This is the first update of Orlando being out on his own.
The Laird Family - introduction:
http://aspenlake.blogspot.com/2007/12/introduction-lairds.htmlThe Laird Family - Round One:
http://aspenlake.blogspot.com/2007/12/round-one-lairds.htmlROUND ONE: The Laird ( Orlando) - House
Orlando stepped out of the taxi and looked up at his new apartment. So this was it. He was finally in the big city. He took a deep breath and went on inside. Okay, he had to admit, the a newspaper ad had made the apartment seem a little nicer than it really was. When it had said furnished, he expected a little more than just a bed. But it was still a place to sleep, and he had dreams - he wasn’t going to be living in a little apartment for long. He was going places. Soon he would build his own house in the exclusive suburb of Bluewater Village. But that took money and he didn’t have to work until the next day so decided to use the day off to see if he could make any extra money around town.
He quickly found a job working as a DJ at the Crypto Night Club. He made good money and was pleased with how his prospects looked in the city. He realized though that his country boy look was just not going to go over well there, not if he wanted to get ahead, which he did. A makeover was in order.
He worked hard and found himself quickly meeting the right people in the business and moving up. Soon he found himself in a recording studio doing a demo. He sang rock music, because that was what people wanted, but what he really loved was classical piano. But you couldn’t have everything, he decided, so he just had to go with it. Although he enjoyed the noise and motion of living downtown he found that as time passed he began to grow lonely. He missed his family and friends from Aspen lake. Sure he could call and talk to them, but it just wasn’t the same. He found himself often thinking of this girl he met while shopping. One afternoon, on a day off, he decided to just go for it and phone and ask her out. She said yes. He wanted to look mature and grown up so he took her to Lucky Shack’s cards and drinks.
The date went okay, but only okay. He did really like Nerrissa. She was smart, book smart, the way he wasn’t. She wanted to learn and had plans for college. He felt embarrassed when he admitted he wasn’t going to college.
“You’re *not* going to college?” Nerrissa said.
“No, I, um, I mean we don’t have the money. My dad’s just a farmer. College is expensive.” “There’s scholarships.”
“I don’t think I’d get any. I’m not that great in school.”
“Then what *are* you going to do?”
“I’m going to be a musician!” He said it proudly, standing up straighter.
“There’s a dozen of those here,” Nerrissa said, “And ones who are going to be actors.” She went back to her card game without saying anything more. Orlando felt defeated. He had wanted to impress her, but obviously he hadn’t. And what if she was right? What if he didn’t make it? No, he wouldn’t think that way. He was going to make it. When the date was over Nerrissa hugged him, but said nothing about going out again. That was why he was surprised when she phoned him on Saturday to ask him out.
The second date went much better and the subject of school didn’t come up. Nerrissa moved fast, and soon they were doing nothing, it seemed, but kissing. Orlando tried to keep up but felt out of place and backwards. He wasn’t used to girls like Nerrissa. Smart, sophisticated; fast. He felt like such a backwards country boy. He found himself completely falling for her though.
Things went smoothly the next few months between him and Nerrissa. They dated often, usually with Nerrissa making the moves and Orlando trying his best to keep up with her.
Orlando felt like he had met the girl he would spend forever with. His career too suddenly went on the upswing. On a sleepy Sunday, after recording a song in the studio he was waiting for lunch in an upscale restraunt and went over to play their piano. He played a classical piano piece and got so lost in the music that he didn’t even notice that everyone had gone quiet as they watched him. When he finished there was a huge applause. Orlando just blushed, embarrassed. He always had had a habit of losing himself in his music. Just as he was about to leave a man approached him.
“You can really play son.”
“Thanks. That was a simple piece though”
“No it wasn’t.” He was serious. Orlando looked at him.
The man was right of course, it *wasn‘t* an easy piece, but only someone who knew classical piano would know that. It turned out that the man booked concerts at a downtown theatre and was interested in booking him. If he did good he could go pretty far with it. Orlando took the man’s business card, not quite believing what was happening. He was going to be a concert pianist, a *real* pianist!
He rushed home immediately to tell Nerrissa the good news.
