♥kj (nobetterreason) wrote in mcdermott_game, @ 2011-01-24 13:51:00 |
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Current mood: | good |
Entry tags: | kj, kj/thisbe, thisbe |
Who: KJ and Thisbe
What: A phone call :)
Where: KJ's in Santa Fe; Thisbe's in Westmont
When: Saturday, January 8
Rating: G
Status: Complete
It was snowing again in Westmont. For awhile there’d been a reprieve, the temperatures climbing up to almost balmy levels - or so it felt, anyway, but forty degrees was bound to feel damn near tropical after the frozen blizzard had swept through and dumped feet of soft white snow. No sooner had all that snow melted than fresh snow began piling up, blanketing the streets and sidewalks and the old wooden swingset in Thisbe’s backyard with white powder. Thisbe liked the snow, but she liked it better when she didn’t have to be out in it. Fortunately, she had nothing to do and nowhere to go. School didn’t resume again until Monday.
Thisbe didn’t want to think about school. She wasn’t going back to the dorms until spring semester - there was little point, when all three of her suitemates would be gone - which meant that she’d have to live under the same roof as her father while retaking a class from him. She didn’t want to think about it at all.
So she wasn’t. Her parents were out; they’d been invited out for dinner and drinks with George and Marcy Blumberg. Mr. Blumberg taught core psychology at McDermott; he’d been friends with Dr. Costello for years. Juliet, of course, was in New York. Thisbe was alone in every sense of the word. She was in the kitchen, making herself a cup of jasmine tea, and when it was finished she carried it into the living room. She pulled a chair up by the window so that she could look out at the snow. Then she dug her cell phone from her pocket and opened it, flipping through numbers until she found KJ’s and dialed.
A few thousand miles away and two hours behind, KJ was doing much of nothing. Her mother had promised her a girls’ day out, them two and KJ’s little sister, Kallie, but inspiration had struck and Marisa Hart was sitting at her loom, instead. KJ didn’t mind; if anything, out of all four Hart children, KJ took after her mother the most and understood the need to do something when inspiration struck. Instead, she’d been wandering around the house, absentmindedly eating something here or there, taking in what she’d missed and what had changed, still struck by the spectacular view of the mountains their house offered whenever KJ passed by a window.
It was strange, having been here going on her third week straight. Santa Fe was chilly, but not nearly as bad as Westmont could be; she’d seen the snow on the news and shuddered at the thought. Because they lived in a higher elevation, the Hart residence got its fair share of snow, but thankfully, it was just chilly. Not even chilly, compared to Westmont standards; thirty-seven was, thankfully, above freezing.
She had finally settled in the living room; bright, open, and airy, it was a wonder no one else was in here with her. KJ was sorting through the movie collection, contemplating if she wanted to watch one, and if so, which one, when her phone rang from where she’d left it on the coffee table. She reached to pick it up and smiled in surprise and delight when she saw that Thisbe was calling. “Hi, roomie,” KJ greeted, her voice bright. “Miss me already, huh?” she teased.
“Hey, it’s not like it’s the day after you left,” Thisbe pointed out, amusement in her own tone. “I haven’t seen you in, like, three weeks.” She adjusted her phone against her ear, switching her mug of tea to her other hand while she curled her legs under her. “Besides, I’m bored. My parents are out … and everyone else is gone. What are you up to?”
“No good as usual,” KJ said with a grin. “I’m currently debating whether or not I want to watch Finding Nemo or The Incredibles, actually. Hard decision, I know.” She returned over to the movie stand and picked each of the movies out, considering if she wanted to add any more to her debate. “I’m glad you called, though! I feel like I’m going through roommate withdrawal or something.” KJ laughed. “Are you having a good break so far?”
“Go for Finding Nemo,” Thisbe advised, and then took a sip of her tea. “And yeah, my break’s been okay. Nothing too exciting’s going on. Except when Juliet came to visit. That was pretty awesome. She let me use her as my guinea pig on some new choreography I’m working on. I can show you, too, when you get back.”
“Sounds awesome,” KJ agreed, as she went with Thisbe’s choice and began to open the DVD box for Finding Nemo. “I’m totally down. I might actually have some real dance moves for our next dance party this time.” She laughed. “How is Juliet, by the way? I miss her.”
“She’s good,” Thisbe responded, watching a flurry of snowflakes dance outside of the window. From this vantage point, she could see their front porch; she’d forgotten to pull in the welcome mat, and now it was getting buried under snow. Her father would be annoyed when he came home. “Loving New York, of course. But who wouldn’t, right?”
