Scream Me a Dream

Friday May 28, 2010
6:30am

Soya groaned, pulling the pillow over her head to block out the sounds coming from downstairs, only to throw the pillow over the side and sit up. It wasn’t like she was sleeping anyway, she thought bitterly as she got out of bed, putting on her slippers before heading downstairs.

“Morning!” Josef greeted with a smirk, while Regan looked up from his cereal bowl with a grin.

“You look like shit.” Regan announced.

“Gee, thanks.” Soya muttered, pulling her hair into a messy bun before pouring herself coffee.

“No, really you do.” Josef said, pulling her to a stop when she went to go sit at the counter. “Have you slept at all?”

“I’ve just been busy.” Soya shrugged.

“Too busy to sleep?” Josef asked with a raised eyebrow.

“Yes, I’ve been too busy to sleep.” Soya muttered, taking a sip on her coffee and focusing on Regan only to frown at him. “You are still in your pajamas.”

“I am.” Regan nodded.

Soya looked over at the clock. “School starts in an hour, we have to be out of here in half an hour, why are you still in your pajamas?” she said starting to feel the panic rise.

“Chill.” Regan laughed as he drank the rest of the milk from the bowl, handing it to Josef who was waiting for it and headed back upstairs. “Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, just thought I should fit it in before getting dressed.” He teased before jogging up the steps.

“Well he is definitely fitting in here.” Josef laughed as he rinsed the bowl before putting in the dishwasher. “Seriously why haven’t you been sleeping?”

“Just haven’t.” Soya muttered into her cup, draining the rest of the liquid before handing the mug to Josef.

“Are you nervous about the showcase? Because everything will go fine Soya, we’ve done this four times before.”

“A bit, I just haven’t been able to sleep is all.” Soya admitted, causing Josef to smirk.

“You know it’s because…”

“Don’t want to hear it,” Soya said quickly, cutting him off. “I have to go get dressed, take Regan to school then head to the theater and start setting up. My to-do list is endless today and I don’t have time to listen to your theories on why I haven’t been able to sleep.” Soya said as she started up the stairs.

Josef laughed. “Theory, singular Soya, and it is a well proven one!”

“If I were the cursing or gestural type this is where I would flip you off Josef!” Soya shouted back before going into her room. She didn’t bother to shower, knowing that with all the things she had to do around the theater before the showcase, taking a shower would be pointless.

Instead she pulled on grey yoga pants and a baggy black and white striped cropped top, pairing it with her grey sneakers, before grabbing her messenger bag that was already packed with her lists of things to do, her wallet and cell phone before calling out to Regan.

“I leave in five minutes!” she called out before going down the stairs accepting the apple from Josef.

“My, don’t you look comfortable.” Josef smirked as she grabbed her wayfarer sunglasses she had stolen back from Ville and placed them on top of her head.

“I’m coming back to shower.” She muttered.

“Seriously Soya, if you think it’s stress that’s not allowing you to sleep, you’re delusional.”

“Shut up Josef.” Soya muttered.

“Just how close do you cuddle your pillow at night?” Josef smirked. “Making up for someone not being there?”

“Ugh.” Soya groaned. “Regan! I’m leaving!” she shouted before glaring at Josef and heading out the door, his laughter following her.

“I’m coming!” Regan yelled back, running down the stairs, his uniform shirt unbuttoned and his tie hanging loosely from his neck as he followed Soya out and slamming the door behind him, causing Josef to groan loudly.

“Thank you for that.” Soya grinned, knowing the slamming door had annoyed Josef and Regan was still trying to break the habit. She unlocked the door and slid in, throwing her messenger bag in the back, while putting her cell phone on the charger, before starting the car and backing out of the space, heading towards Regan’s current high school and her previous one.

“So really, why aren’t you sleeping?” Regan asked.

Soya shrugged as she slipped her sunglasses over her eyes as the sun decided to makes itself known. “Just a lot on my mind.”

“Josef says it’s because you’re missing Ville Valo.”

Soya looked over at Regan with a frown, before shaking her head and looking back at the road. In the week Regan had been living with them, he had fit in perfectly. The minute he’d gotten settled, they sat him down and Josef had prattled on and on about the rules of the house only to be surprised when Regan had quickly agreed to every single one of them.

