Status: hiatus-ish
Days Like Masquerades
congratulations.
"A little too heavy, Gen?" Blonde Jennifer asks as James extends a hand to me. James mutters apologies over and over, frowning. "Better lay off those cheese puffs." She laughs until Kendall drops her. She scowls at him as he shrugs his shoulders.
"Sorry," he replies, flippantly. "It was an accident."
We rehearse for hours and hours, harmonizing and dancing. It feels like forever until Gustavo and Selena waltz into the dance studio with grim expressions. "Time to go," they say in unison. You can tell they've spent way too much time together.
In front of Griffin, we dance our best, and surprisingly, James doesn't drop me. Kelly applauds loudly until she realizes that no one is clapping with her. Selena and Gustavo stare at Griffin who has a blank look on his face. The boys' faces turn from smiles to frowns.
"Maybe you two should collaborate more often." Griffin smiles. "Then we would get more hits." He gives us the thumbs up, and we all hug each other. Even the Jennifers include me in their group hug. I smile, because I finally feel like I belong to something.
"Let's go celebrate!" Carlos shouts. "To the Palm Woods!"
We all gather in the guys' apartment, dancing to loud techno music. Within minutes, Camille and Jo join us. "Congrats on your new song!" they shout over the blasting music. Camille spots Logan talking to Kandi and stomps away, steaming.
"Uh oh. Looks like we've got a bit of drama on our hands," Jo says, biting her lip. "I'll see you later, Gen." Jo runs toward Kandi and Logan as Camille throws a tantrum.
Someone taps me on the shoulder. "Hey, Kendall," I say.
Kendall extends a hand. "Shall we dance?"
Katie pays the deejay a dollar to switch songs. I raise an eyebrow. The dance music cuts into a slow song, and Kendall places his hands around my waist. "What did you think of our new song?"
"I think it's great. I thought you were great." It sounds like I'm suffering from swoon syndrome. I wince inwardly.
"I thought you were great too." He grins. "You should've picked me as your partner instead of James."
I laugh. "Well, next time, you should pick the right number."
All of a sudden, James shoulders Kendall out of the way. "Hey," he says softly, pressing me against his chest. "I feel like I haven't seen you in so long."
"It's been twenty minutes, James." Kendall scowls at him, standing next to me. "And I was dancing with Gen first. You danced with her the entire day."
"What's wrong with that?" James asks, glaring.
I slip into the crowd and see Camille sitting on the couch, alone. "Are you okay?" I ask, frowning. Logan and Kandi are still talking to each other.
She shrugs. "Is rejection supposed to hurt this much?" she asks quietly.
"Camille, there are plenty of fish in the sea."
"But I want that fish!" she wails. "It's not fair!"
"I'm sorry, Camille. You'll find someone better than Logan. You'll find someone who shares your interests," I reply. I see James and Kendall pressing through the crowd towards Camille and me.
"Hey, guys," Camille greets, defeated.
"Seems like everyone's getting disappointed," Kendall mutters.
"What do you mean 'everyone's getting disappointed'?" I ask, furrowing my brow. It's not like it's my fault Kendall and Jo had nothing in common. Besides, three disappointed people does not equal everyone.
"Well, no one's really happy either," James replies.
"We were all pretty happy a couple minutes ago." I stand up. "I think we need to bring that happiness back. We're here to celebrate what we accomplished, not what we failed to do. So let's party!" Kendall, James, and I lead the way with Camille trailing behind us.
We dance in the middle of the living room, and everything else seems to fade away. It's great to know that we've accomplished something today, and we're celebrating this accomplishment. Kendall and James' quarreling disappears, and they're back to being friends again. Even Camille forgets about Logan, even if it's for a little bit.
> >
Pop Tiger decides to have an interview with me, because I'm the newest Jennifer. Or, at least, that's what I assume. "So, Gen, what's it like?" the woman in the crimson pantsuit asks, talking into her tape recorder. "What's it like to move from Washington to LA and become part of one of the most popular girl groups in the modern music world?"
I furrow my brow. Are the Jennifers really that popular? I had no idea people loved them so much until now. "It's intimidating. There's a lot of intense singing and dance sessions, and it's a struggle to keep up. Especially the dancing--I'm not a dancer."
"...What's your sort of hobby, then?"
"I love listening to new music and writing song lyrics. I also love reading." I just made myself sound like a boring stick-in-the-mud. If I were a guy, girls would be all over me.
"...Alright. You have a very interesting sense of style. Everyone's fascinated that you're trying to bring back old trends, like the peasant shirt, moccasins, and headbands." I look down at my checkered pants. The Jennifers would be ashamed. "What attributes to your style?"
"I've been listening to a lot of psychedelic music recently, and I guess my style goes with that."
"What do you think you've added to the Jennifers?"
"Um..." I don't know. Is this meant to be a deep question? "I guess I'm really different from them--I'm not one of those girls with designer handbags and sunglasses. I guess I'm just a piece of reality to the Jennifers."
