Live Like You Were Dying
Chapter 2: From Three to Five
Present Day
(March 1, 2006)
"Hey look, this is the first time we met the boys." Charlotte said flipping to the next page.
"I remember that, I was so scared when they first moved in. I still think they looked mean." Kylie laughed reminiscing.
"And then Justin's pants fell down in front of everyone and that was it, tension gone." Charlotte snickered.
"Wasn't that also our tribute to Johnny Cash night?" Kylie asked.
"Yeah, that was fun." Charlotte nodded.
They both transported their minds back again and smiled fondly at the memory.
January 1, 2005
"Happy New Year!" Charlotte shouted holding up her glass of whiskey
coke.
"You are so drunk." Freddy laughed holding up his own glass.
"So are you Freddy. It's the new year, we're just bringing it in." Charlotte said trying to smack him the best she could in her current state.
"You both are drunk." Kylie smiled at her friends.
"Offers still open if you'd like to add some alcohol in your drink K." Charlotte held up the bottle of Jack Daniels.
"Oh what the heck, might as well. It's the new year right." Kylie said holding up her glass.
"That's my girl." Freddy hollered getting up to dance around the room.
"This stuff is strong." Kylie gasped after she'd taken a drink.
"Of course, it's whiskey." Freddy said toasting her.
"It's nasty." Kylie grimaced taking another drink.
"Well next time I'm at my parents, I'll grab something better just for you Ky." Charlotte said putting an arm around her.
They moved over to the window and went out onto the fire escape and watched the fireworks that were going off over Time Square. There was a knock at the door interrupting the display as Charlotte went to go answer it.
"Can I help you?" she slurred.
"We just moved in and we came to say hey." a young man about their age answered.
"Well aren't you a cutie." Charlotte laughed taking in his short blonde spiky hair.
"Thank you. I'm Lance and this is Justin." Lance introduced.
"Hello Lance, and Justin nice to meet you. I'm Charlotte, that's Freddy, and that shy little caterpillar over there is Kylie. Won't you please come in." Charlotte said opening the door for them.
"Thanks don't mind if we do." Justin nodded coming in the room.
Kylie stood back in the shadows, a fear crossed her features. She wasn't used to strangers, especially male strangers after what had happened with the men that tried to rape her.
"Help yourselves to a drink." Charlotte offered grabbing two plastic cups.
"You guys have an awesome view." Lance said moving over to the window.
"Yes, that's why I got this place." Char said handing him a cup.
"Thanks."
"Kylie. Come here sweetie." Charlotte said holding out her hand.
Kylie came over reluctantly and stood beside her friend and held tightly onto her hand.
"We're not going to bite." Justin said stopping beside her.
"At least not hard." Lance winked.
Kylie giggled and felt herself relaxing a little. She took a sip of her drink welcoming the alcohols warmth. She looked over at Justin and noticed how good looking he was. He was a lot taller than her standing about 6'1 and had a look about him that drew her to him. She felt herself blush as she was caught staring at him. He just winked at her then looked back out the window.
"He's cute isn't he?" Charlotte whispered in her ear.
Kylie could only nod and then looked around for Freddy. She laughed when he saw him hitting on Lance who was feeling rather uncomfortable at the moment.
"Freddy, stop hitting on him." she laughed.
"I wasn't." Freddy glanced sideways at her.
"Whatever you say." Kylie chuckled.
"He's gay huh?" Justin asked her.
"Uh yeah." Kylie said nerves back up. She looked over at Justin and laughed. His pants had fallen down at that moment.
"Dude, ever hear of a belt?" Charlotte said watching him quickly pull up his jeans.
"Shut up." Justin growled, pride wounded.
"Nice boxers." Freddy said walking over.
"Ugh!" Justin shook his head.
"Next time you should really wear pants that fit." Kylie laughed adding to his embarrassment.
"You guys are mean." Justin pouted.
"They're all right J, how many times have I told you to wear pants that fit." Lance reminded him.
"Whatever. What is this ? pick on Justin day?" he whined.
"Yeah." Kylie nodded feeling totally relaxed now.
"So what is your story? Do you all live here or what?" Lance asked sitting down on one of the couches.
"We do all live here, I lived here alone for over a year and then on Thanksgiving I met these two at the shelter and invited them home and now we're one big happy family." Charlotte smiled.
"Did you two live on the streets?" Justin asked of Kylie and Freddy who sat down on the other couch.
"Yeah." Kylie nodded.
"Why?" Lance asked curious.
"Well I have lived out there my entire life. My mom ran away from home when she found out she was pregnant with me. She's now a user and she deals also. I don't remember the last time I saw her. She just kinda left me and then Freddy found me." Kylie explained.
"Wow. I'm sorry." Justin said feeling sympathy for her.
"That's life." Kylie shrugged.
"Why were you out there?" Lance asked Freddy who put an arm around Kylie's small shoulders.
"I told my parents I was gay and they disowned me. I've spent the last three years out here." Freddy explained emotionlessly.
"Ouch. I'm sorry man." Justin grimaced.
"Like Kylie said, that's life." Freddy answered.