Though Josef, and even Soya had quickly figured out that Regan didn’t need many rules. After school, if he didn’t have ballet class, he was voluntarily at the studio, helping Brooke and Soya out with everything that needed to be done for the showcase. Soya had entrusted him with her car to make the trips back and forth between the studio and the theater as well.

If he wasn’t at the studio, he and Emmy would be at the library at school or at her house babysitting and studying for their finals. All in all Regan, Josef and Soya had found a rhythm of coming in and out of the house and the adjustment period had been almost nonexistent.

Soya had a feeling the reason Regan was such a good kid was because he feared messing up and ending up in a different home. Soya had assured him that he was welcome to stay for as long as he wanted and just because he turned eighteen in three months didn’t at all mean that he had to be out of the house in three months.

“So…” Regan hedged.

Soya sighed as she made a right turn. “Sure, I miss Ville.”

“Is that why you’re not sleeping?” Regan smirked.

“No, I’m not sleeping because of this damn showcase.” Soya said stopping at a red light.

Regan raised his hands with a laugh. “Fine, I’ll back off. So…is Ville Valo coming tonight?”

Soya frowned at him. “Why do you call him that?”

“Call who what?” Regan frowned.

“Ville, why do you always call him by his first and last name?”

“Uh….respect?” Regan questioned with a wry grin.

“He responds to just Ville, you know?” Soya teased as the light turned green and she made her way towards the school. “Or Valo. He also responds to Hermanni.”

“But…”

“Kulta; I’ve called him that before.” Soya told him with her own smirk. “Unless it’s awkward for you to call him sweetheart.”

“You’re mean.” Regan said, crossing his arms over his chest as Soya parked in front of the school, before Regan frowned at her. “When have you called him sweetheart?”

Soya laughed. “It’s an endearment, just like I call my students ‘honey’, I sometimes call Ville ‘sweetheart’, though he tends to use it more on me than anything else.”

“He calls you ‘sweetheart’?”

Soya nodded. “It’s like the British use ‘love’ to address someone, Ville uses ‘kulta’ to address me.”

Regan rolled his eyes. “I highly doubt he uses it just to address you.”

Soya laughed. “Oh so now you’re an expert on my relationship with Ville.”

“Of course.” Regan said with a smirk, rolling down the window and waving his arm as he saw his girlfriend getting out of her moms car. She waved back and started walking towards them.

“What are we talking about?” Emmy asked as she slid into the backseat of the car, leaning forward to give her boyfriend a kiss. “Morning Soya.”

“Morning.” Soya laughed as she took a look at the couple. Emmy was a short young girl of seventeen, with a tiny compact body and pale features that only stood out more due to her vibrant very short boy cut red hair and deep caramel eyes. While Regan contrasted nicely with her with his dyed black hair that usually stood up on end because of his finger combing and light blue eyes that tended to swirl with humor.

“Seriously, what are we talking about?” Emmy asked with a large smile.

“Ville Valo.” Regan said instantly causing Soya to laugh.

“Really, if you’re going to go out to dinner with us, you have to start getting use to saying only his first name.” Soya teased.

“So he is coming?” Emmy asked.

Soya nodded. “He is, along with Bam and Bam’s wife.”

“Seriously?” Regan asked wide-eyed. “Why?”

“Because Ville doesn’t know how to drive, and he needs a ride down here.” Soya said slowly.

Emmy rolled her eyes and looked at her boyfriend. “Stop being so star struck they’re normal Regan! They enjoy Ballet, or…” she grinned over at Soya. “Someone may just like the view.”

“Out!” Soya said reaching over and opening Regan’s door, just as the bell rang. “Oh! And just in time!”

“Just because you kick us out doesn’t stop the fact that we know how close you and Ville got while you stayed over in Westchester.” Emmy teased before sliding out of the car, avoiding Soya’s hand as Soya reached over to hit her arm.

“I expect to see both of you at the theatre straight after school to help set up and then to rehearse.”

“You didn’t tell her?!” Emmy asked her boyfriend, hitting his arm, causing him to yelp.

“That hurts!”

“Tell me what?” Soya asked.

Emmy rolled her eyes before leaning into the still open window. “We can’t go straight after school today.”

