by JL Bryan
“We don’t?” Jason asked.
“Yeah, because those instruments are magic, man! That’s our hook. That’s what makes everyone go crazy for the music. Anything you play on those instruments sounds great.”
“That’s true…”
“So forget rehearsal. When Tadd gets this video ready, we’ll put that out, we’ll get gigs…”
“You’re still thinking about the video?”
“Of course! That’s our golden ticket. By the way, you need to go meet up with Tadd today. He wants to shoot some extra footage for the videos.”
“Videos?” Jason asked. “More than one?”
“He says he’s cutting a separate video for each song we played. Gives us more presence online.”
“Okay. I don’t know if I can get out today, though. I’m still in trouble with my parents.”
“Tadd wants you to meet him at the Irvine Park Zoo,” Mitch said.
“Why?”
“Extra footage, like I said. I’d go if I could, but I can’t, because my mom would kill me if I said or did anything at all right now. And Dred’s not even answering her phone, as usual.”
“I don’t want to ride all the way over to the park,” Jason said. “It’s hot out today.”
“Erin’s already there.”
“I guess I should go, though,” Jason said. “I mean, since you can’t.”
“That’s the spirit. I’ll tell Tadd you’re on the way.”
“Wait,” Jason said, but Mitch had already hung up.
Jason got dressed quickly. He ran downstairs, then ran back upstairs, brushed his teeth and applied deodorant. Then he ran back downstairs.
His mom was at the kitchen table, painting some ceramic dishes while Katie watched, asking a million questions: “Why are you making that red? Isn’t that too dark? Can I paint one now?”
“Hi, Mom.” Jason drank a quick cup of orange juice, grimacing as it mingled with the lingering taste of toothpaste.
“You look like you’re in a hurry,” she said.
“Yeah…I have to go to the zoo. Just for a minute?”
“The zoo?” His mom scowled and shook her head. “You’re still grounded. You can’t go running around town with your little friends.”
“I want to go to the zoo!” Katie said, and Jason saw his chance.
“Yeah, I’m taking Katie,” he said. “That’s what I meant.”
“Yay!” Katie said.
“You want to take your sister to the zoo?” She blocked Katie from sticking her fingers into the tray of wet paints. “Stop it, Katie!”
“We could go now,” Jason said.
“Yes, go! Katie, go to the zoo with your brother!”
“Yay!” Katie jumped to her feet. “Can we see the cats? And the monkeys?”
“You betcha.” He beamed at her—saved by his little sister.
He ran upstairs and grabbed his guitar case, then ushered Katie towards the garage door. Unfortunately, his mom looked up.
“What’s that guitar for?” she asked.
“For the animals!” Katie volunteered.
“Yep,” Jason said. “We’re going to play music for the monkeys.”
“And the tigers,” Katie added. “Tigers like guitar.”
“Whatever.” Their mom turned back to her painting.
They stepped into the garage and grabbed their bikes. He wasn’t wild about Katie being around to embarrass him, but at least she’d gotten him out of the house.
“You’re actually a pretty cool sister sometimes,” Jason said.
“Sometimes?” Katie rolled her eyes and pedaled out into the driveway.
They rode their bikes across town, Jason keeping himself between Katie and the occasional passing car.
They reached Irvine Park and pedaled back to the zoo area. They reached the long building where the monkeys lived, and Katie insisted on stopping to look at the family of white-faced capuchins. The adults rested quietly on their perches, while two little monkeys chased each other up and down the tree at the center of the cage.
Up ahead, he could see Tadd shooting video of Erin while she walked in front of the glass wall of the bear habitat.
“There’s your girlfriend!” Katie pointed at Erin, shouting loud enough to get Erin and Tadd’s attention.
“She’s not my girlfriend. Just be cool,” Jason whispered. Katie skipped along beside him as he joined them in front of the black bears. “Hey, what’s up?” he asked, louder.
“Nothing!” Tadd complained. “I wanted bears. You know, primal, aggressive. Look at these guys. It’s like the Berenstain Bears go to the beach.”