"And what brings you boys to our neighborhood?" Charlotte asked looking at Lance.
"It was open and cheap." Lance answered.
"No great story?" Kylie wondered.
"Nope. We've been friends for many years, and when we graduated high school we came to New York to work on Broadway, you know live the life of a starving artist. And here we are, almost literally living the life of a starving artist. We have just enough to get by." Justin answered.
"Sounds like fun." Kylie smiled shyly.
"Except for the fact that we haven't had any real work since we've been here." Lance sighed.
"Don't give up, you'll find your nitch." Charlotte assured him.
"What about you? You never gave us your story." Lance said turning his attention.
"My parents are rich and don't have time for me so I came to live among real people." Charlotte said rather bitterly.
"And they fund your living among the real people?" Justin asked.
"Yeah, I have an allowance, but I don't even use half of it. I use a little more now that I support all three of us, but I have a lot saved. They think that I use it all, but I just move it to a different account that they don't know about." Charlotte explained.
"Well someday you'll have to go on vacation or somethin." Lance suggested.
"That might be fun." Charlotte shrugged. "So enough of this boring stuff, this is a party, let's pick it up."
"I'll second that." Freddy raised his glass.
"Got any good music?" Justin asked.
"I have a bunch of CD's over there." Charlotte pointed to her CD collection by the stereo.
"Sweet, may I?" Justin asked.
"Sure, just don't mess them up." Charlotte nodded.
"Yeah, she's really anal about her CD's being alphabetized." Kylie laughed at her friends expense.
"That's the way it should be." Char agreed.
"Or you could just be obsessive compulsive." Lance laughed.
"Whatever." she said taking a drink.
"You're not all offended now are you?" Lance asked.
"No, why would I be? I'm not that shallow." Charlotte shook her head.
"Where's the good stuff." Justin asked.
"Everything is good."
"All you have is musicals, soundtracks, and classical." Justin complained.
"I have more than that thank you very much." Charlotte rolled her eyes.
"Oh, and John Mayer." Justin snorted.
"Those are all good. You're not looking very hard." Charlotte defended.
"How could I forget the Johnny Cash." Justin said moving through her collection.
"Hey don't you diss the Man in Black."
"He is good." Kylie added.
"Thank you Ky." Charlotte said holding up her hand for a high five. "Put in the 'Essential Johnny Cash' in.
"And turn it to Man in Black." Lance finished.
"Fine whatever." Justin said putting in the CD.
"Thank you." Charlotte smiled in victory.
"Do you have anything other than whiskey?" Justin asked sitting down.
"Red wine." Kylie answered.
"Ew, thanks but no thanks, that's like drinking vinegar." Justin shuddered.
"It's not that bad." Freddy shook his head.
"This is the jam. Such an anthem." Charlotte said raising her glass.
Well, you wonder why I always dress in black,
Why you never see bright colors on my back,
And why does my appearance seem to have a somber tone.
Well, there's a reason for the things that I have on.
I wear the black for the poor and the beaten down,
Livin' in the hopeless, hungry side of town,
I wear it for the prisoner who has long paid for his crime,
But is there because he's a victim of the times.
I wear the black for those who never read,
Or listened to the words that Jesus said,
About the road to happiness through love and charity,
Why, you'd think He's talking straight to you and me.
Well, we're doin' mighty fine, I do suppose,
In our streak of lightnin' cars and fancy clothes,
But just so we're reminded of the ones who are held back,
Up front there ought 'a be a Man In Black.
I wear it for the sick and lonely old,
For the reckless ones whose bad trip left them cold,
I wear the black in mournin' for the lives that could have been,
Each week we lose a hundred fine young men.
And, I wear it for the thousands who have died,
Believen' that the Lord was on their side,
I wear it for another hundred thousand who have died,
Believen' that we all were on their side.
Well, there's things that never will be right I know,
And things need changin' everywhere you go,
But 'til we start to make a move to make a few things right,
You'll never see me wear a suit of white.
Ah, I'd love to wear a rainbow every day,
And tell the world that everything's OK,
But I'll try to carry off a little darkness on my back,
'Till things are brighter, I'm the Man In Black.
"That's right sista." Freddy said raising his glass after the song had finished.
"Way to kill a buzz." Justin whined.
"Johnny Cash is awesome." Lance shook his head.
"I especially like It Ain't Me Babe," Charlotte said.
"That's one he did June right?" Justin asked.
"Right." Charlotte nodded.
As if on cue, the CD switched to the song and Lance started singing Johnny's part and Charlotte and Kylie both chimed in where June sang.
Go away from my window
Leave at your own chosen speed
I'm not the one you want, babe
I'm not the one you need
You say you're lookin' for someone
Who's never weak but always strong
To protect you and defend you
Whether you are right or wrong
Someone to open each and every door
But it ain't me babe
No, no, no, it ain't me babe
It ain't me you're lookin' for, babe
Go lightly from the ledge, babe
Go lightly on the ground
I'm not the one you want, babe
I'll only let you down
You say you're lookin' for someone
Who'll promise never to part
Someone to close his eyes to you
Someone to close his heart
Someone to die for you and more
But it ain't me babe
No, no, no, it ain't me babe
It ain't me you're lookin' for, babe
You say you're lookin' for someone
To pick you up each time you fall
To gather flowers constantly
And to come each time you call
And will love you for your life
And nothin' more
But it ain't me babe
No, no, no, it ain't me babe
It ain't me you're lookin' for, babe
"I hate country, but I tell you, Johnny Cash is a legend." Freddy commented.
