Hey guys! Thanks for waiting so patiently! Hope you all like this chapter :) in the next few chapter we will have a lovely wedding scene involving these four characters in this chapter (marriage between Sam's mom and Patrick's dad). It'll be a fun chapter :) enjoy this one and stay tuned for more! Comment and review please :)

~Wallflower95


9

Living Room Routine

"Okay. The winner will be announced today and I hope to freaking God I won!" Mary Elizabeth is wringing her wrists and her knee is bouncing up and down. I smile at Alice. The contest for the theatre production ends today and Mary Elizabeth submitted her Rocky Horror submission ages ago. Today we would finally learn who won. We were all gathered in the gym which is literally the biggest room to hold our whole school. I'm sitting with Alice and Mary Elizabeth on the bleachers. I notice Patrick walking around, searching for a seat. I wave him down.

"Over here!" I called. Patrick smiled and weaved his way into the sea of students. Mary Elizabeth frowned.

"Since when have two become friends?" I shrugged and smiled when Patrick sat down.

"How's it going Sammykins?" Patrick asked. I smiled.

"Same old same old. You?" Patrick rolled his eyes.

"I have a problem. I am addicted."

"To drugs?"

"No to your stupid music! I can't stop listening!" He reached into his bag and pulled out his walkmen. It was Queen. The song playing was 'Under Pressure'. I smiled.

"You're actually listening to it." I said. He nodded.

"For some reason I can't go back to my punk rock. What have you done to me?"

"It's called brain-washing." I think at the moment Patrick and I truly understood each other and that's why we became great friends. Mr. Vulcan, our principal stood on the podium in the middle of the gym and started talking about the contest.

"Oh my god, I can't listen." Mary Elizabeth put her head down and covered her ears.

"And the winner is..." I crossed my fingers and squeezed Mary Elizabeth's hand.

"Mary Elizabeth Nichols with The Rocky Horror Picture Show!"

"Holy shit!" We all jumped up and started screaming. I'm sure everyone thought we were crazy, jumping around and screaming and hugging each other. Even Patrick joined in with us and Alice and Mary Elizabeth didn't seem to mind. The way I see it, it's one of those moments in life when you're just so happy that you have to share it with everyone. So I don't mind looking stupid jumping and screaming. I'm happy.


I've noticed a change in my mom. She was so depressed and broken up after dad. But now she seems to be happy. She has a knew job as a receptionist at some big company in the city. She seems happy and alive. I'm sitting at the dinner table with her and my Aunt. My Aunt Nora is the elder of the two. The two of them looked so much alike. Same features, same hair... except for the eyes. My mom has storm grey eyes while Nora has brown. My sets down her fork and smiles at the two of us.

"I have an announcement." I looked at her. She really does look happy. She has a glow.

"I've met someone at work. His name is Tom. He is a really great guy and we've started to see each other outside of work." That's why she's happy. She's met someone. Someone who won't hurt her. Someone who will treat her well... I hope.

"That's great, Beth." Aunt Nora said with a smile. I nodded and smiled but I didn't say anything because I wasn't sure how I should feel. Happy? Lonely?

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner, Sam." I shook my head and smiled.

"It's okay, mom. I'm glad you've met someone." I said with a smile. As soon as dinner was over I went up to my room and played some music. 'Yesterday' by The Beatles.

Yesterday, all my troubles seemed so far away

Now it looks as though they're here to stay

oh, I believe in yesterday

How am I supposed to feel when my mom starts dating someone new? What if he was just like dad? I didn't know how to feel. There was a tap at the door. I stopped the record.

"Enter." I said. My mom stepped in.

"Hi Sweetie." I nodded. She sat down and wrapped her arms around me like she used to when I was little. I breathed in her perfume. Lavender. I put my face against her soft brown hair. I wish my hair was like hers. Her is soft and brown and curly. Mine is a mess. I'm not beautiful like my mom.

