Instead of rolling out of bed like I normally do on a summer morning, I bounced out today. This was the day that I would be meeting Hanson! I was already psyched. I received a huge packet in the mail yesterday from school. I had a 3.6 GPA and I got back my projects from teachers, graded and everything. My English story had gotten a 96%, an A. My teacher loved the twist of the plot. I'd have to thank Nick for that idea.
I went downstairs and I had some cereal to eat. Mom was downstairs in the kitchen, getting a glass of orange juice.
"Hey, kiddo. Excited about today?" Mom asked.
"I've been excited about today ever since Nick came home!" I said. "Speaking of Nick, where is he?"
"He's still sleeping in. Him and Mandy stayed out late last night."
"Oh, okay." Mandy is Nick's girlfriend ever since Nick was in the tenth grade. I asked Nick once if he was ever going to propose to Mandy. He just laughed and said that right now, the only girl he wanted to have to take care of was me.
"What time are you guys leaving?" Mom asked me.
"The concert begins at 7:30, and we get to go backstage before and after the concert. It's about a 30 minute drive, so I'd say we're leaving here at.....4 or 4:30?"
"All right. You stay with Nick the whole time, okay? I don't want you running off with anybody else."
"Geez, Mom, I know!"
"Watch the tone."
"Sorry," I said. I went back to eating Fruity Pebbles.
"Dad said your packet from school came in the mail today. How did you do?" Mom asked me.
"I got a 3.6 GPA, a 96% on my English story, my math project got a 90%, my Social Studies paper got a 95%, my band playing test went very well, my health paper got an 88%, I did well in my athletic test, and my science project got a 98%. We have to go to school soon to pick it up, though, since it couldn't be mailed."
"Why don't we do that today?" Mom asked. "We can leave in about 30 minutes."
"That's cool," I said. It was 9:30 already. I finished my bowl of cereal and headed back to my room. I put on a pair of khaki shorts and a t-shirt from ASU that Nick got me. I put on a pair of sandals and my watch. I went to the bathroom to brush my teeth and my hair. I checked myself over in the mirror. Good enough for going up to school. I walked back to my room. I made my bed and I opened my window. It was 76 degrees outside. It was sunny out, and there were a few wisps of clouds out. Maybe later, I'd go over to Mack's house and swim. Mack's one of my good friends from school.
"Kelly!! Lets go!!" Mom yelled.
"Okay!" I said. I walked past Nick's room.
"Kelly? Where are you going?" Nick asked, half asleep.
"Up to school to get my science project," I said.
"Oh, okay," he said. He fell back asleep. I headed downstairs and Mom and I got into the car. We made it to school in about ten minutes. We walked through the doors and I went to my science room. My teacher, Mr. Davis, was in there, putting some stuff away.
"Hi Kelly, Hi Mrs. Settle," he said. "Come to get your project?"
"Sure did, hi Mr. Davis," I said.
"I'll get it for you, nice job by the way," he said. He walked to the back room and came back with my volcano.
"Here you go, kiddo. Have a great summer!"
"Thanks, Mr. Davis!" I said. Mom and I left and we went back home. By the time we got home, the shower was running.
"I guess Nick finally decided to get up," Mom observed.
"Yeah," I said.
"Is your room clean?" Mom asked me.
"No," I said, sighing, knowing what was coming next.
"I'd like you to clean it before you go to the concert tonight," she said.
"All right," I replied. I headed upstairs to start on it. I made my bed and I threw a few sheets of paper away before I sunk down on my bed. I couldn't believe that, by this time tomorrow, I will have met Isaac, Taylor, and Zac Hanson. As teenybopper as this sounds, I've been trying on every single outfit that I own. I don't want to look too teenybopper, but I don't want to look boring. I want to look just right. I was having trouble between a casual Hawaiian print sundress or going simple with a pair of khaki shorts and a long sleeved navy blue shirt from the Pier (it was supposed to be a little chilly tonight).
I heard a knock at my door. I jumped off my bed and made it look like I was cleaning.
"Come in," I said. My best friend Holly walked in.
"Hey Kelly," she said.
