[Derek] Pause

[BOBBIE JACQUELINE BRYAN]

Bobbie rolled her eyes. Of course he didn’t want to be here. Of course this kid had anything better to do than contribute in class, just swaying back and forth out of boredom. What a frikkin waste of talent. The choir director had spoken to her, he had told her that this kid was talented. And he was acting like all of it meant nothing. He wasn’t taking himself seriously. “ Pause,” Bobbie said, throwing down her sheet music as she stood up and grabbed Derek by his arm, pulling him outside into the hallway. “ Hi,” she said with a lift of her eyebrows in annoyance. “ Look I don’t usually take time out of my day to sporadically talk to people like….well,you” she said, before giving a sarcastically polite smile, “ But you’re being a pain in the ass.”. Bobbie placed her hands on her hips as she drew in a deep breath and looked over him. “ You’ve got the whole… mysterious, new kid in town James Dean thing going on. For some reason you’re quiet as hell, I’ve never seen you smile. And the people that you’ve associated yourself with here are….. idiots,” she said while shaking her head. “ Whatever you think you’re trying to prove here, you’re only hurting yourself. Mr.Schaffer says you have an amazing voice. No one wants to be in school, I get it. Way to be a typical cliché dude. But do you want out of here? You want to do something amazing? You want to be the person that they talk about in classrooms? You need to apply yourself. Or at least… just start believing in yourself. And surround yourself with useful people who I don’t know… might believe in you, too. Because I’m going to make it out of here. I’m going to leave this piece of shit town behind. And you.. with the raw talent. You could do it, too. But not if you don’t apply yourself.” Bobbie made a face at him before she took her hands off of her hips and crossed her arms. “ What are you doing hanging out with those guys anyway? They don’t contribute anything. And… you … “ she shook her head. Honestly, she didn’t know him. She didn’t know what his dreams were, but she had a feeling they were more than what he was applying himself towards right now. “ You’re new. Why don’t you try? At something…at anything. You look miserable. And it’s only going to stay miserable if you don’t do something about it yourself “

Outfit

[DEREK EDWARD PARKER]

Derek stood in the back, hands in his pockets, trying to figure out which part he was supposed to sing. Not that it mattered, he didn't sing loud enough to be heard. But he had to be here, so whatever. Since he only had a semester left, his schedule kind of forced him to take an elective credit and choir was the only thing that fit. And he wasn’t about to not graduate. He needed to get out of here so he could start his music career. Derek was just riding it out until graduation and then it was goodbye Cleveland. Easy enough. Derek didn’t waste a lot of his precious time doing homework when he could be writing music, but he got A’s on all his test and exams so he pulled passing grades. He was no dummy, school was easy. It just wasn’t what he was passionate about. Derek looked up when the music stopped and then Bobbie was pulling him into the hallway. She was interesting at least. Awesome singer, really focused, beauty that knocked you off your feet. Derek wasn’t surprised she had a boyfriend. But he was surprised she paid any attention to him at all swaying in the back of the choir room. Derek felt his eyebrows go up when Bobbie said ‘like you’, crossing his arms over his chest defensively. “A pain in the ass,” he said, more of a statement, watching her. It was funny she thought his friends he had made at this school were idiots. Yes they made a lot of dumb choices, like smoking weed, drinking. But they were all different. Toby, yes, he had nothing going on for him in life. He was the definition of going nowhere. But he was funny as hell and he was a supportive friend. Greg smoked a lot of weed but his IQ was through the roof. Not many people knew he pulled straight A’s and wanted to study aeronautical engineering. Jesse loved music the way Derek did. They just kind of all fell together for being misfits. But Derek would only refer to them as idiots endearingly. They were the few people that had been chill with him just joining the group. After she was done talking, Derek shook his head, “You don’t know my friends.” He moved his hands to his pockets, looking her right in the eye, “The best thing I can do for myself is to get out of Cleveland. I’ve got plans for myself. Just biding my time. Just like you are.” Derek glanced back into the choir room, knowing they were being waited on, “But thanks for the lecture, mom. I’ll make an effort to sing your songs, I promise.” Whatever was important to her. He didn’t know why she gave a fuck about him, but it counted for something. Derek opened the door to the choir room, gesturing to her as if to say ladies first. But mostly he just wanted to walk behind her.

