• Chaper One

    It was cold outside and nearly six in the morning. Elizebeth, or Lizzy, apeard over my bed and was stabbing at me until I awoke. With a sigh I threw on some clothes and didn't even to bother questioning her on how she got in my room or even what she was waking me up for. I already knew and prepared myself for this. The poetry reading wasn't for another three or so days but the tickets were hard to get. They went onsale today and at ten or so. You would be surprised to see how many people will go to these things. I write but my stuff isn't any good. Lizzy disagrees.
    Lizzy is my best friend since third grade. We shared everything and still do. We are the same height, weight, and the only difference between us is our faces and hair. Lizzy has beautiful blonde straight hair. I on the other hand have curly strawberry red hair that I need to put some type of gel in to keep it from frizzing. Her eyes are sky blue. Mine, are electric green. If anything thats the ONLY thing I like about myself. I have been told my eyes can peirce through a persons soul.
    "We are going to be late if you do not hurry your skinny butt up!"
    "It's nearly six in the morning. I'm tired, and crabby, and hungry. At least I am actually going with you to this, this thing."
    Lizzy just moved her hands as if to say blah blah blah. If we werent quiet enough my parents would wake up and ask me what in sams hell is going on and blah blah blah. They don't aprove of my writing. It is what keeps me going through the days. I have at least four different note books filled with my poetry.
    "Poetry is for the devil" My oh, so loving mother would tell me. Shortly after she would rip it up and throw it out. Later I would go and get the poem tape it together and put it in a secret box I have under my bed.
    So here we are climbing out my window to go buy some poetry reading tickets. Lizzy and I alwasy went to these things. This was the first ever poetry reading that we had to actually buy tickets to go see. There must be some famous poet or something.
    "Lindy Loo if you do not hurry up we arent going to get those tickets!"
    "I know I know. Just, I am trying not to fall and break an arm. I can already see the outcome of that one. And it would definately be an interesting story to tell the 'rents."
    "Good point, but try to hurry up okay?"
    Within about a minute or so I was safely on the ground and I had no broken bones or anything. I left a note on my door telling my parents I went to Lizzy's house to work on a sicence project. They would leave me alone and they loved Lizzy as their own daughter so they wouldn't need to check up on me.
    "Lets go."
    Lizzy started off with me in tow. I was still a little groggy from the early morning waking. It was snowing so that only made it colder. We walked to the bus stop that was near the gas station half a mile from my house so we wouldn't get cought if my mom decided to take a morning run. We paid the fine and sat near the front so we would have easy way off. It only took about a half hour to reach our destination. I got a little more sleep until the bus stopped and Lizzy yanked me out of the seat,
    "This way." Lizzy said dragging me to an old theater looking building. There was a small line but I could tell there may be many more.
    "What's so special about this poetry reading anyway? Most of them are free to go into. Is there some famous poet or something?"
    "Or something for lack of better words. Lindy Loo you are just going to have to be patient."
    Malinda is my name but she likes to call me Lindy.
    "Malinda is just too formal. You need to have something fun and wild. Like your hair and eyes."
    I hadn't liked it at frist but it grew on me. Now everyone called me Lindly Loo. Even my partents. As we stood there some people walked down the ever growing line serving out some hot chocolate for a dollar. It was a good thing I brought some extra money as a Just In Case.
    When ten rolled around there was a line reaching to the end of the block and probably down that street. The ticket window opened and a receptionist took names and money from people, returning a long rectangular ticket. We inched closer and after about ten or twenty minutes, we reached the front of the line.
    "Name?"
    "Lizzy Joan"
    "Ten dollars"
    Lizzy handed her the money and the receptionist tore a ticket from a line of them and handed her the redish black lamonated ticket.
    "Next."
    I stepped up to the window and the lady looked at me. Her eyes grew wide with wonder.
    "Name?"
    "Lindy Patterson."
    "That will be then dollars."
    I handed her the ten but she just kept staring at me.
    "Here?"
    She ripped a ticket and handed it to me. Then her face turned back to normal as she saw the next person.
    "What was that about?" Lizzy noticed the whole thing and had an obvious confused expression on her face.
    "I don't know. I get that sometimes. They stare at me and look like they are in a transe."
    it was a normall thing for me. Only Lizzy had never seen it happen before. I was always by myself when it happend.
    "Lets go to the CoCo Bean for some crossants and something hot to drink." Lizzy started to walk down the block of people. The line was huge. I looked at my ticket and it read #24. I shook it off as a seat I was in.
    "Hi and welcome to the CoCo Bean. What can I get for you ladies today."
    I looked up to see a beautiful guy infront of me. I had never seen him before and started to wonder why. He was looking at Lizzy when he asked the question but turned to look at me and looked like a lost puppy. He had grey eyes and the skater boy hair cut. His hair was a dark brown and he was lean but had muscles. I tuned back in after the stuff was rang up.
    "Hello, Earth to Lindy. Hu-lloo!" Lizzy was waving her hand infront of my face.
    "Oh, sorry Lizzy" I took the Hot beverage and a cossant out of her hand and we drifted over to a table.
    "What is going on with you? You have been so spacy this moring!"
    "I am just tired lizzy. It's nothing. This is what happens when you wake me up and drag me to the other side of town to buy tickets to some poetry thing."
    Lizzy looked at me apologetically.
    "Now, why don't you explain these tickets to me? What are we going to see?"
    Lizzy looked down and bit her lip. "You promise you won't get mad at me?"
    "Depends."
    "I mean it, you have to pinky swear!" She held out her right hand, pinky extended. The pinky swear was always a thing of ours. When we pinky swore, we stuck to the promise.
    "Yeah, yeah, I swear." I grabbed her pinky with my own and she took a deep breath.
    "You and I are going to be reading our poetry."
    I stared at her for a moment a blank expression on my face. I could not believe what had just happend. I got suckerd into a poetry reading. One that cost me ten dollars at that. Then things started to click in my head. On the radio they were talking about a poetry reading for amatures. You had to be at least fifteen years of age. Unfortunately, we were seventeen. They were only going to take fifty people. It was a contest. They would narrow it down each round until there were only two. The winner got a contract with one of the best publishing comanies. They also got to meet some of the best poets ever. If you made it to the top ten, you got to travel. You would preform infront of crowds all over the country. Each stop would also narrow it down by one. So ten different readings all over the country basically. I rubbed my temples and kept my face calm. Inside however, I was seating with anger.
    "Come again?" Was all I could manage without lashing out my anger.
    "You are now in a poetry contest. You have to do it. You already spent the money. YOu may as well go."
    I just looked at Lizzy like she was insane. At that point I stood and threw away my drink and barley eaten crossant. I had lost my appatite. I walked out the doors and before I walked away I looked over my shoulder."I'm going home. You can either come with or you can stay here."
    Lizzy got up and fallowed me out the door. We didn't talk the entire way home.