Jason looked at the black bears. All of them were either lounging in the shade under the rocky cliff at the back of the enclosure, or lounging in the pond at the middle of it. One rubbed its behind on a tree, while another lazily scratched an armpit.
“I think they’re fine like that,” Erin said.
“We need to stir them up,” Tadd said.
“Don’t bother the bears!” Erin told him.
“Yeah, they’re having a good time,” Jason said.
“What else can we do?” Tadd asked.
“I’m Katie!” Katie announced to Tadd.
“Sorry, yeah, this is my sister,” Jason said. “Anyway, you’re the director, Tadd. What do you want?”
“Walk around in front of the bears. You and Erin together. Pretend you’re friends.”
“We are friends!” Erin said, and Jason had to swallow back the goofy smile that briefly spread across his face.
“Whatever,” Tadd said. “We need different, like, emotion-images for different songs. So act like friends this time. You’ll see where I’m going with this.”
“Are we making a movie?” Katie asked. “Can I be the monster?”
“There’s no monster,” Jason said. “You can help Tadd direct.”
“What’s that mean?”
“The director is the person in charge.”
“I can do that!” Katie walked up to Tadd. “Point the camera at them.”
“I know!” Tadd said. He pointed the camera at them.
Jason set his guitar case on a bench and joined Erin at one side of the bear habitat.
“Do we talk, or what?” Erin asked Tadd.
“Yeah, sure. Like I said, friendly.”
“What do we talk about?” Jason asked.
“Doesn’t matter. It’ll be music playing over it. Just pretend to talk.”
“Okay.” Erin shrugged.
They walked slowly in front of the bears. Jason did an exaggerated pretense of talking and waving his hands around, and Erin laughed and copied him, making fake silent dialogue back. They walked past the bear pond, to the end of the enclosure.
“This is boring,” Tadd said. “Let’s go see what the tigers are doing.”
They walked over to the glass wall of the sandstone tiger habitat. The tigers were sleeping on the rocks, looking even lazier than the bears.
“Cats are the same everywhere,” Erin said.
“Okay,” Tadd said. “Now act like you’re in love.”
“What?” Jason asked.
“I have to show you in love so we can show you broken up later,” Tadd said.
“Which song is this for?” Erin asked.
“Haven’t decided yet.”
Erin looked at Jason. “If you don’t want to, maybe Zach’s awake by now, and I could call—”
“I’ll do it,” Jason said. “Love and tigers. Got it.”
While Tadd filmed them, Erin looked up into Jason’s eyes, and Jason couldn’t look away from her. She stepped closer and wrapped her arms around his waist. Jason hugged her, feeling awkward and dangerously excited at the same time. She leaned her head against his chest and actually sighed a little, and this made him relax and hug her close to him.
“Jason, you look off at the exciting, ferocious tigers,” Tadd said. “Like you have something else on your mind. Like there’s a tiger in you that wants to get
out.”
“Um, okay.” Jason looked at the closest tiger, sprawled on its back on a boulder with its paws in the air. The tiger opened one eye, looked Jason over, then closed its eye again, completely not interested.
“Just hold that pose for a minute…” Tadd said, backing away.
Jason could have held it for hours.
“Good enough,” Tadd said. “If only we could make these animals do something.”
“Maybe they’ll like some music.” Erin took out her harmonica.
“Try it,” Tadd said. He looked at Jason. “You really got those from elves, huh?”
“Fairies,” Jason said. “How did you know?”
“Mick told me about it before the party.”
“You mean Mitch?” Jason asked. “And you believed him?”
“No, I thought he was a total psycho, until I saw what the instruments could do. Then magic suddenly became the logical explanation.”
Erin played an upbeat song on the harmonica. The tigers opened their eyes and lifted their heads. The closest one rolled over onto its feet and perched on top of the boulder, cocking its head as it listened.
“That’s actually working!” Tadd said, raising the camera toward the tigers.
“Jason, grab your guitar,” Erin said, and then she resumed playing.
