When my dad announced that he’d gotten the job at State, I wasn’t happy. I mean, who wants to move and change high schools just before their junior year? I’d be leaving everything I’d worked for, and I knew how hard it would be to make new friends wherever we moved. The cliques had already formed, and it would be almost impossible to work my way into the ‘in’ group. I should know, because I ran our ‘in’ group, and newcomers need not apply.
Then I did a little research on where we were moving. OMG! We were landing in some backwoods version of
What made the move tolerable was my Grandma Davenport. Mom’s side of the family had founded L Brands, which included stores like The Limited, Bath and Body Works, and Victoria’s Secret. When I was growing up, my grandmother always called me her princess. She made me feel special and told me fairy tales. When we arrived in what I’d taken to calling ‘Pittsville,’ she was waiting for us.
“I’ve added a few things,” Grandma announced.
“What have you done now?” my mom asked.
“I’ve added some walking trails. Come, I want you to see them.”
My mom, dad, and I followed her into the woods behind the house. It was so peaceful. We emerged into an open meadow with a lake. Beside the lake stood three little cabins that looked like they’d come right out of a storybook.
“I had them build three of them so you each could have your own getaway.”
Dad’s log cabin had stone floors and a big window that overlooked the lake. Mom got a light and airy cottage painted in muted pinks and pastel greens. Mine looked like it came out of the pages of the books my grandma used to read to me, with a big fireplace. I could see myself curled up next to a crackling fire while reading a book. On one wall I found a bookcase full of the stories my grandma used to read to me.
“I thought you might want them for when you have children,” she explained.
◊◊◊
I resolved not to let my change in location ruin my junior year. The first step was to join the cheerleading squad. On the first day of tryouts, I discovered I wasn’t the only new girl. Halle James, the daughter of movie star Rita James, had also just moved into the area. The other new girl, Zoe Pearson, had been homeschooled, of all things. The three of us gravitated to one another for support.
During a break the second day, Halle admitted they’d moved here for her brother’s drug rehab. That explained a lot because I couldn’t figure out why they would move here. Then she mentioned she knew Lincoln High’s star quarterback, David Dawson. It wasn’t hard to find out about him because I think he’d dated all the cheerleaders already here at some point. Halle explained that they’d been in a movie together, and they’d gotten close.
Zoe shocked me when she admitted to having a crush on him. David had talked to her parents to get her younger brother out of homeschool hell so he could go out for football. She’d told her parents she wasn’t going to be the only one stuck at home. I admired her spunk.
When cheerleading practice finished, we’d all gone swimming at Tracy Dole’s. In walked Lincoln’s Big Man on Campus with his dog. Every girl there turned to watch him. David had a ready smile that lit up the room. My first thought was, ‘Please, Lord, don’t let him be gay.’ At my old school, all the guys who looked that good were. From the stories I’d heard, he wasn’t.
David, of course, was dating the head cheerleader, Mona Wingman. I mean, how cliché! I hoped he was some empty-headed jock because I had a bad feeling he could be trouble. Then that bitch, Halle, smiled at him and began to flirt. She brazenly invited him to dinner.
I marched up before she could steal him for herself, having already forgotten he belonged to Mona.
“Are you going to introduce us?” I asked.
Our eyes locked, and I heard Mona mumble, “Oh shit!” She walked up and jabbed him in the ribs to get his attention. Inside I was jumping up and down because I’d seen that look in guys’ eyes before. It wouldn’t be long before he was mine. Little did I know how wrong I would be about that.
Turned out, David was just a big kid. Mona lured him over by the pool and pushed him in, clothes and all. I expected him to get mad, but he just went into the house and changed into his swimsuit. He came out, grabbed Mona, and they both went into the pool. Soon we had a giant water fight going with him in the middle of it all.
◊◊◊
I quickly found out that David had just broken up with an idiot girl from some private school. That meant that David and Mona’s relationship was new. She could be his rebound girl. Meanwhile, I wanted to find someone to date. Back home, I’d found it easy to get into clubs, which meant college guys were my main focus. They were just more confident and a better time. My mom had a long talk with me and encouraged me to give high school boys a chance.
