On The Floor (Second Story)

by LaCross, Jennifer

  “Ok,” I say smiling at him and getting comfortable in my seat. When I look back up at him, he’s smiling like he knows something I don’t. “What?” I ask him.

  “Rachel,” he says pointing to the stage. Jack, the manager at the Rec Center, is standing on stage looking down at me. Waiting. “I think it’s time to start.”

  “Oh,” I say, smiling and standing up to get on stage with my clipboard. Jake picked the perfect table. The stairs are right next to us, so I’m able to get on and off stage without walking in front of anyone else. When I get up there, Jack hands me the microphone and shows me how to use the stand, then walks off stage.

  “Hey! How is everybody doing tonight?” I say into the mic. I’m hoping my enthusiasm will get the crowd excited. Everyone cheers. I hear an extra loud cheer from the front and realize that is where most of the group from my floor are sitting. I smile at them and continue. “My name is Rachel, and I’ll be the host for the evening. This is the first open mic night of the semester and we’ll be doing them the first Friday of every month. Anyone is welcome to perform, as long as you sign up before hand and let us know what you’ll be performing. Anyways, let’s get this show on the road!” More cheers.

  I look down at my clipboard and announce the first performer of the night. “First up, is Christy Lawrence. She’s a sophomore and majoring in musical performance. She’ll be playing I Do, by Colbie Caillat.” I look at her as she comes up on stage with her guitar. I grab the stool for her and put the microphone back on the stand.

  She sits at the stool and adjusts the mic. “Hey everyone! Hope you like my version of the song.” Then she starts playing a slower version of the song. Her voice is beautiful, and she is definitely a performer.

  When she finishes she thanks the audience and leaves the stage as I am walking up. I introduce the next performer and they come up. The rest of the night goes on like that. We hear performances of all different types of music, from a cover of I Knew You Were Trouble by Taylor Swift, to an acoustic version Nothing Else Matters by Metallica, and everything in between. And everyone is amazing. Although I guess I didn’t really expect anything less from an arts college full of music majors.

  After the last performer finishes, I go on stage to end the show and remind them about the next open mic night. Just before I thank everyone for coming and say goodbye, I notice that Jake is standing on stage with his guitar, a big smile spread across his face.

  I look over at him confused. He leans down and whispers into my ear, “We have one last performance.” He leans back, his smile getting bigger, if possible. “Did I forget to write this one on the list?” he says trying to look innocent.

  Yeah right.

  “I guess you did.” I say smiling back. I turn back to the mic and let the crowd know about our surprise performance. “It looks like we have one last surprise performance. This is Jacob Price, and he is lead vocal and guitar for Second Story, one of our local bands. He is also a senior here and he helped me put this event together. Let’s give him a hand!” I say looking back at him and smiling as the crowd cheers loudly.

  A group of girls near the back yells, “We love you, Jake!” and I start laughing as I exit the stage and go back to my table with Jenna.

  I look at Jake sitting on his stool on the stage. I would love for him to sing something romantic for me like he did at The Grove, but I don’t want to draw any more attention to our relationship. Although a performance like that might get rid of some of the negative rumors.

  “Hey everyone! Thanks again for coming out! I wanted to perform something tonight and dedicate it to a friend of mine. This is for my partner in crime,” he says smiling and looking over at me.

  I smile back and start to laugh, giving him a thumbs up. Nice reference, Jake. He starts to strum on his guitar, and it's not long before I realize it is an acoustic version of What Makes You Beautiful by One Direction. Of course he did. My smile gets bigger, as I fight back tears.

  That’s right. I’m tearing up at a One Direction song. You try not tearing up while watching the guy you’re falling in love with sings a song for you in front of a group of people. No matter what song it is. He could sing Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star, and you’d be emotional.

  He finishes the first verse of the song and goes into the bridge when I realize that there is a large group of people standing and swaying to the music. After he finishes the bridge, he stops playing and winks at me.

