Thanksgiving came so fast, faster than it felt possible. November was such a short month to begin with. The school trip added to the lack of days in school which I was not going to complain about, but the stress between Nick and I was not a fun trade-in. My stomach was in knots constantly.
My band uniform was lying on my bed, chuckling at me. The thing was mocking me, I knew it. The uniform was falling apart, the fabric was fraying in areas. Some of the buckles were not fully working. The band uniform was a stupid tux, a cheaply made tux from hell. All the money went to the football team clearly because the band surely didn't get any of the money. It was always weird to put the tux on as a girl. The uniforms since they were guys' clothes never fit the girls real well. Willow and I say that it's funny that we cross dress for a grade. It was our little joke that kept us sane during the marching band season.
Against my wishes I exchanged my pajamas for the tuxedo. The shoulder pads stuck out against my frame, giving the illusion that I was shaped like a box instead of an hourglass. Not that I really had that figure to begin with. Brushing my hair I tried to pull the blond strands into a ponytail. My dress shirt rose a little from being tucked in with the movements of my arms as I added the yellow hair tie to match the bow tie and cummerbund. Slipping in longer earrings than I normally wore into my first hole on my earlobes to help the evidence that I was a girl despite my clothes. Nick opened my door, keeping his hand still on the door.
"Okay, I'm going to go soon and I'll be gone for a few hours," I started to talk finishing my mascara. "Since you'll be here you can start the food."
"Fine, Rachel." Nick's eyes were fully focused on me, one eyebrow raised. "You look weird in that uniform."
"Well, aren't you charming?"
I practically dragged my feet as I passed him to get to the front door, grabbing the bright yellow raincoat. That coat made me feel like a rubber duck. There was no real point to the raincoat because we were still in the cold, and even though they were rain coats, the material didn't repel water well at all. This piece of clothing was just like the thermostats in school, just for show. It was the same obnoxious shade of yellow as the bow tie and cummerbund.
Nick followed me into the main room. He just fell down onto the couch not returning his gaze in my direction, just turning on the television so I just left. Not another word was exchanged between the two of us and I was not sure if I was getting used to the silence or not. The notion of getting used to silence with my own husband made my stomach twist.
I made my way out of the gated area and waved to the guards that were sitting in the gated area. Those men did not choose to be there, a job was a job and given the economy who could be picky? Even on a holiday when they could be with their normal families they were here in those boxes. Held hostage, just like us students. The two men waved back at me with what looked like two brown bag dinners on the counter. I would like to think that they got to steal some of the normal Thanksgiving food to bring with them to the job. Right now my parents would be making dinner because the family would be coming over later on. My mom would be worrying if the house was clean enough and my sister would be dragging her feet cleaning her room. I could feel my heart as it felt stuck in my throat.
When I got into the school, through the packed parking lots I put my clarinet together and put my stand's music into my front jacket pocket. Standing around in the band room I talked to Willow and her trumpets, including her husband Collin. I could tell that Willow was just as excited about getting away from the marriages even if it was just a couple of hours and despite the fact that her husband was in the same section. There would be no conversations of marriages during the football game. All the sophomores seemed to agree with that.
"I can't wait until this is over so I can get out of the uniform and into something like pajamas," Willow complained, trying to fix a few spots of her tux which were fighting her.
"Eh, at least we get a few hours without those husbands," I answered, laughing at her as she attempted to fix the fake beer belly forming from her shirt.
"What? You've got to be kidding me. Do you know how few students I'll have?" bellowed Mr. Wallenberg on the phone and he came out of his office, a vein throbbing on his forehead. "Sophomores go home to your spouses."
Everyone in the band room was actually quiet, eyes staring at our teacher. We had put an entire football season into learning the music and steps. This was the last game of the season.
"Apparently you'll be a distraction and
