher!"
"Thanks, but I've never taught before! I mean, it's one thing to know the stuff and it make sense to you, but how do you get someone else to understand it?"
"Practice."
A light bulb suddenly lit up my brain.
"I got a question for ya."
"Shoot."
"How long are you going to be in Ireland?"
"Several weeks. Dad and I are staying until I have to go back for the job, but until then, we're just going to be enjoying ourselves."
"Do you think you could be my guiea pig?"
She looked at me a little confused.
"Just hear me out. Do you think you could let me practice giving out voice lessons to you? You wouldn't pay a thing, I'd be getting practice, and you'd be learning all the particulars about singing for absolute free! It would only be, say, two or three times a week? They'd only be half an hour long, and, not to mention, you'd be seeing me!"
I threw that last one in there and looked at her rather pleadingly.
She pretended to think about it.
"If you put it that way, how could I refuse?"
After making this decision, we just chatted and sorted out all the other little details for the next few minutes.
"Your dad's not going to mind, is he?"
"Nah. It'll give him a chance to see Ian. He's missed him since they moved up here."
"Oh yeah. I forgot how close they were."
Strains of music made their lazy way to our table.
"Would you like to dance?" I asked her.
"I'd love to."
"I took her hand, and we strolled over to the dance floor.
We bagain gliding in time to the music. I twirled her around, and her dress flared out the tiniest bit. Then, it swished back to dancing around her legs as we waltzed. Her perfume was sweet, and her hair was piled on top of her head. It threatened to come out at every turn, but it never did. Then I suddenly realized. I had missed this girl. ____________________________________________________
Dad and I were drinking a cup of hot tea at the kitchen table. We had rented a small cottage for the month. Beth and Michael had both offered to let us stay with them, but we didn't want to get in their way. They don't have much room in their houe now that they have Vincent and Christine. Cassie's family offered too, but we were happy where we were. Plus this place was pretty cozy. Dad and I officially dubbed it the "Parker Palace."
"So did you have fun today?" Dad asked.
"Yes, I did. Cassie was a beautiful bride wasn't she?"
"Indeed she was. And Damian was quite the handsome best man, was he not?"
"Dad, what are you getting at?"
"I saw the way you two were looking at each other."
"Oh? And just how was that?"
He got right up into my face, clutched his heart, and gave me the fakest lovey-dovey eyes I'd ever seen.
"You're a hopeless romantic. Do you want me to go put on a chick flick?"
"Say what you will, but I was young once too, you know."
"Okay, Dad. Think Damian and I are in love if you want, but I'm going to bed."
I got on my tip-toes, hugged his neck, and kissed his cheek.
"Goodnight, honey. Sweet Damian dreams!"
"Not funny!" I yelled behind me as I walked to my room. Even so, I was chuckling to myself.
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Post by mesquite75 on Jan 1, 2010 22:55:23 GMT -5
I told you the posts would fluctuate!
She showed up at the church exactly on time.
“You got everything all planned out for me?” she asked as she took of her huge black coat.
“Yeah, come on over.”
I pointed to a spot on the other side of the piano I was sitting at.
“Okay, first off, I thought we’d start out with scales.”
“No, no,” she said. “We need to introduce ourselves first. No student wants a stranger for a voice teacher.”
"All right, all right."
I held my hands up in surrender and tried not to laugh at the tone of her voice.
"Should I ask what your name is?”
“That's a good place to start.”
“What’s your name then?”
“Sasha Parker.”
“Is this your first time taking lessons, Sasha Parker?”
“Yes it is. Is this your first time teaching, Mr. McGinty?”
I cracked a grin.
“You can see right through me can’t you?”
“Actually, no. You just looked a little intimidating.”
“Intimidating?? Me? You've got to be kidding. I was trying to keep a straight face.”
“Well, ease up a bit. Your straight face looked intimidating.”
“Okay, no more intimidating faces. Now let's get to the lesson. Can you come over here to the piano?”
“Sure. Hey, I didn’t know you could play.”
“I don’t really. Rebecca, Keith's sister, you know, just taught me how to read the music and do scales.”
“I’m impressed.”
“Thank you. May I show off my musical ability now?”
“Go ahead.”
“Okay, I’m going to start playing scales just to warm your voice up, and then we’ll take it from there.”
