Saved By Her Guitar

Dillan came out of the bathroom.
“So?”
He looked up at Caleb, “So what?”
“How was the sex?”
Dillan laughed, “What makes you think-
“My stash is one short.”
Dillan smiled and rubbed his hand through his damp hair.
“Come on, man. How was she?”
“She was,” he trailed off, thinking, “sensual, fresh, fun. She was great. Probably the gentlest and most vulnerable I’ve ever seen her.”
He went into his room.
Morgan was still asleep, on her stomach with her hands under the pillow. He understood she was tired. It was like that sometimes when it came to your first time.

Morgan stormed out o his room roughly dressed and disheveled.
“How long have I been sleep?”
“I don’t know.”
“What time is it?”
“Two-
She groaned and rushed from the apartment.
When she got home, she quietly let herself in and crept to her room.
She knew she reeked of last night. She knew she couldn’t make it to the bathroom without him stopping her; without him getting in her face; without him smelling her.
She paced then her door opened and Michelle came in.
Morgan looked up.
Michelle walked over to her. “You smell like sex.”
“I know,” she winced.
“You’re in trouble.”
“I know and if he gets a whiff of me before I get a chance to shower I’ll really be in trouble. The day after my first time I get caught,” she said to herself. “Unbelievable.”
“Your first time?”
Morgan nodded.
“You’re a virgin?”
“I was up until last night.”
Michelle turned her back.
“I’ll cover you.”
She went out into the hall. “Shelton?”
“Hmm?” he responded not looking up from his paper.
“I was in Town Square the other day and I saw the prettiest gown.”
Morgan ran from her room and into the bathroom. She got into the shower and washed thoroughly.
“Morgan’s here?”
“Yeah.”
“I can’t wait to hear her excuse.”
“Me either.”
Once out of the shower she left the bathroom and Shelton stopped her.
“You were out all night.”
“Yeah. I was out with friends and then it started raining. I figure I was safest where I was. So I just crashed there.”
“I called you.”
“I was pretty tired.”
“Or pretty drunk.”
“Sure,” Morgan conceded, preferring for him to assume that then to have to tell him why she really didn’t answer her phone.
“Why didn’t you call to let me know?”
“Who are you kidding, Dad. You don’t care.”
She ended the conversation and went into her room. She got dressed and noticed that she’d missed two calls. She called her sister back.
“What’s up?”
“Come get me!”
“What? Why?”
“Her sister has been terrorizing me when no one’s around and-
“I’m on my way.”
She grabbed her blue and black jacket and left her room.
“I’m going to get Mel.”
She blew out of the door.
“What do you know?” Shelton asked Michelle suspiciously.

Melanie ran and hugged Morgan when she pulled up.
“Get in the car.”
“No, Mo. She’s huge.”
Morgan smiled, “Have faith.”
She walked up to the house and knocked. When the door swung open, she smiled.
“What’re you doing here? How do you know where I live?”
“You’ve been terrorizing my kid sister now, Big Barda?”
Ashley narrowed her eyes at the name but held her tongue.
“That’s your sister?”
Morgan looked at her sideways.
“I didn’t know.”
“Melanie likes hanging out with your sister. I don’t like when she calls me in distress. I don’t like when she’s unhappy. Can you promise me you’ll stop stressing my sister out or making her unhappy when she comes over?”
“Yeah. That sounds fair.”
“Good.”
Morgan turned back to her car. When she got in, Melanie looked at her.
“What?”
“What’d you say to her?”
“Ashley and I have history. So, not much.”
When they got home, Michelle came to meet them at the door.
“Not now, Barbie,” Melanie said.
“Mel, cut it out. We won’t be disrespecting Michelle anymore.”
“Michelle?” Melanie said shocked that Morgan had used her real name. “What-
“Anymore.”
Melanie nodded her head at Morgan’s persistence.
“As I was saying, I got Shelton to drop it but for a price.”
“How much?”
“Not money,” Michelle laughed baffled.
Morgan looked cocked an eyebrow at Melanie.
“There’s a ballet he wants to go to on Friday night. He said if I can get you to go-
“Consider it done, on one condition.”
“He’s in the living room.”
Morgan went into the living room.
“I’ll gladly go, Dad, on one condition.”
He looked up from the television.
“Basketball. Who’s playing?” Morgan mused, distracted.
“Bulls Lakers.”
Morgan sat down and Melanie cleared her throat.
“Right. One condition.”
“Which is?”
“Dillan comes as my date?”
“Absolutely not. Family only.”
“He is my boyfriend. That makes him family. Besides, his presence will insure my not embarrassing you.”
He sighed, “’If’ Dillan can find a tux than he’s welcome. I’ll even buy his ticket.”
“He sits next to me?”
“Of course,” he said with a French accent.
“Deal. I’ll go. I’d been hoping you’d ask.

