Picking up the Pieces

27

September 4, 2012

Stevie was crying, taking a picture of her daughter on the first day of high school. Brielle was wearing a black kimono with grey and pink flowers on it, overtop of two tank tops. The pink one was on the bottom, the gray was on the top. She had a pair of skinny jeans on and she has black riding boots on her feet. Her honey-blonde curls were twisted back on the sides and ultimately fell down her back. Her daughter's hair fell beautifully at her waist and even though it was long and it took a lot of effort, Brielle absolutely loved having it that long. She was five-foot-three and she has been since sixth grade. Stevie can't see her growing anymore but she still very well might. 

"Mom stop crying or I'm going to cry." Brielle grins after the picture is taken wrapping her arms around her mother. 

"I know, I'm sorry, but It's hard. My baby girl is in high school, she's a young adult now." Stevie squeezes her tightly. 

"Momma, I'll always be your baby girl." Brielle states. 

"Oh I know, but still...Anyway, Liz is going to be here in a little bit what do you want for dinner tonight?" Stevie asks wiping her eyes. 

"Um, can we do homemade macaroni and cheese?" Brielle questions. 

"I think that could be arranged yeah." Stevie nods rubbing her daughter's back as the front door opens and in walks Liz, Karalynn, and Makenna. 

"Hey, Makenna go stand at the mantle with Bree," Stevie instructs as Makenna whines but does as she's told. 

Makenna and Brielle are the total opposites and maybe that's why they're so close. Makenna has long straight brown hair and impeccable blue eyes, Makenna is also around five-three Briella's like 3/4 of an inch taller than her. But their styles are what's so different. Makenna's hair is curled that morning, but she's dressed in a pair of army green leggings and a black v-neck. She's got black combat boots on her feet and she's got a gray leather jacket slung over her shoulder. Badass biker chick, as Stevie referred to it when the group went back to school shopping. The friends pose together and then "their" little sister joins in on the action. 

"God Liz, can you believe it...they're starting High School." Stevie sighs when Bree runs upstairs to grab her backpack. 

"I know...it seems like just yesterday you moved in with little three weeks old Brielle." Liz grins. 

"It's so crazy isn't it." She shakes her head.

"I'm glad you moved here though. I met my idol, but I also made a friend that I didn't work with." Liz nudges her.

"Yeah, I get that. I also made a friend that I don't work with." Stevie smiles. 

As the girls come back downstairs, Brielle gives her mother one last hug and as they leave the house, Liz whispers to Stevie "I'll watch them like a hawk." 

Stevie smiles and gives a thumbs up. 

***

She was sitting at the island books and papers sprawled out around her when Karen walked in. "What's going on here?" She asks.

"Well, the movie is coming out and I...I need to get back to work, I need to see where Fleetwood Mac is, if they want to go back out on the road, I may need to go back out on the road for In Your Dreams, and I need to do press and everything for the movie and I'm just trying to figure out where my life is sitting." Stevie sighs, grabbing at her cup of coffee and taking a drink out of it.

"Isn't that my job?" Karen questions.

"It is, but I know Brielle's schedule and you don't." Stevie states. 

"I know her schedule..." Karen pauses.

"Really, what is it?" 

"Well...agh..." She trails off.

"Right, starting next week; Monday she teaches dance from 5 until 5:45. She wants to be a lifeguard at the big bear pool so she's taking a training class from 6:30 until 7:30. Tuesday she dances from seven until ten. Wednesday she teaches from 5 until 5:45, she'll have training from 6:30 to 7:30 and she's agreed to help her teacher Krista, with acro and hip-hop from 8 until ten. Thursday she has dance from 6:45 until 8:45. Friday she has nothing going on and every first and third Saturday of the month she has Girl Scouts. The lifeguarding courses only take three weeks and then, she'll test in the water on one day the fourth week and on land the other. Once that's out of the way I don't know if she's going to try for a job or not, but that would eat up her weekends. So now let's factor in Dance Show week and weekend, in May parent-teacher conferences, parent night for the freshman which is Thursday night, remind me about that...and we have dance registration on Friday. I want a majority of August off, and the beginning of September, and it's a lot. Why did I ever decide to do this parenting thing?" Stevie lists as Karen's head starts spinning. 

"How is she even going to fit homework in?" Karen asks.

"Karen, if I knew I'd tell you." Stevie sighs. 

"Well, give me all of this, I'll figure it out and as for Fleetwood Mac, let them come to you." Karen chuckles patting her bosses back before collecting the papers on the island and making her way to her office. 

***

Stevie has sort of figured her life out when Liz and the girls walked into the house.

"How was your first day of high school, everything you ever hoped for?" Stevie questions.

"Would you be mad if we ate lunch in my mom's room?" Makenna asks opening Stevie's fridge and grabbing a water bottle.

"I mean, shouldn't you ask your mom that?" Stevie asks stirring the crockpot of macaroni and cheese. 

"I said that even though I wish they'd experience the cafeteria for more than one day because that was at least my favorite part of high school, but I guess they didn't like it if they wanted to since I have the same lunch as them I would be okay with it," Liz explains.

"And then I said well let's see what Stevie thinks." Makenna chimes in.

"Well, I always ate off campus for lunch because back in the sixties no one really cared where you went as long as you were back in the building before the first end of lunch bell rang. I don't know what your cafeteria is like. All I can tell you really is that you need to think about what would be best for you." Stevie shrugs. 

"So you'd be fine with it." Brielle hops onto the barstool.

"I mean yeah. It's not that big of a deal." Stevie says. 

"Are you coming to parent night?" Makenna asks grabbing an apple from Stevie's fruit dish on the island. 

They were family plain and simple. Stevie came down one morning to see that Makenna had come into her house in the middle of the night during the summer because she knows where the spare key is and her aunt and uncle were visiting and there were just too many people. They had all access to each other's fridges, and houses and they all knew where everything was at each house though Stevie's house was the go-to hub. All of Brielle's friends always asked to go over to their house. Stevie was okay with it as long as an adult was there.

"I am. It's Thursday from six to eight and they're running it like a normal-ish school day. I need you to print me out a copy of your schedule." Stevie points to her child. 

"Can I just write it out for you. I don't really want to print it." Brielle states.

"Do you know your schedule?" Stevie questions.

"I do...First Hour is Aunt Liz from 8-8:55, Honors Geometry, Second Hour is Mr. Anderson from 9-9:50 US History, Third Hour is Mr. Lake with Biology 9:55-10:45. Fourth Hour is French with Mrs. Boike, from 10:50-11:40. A Lunch from 11:45-12:15. Fifth Hour is Mr. Price with AP English 12:20-1:00. Sixth Hour is Art with Mrs. Clayton from 1:05-2:00 and Seventh Hour is Gym with Mrs. Adams from 2:05-3:00." Brielle smiles.

"Yeah, whatever here." Stevie hands her a sheet of paper.