I started playing. I messed up a little, but that’s okay. What was NOT okay was the sound that was coming from her mouth. It sounded like her voice was straining so hard it was about to snap.
“Hang on. Maybe we should start with the diaphragm. You’re going to tear your vocal chords to shreds if you keep singing like that.”
“Yeah I know I should sing with my diaphragm, and I’ve tried! I honestly have. I just don’t know how. I’ve tried putting my hand on my diaphragm while singing and everything, but it doesn’t do any good.”
“How about this. Put your arms above while you’re singing. It forces you to use your diaphragm.”
“Okay.”
She put her arms straight up, laced her fingers, and rested them on her head. She had on a very thick purple sweater, and a scarf hung loosely around her neck. Oh yeah. She is NOT used to cold weather.
I sat back down on the piano and played a couple more scales. It wasn’t Broadway-worthy, but she was using her diaphragm now.
“Let’s just practice that for this lesson, okay?”
“Yes sir!”
And that’s what we did. I spent the rest of the lesson mutilating scales, and she sang her heart out to them. Her voice wasn’t anything spectacular, but it was sweet and pretty. She had fun singing too, and I could tell she was thrilled about being able to use her diaphragm now.
After the lesson was “officially” over, I told her everything else I knew about using the diaphragm. I tried to be a good teacher-- patient, clear, interesting. I think it worked. She understood. She was a good pupil too. She caught on fast and strived to please and do better.
“See you next lesson!” she called out right before leaving the church.
“Bye!”
I waved and went back to the piano. I started humming scales to myself (using my diaphragm of course) as I gathered my things. Still smiling, I closed the door to the church behind me and started walking to my car. I unconsciously began planning the next lesson on the drive home. I was falling bad for this girl, and I knew it. ____________________________________________________
Ring! Ring!
“Dad! Can you get that?!?”
“Sure!” he called back.
I could hear his telephone voice coming from the next room.
“Hello? Sure hang on a second she’s right here."
I finished taking the cookies out of the oven and set them on the stove to cool off.
Dad held out the phone. “It’s Damian,” he whispered.
“Thanks.”
I took off my oven mitts and held them underneath my arm as I took the telephone.
“Hello?”
“Hey! What do you have planned tonight?”
“Nothing much, why?”
“How would you like to go to dinner with me?”
I nearly dropped the phone. Out to dinner? Is he asking me out on a date?
“Sure, sounds great,” I heard myself say.
“All right. How about I pick you up at six thirty?”
“Okay. Where are we going?”
“A nice place I know in town. It’s not too fancy.”
“All right then. See you at six thirty.”
“See you at six thirty,” he repeated.
I hung up the phone and looked back at my pan of gingerbread cookies. That was... sudden.
“What was that all about?” Dad asked.
“I’m going with Damian to dinner at six thirty,“ I said a bit dazed.
“Oh, well, have a good time.”
He picked up a hot cookie, tossed it in his hands a couple times, and then bit the poor gingerbread man’s head off. I was so preoccupied that I didn’t remember to tell him to keep his mitts off.
“Bye you guys! Have fun decorating the rest of cookies!”
“Thanks again, Sasha! And have fun tonight!” Beth called back.
“Will do!”
I walked to my car still waving. I hope they don’t leave too big of a mess for poor Beth. Gingerbread cookies are so much fun, but they’re also really messy if you’re under ten.
I put my key in the ignition, and the car came to life. Heater, heater, heater. I need the heater! It’s cold in Ireland! Why didn’t I turn on my car a couple minutes before I left so it would already be warm when I came inside?
Still shivering, I looked behind me as I backed out of their driveway. I saw Damian’s parents’ house across the street. My mind started wandering to the dinner with Damian tonight.
I wonder. Is Dad right? Does Damian look at me differently now? I thought back to the lesson yesterday. I didn't notice anything too unusual. He might have been looking at me more, but was he, or was my brain giving me false signals? You haven’t seen this man in years, Sasha. You’re adults now, not hormone-driven teenagers. Get a grip.
I sighed.
But what if Dad is right though? Do I look at HIM differently? I don’t know. This is too confusing. You know what?
I turned on my blinker and got in the next lane.
I don’t care if it is the middle of winter. I’m going to go get me an ice cream.
I pulled over at the nearest gas station and bought myself a monster cone with all the trimmings.