"You guys are good singers." Justin complimented looking at Kylie in particular.
"Thanks." she said breathlessly.
"I'm not a good singer." Charlotte shook her head.
"Sure you are." Lance disagreed.
"I have a choral voice, maybe for classical music or theatre like opera but that's about it." Charlotte shrugged.
"Either way it's pretty." Freddy smiled.
"Thanks Freddy." Charlotte smiled and kissed his cheek.
The gang talked for another hour before finally getting bored and they were all coming down from their drunken state as they had put away the alcohol. It was suggested by Charlotte that they watch a movie and after much argument they went with a Christmas classic Home Alone. They started watching that and ended up talking again this time about what they would do if they were left home alone.
"Being left alone in a big city like that would be pretty scary. Especially during the holiday, those are always nuts." Freddy commented.
"I know, and he was just a little kid. He did seem to have a good head on his shoulders though. I know I would have lost it had I been left alone for over a week in Chicago at christmas at that age. I wasn't a very street smart kid." Justin shook his head.
"It's very lonely." Kylie said softly.
"You've been alone a lot?" Lance asked.
"Yeah. Many a christmas I've been out there with no one." Kylie nodded feeling tears burning at the back of her throat. "This christmas was the first time I wasn't alone in years. It was like a dream come true."
"That's just the first in many to come." Charlotte smiled at her younger friend.
"Thank you Charlotte, I owe it all to you." Kylie said returning her smile.
"Don't thank me," Charlotte shook her head.
"Well, you know I do." Kylie shrugged.
"I was basically alone all the time. I was surrounded by a sea of maids, butlers, and I had a nanny, but I felt so alone. My parents were never home, they were always in some other country for christmas." Charlotte said feeling the bitter taste in her mouth again.
"My parents were like that too." Justin said rolling his eyes.
"I gotta say, my parents were always there for me. They drove me a little nuts though." Lance chuckled when he thought about his parents.
"Did you have any siblings growing up?" Charlotte asked him.
"I had one younger sister, but she was 4 years younger than me. We weren't on a huge bonding level, but she always looked up to me as her 'big brother'." Lance explained.
"I always longed to have a sibling." Charlotte sighed.
"They're not all that." Freddy assured her. "I had 3 younger brothers and 2 younger sisters. Try being the oldest and have everyone look up to me only to find out that I was gay. My siblings were cool with it, but my parents flipped. I don't miss them at all, but I do miss my siblings sometimes. Especially my youngest sister, she was only 5 when she left. We had a very close relationship, I babysat her a lot when my parents went out."
"Sorry man." Justin said.
"Not your fault." Freddy said with his 'that's life' tone.
"When I have kids, I'm definitely going to be there for them." Charlotte nodded.
"Me too." Justin agreed.
"Man I don't know how those two thugs survived the night." Kylie said turning their focus back on the television.
"I know, they went through a LOT." Lance nodded.
"The one dude, Marv I think his name was, you know the tall one--he was electrocuted and he basically got up and kept going at it." Charlotte said.
"I know right, and the short dude Harry, he went through quite a bit too. His head caught on fire and his hand burned on the door." Freddy laughed.
"Yes, I don't think they would have survived the entire night like they did." Justin agreed.
"Man, what time is it? I keep yawning." Charlotte said covering her mouth.
"Three thirty." Lance answered looking at his watch.
"Damn. No wonder I'm tired, it's way past my bedtime." Charlotte yawned again then rubbed her eyes.
"Yeah, I think we should probably call it a night." Freddy nodded.
"Listen ladies, and Freddy, it was nice meeting you. We should get together again sometime." Lance said getting up.
"You too." Charlotte nodded getting up.
"We live in the apartment on the next floor down." Justin said.
"Sweet, we'll have to come visit sometime." Charlotte smiled.
"Nice meeting you." Kylie smiled shyly.
"You all take care." Lance said from the hallway.
"Goodnight." Charlotte said closing the door behind them.
"That was fun." Freddy said stretching his hands over his head.
"It was." Kylie nodded.
"We'll have to visit them again sometime." Charlotte said clearing off the coffee table.
"You ladies take the bed tonight, I got the couch." Freddy said grabbing a thick blanket for the couch.
"I'm not arguing." Charlotte yawned.
"Goodnight Freddy." Kylie said hugging him.
"Night Ky, night Char." he said to Charlotte who had already got into the bed.
"Night Freddy."
"Y'all ready for me to shut the light off?" Freddy asked seeing the two girls in bed.
"Yep."
They shut off the light and closed their eyes to sleep, a new year had just begun.
*Songs Man in Black and It Ain't Me Babe by Johnny Cash