Status: On hiatus again sorry guys.
Poprocks and Coke
Chapter 2
I stood next to Johnny, a step behind Sarah, on the doorstep of our new home, waiting for someone to answer the door. I heard footsteps approach and took a deep breath as the front door opened.
“Sarah, hi, come on in,” the middle aged brunette said cheerfully, standing aside of the door to allow us to walk into her home.
“Hi, I’m Maria and you must be Angela and Johnny.” She said cheerfully as she closed the door behind us. Johnny and I both muttered a quiet ‘hello’ and followed Sarah and Maria through to the living room.
“This is my husband, James, Darling this is Angela and Johnny.” Maria said as James stood up with a welcoming smile.
“Nice to meet the both of you.” James said, sounding a little nervous, which I found strange. Shouldn’t it be me and Johnny who are the nervous ones?
“I was hoping that our son, Zack would be here to meet you, but knowing him he’s either forgotten or hasn’t realised the time. He’s the same age as you Angela.” She said and I felt myself wince at the sound of my full name.
“Um, it’s Angie, only my mom would call me Angela, and that was when she was mad at me.” I said hesitantly. I didn’t want to sound rude, but I couldn’t handle her calling me Angela anymore.
“Oh sorry honey, of course, Angie it is.” She smiled broadly, a smile that I returned, grateful that she hadn’t taken offence. “Can I get either of you something to eat or drink?”
I shook my head and was surprised to see Johnny shaking his too, I must be nervous if he’s turning down food.
“Oh is that a guitar?” Maria asked spotting Johnny’s bass.
“Bass.” Johnny said simply turning it over to show here the four strings.
“Lovely, Zack actually plays the guitar as well, he’s actually in a band, probably where he is now actually, well anyway, here’s me talking, I bet all you want to do is get settled, come on, I’ll show you your rooms.” She said turning quickly towards the stairs. I turned to follow, catching an encouraging smile from Sarah as I picked up my bag. I followed Maria up the stairs with Johnny right behind me.
“This is James and my room, and that’s Zack’s.” She said pointing to the first two rooms as we passed them.
“Linen closet, bathroom, Johnny this will be your room and Angie this is yours.” She continued, stopping at the far end of the corridor. The room she’d said was Johnny’s was on our right, opposite the one she’d said was mine. She turned with a warm smile on her face and glanced between us.
“Well, I’ll let you make yourselves comfortable, come down whenever you’re ready.” She said as she took a step to walk away.
“Thanks.” I muttered quietly echoed by Johnny.
“You’re welcome.” She replied again turning to give us both a warm, welcoming, loving smile.
“Come on then, let’s see your room.” Johnny said indicating towards the door we were both stood next to.
I took a few steps forward and opened my new bedroom door. I walked in with Johnny right behind me and glanced around. It wasn’t a big room by any means but it was big enough for me. Against the far wall was a double bed covered in dark green bedding. There was a window on the adjacent wall, with a window sill large enough to be used as a seat if needed. The walls were also green, although a lighter green than the bedding. There was very little on the wall, just a clock, two shelves and a poster of a night time cityscape.
“Looks pretty homely.” Johnny said quietly from my side.
“Yeah, I guess it does.” I replied with a sigh letting my bag drop at my side.
“It’ll be better once you’ve unpacked and made it your own.” Johnny assured me with a weak smile. I turned to face him with a small chuckle.
“Since when are you the rational one?” I teased. He smiled back at me, gently placing his arm on my shoulder.
“I have my moments, come on, I wanna see my room.” he replied turning to leave my room. I followed him across the hallway into his new bedroom. It was about the same size as mine with the furniture set out in almost the same way. Unlike mine the walls were painted a grey-blue colour and his bedding was navy. Instead of a view of the back yard, his window looked out over the side of the house and across to the neighbours house.
“What do you think the chances are that there’s a hot girl living next door who likes to undress with her drapes open?” he asked with a smirk as he turned away from the window to face me. I rolled my eyes at him again, laughing.
“Pervert!” I muttered through a smile. “I’m gonna go unpack.” I added turning to leave. I walked back into my bedroom, closing the door behind me. I picked up my bags and lifted them onto the bed so that I could start unpacking.
It didn’t take long to get all of my possessions out of the three bags I’d brought with me.
Soon the closet and the dresser were full of my clothes. I had placed the books I had with me on the shelves; the others would just have to stay in our old house until I was old enough to move out on my own.