[BOBBIE JACQUELINE BRYAN]

Bobbie made a face like she was being insulted as he started speaking to her. “ Excuse me?” she asked defensively as he opened the door to go back into the classroom before she put her hand on the door and slammed it back shut. “ Are you FUCKING kidding me?” she yelled slightly at him, knowing at this point people in the classroom could probably hear their conversation. “ I am not your mother. Nor am I acting like one. I am acting like somebody who… wants you to appreciate the talent you have. You want to get out of Cleveland? You have dreams for yourself? You should start I don’t know… showing that you are proud of what you can do.” she said as she finally dropped her hand from the door. “ You’re hot. And quiet. And I’m sure you’re doing just fine in class with your grades, and whatever else.That’s great. But the guy that sits in the back of the class, swaying.. and has his ipod playing inbetween classes…even during some classes… and is constantly tapping some part of his body along to a rhythm… That guy needs to start putting in some effort. Because I don’t care if you want to be an astronaut or a lead singer of a band some day,if you don’t start trying now.. you will always settle for swaying in the background when that’s not where you deserve to be,” she said, before making an angry face again. “ And I AM NOT NICE TO PEOPLE.” she said before pointing at him, “ Do not make me waste it on somebody who is going to ignore it and turn out to be a nobody. And don’t you ever… EVER.. get mad at me, and call me your mother, when all I am doing, is trying to tell you that you’re amazing , but you’re a fucking moron for settling on the bare minimum,” she muttered before starting to walk away from the class altogether. She was done with choir for the day. “ Come on. And quit staring at my ass every time we leave class. It’s starting to piss Nick off,”

[DEREK EDWARD PARKER]

Nope, not going to class. That door slam was an obvious indication that Bobbie got what she wanted and she didn’t like that Derek wasn’t bending to her every whim. Well, sorry princess, not everyone is going to worship you. And Derek thought that would suck anyways. People worshipping the ground you walk on because they were afraid of you. At least Derek had the decency to treat her like a person, just like him. Derek snorted, almost letting out a laugh, but didn’t, “Oh, I’m hot.” This girl though. She was like a walking contradiction. And hey Derek was proud of what he could do, he just wasn’t sure showing the kids in this school through choir was going to make a difference. But hey, he hadn’t written it off. And she thought he was amazing, apparently. Which was so crazy, because she didn’t really know him. So if she did, what would she think, that he was a god? “Hey, bare minimum isn’t in my vocabulary.” He said, watching her walk away. Well okay, if she wasn’t going back to class, he sure as hell wasn’t. “Pissing Nick off, or you? ‘Cuz I’m not really all that concerned about Nick.” Derek followed her, wondering where on earth she was planning on going anyways, “Have you ever skipped class in your life?” he joked, “Not that I’m not all about it.” He paused for a moment, and then asked, “Do you always just get what you want?”

[BOBBIE JACQUELINE BRYAN]

Bobbie stopped short, when he asked if it was making Nick mad or her. “ Oh honey,” she said, stepping closer to him. “If I got angry every time a hormonal teenage boy stared at my ass, I’d be starring in a trilogy as a pissed off green giant by now.” she said as she ruffled her hand through his hair a little roughly. She dropped her hand from his hair as she continued to make her way towards her locker. “No, I don’t skip class. That would indicate if I got caught I got in trouble. I take personal days,” she said, pulling her jacket on, though she did nothing to cover her legs. Bobbie narrowed her eyes at him as she smiled. ” You think you have me figured out. I’m a spoiled little girl who stomps around the hallways trying to make her way, or else,” she said, pulling her hair out from underneath her coat. “ Nobody always gets what they want. Some people just get better at controlling the things that they’re able to so that they don’t continuously get fucked over,” she said before making her way outside. Bobbie pushed her hair behind her ear, making her way towards her car as she dug her phone out of her backpack, sending a quick text to Nick. Which only sparked the thought that Derek had indirectly said he didn’t care about her boyfriend. She could turn around and go back to class, not make Nick mad about spending the day with a guy she knew he didn’t like. But here she was, opening the car door and getting in anyway. She leaned over to unlock his side before she plugged in her phone to the sound system. Bobbie turned the music up slightly before she started to leave the parking lot, trying to pull her skirt down so it was covering her legs more. She looked over at the passenger seat. He had such a ridiculously amazing jawline. And his hair seemed to fall perfectly into his eyes… with that stupid, silent confidence that he had. Bobbie cleared her throat, pushing her hair away from her face before she looked back at the road. She didn’t come from the most wealthy family in Cleveland. But she did come from a wealthy family ; just not one of such stature that it overshadowed everything else. “ We have to go inside for a second,” she said as she parked.