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Post by mesquite75 on Jan 7, 2010 10:50:41 GMT -5
Thank you guys so much for reading! Every time I read y'all's comments, I think my heart rate about goes wild. I'm truly honored, thank you. Enjoy!
My stomach was practicing gymnastics, and my hands could barely grip anything. I was beginning to question my every move. Will she like this shirt? Is my aftershave way too strong? Was this even as brilliant an idea as I had originally thought? Only Sasha could answer these questions, and it was time to pick her up.
On the way over, I went through every little detail in my head (such as where we were going, what we’d do afterwards, how I should act, what I should say, what I SHOULDN’T say, yada yada yada). Finally, I reached “Parker Palace” and found myself standing in the doorway outside. After taking a minute for a much-needed deep breath, I rang the doorbell.
“Hold your horses! I’m coming!”
It wasn’t Sasha’s voice, and the sound of her father's made my nerves all the more jittery.
He opened the door and invited me in.
“She’s finishing up her ‘toilette’ and taking forever with it,” he said rolling his eyes. “So where are you taking her tonight?”
I described the place we were going. It was a cozy, mom-and-pop kind of restaurant.
“Sounds nice. Now, I don’t care what Sasha says, I’m still her father, and I want her home at eleven o’clock sharp.”
“Yes, sir. I certainly will make sure that she is.”
Friendly as he was, he still scared me a little.
“I know you will, but just to make myself clear.”
“I completely understand.”
And I did. If I were a father, I’d be just the same, possibly worse.
“Sasha! Hurry up! It’ll be time to come home before you even leave!”
“Coming, coming,” she yelled.
She came wandering in the room with her hair pulled back in a clip. She wasn’t overly fancy, but she looked nice. Very nice, indeed. I had to force myself to talk actually.
“You look very pretty tonight,” I said.
Not too original, but that’s okay. I talked.
“Thank you, Damian! You look rather dashing yourself.”
She seemed as cool as a cucumber. I was jealous.
“Why, thank you.”
She was now going from one side of the room to the next, first grabbing her scarf, then her purse, gloves, and then finally topping it all off with her huge coat.
“All ready?” her father asked.
She smiled so as to say yes, and then nodded her head.
We walked out the door with her father waving us off. I wanted to hold her arm, but that would be a bit weird, so I kept my hands to myself.
“Bye you two! Enjoy your dinner! I’ll be eating my pizza in front of the television if you need me!”
We both smiled and waved before driving off in the car. ____________________________________________________
The dinner was lovely, the restaurant was lovely, Damian was lovely, everything was just, well, lovely! I watched him very carefully during the meal. He looked a little preoccupied, and I caught him looking at my hand a few times, but that was it. He was being the perfect gentleman. We talked about whatever happened to enter out heads. Some would have called our conversation random, but I thought it was lovely.
“Where are we going next?” I asked.
I had just finished my dessert, and Damian was putting his fork down.
“I was thinking about maybe snatching a warm cup of coffee and going on a walk somewhere, but we can do whatever you want.”
“That sounds nice.”
“Then we have ourselves a plan!”
He took one last sip of his drink, paid the bill, and then we contentedly walked back to the car.
About half an hour later, we could be seen walking down the street. Sipping our drinks (I ended up getting hot chocolate, but Damian got coffee), we strolled down the sidewalk. I had no idea where we were going exactly, but Damian did, so I just followed his lead.
Again, we just seemed to talk about any and everything. It was nice. My hot chocolate kept my hands nice and warm, and the night sky was breathtaking. It seemed to be made of black velvet with was tiny star pinpricks showing through. The moon illuminated our every step. This was all so peaceful, and right now, sharing it with Damian made it all the more special.
I stopped looking at the sky and took in our surroundings.
“No, it couldn’t be!” I exclaimed. ____________________________________________________
It was. I took her to the park she, Cassie, Ethan, and I had ended up all those summers ago.
Her whole face lit up as she looked at me, and I couldn’t help but smile.
“Surprise!”
“I never suspected a thing!”
She walked over to the merry-go-round and gently touched it. Then, she went to the swing set and sat down in one of the swings. I followed and sat in the one beside her. The wet seat was really cold, but I didn’t care much at this particular moment.
“That was a good day wasn’t it?” I said.
“The best.”
Her eyes were still smiling.
