Monday, September 29, 2008
Au Revoir, Blogger!
Friday, September 26, 2008
Sneak Peek of Chapter 3!
The voice was musical and sounded like chimes tingling gently in the wind. “Rose, Rose! Over here!” It called. I whipped around. No one was there. I looked left and right. No one. I looked down at the concrete and up to the sky. No one.
“Ew, get away!” Michelle shouted, waving her head wildly at a flying bug. “Annoying bug,” Michelle murmured. We walked the rest of the way. By the time I got home, I was quite convinced I just made the voice up. After all, it didn’t sound like Michelle or Ricky heard it either.
I closed the door quietly behind me and walked to the kitchen. On the island, there stood a plate full of apple wedges. Kara was standing behind them, a pen in her right hand, scribbling something down on a notepad.
“Hey, Michelle, Ricky and Rose!” Kara said enthusiastically, waving her free arm.
“Kara!” Michelle replied, running to her. Michelle and Kara have also been very close to each other. I guessed it was the fact they were both orphans that made them stick together so well. Michelle wrapped her petite arms around Kara’s waist and hugged her tightly.
“How was your first day of school?” Kara asked kindly, pushing the plate closer to us.
“It was fantastic! Wasn’t it, Ricky?” She said this through a mouthful of apples.
Ricky just nodded and shoved an apple slice into his mouth.
“How was your’s, Rose?”
I froze with my hand wrapped around an apple, inches from my mouth. I swallowed and put the apple down. How was I supposed to answer? Tell the truth? Or lie? Telling the truth would obviously be better—Kara could help me. But I didn’t want to say it in front of Michelle and Ricky. Kara stared at me, her elegant face screwed up in a confused expression.
“Um, it was…okay.” This wasn’t a lie, and it was partly true. My day wasn’t that bad. I saw Kara’s eyes flicker with confusion before she understood. She nodded once and I knew she would give me some advice when we had time.
I didn’t hear the voice anymore the rest of the day and I was sure I made it up. I finished my essay a few hours later when I heard the garage door open. There was a loud bang that followed and I knew my mom was home.
She checked on Michelle and Ricky’s homework first, to make sure they knew what they were doing. She was clanging around in the kitchen when I walked downstairs.
“Hey, Rose. How was school?” She asked as she stirred some soup. She put the spoon down and wiped her hands on the white apron she was wearing and walked over by me.
I didn’t reply to her question and just asked, “Can I help you with anything?”
“Yes, you can. But first, I want to know how school went.” This was how my mom was. If I didn’t tell her about something, she would just keep asking me about it until I answered.
“It was okay.” There was nothing else to say.
“Just okay?” She seemed surprised by my answer. Maybe she expected school to go better for me, although it never did, not even when we lived in Kansas.
“Just okay.” I answered. “So, what can I help you with?” I asked in a lighter tone.
“Um, well…the vegetables need to be cut and the meat needs to be seasoned. You know the recipe right?” I nodded. “Okay, well wash your hands and get started. Dad will be home soon.”
Saturday, September 20, 2008
Rose's Adventure--Chapter 2!
Chapter 2~Middle School
I closed my eyes and inhaled deeply. I expected the new, leathery smell that Kara and David had been telling me about would fill my nose, but instead, the bus smelled like raw meat, spoiled milk, and dirty socks. My eyes flew open and I wrinkled my nose in disgust. This did not look like the bus David had described to me earlier this month. It wasn’t new or clean. It was filthy. There were spider webs in about every window and the seats had a bunch of holes in them. I calculated how long it had been since David attended Middle School. Six years. Wow, a lot has changed in just six years.
“Hurry up, will ya?” A loud voice boomed from my right. I jumped. I hadn’t realized the bus driver was right there. He had a thick mustache and was going bald at the top of his head. “I don’t wanna be late, so find a darn seat!!” He shouted at me, his face inches from mine.
“Sorry,” I muttered and turned my eyes away from his. I looked around at the bus. It was still quite empty.
I walked down the aisle and found the nearest empty seat possible. As soon as I sat down, the bus lurched underneath me and sped off. I had to hold tightly to the empty seat next to me to keep from flying off. We rounded a corner and suddenly the tires stopped moving and my whole body flew toward the seat in front of me. “Ow,” I mumbled, rubbing my head. Who knew the seats could be so hard?
I heard the doors open and the bus driver named Kurt shout, “C’mon, c’mon, I don’t have all day!” Suddenly, a stampede of kids rushed on the bus, filling most of the empty seats. I figured this was the most crowded and popular community.
A girl who looked like she was in sixth grade too, came to sit by me. She had black hair and big, bright, chocolate-colored eyes. She wasn’t very tall, but she looked horribly fragile and weak, especially under her heavy-looking backpack.
“Hi, I’m Rose Walkman,” I said as she took her seat.
“Hi Rose, my name’s Jill Mataki,” She replied, smilingly shyly. Mataki, I thought while I shook her hand, It rings a bell…
“Are you also in sixth grade?” I asked her.
She nodded.