Jason brought out the guitar and strummed along with her.
The two tigers jumped down to the ground and approached the clear wall as if entranced. They walked as close as they could, until their faces nuzzled the glass.
Jason kicked up the tempo. One of the tigers turned and gave the other a light swat. The second tiger jumped, then pounced, but the first tiger dodged. They scrambled after each other like playful kittens, leaping onto the boulders and then knocking each other off.
“Perfect!” Tadd said. “Now put your instruments down and pretend you’re fighting.”
“Like with fists?” Erin asked. She punched Jason in the arm.
“No, like an argument.”
Jason put his guitar aside and walked up to Erin. She ran her mouth as if she were yelling at him, and then started poking him with her finger, as if accusing him of something.
Jason moved his mouth, pretending to yell back, and pointed back at her. Erin moved in closer, poking him more, staring him in the eyes with a look of mock anger on her face. Jason tried to look even angrier, and open his mouth even wider, as if he were yelling louder.
Erin stepped on his foot and stuck out her tongue at him, and then they both started laughing.
“No laughing!” Tadd said.
“No smiling!” Katie added. “You’re ‘pose to be mad.”
“Yes, ma’am,” Erin said. She made a snarling expression and pretended to yell at Jason again, and Jason jutted out his lower teeth and narrowed his eyes while he pretended to yell back. Erin put her hands on her cheeks and pulled down the skin on her face so her eyes were completely white, then she stuck her tongue out again, and Jason and Katie both laughed.
“Forget it, that’s good enough.” Tadd said. “Now the break up. Erin, turn your back on him and walk toward the camera. Create some distance. Look angry. Good. Now, Jason, watch after her sadly…good enough…and slowly turn back and face the tigers. Cross your arms. Perfect…” Tadd lowered the camera and looked around. “What else can we do while we’re here? The cougars?”
“Hey, Tadd,” Jason said. “Why don’t you go film Katie running around the playground or something?”
“A solitary child, on a swing,” Tadd said. “That’s deep, Jason. Good thinking.” He tapped his head, then pointed at Jason.
“I want to do the slide!” Katie ran up the hill. “Show me on the slide.”
“She’s an improviser,” Tadd said. “That’s good. Yeah, childhood memories…nostalgia…loss…” He followed Katie away up the path.
Jason and Erin looked at each other.
“So…” Jason said. “I think he’ll make some good videos. You?”
“He’s nuts. Why did we pick him again?”
“He has a good camera,” Jason said, and Erin laughed.
There was a little silence between them. Erin watched the tigers, who slowed down now, without the music to inspire them.
“It’s pretty hot,” Jason said.
“Yeah.”
“Want to go to the cave?”
“Okay! That sounds really good right now.”
They walked down toward the woodland area beyond the bear habitat and into the mouth of a wide, cool cave with deep shadows. There was standing water all over the floor, so they followed the stepping stones all the way to the back, where a narrow shaft of sunlight fell from a rocky chimney overhead.
“This might be my favorite place in the whole town,” Erin said.
“Me, too. You know, the Leinenkugel brewery used to store their beer down here. Like a refrigerator.”
“Yeah, everybody knows that,” Erin said. “But I heard it wasn’t really true.”
“Maybe it’s just one of those things everybody says.”
“Just one of those things.” Erin looked up at the light and closed her eyes. Her face looked golden.
“Erin,” Jason said. He hesitated, then pushed on. “So, is Zach moving out of town. Like ever?”
“Why?”
“I don’t know. He graduated. Is he just going to stick around and hang out with high school kids forever?”
Erin laughed. “He’s waiting for me to graduate. Then he says we’ll get a place in the Cities, or maybe even Chicago.”
“Is that what you want to do?”
“I kind of want to go to Madison for college.” She shrugged. “I’ll figure it out. There’s time.”
Jason looked away for a minute, and then he worked up the nerve to say what he was thinking.
“I was thinking we could get dinner together,” he said.
“Today?”
