Season 2 – Episode 14 – Act V

            Here we go again.  Attempt #2 at finding a job.  Shauna took a deep breath and got off the bus, then walked into Fairview.  Surely there would be plenty of places hiring here.  She even had a CV now.  She’d downloaded a template from the internet and filled it in with some bullshit from her real life.  She’d gone to camp when she was a kid and wrote in that she’d been a counselor.  And she counted her time at Stan’s as being a cleaning-lady. 

            Almost immediately she found a store with a help wanted sign.  It was a clothing store.  Shauna walked through it and went straight for the front counter and as soon as she got there she turned around and walked back out. 

            Holy shit that had been scary.  Her heart was beating and she was even starting to sweat.  Who was she kidding?  She’d never be able to do this!

            Mike helped Karine go shopping for party supplies, not that they needed anything besides chips and beer.  Most people would bring their own drinks and Janice would bring other refreshments.  Karine wondered if she’d indulge tonight.  She’d have to see how the night went. 

            She was slightly nervous about having Parisses Squares play since they’d no doubt be loud and all her old-people neighbours would be annoyed.  But she could put on the AC and keep all the windows closed so maybe it wouldn’t be too bad.  Mike helped her move furniture around so as to create a stage of sorts. 

            Fairview obviously wasn’t the place for Shauna.  A mall was too big and always full of people.  No big chain would ever hire someone without experience.  She’d be better off going back to Pointe-Claire village.  A small boutique would be more her speed.  But when she got off the bus she didn’t want to go back to Pointe-Claire.  She knew she’d just end up in a bar again, having sex with some random dude.  She’d never get a job, unless she could convince those random dudes to pay her.  She might as well just give up altogether and kill herself.  There was no point in anything.  Her life sucked and it always would.  She really didn’t want to go home so when she got off the bus she walked in the opposite direction.

            Jay didn’t want to be late for the party so he got off early and went to Cassie’s work to pick her up.  She wanted to change so he brought her home and finally met her family.  It was a bit weird and awkward but nothing crazy.  Her parents were totally normal.  It was good that Jay had the party as an excuse though because the parental units wanted Jay and Cassie to stay for dinner, which Jay was totally unprepared for. 

            It seemed as though Cassie was taking a million years to get dressed; her ‘rents had asked Jay every question on the planet.  How old was he, what was he taking in school, how did he like school, how did he and Cassie meet, what did he want to be when he grew up, where did he work, did he like his job, did Cassie like her job…??? How the hell was he supposed to answer that one?  Finally she came downstairs and they got going.

            “Did my parents totally torture you?” asked Cassie sympathetically.

            “They were fine,” he answered and it was true.  Dealing with lamo parents wasn’t that big of a deal.  Totally worth it to have a girlfriend.

            Shauna reached Beaurepaire village and slowed her pace.  Wasn’t Cerise’s mom’s… yep.  There was the bookstore, across the street.  And Cerise was inside it.  And now she was leaving!  Shauna ducked behind a mailbox and crouched down as though she was tying her shoe, even though she was wearing mom-approved shoes that didn’t even have laces. 

            Cerise was crossing the street, coming towards her.  Shauna wasn’t sure what to do.  But in an instant Cerise was gone. She’d walked into a bakery and hadn’t noticed Shauna at all.  From her vantage point behind the mailbox Shauna had a great view of the bakery. Cerise was walking up to her huge boyfriend and they were kissing and now they were both leaving.

            Oh my god!  Shauna circled around the mailbox so as not to be seen.  Cerise and her boyfriend got in his car and drove away.  Shauna stood up and looked at the bookstore.  Was that a help wanted sign?!?!?!?!  Shauna walked across the street and stared at the sign.  Surely this had to be a sign from god.  This is why she hadn’t applied anywhere else.  She was destined to work here. 

            “You look good,” smiled Terry.

            Cerise looked at her boyfriend and smiled.  She was so glad he was so supportive of this whole band thing. 

            “You look ok, but we can do better,” said Simone.

            They were in Cerise’s bedroom and she was trying on outfits for tonight’s show at Karine’s house.  They all liked the white shirt, black tie thing but she wanted options.  She had on a red tank top and a plaid skirt, with striped knee-socks. 

            “I look like I’m trying too hard.  Like I’m Britney Spears trying to be a sexy schoolgirl.  It’s pretentious,” complained Cerise, putting one of her army shirts on over the tank top.

            “That actually looks pretty cool.  The khaki shirt with the plaid skirt,” mused Simone.

            “I was gonna put on jeans.”

            “No, I think we’ve got it here,” said Simone.

            “Yeah, you look hot,” agreed Terry, leaning back on her bed and watching Cerise with admiration.

            “You think she looks hot no matter what,” sighed Simone.  “You’re no help.”

            “I look like a poseur,” said Cerise with a frown.  “I never wear skirts in real life.  Why can’t I just wear my regular clothes?”

            “’Cause your regular clothes are boring as shit.  If you’re gonna be a rock star you’ve gotta look the part,” explained Simone.

            “I’m not a rock star.” 

            “Yeah, that much is abundantly clear,” said Simone with a sigh.

            Cerise knew her sister meant well but Cerise felt highly uncomfortable in this outfit.  It just looked so deliberate.  It was ridiculous to think she could pull any of this off.  Was she seriously going on tour with a band?  She felt like an idiot; like a little girl playing dress-up.

            Terry stood up and wrapped his arms around her.  “You look amazing, Cerise.  Your legs are way hot, you should show them off.”

            She knew he was only trying to help but she just felt all the more self-conscious.  If she wore a skirt people would just stare at her legs.  And this skirt was so short it was practically a belt.  If she wore it on a stage everyone in the front row would be able to see her underwear. 

            “And you should dye your hair,” suggested Simone.  “Like blue or red or something.”

            “No, I like her natural colour,” protested Terry as he stroked Cerise’s hair. 

            “We should go,” said Cerise, noting the time. 

