Hearts and Minds Application
Mun Info
Name/online handle: Brianna/Bri
Personal LJ: wilderebellion
Email: wilderebellion@aol.com
AIM/Yahoo/MSN/etc: Abhorrentdelight and effervescentgoth
Character Info
Character: Tina Cohen-Chang
Fandom: Glee
Point of Entry: Just after “Silly Love Songs” (Season 2, episode 12)
Media: (book, movie, TV, etc) TV
Character Journal: ”morbidbubbles”/
Voicemail Link: http://morbidbubbles.livejournal.com/998.html
Phone Number: 555-GOTH
Background: (at least 150 words, please) *(Mun note: The adopted part of Tina’s past is something that will be shown in canon soon, as confirmed by Jenna Ushkowitz to TV Guide. Even though I am taking her from Season 2, I’m trying to get in the habit of implementing this part of Tina’s canon, rather than play her with having biological parents and then having to retcon it later and complicate everybody’s RP lives.)*
Tina Cohen-Chang is adopted, but that does not mean she isn’t loved by her parents. Her father is a quirky businessman whom Tina’s got wrapped around her finger, while her mother is a bit more strict, refusing to let her see films like Twilight based upon the reasoning that ‘Kristen Stewart looks like a bitch’. Despite her primarily happy family dynamic, Tina had difficulty in social situations once she started school. She had difficulty making friends, and sometimes she was even too shy to ask the teacher an important question.
This continued into middle school, where she slowly adopted her trademark gothic style in order to express herself despite her social obstacles. In sixth grade her anxiety reached a peak when, in order to avoid giving a speech on the Missouri Compromise, Tina faked a stutter. The teacher permitted her to sit down, and she realized she had a way to avoid social situations that made her uneasy. So she kept up the appearance of a stutter for the next several years - it added to the teasing she already experienced for her weird style of dress, but she still continued with it.
In high school, she did make a few select friends - Mercedes Jones, Kurt Hummel, and Artie Abrams. Those friendships were strengthened through the shared experience of Glee club, under the tutelage of Will Schuester. Though she wasn’t the club’s showcase star, Tina did have her own talents and she did her best to use them to contribute to the club. She slowly came out of her shell, and took a huge step forward when she admitted her romantic feelings and her fake stutter to her friend Artie.
Once they got past the Stuttergate incident, Tina and Artie began to date, and despite their appearance as an ‘odd’ couple, they made it work. At least, until the summer; Artie became more concerned with videogames than being with Tina. Hurt by her neglectful boyfriend, she found solace in her burgeoning relationship with Mike Chang, who was her fellow Glee Clubber and co-counselor that summer at Asian Camp. Eventually a spark ignited between the two, and they shared a passionate kiss right in front of their campers. Soon after, Tina broke things off with Artie to pursue her feelings for Mike. So far they’ve been an extremely successful couple, though not without their obstacles. But it seems, now that Tina’s been brought to the village, that perhaps there is more going on beneath the surface of their so-called ‘perfect’ relationship.
Personality: (at least 100 words, please) For almost all her life, Tina has been the shy girl in the corner that kept to herself; it started in elementary school, not knowing how to make friends, and it was a problem that plagued her until high school. She made a few friends here and there over the years, but eventually they moved on to more popular crowds and left Tina behind. She kept herself occupied by reading and occasionally doodling in notebooks or, when she only had a pen and no paper, on her skin.
She’s also the kind of girl who tends to wear her heart on sleeve, and this combined with her usually compassionate nature makes her prone to crying (i.e. “Dream On”, “Journey”, “Silly Love Songs”). However, when provoked, Tina can unless a fury that many wouldn’t believe her capable of. For instance, when her boyfriend Artie’s objectification of her finally pushed her to the limit, she angrily confronted him and declared that she was a real woman with feelings and that he needed to respect her or he would be taken out by her “righteous blade of equality”.
Physical Description: Tina Cohen-Chang is a young Asian-American female of approximately seventeen years of age. She is 5’2”, with brown eyes and very dark brown hair (often mistaken for black) that she likes to ‘liven up’ by putting in colorful streaks such as pink, blue, or purple. She has a primarily gothic style of dress, varying from punky to more Victorian style.
Does your pup have any special powers/abilities/gifts that we should be aware of? (i.e. super healing, telepathic etc) No.
