Public Issues (Demma Book 2)

The Journey To Chi-Town

Dateline: November 5th, 2002

Emma's POV

I do hope Dan is alright after that fight with Marcia when we exited out of the theatre. It feels wrong to have a mother having you do low-budget films over this amazing franchise that's made nearly a billion dollars in just a year. Speaking of fights, we have a new film that's competing with us for the highest-grossing films in the world: The Lord of the Rings Franchise. Dan and I love the books, and Peter Jackson did an amazing job of getting the amazing cast that he's had since 1999. It's also funny how people are comparing Dan to Elijah Wood (Frodo Baggins himself). I couldn't see a difference, however, and it's weird to think that this journey that we had from Bonnie's outburst to Marcia's demise has really kept us on the "wanted" list. It's like every day people are crowding us just because we're famous for doing one franchise, and we couldn't catch a break during that time period because of all this madness from every fan from first grade through adulthood crowding us. We usually don't like to be crowded, and Dan has an anxiety disorder because he cried one time when entering a moshpit at one of the middle school dances in October. I've been surprised at Dan's emotions during that dance, and it's probably because he's never been to a dance alone since I was still a grade below him a year ago. Now that I'm in the same grade as him, we can now look for an amazing time at the Christmas dance on the 22nd of December.

Anyway, we have to get ready for our journey to Chicago in a bit, but after some crazy fan-mail that were mostly love letters, we decided to record that with my dad's spare camera. He never uses it, and I'm thankful that we can have a camera to take some photos from our journey in Chicago. It's really annoying that people are sending us love letters every now and then. Especially with this one guy named Leo. I mean, I get it, his name's Leo, but Dan's sign is a Leo. I can't help but think to myself why would a guy named Leo talk to me who's a Scorpio for some reason that doesn't match with my sign, Aries. In actuality, I mostly compare myself with Leos like Dan. Speaking of which, Dan's been getting some fan-mail as well with this one girl Erin messaging him on email 24/7 with responses like, "Wanna Hook Up?" It befuddles me a lot when girls talk to Dan, like they have a crush for the sake of loving him to the bitter end for clout.

After about a couple thousand love letters and taking Alex along for the ride, Chris, Alan, and Jacqueline told us, "Hey, kids! Tom and his dad are here."

Of course! Tom and his dad, Peter are giving their money's worth with their high-tech schemes. First, the private jet a year ago to New York and the change button for our dresses a few days back also in New York. I wonder what kind of device they have in store now?

As everyone starts to head for Alan's Car, Tom shows up in front of us speaking, "Woah, Woah, Woah! Hold up! I got something for you guys!"

"Do you want to show them what device you and I have in store now, Tom?" said Peter.

"Glady, Father!" said Tom. "Now prepare yourselves for the ultimate travelling method known to mankind!"

He pulls out a remote and we were all in shock.

"A remote?" said Dan. "What's so special about a remote?"

"This, Dan, is one of our creations that will send you and our families to Chicago in just one push of this button." Tom answered. "A bit of a warning when using this device: This is not to be used every day, otherwise it could create a hole within the entire universe!"

"A method of transportation to wherever you want to go?" I asked. "How long will this take?"

"Approximetly close to thirty seconds to a minute." Tom answered. "Now, before we go, you all need some clothes; casual ones this time. Find something in your rooms that will make you comfortable, and don't forget to pack your stuff."

How could I be so stupid? Because I was too focused on those annoying love letters with Dan, we didn't have a chance to pack our stuff in our suitcases.

After about a half-hour of packing, all of us met Tom and Peter outside the house to see if his new invention is working. Me, Jaquiline, Alan, Chris, and Dan were the first people to experiment with this new power that Tom and Peter created, so I'm a little nervous. 

I've been in these situations before, however, I must say that doing something you haven't tried before can be stressful but fun at the same time. It's like with a formal presentation, for example, you don't know what you're doing, but with a little practice on your speech, you'll be breezing through that like hot knife through butter and you'll get a good grade on that like my Pre-AP Physics presentation this year!

Anyways, Dan was nervous as always because he doesn't want to get killed by some weird creature that came out of nowhere from Tom's gadget. Honestly, he cracks me up every single day even if he says something stupid, I still love him no matter what. Before we got ourselves set up for the teleport to Chicago, Tom assured us that it's perfectly safe for us, and he even tested it out himself to make sure it was safe. As he tested it for the first time, nothing bad ever happened to him. A big sigh of relief came out of us as Tom was lining up for the big transport.

"Alright, hold tight! This could get bumpy!" he said, as I squeezed Dan's hand so hard it nearly made his hand turn red. 

I felt the squeeze coming back from him and the rest of the parents and Tom as the wind began to pick up, then we were starting to spin, and we were spinning faster than the speed of a race car until we were at the front entrance of Ambassador Chicago, one of the oldest hotels ever in this beloved city. 

We stopped spinning, and it nearly took ten to twenty seconds. Our luggage would be here in a few seconds if they took a different portal to New York instead of Chicago. Honestly, his inventions are great, but it's a work in progress for most of them. 

Our luggage arrived in less than five seconds as Tom set the destination for Chicago's Ambassador hotel a few seconds prior. Once we clocked in, we checked into our rooms as it was nearing night time. We have a big day ahead of us as we get set for the Oprah Winfrey Show in three days, and it gives me plenty of time for me to get cozy with Dan every now and then, not to mention explore new things in this wonderful city. My parents also told me that there's been a lot of illegal activity in downtown since before I was born, and they still exist to this day. As long as me or Dan don't wander off, and stay close together, we should be fine and we should be in New York in no time for the U.S. Premier. 

Speaking of Dan, his bare chest that I'm seeing right now has got me in Dan's trap, as I took off my shirt as well and we kissed for about four minutes flat. We then hugged soon after and it soon came time for us to go to sleep in each other's arms. We stayed in that position for a long time until the sun rose that Wednesday mourning.