“I see… So, do you have any siblings?” I wondered.
“Yes, just one.” She said quietly. “I have an older brother named Jacob.”
“Oh!” I gasped. “Jacob Mataki! He was my brother, David’s best friend!”
“Really?” She asked, her big eyes widening.
I nodded.
“Are you sure?”
“I’m positive,” I answered. It was the truth, I was quite sure it was the Jacob, the one my brother spent most of his afternoon’s at.
“You don’t look very much like him.” She commented, looking at my face, with probing eyes.
“Most people say that, but it’s probably because he looks more like my mom--he’s got her green eyes and almond-colored hair. A lot of people say I’m like my dad--he’s also got light blue eyes and what I call coffee-bean colored hair.” I giggled, showing Jill my dark hair.
She laughed too, a very quiet, timid sound, but I was sure it was a laugh.
“Hey, are those natural highlights?” She pointed to a strand of blonde hair that was mixed into my hair.
“Yeah, but I don’t know where I got them from. Neither my mom or my dad has highlights.” I shrugged.
Our conversation ended there. I would normally have talked more, but I felt quite nervous. Jill didn't start any conversations either, which I was grateful of. I had a feeling we would be pretty good friends.
Kurt slammed our foreheads against the seats in front of us three more times before arriving at the school. I glanced down at my watch--it was eight ten, meaning I had five minutes to check-in and find all my classes. Jill and I walked together to the office which was located to the right of the parking lot. Inside the office, the chairs lined one side of wall, the other side was behind the long counter. There were three windows behind the chairs and they provided most of the light.
We walked up to the desk together, where the main receptionist helped us. She gave us both a map and a schedule of our classes. I looked at it and immediately groaned. Each day we had a different schedule. The only class that stayed at second period was History. How was I supposed to remember the order of my classes or the days when I had math third period? The receptionist told us not to worry, and that we will remember our schedules soon enough.
I hoped she was right.
As for the map, I tried memorizing where all my classes were, but I was quite sure I was going to end up walking around school with my nose stuck in front of it.
Jill and I only had Math, English, and Science together, but I didn’t really mind. Sometimes I liked being alone.
During homeroom period, Mr. Harrison told us about additional classes and after-school clubs we could sign up for next week. I’m planning to sign up for the Math Numbers Club and maybe Cooking or Drama class.
The rest of my classes went well. Not exactly good, but well.
I found the classrooms pretty easily, mostly because all the sixth grade classes are on one side of the school. Most of my teachers just talked about class rules and where to turn our homework in, stuff like that. They also handed out all our textbooks and I ended up getting six. No one assigned homework except Mrs. Mann who gave us a five-paragraph history essay due on Friday, which gave me only two days to work on it. She is the worst teacher I’ve had in four years.
I was happy, no, relieved to even make it out of her classroom alive.
I didn’t meet many other kids except for Nikki, a really nice eighth grader, and Sam, a kind and friendly sixth grader that was suffering with me in history class. It felt good to know I wasn’t the only one struggling to understand what Mrs. Mann was saying.
Before I knew it, lunch period had arrived and I found myself sitting between Jill and Sam. I opened my paper bag and found a ham and cheese sandwich. Jill had homemade California rolls and chicken teriyaki. I wondered how she could fit all the food in her tiny stomach. Sam bought lunch, and it looked like the cafeteria food you see on TV.
“It’s definitely meat loaf.” Sam said.
“No, I think it’s chili,” I objected.
“What do you think, Jill?” He asked.
“I don’t know,” She answered. Sam shrugged and we went back to arguing between meat loaf and chili. Jill just giggled every now and then.
“Why don’t you just try the darn thing and then we can see who’s right?” I asked him, annoyed.
“Fine, fine. But you’re sure you don’t wanna bet?”
“Ok, I’ll bet you five bucks it’s chili. But don't cry if I win!” I warned him. I was good at these bets, because I had David. He doesn't normally like to bet, because I won most of the time.
“Five?!?” He asked, outraged. I nodded stubbornly. “But I’ve only got three bucks!”
“Fine, three it is, then. Now, eat so I can prove you I’m right.”
He scooped some of the stuff up and shoved it in his mouth. He looked quite confident.
“It’s meatloaf.” He lied.
“Really?” I asked sarcastically. “Why don’t you let me try?”
“Ok, but take your own fork, I don’t want girl germs!”
I took a bite and immediately noticed the chili flavor. “It’s chili.”
“No it’s not,” He said stubbornly. I could tell he wasn’t going to change his mind.
“Chili!”
“Meatloaf!”
“Chili, chili, chili!”
“MEATLOAF!”
“Oh come on, we both know it's chili. Now hand over the money.” I smiled smugly and waited for him to answer.
"Why do girls have to be so cruel?" He muttered under his breath. He shoved his hand into his pocket and took out a brown leather wallet. He opened it and handed me three dollar bills. "Happy?"
~~~ ~~ ~~~ ~~ ~~~ ~~ ~~~
Sure enough, Michelle was the first one to skip down the steps, with Ricky slouching behind her. “Hi Rose!” Michelle said enthusiastically. I could tell she had a brilliant day, the exact opposite of mine.