            She wanted to change back into jeans but decided to leave in the skirt.  Tonight would be good practice in wearing an embarrassing outfit.  Half way down the stairs she ran back to her room and grabbed a pair of jeans, which she tossed into the backseat of Terry’s car just in case. 

           

            Tom, Jeff, Bernie and Lloyd were setting up their band stuff and it was pretty intense.  With their computer and microphones and amplifiers and everything they took up half the living room.  Karine had never found her house small before but now it seemed totally tiny.  And the layout was all wrong.  There’s no way everyone would be able to cram inside this space.  Tons of people would have to listen from the hall and the kitchen and den and they wouldn’t be able to watch the show. 

            Jeff was complaining about how Cerise hadn’t shown up yet and she clearly wasn’t dedicated to the band and blah blah blah. God, why didn’t he just fuck her already and be done with it? 

            When she did show up she was wearing a way short plaid skirt and knee-socks.  She looked sort of cute but also like a total poseur.  Jeff practically tripped on his tongue he was gaping so openly. 

            “And you say you’re not Avril Lavigne?” he snarked at her.

            “Jeff, why’d you have to go and make things so complicated?” she snarked back.

            Those two seriously needed to get a room, which Terry was obviously aware of.  He glared at Jeff and did that thing where he puffs up his chest and stands a little taller.  Cerise joined the guys as they did the last of their set-up and they all started testing the mikes and tuning their guitars and whatever.

            They all went to the kitchen for beers, except Cerise obviously who made out with Terry.  About an hour later when the crowd was getting thick they started to play.  They weren’t as good as they’d been at the bar the previous weekend and Karine wondered if maybe the venue was the problem.  Maybe her house wasn’t optimal for the acoustics or whatever.

            A few of Mike and Terry’s hockey friends arrived and they all stood around drinking beer and bopping their heads to the music.  Karine didn’t really like Mike as much when he was around his hockey mates.  He always became more macho and less attentive to her.  Terry was like that too and suddenly Karine felt a tinge of sympathy for Cerise; finally seeing things from her point of view.  She supposed that was why Cerise had always disliked going to bars with Terry or hanging out with his crowd back in high school.  With these people he wasn’t his true self, the sweet Terry Karine knew existed.  He was cool Terry, macho Terry, sexist joke making Terry.

            Cassie and Sarah danced as their boyfriends stood by drinking beer.  It was so weird to see Jay with a girlfriend.  He so wasn’t the type.  Was it a total charity case type thing on Cassie’s part of did Jay actually have something to offer?  If she were being completely honest she’d admit he wasn’t entirely hideous.  Whenever he cut his hair he was actually kind of cute.  And he was tall and not too insanely skinny, having filled out a bit in the past year.  And he was a nice guy and undeniably funny. 

            Sarah’s boyfriend was a step-up though.  He was legitimately cute and seemed nice.  But Mike was still better.  When he wasn’t around his stupid hockey dudes he was a good guy and he was hotter than every other guy, except for Terry of course.  Still, he wasn’t the most entertaining guy to be around.  Karine had to admit that she had more fun hanging out with the nerd herd than anyone else.  Vani was always good for a laugh and Jay was hilarious. 

            Suddenly Furry Jenn came running into the room, followed by Willy.  She announced with glee that she’d just kissed a girl.

            “And I liked it,” smarmed Willy.

            Furry Jenn laughed her ass off and kept making her stupid announcement.  Janice, who’d been dancing with a lamp, planted her hand in Jenn’s face and forcefully pushed her away, telling her to get the fuck out of her face.  Jenn fell backwards into Willy’s arms and they both laughed.  What a couple of morons.

            Karine forced her way through the crowd and crawled onto the couch, which was pushed up against the far wall, obstructed by the dining room table.  Sitting there was like being in a fort.  It was kind of cool.  She should have thought of getting a drink before taking refuge here and now she was too lazy to rectify the situation.

            As if he’d heard her silent plea, Jay joined her and handed her a beer.  She thanked him and they clinked their bottles together.

            “What do you think?” he jutted out his chin.

            “Of the band?” she asked.

            “Yeah.”

            “They’re ok.  It’s a cool thing for Cerise to do.”

            “Yeah, it’s pretty crazy,” he nodded.  “I never woulda pictured Cerise doing this kinda thing.  You yeah, not her.”

            Karine smiled.  “So how are things with you and Cassie?”

            “Good,” he shrugged.

            “Yeah?”

            “Yeah,” he hesitated.  “She’s very enthusiastic.”

            “You make that sound like a bad thing,” she laughed.

            “No, it’s good.  Just intense is all.  I met her parents tonight.  They were intense too.  All asking questions and shit.”

            “Yeah.”

            “How ‘bout you and what’s-his-damage?”

            “Mike?”

            “Bruiser guy.”  Jay put on an angry face and made a growling noise as he flexed his arms.

            Karine laughed.  “He’s not a bruiser!  He’s a nice guy.”

            “Ok,” Jay said dubiously. 

            “You’re just jealous ‘cause you’re not athletic,” Karine snickered.

            “I’m jealous for lots of reasons.”  He looked at her with significance and she looked back.

            “You shouldn’t sell yourself short,” she said kindly.  “You’re fun.  And funny.”

            “Is that enough?” he asked.

            She wasn’t sure how to answer and regarded him seriously for a moment.  Would she?  Could she?  He was such a geek and she was Karine Cavalière.  They weren’t in the same league.

            “Karine!” 

            She sat up straight and peered out from behind the dining room table, looking around for Terry as he kept calling her name.  The music stopped and she crawled out of her fort. Terry took her hand and brought her to the front door, where two police officers were standing.  They were shutting down the party because of a noise complaint.

            The band packed up their gear and most everyone went home.  It was just the gang that remained, and without even having to ask, they helped her put the furniture back in order.  A part of her wanted to keep that fort. 

            “Shut down ‘cause of a noise complaint?” laughed Bernie.  “I think that means we’ve officially made it.”