“Tonight. Or tomorrow night. Or…Over at Duncan Creek? What do you think?”
“Ooh, that’s too pricey,” Erin said.
“It’s okay. Cashiers at Buddy McSlawburger’s make the big bank. Actually, we’re not even cashiers, we’re ‘Customer Happiness Engineers.’”
Erin laughed, then gave him a long look. “Duncan Creek? You’re asking me on a date, aren’t you?”
“Yeah. Or I could take you for fried cheese curds at the Fill-Inn Station, but I thought this would be nicer.”
She laughed again, blushing crimson, which actually made his heart feel warmer inside his shirt.
“So, you’re saying yes,” Jason said.
“Jason! I have a boyfriend. I can’t go on dates with other guys. What would Zach think?”
Jason couldn’t imagine caring about anything in world less than he cared about Zach’s opinion.
“You’ve been dating him since you were a freshman,” Jason said. “Nobody else ever gets a chance.”
“Right, cause so many guys are lining up at my door.”
“I’m trying to,” he said.
She smiled again. “Jason, I can’t. I don’t want to be one of those girls who cheats on their boyfriends, you know?”
“Right,” Jason said.
They both looked around the cave for a minute, avoiding each other’s eyes. As her rejection sunk in, Jason had a strange feeling, like someone had pounded his insides with a large hammer. He didn’t want her to see how miserable he’d just become.
“So, I guess we should get back?” Jason asked. “They’re probably done by now.”
They followed the stepping stones out into sunlight, and then they joined up with Tadd and Katie. Tadd was now taking video of Katie doing a monkey-style dance in front of the capuchins. He lowered the camera when Jason and Erin approached.
“I wasn’t done yet!” Katie shouted.
“Where have you two been?” Tadd asked. He raised the camera and peered at them through it. “Off in the woods together? Spill, we need it for the behind-the-scenes documentary.”
“I should probably go,” Erin said. “I need to get home.”
“Yeah, me too,” Jason said.
“Cool, cool.” Tadd turned off the camera. “Think I got plenty of stuff here. Should texture up the vids.”
“Thanks, Tadd,” Jason said.
“Yeah, thanks,” Erin added. She gave Jason a quick hug. “Bye, Jason. Bye, Tadd. Bye, Katie.”
“Bye, Jason’s girlfriend!” Katie sang out, looking back from the monkeys.
“Relax, Katie,” Jason said. “She’s definitely not my girlfriend.”
Erin looked back at him, and Jason thought her eyes might have looked just a little sad. Then she walked out of sight along the path, heading for the bike racks at the front of the park.
“Come on, Katie, let’s go,” Jason said.
“Can we go to The Creamery?” Katie asked.
“No.”
“Why not?” she pouted.
Jason thought about it. He certainly didn’t need to save his money, since he wouldn’t be taking Erin to dinner.
“You know, ice cream might be a good idea,” he said.
“Yay!” Katie hurried up the path. Jason trudged after her.
“Yo, Jayce!” Tadd called after him. Jason turned back, and Tadd squinted one eye, made a gun with his fingers, and fired off a shot. “Nice shooting you.”
“Yeah, I know,” Jason said. “Everybody’s shooting me today.”
He followed after Katie, who was already way ahead, running through the arcing streams of water at the fountain, which was only as deep as a puddle, past other kids who were splashing each other.
He watched Erin ride out of sight, and then he ran to catch up with Katie.
Chapter Twenty
When he got home, Jason spent most of the evening in his room, listening to music on his headphones, but nothing sounded good to him. He felt stupid, and hurt, and stupid for letting himself get hurt.
Much later, close to midnight, he was awoken by a scratching sound under his bed. He leaned over, lifted the comforter, and looked underneath.
It was Grizlemor, arranging a small, straw-stuffed pillowcase and a rough burlap blanket in the space below the bed. There was also a rickety three-legged table with a wind-up alarm clock, and a lamp where a firefly orbited above tiny leaves and flowers.
“What are you doing?” Jason whispered.