“Hey, Michelle.” I tried to sound normal, and not at all worried about my essay. I did a pretty good job because Michelle just smiled. Then I turned to my brother and asked, "Ricky, what's wrong?"
“Still not old enough?” I guessed.
He sighed. “Yeah. You have to be in fourth grade! They just changed it this summer because a third grader beat a fifth grader! I don’t find that fair.” He said angrily, his eyes down at the sidewalk and his arms crossed over his chest.
“Well, life isn’t always fair.” I walked around Michelle to stand next to his small body and wrapped one of my arms tightly around his tiny shoulders. “Ok, just for today, I’ll make you chocolate chip cookies, all right?”
His eyes flickered up to meet mine. “Really? You don't expect me to do something back?” He asked.
"Nope, nothing." I said. But then, after thinking for a second I said, "Actually, there is something."
That was when I heard the voice.
Thursday, September 18, 2008
Rose's Adventure--Chapter 1
Chapter 1
BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! Ugh, is it morning already? I rolled over to my side and felt around clumsily for the snooze button. Where is that thing? Ah ha, here it is. I slammed it down with my palm and the beeping immediately stopped. I snuggled back on my pillow and pulled the covers over my head. Much better.
Before I could fall back asleep though, my eight-year-old sister, Michelle started yelling, “Rose!!! Rose, get up!! It‘s the first day of school!!” So much for my plan to get extra sleep. I moaned. Today, like what Michelle said, was the first day of school. Middle school, for me. I sighed, wishing—perhaps even praying—that I wouldn‘t have to go to school. I pulled back the covers and sat up on my bed.
I stared at the blank sheet of wall in front of me for a second—reminding myself to get posters— before I replied. “I’m coming.” I stepped off my bed and walked to my closet. I slid the door open, revealing a bunch of clothes hanging lopsided on hangers. I yanked down a light blue blouse and slipped on a pair of Levi’s jeans. I pulled on a pair of white socks and hurried downstairs.
I bumped into Kara on the way down. She is the second oldest out of all the Walkman siblings. My parents adopted her about fourteen years ago in
“It’s ok.” She replied, smiling. She started to walk away, but then she whirled around and said, “Oh, I almost forgot. I need your opinion. Which top looks better with these pants?” She held up a pair of dark blue pants and a light green shirt. She then swapped the green shirt for a lilac one.
I furrowed my eyebrows as she swapped the shirts again. I finally pointed to the lilac one. “That one. I think it’s a good contrast.”
Kara nodded and said happily, “Thanks, Rose. Oh, and don’t worry about middle school. It’s not as bad as it seems on TV.” She winked and walked to her bedroom.
I smiled to myself and walked over to my normal seat by Michelle and stared at the plate in front of me. There, on the white plate, stood eggs, bacon, a piece of toast, and a glass of milk, waiting for me to gulp it down. I knew my dad would never change our breakfast menu, but I still expected it to disappear and get replaced with a batch of chocolate chip pancakes or perhaps a nice bowl of Lucky Charms cereal. But, nothing happened. I picked up my fork and dug into my food.
After breakfast I collected the plates and forks and stacked them in a neat pile in the sink. I slipped on a jean jacket, slung my bag over my shoulder and stood in the hallway outside the front door to put on my shoes. My mom walked into the hall a few seconds later, her briefcase in her right hand and our school lunches in the other.
“Bye, mom.”
She leaned down and kissed my forehead. “Bye, sweetie. Have a good first day of school!” Then she handed me my school lunch--probably a ham and cheese sandwich-- and turned to help the other Walkman siblings.
I turned the doorknob and held the door open for Ricky, my nine-year-old brother, and Michelle to pass. They were like mustard and ketchup, ok maybe not mustard and ketchup. More like… two crazy, inseparable monkeys. It was their first day in third grade, and they seemed absolutely elated.
“Maybe we’ll get to do plays!” Michelle said, excited.
“Yeah, and maybe we can finally be old enough to join the chess club!” Ricky said. He, I must admit, is a geek. If he’s not playing chess, then he’s fixing a computer glitch. He also knows a lot about different cars and their parts.
“Rose, what are you excited about?” Michelle asked me as we walked to the bus stop together. Kara was in high school and took a different bus. David, who just turned nineteen, was studying at UCLA at the moment.
“Umm… lunch, and recess.” I answered, smiling.
“Really?” Ricky asked in disbelief. “You mean you’re not even excited about after-school clubs and stuff??”
“C’mon, Ricky. You know I was just kidding! Anyway, I’m mostly excited about Math class. Did you know that if you’re in the Advanced Math class, they might send you to the Math Olympiads?” I told him. His eyes widened in excitement.
“Cool!!! I so want to go to middle school! Why do I have to wait three years?” He complained.
“Well, we can start preparing now, though. It will be good practice.” Michelle said, grinning.
I smiled happily as the yellow school bus labeled “
My second one


.bmp)


