Sleepover
Ashley's POV
We get the kids settled on the couch with pillows, blankets, and stuffed animals. Apparently, over dinner, Quin and Carson had become fast friends and the two of them were playing a make-believe game with their stuffed animals. It was adorable.
"Okay! Are you guys ready to watch Encanto?" Dave asks them excitedly. The kids cheer and Quin just smiles.
We put on the movie and everyone seems to enjoy it. Claire was singing along and Quin's eyes were practically glued to the screen. By the time the movie was over it was 8:03.
"Alright!" Dave said, clapping his hands together, "Did you like it?" He asks, turning to Quin, who nodded her head.
"Okay then," I continue, "I think it's time to get ready for bed."
We helped the kids get ready for bed, and Quin and Claire insisted on sleeping in the living room to make it a real sleepover. After much pleading, we finally gave in. You're only a kid once, right? Then everyone went to bed and Dave and I went upstairs to our room.
"She's a cute kid," Dave said as he was sitting at the desk, working.
"Hmm?" I said, looking up from my book.
"Quin," Dave explained, "She's sweet."
"Yeah, she is," I said. I thought about telling Dave what I overheard, but it's probably nothing. Or at least I hope it's nothing. After a while, Dave and I went to bed, and I drifted off into a troubled sleep.
≈≈≈TIME SKIP, December 27th≈≈≈
The next morning I woke up and headed downstairs to find Quin strumming a guitar while Claire quietly sang the words to "Surface Pressure" from Encanto. I was surprised by the fact that after watching the movie once Quin was able to replicate the song so well. She was definitely a musical kid.
I started to make breakfast while I listened to Quin and Claire work on the song. There were too many words for the girls to remember, so Claire was humming for about half of the song. Eventually, they got it. Then Dave, Carson, and June came down and Dave walked over to me while June and Carson ran over to Quin and started talking.
"Morning." Dave said as he walked over to me, "So Quin is good with a guitar."
"Apparently" I responded as I mixed the pancake batter.
As we were talking, we heard Quin begin to play a new song on the piano. We stopped and listened, trying to figure out what song she was going to play. After a few seconds, Claire stopped her and began whispering excitedly in her ear before whispering to Carson and June. They all nodded and Quin began to play again. June ran over to Quin and sat next to her by the piano. Then Quin began to sing and we immediately recognized the song as "Some Things Never Change" from Frozen 2. We were shocked by Quin's voice. For a girl who claims to have never sung before, she sang incredibly well. Then we heard Carson begin to sing Kristoff's part.
We knew Carson had a good voice as well as amazing rhythm but Carson was never big on lyrics, he preferred to hum the song. However, somehow Claire had managed to convince both Quin and Carson to sing. Their performance was beyond adorable and amazing. Quin sang Anna's part, Claire sang Elsa's, Carson sang Kristoff's part and June got to sing Olaf's part. When they were finished I could tell that Dave was trying to figure out how the music video would work. I laughed as Dave stood there, obviously coming up with a plan for a video with those four. Then I walked over to the kids.
"That was amazing!" I said as I leaned over to pick June up. Quin beamed.
"Do you think we can make a video?" Claire asked me hopefully.
"Yes," I replied, "You definitely can."
For the rest of the day Quin and Claire practiced several songs which, with much pleading, Dave allowed them to put in one video. As well as filming a video of the girls interviewing each other, just for fun. We asked the girls a question about their favorite book or movie series and that was when we learned about Quin's love for the Marvel Universe. Quin seemed to be as interested in Marvel as Claire was interested in Harry Potter. We posted the videos with Susan and Peter's permission and then Quin went back to the house to spend time with her family.
YouTube Videos
Making Music With My New Friend - Covers by 9-year-old Claire Crosby and Quinnlynn Stephens (+Dave Crosby and 3-year-old June Crosby)
Songs:
"Surface Pressure" Encanto
"Show Yourself" Frozen 2
"The Next Right Thing" Frozen 2
"You've Got a Friend in Me" Toy Story
"The Schuyler Sisters" Hamilton
Claire and Quinnlynn Interview Each Other
Questions:
How old are you?
What's your favorite song? Why?
What's your favorite movie or book series? Why?
What do you want to be when you grow up?
Why do you like making music?
What is one dream that you have?