Bobbie pulled her hair over her shoulder , stepping inside before she leaned forward to take her heels off. She stood up, giving a pointed look over her shoulder to make sure he wasn’t staring at her butt again before she stepped into the home. “ Why are you home?” she heard her fathers voice call. “Oh, is your girlfriend home?” she called out as she started to make her way into the kitchen. She began to dig through all of the cabinets. “…..Who is this guy, where’s Nick?” her father asked. Bobbie dropped the sour skittles, starbursts and twizzlers on the counter as she approached Derek. She stood behind him, wrapping her hands over his body so that they clung to his abs. “ You caught us. I’m so desperate to get laid that I had to come home in the middle of the day with the new kid,” she said before lifting her eyebrow and stepping away from him. “ I don’t appreciate your sarcasm.” he said, picking up his briefcase before he gave Derek a look, “ I apologize for my daughter’s behavior” he said. At this point Bobbie had already ripped into the twizzlers, “ Apologize for your own.” she said, biting into the twizzler before she took Derek’s hand and led him upstairs to her room. She waited for the sound of the front door shutting before she looked at Derek and gave him a genuine apologetic look. “ I’m so sorry….” she said before turning and going into her room. Bobbie hummed quietly to herself before she dug out all the movies that she needed to. “ Okay,” she said, dropping everything in his arms, “ You’re going to need to watch these,” she said before going towards her closet, pushing her tutu off and tearing off her crop top. “ And the candy and ice cream is yours too. These are a few of my favorite things” she said quietly to herself. After pulling on a pair of skinny jeans and a long sleeve shirt. Bobbie stepped back out of her closet to face him, putting her hair in a ponytail. “ I think it’s safe to say that if we wanted to sleep together, that would be an obvious route. But… and I’m not saying I wouldn’t. You’re hot as shit. The problem is… you’re frustrating. And I need you to .. not just … be the way you are. I don’t know what’s happened to you. I don’t know if some girl broke your heart… or some guy… but, you cant’ just walk around like a zombie. You have to feel something. Do you feel anything? I mean seriously? What teenage boy doesn’t smile, ever?” she questioned, though she wasn’t asking him harshly, she had genuine concern in her voice. Bobbie thought for a moment before she walked over to him, placing her hands on his hips as she tilt her head to the side so she could lean in and whisper to him, letting her lips graze his ear as she spoke. “ What teenage boy can’t smile?” she questioned as she traced her fingertips along the inside of the top of his jeans. She waited for a moment before stepping back and lifting her eyebrow at him. “ But that’s why I’m going to let you get to know me. Because I don’t want to know how you make some girls toes curl. I want to know you.” she said, shoving one last movie into his chest, “I used to be you. So now you’re my new challenge. You idiot,” she said with a smile before moving out of her bedroom. Bobbie stepped back into the kitchen, putting all of the goodies into a grocery bag before she took a couple of mountain dews out of the fridge and made her way back out to the car. “ You can drive,” she said, throwing him the car keys before she got settled in. Bobbie crossed her legs in her seat, plugging the address for the city theater into the gps.

[DEREK EDWARD PARKER]

Derek shrugged when she said she acted a certain way so she didn’t get continuously fucked over, “Have you been fucked over before?” He was genuinely curious. There was stuff about him that affected a lot of how he acted, especially recently. Surely there were things about her too that he didn’t know about. Derek wasn’t sure it was possible to ever fully know a person. Derek followed her to her car, which was a nice car. He didn’t have a lot to say, just wondering where they were going, but it seemed they were at her house. Derek nodded when she said they had to go inside, so he followed her in, taking his shoes off. Hearing the conversation between Bobbie and her dad was a little uncomfortable. Derek got the feeling there was a lot more behind that. And Derek would usually have introduced himself, his parents raised him that way but he wasn’t so sure her dad wanted to meet him at the moment so Derek still said nothing. He had a lot of nothing to say. He was a little taken back the way she just wrapped her arms around him to make a point, but Derek knew it wasn’t anything. Just getting back art her dad for who knows what. Derek did however take a twizzler, and then took another one for good measure because Derek loved twizzlers. By the time she took his hand and dragged him upstairs he was getting pretty used to her doing things her way.