“So many times I’ve played this memory over in my mind, especially when I’d had a bad day or was really missing Mom.”
She stood up again.
“Would you like to sit down at the benches?” I asked.
“I’d love to.”
I held out my arm to her this time, and she took it. I was on cloud nine the whole short walk over there. She sat down on one side of the bench, and I sat on the other.
“You don’t still happen to carry cards in your purse, do you?” I asked teasingly.
“I basically grew up in a hospital. Of course I do!”
She reached into her purse and pulled out a deck of cards as proof. She shuffled them a few times before dealing out seven. So the Go Fish tournament began. And I won. ____________________________________________________
Eleven o’clock came much too quickly. I walked in the entryway with only a few minutes to spare.
“Hey, Sasha. How’d it go?” Dad called from the living room.
“Good!” I called back.
He must have heard something in my voice because he walked into the entryway, gave me a look-over, and declared, “It looks like it was more than good. You’re absolutely glowing!”
I smiled.
“Think what you want, Dad,” I said as I went to my room.
“I told you so!” he called after me.
And we both knew it.
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Post by mesquite75 on Jan 7, 2010 10:57:47 GMT -5
The next morning, reality waltzed into my bedroom with a baseball bat and hit me full swing. What the heck was I DOING? Why in the world am I allowing myself to fall for a man I may never see again? Do I LIKE being heartbroken?
I groaned. Typical. The one guy I really think I could care a lot about has to live a million miles away. On top of that, I was freezing! My brain just seemed to get a kick out of giving me miserable questions when I was cold. I collapsed back into bed and threw the covers over my face. I knew what I had to do, and I didn’t like it one bit. It might not have been the smartest thing to do, but I started listening to Damian’s songs. ____________________________________________________
Again, I was sitting at the piano waiting for Sasha to come in for the lesson. My feet couldn’t stay still! I was so excited to see her again! I was jazzing up the song that I’d chosen for her in my head, and my feet were tapping all over the place. When Sasha walked through the door, she saw me with my head bobbing back and forth and my feet going wild.
"Hey, Sasha! I wasn't doing anything, I swear!"
Normally, she would have laughed, but today she only faintly smiled. ____________________________________________________
I took a deep breath before opening the door to the church. All I have to do is not to look at Damian, or else I’d lose it. I walked through the door, and there was Damian bobbing his head back and forth to something. As soon as he heard the door open, he jumped like he’d just been shocked. I thought about laughing, but I was just bursting to say what needed to be said.
“Hey, Sasha!” Damian said excitedly. “I wasn’t doing anything, I swear!”
He must have noticed my face then because his expressive eyebrows arched to concern.
“Are you okay, Sasha? Is something wrong?”
I nodded my head.
“Damian, I…”
Oh my word, how do I explain this?
“I think I’m falling in love with you,” I blurted out.
There. I said it. ____________________________________________________
And this is a problem? I could have jumped for joy! My face lit up. But she obviously wasn’t happy about this, so I tried my best to keep these happy expressions away from my face.
“I don’t get it, Sasha. Why is that bad exactly?” I said.
“Well, I wouldn’t have even brought it up if it weren’t for the fact that in two weeks there’s going to be an ocean separating us. So I think it’s fair if we just lay everything on the table right now. I’ve done a lot of thinking about this, and I’m not so sure loving you is such a great idea.”
I was still ecstatic and confused.
“Why?” I asked extremely puzzled.
“Well, this may seem a bit rushed, but do you think this might possibly be marriage serious?“
A bit rushed? I forced my brain to focus back on what she was saying.
“Is this just some infatuation that we’re both going to get over, or is this the real thing? Because Damian, if it’s just some infatuation, we’re going to get hurt, and I care about you a lot! I do! I don’t want to be hurt, and I certainly don’t want to see you hurt. We both need to know right now whether or not we’re willing to make it that serious. I know this sounds weird after only one date, but if we’re both falling for each other, we need to know right now. I know I’m asking for the impossible, but considering the circumstances, I just figured we needed to be completely honest, without any games, and, well, breaking it off might just be the best thing.”
She started crying there, and then once she started, she couldn’t stop.
I sprang up from my chair and ran over to give her a big hug.
“Shh shh shh. I care about you very, very much, Sasha. And who says we have to know right now? I don’t honestly know if I can tell you this minute that I love you, but I think I’m falling in that direction.”