What brings your character to the village? What does he need to learn/achieve, etc? (at least 100 words, please - can be anything big or small) Currently, Tina needs to sort out herself and her feelings. Lately she’s been noticing how much her life has changed in the past year, and she’s worried that not all of those changes are good. Primarily her biggest concern is the repercussions of her disastrous “My Funny Valentine” performance in Glee Club, where she broke down crying and declaring her love for Mike Chang. But are those feelings really as strong as she’s letting on, or is there something she’s hiding, even from herself? Tina needs to rediscover herself and stop trying to be what other people in her life want her to be. She needs to learn to be true to herself again.
Why do you want to play this character? (at least 100 words, please) I’ve been roleplaying as Tina on livejournal for nearly a year now with very little criticism from other players, so I’m fairly confident I’ve got a strong hold on her voice. I relate to her on a strong level, and in general there are very few people who play her anyway; both in canon and in RP world she’s rather underappreciated. I enjoy being able to flesh out her personality and show a side to her that the canon has yet to share with its audience. Plus, the Artie here (”dancnwithmyself”/) has become my de-facto RP partner in crime, and I owe the mun many thanks for all the wonderful ArtiexTina scenes we’ve accomplished over the past year, and I’m looking forward to many more!
Please list all your pups: (Name/fandom - not journal names. Only required for current players.) N/A
Have you been active in the last 8 weeks with ALL of your pups, if not - why and which pups? (Active - in at least one thread longer than ten tags each. Only required for current players.) N/A
Character based writing sample: (RP, journal, fan fic, anything really that features the character you are applying for. At least 250 words, please. Only required for new players.)
[Sample from ”mckinleyrewind”, a Season 1 redux; the scene features some self-reflection on the part of Tina. ]
Thoughts of the week thus far were weighing heavily on Tina's mind. There had been a couple of good things in the week - like reviving her friendship with Artie and making a new friend at one of the Chicago rehearsals. But most of the stuff on her mind was negative.
Monday had been the two week mark of her uncomfortable silence with Artie, and then they'd been randomly put together for the Duets assignment in Glee. They'd both awkwardly agreed to a truce for the sake of the project, but that left Tina feeling more nervous than ever. Tuesday at lunch they'd met in the choir room to try and work out a song, but instead Tina's nerves had forced them into working out (a few of) their issues. And they'd picked a song, though its source was a mystery to both of them.
Tina had written a list of possible song choices on Monday evening, and when she showed it to Artie at lunch on Tuesday, there was an extra song listed that wasn't in her handwriting. It creeped her out, and not in the cool way. But they had both liked the song. Artie had joked that there was a ghost at McKinley High, and she wanted to believe it because it was the only thing that made sense.
It was midnight and Tina couldn't sleep. There'd been an early-morning rehearsal for the musical, which left her ridiculously tired through most of the day. As soon as she got home, she'd crashed into a three hour nap. And now she was paying for it because she couldn't sleep and she was alone with her thoughts.
She sat up in bed and begrudgingly reached to turn on her lamp. The fabric of the sheer black curtains tied to the posts of her canopy bed brushed her face and she swatted at it in annoyance.
If there was a ghost at McKinley High, why was he/she/whatever getting involved in her life? She didn't think there was anything particularly special a ghost would want with her. Was it because of the way she dressed? Was the ghost stereotyping her like everyone else at school? Why had the ghost suggested a song that Tina was just now realizing sounded like her unresolved feelings for Artie?
She sat there on her bed, her legs curled up to her chest, just staring down at the fabric of her pajama pants, trying to keep her mind occupied. No such luck. Her pajamas had Gir, the Invader Zim character, raving about tacos. She liked tacos a lot. But tacos made her think of Artie (who she also liked a lot) - she'd never tried them until she'd visited his house in the earlier days of their friendship.
Tina groaned and threw her legs over to sit on the edge of her bed. Her radio and cd player was on the floor - she'd practiced her part of the duet earlier after dinner with a CD she'd burned of the song. She didn't know why she was torturing herself like this, but she pushed the play button on the front of the cd player with her toe.
She zoned out, thinking more about Artie and the one issue they hadn't talked about. They'd mentioned it briefly during their reconciliation, but neither of them had the guts to ask what it meant. They'd kissed and confessed they both liked each other. For a brief moment Tina thought that they were going to be something more than just friends. But in her attempt to be honest, misguided in thinking that Artie would understand, she confessed to faking her stutter. And...it was a major disaster.