Derek shook his head, “No it’s fine,” when she apologized. He knew all about dysfunction. He took the movies in his hands, looking at them. What on earth was she doing to him? Moulin Rouge, Lion King, Grease, Pretty Woman? He just stared at her while she talked about candy and ice cream. At this point, if she was confusing before, he really didn’t know what to think of her now. But apparently he was going to find out. After she had changed, she came back out of her closet talking about sleeping together and how that was such an obvious route but she wasn’t going to do that because she wanted them to get to know each other. If Derek wasn’t mistaken, getting to know a person before you slept with them sounded a lot like dating. What was she trying to do, date Derek on the side? Derek thought about what she was saying. Yes he felt a lot of things. He was really pissed off in general, and he was working on getting over that, or at least dialing it down. She was putting her hands on his hips and whispering in his ear and he was feeling other things, “What are you doing,” he muttered, a little frozen because he never expected her to be this forward. But then, he should have known? Maybe? Derek didn’t move as she traced her finger along the waistband on his jeans but when she stepped back he said matter of factly, “I’m gonna let you call it your project but that to me sounds like dating. That’s what I’m calling it.” Derek took her keys, carrying her bag of Bobbie crash course materials, and put it in the back seat asking, “Is there going to be a quiz on this?” He started her car, backed out of the driveway, taking the opportunity to manually shift and floored the gas pedal leaving a nice set of burnies on her street. He looked at her, as if it was the most logical thing to do, “you said I could drive.”

[BOBBIE JACQUELINE BRYAN]

Bobbie smiled while also shaking her head at Derek. “ You don’t date somebody that already has a boyfriend. That is not what this is,slick” she said, getting into the car. She took in a deep breath, even being able to smell the rubber that was burning from her tires onto the street. Bobbie pulled her legs up into the seat, draping her arms around them. “ So what’s your deal? Girlfriend back home? Boyfriend back home?” she asked, dropping her head against the seat as she turned to look at him. It wouldn’t be too much longer until they got to the theater, and since she was trying to show some of herself to him, it seemed fine that she ask superficial things about himself. If he wanted her to know more, maybe by the end of the day he would show her. When they pulled into the parking lot, Bobbie took a blanket out of the backseat and gestured for him to grab the bag of goodies. She held the blanket close to her body as she stepped inside, looking around. The office light was on but the rest weren’t. “ Miss Maggie?” she called out. There was a sudden noise, she must’ve heard her. Bobbie stood still for a moment, waiting to Maggie to come out of her office. Slowly, the woman well into her eighties stepped out. “ Oh, Miss Bryan” she said as a smile began to lighten up the wrinkles on her face.Bobbie smiled as she walked toward the cane riddled woman. “ Maggie, I hope you don’t mind that we stopped by,” she said, giving her as much of a squeeze as she could in a hug. “ Oh you can stop by any time you want to darling. Who did you bring with you?” she questioned, “ What a handsome young man,”. Bobbie kept her arm on the elderly womans back as she held her arm out holding the blanket towards him. “ This is Derek Parker. He’s new to town and in some of my classes,” she said, watching as the older woman went to hug Derek as a greeting. “ Miss Maggie is alright if I put the screen down and we watch a movie?” she asked. “Oh honey, you can do whatever you like. I’ll show your friend your shelf,” she said. Bobbie gave a slight smile. ” Don’t bore him with that,” Bobbie said, kissing the woman on her cheek before she took one of the dvd’s from the bag that Derek was holding and made her way to the stage to get to the controls. Which would also mean having to go up on the catwalk to get to the movie player.

Bobbie put her hands on her knees and stood up once she finished getting the movie set up. When she came back downstairs she put her hands in her back pockets as she approached the two of them, listening to Miss Maggie talking about how Bobbie was going to be in those ‘motion pictures’. She cleared her throat quietly, which was enough to get them to turn around. “ Are you ready?” she asked Derek before she started heading back to the seat. The previews were already rolling. Bobbie sat down, twirling the ends of her hair in her fingers. “ This is where I decided I wanted to be on broadway… or theater, I guess” she said, tilting her head from side to side. “ Not just this place,but this seat. “ she said, licking her lips before she continued. “ Dad had gotten home late the night before, and… mom knew it was because of Karen. They were talking back and forth, divorce, name calling… but those girls on stage. They seemed to have it altogether. It just seemed like a perfect..escape” she said before smiling quietly. She moved her arm from the armrest, tracing her fingertips around where she had carved her name into the old wood. “ It just becomes a part of you, you know?” she said before smiling at him softly. “ So you’re going to watch Grease. Because if that doesn’t make you want to dance, then… you have no hope,” she said, taking the blanket and spreading it over themselves before she took the strawberry ice cream, offering him a spoon.