  What?

  Then out of nowhere, the actual version of the song picks up where he left off and everyone that is standing starts to perform a choreographed dance. The group is huge. Everyone from my floor, plus half of the rest of the crowd. Even Jenna, Jimmy, and Dan are in on it. All of them are dancing to the song.

  They start to move. Some of them go on stage to join Jake, who has stashed his guitar and joined in on the dance. Some move onto the tables. Some are stationed around the perimeter of the room. It’s crazy!

  It’s a flash mob!

  Oh my god!

  What is going on?!

  I’m laughing along with the rest of the crowd. As Jake, Jenna, Jimmy, Dan, and most of the freshmen from my floor start to move over to my table. Jake grabs my hand and pulls me to stand. We start to dance as he shows me the simple choreography. Most of the rest of the room has joined in as well.

  This has to be one of the most fun and random things that has ever happened to me. I smile over at Jake as we finish up the song. The entire crowd cheers so loudly I almost want to plug my ears.

  Jake jumps back up on stage. “That was just a little thank you for the person who made all this possible. We wanted to tell her how much we appreciate the work she does. We figured what better way than to play her favorite song.” He smiles at me. “She is described by some as the best RA and I would have to say that I agree. Thank you, Rachel. And thanks to everyone who helped out with the flash mob. Hope to see everyone at the open mic night next month! Have a good night!” he finishes getting back off the stage and coming back over to me and Jenna.

  “Oh my god, Jake! What was that?” I ask smiling so big my cheeks are hurting. “When did you do that?”

  “I walked into the common room a couple weeks back while some of the freshmen were planning it. They asked for my help, and here we are.”

  “They didn’t know how to go about doing it, so Jake and I helped them organize the practices and get the group together. Before I came to get ready with you, we did our final practice,” Jenna explains. “Were you surprised?”

  “Um… yeah I was! That was awesome! But that is not my favorite song…” I say laughing.

  “Sure it is! It’s one of them!” says Jenna. “Don’t be ashamed. It’s okay to like teeny bopper music. I like it too!”

  “And I know you know all the words. I hope you know that I got some of those moves from your solo performance of that song. The one I walked in on,” Jake says and starts laughing, grabbing my hips and pulling me towards him. The moment the front of my body touches his, the look in his eyes changes from one of jest to something entirely different. I know he wants me and I can’t wait to get him alone.

  “Jake,” I say pulling back, my face turning red. One touch from him and I’m ready for this night to end in one of our beds. With us naked, sweaty, and breathless. “Everyone is still around. I’d like to squash the rumors, not fuel them. Hands off until we’re alone.”

  There are still people in the room, but thankfully no one is near enough to see the look on my face. Because I know anyone would be able to tell what is on my mind.

  “Well, then, let’s finish up here so we can be alone,” he says quietly so only I can hear him. I know everything he wants to do to me just by the look in his eyes. “And hurry.”

  “You’re insatiable, Jake. You’ll be the death of me, I swear.” I say laughing breathlessly.

  “You mean the death of your vagina. Although I think he’s more of a vagina savior based on what you’ve told me about how he can work it. Yo
ur vagina, that is,” Jenna says coming out of nowhere. Or maybe she was here the whole time. I’ve been too focused on Jake.

  “Oh my god! Jenna!” I say turning and glaring at her as my face turns red. “Girl talk needs to stay girl talk!”

  “I don’t agree with that, Rachel,” Jake says with a huge smile on his face. I think he may split his face in half. He turns to Jenna. “Tell me. What has she said that brought you to these conclusions?”

  She looks at me and then back to Jake. “I think I’ll plead the fifth in order to keep my best friend. And to get on her good side, Jims, Dan, and I will finish up here. You guys can go and… talk or whatever,” she says winking over at me.

  “Are you sure?” I ask her.

  “Yep! Don’t worry about it, bestie. Have a good night,” she says practically shoving us toward the door.