“Oh yeah, sure,” KJ said, pressing the button to make their epic home entertainment system turn on and to load the disc into the player. “I’m glad she’s doing well. Not like I ever had any doubts, though. I mean, this is Juliet we’re talking about here.” She smiled, and then added, “So I heard you were thinking about getting a haircut. Or highlights. I was gonna tell you to get both but I got lazy and didn’t want to log into the computer so here I am.” She laughed. “I should probably do something interesting with my hair, too. Maybe I’ll dye it pink.”
Thisbe couldn’t help a giggle. “Now that would be interesting,” she said. She set her mug of tea down on the coffee table and then examined a lock of her own hair. “But yeah … I want something different, but not too different. Highlights might be safe.” She was wary of haircuts; she liked her hair long, couldn’t remember getting any drastic haircuts in years. She usually just got the ends trimmed to keep it neat. “I can wait till you’re back, and then we can both go,” she added brightly.
KJ nodded vigorously, then remembered Thisbe couldn’t see her. “That sounds awesome,” she agreed. “I might have to go back early just so we can do that. Besides, I don’t know how much more slacker time I can take while I’m here.” She laughed. “My parents like that I’m home, though. I haven’t been here much in the last year so they try and keep me here as much as possible. Not my favorite place to be, but it’s cool.” KJ shrugged, looking around to make sure no one had heard that. It was true, but she didn’t want to say that in front of her parents because she knew it would sting, and she didn’t want to do that to them.
“Well, home is where the heart is,” Thisbe said dryly. “You should come back for winter study. Maybe my dad will let me go back to the dorms if he knows I won’t be alone there. He says that there’s no reason for me to hang out in an empty suite for the next couple of weeks.” Even though Thisbe was taking a winter class, her father didn’t want her back in the dorms until the rest of campus returned. Thisbe refrained from mentioning that it was probably safer for them both if she was away – less chance of bloodshed that way. But then, Thisbe refrained from mentioning a lot of things to her father lately.
As the menu screen for Finding Nemo appeared on the TV, KJ thought about that. “I dunno,” she said, honestly. “There isn’t really anything that I want to take right now, and I think my parents might be a little sad if I leave again.” She sighed. “But I don’t want to deprive you of the goodness of living in the dorms, either. Maybe I’ll come back a week or so before. You know. Make it a nice compromise and all.” She smiled. “It’ll also give me time to dye my hair pink and then back again before we start auditions for the musical in the spring.” KJ laughed.
She paused, and then asked, out of curiosity, “What are you taking during winter study, anyway?”
Thisbe took her time answering. She took a long sip of her tea, holding her phone between her ear and her shoulder as she wrapped both hands around the mug. “Comparative Lit,” she finally said, exhaling. “I, um, kind of didn’t do so well the first time around.”
KJ frowned at that. Comparative Lit - she’d heard that before. Thisbe didn’t like it very much. She knew her roommate had been taking a class taught by her father; had that been the one? She made a face. “That sucks,” she told Thisbe, sincerely. “I’m sorry about that. That, um... that wasn’t the one that your dad taught, was it?”
“Yes.” Thisbe took another sip of tea. “He’s less than thrilled with me these days, as you can probably imagine.”
KJ couldn’t, really. She couldn’t imagine her father forcing her to do something she didn’t want to because he wanted her to, couldn’t imagine having to take a class with him, failing it, and having to re-take it, all while living in the same house. She sighed. “I’m sorry you have to deal with all that,” she told her roommate, and she was. KJ wished she could make Thisbe’s life easier somehow, but she knew that as long as Thisbe thought she was stuck, then she was. “Well... at least it’ll be over by the end of the month, yeah?” she offered. “And then we can go out to party and celebrate. We can double it as my official welcome back to Westmont party, too.” KJ laughed.
“I’m totally up for that,” Thisbe said. She set her mug down and began gnawing absently on a fingernail. “And you’re right, it’s only a month.” Whether she’d actually be alive at the end of it remained to be seen, but KJ had a point.
She didn’t really feel like thinking about it anymore, though, so after a moment she dropped her hand and changed the subject. “So is there anything exciting going on in Santa Fe?” she asked. “Besides Finding Nemo, that is.” Her smile reflected in her voice.
“Unfortunately - or fortunately, depending on your opinion - Finding Nemo is about the only exciting thing going on here,” KJ said, dryly. “I mean, now that my brother and his new girlfriend are gone. Ugh.” She gave a shudder. “I love my brother, but I swear I thought he was smarter than that.” Keith had always been the smart one of the family; he’d gone to college, majored in something brainy, had a decent job. Why he had decided to break that streak with some blonde airhead was beyond KJ.
“What’s wrong with his girlfriend?” Thisbe asked curiously.
KJ sighed, leaning back into the pillows of the couch. “I don’t know, she just... rubbed me the wrong way, I guess,” she told Thisbe. For KJ, seeing her brother with someone who really had no potential, who seemed so shallow, like an airhead - it upset her because she knew her brother could do better than that, like she was brainwashing him or something. “She just seemed like one of those people that didn’t have all the lights on in her brain, you know? And my brother has only been there since August, and bringing someone home... that’s serious, isn’t it?” She sighed again, shifting to get comfortable. “I dunno. Maybe the sun has been getting to him or something.”