[DEREK EDWARD PARKER]

Derek glanced over at her, smirking slightly now.  He couldn't keep a straight face forever, not when she was asking if he had a boyfriend, "Do you get gay vibes from me?  We already talked about your ass." he joked and then shook his head, "Nah, no girlfriend, we broke up.  Long distance and all, it just wasn't going to work."  Plus every time she looked at him like he was this fragile thing that was going to break it make him want to cringe.  No, better to break things off.  Derek followed her into the theater, full of charm and personality.  He had a feeling she spent a lot of time here over the years.  Derek nodded at Miss Maggie, "Thanks," going over to check out this 'shelf'.  Which was really more of an ode to Bobbie.  She really had accomplished a lot.  Bobbie had left, and Derek looked at all the pamphlets and other things in the case, "So is Bobbie the sparkling diamond around here?" he joked.  He knew some things about things.  "Oh Bobbie is going places, that girl.  She'd got all the passion in the world."  "I definitely got that impression."  Derek noticed Bobbie had returned, following her into the theater, grabbing more twizzlers.  Derek bit in about four of them at a time, listening to Bobbie talk about her parents.  Derek nodded, "Yeah a chance to be someone else for a bit, step out of your own shoes."  Derek wanted to do that sometimes.  Like recently.  It would be nice to shed his own grief and problems for a day.  He glanced over, moving her hand to look where she had etched her name into the seat, "Are your parents divorced now?"  But Derek understood what she meant, some things just became a part of you.  Like a guitar passed down from an older sibling that you could never bring yourself to part with, even if you didn't want to look at it any more.  Derek finally looked over, seeing the strawberry ice cream and legitimately lit up in a grin, "Strawberry ice cream is my shit."  Derek grabbed the other spoon, reaching over and grabbed a scoop, "Hey come on, I know a thing or two about Grease Lightning."  As he ate ice cream and the title sequence of the movie came on, Derek said, "Its crazy to think when this came out it was just another movie, and now it's like a cult classic.  You can't predict whats going to be a classic, but if the potential's there..." he shrugged 

[BOBBIE JACQUELINE BRYAN]

Bobbie nestled comfortably under the blanket. Every time she tried watching this with Nick he passed out. Maybe Derek would, maybe he wouldn’t. But either way she was going to watch herself some Danny Zuko shaking and moving. Her fingers were still tingling. That was strange, she didn’t think the ice cream had been that cold. It was strange to her really, how mysterious he was. She smiled slowly as she watched him eating the ice cream. Maybe she would get him to crack eventually. Bobbie cleared her throat, forcing her own thoughts out of her head about how delicious his lips looked as he ate ice cream. “ Actually they’re still together,” she said, shrugging her shoulder slightly. “ She’s scared of the unknown.” she muttered before looking back at the screen. She wanted to ask him more about his personal life, how he felt about the break up, about moving, about having to spend six months at a new school before graduating. But he seemed so happy right now, that she didn’t want to take even that moment away from him. Sometimes, when people were going through a hard time, they just needed support, for someone to sit there. Even if it was just to sit in a smelly old theater, watching some movie and eating ice cream. Something about contact had an effect of calming people. “ Don’t take this the wrong way,” she said, moving the rest that was between them, ”I’m never going to be with you,” she warned again. Bobbie took her hair down from the ponytail so it wouldn’t dig into his side, before pulling her hair over his shoulder before she rest against his side and laid her head on his chest. You didn’t need to know exactly what someone was going through to be there for them. Sure, he was new. And sure she didn’t know him very well. But she knew enough to know that he was hurting, and that she had been in that place before. Sometimes asking people how they were, or what was causing it, telling them that it would be okay, that was a lie. But just being with them, making them feel supported, maybe they wouldn’t feel so alone. And while she had worked hard to work on the cold hearted front she managed to weasel herself into, it cut her to the core to see the familiar lost look in someone’s eyes. She smiled to herself, knowing that what she was about to ask after talking for accumulatively about an hour, sounded absolutely crazy. ” Do you trust me?” she asked as she turned her head against his chest to look up at him. She didn’t need to be his friend directly to support him. If he just needed someone to kick his ass for the next five months, she could do that. But if she accomplished anything over that time, it would be to make him smile like that at least once a day.