  I wave at Jenna, Jimmy, and Dan when we get to the door, and then Jake and I start to walk back to the room.

  As soon as we get out of view of the people hanging around the entrance to the Rec Center, Jake reaches to hold my hand and puts it to his lips. Then he drops them back between us, keeping a hold on my hand.

  “Tell me again why we are keeping our relationship private from everyone on our floor. I hate not being able to kiss you when I want,” he says looking down at me.

  I stop just before we go through the door of the dorm. I pull him towards me by our connected hands. “Well if you want, you can kiss me now. There’s no one else around,” I say smiling at him up, trying to tell him how much I want him with the look in my eyes.

  “Of course I want.” He smiles down at me and pulls me by the hand through the doors, leading me to the secluded corner of the lobby and into the mailroom. He pins me up against one of the banks of mailboxes and looks me in the eyes. It feels like he is trying to look into my soul. Read my heart.

  “Jake? What are we doing in here?” I whisper.

  “I wanted to kiss you.”

  “You could have kissed me outside,” I say, heat rising in my body at the look he is giving me.

  “Not the way I want to kiss you.”

  And with that he lifts me as I wrap my legs around him and we make-out like teenagers in the mailroom.

  Chapter 13

  “I think we should spend the night talking, like Jenna suggested,” Jake says as he opens the door to his room after our mailroom make-out.

  "She was joking, Jake."

  "I know, but I think it was a good idea," he responds.

  “Really?” I ask him, the skepticism written all over my face.

  We walk inside and he turns so he’s facing me. He holds both of my hands and looks into my eyes with that same soul searching look he gave me in the mailroom. “Yeah. I want to make love to more than your body, Rachel. I want to make love to your soul,” he says trying to hold back a laugh.

  “Oh my god. That was bad,” I say laughing and leaning in to give him a kiss.

  He starts laughing with me. “I know, I know,” he says. “But I do think we should talk tonight. I want to hear more about your life. If you’re ready to talk about her, I’d like to hear about your mom…” The look in his eyes is killing me. I can tell he wants me to open up to him about the things I have told him that I don’t want to talk about.

  I think about it for a minute, breathing slowly. It’s always hard when someone brings her up out of the blue, but I think it’s time I talked to him about it. Some of it at least.

  “Okay,” I say smiling at him and going to sit on the bed.

  “Really?” He seems surprised.

  “Sure. I don’t really want to talk about everything, but I’d like to talk about her some. The good stuff. I try so hard not to think too much about her, I feel like I’m starting to forget the good stuff. All the wonderful times we had together.” And it’s true. I try not to think about her death so much, I forget to think about her life. The life we lived. The happy life.

  We go and sit on the bed. I don’t really feel like facing him while we talk. I think emotionally facing this is enough, so I sit next to him and curl up, snuggling into his shoulder.

  I take a deep breath, count to three, and picture the beach. It is one of my favorite memories of my mom, so I decide to start there.

  “She would take me to the beach,” I start, a small smile on my face. “We lived inland, but once a month, she would take me to the beach. She had other places that she would take Chad and Monica, but she and I would always go to the beach. We would sit and play and as I got older, we would walk along the water and talk. She loved the beach. She grew up in Florida. Right on the water. She didn’t move to California until she was in high school.” I picture my mom walking with me along the water, laughing, talking as the sunsets in hues of pink and purple. My eyes start to fill with tears. I blink and one rolls down my cheek. “I miss her so much.”

  “She sounds like a wonderful woman,” Jake says wrapping his arms around me and kissing my forehead.

  “She was. She would have liked you, Jake,” I say, turning to look at him.

  “You think?” he asks. “I never would have pictured myself as someone to take home to meet the parents, but with you I want all that.”

