Ginger's graduation was the day after Kristina's. Taylor and Zac were there for both of them. The difference this time was that when the boys left, Kris and Ginger would be going home with them. Kris was going for the summer�Ginger was going forever. After the graduation the girls were sitting at home looking around with vacant expressions on their faces. Kris had never been away from home as long as a whole summer and Ginger was leaving her home altogether. The last time she left home she didn't get a chance to look around and appreciate what she had, so this time she made sure she did.
"I'm really going to miss it here," Ginger said, lying on the top bunk of the bunk bed that wasn't going to be needed any longer. "This�this was a home. Alex's house wasn't a home, my house with my parents wasn't a real home. This was home. How long was I here, Kris?"
"Ten months," Kris said. She was crying.
"Don't cry, Kris."
"Too late." Ginger looked over the edge of the bed and down at her sister in the bottom bunk. She was definitely crying. "I'm going to miss you."
"Kris, we've got all summer to say goodbye to each other. And it's not really going to be goodbye. You know that. Just�just a little hiatus." Kris tried to laugh but it only came out as a cough.
"A hiatus? Are we in a band?"
"Who's in a band?" Zac asked, walking into the room. Ginger shook her head.
"Don't even ask, Zac."
"All right. I won't. How are you two doing? Are you done crying yet?" he asked, a grin on his face.
"Shut up! You were the bastard who didn't even cry!" Ginger said, throwing her pillow at him. He ducked and it landed in the hallway. "Oh, I'm Zac, I'm too macho to cry even though I write bubblegum pop music and play in a band with my brothers�"
"Hey! I stopped writing bubblegum pop when I was twelve!"
"My ass."
"It's true."
"Oh yeah, Zac, your latest CD�pure punk. All that screaming and noise, that was so on your CD." Zac gave Ginger a look.
"You still bought it."
"I didn't buy anything! You gave it to me!" He paused.
"Oh yeah�but you listen to it!"
"I have to. I'm your girlfriend."
"Okay, guys, that's enough bickering for tonight," Kris said from the bottom bunk. "Am I going to have to listen to this all summer?"
"Just about," Zac said. "Only when you're around the two of us." She groaned and put her pillow over her head. "You two better get to bed. Our flight leaves at ten. That means we have to be at the airport at nine. We have to leave here at eight-thirty. That gives you�" He looked at the clock. "Six and a half hours before we have to leave."
"Why are you still up, then, macho man?" Ginger asked.
"Because I'm used to it. You're not. I don't want to hear any bitching tomorrow morning. From either of you." Ginger gave him a look. "Or tonight. Goodnight ladies." He closed the door and left. Ginger huffed.
"Are you tired, Kris?"
"Yes."
"Then you're a dork. I'm not tired."
"Turn on the TV. It won't bother me."
"Where's the clicker?" Kris threw the clicker up at Ginger and it hit the ceiling then landed on her bed. Ginger turned the television on to the insomniac videos MTV was playing and was amused to see her boyfriend on the screen. "Hey, it's our boys." Kris looked at the television and smiled.
"So it is. What corny video are they doing now?"
"It looks like their new one."
"Geez, the only time they can get airplay is two in the morning? Damn they must suck." Ginger and Kris began to laugh. "They can have a number one TRL video but they can't even get the blasted thing in rotation!" They continued laughing. "How terrible are they!" Zac came in the room.
"Far too much giggling to be asleep�" he paused, looking at the television. "What are you doing?"
"We're watching you on TV, Zac."
"Turn it off."
"Why are you so adamant about us seeing you on TV?" Ginger asked. "I'm never allowed to watch you when you're around."
"For one thing, it's freaky," Zac said, "and for another thing, that's not me." Ginger rolled her eyes. "It's not. Turn it off." Ginger groaned and clicked the television off. "Give me the remote." Ginger threw the remote at him and it hit his head. "Ow! Dammit, Ginger�" She giggled again and he left the room. When the door was closed, Ginger looked over the side of the bed again at Kris.
"He's so bloody uptight about me seeing him on TV. You would think with being on it as long as he has he'd be okay with it by now."
"Maybe he just doesn't like the fact that you're a fan."
"I could have told you that. He's always like 'that's not me, that's the other me.' My ass. They're the same person."
"Taylor's the same way too. He won't make me turn off the television but he doesn't like me talking about it. I guess they're so afraid we're only it in for the fact that they're musicians and everything."
"Bad experience?" Ginger suggested.
"Very bad experience," Kris said. "I bet it's happened a thousand times." Ginger sighed.
"I bet," she said. "Well�goodnight."
"Goodnight."
The next morning both Kris and Ginger were bitching about being awake so early as they got ready to leave. Normally they wouldn't have bothered with makeup and hair and what they wore, but Ginger was trying to change her image for Diana and this was the first time Kris was meeting Diana. Ginger told her not to try so hard, Diana was going to hate her anyway, but Kris only pointed out the fact that Ginger had done everything in her power to change her image so Diana would like her. It shut her up.
"Are you girls ready to go? We're going to miss our flight!!" Zac yelled from the living room. "How long does it take for them to get ready?"
"We're almost done! I'm double checking to make sure I have everything!"
"If you forget something it can be shipped," Zac explained. "It's not like it's the end of the world if you leave one tube of lipstick here!"
"It is if it's my maroon lipstick!"
"Oh my God," Zac said. "Hurry up!!"
"Jesus Christ, Zac, you act as though I'm not worth the wait," Ginger said, walking out of the bathroom. Zac looked up at her and shook his head.
"You are not wearing that." Ginger looked down at herself. She was wearing a pair of loose flared jeans and a very conservative looking T-shirt that Zac presumed was Kristina's because he knew she didn't own anything like that. She had on good-girl sandals and very basic makeup.