[DEREK EDWARD PARKER]

Derek nodded when she said her parents were still together.  Just because they were together didn't mean Bobbie was over it, whatever it was.  Something that involved a girlfriend.  He wondered maybe if her dad had cheated on her mom.  Part of him want to ask but there was this whole other part of him that knew the more he asked her, the more entitled she became to asking him things.   he wasn't sure he wanted to answer questions.  Derek also was surprised when she scooted closer.  She was a girl of many mixed signals, but then she was basically like, don't get it twisted, I'm not gonna be with you.  Ever.  Which could have come off a lot more harsh but maybe she just understood.  It was nice at least, to have someone around that got it, even if she didn't quite understand what IT was.  He wasn't sure how he felt about sharing that part.  Saying it out loud solidified it.  My brother is dead.  He killed himself.  He left us.  He left me. He knew he was a hot mess.  As much as he didn't want to admit that either.  Derek had never been a moody kid.  Every picture, every home video from his childhood he was smiling that hundred watt smile, making someone else laugh.  He spent all day long looking up to Drew and Dylan, trying to make them laugh, trying to impress them, trying to be them.  There was nothing Derek wanted more than to be a musician like Dyl.  And Drew had wanted to be a music teacher.  It was kind of a big part of their household.  But Drew was so... he could make you believe you could do anything.  If you wanted to be an astronaut, he'd make you believe the sky was anything but the limit.  He could make you believe you could fly.  He was that charismatic.  On his good days.  Derek wanted to be just like him.  Someone who everyone loved, someone who was so loving and encouraging, so positive.  None of it made any sense.  Derek didn't think it ever would.  He'd never understand why he had to go.  So anyways, when Bobbie said she wasn't going to ever be with him, he said, "Okay," because how could Derek be with anyone right now?  He was still trying to get himself back to normal.  Normal didn't seem at all possible.  Either way, he let her rest her head on his chest, because it was nice having someone close.  He ate another bite of ice cream because it was making him smile for the first time in a while, for who knows what reason.  But it felt nice, smiling a bit.  Bobbie asked if he trusted her.  Did he?  he barely knew her.  he had no idea why she had taken an interest in him, other than whatever was in her past, she felt she could relate to whatever was in his past.  Maybe she needed someone too, playing it off like he was her project.  Did he trust her?  He had every reason not to, but contrary to that negative thought, he also had no reason not to.  If he was going to start somewhere, he should start by understanding that one person's mistakes didn't mean everyone was going to leave.  Finally he said, "Yeah,"  and then thought about it, "but don't let me down," he joked, nudging her playfully, even though he really meant it.  If he was gonna trust this strange girl in this god forsaken town, he couldn't afford to live through another let down.

[BOBBIE JACQUELINE BRYAN]

Bobbie kept her eyes locked on Derek’s as he said that he trusted her, but not to let him down. It literally felt like there was something stirring inside of her. “Never,” she promised , knowing she should tear her eyes away from his but not finding the will to be able to stop. And just like that he looked away, back towards the screen and she felt her heart plummet into her stomach. That was weird. Bobbie took in a few steady breaths to try and calm her heart rate. It was a strange thing being in a relationship, but knowing at the same time that you found some mysterious new guy completely desireable. And even then, that combined with the fact while she knew she was physically attracted to him; that something inside her told her to wait, to be something else for him right now. She had never watched Grease with her heart feeling like it was going to beat out of her chest. Bobbie swallowed, finding it hard to force whatever she was feeling down. Instead, she quietly slid her hand down into his. “ Here, I’ll prove it,” she said using her free hand to take her keys out. Her own initials had been carved in about ten years ago, but she figured this was well enough. Bobbie narrowed her eyes, beginning to carve his initials beneath her own. He just needed someone to support him through whatever he was going through. She’d been sitting in this seat when she realized what she wanted. Maybe, if she stuck by his side as whatever he needed, if he looked back on today he could say the same.