            “I can’t believe it only occurred to me now that we should’ve charged a cover for this party,” mused Lloyd.

            Karine also wished he’d thought of it earlier.  She could have taken a commission. 

            “Well I’m just glad we didn’t get booed off,” said Tom.

            “Progress,” nodded Jeff.

            Cerise raised her glass of water.  “To not being booed off.”

            They all raised their drinks and echoed Cerise’s words.

            “And to Karine on her eighteenth birthday,” Cerise went on.

            “To Karine!” everyone shouted.

            Not the worst birthday ever, Karine mused.

           

            “I’ll miss you,” said Terry as he hugged Cerise.

            “I’ll miss you too,” she said, hugging back.

            The guys in the band all sat in the van, nursing hangovers.  They’d been scheduled to leave at 9am but had only shown up at Cerise’s house at 10.  This was fine by Terry since it gave him an extra hour with her.  They’d gotten up at 8 and the first hour was wasted having breakfast with her mom.

Now that she was really going he realized he didn’t want her to but he knew he couldn’t say anything about it.  This was a great opportunity for her.  She’d have a great time.  It just sucked that he had to stay behind, working a shitty job and babysitting his bratty sister. 

            “I love you,” he said, holding her tightly.

            “I love you too.”  She rested in his arms, almost sinking into him.

            “Everybody loves everybody, let’s fucking go!” hollered Jeff.

            “Oh god, not so loud,” protested Bernie from the driver’s seat.

            They broke their embrace and Cerise asked again if it was ok for her to take Terry’s laptop.  He assured her it was cool.  She’d need a way to communicate with him while on the road.  He’d use Vicky’s laptop at home and Karl’s at the bakery.  They’d be able to Skype everyday. 

            “We’ll talk every day,” Cerise assured him, stepping into the van.

            “And write.  Random emails whenever you want.”

            “For sure,” she nodded.

            “And keep texting until you get one of those long distance notifications.”

            “I will.”

            She leaned out of the van and gave him one last kiss.  “I’ll miss you so much.”

            “I’ll miss you too.”

             Jeff made a strangled noise.  “Seriously, you guys bring a tear to my eye.  I don’t think I can take it much longer.”

            Cerise ignored him and smiled at Terry.  He smiled back as the van door was slammed in his face.  The windows were tinted so he couldn’t tell if she was watching him but he waved anyway and assumed she was waving back. 

            She was gone.  Fuck, this totally sucked!

Season 2 – Episode 14 – Act IV

            This place was seriously gross.  It was in the plateau, but not on the main strip, sort of tucked away in the middle of nowhere.  Karine never would have known this tiny little bar existed if Cerise’s silly little band wasn’t playing here.  It was so weird that Cerise was in a band.  Sure, they were totally laughable and half their material was about Star Wars and other dorky stuff but still, she was in a band.  Singing.  In front of a crowd.  A small crowd, a crowd mostly made up of the group, but a crowd all the same and everyone seemed to be enjoying the show. 

            Karine knew she could do better.  She could read sheet music and she could play piano and her voice was way better; she would totally rock this shit.  But Cerise wan’t terrible.  She was wearing a short skirt and fishnets and Converse and a crisp white shirt with a black tie.  She looked pretty good and she sounded ok too.  A bit nervous maybe but she was into it and she was even jumping around and stuff.  Every so often she lost her breath and couldn’t finish a line but Tom was singing too and he stepped in whenever she petered out.  In fact, Karine wasn’t always certain if this wasn’t intentional.  Their voices actually played well against each other and they had good chemistry.  Cerise seemed to be quite flirtatious on stage, more so than Karine had ever witnessed in real life.  She would join Tom on his microphone quite often and sometimes she played off of Lloyd and Jeff as well, shaking her booty at them playfully, pointing to them during their little solos, deffering to them when appropriate but taking center stage during the best parts of the songs.  She actually had presense that stupid little Cherry angel.  She actually really did. 

            And she seemed to know it.  After the show Karine and the gang joined Cerise and her band-mates as they were packing up their van and Cerise was acting like the queen of the world. 

            “You were so awesome!” Terry gushed, gathering his little angel into a big hug, twirling her around.

            “You really think so?” she squealed, laughing.

            “Totally!”

            Everyone praised her, saying the show had been awesome, that they were the best band ever, that Cerise was totally kick-ass and she ate it up, giggling and blushing with false modesty.  It was completely sickening.

            “So obviously you’re coming on tour with us, right?” asked Tom, his nice white shirt rendered practically transparent from sweat.

            “Well I mean, I guess!” Cerise laughed.  “’Cause I mean it went well, right?”

            “You can’t not go,” confirmed Terry.

            “Yeah but I mean, how is it gonna work financially?” wondered Cerise.  “I don’t really have any savings.  If I was being practical I’d keep working at the bookstore… with Trista who, if there were any justice in the world would be the one named after fruit.”

            “I love your name,” Terry smiled, kissing Cerise on her adorable little button nose.

            “I love that you love it,” she giggled.

            “I love that you love that I love it,” he countered.

            “I love puppies and rainbows!” Jeff exclaimed, clapping his hands. 

            They all laughed.

            “Diggedy!” Vani exclaimed, running around in circles.  “Cerise is in a band!  I’m friends with a band!  I’m in the inner circle!  I’m so cool!”

            “So I guess now all I have to do is tell my mom,” said Cerise.

            Cerise’s mom was hilarious, all super excited about having her three daughters at home for dinner, which was apparently quite rare these days.  Not for the first time, Terry noted how attractive Angela was, for an older woman.  If Cerise turned out this way, that was fine by him. 

            Cerise wasted no time and as soon as dinner was served - a healthy vegetarian stir-fry that could have benefitted from some meat – announced that she wouldn’t be able to keep her job at the bookstore.

            “Come again?” asked Angela.

            “You got a better job?” asked Simone with interest.

            “Sort of,” confirmed Cerise.  “It’s not really a job.  I mean, it is, it does pay a bit, but not a lot.  Tom says we’ll be lucky to break even.”

