• tab “Good morning Beverness High School! Please Stand for the Pledge of Allegiance...Tomorrow is the senior’s Graduation Raging Waters party! Make sure to turn in your permission slips...Today’s birthdays are...Natalie Merlin please return Mr. Henchlim’s shoe to the office immediately...If you are interested in drama camp over the summer, please get the sign up sheet at the office... Thank you for listening, and have a nice day!”
    tab Announcements; we hear them everyday, and trust me, there boring. Well, there boring in other classes, but in Ms. Smith’s English Class, also known as Gossip Central, it’s quite interesting. Ms. Smith is very alert and notices everything, but us girls whispering rumors too each other. If you were to hand a note to the person behind you, she’ll notice. If you were to look at someone else’s paper, totally busted. But gossiping about who likes who, it’s like she ignores it. Some say she was a teenager when she was younger.
    Doubt it.
    tab Whispers started to fill the room.
    tab “Did you here? Nat likes Josh!”
    tab “Old news, everyone knows. It’s pretty obvious.”
    tab “Oh. Well, spread the word anyway,” the two girls in front of us giggled.
    tab “Wow,” Haley whispered to me, “Spread old news. You’re risking your reputation; everyone will think your behind on the Crush Status.”
    tab “Well then, why don’t they spread a new word?” I smirked
    tab “What?”
    tab “I heard from certain recourses-well, that Josh likes Nat back!”
    tab “Now that’s good new news.” Grace Mill, or as some call her, the Gossip Queen. She knows every single rumor, true or fake, yet she’s clueless when it comes to school. “That’s the bestest word ever to be spreaded.”
    tab “No Grace,” Ms. Smith corrected from in front of the class. “The correct way to say it is: ‘That’s the best word ever to be spread.’”
    tab The class giggled and Grace sunk into her seat.
    tab Whispers once again arose.
    tab “I heard from someone that Michael asked Victoriana on a date.”
    tab “I heard that Michael and Victoriana are in total love!”
    tab “I heard that they’re going to get married!”
    tab “Look, Victoriana must be thinking about the wedding; her face is blank.”

    tab No, I was just thinking about Michael, the date tonight, and maybe what our wedding would be like…

    ~*~*~*~

    tab That night, Haley came over to my house to help me get ready for my first, yes first, date. And I know I’m a sophomore, but no ones really liked me. That’s a lie; a billion guys asked me to a dance, for dinner, and for a movie ever since 9th grade, but I turned them all down. I was waiting for the perfect guy, Michael.
    tab Haley let me borrow her huge hoop earrings. She placed a group of strands of my hair inside the hoop. She stated, “Tonight, when he drops you off on your porch, he’ll notice the hoop and...BAM!” He clapped. “He’s in your trap.”
    tab “And what, is he going to kiss me or something?”
    tab “If you’re lucky.” Haley beamed, “It shouldn’t be a problem Tory, and you’ve had practice.”
    tab It’s true, well, kind of. I’ve kissed a boy once, when I was in 7th grade. I was in the drama class, and I had to kiss this really cute 8th grader for, I don’t know, 3 minutes. The teacher made us kiss for 10 minutes, trying to get us in the right blocking and stuff like that. He wasn’t that good of a kisser, but it was still heavenly.
    tab “Yeah,” I shrugged. “I guess.”
    tab “Ok,” Haley slipped out something from her pink makeover bag. “Now for the finishing touch,” She clipped a sparkly little bow in my hair. She studied me, her face looked approving. “Now it’s time for our ‘Before and After’.”
    tab She lightly dragged me to my full length mirror, which had a full body picture of me before the renovation. Wow, I never noticed how my hair was so frizzy.
    tab “Ok,” Haley grinned. “Here’s the Before, and now for the After!” Haley ripped off the picture on the mirror, and a hot, sexy chic was left in the mirror. That dress really brought out my curves.
    tab “Ohmigod!” I screamed. “I’ve been Haley-fied!”
    tab “You’re welcome for making you even hotter than you were before!”
    tab She was right, again. I did look hotter. I turned sideways, still looking in the mirror. I made a comment, “If I were a guy, I would so date me!”
    tab “Me too,” Haley replied.
    tab There was a short pause, and then we both burst into laughter. The doorbell suddenly rang, and a few knocks followed.
    tab “Your husband awaits,” Haley looked at her watch and smiled. “He loves you so much, he’s five minutes early.”
    tab We strut down the stairs, giggling. I reached the door, took a deep breath, and opened it. Michael was standing outside, one hand in his pocket, and another holding a red rose. He handed it to me.
    tab “Thank you.” I blushed
    tab Michael was wearing a white, short sleeved polo shirt, with a radiant yellow sweater vest with a lavender argyle pattern. He was also wearing black, nice dress pants with sneakers. 50% casual, 50% date-ish and 100% cute!!!
    tab He tiptoe inside the house and kissed me lightly on my cheek. Michael then stepped back and stared at me wide eyed. It was more like he was staring at what I was wearing.
    tab “Wow Tory. You look -“
    “Amazing,” Haley quickly filled in. I elbowed her in the stomach. "Ow!"
    tab Michael smiled, “Yes, exactly.”
    tab “Yes, thank you. I’m flattered.” I quickly scampered to Michael’s side and hooked arms. “But I think we better go now before-“
    tab “Tory, honey, wait!” My mom swiftly jogged from the living room, holding a camera-my camera! She’s been in my room?
    tab Why do parents have to be so embarrassing?
    tab “Tory wait. I need to take a picture.”
    tab “No mom,” I confirmed. “Michael and I just need to leave-”
    tab “Not without a picture.” Then Mom turned Michael. “This is her first date…”
    tab “Mom-”
    tab “I just have to put this moment in her scrapbook, which we’ve been putting together ever since she was a baby…”
    tab “Mom-”
    tab “My baby’s growing up so fast-”
    tab “MOM!”
    tab She flinched, “Yes hun?”
    tab I unhooked arms with Michael and inched toward Mom. “Shut Up!” I whispered loudly to her. Mom’s can be so annoying!
    tab “Ok sorry.”
    tab There was a long silence. Mom broke it by murmuring, “Please? Just one?”
    tab “No.”
    tab “Please?”
    tab “No.”
    tab “Please?”
    tab “No.”
    tab “Please?”
    tab “No.”
    tab “Please?”
    tab “Fine.” I glared at her. “Only one mom. One, O.N.E. one, Uno, just-”
    tab “I get it.” Mom then glared at the camera and frowned. “Now I just need to figure out how to turn this thing on.”
    tab I glanced at Haley. She seemed to be enjoying the quarrel. I could tell she was trying to hold back laughter; her hand was over her mouth. Why don’t you get popcorn while you’re at it?
    tab “Ok I got it.” Mom announced. “Say cheese.”

    tab Click!

    tab “Ok.” I snatched my jacket and purse. “Let’s go Michael.”
    tab Haley grabbed my arm and mumbled in my ear, “Tell me everything.” I smiled at her as I walked out the door.



    (Read Part 3 to continue)