  I smile, and wipe the tear off my cheek. “You would have fit in well with my family…” I say trailing off and picturing bringing Jake home to meet my parents. “Your smart ass comments would have fit right in with my dad. That’s how he used to be before she died. We’re getting back there, but we’ll never be the way we were.”

  “You don’t have to talk about it, Rachel. I’m happy to just hear you talk about your mom,” he says as I tuck myself back into his shoulder.

  “It’s okay. I think I want to. I didn’t plan on it, but I want you to know what you’re walking into with me and my family.” I pause. “My dad went through… a lot… after she died. He had to be hospitalized. He had a nervous breakdown. That’s why I decided to stay closer to home. With Chad stationed down here in the military, Monica didn’t have anyone. I mean, we have all of our family there, but I wanted her to be able to stay in her own house, in her own room. I took charge of the household. I paid the bills. I cooked. I cleaned. I took care of Monica, driving her to and from school and softball practice. Since I was eighteen, I was able to legally take over guardianship of Monica until my dad was better. It was a lot of responsibility for someone in high school.

  “The plan was for me to postpone my entrance into Juilliard and stay home until I moved to New York in the spring. But when Dad came home, he still wasn’t the same. That’s when I let my admissions counselor at Juilliard know that I wouldn’t be coming at all. I stayed and went to community college and then transferred here three years after I graduated high school. We still do a family therapy session every other month. I go home for the weekend, usually with Chad.”

  “I’m sorry you had to go through all of that, Rachel…” he says, pulling me tighter to him.

  “Yeah…”

  We sit in silence for a few minutes before Jake breaks it.

  “Tell me more about your mom…”

  I smile and think of another thing we shared while she was alive. “She’s the one who got me interested in the piano and singing. She had the most beautiful voice. She would tell me that mine was even better than hers, but I think that would be impossible.” I breathe in a shaky breath. It feels like someone is squeezing my insides and the tears start to fall freely.

  “I can’t imagine anyone singing better than you can,” he says, reaching down and squeezing my hand.

  I smile and take a deep breath before I continue. “That is how my parents met. He walked into a coffee house during open mic night. He didn’t even go there for the show. He had just moved to an apartment near there and wanted to check out the place. He ordered his coffee and while he was waiting for them to make it, she started to perform. Landslide, by Fleetwood Mac. Her boyfriend at the time was playing guitar while she sang. When he heard her start singing… he says that his
world stopped.” I wipe away a tear.

  “He knew. He just knew that he was meant to listen to that voice for the rest of his life. He stayed after he got his coffee and approached her before she left. He gave her his number. Right in front of her boyfriend. Dad says the guy was pissed,” I say laughing. “But he couldn’t let her get away. He knew… She obviously saw something in him too, because she broke up with her boyfriend that night.”

  “And then she called him?” he asks.

  “No, actually…” I say with a chuckle. “She didn’t. He went to open mic night every week for a month before he saw her again. They were married a few months later. Their first dance was to Landslide. I think it was the first song my mom taught me to play. She was the love of his life. One day I want to look back at my life and have a love story like theirs.”

  “It’s a beautiful love story,” he says as he kisses me on the head.

  “Yeah… I miss her. Everyday…” I tell him, trying to hold back the tears.

  “Shh… It’s okay… I’m here…” That’s when I lose it. All the sadness that I have been holding back is released, and I start sobbing. And I don’t stop until I fall asleep.

  ***

  I wake up with a headache. I hate crying myself to sleep. Jake has moved us in the bed so that we are lying down and I am in between him and the wall, with his arms wrapped around me. I look at the clock and realize it is still the middle of the night.

  I need a drink of water and something for my headache. I try to move slowly out of bed so I don’t wake him up. I lift his arm and shift, trying to swing my leg over him and climb out, when I feel his other hand slide up my back. I’m straddling him, when I look down at his face to see that he is awake.

  “Where are you going?” he mumbles sleepily.

  “Just to get some water and something for my headache,” I whisper back. “Go back to sleep.”