Throwing open the door to her bedroom, Melissa inhaled sharply. It happened every time she entered her room. The sight of all the pink and white lace simply repulsed Melissa. But her mother wouldn�t have it any other way. Sighing, Melissa tossed her luggage on the floor.

�Melissa! Put those suitcases away in your closet, where they belong!� Called out Teresa, from another room in the house.

�How come all mothers are psychic?� Melissa muttered under her breath. Too tired to get into an argument, she willing picked up her bags and moved them into her walk-in closet. �All I want to do now is collapse on my bed and watch some TV.�

�You have a week�s worth of schoolwork to catch up on!� Nagged her mother. Melissa groaned. Sure enough, a pile of home-school workbooks were piled on her desk. Dreading the thought of returning to her studies, Melissa reluctantly sat down in front of her books.

The door swung open. Teresa stuck her head inside the room. She smiled broadly at the sight of her preteen daughter, hard at work. �Oh good, I didn�t have to beg you to do your work. Listen, your father and I are going to run out for a minute, and get some take-out. You�ll be okay her by yourself, right?

�Mama!� Melissa exclaimed, rolling her eyes. �I�m nearly thirteen years old! I think I can stay home alone on a Friday night for half an hour.�

�I forget you�re growing up,� Teresa said remorsefully. �Well then, if you get all your make-up work done tonight, I can take you to that flamenco dance class in St. Petersburg tomorrow.�

�Alright. I�ll see you later, Mama.� Melissa said. She waited a few minutes until she heard her father�s Lexus pull out of the driveway. Deeming the house danger free, Melissa abandoned her books. She grabbed her old-fashioned white-and-gold telephone, and quickly dialed a number.

�Hello?� Answered a voice, after three rings.

�Nickers!� Melissa said happily.

�Hey, Lissie. When did you get back? And how was New York?�

�I just got back a couple of hours ago,� Melissa explained. �New York was C-O-L-D. Forget my dreams of being a Broadway dancer. I don�t think I could ever live there.�

�Maybe you can work on Broadway just in the summertime. I think it gets pretty hot there,� Nick reasoned.

�Maybe.�

�But anyway, how was the dance competition?� Nick asked.

On her end of the phone, Melissa grinned. The entire reason she and her mother had went to Manhattan for the week was so that Melissa could participate in the National Youth Dance Competition. �I placed second in the girl�s jazz competition.�

�Wow!� Nick sounded impressed. �That�s awesome! And next year, you�ll take home first place.�

�I don�t think so,� Melissa said. Nick could hear the spirit in her voice drop drastically. �It was a 10-12 age range. If I can�t win against a bunch of ten-year-olds, there�s no way I�ll even place when I�m in the 13-15 category.�

�Don�t fish for compliments,� Nick commanded his friend. �You know you�re a great dancer. And you have an entire year to work your butt off and kick those older girls in the pants!�

Melissa laughed lightly. �At least one of us has a positive outlook.�

�Well, you see�� Nick kidded around. �I am older then you by three months. So obviously, I�m a lot more mature.�

�Yeah right!� Melissa scoffed. �But now that I think about it, you do have a birthday coming up next week. The big 1-3. What are we going to do?�

�I was thinking bowling, and then grabbing some food at Denny�s.�

�Denny�s?� Melissa questioned unsurely.

�Yeah,� said Nick. �They give you a free meal on your birthday. So I�m going to take advantage of it.�

�But is a free meal worth it there?� Melissa asked. �The food can�t be that great��

�Haven�t you ever been to Denny�s before?� Nick asked.

�Can you really see my mama taking me to a Denny�s?� Melissa retorted.

�Good point.� Nick realized. �Well, don�t worry. You�ll like it. They have the best strawberry shakes and desserts.�

�Okay, if you say so.� Hanging out with Nick always introduced Melissa to things she�d have never experienced if she was back in Texas. �So what went on around here while I was gone?�

�Oh, not much.� Nick said nonchalantly. �The same old, same old at school and stuff.�

�Good. I didn�t miss out on anything.� Melissa said happily.

�Yup. Just going to school, doing homework, signing contracts with Disney��

�What?�

�Oh yeah- did I forget to tell you that?� Nick teased. �Disney called. Guess who is the newest cast member of The Mickey Mouse Club?�

�Really?�

�Yup!� Nick said. Pride and excitement rang out in his voice. But when Melissa wasn't quick to reply, Nick found himself surprised by the silence. �You didn�t react the way I expected you to.�

�Don�t get me wrong. I�m really happy for you.� Said Melissa. �But what�s going to happen with your singing group?�

�I hadn�t really thought about it.� Nick realized. �But I guess I�ll have to quit. There�s no way I can juggle school, MMC and the group.�

�Oh.�

�Oh?� Nick sounded like he was getting angry. �I get cast on a national TV show, and all you can say is �oh�? And not just any show, your favorite show in the entire world. I thought you�d be more excited then I was about this.�

�So did I,� Melissa admitted. �I mean, sometimes I felt as though I wanted you to be cast on the show more then you did yourself. But I don�t know, I guess things have changed.�

�Why? This is huge. This is the break I�ve been waiting for. How could this not be a good thing? How could you not happy for me?� Nick and Melissa had fought before. But never had she heard this tone to his voice. He sincerely sounded insulted and hurt.

�I know it doesn�t make sense,� said Melissa. �I mean, this show is perfect for you. Acting, singing, dancing. Instant fame. And a great launching pad for the rest of your career.

�But something inside of me is saying this is the wrong choice. For some reason, I think you should stick with the singing group.� Melissa said honestly.

�You�re right,� agreed Nick. �That doesn�t make any sense. Do you know how hard it is for an unsigned band to get a record deal? And even if we did get a contract, who�s to say anyone would even buy our album? Its just too much of a risk.�

�I know this is crazy-person talk. Especially coming from me, the world�s biggest MMC fan.� Melissa paused. �But something felt really�I don�t know, right that day we went out to dinner. Lou is so generous. And AJ and Howie are such great guys.�

�Yeah, they are pretty fun to hang out with,� Nick admitted.

�But most importantly- you guys sounded really great together. Better then great. I can�t really explain it. But my heart is telling me that you should stay with the group, even when my head is telling me otherwise.

�Listen, Nick�I have to go. My parents are going to be home soon, and I�m supposed to be doing my homework. But promise me you�ll think about what I said, okay?�

�I�ll think about it,� Nick agreed. �But I�m not promising anything.�

�That�s all I�m asking for. Talk to you later, Nickers!�

�Night, Lissie-Liss.�

~ want to know when this site is updated? email me (and send feedback)!~

� 2000 [email protected]