            “Tom your ex-boyfriend?” asked Jules.

            “Yeah, I’m joining his band.”

            “Oh my god, that fucking nerd band thing?” Jules scoffed.

            “Language,” said Angela in a sing-song voice.

            “Sorry, that fucking geek band thing?”

            “Yeah, that band,” Cerise nodded.

            “Cool,” said Simone.

            “Yeah, I guess that is kind of cool,” Jules begrudgingly admitted.

            “Why does joining a band mean you can’t work at the store anymore?” asked their mom.

            “’Cause we’re going on tour,” smiled Cerise.

            “Oh, that sounds exciting,” Angela said.

            “On tour where?” asked Simone.

            “Ontario mostly.  We’re gonna play a couple low rent cons, our nerdier acoustic stuff.  But we’re also gonna play in bars.  We did a show last night at this place downtown and it was totally awesome!”

            Angela frowned with concern. “Aren’t musical types rather rowdy?”

            “Oh yeah, we’re so rowdy,” said Cerise with a roll of her eyes.  I just said we were gonna play at cons, mom, it’s not exactly Rock of Ages.”

            “Rock of Ages is your example for a rowdy music scene?” snorted Simone.  “You are so not fit to be in a band.”

            “I know,” nodded Cerise.  “But it’s happening,” she said with a shrug.

            “This is so unfair!” whined Jules.  “How come all the good stuff happens to Cerise?!”

            “Oh yeah, ‘cause it’s so good how I have a stalker who got frostbite in our backyard.”

            “So you admit she’s your stalker!” exclaimed Terry.

            “At least you have a stalker!” Jules went on. “I don’t even have a boyfriend!”

            “I thought you had several,” mused Simone.

            “But none like Terry.  None who give me flowers.”

            “You’ll find one eventually,” Terry assured her with a smile.  “Someone who’ll appreciate your true beauty.”

            Jules sighed and stared at Terry with unmasked adoration while Simone snorted with derision and aggressively rolled her eyes. 

            “Oh my god!” Jules exclaimed. “I can take your job in the store!”

            “But you’re visiting your father,” reasoned Angela.

            “But I don’t have to!  Now I can stay!”

            “No, we can’t disappoint your father like this.”

            “But I don’t wanna go!”

            “Until you’re eighteen you have to visit him at least once a year!  If you don’t want to spend the summer with him then you’ll have to go at Christmas!”

            “You’re so mean!” Jules screamed. “Who’s gonna work at the store then?”

            “I’ll give Trista Cerise’s shifts and I’ll find someone else to work weekends.”

            “You’re so unfair!” Jules whailed.

            “So it’s confirmed then?” asked Cerise.  “I can go?”

            “I suppose,” Angela nodded, somewhat indifferently.

            Terry thought about how his parents would react if he announced something of this magnitude.  Even though he wasn’t living with them anymore he knew they’d have more input than Angela.  His mom would want to know every last detail about it and his dad would bitch about how it would interfere with hockey even though this was the off-season.  Cerise’s family was weird.  Maybe that’s why he liked Jules so much.  Even though she was a whiner, at least she reacted to things in ways he could understand.

           

            That night at the bakery was super fun.  Everyone was way excited about the upcoming tour, and the boys said they might make the trek to one of the cons in Ontario.  Cerise sort of knew they were full of shit since even making the journey from Jay’s basement to the bakery seemed to tax them to the extreme but it was a nice sentiment all the same.

            “I can’t believe you just joined a band,” gushed Sarah.  “And now you’re going on tour?  It’s so spontaneous!”

            Janice nodded in agreement.  “Yeah, I gotta admit it’s pretty wild.  I didn’t think you had it in you.”

            “I know, it’s crazy,” admitted Cerise.  “I’ve barely even rehearsed.”

            Jeff snorted in that way he had.  “Yeah but who needs rehearsal when you’ve got natural talent, right?”

            “Oh would you get over it, Jeff?  Stop being such an asshole,” Cerise scowled.

            “Yeah Jeff,” said Bernie with a smirk.

            “Yeah Jeff,” echoed Lloyd.

            “Yeah Jeff,” grinned Tom.

            “Yeah Jeff,” said Jeff with a suppressed smile.

            “Oh come on!” Cerise giggled and nudged him.  “You’ll see, we’ll have the best time ever!”

            “You make it sound like we’re gonna be selling girl scout cookies.”

            “We could do that too.  Whatever you want,” said Cerise with a straight face.  “I mean, your input matters, Jeff.  Your opinion is valid and your feelings will be taken into consideration.”

            Everyone snickered and Jeff told her to shut the fuck up but before long he was laughing too. 

            “We should throw you a going away party!” suggested Karine with surprising enthuthiasm.

            “Totes!” agreed Janice.

            “Oh my god, so much fun!” squealed Furry Jenn, causing Janice to scowl openly.

            “I was planning on having a party anyway, for my birthday,” said Karine, which explained her enthusiasm.  “I was gonna have it on Saturday but since you guys are leaving on Saturday I guess we’ll have it on Friday.”

            Everyone agreed this was a good plan and it was decided that Parisses Squares would perform at the party, as like a final rehearsal before their tour. 

            “Oh wait,” Cerise interrupted as they solidified the plan.  “Is that ok with you, Jeff?  I mean I wouldn’t want you to feel ignored or undervalued.”

            “You’re such a fucking bitch,” he said with a tight smile.

            Cerise laughed and called him an asshole.

            “Yeah, Jeff way has a thing for you,” said Terry as he drove Cerise home.

            “What?” she asked with surprise.

            “Seriously?  Cerise, don’t tell me you’re still denying it.  I mean you guys were flirting hardcore tonight!”

            “No we weren’t!  What are you talking about?”

            Terry didn’t think Cerise was lying.  He realized that she was seriously this ignorant about her charms.  She had no idea that when she bantered with guys like that it was flirting.  Her cluelessness was so cute, but also super annoying. 

