And so, somewhat reluctantly, they set to doing homework. But before they finished up and went home, they decided to meet during the following weekend to put together their Lonely Hearts Club packages.
“We should plan on several hours to get it all done,” said Morgan. “How about if we meet at one o’clock on Saturday and give it most of the afternoon?”
“And I’ll check with my mom about baking cookies,” said Amy as they walked back toward the mobile-home park.
Morgan slapped Amy on the back before they parted ways. “And really, Amy, the Lonely Hearts Club is a great idea.”
“Yeah,” agreed Emily. “Way to go.”
Carlie gave her a high five. And Chelsea gave her a slightly nervous smile. “And so you’re not mad at me anymore?” asked Chelsea in a cautious tone.
“Not really,” said Amy. “But I’m not going to say it didn’t hurt.”
Then they all said good-bye and went their separate ways. Amy was thankful that Chelsea’s mom was already there to pick her up. Otherwise, Amy would’ve felt like she should invite Chelsea to wait at her house. And, although Amy was working on forgiving Chelsea, she wasn’t so sure she wanted to be alone with her just yet.
Amy unlocked the door and turned on the porch light. As usual, no one was at Amy’s house during the dinner hour. She could see that her parents had been home, but by now they would be back at work. And she knew all she needed to do was to call and someone, probably An, would dash over and pick her up so she could spend the evening with them at the restaurant. But she was used to being on her own in the evenings. Plus, she needed to practice clarinet and finish up some homework. And, she was tired. It had been a long and exhausting day. Mostly she just wanted to forget all about it! At least the first half anyway. The second part had been much better.
Later that night, after her parents had gotten home and the lights were turned off and Amy was in bed, she thought about her old daydreams of going to the Valentine’s Day dance and her silly hopes that Brett Woods would notice her and ask her to dance. Not only did that seem totally hopeless now, but to make matters worse, Amy realized that it was highly likely that Brett would invite Chelsea to dance with him! And instead of Amy floating off to the dance floor with the hottest guy in seventh grade, it would be Chelsea. And instead of Amy’s friends being jealous of her, it would be Amy who would be jealous of Chelsea! Oh, why was life so unfair?
The next day, Amy decided to wear one of her new tops. But that was it. She was not wearing any of that stupid makeup. And she was definitely not wearing those ridiculous shoes which would probably be outside in the dumpster by now, due to be picked up by the garbage truck later today. Well, unless some dumpster diver found them. And they would be welcome to them!
Today, Amy just wanted to be herself. More than that, she did not want to be jealous of Chelsea. And she did not want to go around moping about Brett Woods. Still, it was a challenge once she got to school and saw Chelsea. She could tell that she was glancing around, trying to spot Brett, probably hoping that Brett was trying to spot her. And it grew into an even bigger challenge when Amy noticed Brett chatting with Chelsea outside the cafeteria right before lunch. Usually, Chelsea and Amy went into lunch together since their other friends always got there before them. Today Amy went alone.
“Where’s Chelsea?” asked Emily when Amy set her tray down and joined her friends.
“Probably eating lunch with Brett-Baby,” said Amy in a voice that sounded more bitter than she liked.
“Seriously?” Morgan made a face.
“Probably not,” said Amy. “But they were talking.”
“You couldn’t pay me to eat lunch with a boy,” said Carlie.
“Yeah,” agreed Emily as she took a big bite out of her burger then talked with her mouth full. “That would totally ruin my appetite.”
They laughed, but Amy was watching the door, waiting to see if Chelsea and Brett would come inside together. Surely they wouldn’t actually eat lunch together. No one did that. Well, mostly no one. A few daring couples ate lunch together. But Amy agreed with Emily — eating with a boy would ruin her appetite too.
The four girls talked about their secret project. Morgan had already started to gather valentine-making supplies, and her grandma had given her a bunch of old packets of sequins and lace and things.
“This is going to be so fun,” said Emily.
“And I know where a bunch of wildflowers are already starting to bloom,” said Carlie. “I’ll gather as many as I can right before Valentine’s Day. We can tie them with a ribbon and stick them on top of the boxes.”