She laid down, her arms behind her head as she stared at the ceiling, not really focusing on it at all. Even though she understood Artie's reasons a little more now, and he knew her side, she couldn't stop feeling guilty. As the song continued, the thoughts she'd been trying so hard to avoid came tumbling across her mind. "So what if he said he liked you? That was then. You lied to him. Just 'cause he forgave you doesn't mean he wants to be with you. Who would want to be with a liar?" If Tina had been in Artie's place she honestly didn't know if she would forgive a lie like that. She rolled onto her side and began to cry softly into her pillow. She didn't even really know what she was crying for - was it because she regretted letting the lie go on so long? Or the fact that she had feelings for someone that she doubted would ever be returned? She didn't know, and she didn't want to analyze anymore, she just wanted to cry and hope it would make her feel better.
When Tina woke up in the morning to her alarm she couldn't remember if she'd felt better or even at what time she'd gone to sleep. She was vaguely aware that her CD player was shut off and had moved away from her bed, but in the post-sleep grogginess she didn't think much of it.
After showering and getting dressed for the day, she sat herself down at the kitchen table with a simple bowl of cereal. Thinking that today she'd have to perform with Artie made her uneasy, but she still went through the motions of eating, forcing the milk-covered flakes down her throat with each spoonful. Most days of the week her mother made breakfast, but Mrs. Cohen-Chang had the day off today from work and was using it to sleep in. Tina didn't mind, especially since it meant that Dad would drive her to school today.
Her dad spent half of the morning on the phone with a colleague bickering about some such paperwork in a business-y lingo that Tina hoped she never learned to speak. Mr. Cohen-Chang didn't finally hang up the phone until they were on the road.
"Glad it's Friday?"
Tina shrugged from the passenger side, her shoulder bag sitting at her feet. "N-not r-r-really," she confessed, reverting to her stutter. After the blow-up with Artie she couldn't bring herself to confess to her parents that her stutter was fake. Her parents were a lot more social than she was - they wouldn't get the idea of wanting to drive people away. Plus, she knew her mother would be pissed at how much time and money they'd invested in her speech therapist. So all she could hope to do was keep using her stutter at home and let it dwindle over time, and let them think she got over it. Maybe they'd buy it.
"Why not, Tini?" her father asked. "You've got the weekend to look forward to, and uh, your club meets today, right?"
She nodded, ignoring the fact that he used her ridiculous 'nickname' from when she was two. "Y-yeah, but th-that's why I'm n-n-nervous. Artie and I are p-performing together and...I...I'm afraid I'm gonna mess it up."
"Oh, Artie, huh? That's a name I haven't heard in awhile," Mr. Cohen-Chang said nonchalantly. "I was starting to think something was wrong...you've been quiet..er than normal lately." As they stopped at a red light, her father looked over at her. "What makes you think you'll mess up? Don't like the song?"
Tina stared out the window as they started driving again, but shook her head slightly in response. "...N-no. The song's not b-bad, but....I messed up with him before and I don’t want it to happen again.”
“Look, Tini - I don’t know all that much about music - at least, not what you and your friends call music. But it’s a song - like any other little thing in life, you’re going to mess it up a bit before you get it right. Do you think those hip-hoppers get their stuff right on the first try?”
“…Dad, I don’t think they’re c-called-“
“Oh, you know what I mean,” he replied as they pulled into the McKinley High parking lot. He gently placed a hand on her shoulder. “It’s just a song - have fun with it. Unless of course this is a life or death situation, where your entire life depends on this moment and should you fail the Earth will explode in on itself and the damned aliens will win.” The last half of the sentence Mr. Cohen-Chang stated over-dramatically, prompting a genuine laugh from his daughter.
“You’re b-been watching too many m-movies, Daddy. But I get it,” she replied, unfastening her seatbelt and picking up her bag. “I’ll t-try my b-best.”
“That’s all anyone can ask you for,” her father replied as she got out of the car. He rolled down the window before she walked away. “Except for maybe a thank you for your father for teaching you to broaden your musical horizons?”
Tina stared at him blankly but he didn’t seem to notice.
“I’ve been trying for ages to get you to listen to some of my music, but I heard you practicing yesterday and I’m glad to see you took my latest suggestion. Oh, be a little more careful about listening to music at night, it was pretty loud when I came to check on you last night. Thank goodness your mother didn’t wake up. Good luck, today, okay?”
As her father drove off with an oblivious wave, Tina stood there on the sidewalk, stunned. If anyone had taken the opportunity to slushie her at this exact moment, she probably would have choked on whatever remnants landed in her wide-open mouth. After several minutes she finally remembered how to move her jaw.
“……No……freaking……way.”
There wasn’t a ghost at McKinley High. There was a ghost at her house, and she called him Dad.