She was happy for him, but sounded distracted and distant. He tried to tell himself that she was just distracted with college, and there was nothing to worry about. After all, College was hard. No, he was sure there was nothing wrong.
Time passed, and he had been in the city for nearly two years. He had worked his way into being a fairly well known concert pianist, and was making very decent money. He even had made enough to buy a lot in the Bluewater Village estates and was now saving away for the dream of building his own home. He was still with Nerrissa but they rarely saw each other, and when they did she seemed distant. On her vacation home from school one winter, he decided to invite her over for dinner. For the whole meal she was aloof and irritable.
“What’s wrong nessie?” Orlando finally asked her, “Did I do something?”
“No, its not what you did, its what you‘re *not* doing.”
“I don’t understand…”
She put down her fork, “Orlando, you make good money, right?”
“Pretty decent, yeah.”
“You told me when we first me that you weren’t going to school because you couldn’t afford it. Well, you can now. So what’s your excuse?”
The question caught him off guard. He thought the school subject had been long forgotten. But she was clearly annoyed. “Well, I have a job now Ness,“ he tried to explain, “I mean, I can’t just take off. I’m in a contract.”
“Just more excuses.” She stood up and started putting on her jacket. “Where are you going?” Orlando asked.
“I’m going back home, then I’m going back to college, where people actually care about learning.”
“Wait a minute, are you…”
“breaking up with you? Yeah, I think I am. I’m sorry Orlando,I really am, but this just isn’t going to work.”
Orlando watched her for a moment and then grew angry, “You have no right to judge me! I work hard, I lead a decent life - so what if I’m not college educated! It doesn’t mean you’re better then me.” he pointed at the door, “Get out. Just get out.”
She looked at him, her face cold, then walked towards the door. She stopped before leaving and looked back at him, “Just don’t forget,” she said, “I broke up with *you*.” She turned around and left.
For weeks afteward Orlando didn’t know what to do with himself. He felt alone and lost. So this is was the life he had dreamed of, the life that he had run away to find. He began to realize that maybe it wasn’t all he had thought it was. Maybe he should have just stayed on the farm. Even the concerts, though he enjoyed playing the piano for an audience, were tough because of how controlled he was. He was in contract to do certain songs at certain times and he had no choice in the matter. One cold afternoon he sat on the barren lot that was supposed to become his and Nessie’s home and wondered if he should just quit it all and go back home.
But he had worked hard to get into the position he was in and he wasn’t ready to give it up yet. Maybe, after he was known better they would give him more control over his music. Maybe then he could finally start playing stuff that he wrote. Or maybe that was all just more false dreams. He just didn’t know. That evening he called his father and asked if he could come and visit for the weekend. Brady could sense there was something wrong in his son’s voice and immediately agreed to come.
His father showed up early the next Saturday morning. Orlando was so relieved to see him. He hadn’t seen either him or Declan in almost a year.
They sat and talked and Orlando poured out everything.
Brady listed and then spoke, soft, “Do you realize how many people would want to be in your place? You’re not even 21 Orlando and you’re already playing sold out concerts.”
“I know I should feel lucky Dad, but I just…this wasn’t how I had thought things would be. I thought I’d get known for *my* music, not other people’s”
“Give it time Orlando. You‘ve only been here for two years. And as for Nessie, she didn’t sound like the right one son.”
“I loved her Dad.” He swallowed hard when he said that. It was the first time he had admitted it to anyone.
“yeah, but did she love you?” Brady asked.
Orlando slumped down into the couch, “Obviously not.”
Brady put his arm around his son’s shoulders, “You’re first heart break is always the worst son.” “How long does it take to stop hurting?” Orlando asked.
“Sometimes, a short time, sometimes a while. Its hard to say.”
Orlando looked over at his father, “How long did it take you to forget about Aurora?”
Brady gave his son a sad smile, “Like I said, son, sometimes it can take a while.”
“But it does stop?” Orlando asked.
“yeah, it stops.”
That was what he needed to hear. It gave him strength to stay and keep going for his dreams.
“Okay, Dad. I’ll keep going then.”