            When they got to her house she asked if he wanted to stay over.  He agreed and they tiptoed upstairs in an effort not to wake her mom. 

            “Cerise, that shit where he calls you a bitch and you call him an asshole, that’s flirting,” Terry patiently explained in a whisper as they took off their clothes. 

            “No it isn’t.  I was just tying to not let him get the better of me.  You know, showing him I wouldn’t let him push me around.

They crawled into her bed, which was only a double, same as his bed at Vicky’s.  He really missed the queen-sized he had at his dad’s place but not enough to move back in.

            “Yeah I know, but that comes across as flirty.  Trust me.  Everyone noticed.”

            Cerise frowned and turned away.  She was quiet for so long he thought she might have fallen asleep but finally she turned back around and apologized.  She said she hadn’t realized she was flirting.  She was just trying to defend herself in a funny way.

            “I know, I’m not pissed or anything,” he whispered, pulling her into a hug.  “I’m just saying be aware.  ‘Cause he’s prob’ly taking it as a good sign.  So just watch out for him, that’s all.”

            “Ok,” sighed Cerise.  “It’s stupid that it has to be so complicated.  I should just be able to be real and not worry about how my behaviour is being perceived.”

            “Yeah I know.”

            “I mean I shouldn’t have to change my whole fucking personality just ‘cause some loser likes me.”

            “You don’t have to change,” he assured her.  “Just be aware.”

            “Well it’s fucking stupid.”

            “I guess that’s the burden of being a super hot girl.”

            “Oh shut up!” she giggled.

            “It’s true, you’re super hot and everyone knows it.”

            “I am not,” she said, muffling her giggles in his chest.

            “So fucking hot,” he said, nibbling at her neck. 

            Her giggles turned to moans and he got to work proving why she’d never find a better guy than him.  Or at least no one better in bed. 

            Karine was such a guy.  Once she’d had her orgasm all she wanted was to go to sleep but Mike was still on top of her pumping away.  What was taking him so long?  Her orgasm had been real but she’d exaggerated the intensity in an effort to get him to come.  Usually he didn’t last this long, what was his deal?  Oh there we go.  He sighed and rolled off of her and she immediately got up to go pee. 

            When she got back to bed he tried to snuggle with her but she pushed him away afer begrudgingly giving him a kiss.  “I have to get up early tomorrow,” she explained with as much patience as she could muster.

            He grumbled something incomprehensible and she didn’t bother asking him to repeat himself.  She really did need to get some sleep.

            Jay parked at BYC and he and Cassie climbed into the backseat.  They got to business and were done pretty quickly since her curfew was coming up fast.  He wrapped the condom in a Kleenex and ran to the dumpster behind the club to throw it out.  Then he drove Cassie home, getting her there just in time.  They kissed and he drove himself home and played about an hour of video games before going to bed.  This was definitely the best summer ever.

            What a relief to finally sleep with a guy who had some experience.  Sarah could say without hesitation that Paul was the best lover she’d ever had.  There was no awkwardness, no talking, just mutual satisfaction.  He caressed her entire body, kissed her everywhere and went down on her with pleasure.  She didn’t even need to tell him to use a condom; he came prepared.  Sarah was so glad she was done dating nerds; Paul was way better. 

            Janice punched the alarm code into the alarm at work and led what’s-his-name into the manager’s office.  It was totally gross in there, all smelling like sweat and melted ice-cream.  This was gonna be so hot.  She sucked his cock and then bent over the desk and had him take her from behind while she diddled herself.

            When they were done and she’d kicked the guy out, she made note of the experience on her blackberry.  ‘Did a dude in manager’s office.  One orgasm, no help from dude.’

            She put the alarm back on and took a cab home.  She didn’t feel like taking the bus tonight.

            There was a part of Shauna that wanted to sleep with Andrew Lester again.  Not because it had been any good but because she wanted him to realize on his own who she was.  But she couldn’t see him at Clyde’s that night.  Sneaking out of the house was a huge risk and she didn’t want that effort to go to waste so she looked around for someone else to fuck.  She was wearing her new clothes: jeans and a low cut, form-fitting t-shirt.  She was wearing a push-up bra too and had ample cleavage to show off.  It turned out that the only thing you needed to get guys was boobs.  She could see a lot of different guys checking her out, and she was willing to believe that at least some were looking at her with lust. 

            She ordered a beer at the bar and turned around, facing the crowd, pushing out her tits.  When her drink was almost done some guy came up to her and offered to buy her a drink.  He was old, like maybe in his thirties and he had a receding hairline and a gut.  But Shauna was in no position to judge.  She accepted the drink and chatted with him about mixed martial arts, which she was practically an expert on after listening to Rod drone on about it forever.  Or was it Bill who’d been into MMA?

            “So you wanna get laid?” she blurted out when she was tired of his boringness.

            He looked surprised but said yes and suggested they go to his place.

            “Let’s just do it here.  In the bathroom.”  She didn’t want to risk ending up in some weird place far from home.

            “There’s tons of people in the bathroom,” the guy said.  “Plus it’s kinda nasty in there.  You like it nasty?” he asked with a grin.

            She smiled alluringly, or as close to alluring as she could be and took his hand, leading him to the washrooms.  There was a line outside the women’s but not outside the men’s so she just went ahead and dragged him in.  There were two dudes at the urinals and they looked at Shauna quizzically as she pulled her guy into a stall.  No point wasting time.  She pulled down her jeans, leaned over the toilet and arched her back as well as she could. 

            She heard the guy fumbling and soon enough his dick was inside her.  She wondered if he was using a condom and realized she didn’t care either way.  If she got pregnant she’d just get an abortion or maybe have a kid.  Maybe she could sell it to some people who couldn’t have a kid.  Or maybe she’d get a disease and die.  It might be cool to have AIDS.  Her parents would kill her but she’d be dying anyway. 