“How are we going to deliver all these?” asked Emily suddenly.
“I think Grandma will help,” said Morgan. “She really likes this idea, Amy. I told her you were the one who thought of it.”
Amy smiled. “Thanks.”
Then Chelsea and Brett walked into the lunchroom. Brett went to join his friends, and Chelsea came over to their table, pulling a rumpled paper sack from her backpack. “I’m brown-bagging it today.”
“How’s your boyfriend?” teased Carlie.
“He’s fine,” said Chelsea a little too smugly.
“So, you really think of him as your boyfriend?” questioned Amy.
Chelsea nodded as she pulled out a Ziploc bag of carrot sticks. “Sort of. Is that a problem?”
Amy shrugged. “I guess not. Although I guess I hoped you’d wait a day or two … you know.”
“But Amy, it’s not like you guys were actually going together, remember?”
“I know.” Amy nodded, trying to be mature.
“I agree with Amy,” said Morgan. “Out of respect for her feelings, you could’ve waited a few days, Chelsea.”
“Do you want me to break up with him?” asked Chelsea.
Amy wanted to say, “Yes, as a matter of fact, I do.” But she just sat there.
“I will if you want me to, Amy.”
“I don’t really care,” said Amy. “Do what you think is best.”
“It might encourage you to know that Brett and I are trying to figure out who your secret admirer really is,” said Chelsea as she took a bite of her sandwich.
Amy looked up in surprise. “Really?”
“Yeah. Brett thought maybe it was Tyler Epperson.”
“Tyler Epperson?” Amy frowned. “Why him?”
“Brett thought it sounded like something Tyler might do. Besides that, Brett thinks that Tyler might like you.”
“Oh no,” said Carlie. “Here we go again. Boys, boys, boys! Seriously, Chelsea, can you just give it a break?”
“Yeah,” said Emily. “Why don’t you let poor Amy eat her lunch in peace today?”
“And the rest of us too,” added Morgan.
But suddenly Amy felt interested. What if Tyler really did like her? Oh, he wasn’t quite as good looking as Brett, but he wasn’t exactly chopped liver either. And he was a pretty good friend of Brett’s. And this might get her out onto the dance floor next week.
Suddenly, Amy held her hand up, shaping her thumb and little finger like a phone and mouthing the words call me to Chelsea. Naturally, Chelsea just grinned and nodded, and then the girls turned their conversation back to normal things — in other words, not boys. Instead, they talked about their Lonely Hearts project, which Amy was into. And then they talked about classes and whether or not they would go out for spring sports. Morgan and Carlie wanted to go out for track, but Emily and Chelsea thought softball would be more fun.
And, as usual, having a conversation about something besides boys did seem to make everyone happier. But, once again, Amy had to ask herself why it was that her friends were so resistant to having anything to do with boys — and why didn’t they even seem to like talking to or about boys? And at the same time Amy admired them. And she even wished she could be more like them. Seriously, what good had it been for her to have that stupid crush — and then to be crushed by Brett Woods? And yet, Amy felt as if she was being pulled in again. Chel
sea’s suggestion that Tyler liked her was all Amy could focus on, all she could think about. She couldn’t wait to talk to Chelsea and get the full story. But, at the same time, Amy wondered if she wasn’t being a total idiot for wanting to know more about Tyler. So what if Chelsea and Brett thought he could be her secret admirer? It was probably more likely that he wasn’t. And what if this ended up like it had with Brett? Or worse? What if Amy was the one who got hurt and humiliated all over again?
Seriously, how much more of that embarrassing nonsense could she even take? She was barely over Brett as it was. And, besides, who cared if dumb old Tyler Epperson “liked” her? What difference did it really make?