Name/online handle: Brianna/Bri
Personal LJ: wilderebellion
Email: wilderebellion@aol.com
AIM/Yahoo/MSN/etc: Abhorrentdelight and effervescentgoth
Character Info
Character: Tina Cohen-Chang
Fandom: Glee
Point of Entry: Just after “Silly Love Songs” (Season 2, episode 12)
Media: (book, movie, TV, etc) TV
Character Journal: ”morbidbubbles”/
Voicemail Link: http://morbidbubbles.livejournal.com/998.html
Phone Number: 555-GOTH
Background: (at least 150 words, please) *(Mun note: The adopted part of Tina’s past is something that will be shown in canon soon, as confirmed by Jenna Ushkowitz to TV Guide. Even though I am taking her from Season 2, I’m trying to get in the habit of implementing this part of Tina’s canon, rather than play her with having biological parents and then having to retcon it later and complicate everybody’s RP lives.)*
Tina Cohen-Chang is adopted, but that does not mean she isn’t loved by her parents. Her father is a quirky businessman whom Tina’s got wrapped around her finger, while her mother is a bit more strict, refusing to let her see films like Twilight based upon the reasoning that ‘Kristen Stewart looks like a bitch’. Despite her primarily happy family dynamic, Tina had difficulty in social situations once she started school. She had difficulty making friends, and sometimes she was even too shy to ask the teacher an important question.
This continued into middle school, where she slowly adopted her trademark gothic style in order to express herself despite her social obstacles. In sixth grade her anxiety reached a peak when, in order to avoid giving a speech on the Missouri Compromise, Tina faked a stutter. The teacher permitted her to sit down, and she realized she had a way to avoid social situations that made her uneasy. So she kept up the appearance of a stutter for the next several years - it added to the teasing she already experienced for her weird style of dress, but she still continued with it.
In high school, she did make a few select friends - Mercedes Jones, Kurt Hummel, and Artie Abrams. Those friendships were strengthened through the shared experience of Glee club, under the tutelage of Will Schuester. Though she wasn’t the club’s showcase star, Tina did have her own talents and she did her best to use them to contribute to the club. She slowly came out of her shell, and took a huge step forward when she admitted her romantic feelings and her fake stutter to her friend Artie.
Once they got past the Stuttergate incident, Tina and Artie began to date, and despite their appearance as an ‘odd’ couple, they made it work. At least, until the summer; Artie became more concerned with videogames than being with Tina. Hurt by her neglectful boyfriend, she found solace in her burgeoning relationship with Mike Chang, who was her fellow Glee Clubber and co-counselor that summer at Asian Camp. Eventually a spark ignited between the two, and they shared a passionate kiss right in front of their campers. Soon after, Tina broke things off with Artie to pursue her feelings for Mike. So far they’ve been an extremely successful couple, though not without their obstacles. But it seems, now that Tina’s been brought to the village, that perhaps there is more going on beneath the surface of their so-called ‘perfect’ relationship.
Personality: (at least 100 words, please) For almost all her life, Tina has been the shy girl in the corner that kept to herself; it started in elementary school, not knowing how to make friends, and it was a problem that plagued her until high school. She made a few friends here and there over the years, but eventually they moved on to more popular crowds and left Tina behind. She kept herself occupied by reading and occasionally doodling in notebooks or, when she only had a pen and no paper, on her skin.
She’s also the kind of girl who tends to wear her heart on sleeve, and this combined with her usually compassionate nature makes her prone to crying (i.e. “Dream On”, “Journey”, “Silly Love Songs”). However, when provoked, Tina can unless a fury that many wouldn’t believe her capable of. For instance, when her boyfriend Artie’s objectification of her finally pushed her to the limit, she angrily confronted him and declared that she was a real woman with feelings and that he needed to respect her or he would be taken out by her “righteous blade of equality”.
Physical Description: Tina Cohen-Chang is a young Asian-American female of approximately seventeen years of age. She is 5’2”, with brown eyes and very dark brown hair (often mistaken for black) that she likes to ‘liven up’ by putting in colorful streaks such as pink, blue, or purple. She has a primarily gothic style of dress, varying from punky to more Victorian style.
Does your pup have any special powers/abilities/gifts that we should be aware of? (i.e. super healing, telepathic etc) No.