Someone chuckled from outside the stall as the guy grunted and squeezed her ass.  Like with all guys, it was over in about two seconds.  She felt liquid hitting her back and butt and the guy graciously wiped her down with toilet paper.

“Sorry, I got some on your shirt,” he apologized.

“S’ok,” she shrugged, pulling up her pants.

 The guy didn’t ask for her number and she didn’t offer.  When she got home she quietly unlocked the back door and slipped into the house.  Walking upstairs in the dark without making noise took about forty years but eventually she got to her room.  The hair was growing back on her legs and it was driving her crazy.  She wasn’t sure how long she sat in bed, scratching but at a certain point she realized her fingernails were crusted with blood and her sheets were covered in a film of dry skin.  Her legs looked like they’d been attacked by a bear.  Well, no more skirts for a while.

             This was it, the moment of truth.  The moment of non-virginity.  Willy pushed his dick into Furry Jenn’s cunt and it was done.  He was having sex.  He wanted to scream with triumph but for Jenn’s sake he refrained.  She was such a tiny little thing, so skinny like she was made of matches or something.  He wondered if she’d catch on fire from the friction.  She lay naked on her back on her bed, which was covered with a pink comforter and several stuffed animals.  He stood at the foot of the bed, her ankles resting on his shoulders.  He counted every stroke in an effort to prolong the experience but after fifteen strokes he couldn’t help himself and he pulled out and came all over her non-existant tits.  She coyly dipped a finger into the jizz and then licked it.  So nasty, so hot.  Willy seriously couldn’t believe his luck.  None of the guys would ever bang a chick this kinky.

            “A megabop, bop, bop,” sang Vani as he rolled the dice.

            It landed on eighteen and they all cheered.  Rough Justice was saved!  Karl described the scene ahead and Vani argued with Myles and Lee about which path to take.  It was pretty obvious from Karl’s face that they had to go to the big satellite but Myles and Lee didn’t know Karl well enough yet to be able to tell.  Just for the fun of it he gave in to Myles’ retarded idea and they went to the refinery on the second satellite.  Shit was for sure gonna hit the fan and it would be kah-raaay-zeee!

Season 2 – Episode 14 – Act III

            Sarah sat on the deck at BYC hanging out with Paul, a fellow sailing instructor.  The more she got to know him the more she liked him and she wondered if she was engaging in double-think; convincing herself that she was into him simply because he was available.  Was she genuinely interested in him?  Did she only like him because he seemed to like her?  He was fun and friendly but not really the deepest guy she’d ever met.  Whenever she asked a question that was mildly philosophical he always came up with a thoughtful answer and they had good conversations as a result but it was clear that he didn’t have these types of conversations with other people and he’d never been challenged in this way before.  So this explained why he found her so fascinating: she was constantly challenging him.  But he didn’t present a challenge to her.  She couldn’t help but compare him to Karl who’d always been challenging, if also infuriating. 

            But he was cute, with sunkissed hair and a smattering of freckles across his nose and he was a good kisser, not too dry, but no slobber either.  Though they hadn’t discussed it, it was pretty clear that they were now a couple.  Sarah was content to let that be.

            Cassie climbed up to the deck and sat next to them with a warm greeting.  She looked as cute as ever in one of her little office outfits.  Sarah was somewhat envious of Cassie’s job.  She got to work indoors and wear grown-up clothes.  But Sarah had enough perspective to realize a lot of people were envious of her position: being able to work outdoors in the sun, doing something she enjoyed. 

Cassie mentioned that she had to go to the washroom and looked at Sarah intently, obviously indicating that she wanted company.  Sarah got up and joined her as they walked into the clubhouse.

            “What’s up?”

            “Well,” Cassie squirmed.  “I guess we never really talked about you know, Jay.”

            “What about him?” asked Sarah, checking herself out in the mirror.  She didn’t bother wearing makeup on her work days since she always got sweaty and often ended up in the water and she wondered if she should start bringing her makeup bag to work to do herself up before going to the bakery.  She should bring an extra set of clothes as well because her BYC uniform wasn’t really the cutest outfit on the planet.

            “Well, I mean, are you ok with me going out with him?  I know you guys weren’t together very long but it’s still kind of weird.”  Cassie shrugged awkwardly.

            “No, it’s fine, I’m so totally over him,” Sarah said, not even sure if she was telling the truth.  She was basically over Jay and in truth she’d never been that into him but it was still kind of bitchy for Cassie to go out with him.  Not that she and Cassie were the best of friends; they were only friends because of their mutual friendship with Cerise but still.  And if she was being fully self-aware she’d admit that what annoyed her most was the fact that Jay had moved on before she had; that Jay had gotten over her so easily.  Was she truly so forgettable? 

            “Are you sure?” asked Cassie.

            “Yeah of course, whatever,” laughed Sarah.  “Besides, I’m with Paul now.”

            “Oh yeah?  He’s way cute!”

            “I know,” smiled Sarah with great satisfaction.  Paul was cuter than Jay and taller too and more built and with better skin and he didn’t play any stupid role-playing games.  He was definitely a step-up from that lame-bot Jason Harris.

            “Ok good, ‘cause I really like Jay,” Cassie giggled.

            “Well then you should totally be with him,” said Sarah with certainty.  “Like even if I was still into Jay, it wouldn’t matter ‘cause like I believe that like if two people like each other they owe it to themselves to try to make it work.  Like you know we should follow our hearts and stuff.”

            “Yeah, totally,” Cassie nodded as though Sarah had just said the wisest thing ever.

            Once again Sarah examined Cassie’s wardrobe.  She had on a cute little skirt and a blouse that was wrinkled and had embarrassing sweat stains but she still looked put together compared to Sarah in her shorts and t-shirt.  Sarah seriously needed to start bringing sundresses to work every day. 

