The next day came by so quick for Janelle and she was on her way to the Motown Studio to pick up her plane ticket. She never gave Martin Scorsese her number, but he told her that he had another thing for her to get while she was getting her ticket. She couldn't wait to go to New York City for rehearsals. She was excited to be able to have gotten the part and be able to work with the one and only Michael Jackson.
She soon arrived at the studio and went inside, having to make turns here and there, to find the sound room again since she hadn't been there since yesterday. She made her way to the sound room and Martin saw her enter and got up.
"Oh Janelle, you made it. I have two things for you." He said.
First, he handed her the plane ticket with the designated date of departure to New York City.
"Alright, there's my ticket. What's that second thing?" She asked.
"Right. Your second item...is this."
He then handed her an envelope. She took it, looked at him with an eyebrow raised, opened it and pulled out some papers. At first, she thought that it was a contract, but she knew that they never have contracts for people who auditioned for anything. Only for movies and TV shows, but never for short films. She looked at the papers and saw that they were actually hotel reservations.
"Hotel reservations?"
"Well yeah. You'll need a place to stay after we finish up a day's rehearsal."
"Oh, right. Well, thank you so much, Martin. This means a lot."
"No problem. See you in New York."
Just as she was about to leave, her daughter crossed her mind and she turned back to Martin. "Um...Martin? I actually have a question."
"Ask away, Janelle. What is it?"
"It's...well...it's about my daughter. Would it be alright if she comes along? My aunt is going back to London for a few weeks and she can't take her."
"Wait...you have a daughter?"
She hesitated, but nodded. "I do have a daughter. She's 4."
"Well, you'd have to find a nanny to take with you so she could be watched while you rehearse."
"So I can bring her?"
He nodded, smiling a little. "What the hay, why not? Bring her along. I'm sure she'd like it."
She smiled and nodded. "Alright. I'll tell her then. Thank you again!"
She waved and soon headed out of the studio and back to her car. Once she got in, she was thinking of a way to tell Coraline that she'd be coming along with her to New York. Guaranteeing that she'll have to buy a plane ticket for her. She remembered that she had a friend that lived in New York that could watch her. She was the only person Janelle could confide in about her rape incident and her little girl. Her friend also had a little girl and figured that if Janelle ever went up to New York with Coraline, then she could watch her while she'd be off doing things around the city. She, once she got home, told Coraline about the trip to New York and said that she's gotten permission to bring her along. Her face was priceless and her reaction was predictable.
"I get to go with you?! Yay!!!!" Coraline exclaimed with joy.
When Elizabeth heard Coraline's joyous voice, she came into the room. "Is someone gonna watch her while you rehearse?" She asked.
Janelle looked at Elizabeth and nodded. "Remember that friend I have up in New York?"
She nodded, meaning she knew who she was talking about. "Yeah, what about her?"
"She's gonna watch Coraline. I had given her a call on my way home about it."
"Well alright. I gotta pack up for my trip back to London then. Gotta meet with some people for the few weeks that I'll be there. Do you have your keys for the house?"
Janelle took out her keys. "Always."
"Just in case you and Coraline get back before I do, you two have access to the house. Kenan will take you to the airport and pick you up after you land back here, okay?"
Janelle nodded. "Alright, Aunt Liz."
Soon, Elizabeth left the room and went to go pack. Janelle, being smart, got her laptop out and ordered another ticket for Coraline. Once the order was placed (and it would get to the house the next day), Janelle looked at the clock and saw that it was almost 10pm.
"My goodness, it's that late already? You need to get to bed, Coraline."
She saw Coraline asleep on her bed and she giggled a little. She went up to her, picked her up and carried her to her room. Once she got into the bedroom, she walked up to the bed, uncovered it, placed her under the covers and covered her back up, kissing her head.
"Goodnight, sweetie. We'll get to packing later."
She walked out of the room and back into her own room. She got ready for bed and soon fell asleep.
The Following Week
Janelle had gotten up a couple hours earlier because her aunt was gonna be leaving real soon. She helped her aunt as much as possible with her stuff, which was roughly 2-3 suitcases, not that heavy, but not that light either. Once the suitcases were in the car, Elizabeth turned to her and gave her a hug and a kiss on the head.
"Be good during your rehearsals, Janelle." She said.
Janelle giggled a little. "I will, Aunt Liz. No worries. I won't override Michael during them. Have a safe trip!" She stated.
Elizabeth giggled and waved to her and Coraline as Kenan drove her away to the airport to get on her private helicopter that was gonna be taking her to England. Janelle and Coraline went back inside and soon started packing for their trip next week. Coraline's ticket was with Janelle's in an envelope in her suitcase, so she couldn't lose either one.
"Ready for the trip, Coraline?"
She nodded and giggled. "Yes, mommy. I'm ready." She said, putting her little red and blue suitcase next to her mother's.
Janelle giggled and made sure they had everything they needed.
Soon, a week had passed and they were on the plane to New York City. Coraline absolutely loved riding on the plane, it being her first time. She never cried once during the trip because of her ear popping or anything of the sort. Janelle...was a little uneasy since this was the first time in years since she's been on a plane going anywhere other than to London with her aunt. She got use to it fast, though, which is good. She played games and watched movies with Coraline and they were enjoying every second of their time together.
After a few hours, the pilot had announced that they were starting to descend from the air. Once they felt themselves going down, Coraline looked at her mother.
"Is the plane gonna fall out of the sky??"
Janelle could tell that Coraline didn't like this part of it already and that she was scared. Janelle shook her head. "No, sweetie, it's not gonna fall out of the sky. We're slowly descending from the sky. It's completely different."
"What's descending mean?"
"Descending is just going down, but not exactly falling."
"Oh okay, mommy!"
She giggled, now knowing that she got the idea. It was easy to distract her with simple answers. In a way, it was actually what it meant. Descending is technically just going down, but not straight down like people would when they fall. Plus, it was slow, which took a toll off of her worries of dying. When Coraline and Janelle saw the buildings of New York, she couldn't wait until they got to start rehearsing for Bad.
Arriving At The Hotel
Janelle just checked in and they were given the heads up that she was bringing her daughter with her. She got the key to the room and they walked down the hallways and since it was a big room, Coraline just had to question what it was called.
"What's a big room called, mommy?" She asked.
Janelle looked at her and smiled a little. "It's called a suite, sweetie. That's what a big room is called." She explained simply.
Coraline giggled a little and they entered the room. Coraline's eyes went wide and she ran into the room with her suitcase and immediately jumped onto the bed she was gonna be sharing with her mother. Janelle giggled a little and walked into the room and set her stuff by the dresser and sat down on the bed. Soon, she heard voices coming from in the suite next door. She got up and walked over to the wall and listened to what they were saying next door.
"Oh? The girl you got has a little one? When will I be able to meet her?" One asked.
"You'll meet her tomorrow since we start then, okay?" The other said.
She could tell the other voice was Martin. She was just trying to decipher who the other voice was. She walked away from the wall and looked back to see Coraline asleep on the bed. Janelle giggled a little and walked up to the bed and got on, laying back and soon falling asleep, Coraline cuddling up to her.