That's Life, Bud

bands, stupid contests, & concert tickets

The rest of the movie was a blur after Michael kissed me on the cheek. It was perfect. I wanted to relive the moment over and over again.

Once the movie was over, we walked out to the lobby and just kind of hung out, not wanting to go back outside in the cold quite yet.

"Guys, I think we should go now," Austin said after about 10 minutes of analyzing the posters on the wall for new movies.

"Yeah, my parents are going to be worried sick," Jet said. Everyone looked at her with wide eyes except for me. 'Parents' was a touchy subject in our group. Some of ours are divorced, always away, or we only have one parent. I was used to it by now, so it didn't affect me.

"Um, we should. . . probably. . . go," Ian said and started for the door, everyone else following him. We stepped outside, the cold slapping us in the face once again. But this time, trudging through the snow was much more enjoyable. We were laughing and racing each other and breaking into song at random moments, and everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves.

"ALL YOU SINNERS STAND UP SING HALLELUJAH!" Emma sang/screamed in her perfect choir voice.

"HALLELUJAH!" We all screamed after.

"SHOW PRAISE WITH YOUR BODY STAND UP SING HALLELUJAH!" Jet sang.

"HALLELUJAH!"

"AND IF YOU CAN'T STOP SHAKING LEAN BACK LET IT MOVE RIGHT THROUGH YOU!" I sang.

"HALLELUJAH! SAY YOUR PRAYERS SAY YOUR PRAYERS SAY PRAYERS!" We all finished. People were looking at us weird from inside their houses through the windows, but we didn't care. We never did. We did what we wanted. We fought for what we wanted. And we did things right.

{{{¡¡¡°°°¡¡¡}}}

"What should we do now?" Emma asked. Harper, Austin, Ian, and Jet all went home and it was just Addi, Michael, Emma, Patrick, and me left at my house. Michael and Patrick were playing video games in the TV room while we girls were talking in my bedroom. We liked to play this game called 'Who's cuter?'. Basically, you would say to guys (or girls, we don't hate) and you would say which one is cuter.

"Oh, I have a good one! Whose cuter: Gerard Way or Brendon Urie?" Emma asked and laughed.

"How am I supposed to chose? It's like you are trying to murder me?!" I said and threw my hands up in the air in frustration.

"I don't even know who those guys are, so . . . " Addi stated.

"I have a good one for Carter! Whose cuter: Sam or Michael?" Emma asked and Addi started laughing. I paled. I had completely forgotten about Sam. I glanced at my window again and then looked at Emma.

"So? Whose cuter? Michael or S-"

"Michael, obviously!" said none other than Michael himself as him and Patrick busted through the door. "I don't even have to know who I'm competing with to know!" He said and plopped down on my couch.

"Moving on!" Addi said and stood up from sitting on the floor. "Let's do something else!"

"We should start a band," Patrick said in a matter-of-factly voice.

"Patrick, you don't even sing," I said.

"And even if you did, you wouldn't be any good," Emma said from the top of my loft bed on which she was laying on.

"Shots fired!" Michael said and laughed.

"A band actually isn't that bad of an idea, though," I said and stood up from the yoga ball that I was sitting on. "I mean, if Emma and Addi sing loud enough, they could probably tone out me and Patrick and we would be a decent band."