And yet, Amy knew she did care. She just didn’t know why.
chapter seven
Later that day, Amy couldn’t help but watch Tyler Epperson as he walked into English class. Although she was discrete, holding her assigned reading up just high enough that she appeared to be totally immersed in The Jungle Book. But, really, she was studying him. She noticed how his dark hair curled around his ears in a rather attractive way, and the way his long legs kind of folded under as he slipped into the seat diagonally across from her, just far enough in front of her that she could continue to take inventory without being observed. She liked his polo shirt — it was Ralph Lauren and neat and clean. And his shoes, Nike, were neat and clean as well. Okay, Tyler seemed like an okay guy. Maybe she should let Chelsea and Brett talk to him for her. Or maybe she was just setting herself up for another heartbreak. Oh, what was wrong with her?
“Okay, class,” said Mrs. Murray. “Put down your reading and listen as I tell you about a special assignment.”
Amy laid her book aside and sat up attentively. Even though she was often teased for playing teacher’s pet, it was hard to give up old habits. Besides, she was one of those kids who really liked school. And she liked Mrs. Murray too.
“As you may know, next Tuesday is Valentine’s Day and, for that reason, I have a special project. This will be a team project, and I want you to work in groups of four. But they must be mixed groups — with both girls and boys. I’m going to section you off into groups now, so there can be no arguing about who is in your group.” Then Mrs. Murray worked her way around the room, counting off groups of four. And when she got to Amy, she included Tyler Epperson, along with Myrna Shaft and Bruce Jackson. After all the groups were selected, Mrs. Murray began disbursing what appeared to be a play.
“Your group of four will read through this play together, each with an assigned role, but as you will see, the play seems to stop halfway through. The way your play concludes will be up to you. You and your team will write the ending of the play, each person taking responsibility for the role that he or she is playing. But you must work together.”
There were some groans as well as some sounds of interest. Amy actually thought it sounded like a fun assignment, and she couldn’t believe her luck of getting to be with Tyler. She wasn’t too sure about Myrna and Bruce though. In Amy’s opinion, those two weren’t the smartest kids in the class — and that was an understatement. Still, Amy was used to working with kids who weren’t equal to her academically. Wasn’t that the story of her life?
“Go ahead and break into your groups now. First you can assign your roles and then you can take turns reading your parts. It might be helpful to choose a director for your production, but I will leave that up to you. Tomorrow and Friday you will have time to write your endings, and on Monday you can practice and make revisions before you turn in your finished plays. I will read and judge the plays, choosing first-, second-, and third-place winners.” She smiled at the class. “And, of course, there will be prizes.”
Everyone clapped now. Amy did the math — that meant twelve prizes would be awarded, and that was nearly half of the class. Her chance at getting one seemed pretty good.
“And the first-place winners will also be invited to perform their play for the entire class on Valentine’s Day. Now go ahead and spread out in the room as you break into your groups. And good luck!”
Amy glanced shyly at Tyler now. She was used to being the kind of student who took charge in group projects, and everything in her wanted to be the director. But at the same time she didn’t want to appear too bossy.
“Why don’t we go over there,” he said, nodding to a corner of the room that no one had taken yet.
“Great,” said Amy with a bright smile. “You guys coming?” she asked Myrna and Bruce, and they just nodded as they gathered up their stuff and followed.
“Okay,” said Tyler. “Who wants to be director?”
“Not me,” said Bruce.
And Myrna just shook her head.
“I’m willing,” admitted Amy. “Only if no one else wants to.”
Tyler nodded. “Go for it.”
And so Amy did. She had already glanced over the script and knew which were the lead roles (Kent and Alice), and she assigned them to Tyler and herself. The secondary roles (Jon and Marion) she assigned to Bruce and Myrna. “And now let’s take turns reading through it,” she told them.
The story was about four grown-up friends who had gone to high school together and were at their tenth reunion. They were all married to other people, but Kent and Alice had been high school sweethearts and Jon and Marion had been their best friends. It was actually a fairly boring play, and Amy suspected that their teacher may have written it herself. But just the same, Amy was interested in remaking the ending so that she and Tyler (rather Kent and Alice) would be reunited once again. But she also knew she’d have to go about this carefully. Fortunately, the bell rang just as they finished reading their parts, and she told them all to think about the ending of the play and that they would work on it tomorrow.
