Jennifer Scott has spent all of her sixteen years on earth battling night terrors. Between the intense nightmares and her overprotective parents, Jennifer feels like her teenage years are going down the drain.
That all changes on the eve of her sop...
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The last morning of Jen's summer break was hot and slow. The sheets of her bed clung to her thighs like wet tissue paper. The smoldering heat, however, didn't bother her one bit. Today was going to be special. She was sure of it.
As soon as Jen heard two knocks on the door she flew out of her bedroom and down the stairs yelling, "I'll get it!"
She didn't need to look through the peephole to know who it was. They'd planning this day as soon as they'd finished freshman year. Jen pulled the door open and held her arms wide. All she saw was a heap of straight, blonde hair, and squinty blue eyes before she was wrapped in a tight hug, which grew tighter, and tighter, and tight- "N-Nora. Nora . . . Nora, I can't breathe."
With a content sigh, Nora stepped back and twirled around. "I'm sorry. I'm just so excited! We're going to have so much fun tonight!"
"Well, I wouldn't cry victory yet. Dad isn't in the best mood," Jen sounded deflated as she closed the door. Before she could ask, she got closer and whispered, "I had a bad nightmare yesterday. Really bad."
"Yikes." Nora cringed, landing a sympathetic tap on her friend's shoulder. "It'll be okay, just leave it to me. I'll convince them."
"Jen, who's at the- Oh! Nora, I wasn't expecting you today," Maggie greeted, setting down a broom against the wall. Her voluminous chocolate curls were haphazardly tied over her head. A single ringlet spilled over her eyes.
"Hello, Mrs. Scott." Nora put on a haughty frown as she said, "Yes, well, I'm afraid to say, this is a surprise ambush."
Maggie raised a brow as she took off her cleaning gloves. "I see, and would this ambush also involve Mr. Scott?"
"Certainly," Jen added, tying her hands behind her back.
Jen's mother let out a heavy sigh before she looked over her shoulder and yelled, "Charlie! Nora's here! They've planned an ambush."
Charles popped his head out of the living room, his features turning into a grimace. "Oh, God. Not again."
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"Next slide, please," Nora signaled to Jen, who clicked the right arrow on her laptop. A graph appeared on their television with the title "Brookland High Students - Summer Festival Attendance". Pictures of rides, fair snacks, and an alarming clown were pasted at the edges.
Nora hovered a broomstick over the largest part of the graph, colored orange. "You'll see here, this represents the percentage of students that have attended the super amazing, week-long celebration of the End of Summer Festival."
Charles stifled a laugh and rested his head on his hand. "And that tiny blue portion?"
Nora moved the broomstick over the tiniest sliver of blue that represented less than one percent. "The blue is Jennifer. Jennifer Scott. I know, I know. Shocking stuff, but you can remedy this!" she pointed the broomstick at Jen's parents. Then, she shot a quick glance at Jen and nudged her head to the left.