She started crying harder.
“It’s okay, Sasha, it’s okay. But hey, isn’t the point of dating to find out whether or not we’re right for each other?”
“But Damian, I leave in two weeks!”
“Then that gives us two weeks! We can write letters or something after that, but I don’t want to see you gone forever!”
I could barely hear what she said between sobs.
“But, Damian, I—I—I don’t know if—if I can let my—myself to get involved to—to that extent only—only to leave a couple weeks later! I mean, you never—you hardly ever hear of long—long-distance re—relationsh—ships w—working out, and—and—and I don’t know if I can—if I can take that chance!”
“Hey, hey, hey,” I said as soothingly as I could. Fresh sobs were starting to take control of her again.
“Don’t you have to take a chance in every relationship you try? What’s so different about this? We both truly care about each other, and don’t you think it’s worth taking a shot? We would both be getting to know each other with the thought of something very serious at the back of our brain, and if either one of us thinks the other isn’t right, then we can break it off. But don’t just break it off because you’re not willing to give it a chance! At least give it a try before you call us off for good! I don’t want to lose you.”
I stopped hugging her and looked straight into her face.
“Okay?”
She nodded her head and started hugging me tighter. I was starting to feel lightheaded. How did this woman manage to be charming, captivating, funny, beautiful, and a lost puppy all at once? It’s just too much for a man to resist, I tell you.
It took a long time, but after we both got control of ourselves, we got on to the music lesson. I showed her the song I had in mind for her. It seemed very fitting now. www.youtube.com/watch?v=HGl4iViPTvc&feature=related
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Post by damianrocks on Jan 7, 2010 14:22:45 GMT -5
OMG! *faints* Perfect song! And it's Michael Buble, so Damian would have picked it. lol! More story pleeeease!!!!!!
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Post by swimgurl96 on Jan 18, 2010 10:11:13 GMT -5
I read this over and over and never get sick of it, thanks for putting this up here so we can read it.
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Post by mesquite75 on Jan 20, 2010 10:56:18 GMT -5
Time certainly flies when you’re having fun. Damian has planned this “recital” type thing for right before I leave. He claims he wants to show off his “work,” but I think he has something up his sleeve. No, actually I KNOW he does. He thinks he’s a subtle genius, but little does he know… ___________________________________________________
I thought keeping that secret would like to have about killed me, but I have kept it very well, if I do say so myself! All the guys showed up (we’d been doing some recording, and plus they didn’t think I could teach anybody anything. Some faith my friends have in me, huh?) as well as Cassie and Ethan. They had come back from their honeymoon only a couple days beforehand. How about I cut all this short just and say I pretty much invited about half of Derry?
After the actual recital, we brought out a karaoke machine. Some of the highlights of the evening were Paul singing “If I Were a Rich Man,” listening to Cassie and Ethan TRY to sing “16 Going on 17,” and Sasha’s adorable blush after finishing her recital piece (which she did VERY WELL on).
We were hardly apart those last two weeks. Neither of us wanted to think about her going away, but we couldn’t escape it. We both had so much fun at the “recital” though. It almost made us forget what was going to happen the next day.
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Post by mesquite75 on Jan 20, 2010 10:56:41 GMT -5
The day of departure arrived all too soon. We put off saying goodbye until the plane was about ready to leave the airport, but we eventually had to say it.
“I’ll miss you.”
“I’ll keep in touch,” she said.
She looked about ready to cry. She stood on her tiptoes and kissed me on the cheek. I hardly noticed the piece of paper she slipped in my hand. My cheek was still tingling from where she had kissed it only a second before.
“You’d better,” I managed to say.
“Goodbye, Damian. I’ll miss you too.”
“Bye, Sasha.” ____________________________________________________
I picked up my suitcase handle and dragged my carry-on to the plane. I turned around, and the last thing I saw was Damian. He had his hands in his pockets when I turned around, but when he saw me looking at him one last time, he slowly waved. I just made it to my seat before the first tear came. Dad sat down beside me and opened his arms. I gladly sunk into his hug and quietly cried until I fell asleep. I wasn’t to find out until later that Damian barely made it home. He said he nearly got in a wreck about five times. Then when he got home, he remembered the slip of paper in his pocket and was relieved to see it was my address. He said then and there he sat down and started writing me a letter.
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