Sipping a bit of water, she nodded, “I’m sorry. I’m just nervous, I
suppose.”
“Shall we take it from the top?” he asked.
Nodding, she replied, “Ummm.... Yea.”
Belting out the lyrics to a song she had written, Gabrielle felt her face
flush. She thought to herself, “This nervousness thing just won’t go away.”
Finally, they stopped for the day at 5:00, when dusk was beginning to fall.
Gabby grabbed her bag and started to head to the nearest exit when all of a
sudden the producer caught her hand. He beamed and reported, “It sounds
great, Gabrielle. I’m really proud of you.”
When Gabrielle got home to her lonely apartment, she opened the
shades and let the last few minutes of sun stream in. Tinkerbell, her cat,
pounced up into the windowsill at the sight of a large, plump robin sitting in the
tree. Amused, Gabrielle watched Tinkerbell for a moment, the wind tousling
strands of hair towards her mouth.
Tinkerbell had never been expected to live when Gabby had found her in
the apartment complex driveway. A menacing thunderstorm had hit, and the
little kitten had been abandoned. She was without food, for around two weeks,
with only rainwater to drink. Due to the storm, Tinkerbell lost vision in one eye
after a twig hit her, and was left with only partial hearing. Employees at the
veterinarian’s office deemed her the “Miracle Cat.”
Plucking her out of the window, Gabby gently set the kitten on the floor.
Looking around the apartment, she scurried off to some unknown destination.
By then, Gabby had made it over to the refrigerator. She muttered,
“Mmmm....what’s for dinner? Bread with lettuce, bread with bread, bread with
cheese, or bread with tomatoes?”
At often times, Gabrielle began to feel quite hard on her luck. After all,
she was only 18, and she was all alone in the world. As she made her
sandwich, she recollected on the events that lead her to where she was at the
moment.
“Never! I will never accept what you’re doing Gabrielle. Your
mother and I do not approve of this.” her father stated, affirming her fears.
“Singing. Now what a fanciful dream. The minute you walk out that
door Gabrielle Reynolds, you can never come back. You will no longer be
welcome in this house, nor be a part of this family.” Gabrielle’s mother
stated.
“But mother, I know that I can succeed. I know that I can make my
dreams come true. Why can’t you allow yourself to believe in me too?”
Gabrielle implored.
Shaking his head her father said, “That is not what we raised you to
do with your life, Gabrielle.”
Hastily wiping away tears, Gabrielle answered, “You nurtured me
when I was little. You told me that I could do anything that my heart
desired. You taught me to reach for my dreams. You taught me that even when no one else believes in me, I am to believe
in myself. This is my dream. And I do believe in myself. That’s what I
don’t understand. But overall, most important thing
that you taught me was to make my own decisions. It kills me to do this.
But, I feel that I have to.”
With that, Gabrielle picked up her suitcase and headed for the door.
As she walked, she spoke without turning around. “And I know that I’m
never going to turn back. Ever.”
Setting down her half uneaten sandwich, Gabrielle gulped down her milk,
realizing that if she didn’t hurry, she was going to be late for work.
The Graveyard shift of 8:00 to 4:00 wasn’t Gabby’s choice, but it was a
job, nevertheless. A job that she dreaded going to. Valu Mart (think Walmart)
was not the most enjoyable place to be.
After donning her purple vest with a large, smiling, sunshine on the back,
Gabby exited the employee lounge, and reported to the manager. She
questioned, “Where should I work tonight, sir?”
Peering down at her through thick glasses, he replied, “We need
magazines restocked. Go in the back and get them, then reorganize them all.
That should last you through a great deal of the night.”
“Yes sir,” she answered politely.
After 47 different magazines on sports, wood, and cars, Gabby began
restocking what she called the “teenybopper” mags. Worn out from a day with
no sleep, she sank to her knees, and peered at one of the magazines. TEEN
STARS, it was called. Flipping through the pages, she came upon a poster of a
young man with fuschia colored hair. “Joey Fatone of *N SYNC” she recited out
loud. The article on the preceding page was titled, “Love’s Cupid.”