[DEREK EDWARD PARKER]

Derek looked at her, her eyes just as brown as his, trying to see if there was something he could trust there but it was no matter.  He already told her he did and Derek didn't like to say things he didn't mean.  he was a little taken aback the way she was looking at him.  It was like, she said she would never be with him, but what she said and what her body said were not in agreement.  And so he knew since she had a boyfriend that he also shouldn't mess with that.  And also he knew he wasn't in any kind of mental state to be getting into a relationship and dragging someone else into the mess that was his head.  He didn't know how he felt about her.  He had only just met her.  And she seemed conflicted herself about how she felt.  Derek didn't want to confuse crushing on someone with just clinging to any person that showed some kind of understanding.  But maybe he was just trying to convince himself he didn't like her.  That was dumb, he totally did.  How could he not?  Aside from the being hot part, she was driven, passionate, confident.  And for some reason she was showing him this other side of her.  She was a lot more than the Bobbie on the surface.  That being said, Derek still had some personal shit to sift through and she still had that boyfriend.  And she'd been pretty sure she wasn't going to be with Derek, ever.  So Derek looked away.  Because their faces were too close and it was dangerous territory.  But before he could refocus on the movie she was taking his hand and carving his initials into the seat by hers.  This girl would be the cause of many sleepless nights, that he could already tell.  "You're something else," he muttered, but offered a small smile anyways.  It was pretty cool to have his initials carved somewhere with someone else.  There was the fucking moment, as Dylan would say.  Derek didn't have a lot to say for most of the movie, but he could appreciate a good classic. By the end he finally said, shifting in his seat as they'd been sitting in the same place for some time, her face perfectly glued to his chest, "Okay I just want to add that them driving off in a flying car totally kills the validity of the film.  It's so random."  he laughed, looking at the cart of ice cream and how empty it was.   

[BOBBIE JACQUELINE BRYAN]

Bobbie kept her eyes just as glued onto the screen as she was to his chest. What was it about this guy? She had known him less than a few weeks really, and she believed in him more than she had believed in everyone else she had met. It was like he exuded something that just needed to be explored. And she didn’t want to cheapen that by making it physical. Even if he did smell amazing. When the movie ended, she could feel him shift and she unwillingly sat up, pushing her hair behind her ear. “ Yeah the validity of the film being in question is really what the director was going for,” she said as she rolled her eyes paired with a smile. “ Okay,” she said, adjusting her legs under the blanket. “ You got to see a side of me,” she said, looking at him expectantly. The tamest version of ‘I’ll show you mine if you show me yours’. But she wanted him to know it didn’t have to be anything too serious, right away. She remembered what it was like, wanting to push every one away. So she quickly added. “ Do you skateboard? Sports? What all instruments do you play? You can show me….” she said before smiling at him slightly. She looked down at their hands, realizing that they were still joined together. She slowly pulled her hand away. Not what he needed. “ Come on,” she said, standing up. “ Teach me something,” she said with a smile as she reached down to ruffle his hair again, though more playfully this time.

[DEREK EDWARD PARKER]