“Yeah, right,” said Tyler in a way that suggested he had no plans to think about it at all.
Amy just grinned. “Well, then you better watch out, Tyler, or we just might write your character into a corner or even kill him off.”
Bruce and Myrna laughed, and Tyler looked surprised. Then Amy, feeling pleasantly in control, gathered up her things and walked off. At least she’d given that boy something to think about!
It wasn’t until later that afternoon that Chelsea called her. And Amy couldn’t wait to tell Chelsea about Tyler being in her production group.
“Wow, that is so cool,” said Chelsea. “Did he choose to be in it?”
“Well, no. Mrs. Murray assigned us. But he seemed okay.”
“I wish I had Mrs. Murray for English. That sounds like a fun assignment.”
“The fun will be creating a totally romantic ending,” said Amy in a dreamy voice. “I want Tyler, oops, I mean Kent, to fall in love with Alice. That’s my character.”
“And then maybe life will imitate art, and Tyler will fall in love with you?”
“Exactly!” Amy laughed.
“Sounds like a good plan.”
Just then Amy heard Ly calling. “I’ve got to go now. It’s my night to hostess at the restaurant.” Amy hung up and hurried out to get into Ly’s car.
“How’s life?” Ly asked as they drove to town.
“Great,” said Amy. Then she told Ly the same story she’d just told Chelsea.
But Ly’s reaction was nothing like Chelsea’s. “Oh, Amy,” said Ly in a disappointed tone.
“What’s wrong?” asked Amy.
“What’s wrong?” Ly glanced at her. “You just told me how badly you were hurt when that other boy didn’t like you, Amy. And now here you go again.”
“Are you saying that just because Brett doesn’t like me I should give up on boys completely?”
Ly didn’t say anything.
“Is that what you did, Ly?”
Ly just shrugged as she pulled into the parking lot behind the restaurant.
“Is that what happened to you, Ly?” persisted Amy.
“All I’m trying to say, Amy …” Ly turned off the car. “Is that I don’t want to see you getting hurt.”
“I know …” Amy got out of the car and looked at her sister. “And, trust me, I don’t want to get hurt either.”
“Okay …” Ly nodded.
“But I don’t want to hide from living my life either,” said Amy.
Ly didn’t say anything as they walked to the back door. But Amy hoped that she got the message, because Amy felt certain that Ly was hiding from life. But as they went inside, Amy considered what Ly had said to her too. Maybe Ly was partially right. Maybe it was a little silly for Amy to be chasing after another boy again.
The next day was sunny, so Amy walked with her friends to school. They were happily discussing their valentine project — the Lonely Hearts Club that had actually been her idea — but Amy was distracted. It seemed like her mind had gotten stuck — all she could think about was Tyler Epperson and how she planned to direct their English assignment later that day. And how she hoped she could direct him into playing the leading love interest.
“Earth to Amy!” said Morgan loudly.
“Very funny,” said Amy. “Why don’t you come up with a new one?”
“Why are you so spacey?” asked Emily.
“She’s probably thinking about boys again,” said Carlie.
“Which boys?” asked Morgan.
“Give me a break,” said Amy.
“Amy should’ve gone to church with us last night,” said Emily.
“Yeah,” agreed Morgan. “The sermon was about our minds.”
“What about our minds?” asked Amy, eager to get them talking about something besides her.
“Pastor George said that we can either control our minds or our minds can control us.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” asked Amy. “I thought our minds did control us.”
“They sort of do,” explained Emily. “But when you’re a Christian you want Jesus to be in control. You want him to lead you and show you better ways to think.”
“For instance,” said Morgan. “What were you so distracted about just now, Amy?”
Amy didn’t want to admit it.
“See, it was boys,” teased Carlie.
“Fine,” said Amy. “I was thinking about a boy.” And then she told her friends about Tyler Epperson. And it was actually a relief to have it out in the open. Except that it was kind of embarrassing too.
Secret Admirer Page 13