Gabby muttered under her breath, “Well, come save me Cupid.”
At that exact moment, something hard smacked Gabby in the back of her
head. Smacking a hand to her skull, she turned around curiously. A tall blonde
with an afro upon his head yelled, “WOW! I’m sooooooo sorry! I didn’t see you
there!”
Then she spotted the rubber ball that was the cause of the forming knot
on the back of her head and answered, “Yea. Ummm...just be a little more
careful next time please. You could have hurt somebody that mattered in the
scheme of things. It’s okay though, really.”
Glancing shyly at the guy, Gabby came to a stunning conclusion. Looking
down at the magazines she held in front of her, she announced coyly, “You know
that you look like that guy from one of those boy bands.”
Clinching his teeth he sighed, “Boy bands. What a nasty term. Now, do I
look like any kinda boy to you?”
Shrugging, she replied, “I don’t know. I suppose that I thought that you
looked like one of them. Maybe I’m just delirious from sitting here so long,”
Looking down the aisle, she saw her manager approaching, and added, “Sorry,
is there something I can help you with? My manager’s coming, and he’s got that
“I’ll fire you at any moment” look in his eyes.”
The young man questioned softly, “What’s the farthest thing in the store?”
Shaking her head she answered, “I’m sorry, but I’m not following what
you’re asking me.”
“Just tell me, what’s way on the other side of the store, like an item?” he
implored.
Shrugging she answered, “Fabrics....”
Just as the manager approached, the young man asked, “Miss, could you
show me where the fabrics are located?”
She raised her eyebrows and rose from the white tiled floor. “Of course. Please.
Follow me.”
After they got out of the manager’s eyesight, Gabby handed him back the
ball. “Here you go. And, oh...ummm..... Thanks for giving me a little respite......”
“Justin,“ he filled in, “Justin Timberlake. I’m in one of those boy band
things. You know....the one that all the little girls go crazy over. I escaped from
my house for a few minutes. You know. Call it what you will. It’s a vacation to
me....”
Gabby turned a shade of deep crimson red, “Wow....I’m really sorry! I
feel very stupid now.”
“How about you?” he questioned.
Looking up curiously, she answered, “How about me what?”
“Your name?”
“Gabrielle. Gabrielle Reynolds,” she answered softly.
“Very beautiful name you have. To go with a very beautiful girl.” He
could tell that she was becoming shier and shier by the moment. “So, what do
you like to do for fun?”
Raising an eyebrow, she said, “I work here from 8 to 4 every night except
one, and other than that, I’m recording my demo tape. Trying to make my....my
dreams come true.”
Mentally calculating, Justin announced, “That’s like, four hours of sleep
per night!”
Nodding she answered, “Yea. But if I actually make something of myself,
it will be worth it all. I know that.”
“Sing for me?”
She raised her eyebrows and said, “Ummmm....I don’t know...”
He taunted her, “Oh, come on. Please.... pay me back for saving you
from work.”
She said, “There’s nothing to sing....”
He requested, “Please, don’t turn so red on my account.”
Suddenly, Justin’s phone rang. “J Cool....how may I help you.” Someone
spoke, then he said, “Okay. I’ll find somewhere to bunk for the night...”
When Justin hung up, his eyes met hers, and he announced, “How do ya
like that? There’s a hurricane warning in effect right now. Decides to blow in
when I actually get somewhere in Florida at a time I don’t see fans or need a
bodyguard. Now I gotta find some hotel...”
He was cut off when the manager came over the loudspeaker, “ATTENTION LADIES AND GENTLEMEN. THE STORE IS CLOSING. A SEVERE HURRICANE WARNING IS IN EFFECT. YOU MUST EXIT THE BUILDING. EMPLOYEES ARE ALSO ORDERED TO EVACUATE.”
