Sailor's Choice

Chapter 7 - A "Normal" School Day.

The sound of my alarm clock pierced through the silence of my room, jolting me out of a great dream which contained me befriending a pet frog. I groggily opened my eyes to see Tony frantically barging into my room, his jacket already on. "Wake up!" he shouted, his voice urgent and panicked. Without waiting for my response, he dashed out of my room, shouting, "We're late!" I glanced at the clock on my bedside table and saw that it was only 5:15, which was way too early for me. I usually awoke closer to 6:30 on school days, but just for him, I got up. I watched as Tony ran through the hallway from the bathroom to the bedroom. Sitting up, rubbing my eyes, I asked him, "Uncle Tony, why are we getting up so early?". He seemed quite shocked that I didn't remember the conversation from dinner before. "You go back to school today, kiddo." He said. "Yeah, and why do I have to get up at 5 am?" I continued. Tony sighed, "Because you live an hour out from the school, kid, and I didn't fight with those fuckers for nothing. Now please, get dressed." He huffed. "Right," I responded, shutting the door. Days had passed since Tony's grocery outing. Turns out, he got distracted by the woman I told him to ask out, and ended up trying. He went on a date with her and left me home without warning. At least he brought groceries in the end, I suppose. Opening my dresser, I scavenged for clothes for my return back to school. "Uncle Tony?" I shouted from the door. I heard him scurry to the door with a response, "Yes, kiddo?". "What day are we?" I asked. Silence lived between us as he thought. "Frank's birthday." He replied. "Oh, so it's Thursday." "Of course you'd remember that." He scoffed. I chose not to answer. Something told me Bill's little tease evolved from much more than just he and I. Tony must have picked up on it. I heard Tony shuffled away in the same hurried movement as he was before. I wasn't looking forward to going back to school. Tony had kept me out of school for several days as he fought with them over the phone to get a bus out to Long Beach. He won in the end, but it was a battle. Tony nor I wanted me to go to a Long Beach school. He explained it was easier if I stayed in the same school as our bandmates so his job wouldn't be interrupted by bringing me to Manhattan Beach after school.

Pulling out an average unbranded white shirt, I paired it with some sweatpants I had tailored in the past to make it baggier on my ass. "Good enough," I mumbled, putting it on. I felt okay, and I looked flat enough in my eyes that I didn't need anything to hide my chest, so I settled on that outfit. Opening the door, I watched as Tony shuffled from room to room panicked. "Uncle Tony, what's wrong?" "Can't find my bag, and we have 10 minutes." He huffed, out of breath. Tony worked as a postman, so his bag was necessary for him. He had only just started at the company a month before, and he wanted to make a good impression and prove that he deserved that position. That's what he said, anyway. "I think your bag is downstairs on one of the kitchen chairs," I responded. He bolted downstairs, leaving me upstairs alone. I went back to my room, grabbed my jacket off the bed, and put it on. Getting ready to leave, I shuffled my papers and books back into my bag as I attempted to tie up my Converse. "Fucking shoes.." I squeaked. Why did I buy these if they're hard to put on? Style, I suppose. Tony yelled my name from downstairs. Shit. Rushing, I threw my bag on my shoulders, throwing myself down the stairs also. "Get in the car," Tony said, grabbing his wallet. Following his statement, I left the house, getting into the passenger seat of his car. Tony followed a minute after, locking the house door behind him. He met me in the driver's seat of the vehicle, starting it quickly. He threw his bag in the back seat as he backed from the driveway. "Here's the plan, soldier." He stated. "I'll drive you to your stop today, but you're walking to it tomorrow." I didn't know my stop yet, so this was great. "You're lucky I start a little later today." He continued. "Thanks, Uncle Tony." I nodded. "You're welcome." He replied. The drive was silent as he brought me to a sidewalk, parking next to the stop lights. "Thanks again, Uncle Tony," I said, leaving the car. I heard him reply with a "You're welcome," as I began shutting the door. Before it shut, I jolted it open again, leaning into the vehicle. "One last question. Frank invited me to his birthday party, do you want me to take the bus home or go to his house?" I asked. "Just go to his place, Bill will most likely help you get there safely." He replied. I smiled as I told him I loved him, he replied with "I love you too," and shut the door behind me.