Always a Note off Key

Andies POV

Spending the next couple of days packing while trying to deal with my diabetes was a bit of a hit and miss quest. Dad had gotten some of his old vitality back, he wasn’t being like he was when my Mom was around but he was acting a little more like the man he used to be and that was comforting. Most of my books and sheet music I had packed and ready to go as soon as Dad dropped his surprise on me. He’d even let me take the next couple of days off of school so that I could pack and so he had someone in the house to wait for the guys who were coming to get my piano.

“I said remember this moment, in the back of my mind. The time we stood with our shaking hands the crowds and stands went wild. We were the kings and the queens and they read off our names. The night like you danced like you knew our lives would never be the same. You held your head like a hero on a history book page. It was the end of a decade, but the start of an age,” I sang softly while I started to pack up some of my clothing and shoes. Live long had become an anthem of sorts for me since my diagnosis it told me that I could crash though the walls it had put in front of me and prove that I could still do everything I wanted to do.

Though while I was busy anticipating our trip with no real worries except for my blood sugar my dad had all the pressures of plane tickets finding a place for us to stay currency changes bank accounts driver’s permits and licences. All the things my Mom would have dealt with had she of still been with us. So because of all these plans he was having to make he was on the phone at odd times either early in the morning when it was late afternoon in America or late at night when it was early in the morning there. But the odd thing was that he forbade me from answering the phone said I’d only freak out and hangs up and it would be a bad impression. It often made me think that it may be one of the Jonas boys calling but if I couldn’t remember their parents being a part of my life why would they ever remember mind especially after such a whirlwind of a life they’ve had in the past five years.

As I zipped up another suit case my Bayer Contour meter started to beep telling me I was at another meal marker. I walked out of my room still humming along to Taylor Swift in my head. I was half way down the elaborate spiral stair case my Mom had installed before she left for America a year ago and stopped half way down the stairs when I heard my Dad’s low rumbling voice on the phone. Lucky for me he hadn’t realised I was a ways down the stairs and could clearly here all he was saying.

“Hey Guys, Hey Denise, Hiya Paul buddy. Look I can’t be long Andie could be coming down any minute I’m pretty sure she has a meal marker coming up and I don’t want her going all loopy after all its going to take her a while to get used to the idea that she used to make the boys here play dollies with her.” Dad said with a throaty laugh and I heard five different laughs blending together to make an almost harmonious sound.

“To late Daddy I’m best part of the way down the stairs!” I yelled as I bounded down the rest of the stairs and skidded into the breakfast room practically jumping onto the window seat beside him. I turned to computer he was on and sat those very five people on the screen in a web chat and me and my Dad in the bottom corner in a smaller little box. I felt my jaw drop as I just stared at the screen and become suddenly awed as all five faces smiled or smirked at me.

“Oh John she seriously hasn’t changed much and she looks so much like Miranda. Boys stop staring at the poor girl she’d clearly over whelmed!” Denise said softly as she hit Joe, Kevin and Nick across the head softly one after the other and in the exact order she tapped them on the head they each closed their own mouths. I snapped my own shut shortly after and thickly swallowed.

“So wait Dad this is real you aren’t being a huge pain right now? You aren’t going to shout ‘got you!’ in about five minute and hit a button and this whole screen is going to melt away?” I was still staring at the screen and saw all three Jonas boys fighting back their own chuckles. “Oh you three shush a second I know this amusing but you don’t know my Dad I’m sure if he wanted to trick me he could get this tech savvy,” I continued not being totally aware of how I was rambling and digging myself a hole.

“But you just talked to us like you believe it all so it would be pretty dumb of you to still be accusing him and plus we are most definitely not some elaborate prank. You’re really moving here we are really on your computer screen and I am really going to be giving you diabetes management lessons.” Nick said with a little quirk of a smile playing on his lips.

“Ok , so you aren’t a prank but just you wait I bet I can kill you at guitar hero both real life and the video game,” I said with a chuckle as I kissed my dad on the cheek and walked over to the corner where my guitar sat on my bench. I started to strum a little deciding what to play, I eventually decided on ‘Never Grow Up’ I sang to myself thinking no one on the American side of my Dad’s video stream could hear me.’

“You're in the car on the way to the movies and, you're mortified you're mom's dropping you off. At, fourteen there’s just so much you can't do and you can't wait to move out someday and call your own shots. But, don't make her drop you off around the block. Remember that she's getting older too, and don't lose the way that you dance around in your PJ's getting ready for school.” I started to sing louder forgetting that I had an audience. I kept on singing not really thinking just trying to vent it a little. Before I could even finish the song there was clapping and a bit of whooping and before it had even died down blood was infusing my neck and face making me turn bright red and causing me to hide behind my own hair.

“Now Uncle John you didn’t tell us that Andie had a star quality voice on her!” I heard Joe practically yell. I stared at my father absolutely stricken. He grinned at me and beckoned me over with his index finger but I shook my head vigorously at him but he just stood up walked to me and picked me up half carrying me and half dragging me over to the computer and placing me back down in the window seat in front of it. He got up and went back over to get my guitar and came back and sat next to me.

“Well Joseph that’s because I was waiting for you all to hear it for yourself. Maybe if you boys smile at her enough and beg and plead enough and turn on the puppy dog eyes she’ll sing you one rather than you just over hearing her without her even realising. I turned to him and glared really hard. He just looked at me and smiled softly while handing me the guitar. I looked at him even harder and shook my head my face turning and even brighter shade of red.

“Come on Andie I promise I won’t laugh at you I never did when we were little and you told me not to laugh at you when you were telling me about your nightmares.” Joe said softly pouting a little as I looked at him out of the corner of my eye. I shook my head again. And as someone had flipped a switch all of the Jonas boys minus Frankie who wasn’t their pouted at me. I sighed and shook my head again but it only made them pout more and suddenly I just gave in.

“A little paint to cover what’s deep inside, a little truth you know we all wanna hide. Well I’m tryin’. I’m tryin’ now to get to you. But you’re tellin’ me like you always do, you say. Don’t hate me, ‘cause I’m just that good. I’ve got to hand it to you now you’re a hard one to please. When it looks as though you’ve got all you need, all the many times I’ve dreamed I could walk in your shoes. What a nightmare it must be just being you...say. Don’t hate me ‘cause I’m just that good! Yeah uh huh uh huh uh huh uh huh. Yeaaaaaaaaah!” I sang my heart out strumming my guitar so hard that my fingers were pulsing.

“Wow okay me and you as well as your diabetes management are going to write you a few songs. The make up some demo CD’s,” Nick almost shouted absolute shock registered on his face as his brothers jaws just dropped as well as my own all I could do was stare at the computer video image of him in absolute shock.