            They went back out to the deck and rejoined Paul, who was now sitting with Karl and Jay.  Cassie ran up to Jay and sat in his lap, then complained about how sweaty he was.  He ran after her, acting like a swamp monster and she skipped around giggling, obviously wanting him to catch her.  Sarah looked forward to a time when she and Paul would have that kind of raport.  She’d had that with Karl but only when they were alone and she’d always resented that he wouldn’t show affection in public.  Hopefully Paul wouldn’t turn out to be that way.  To test the waters, she took his hand as they walked to the bus stop.  He held her hand eagerly and when they got on the bus he put his arm around her.  She snuggled up close and put her leg over his, and he rested his hand on her bare knee.  Karl pretended not to notice but she figured they looked pretty cutesy to the people around them and that’s the way Sarah liked it.

            It was Terry’s day off so Cerise switched shifts with Trista and hung out with him in NDG, which was kind of a waste of a perfectly good day since they had to spend most of it with Brittany.  Cerise tried hard not to resent the little snot but it was always a struggle.  Eventually Vicky came home and they rushed off to Lloyd and Bernie’s place so Cerise could show Terry the rehearsal space.  He was more impressed by it than she was and seemed enraptured as he listened to them rehearse.

            “Oh my god, you guys, that was seriously fucking amazing,” he said after a rendition of Fire at Will.

            “You really think so?” Cerise asked.

            “Gimme a break,” Jeff scoffed.  “He’s just saying that so you’ll suck his dick later.”

            “I’ll suck his dick later regardless,” Cerise said, prompting everyone except Tom to chuckle. 

            “It was for real good,” Terry went on.  “I mean maybe the bass player needs a little work but other than that…”

            Jeff rolled his eyes as the other band members laughed heartily.  They joked around a bit more and then all decided to head out to the bakery.  Everyone else was already there, laughing as Vani animatedly told a story, jumping around in the center of the room, waving his arms around.  The only person who wasn’t present was Janice, no doubt on one of her dates. 

            Furry Jenn sat with the boys and they were rolling dice so apparently she was now integrated into the game.  Cerise wondered if she missed playing the game and decided she didn’t.  She missed the camaraderie with the boys but she’d never been that into the game itself.  Besides, being in a band was way cooler even though the guys in the band weren’t as funny as the boys. 

            Sarah suggested they all go to LaRonde that weekend and at first Cerise thought she’d be able to go but then realized she had to work on Saturday since she’d switched shifts with Trista.  Cassie and Jay and Karine and Mike and all the boys could go but the Parisses Squares couldn’t because they’d be rehearsing.  Cerise realized she’d never have any free time anymore if she was in this band.  In fact, she wouldn’t even have work time.  If she was going to go on tour with the band, she’d have to quit her job, which would mean giving up on the idea of making any money this summer.

            “Do you wanna go for a walk for a bit?” she asked Terry.

            He nodded and led her outside.  It was a gorgeous night; not too hot and not too cold.  Cerise always preferred night over day.  The sun was not her friend but she didn’t mind heat and it was nice to live in a climate where it stayed warm at night during the summer.

            They picked a direction randomly and walked along the sidewalk.

            “So what’s up?” asked Terry as she took hold of his thumb.  “You look like you wanna talk.”

            “Yeah, I wanna get your opinion on all this band stuff.  Like do you think I should join?” 

            “I thought you’d already joined.”

            “I guess sort of.  But I mean should I go on tour with them?”

            “It’s up to you,” he said neutrally.

            “I want your opinion.”

            “I think you should do what makes you happy.”

            She sighed.  “You’re not really answering the question, Terry.  I mean, my happiness is affected by your happiness.  What do you want me to do?”

            “I’ll be happy as long as you’re happy.  Seriously, Cerise.  I want you to do what you wanna do.”

            “Well I don’t know what I want!”

            “Ok, so let’s break it down.  Wanna do like a pro/con list thing?”

            “Well, it would be fun, definitely more fun than working at the bookstore so that’s pro, but c’est pas payant, so I’ll be poor at the end of the summer.”

            “Ok,” Terry nodded.  “Fun verses money.”

            “But even if it did pay, it’s a lot of pressure.  What if I suck?  Bernie says I just need to do a show with them and that’ll set the tone for the whole summer.  If I rock it I’ll probably keep rocking it and vice-versa.”

            “So there you go. You can’t really make a decision until you’ve done a show with them.”

            “Yeah,” Cerise nodded, still uncertain.

            “Are you nervous about doing a show?”

            “Yeah, what if I suck?”

            “You won’t suck.”

            “But what if I choke?”

            “You never choked in any of your plays.”

            “Those were just amateur hour and I was never the lead.”

            “Well, no offense, but Parisses Squares is also kind of amateurish and yeah, I guess you’d be the front-woman but it’s still an ensemble.  It’s not all about you.”

            “But everything’s always about me,” she said with a serious tone.

            Terry laughed and she couldn’t keep a straight face.  He tickled her and she squealed as they ran back towards the bakery.  He caught her and they kissed as they leaned against his car.

            “But let’s say everything went well, and I did join the band,” she said after coming up for air. “If I went on tour with them we’d be apart for like a month.”

            “Yeah, I know,” he nodded.

            “That would totally suck, wouldn’t it?”

            “Yeah, it would,” he admitted.  “Especially ‘cause like, I gotta take all the time with you I can ‘cause I never know when you’re gonna break up with me next.”

            “Shut up!” she squealed, smacking him in the arm.

            He laughed and held her close.  “We can talk on Skype.”

            “It’s not the same,” she said.

            “Don’t I know it,” he nodded.  “It would totally suck to be back to just my hand for a whole month.”

            “Oh god, is that all you care about?” she chuckled.

            “No, but it is a consideration.  It also doesn’t thrill me that you’d be with that Tom guy the whole time.”  She was about to interrupt but he went on.  “I mean I know you’re not into him but still.  There’s a weirdness there.  Plus that Jeff guy is into you.  Plus they’re all guys.  They’re all prob’ly into you.”