I guess that was the worst thing about all this. Johnny and I had a perfectly good home. The mortgage on it was fully paid. But because we were underage we weren’t allowed to stay there by ourselves yet. Just four more months. That’s what I kept telling myself.
I finished unpacking, arranging my photo frames and other bits and bobs on the dresser and on the night stand beside my bed. Johnny was right, it did look better in her now that I’d unpacked and given the room my own personal touch. If I wasn’t planning on leaving in a few months I would have asked if I could decorated, painted the walls indigo, bought new drapes and bed covers. With a sigh I flung myself back onto my bed and stared up at the ceiling. I listened intently to see if I could hear anything going on down stairs. There wasn’t much to hear, I think I could hear Johnny playing with his bass, knowing my brother he probably hadn’t started unpacking yet, choosing to play instead. As I lay in almost silence I could smell something that smelt delicious, something meaty, and something that caused my stomach to grumble with hunger.
As I raised myself from my bed to make my way across to Johnny’s room I heard the front door opening and closing again, followed by the sound of footsteps making their way through the house.
“Zack is that you?” I heard Maria’s voice call out from down stairs. There was a grumbled response followed by someone else chuckling.
“There’s no need for sarcasm young man, you were supposed to be here to meet Johnny and Angie, oh hey Brian.” Maria’s voice softened as she greeted who I could only assume was Zack’s friend.
I chuckled to myself as I listened to Zack apologise to his mother before walking into Johnny’s room. as I’d expected, his bags still remained full on the floor as he sat on his bed strumming away a familiar baseline.
“Don’t stop, you know I love that song.” I said as he stopped playing as I entered the room. He smiled at me before picking up where he left off. I sat in silence as he finished the song, humming the song quietly in my head.
“Do you want to brave it and go back down stairs? Something smells good and I heard Zack come home.” I asked once he’d finished and placed his bass on the stand, the only thing he’d managed to unpack. He smiled and nodded with a small sigh.
“Yeah let’s go, I’m pretty hungry.” He said rubbing his hand over his stomach.
As we walked down the stairs the aromas coming from the kitchen intensified and I couldn’t help but smile as I realised I could smell chops.
“Brian, are you staying for dinner?” Maria called from the kitchen. It was then that I realised that there were two teenage boys sat in the living room, eyes glued to the cartoons on the TV screen.
“If that’s ok Mrs. B.” he replied, not removing his gaze.
“Of course it is, you know you’re always welcome.” She replied her voice becoming clearer and louder. As we approached the bottom of the stairs I realised it was because she had made her way into the living room.
“Ah, I was just about to come and check on you two. You all unpacked?” she asked, her gaze falling on Johnny and myself. I nodded and saw Johnny shake his head out of the corner of my eye.
“Well dinner is almost ready, so come and meet Zack.” She replied with a smile. I turned to see Zack and Brian both watching us inquisitively, although I wasn’t entirely sure which boy was which.
“Zack, this is Angie and her brother Johnny, who plays bass; and this is Zack my son and his friend Brian, who also plays guitar.” She said with a proud smile.
“Hey, um, nice to meet you.” the one with beautiful jade eyes said with a nervous smile. I guessed he was Zack.
“Hey.” I managed to whisper out in reply. It was my guess that he didn’t know how to act around us, let alone what to say to us. I mean, what do you say to your new foster brother and sister?
“So you play bass huh?” he asked his eyes turning to Johnny, who nodded in reply. As Maria turned to walk back into the kitchen, Johnny and I slowly walked around to take a seat in the living room.
“You like the Misfits?” Zack asked as Brian and Johnny continued their conversation. I looked down and back at him, realising we were both wearing similar Misfits t-shirts and smiled with a nod.
“So what other bands do you like?” he asked.
“Metallica, Guns N Roses, Iron Maiden….” I began, a twinge of happiness within me as I realised he was nodding in agreement with me. At least we agreed on music. It was a step in the right direction to being happy for the next couple of months.
“Dinner guys!” Maria called from the kitchen and we all immediately got up, Johnny and I following behind Zack and Brian.
Dinner was lovely. Two large chops, with potatoes and onion gravy. Maria is a superb cook. I could tell that she wanted to ask Johnny and me a thousand questions, but she was trying hard to keep the conversation casual. I decided that I would talk to her soon, answer anything she wants to know. Not quite yet though, that’s a conversation will wait until I’m settled.