On Thursday Morgan went to pick up Melanie but she was late coming out.
“Where are you, Mel?”
She decided to drive around the black to give Melanie more time to come out. She came upon a group of kids on the next black. She pulled over and got out.
“What’s going on?”
“Some girl’s getting her ass kicked by some girls,” a boy replied.
“Hmph.”
Morgan made her way to the front of the crowd.
There was girl on the ground. She had on a khaki skirt and a maroon blazer and with pink and black long socks and black chucks. Her hair was blond with pink streaks and it covered her now humiliated face. Three girls stood over her laughing.
Morgan put her hands in her hands in her pockets and shook her head.
“Which one of you did she piss off?”
A blond girl with an Abercrombie shirt looked up.
“What?”
“Which one of you is too chicken to fight her alone?”
One of the brunettes moved toward Morgan but the blond stopped her.
“What’s it to you?”
“She goes to my school. You’re messing with my school. You’re messing with me.”
“Really? Three on one. You think you can do better than her?”
“Way better,” she answered.
The blond unleashed the brunette.
“I’m going to hurt you,” the girl sneered.
Morgan, in one smooth motion, slipped her jacket and hoodie off. “We’ll see.”
When the girl swung, Morgan caught her fist, moved under it and forced her other elbow back into the girl’s arm. There was a smothered pop and the girl fell to the ground holding her arm and screaming.
Morgan helped her classmate up.
“What’re you doing?”
“I couldn’t let you have all the fun.”
“What did you do to her?” the blond shouted.
“Dislocated her shoulder.”
Morgan picked up her things and turned to see if the girls were following.
“This is me. Hop in.”
The girl got in more to escape her oppressors than because she trusted Morgan.
“I gotta get my sister first then I’ll drop you.”
“Okay.”
Morgan pulled away from the decreasing crowd.
“So, thanks, for, um, helping me.”
“No problem. I get off from breaking people’s bone,” Morgan said with a wicked grin.
The girl’s eyes grew at that.
“What’s your name?”
“Bailey.”
“Nice. I’m Morgan.”
Melanie was waiting when Morgan got there.
“Yo! You’re late,” Morgan complained getting out.
“I’m late? You’re late.”
“Over here, loser.”
Melanie rounded.
“I was here on time, as usual. I left. I’m back.”
“Whatever,” Melanie mumbled slipping in.
“Where do you live?”
“A couple blocks from here.”
“Who are you?” Melanie asked.
“You don’t have to answer that,” Morgan said.
Bailey giggled at they’re banter.
“I’m Bailey.”
“Now sit back and shut up.”
“Rude. What’s that?” Melanie continued.
Morgan rolled her eyes.
“What’s what?”
“That thing you’re twirling in your fingers.”
“Oh, it’s a guitar pick.”
“Morgan plays guitar.”
“Really?” the girl asked excited.
“Sure,” Morgan agreed.
“Are you any good?”
“She’s only the best.”
“I’m the best with cars. I’m okay on the guitar.”
“I have a garage band and we’ve been looking for a lead vocalist and the fact that you play would be a big plus. What’re you doing today?”
“Nothing.”
“The guys should be at the house already. Can you stay for awhile and let us hear you?”
She looked in her rearview mirror at Melanie’s enormous smile.
“Sure.”
Soon, Morgan whipped into a driveway. The kids in the garage came out.
“Bailey?”
One of the guys caught Morgan’s eye right away. He had the same color pants as Morgan, a white button down shirt that was no longer buttoned or tucked and a loose gold and white tie. His eyes were an eerie clear grey making his pupils look like a puddle of black oil in the center of his eyes. His hair was a chestnut brown and greased up in the front and on top. He had obvious dimples even though he wasn’t smiling.
“Guys, I think I’ve found our lead singer.”
“Yeah?”
“This is Morgan. Morgan this is Victor,” Bailey said indicating the cute boy. “He plays drums.”
“Hi, Morgan.”
“Another time and place,” she said.
“This is Andre. He plays bass.”
“Hi.”
“Hi.”
Andre was lean and well muscled. He was taller than Morgan and had a black skully on that threw off his private school attire. He, himself, was pretty dark-skinned so his gold brown eyes jumped out of his face to greet you before his deep voice did.
“I’m going to get dressed.”
Morgan watched her disappear into the house.
“Don’t worry. She’s going to dress the part,” Victor volunteered.
“Oh.”
“You go to SCA.”
“Yeah.”
“We do, too. My sister and I are new but Andre’s been going there.”
“You hang with Rome.”
“Yeah.”
“You need a guitar?”
“I got one in my trunk. I don’t really play it much. He’s for show.”
“Alright.”
She turned and saw Melanie sitting on the hood of her car.
“Are you crazy? Fair a chair and start your homework.”
She popped her trunk and lifted the floor cover that hide the instrument.
She pulled the case from the trunk and took it into the garage.
“You can set up over here,” Andre said.
Morgan listened to Victor beat on his drums. When she opened the case, Andre whistled.
“A Schecter Hellraiser C-1 FR guitar.”’
“She cost me a fortune.”
“I’ll bet.”
Morgan clipped the strap to the black guitar and lifted it onto her shoulder while Andre plugged it into the amp.
She took a deep breath and began to strum away at the still new guitar. She advanced on the ready microphone not sure how she’d sound. She closed her eyes:
Fumbling his confidence
and wondering why the world has passed him by
Hoping that he’s bent for more than arguments
and failed attempts to fly
Fly
We were meant to live for so much more
We lost ourselves
Somewhere we live inside
Somewhere we live inside
We were meant to live for so much more
We lost ourselves
Somewhere we live inside
Dreaming about providence
and whether mice or men have second tries
Maybe we’ve been living with our eyes half opened
Maybe we’re bent and broken
Broken
We were meant to live for so much more
We lost ourselves
Somewhere we live inside
Somewhere we live inside
We were meant to live for so much more
We lost ourselves
Somewhere we live inside

She smiled to herself. It felt good. She stopped singing but kept playing the song.
Victor and Andre nodded approvingly at each other.
Bailey walked into the garage.
“I heard you!”
“I think we’ve found our lead singer,” Andre said.
Morgan turned and took in Bailey’s appearance. She’d put on a grey skirt, grey long shirt with pink strips all down the sleeves and tossed on a white t-shirt with a black cat on it with Xs for eyes on over that. She looked like a rocker, like Amanda.
“Welcome to Banana Frenzy.”
“Nice name.”
“We have some songs we’re going to practice. Jump in when you’re ready.”
She put on her guitar, “One, two, three, four!”