"Oh, hi Holly. I thought you were my mom," I said.
"So I can see," she said. "Excited about seeing Hanson tonight?"
"Oh my lord, you have no clue. Here, I'm going to try these outfits on, you tell me which you like best," I said.
"All right," Holly agreed. I changed into the sundress.
"What do you think?" I asked.
"Well, you'll need a strapless bra," she said.
"I know, I've got one, I think," I said. "If not, and this is really sad to say, I'll borrow my brother's."
"Nick has a strapless bra?" Holly asked increduously.
"Yeah...at ASU, they did a night where the guys dressed as girls and the girls dressed as guys."
"Wow," was all Holly could say.
"Okay, but besides the bra issue, what do you think? Is it appropriate to wear tonight?" I asked.
"You look fine in it....what about the other outfit?" she asked.
I changed into the khaki shorts and pulled on the long sleeved shirt.
"I like that outfit," she said. "Wear this necklace with in and your brown sandals," she said. The necklace she was referring to was this one I got on a trip to Colorado. It had an orange wooden VW beetle on it.
"Cool!" I said. "At least I have one thing off my mind," I said.
"What else is on your mind?" she asked.
"Oh, you know, thinking of the right things to say, trying not to look like a slob, not embarassing myself," I said. "I especially am worried about sounding like a teeny."
"You're going to sound like one if you get distracted about worrying over all those things," Holly pointed out. "Just be yourself. If they don't like you for you, then all the guys got going for them is that they happen to play good music."
"You're right," I said. "You're absolutely right."
"Of course I am," she said. "Now, do you want to go to the park with Jamie, Max, and Sara?"
"Sure, but I gotta change and I gotta finish cleaning my room," I said.
"Here, change, and I'll help you with the room," she said.
"Aw, thanks, Holly, you're my best friend!" I said in one of those weird voices.
"I know," she said jokingly with a grin.
I changed my clothes and then Holly and I finished cleaning around my computer, throwing clothes in the laundry, and picking all the junk up and putting it back where it belonged. By the time we were done, the room looked great.
"Awesome," I said. "I'm going to go tell Mom where we're going. Do you think we'll hit the beach?"
"Possibly," she said. "I've got my suit on underneath my clothes."
"Great! You should have told me earlier!" I said.
"I'll go tell your mom what we're doing, you change...again, and then we'll go to my house and tell the guys and Sara to come on over," she replied.
"That's cool," I said. Holly left my room and I changed into a one piece swimsuit. By the time I was done, Holly was back.
"Your mom said it was cool, so lets go!" she said. I put on an older pair of sneakers and I followed her outside.
"Be back by 3:00!" Mom yelled to me. It was 12:00 on the dot.
"Okay!" I yelled. "Bye!"
"Bye Mrs. Settle!" Holly yelled.
"Bye Kelly! Bye Holly!" Mom yelled back. We hopped out the front door and jumped on our bikes. We made it to Holly's in about five minutes. We dropped our bikes on the front porch and ran inside. I called people from Holly's house, and Holly started making sandwiches. I called Jamie and Sara's house (they're twins), and he said they'd be right down. I called Max and he said he'd be there in a few minutes as well. I helped Holly with the food, and by the time we were done, everybody had arrived.
"Hey guys," I said when they walked in.
"What's up, Kelly?" Jamie asked. He gave me a big hug. I hugged him back.
"Not much," I replied, grinning.
"That's cool," he said as we let go. Jamie continued on to Holly, and I hugged Sara and Max.
"So, are we going to the beach or the park?" Sara asked.
"I don't know, we'll get something worked out," I said. "The beach is closer, but the park will be a lot less crowded."
"True," she replied. Everybody came in, and it was decided that we'd go to the beach. Jamie, Max, and Sara came with backpacks. I borrowed one of Holly's and in them, we threw in our food, some sodas, a towel, and an inflatable beachball. The bags were packed. Still, we left the house and rode our bikes to the beach, ready to spend the afternoon hanging out and having an awesome time.
Chapter 3 *not yet up*
Chapter 1
Delicate Strands of Friendship
While We Grow