“Sarah, hi, come on in,” the middle aged brunette said cheerfully, standing aside of the door to allow us to walk into her home.
“Hi, I’m Maria and you must be Angela and Johnny.” She said cheerfully as she closed the door behind us. Johnny and I both muttered a quiet ‘hello’ and followed Sarah and Maria through to the living room.
“This is my husband, James, Darling this is Angela and Johnny.” Maria said as James stood up with a welcoming smile.
“Nice to meet the both of you.” James said, sounding a little nervous, which I found strange. Shouldn’t it be me and Johnny who are the nervous ones?
“I was hoping that our son, Zack would be here to meet you, but knowing him he’s either forgotten or hasn’t realised the time. He’s the same age as you Angela.” She said and I felt myself wince at the sound of my full name.
“Um, it’s Angie, only my mom would call me Angela, and that was when she was mad at me.” I said hesitantly. I didn’t want to sound rude, but I couldn’t handle her calling me Angela anymore.
“Oh sorry honey, of course, Angie it is.” She smiled broadly, a smile that I returned, grateful that she hadn’t taken offence. “Can I get either of you something to eat or drink?”
I shook my head and was surprised to see Johnny shaking his too, I must be nervous if he’s turning down food.
“Oh is that a guitar?” Maria asked spotting Johnny’s bass.
“Bass.” Johnny said simply turning it over to show here the four strings.
“Lovely, Zack actually plays the guitar as well, he’s actually in a band, probably where he is now actually, well anyway, here’s me talking, I bet all you want to do is get settled, come on, I’ll show you your rooms.” She said turning quickly towards the stairs. I turned to follow, catching an encouraging smile from Sarah as I picked up my bag. I followed Maria up the stairs with Johnny right behind me.
“This is James and my room, and that’s Zack’s.” She said pointing to the first two rooms as we passed them.
“Linen closet, bathroom, Johnny this will be your room and Angie this is yours.” She continued, stopping at the far end of the corridor. The room she’d said was Johnny’s was on our right, opposite the one she’d said was mine. She turned with a warm smile on her face and glanced between us.
“Well, I’ll let you make yourselves comfortable, come down whenever you’re ready.” She said as she took a step to walk away.
“Thanks.” I muttered quietly echoed by Johnny.
“You’re welcome.” She replied again turning to give us both a warm, welcoming, loving smile.
“Come on then, let’s see your room.” Johnny said indicating towards the door we were both stood next to.
I took a few steps forward and opened my new bedroom door. I walked in with Johnny right behind me and glanced around. It wasn’t a big room by any means but it was big enough for me. Against the far wall was a double bed covered in dark green bedding. There was a window on the adjacent wall, with a window sill large enough to be used as a seat if needed. The walls were also green, although a lighter green than the bedding. There was very little on the wall, just a clock, two shelves and a poster of a night time cityscape.
“Looks pretty homely.” Johnny said quietly from my side.
“Yeah, I guess it does.” I replied with a sigh letting my bag drop at my side.
“It’ll be better once you’ve unpacked and made it your own.” Johnny assured me with a weak smile. I turned to face him with a small chuckle.
“Since when are you the rational one?” I teased. He smiled back at me, gently placing his arm on my shoulder.
“I have my moments, come on, I wanna see my room.” he replied turning to leave my room. I followed him across the hallway into his new bedroom. It was about the same size as mine with the furniture set out in almost the same way. Unlike mine the walls were painted a grey-blue colour and his bedding was navy. Instead of a view of the back yard, his window looked out over the side of the house and across to the neighbours house.
“What do you think the chances are that there’s a hot girl living next door who likes to undress with her drapes open?” he asked with a smirk as he turned away from the window to face me. I rolled my eyes at him again, laughing.
“Pervert!” I muttered through a smile. “I’m gonna go unpack.” I added turning to leave. I walked back into my bedroom, closing the door behind me. I picked up my bags and lifted them onto the bed so that I could start unpacking.
It didn’t take long to get all of my possessions out of the three bags I’d brought with me.
Soon the closet and the dresser were full of my clothes. I had placed the books I had with me on the shelves; the others would just have to stay in our old house until I was old enough to move out on my own.
I guess that was the worst thing about all this. Johnny and I had a perfectly good home. The mortgage on it was fully paid. But because we were underage we weren’t allowed to stay there by ourselves yet. Just four more months. That’s what I kept telling myself.