            “No, they’re not…”

            “They will be just ‘cause you’re there.  I mean just hear me out.  You’re all gonna be travelling together, being together all the time, sleeping in the same room, getting dressed together, you know, like having the same experience.  It creates like a bond or whatever.  Like how I have a bond with the guys on my team even though they aren’t who I’d hang out with by choice, you know?  And since you’re the only girl, they’ll all think about you that way, just ‘cause you’re there and their girlfriends aren’t.”

            “They don’t have girlfriends.”

            “All the more reason for them to try to make moves on you.”

            “Well even if they did, it’s not like they’d succeed.”

            “I know,” he nodded.  “but still.”

            “So you don’t want me to go?” she asked.

            “Of course I want you to go!  I mean if that’s what you want.  But you know, it’s something to be aware of.  You’re so naïve about that stuff.  I just want you to know, like be aware that they’re all gonna be secretely spying on you when you take showers and stuff.”

            “No they won’t!”

            He sighed and widened his eyes as though she were being an idiot for not getting it. 

            She regarded him for a moment.  “Is this like a jealousy thing or like a protective thing?  Are you afraid that they’d try to mack on me or are you afraid that you wouldn’t be there to stop it?”

            “Neither.  I’m not threatened by them.  It’s just, I think you don’t really necessarly realize when guys are coming on to you.  I think with me I was pretty obvious about it, but when guys are more subtle you don’t seem to catch on.  Which is fine, I mean it works out great for me.  But like, let’s say one of them tries something, I just want you to be prepared.  Like you should know how you’re gonna handle it.”

            She blinked in confusion.  If Terry was right, which he probably wasn’t but if he was and Jeff or one of them tried something, what would she do? She’d likely be so embarrassed she wouldn’t know how to react.  “How should I handle it?”

            “Remind them I exist?”

            She laughed.  “Like tell them you’ll beat them up?”

            “No, but I mean yeah,” he chuckled.

            “Come on Terry, seriously?” she laughed.

“Like when chicks are into me I mention that I have a girlfriend.  It kills the mood pretty fast.  So if they come on to you, just remind them that I exist.  Just talk about me and they’ll get bored and moved on to a groupie or whatever.”

“I don’t think they have groupies.”

“Then remind them I play hockey and I can beat their asses no problem.”  He grinned.

            She laughed and rolled her eyes.  “You’re such a dork.  Ok, so what’s your conclusion?  Do I go or not?”

            “My conclusion is the same as my… introduction.  I think you should do what makes you happy.”

            She smiled up at him.  “I’m glad we’re able to talk like this.”

            “You making fun of me?” he narrowed his eyes in suspicion.  

            “No, seriously.  I think this is a good convo.  Sometimes we have a tendency to get like, too heated.  It’s good that we’re talking without yelling.  And we’re being honest.”

            “Yeah,” he smiled and nodded.  “I guess in the past sometimes I got out of hand ‘cause like, I was sort of intimidated by you.”

            “What?  You intimidated by me?  Why?”

            “’Cause like you always seemed so together.  So sure of who you were and what you were about.  I didn’t have a fucking clue.  I was afraid you’d reject me because I was such a… such a slacker I guess.”

            “And I was afraid you’d reject me ‘cause I was too much of a prude and a nerd.  Like not cool enough for you.”

            “Yeah well, it’s true I’m pretty cool but I like to take a few charity cases every so often…”

            “Loser!” she wacked his arm and punched his chest as he laughed and showered kisses onto her forehead.

            “Ugh, those two make me wanna puke,” said Karine, glancing outside and seeing Terry and Cerise making out on the hood of his car.

            “Highly vomitorious,” Vani agreed.

            “I think they’re cute,” said Sarah.

            “Yeah, I think it’s nice when couples show so much affection for each other,” nodded Cassie.   

            Was it Karine’s imagination or had Jay made a face at that comment?  She looked at Mike to see how he was reacting.

            “Pussy-whipped,” he burped and laughed at his own joke.

            “Indeed,” nodded Vani.  “Terry was way cooler before he became so majorly whipped.”

            “Seriously, he’s fucking brutal on the ice,” Mike confirmed.  “A lot of guys, they can’t make the separation.  If they’re a goon on the ice, sometimes they’re like that in real life too.  It’s good Trebichavsky’s not like that, unless he is and he just keeps it for closed doors.”

            “No, I’m pretty sure even when they’re alone he treats Cerise like she’s an angel who fell from heaven,” Karine said with a perhaps too strong a hint of disdain.

            “Like a gold-plated angel who fell from heaven!” Vani scoffed.

            “Like a gold-plated, liquid latinum filled angel who fell from heaven,” Karl carried on.

            Jay jumped in.  “Like a gold-plated, liquid latinum filled angel who fell from heaven and who carries a magical harp that when you play it, little fairies jump out and they grant you wishes.”

            They went on that way for a while, each person trying to up the ante and it got pretty ridiculous pretty fast.  Mike made his contribution, giving the angel rainbow hair and sparkle breath.

            Karine had to admit she was pleased with Mike these days.  He was fully integrated into the group now, hanging out every day and joining in the jokes, but also making fun of the guys when they weren’t around.  And their sex life was pretty good these days too.  Like all guys he was a little selfish for her tastes; always wanting to get more than he gave but he wasn’t afraid of cunnilingus and even though he didn’t always last too long, he was always good to go for several rounds.  She wasn’t nervous around him, she realized.  She trusted him.  Maybe not the way she trusted Terry; she wouldn’t tell him all her hopes and dreams but she was comfortable with him and he was fun to hang out with so what else could she possibly ask for?

            Terry and his Cherry angel walked back into the bakery and everyone hurled jokes at them, accusing Cerise of being a rainbow farting pegasus wing and Terry of being the most pussy-whipped man of all time.  He responded by bowing in front of Cerise, calling her m’lady and saying her wish was his command. 

            “I wish you to keep being the most awesome boyfriend ever,” she gushed, throwing herself into his arms.

            They all made puking noises and hurled empty coke cans at Terise while they made out in the middle of the bakery.  God, they were seriously the most disgusting couple ever.