What brings your character to the village? What does he need to learn/achieve, etc? (at least 100 words, please - can be anything big or small) Currently, Tina needs to sort out herself and her feelings. Lately she’s been noticing how much her life has changed in the past year, and she’s worried that not all of those changes are good. Primarily her biggest concern is the repercussions of her disastrous “My Funny Valentine” performance in Glee Club, where she broke down crying and declaring her love for Mike Chang. But are those feelings really as strong as she’s letting on, or is there something she’s hiding, even from herself? Tina needs to rediscover herself and stop trying to be what other people in her life want her to be. She needs to learn to be true to herself again.
Why do you want to play this character? (at least 100 words, please) I’ve been roleplaying as Tina on livejournal for nearly a year now with very little criticism from other players, so I’m fairly confident I’ve got a strong hold on her voice. I relate to her on a strong level, and in general there are very few people who play her anyway; both in canon and in RP world she’s rather underappreciated. I enjoy being able to flesh out her personality and show a side to her that the canon has yet to share with its audience. Plus, the Artie here (”dancnwithmyself”/) has become my de-facto RP partner in crime, and I owe the mun many thanks for all the wonderful ArtiexTina scenes we’ve accomplished over the past year, and I’m looking forward to many more!
Please list all your pups: (Name/fandom - not journal names. Only required for current players.) N/A
Have you been active in the last 8 weeks with ALL of your pups, if not - why and which pups? (Active - in at least one thread longer than ten tags each. Only required for current players.) N/A
Character based writing sample: (RP, journal, fan fic, anything really that features the character you are applying for. At least 250 words, please. Only required for new players.)
[Sample from ”mckinleyrewind”, a Season 1 redux; the scene features some self-reflection on the part of Tina. ]
Thoughts of the week thus far were weighing heavily on Tina's mind. There had been a couple of good things in the week - like reviving her friendship with Artie and making a new friend at one of the Chicago rehearsals. But most of the stuff on her mind was negative.
Monday had been the two week mark of her uncomfortable silence with Artie, and then they'd been randomly put together for the Duets assignment in Glee. They'd both awkwardly agreed to a truce for the sake of the project, but that left Tina feeling more nervous than ever. Tuesday at lunch they'd met in the choir room to try and work out a song, but instead Tina's nerves had forced them into working out (a few of) their issues. And they'd picked a song, though its source was a mystery to both of them.
Tina had written a list of possible song choices on Monday evening, and when she showed it to Artie at lunch on Tuesday, there was an extra song listed that wasn't in her handwriting. It creeped her out, and not in the cool way. But they had both liked the song. Artie had joked that there was a ghost at McKinley High, and she wanted to believe it because it was the only thing that made sense.
It was midnight and Tina couldn't sleep. There'd been an early-morning rehearsal for the musical, which left her ridiculously tired through most of the day. As soon as she got home, she'd crashed into a three hour nap. And now she was paying for it because she couldn't sleep and she was alone with her thoughts.
She sat up in bed and begrudgingly reached to turn on her lamp. The fabric of the sheer black curtains tied to the posts of her canopy bed brushed her face and she swatted at it in annoyance.
If there was a ghost at McKinley High, why was he/she/whatever getting involved in her life? She didn't think there was anything particularly special a ghost would want with her. Was it because of the way she dressed? Was the ghost stereotyping her like everyone else at school? Why had the ghost suggested a song that Tina was just now realizing sounded like her unresolved feelings for Artie?
She sat there on her bed, her legs curled up to her chest, just staring down at the fabric of her pajama pants, trying to keep her mind occupied. No such luck. Her pajamas had Gir, the Invader Zim character, raving about tacos. She liked tacos a lot. But tacos made her think of Artie (who she also liked a lot) - she'd never tried them until she'd visited his house in the earlier days of their friendship.
Tina groaned and threw her legs over to sit on the edge of her bed. Her radio and cd player was on the floor - she'd practiced her part of the duet earlier after dinner with a CD she'd burned of the song. She didn't know why she was torturing herself like this, but she pushed the play button on the front of the cd player with her toe.
She zoned out, thinking more about Artie and the one issue they hadn't talked about. They'd mentioned it briefly during their reconciliation, but neither of them had the guts to ask what it meant. They'd kissed and confessed they both liked each other. For a brief moment Tina thought that they were going to be something more than just friends. But in her attempt to be honest, misguided in thinking that Artie would understand, she confessed to faking her stutter. And...it was a major disaster.