Derek stared at her for a second like, what...? What did she want from him? But she wasn't asking much. This was just like a really weird crash course in getting to know someone. But he could play along. He laughed slightly as she ruffled his hair, standing up and threw all the trash back into the back while Bobbie picked up the blanket. It was polite to clean up after themselves because you know, that Miss Maggie looked OLD. Sometime later they were back in Bobbie's car but this time they were going to Derek's house. Because he didn't really have anything here in Cleveland that he held near and dear. It was funny though because his house was, though large, was the biggest one in the neighborhood, and yet ironically it was the most disastrous. The front yard was home to a giant snow mound that they'd obviously been messing around with snowboards because snow wasn't a common thing in Miami, obviously. The garage was usually open and it was filled with skateboards and ramps and bmx bikes. The back yard was mapped out for a dirt bike track as soon as spring came. They'd already had the cops called for a noise complaint. Their neighbors had another thing coming. Derek got out and led the way up to house and let them in. Even though they were supposed to be in school, they'd watched an entire movie so he was supposed to be home an hour ago. "Derek?" His mom sounded tentative but he kicked his shoves off, "Yeah it's me," and then pointed at the skateboard sticking out of the coat closet, "That's mine." As if to say, I skateboard. He headed into the kitchen, motioning for Bobbie to follow him, his mom was cooking something that smelled a lot like tacos and she was dressed to the nines, as always. "Hi sweetheart, I was wondering where you were, i was worried," she said turning around to give him a hug and a kiss, "Oh, hello, who's this?" "Mom this is Bobbie, she's a friend from school." If she wasn't a friend yet, he had a feeling she would be. "It's very nice to meet you Bobbie," she said giving Bobbie a tight squeeze and looked at Derek like, ooh a girl? He gave his mom a look that said, don't even. “Are you staying for dinner? You’re more than welcome,” his mom added, “Derek be a good host, get her something to drink.” Derek shrugged, opening the double fridge to get the full effect of her beverage choices, “Whatever you want, it is yours,” he said dramatically. It was weird because just being in his own house, he already felt like his walls went down some. There was something to be said about being comfortable in your own home, even if they’d been in it less than a month. After Bobbie grabbed what she wanted Derek said, “We’ll be down stairs,” “Okay I’ll let you know when dinner is ready.” Derek opened the door to the basement, the smoke visible as It crept up and his mom added, “Careful down there Bobbie, you go down there, you might not come back,” she joked to which Derek added, “She’s kidding. She never goes down here.” And for good reason. It smelled like weed already, there was no organization to it and it was obviously a crash pad for the boys. Definition of a man cave. Dylan’s room was down there but as they got to the bottom of the stairs he noticed the door was shut. Probably taking his mid afternoon nap. Derek headed over to the big screen, motioning to the movie collection on the built in shelving. “I have a bit of a film obsession.” That was an understatement. Derek had a game plan. He’d do music for as long as life allowed him and then he wanted to go back to school later for film. He had a lot of film equipment already, up in his room. The basement was a mix of instruments, a hell of a lot of guitars, a drum kit in the corner, various skateboards. “This room is a good representation of my activities,” he said, gesturing around. The music, the movies, the massive shelf of classic books and memoirs, something he and Dylan were both passionate about. Derek dropped a magazine over a bag of weed, nodding.

[BOBBIE JACQUELINE BRYAN]

Bobbie smiled as she watched his mom, looking all adorable and quaint in such an amazing home. Tacos for dinner.. she wondered if that was a weekly thing. Boys liked tacos. But Bobbie watched his mother for a moment longer. She had a soft spot for women of the households, and she found herself immediately wondering if Mr.Parker appreciated her the way he should, or if she was a trophy wife like her own mother.”’ Uh hold up” she said to Derek as he headed downstairs. Bobbie walked over to their mother and smiled slightly. ” I…” she started before smiling even wider out of nerves. “ I don’t know your son very well. But he’s very.. “ she started but found herself at a loss of words. She looked downward at her hands holding the bottle of water, clearing her throat as she tried to find a word to describe him.But there wasn’t one in mind that could capture it. ”You have an amazing son,”she said, taking a slight step backwards before she looked downward and headed towards the stairs. As Bobbie opened took the first step she immediately put her hand over her mouth, mumbling to herself. “ Oh, God” she said, pausing at the first step. She looked over her shoulder, taking in a huge breath before she finally mustered the ability to go all the way down the stairs. But she quickly realized the smell wasn’t going anywhere, and she couldn’t stay down here without breathing for very long before she passed out. So instead she let out a breath and coughed, “ Pungent,” she stated, tapping her hand against the top of her water bottle.

Bobbie looked around his room, almost being too careful not to touch anything. Plus she was fairly confident this is what a Snoop Dogg concert smelled like. Snoop Lion? Snoop something. Oh my god was she high? Bobbie took a few steps further into the room, tracing her fingertips along the top of the drums. “ This is…?” she questioned as she pointed towards the door. Ah, his brothers room. ”He’s just sleeping. In the middle of the day.That’s…” she stopped, nodding before she finished her sentence. She cleared her throat, making an immediate decision. She had shared her world with him, and in the name of fairness, she knew what that meant. “ Alright.” she said, going over to his brothers door and knocking on it a few times. “….Other Parker…” she said, realizing she didn’t know his name before she knocked again. She continued to knock until he opened the door. ” Oh hello..” she said looked at his disheveled appearance. “ Yes… Hi. I am Bobbie Bryan,” she said, giving herself a small smile, as though that in itself was an accomplishment. “ Ah..” she said , trying to hide her disgust as she lift her hand to his hair and pulled a cheeto out of it, brushing it away from her fingers. “ Awesome. Um… I am a…friend.. of your brothers.” she said with a nod.” And I shared my world with him earlier, so now we all have to smoke the uh… cannabis.” she said, clapping her hands together with finality.