Thisbe made a face. Of course, KJ couldn’t see it. But it reflected her opinion on the matter. She didn’t know what she’d do if Juliet started dating some mindless frat boy. “That sounds like it sucks,” she said, getting up from her chair. She made her way back into the kitchen, where she opened a cabinet and took down a box of graham crackers. “But I guess if he likes her … I don’t know. Have you told him how you feel about her?”
“No,” KJ said. “She wouldn’t leave him alone long enough for me to do it.” She made a face, too, even though she knew Thisbe couldn’t see it, her eyes only vaguely registering the DVD menu for Finding Nemo. “I guess I’ll just bide my time and see, though... maybe in a few months she’ll be nothing more than an annoying memory. I hope, anyway.” She sighed. “I really just hope she doesn’t break his heart, because then I’ll personally have to go out there to kick her ass. You can come, we can make a trip out of it or something.”
Hoisting herself up on the counter, Thisbe couldn’t help a grin. “Well, let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Maybe she’s a decent person underneath all that bleached hair.” She bit into a graham cracker, pondering for a moment. “Although it sucks that it sounds like you didn’t get to spend any real time with your brother because she was around. Maybe you can call him. Or email him. I’d be pretty hurt if Juliet brought some guy home and I didn’t get to see her. Especially if that guy was some brainless frat boy or something.”
“I’m guessing there has to be something in order for Keith to want to bring her home,” KJ admitted, even though she didn’t like the idea very much. “And it’s okay, I guess. I dunno, I’m used to living without my brother and harassing him when I can’t see him. I mean... it did kind of suck, but... I’ll get over it, I guess.” She shrugged. “Speaking of guys, though... what is this I keep hearing about mistletoe time? Am I going to have to kick you and Justin out of the room from time to time for being disgustingly cute?” KJ was grinning, but her smile was gently teasing, and she wished Thisbe could see it so the other girl wouldn’t take any offense to KJ’s words.
Thisbe just laughed, biting into a new graham cracker. “Don’t worry. I think we’re still awhile away from the point where you’ll have to kick us out,” she answered, after she’d swallowed. The subject of Justin had brought a smile to her face, one she was actually glad KJ couldn’t see. “The whole mistletoe thing is a joke. Justin left me a Christmas present before he had to leave for break, but he had to drop it off early because he had to catch his flight. Long story short, I said it was too bad because I’d had mistletoe and, well.” She shrugged her shoulders a bit self-consciously, though she was still amused. “The joke was born.”
KJ had to roll her eyes; the action was almost involuntary. She was still smiling, though. “You two. I guess I’ll just have to get used to some cheese for a while, I guess.” She laughed. “Although I can’t talk - in my very first relationship ever I was probably worse than that. It’s a good thing I didn’t have a roommate then, though.” She smiled fondly at the memories; even though now they were somewhat tainted with all the bitterness that had fallen between her and Auden now, that summer would always be one she remembered. “I’m glad everything’s working out, then,” KJ told Thisbe, not wanting to dwell too much on what could have been.
“Thanks,” Thisbe said sincerely. She didn’t know if she’d use the word relationship when it came to her and Justin, but she liked how things had turned out between them, and she was glad to know that KJ was happy for her.
She broke off a piece of her graham cracker, fiddling with it for a moment. “So what else is new?” she asked. “How was your Christmas?”
KJ shrugged into the pillows; the DVD menu was looping for about the twentieth time now. Not that she was counting. Honestly, her Christmas had been anti-climactic. She’d spent it missing Riley, and even missing Keith teasing her about missing Riley, since he had been so wrapped up with Holly. It just hadn’t felt like Christmas to her, and she’d wished that she could have had friends come over or something. She didn’t have any in Santa Fe, anyway; she supposed if she really wanted someone would come out for her from McDermott, but she didn’t want to test that theory and be let down.
She realized she hadn’t spoken any of this aloud so she finally told Thisbe, “It was okay, I guess. Nothing exciting. I’ve had better, honestly. Yours was probably better than mine.”
“I doubt that,” Thisbe said, the corners of her lips tilting downward. Her Christmas had been fine, as holidays went, and Juliet’s presence at home had helped to ease the general tension that had settled over the Costellos. Or rather, two members of the Costello family in particular. Her father was excellent at the cold treatment, when he wanted to be. He made January in Massachusetts seem warm. “Next year, we should do something fun over the holidays. Make up for the suck-fest that was this year.”