"Why not?" Ginger said, looking down at herself. "There's nothing wrong with it!"
"No, there's nothing wrong with it! You look very nice. Too bad you don't look like you. Ginger, my mother does not hate you and dressing like this does not change anything. Don't bother hiding your tattoos, she already knows they're there." Ginger huffed.
"Well I'm not changing."
"Fine. Whatever. Let's just go." Everybody got up and walked outside to the car. Ginger and Kris weren't bringing suitcases, while Zac and Taylor only had one each, and got into the minivan that would be transporting them all to the airport. Ginger waved goodbye to her home from the back seat where she and Zac were sitting, getting quite misty eyed. Kris saw her doing this and began to cry herself and they both had to ask for the radio to be turned up in order to think about something else. "No crying," Zac whispered to Ginger, putting his arm around her.
"Zac�this is my home. I'm leaving home."
"I know you are. I just want you to be happy. We've been planning this for ten months and now it's actually happening. You're coming to stay with me. Be happy." Through her tears she gave him a pathetic smile and hugged him.
"I am happy," she whispered. "I'm very happy."
Ginger kept quiet throughout the rest of the airport. They parked promptly at nine o'clock, the first time in their lives this family had been on time. Ginger got out of the car, subdued, and held onto her purse. The rest of her things had been shipped the previous week to Tulsa, where Zac set up her room. While Kris was there she would be staying in that room with her and when Ginger sent her things, she sent most of Kris's things for the summer there as well.
They walked quietly through the parking lot to the airport baggage check. Taylor and Zac were constantly looking around, as they always were whenever they were in public. They seemed to be doing it more often this time, being that there were two of them. At the shuttle to the security checkpoint, Ginger began to cry again. Kris was saying goodbye to her parents, saying "I'll be careful and I'll see you in August." Ginger's goodbye wouldn't be like that. It wouldn't be anything like that.
"Honey, come and say goodbye to your Mom," Alina said. Ginger was hanging behind with Zac and hadn't even realized her mother was holding out her arms for her. Ginger collapsed into them.
"Mom," Ginger said. "You're the best Mom I could have ever had. Thank you so much for taking me in and everything�I know I haven't exactly been the easiest kid�"
"Honey, you're better than Kristina ever was."
"Hey!" Kris said.
"I love you so much, Mom," Ginger said. "I'll be back as often as I can. Whenever we're in town. I'll be here for Christmas, I promise you that."
"I love you too, dear. If you need anything for any reason, no matter what it is, I'm here for you, okay? I know you won't want to come home but if you do, there will always be a place for you. Give me a kiss." Ginger kissed her mother, said goodbye to her father and her brother, then turned around and left with her boyfriend, Kris, and Taylor. While waiting for the shuttle, Ginger blew a kiss goodbye and cried.
On the shuttle, Ginger let out a sigh of relief. "That was too much for me," she said. "Way too much for me."
"In a couple hours we'll be home, dear, and you can think all about it then," Zac said, gripping her hand. "I already set up your room, you can get in there and change everything because I know you won't like it�"
"I'll like it," she reassured him. He smiled and kissed her forehead. When he looked away she turned to Kris and mouthed, "I'll hate it." Kris giggled and Zac looked back over. Ginger looked up at him and smiled. "What?"
"Nothing."
They arrived at their gate at nine-forty five. It took them fifteen minutes to get through security because Kris's shirt had a zipper and set off the metal detector so she had to wait in a separate line to get the once-over with a hand metal detector. It took forever. As they approached the gate first class was just boarding (leave it to Zac and Taylor to make sure the four of them flew first class) so they went in without a chance to breathe until they were safely on the plane in the most comfortable chairs Ginger had ever flown in.
"Damn�I'm never flying economy again," she said, stretching herself out. "This is the best ever."
"Yeah, well, when you fly as much as we do you learn to appreciate the luxuries of first class," Zac said. "We should be home in about two hours." Ginger looked out the window. The day was clear and the skies were blue, but Ginger heard Zac say that back home it was raining. Great, she thought.
The plane moved out of the gate and went towards the runway. Kris was staring out the window, amazed. She'd only been on a plane twice in her life and it was still exciting for her. Ginger, on the other hand, had flown quite enough in her life to realize that she didn't care much for it. She held Zac's hand as the plane took off and she was saying her final goodbye to Tampa.
"It'll be okay," Zac said in her ear. She smiled. "This is the start of something big for you and me, you know. From here on out, we'll be spending the rest of our lives together." She turned to him.
"Forever and ever?" she asked. He nodded. "When are we getting married?"
"After I graduate."
"Well I know that�" she said. "When after you graduate?"
"I was thinking November. A nice November wedding. We'll do it when it's not too cold and have everything inside�big wedding with lots of people. Lots of family." She smiled.
"November sounds good to me." She looked back out the window and they were in the air.
"Ladies and Gentlemen," the captain said over his intercom, "as your captain I'd like to welcome you aboard Delta flight 1947 non-stop to Tulsa and forward to Denver. Your flight time is one hour and fifty minutes. We will be arriving in Tulsa at precisely eleven o'clock Tulsa time, which is Central Standard Time. For those of you not in our first class area, this is a drink-only flight. The flight attendants will be coming around shortly to be serving you�"
"What do we get, then?" Ginger asked.
"Food," Zac explained. "If you want it." Ginger scrunched up her nose.
"I'm not hungry." Zac shrugged.
"Your loss." She stuck out her tongue at him.
"�I hope you all enjoy your flight on Delta Airlines, please travel with us again."