"This is all your fault, director's pet. This is a play. I'm not falling in love with you, and I would never ever go out with you, Jack Garrison."
Jack and Shayna can't get through a rehearsal without fighting.
Cheerleader Shayna loathes perfect Ja...
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**** Content Warning for Referencing Abuse and Violence****
After my brother left, I dreamed about our theater production. As usual, Jack was flirting, but every time he tried to declare his love to me, another bruise bloomed on his face. Then Juan and Samantha started spinning around him and laughing.
I was just about to open my mouth and say something when I was awoken from my dream by a shake on my shoulder. When I opened my eyes, Mom came into focus. She wore bright blue scrubs, and her hair was pulled back by a cap covered in little cartoon rubber ducks.
"Hey, sweetie," she said. "You up for movie night, or do you want to keep sleeping?"
I blinked before I realized what she was talking about. "Movie night."
"Then let me take a quick shower, and you can pick the movie," she smiled and headed towards the room she shared with Aunt Layla.
Sitting up, my eyes focused on the clock above the television. It was just after midnight. I shook my head and got to my feet.
It wasn't completely out of the ordinary for us to start movie night at odd hours. Parker and I had long learned to take any moment of spare time our mother could spare. She never had time to go to the theater, but I preferred snuggling on the couch and watching old films.
There were three ingredients to a perfect Porter movie night. The first was popcorn. I fired up the air popper and set out our favorite big yellow plastic bowl to catch the popcorn. We had a dozen different seasonings, and I'd make a batch with garlic parmesan for Mom and one with popcorn butter and ranch seasoning for me.
While the popcorn fired up, I made my way to the movie cabinet to select the second perfect ingredient. Mom loved old films from the fifties and sixties. She always said her favorite was anything by Alfred Hitchcock. I, on the other hand, loved musicals.
Parker's favorite, Harvey, was tucked in the front. I'd never understand why he liked a movie about a guy who's convinced his best friend is a giant invisible rabbit. I could probably quote the script because of how many times he'd wanted to watch it as a kid.
I skimmed past Some Like It Hot, My Fair Lady, and The King and I. Finally, after an internal debate about which was better, Guys and Dolls or Brigadoon, I found the movie I was looking for: Singing in the Rain.
I'd just finished seasoning the popcorn when Mom came out of the bedroom in her pajamas carrying perfect ingredient number three: large plush fuzzy blankets. We snuggled into the blankets and dimmed the lights to start the move.
Watching my favorite characters sing and dance their troubles away made me smile. I dug into my ranch popcorn bucket for the perfect bite as we watched the cast skip in puddles and sing about love.