"...Well, thank you, Gen," the woman says, smiling. "You were great! This interview will be in the next issue of Pop Tiger." We shake hands, and she waltzes out of the studio.
"Sorry," he replies, flippantly. "It was an accident."
We rehearse for hours and hours, harmonizing and dancing. It feels like forever until Gustavo and Selena waltz into the dance studio with grim expressions. "Time to go," they say in unison. You can tell they've spent way too much time together.
In front of Griffin, we dance our best, and surprisingly, James doesn't drop me. Kelly applauds loudly until she realizes that no one is clapping with her. Selena and Gustavo stare at Griffin who has a blank look on his face. The boys' faces turn from smiles to frowns.
"Maybe you two should collaborate more often." Griffin smiles. "Then we would get more hits." He gives us the thumbs up, and we all hug each other. Even the Jennifers include me in their group hug. I smile, because I finally feel like I belong to something.
"Let's go celebrate!" Carlos shouts. "To the Palm Woods!"
We all gather in the guys' apartment, dancing to loud techno music. Within minutes, Camille and Jo join us. "Congrats on your new song!" they shout over the blasting music. Camille spots Logan talking to Kandi and stomps away, steaming.
"Uh oh. Looks like we've got a bit of drama on our hands," Jo says, biting her lip. "I'll see you later, Gen." Jo runs toward Kandi and Logan as Camille throws a tantrum.
Someone taps me on the shoulder. "Hey, Kendall," I say.
Kendall extends a hand. "Shall we dance?"
Katie pays the deejay a dollar to switch songs. I raise an eyebrow. The dance music cuts into a slow song, and Kendall places his hands around my waist. "What did you think of our new song?"
"I think it's great. I thought you were great." It sounds like I'm suffering from swoon syndrome. I wince inwardly.
"I thought you were great too." He grins. "You should've picked me as your partner instead of James."
I laugh. "Well, next time, you should pick the right number."
All of a sudden, James shoulders Kendall out of the way. "Hey," he says softly, pressing me against his chest. "I feel like I haven't seen you in so long."
"It's been twenty minutes, James." Kendall scowls at him, standing next to me. "And I was dancing with Gen first. You danced with her the entire day."
"What's wrong with that?" James asks, glaring.
I slip into the crowd and see Camille sitting on the couch, alone. "Are you okay?" I ask, frowning. Logan and Kandi are still talking to each other.
She shrugs. "Is rejection supposed to hurt this much?" she asks quietly.
"Camille, there are plenty of fish in the sea."
"But I want that fish!" she wails. "It's not fair!"
"I'm sorry, Camille. You'll find someone better than Logan. You'll find someone who shares your interests," I reply. I see James and Kendall pressing through the crowd towards Camille and me.
"Hey, guys," Camille greets, defeated.
"Seems like everyone's getting disappointed," Kendall mutters.
"What do you mean 'everyone's getting disappointed'?" I ask, furrowing my brow. It's not like it's my fault Kendall and Jo had nothing in common. Besides, three disappointed people does not equal everyone.
"Well, no one's really happy either," James replies.
"We were all pretty happy a couple minutes ago." I stand up. "I think we need to bring that happiness back. We're here to celebrate what we accomplished, not what we failed to do. So let's party!" Kendall, James, and I lead the way with Camille trailing behind us.
We dance in the middle of the living room, and everything else seems to fade away. It's great to know that we've accomplished something today, and we're celebrating this accomplishment. Kendall and James' quarreling disappears, and they're back to being friends again. Even Camille forgets about Logan, even if it's for a little bit.
> >
Pop Tiger decides to have an interview with me, because I'm the newest Jennifer. Or, at least, that's what I assume. "So, Gen, what's it like?" the woman in the crimson pantsuit asks, talking into her tape recorder. "What's it like to move from Washington to LA and become part of one of the most popular girl groups in the modern music world?"
I furrow my brow. Are the Jennifers really that popular? I had no idea people loved them so much until now. "It's intimidating. There's a lot of intense singing and dance sessions, and it's a struggle to keep up. Especially the dancing--I'm not a dancer."
"...What's your sort of hobby, then?"
"I love listening to new music and writing song lyrics. I also love reading." I just made myself sound like a boring stick-in-the-mud. If I were a guy, girls would be all over me.
"...Alright. You have a very interesting sense of style. Everyone's fascinated that you're trying to bring back old trends, like the peasant shirt, moccasins, and headbands." I look down at my checkered pants. The Jennifers would be ashamed. "What attributes to your style?"
"I've been listening to a lot of psychedelic music recently, and I guess my style goes with that."
"What do you think you've added to the Jennifers?"
"Um..." I don't know. Is this meant to be a deep question? "I guess I'm really different from them--I'm not one of those girls with designer handbags and sunglasses. I guess I'm just a piece of reality to the Jennifers."
"...Well, thank you, Gen," the woman says, smiling. "You were great! This interview will be in the next issue of Pop Tiger." We shake hands, and she waltzes out of the studio.