Adopted By Zach DeWall

Hourglass

"Why is there so much sand?"

"...actually, that's a great question," Maxx replied to me.

"It's because the song's called 'Hourglass'," Cody said. I was finding it really hard to take him seriously with his eyeliner on. "Of course we've gotta have some sand here."

"Are you trapped inside an hourglass?" I still didn't get it.

"Honestly, I don't f*cking know," Cody laughed. He wasn't belittling me -- in fact, he was just as confused as I am. It made it easier to take his words as a joke, and I smiled.

"Don't say f*ck," Zach spoke up. "Remember what I said earlier!" I chuckled. "Dad! I'm old enough to listen to swear words!"

"Yes... but... alright, fine," Zach rolled his eyes. "I mean, it's not like Cody says them all the time."

"Hell yeah!" Cody grinned. Then, he started to curse, just for the hell of it. "HELL! DAMN! F*CK! SH*T! YEAAAH!"

"New single, guys. 'Cody Swears a Lot'. Stream now on iTunes," Maxx joked, causing us all to laugh.

"He really does, though," Zach said.

"What can I say? I'm angry," Cody grinned evilly, holding up his hands like claws. "Grr, roar, hiss."

"Nah, you're an adorable, hilarious cinnamon roll," Maxx replied, hugging him from behind.

"This isn't helping my 'master of darkness' attitude!" Cody sighed, but he accepted the hug with a smile. Their friendship brought me back to thinking about Terrence.

It had been a few weeks since I'd been adopted, and I hadn't kept in touch with my old friend as much as I would have liked, even though we lived just down the street from the orphanage.  I knew I probably shouldn't be thinking about him -- I was in a new, better place -- but as I watched Cody and Maxx joke around, I couldn't help but miss Terrence.

Set It Off began to film the video.  I watched as Cody walked around the sandy area, encountering a few people -- including three dark-robed women and a guy with a ton of watches -- until the director called out, "CUT! Great first run."

"'First run'?" I echoed.  "So you're telling me you're gonna do this multiple times?"

"Possibly," Maxx said, walking up to me.

"I can't wait to see the finished product," I said.  "Fun fact, 'Killer In the Mirror' is the first song I heard from you guys."

"Really?" Cody asked, joining us.

"Yeah.  I... it was alright," I said.  Okay, so it was somewhat a lie, but I couldn't exactly tell them how I'd reacted with confusion and dislike.  Maybe being adopted by Zach would change my views now, who knew?

The band and actors dispersed a few minutes later for a lunch break.  I sat down next to Zach on a couch in the studio, chowing down on some leftover pizza that Set It Off had in their fridge. Zach had reassured me that it "was only a few weeks old" and that I "wouldn't get any diseases from it".  Wow, way to reassure me, Dad.  Despite that, however, I eagerly dug in to the cold slice.

"How are you enjoying this so far?" Zach asked me.

"You mean the video, or adoption?" I replied.

"Uhh... both, I guess. I was really just referring to the adoption," Zach said.

"Well, I'm really liking it here. You're great, and so are your friends," I praised him.  I decided not to mention the fact that I was missing Terrence, despite the fact that I genuinely enjoyed living with Zach and Set It Off. "As for the video? Well, I'll have to wait till it's filmed."