She laid down, her arms behind her head as she stared at the ceiling, not really focusing on it at all. Even though she understood Artie's reasons a little more now, and he knew her side, she couldn't stop feeling guilty. As the song continued, the thoughts she'd been trying so hard to avoid came tumbling across her mind. "So what if he said he liked you? That was then. You lied to him. Just 'cause he forgave you doesn't mean he wants to be with you. Who would want to be with a liar?" If Tina had been in Artie's place she honestly didn't know if she would forgive a lie like that. She rolled onto her side and began to cry softly into her pillow. She didn't even really know what she was crying for - was it because she regretted letting the lie go on so long? Or the fact that she had feelings for someone that she doubted would ever be returned? She didn't know, and she didn't want to analyze anymore, she just wanted to cry and hope it would make her feel better.
When Tina woke up in the morning to her alarm she couldn't remember if she'd felt better or even at what time she'd gone to sleep. She was vaguely aware that her CD player was shut off and had moved away from her bed, but in the post-sleep grogginess she didn't think much of it.
After showering and getting dressed for the day, she sat herself down at the kitchen table with a simple bowl of cereal. Thinking that today she'd have to perform with Artie made her uneasy, but she still went through the motions of eating, forcing the milk-covered flakes down her throat with each spoonful. Most days of the week her mother made breakfast, but Mrs. Cohen-Chang had the day off today from work and was using it to sleep in. Tina didn't mind, especially since it meant that Dad would drive her to school today.
Her dad spent half of the morning on the phone with a colleague bickering about some such paperwork in a business-y lingo that Tina hoped she never learned to speak. Mr. Cohen-Chang didn't finally hang up the phone until they were on the road.
"Glad it's Friday?"
Tina shrugged from the passenger side, her shoulder bag sitting at her feet. "N-not r-r-really," she confessed, reverting to her stutter. After the blow-up with Artie she couldn't bring herself to confess to her parents that her stutter was fake. Her parents were a lot more social than she was - they wouldn't get the idea of wanting to drive people away. Plus, she knew her mother would be pissed at how much time and money they'd invested in her speech therapist. So all she could hope to do was keep using her stutter at home and let it dwindle over time, and let them think she got over it. Maybe they'd buy it.
"Why not, Tini?" her father asked. "You've got the weekend to look forward to, and uh, your club meets today, right?"
She nodded, ignoring the fact that he used her ridiculous 'nickname' from when she was two. "Y-yeah, but th-that's why I'm n-n-nervous. Artie and I are p-performing together and...I...I'm afraid I'm gonna mess it up."
"Oh, Artie, huh? That's a name I haven't heard in awhile," Mr. Cohen-Chang said nonchalantly. "I was starting to think something was wrong...you've been quiet..er than normal lately." As they stopped at a red light, her father looked over at her. "What makes you think you'll mess up? Don't like the song?"
Tina stared out the window as they started driving again, but shook her head slightly in response. "...N-no. The song's not b-bad, but....I messed up with him before and I don’t want it to happen again.”
“Look, Tini - I don’t know all that much about music - at least, not what you and your friends call music. But it’s a song - like any other little thing in life, you’re going to mess it up a bit before you get it right. Do you think those hip-hoppers get their stuff right on the first try?”
“…Dad, I don’t think they’re c-called-“
“Oh, you know what I mean,” he replied as they pulled into the McKinley High parking lot. He gently placed a hand on her shoulder. “It’s just a song - have fun with it. Unless of course this is a life or death situation, where your entire life depends on this moment and should you fail the Earth will explode in on itself and the damned aliens will win.” The last half of the sentence Mr. Cohen-Chang stated over-dramatically, prompting a genuine laugh from his daughter.
“You’re b-been watching too many m-movies, Daddy. But I get it,” she replied, unfastening her seatbelt and picking up her bag. “I’ll t-try my b-best.”
“That’s all anyone can ask you for,” her father replied as she got out of the car. He rolled down the window before she walked away. “Except for maybe a thank you for your father for teaching you to broaden your musical horizons?”
Tina stared at him blankly but he didn’t seem to notice.
“I’ve been trying for ages to get you to listen to some of my music, but I heard you practicing yesterday and I’m glad to see you took my latest suggestion. Oh, be a little more careful about listening to music at night, it was pretty loud when I came to check on you last night. Thank goodness your mother didn’t wake up. Good luck, today, okay?”
As her father drove off with an oblivious wave, Tina stood there on the sidewalk, stunned. If anyone had taken the opportunity to slushie her at this exact moment, she probably would have choked on whatever remnants landed in her wide-open mouth. After several minutes she finally remembered how to move her jaw.
“……No……freaking……way.”
There wasn’t a ghost at McKinley High. There was a ghost at her house, and she called him Dad.