I finished unpacking, arranging my photo frames and other bits and bobs on the dresser and on the night stand beside my bed. Johnny was right, it did look better in her now that I’d unpacked and given the room my own personal touch. If I wasn’t planning on leaving in a few months I would have asked if I could decorated, painted the walls indigo, bought new drapes and bed covers. With a sigh I flung myself back onto my bed and stared up at the ceiling. I listened intently to see if I could hear anything going on down stairs. There wasn’t much to hear, I think I could hear Johnny playing with his bass, knowing my brother he probably hadn’t started unpacking yet, choosing to play instead. As I lay in almost silence I could smell something that smelt delicious, something meaty, and something that caused my stomach to grumble with hunger.
As I raised myself from my bed to make my way across to Johnny’s room I heard the front door opening and closing again, followed by the sound of footsteps making their way through the house.
“Zack is that you?” I heard Maria’s voice call out from down stairs. There was a grumbled response followed by someone else chuckling.
“There’s no need for sarcasm young man, you were supposed to be here to meet Johnny and Angie, oh hey Brian.” Maria’s voice softened as she greeted who I could only assume was Zack’s friend.
I chuckled to myself as I listened to Zack apologise to his mother before walking into Johnny’s room. as I’d expected, his bags still remained full on the floor as he sat on his bed strumming away a familiar baseline.
“Don’t stop, you know I love that song.” I said as he stopped playing as I entered the room. He smiled at me before picking up where he left off. I sat in silence as he finished the song, humming the song quietly in my head.
“Do you want to brave it and go back down stairs? Something smells good and I heard Zack come home.” I asked once he’d finished and placed his bass on the stand, the only thing he’d managed to unpack. He smiled and nodded with a small sigh.
“Yeah let’s go, I’m pretty hungry.” He said rubbing his hand over his stomach.
As we walked down the stairs the aromas coming from the kitchen intensified and I couldn’t help but smile as I realised I could smell chops.
“Brian, are you staying for dinner?” Maria called from the kitchen. It was then that I realised that there were two teenage boys sat in the living room, eyes glued to the cartoons on the TV screen.
“If that’s ok Mrs. B.” he replied, not removing his gaze.
“Of course it is, you know you’re always welcome.” She replied her voice becoming clearer and louder. As we approached the bottom of the stairs I realised it was because she had made her way into the living room.
“Ah, I was just about to come and check on you two. You all unpacked?” she asked, her gaze falling on Johnny and myself. I nodded and saw Johnny shake his head out of the corner of my eye.
“Well dinner is almost ready, so come and meet Zack.” She replied with a smile. I turned to see Zack and Brian both watching us inquisitively, although I wasn’t entirely sure which boy was which.
“Zack, this is Angie and her brother Johnny, who plays bass; and this is Zack my son and his friend Brian, who also plays guitar.” She said with a proud smile.
“Hey, um, nice to meet you.” the one with beautiful jade eyes said with a nervous smile. I guessed he was Zack.
“Hey.” I managed to whisper out in reply. It was my guess that he didn’t know how to act around us, let alone what to say to us. I mean, what do you say to your new foster brother and sister?
“So you play bass huh?” he asked his eyes turning to Johnny, who nodded in reply. As Maria turned to walk back into the kitchen, Johnny and I slowly walked around to take a seat in the living room.
“You like the Misfits?” Zack asked as Brian and Johnny continued their conversation. I looked down and back at him, realising we were both wearing similar Misfits t-shirts and smiled with a nod.
“So what other bands do you like?” he asked.
“Metallica, Guns N Roses, Iron Maiden….” I began, a twinge of happiness within me as I realised he was nodding in agreement with me. At least we agreed on music. It was a step in the right direction to being happy for the next couple of months.
“Dinner guys!” Maria called from the kitchen and we all immediately got up, Johnny and I following behind Zack and Brian.
Dinner was lovely. Two large chops, with potatoes and onion gravy. Maria is a superb cook. I could tell that she wanted to ask Johnny and me a thousand questions, but she was trying hard to keep the conversation casual. I decided that I would talk to her soon, answer anything she wants to know. Not quite yet though, that’s a conversation will wait until I’m settled.
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Well it's finally getting updated!But I'm really sorry guys, this is such a crappy chapter. The thing is with this story it's a bit of a slow starter but I promise it will get better! There's also the fact that it was origonally written as a Billie Joe story, in a diary/flash back kinda form, and adapting that to fit this is proving harder than I thought it would :)
Anyway, comments would still be great! :)