Transformed || l.h.

Chapter Six

“Goodnight Lizard!” Georgia calls as she sets her nametag back on the counter for the next time she comes in for work. Aliza leans over the coffee bar, “Goodnight, Geeps.” On her face is a scowl and her voice is flat, but as soon as Georgia flashes her a grin, Liza’s face cracks and it turns into a smile. Grabbing her keys off of the rack, Georgia walks out the front door and to her car, humming an unfamiliar tune.

By the time she gets back home, both her father and brother are home and something that smells vaguely like Mexican is wafting through the house. “Dad?” Georgia calls, kicking off her shoes at the door. “Yeah, Geeps?” he responds, poking his head around the corner of the kitchen cabinet. She laughs quietly to herself before joining her dad in the kitchen. She watches as he stirs a pot of taco meat and then scrambles to turn down a crock pot filled with white cheese dip.

“What’s all this?” Georgia asks, hopping up onto the counter.

Jonathon smiles and looks at his daughter, “I figured I may need to actually cook once in a while or you guys may never know what a home-cooked meal is ever again.” Georgia’s grin fades as a slight mention of her mother is passed. “Mom always made really good tacos,” she mumbles, just under her father’s hearing. She looks on as he tastes the taco meet and closes his eyes, letting the food overcome his sense. “It feels like it’s missing something,” he mutters, shaking his head. Georgia raises her hand, “Did you add the chili pepper?” Jonathon’s mouth turns into a circle as he breathes out, “Ohh.”

Giggling, Georgia stands back up and reaches into the cabinet to pull out the spice. She shakes in the correct amount before replacing it on the shelf and looking at her dad, smiling. “Thank you,” she says in a small voice, reaching over to hug him around the waist. He presses a kiss to her head and responds, “No problem, sweetheart. Did you call those guys yet?” Georgia gasps, “Oh, no, I haven’t. Let me go do that.” Jonathon releases her and watches as she jumps up the steps, taking them two at a time.

As she picks up her phone off of her bed, Georgia looks down at a sheet of paper lying there with three phone numbers on it. She reads off the first while typing it onto her phone, holding it up to her ear as it begins ringing. “Hello?” she hears a gruff voice speak from the other line. Georgia takes in a deep breath before asking, “Is this Jeremy?”

“This is he,” Jeremy responds with a chuckle, “what can I do for you?”

Georgia explains who she is and what she’s doing. “Really all I need is a no or yes about whether or not I can use quotes from your interview with my dad.”

“Sure, absolutely no problem at all,” Jeremy agrees, the phone call ending five minutes later.

A second number is pressed in and a second voice answers, this time female.

“Hello?”

“Hi, my name is Georgia, is this Haley?”

“Yes, why?”

Once more she explains who she is and what she’s doing, and once more she gets permission from the band to use the footage. The final number is dialed and the third person answers the phone. “Hey, this is Jake, what can I do for you?” he sounds young and his voice is smooth. Georgia coughs, “Are you the lead singer for And Company?”

She hears him grunt, “That would be me.”

“Well, my dad is--”

“I know,” Jake answers quickly, interrupting her. “Your dad is Jonathon Rosenberg, the guy putting this whole thing on.”

Georgia shifts uncomfortably on her bed. “Uh, yeah. How did you know that I was the one calling?” She can practically hear the smirk in his voice as he responds, “Well you were calling for me and you mentioned your dad. No one in this town gives two shits about my band besides your father so I figured it was a given.” Georgia smiles to herself, “Well, you were right. Score for you, yeah?” Jake lets out a laugh and then a small silence succumbs the phone call.