“No! No, no, no, you guys can’t do this to me today of all days.” Soya said starting to feel the panic rise again. “I need all the help I can get, I can’t get this thing together, just me and Brooke with Josef sitting in one of the chairs dictating, I swear I will kill that man if you leave me alone with him in this capacity.”

“Emmy! Tell her the rest before she explodes.” Regan said, looking at his cell phone to make sure they still had time.

“We’re just going to be an hour and half late Soya, you have to chill.” Emmy laughed. “Regan and I have a study group today after school for our Economics class. But we’ll go straight to the theatre right after, we swear.”

“Ok.” Soya said, giving a sigh of relief. “Ok, I’ll see you guys later then.”

“Soya, seriously, relax.” Regan told her with a smile. “Everything is going to go great; the worst that’s going to happen is that the toddler class will forget every move and just bunny hop during their two minutes on stage, just like every other year.”

Soya laughed. “I know, I know, thank you, now get to class.”

“Bye.” They both said waving before turning around and jogging up the steps towards the school. Soya looked up at the stone building with a glare.

“Definitely glad to be out of there.” She muttered, before pulling back into traffic and heading towards the small community theatre that they rented out every time they had a showcase.

Twenty minutes later, after fighting New York traffic, she had parked her car next to Brooke’s green VW Beetle. She reached for her messenger bag in the back seat, wincing when she heard her phone chirping and vibrating against the plastic of the cup holder.

“Yeah!” she answered absently, putting the caller on speakerphone as she dragged the messenger bag from the back of the car to the passenger seat.

“What’s this about you taking in a stray?”

Soya felt herself stiffen as her mother’s voice echoed around the car. Deciding playing stupid was the best option she gave a fake laugh. “Mamma, you know I’m not very fond of animals, least of all to take in a stray.”

“Don’t play stupid Soya, you know very well what I mean.”

Soya sighed. “Regan is not a stray, mamma, he’s a young boy in need of a place to stay. He’s a student, and I’m now his guardian.”

“Do you know what people will say when this gets out!”

“That I’m doing a good thing?” Soya asked. “Look, mamma, as much as I would love to hear your opinion on a matter in my own personal life that has nothing to do with my dancing,” She said pointedly. “I’m very busy at the moment. I’ll call you back once things calm down.” Without waiting for a response, she hung up the phone and made the wise decision of leaving the device sitting in her cup holder before getting out of the car and heading towards the back door of the theatre that led backstage.

The minute she entered she saw Brooke already scurrying around, her blonde hair in a bun with a headset already attached to her ear and she gave orders to whoever was on the other side, before seeing Soya and giving a sigh of relief.

“Where have you been?”Brooke asked.

“Dropping Regan off.” Soya laughed. “But I’m all yours, put me to work.” Soya teased.

“When does Josef get here?”

“Well…now I’m hurt.” Soya laughed. “I thought you needed me.”

“I do, the CD’s for the music went missing.”

Soya groaned. “Don’t tell me that.”

“But I need Josef’s sexual prowess.” Brooke said.

Soya frowned. “Why?” she asked slowly.

“Because our lighting technician is an ass, and bats for Josef’s team and not ours and trust me, I’ve tried to tempt him.”

Soya laughed. “He said he’d be here by noon but I’ll give him a call and see if he can come any earlier. Can I borrow your cell though; I left mine out in the car.”

Brooke nodded as she handed over her cell phone. “Your boy coming?” Brooke teased

“Yes, Ville’s coming.” Soya said rolling her eyes as she waited for Josef to pick up his phone. “And once again, he’s not my boy.”

“Ah! Sorry your man.” Brooke winked.

Soya shook her head, leaving Josef a quick message explaining the situation before giving the phone back to Brooke.

“He’s my friend Brooke, and drop it.”

“Fine.” Brooke sighed. “I can’t wait to see him though. Josef says the sexual tension is so raw.”

“Oh god!” Soya groaned. “CDs, they’re missing.” Soya said pointedly, trying to get the conversation away from her and Ville.

“Right!” Brooke said before leading Soya to where she had last seen the CDs.

Soya sighed and followed, if she wasn’t so used to being teased by Brooke and Josef, and even now Regan and Emmy, she’d probably be annoyed by their constant comments on her relationship with Ville.

‘Just friends.’ She thought with a small smile.