“That sounds awesome,” KJ agreed, her voice brightening. “I mean, my family’s pretty adamant about having everyone home, but maybe for New Year’s or something.” She smiled; however, she couldn’t shake the feeling that she’d perpetually be lonely without Riley, even if she had a fun-filled holiday with her friends. “We should take a trip or something.”
A smile crossed Thisbe’s face. She closed the box of graham crackers and stuck it back in the cabinet, and then hopped off of the counter and wandered back into the living room. Outside, the snow had started to taper off. “A trip would be fun,” she said enthusiastically. “We could go to New York and stay with Juliet. Maybe we could do the Times Square thing, too. How awesome would that be?”
“Epically awesome,” KJ said, grinning. “I mean, everyone has to do that once in their lifetimes, right? I’m excited already and that’s, what, 358 days away or something?” She laughed. “We’ll definitely have to plan that, though. That way we won’t be complaining this time next year about how sucktastic life can be.”
“It’ll happen,” Thisbe promised, turning away from the window. She sat back down in her chair and picked up her mug of tea, which had gotten cold by now. She took a sip anyway. “Next year is definitely going to be better.”
“Yeah,” KJ said, though her reply came out more than a sigh than anything. After the emotional rollercoaster she’d been through the last two years, KJ was ready to just enjoy a year to focus on theatre things and hanging out with her friends without drama. “I’m excited for spring. I might not be around a lot, but we’re doing the musical. You should audition with me, be part of the chorus and dance around! It’ll be fun,” she told Thisbe. “And it’ll be something to look forward to.”
Thisbe laughed. “I don’t know if you all would want me in the musical. I mean, I can do the dancing part decently enough, but not so much the singing part. Even if it’s just in the chorus. Besides, I’ll be busy, too. We have the spring Pavlova to work on and I have dance team, too.” Thisbe knew that KJ didn’t mean anything by her suggestion, but it had always bothered Thisbe to have to remind people about the Pavlova. The dance department was so overshadowed by the theatre department.
“I’m not the greatest singer either,” KJ admitted. At Thisbe’s reminder, she nodded. “That’s right. That would be a lot to be working on in a semester. Oh well. I just thought it’d be a cool idea. You know me - endlessly recruiting.” She laughed, shrugging. If she had to admit it, the truth was that part of KJ wished she could share something like that with Thisbe, if only because Thisbe was one of the first close friends she’d made not only in college, but really, ever. After spending a semester with her, it had become apparent how similar they were and KJ had never really experienced that; now that she had, she wanted to make that experience count. But she knew that dancing was an important priority for her friend and KJ didn’t want to take that away from her.
"You and your recruiting," Thisbe teased with a grin. "The PAC should hire you on."
“It’d be nice if it meant I had a full-time job,” KJ said, dryly. Vaguely, KJ also thought it might mean a bit of stability, putting down roots; but KJ never really did well when she did that. She shrugged. “At any rate. I’d rather be acting, anyway. Maybe later on in life I can be a recruiter.”
“If I end up as a choreographer, we can take our show on the road,” Thisbe suggested, with a touch of amusement. “You can recruit people to come and let me show them how to dance. It’d be fun.”
“That sounds epic,” KJ said, laughing. She was about to continue on in that vein when her mother came into the room, looking satisfied - the way KJ did after an especially awesome performance. She guessed that her mother had finished whatever she had been doing. Marisa was studying the clock, and then studying her daughter, which KJ supposed meant that maybe there was still time to go out? Things like dinner at six had never really mattered to her mother much; they ate when they felt like it, even if it was at nine at night. That was one rare thing she loved about being home, that she had a kindred spirit here; KJ thought that maybe Marisa missed her much more than she let on.
She didn’t want to keep her mother waiting, even though KJ knew Marisa would have waited if KJ had so desired. “Hey, Thisbe?” she said. “I’m sorry, but I have to get going. Apparently there’s more excitement now than Finding Nemo. I guess I’ll have to wait on that. Or maybe we can watch it when I get back.” She smiled.
“Okay,” Thisbe agreed. She was a little disappointed to have to get off the phone, because she was in that strange kind of mood where she wanted company, but she and KJ had already been talking for awhile. “On both counts, that is. You bring Finding Nemo, and I’ll be ready to show you some moves for our dance parties.” She laughed. “Have fun, KJ!”
“I’m so ready for that.” KJ smiled; she hadn’t missed that Thisbe had referred to the dance parties as theirs, and for some reason that made KJ happy. “I’ll let you know when I’m coming, okay? I’ll try and be there a few days early so if you want, you can move back into the dorms sooner. I’ll talk to you later, okay? You have some fun, too.”
“Will do.” Thisbe gave a mock salute, though of course KJ couldn’t see it. “Talk to you soon!”
“Alright,” KJ said, as she hoisted herself off the couch. Finding Nemo would just have to wait. “Bye, Thisbe. Thanks for calling!”