"Tom is coming over for dinner tomorrow night with his son." My mom said.

"Okay." My lifted my chin up so I could look her in the eyes.

"If you don't like him in any way, you will tell me and we can forget about the whole thing, okay?" I nodded.

"I just want you to be happy." I said. She smiled.

"And I want the same for you." She hugged me tight.

"Hey mom?"

"Yes?"

"Can you help me cut my hair?"


All the girls in my grade believed that when you get your hair cut it means you're going through some big changes and in order to get through all of them you need to change you appearance. I don't believe that for a second. I'm not changing the way I look because I'm going through a lot. I changing the way I look because I want to. That's that. I asked Aunt Nora (who's occupation is thankfully a hairdresser) to cut my hair. I asked her to cut short. Not a bob short. A pixie cut short. When it was done I actually felt happy. This is who I am supposed to be. Sam Dutton. The girl who does well in school and has two best friends and is into really good music. That's who I am.


Tonight is the night I meet mom's boyfriend, Tom. I will also be meeting his son. Aunt Nora has gone out for the night and she has given us her place. We decided to cook for them. I'm not much of a cook and neither is my mom but she insisted that it was nice thing to do for them and she wanted everything to be perfect so I agreed. I dressed nice for the occasion. A knee length black dress with red polka dots. I'm wearing a red headband in my hair and red flower earrings. There's a knock at the door.

"Oh that's them! Watch the food." My mom heads to the front door. I hear a voice, a pleasant sounding voice. I hear another one. A younger one. A familiar one. I walk into the front room and standing there was Patrick.

"Sam?"

"Patrick?" My mom and Patrick's dad look at the two of us.

"You two know each other?" We both laughed.

"Yeah actually we're in the same grade." Patrick laughed. I smiled. I was happy to see a familiar face. The smoke alarm went off. Shit. The food. The four of us ran into the kitchen. Smoke was everywhere. Tom grabbed a kitchen towel and started waving it around, trying to get rid of the smoke. My mom grabbed oven mitts and opened the oven door to find a charred chicken. Within seconds the alarm was off. We all coughed and stared down at the black, charred chicken.

"Well, that looks... delicious." Patrick said. I tried to hold in some laughter. My mom looked like she was on the verge of tears.

"I'm- I'm so sorry." She said, looking at Tom. But Tom was smiling.

"Anybody feel like Chinese food?"


I liked Tom. I really did. He was funny and wild, kinda like Patrick. We ordered Chinese take-out and then we played monopoly. I was having a great time and I was so happy for my mom. He really did care for her. He looked at her and I could see that he loved her. Sometimes at random moments he would reach out and hold her hand or kiss her on the cheek. They must have been going out a while. My mom and Tom headed into the kitchen to talk privately while Patrick and I stayed in the living room.

"I had no idea she was your mom."

"It's crazy huh?"

"So crazy!" Patrick jumped up and took a tape out of his pocket. I frowned.

"What are you doing?" Patrick spun around and smiled that big goofy smile of his.

"Living room routine." He pushed the tape into the stereo and 'Come On Eileen' started to play. Patrick's head bobbed up and down and his foot started tapping against the ground. I laughed. Patrick reached down and pulled me onto my feet.

"I'm a terrible dancer!" I said over the music. Patrick twirled around.

"Me neither!" I felt the music beating through the floor. Beating in my chest. The drums. The piano. I saw Patrick dancing like a... well... like a dork beside me and I couldn't help myself. I laughed out loud and my feet started moving. Patrick grabbed my hands and we spun around and around. I screamed and laughed out loud as the room spun around. And I just kept dancing. It was like something possessed my body. Out of the corner of my eye I saw my mom and Tom watching us. Mo mom leaned against the door frame, she had a smile on her face. Tom had his arm around her shoulders, he was smiling as well. I felt happy. I felt... I felt alive. And I guess I danced the living room routine with Patrick.