Stage Fright

Chapter 6

I sprint to the cafeteria right when the lunch bell rings.

I grab my lunch and find Matty sitting alone. So, I sit beside him.

"Hey Jennifer," he said as I sit down.

"Hey," I said, sounding upset. When I heard myself, I tried to sound happier. "What's up!" I said cheerfully as I started eating.

"Um... are you okay?" Matty asked slowly.  "Because you're acting kinda weird."

I look up from my lunch, noodles in my mouth. "Well, the truth is... I'm leaving for New York in two days."

Matty's mouth hangs open. "What?! Two days?!" He takes a deep breath. "Okay. Meet me at Uluru tomorrow at 8:30pm."

"Ok," I replied, as Matty went to go throw away his food. He took that well, I thought.

I went to my last Art class positively and talked a lot more than usual. I complimented people's work and was polite to everyone.

When I got home, I saw my mom having a snack by herself.

"Hey mom," I said, giving her a hug. I sat down beside her. "Is it ok if I go to Uluru with Matty tonight?"

My mom thought about it. "Sorry, but no."

I was shocked. "Why not?"

"It could be dangerous," my mom said.

I was so upset that I went to my room, speechless. I can't believe my mom would do that. I really like Matty and now I might never see him again. I laid on my bed until I thought of an idea of how I can see Matty.

I tossed and turned during the night thinking about what I was going to do.

"Hey mom... is it ok if I can take a walk around the neighborhood?" I asked the next morning around 8:00.

"Ok, fine," my mom replied as I got ready to go.

I surprisingly found enough money in my wallet to afford a bus trip to get to Uluru.

My mom said 'Goodbye' as I left my house. I got on a bus and headed to Uluru!

I met up with Matty and we walked around the huge red rock After, we went in Matty's car and drove around to a lake nearby. We found a place to eat and sat down.

"So... you're leaving," Matty said as we began eating the food he brought.

"I got a letter from someone who saw the play and wanted me to act in his new movie, Struck!" I tried to cheer him up.1

"But you're leaving," Matty said again.

"Don't focus on the negatives. How were your soccer tryouts?" I asked, trying to change the subject.

"Well... I made the team!" he said, happily.

"See, we're both going to be doing something we love," I said, holding his hand.

"I guess so," Matty said casually. After, we finished our food and walked around the lake.

"Hey...I've got an idea," Matty said, grabbing twigs and setting them up a specific way. He took out a match and lit it, creating a little flame. Matty lit the twigs and it created a fire.

"Wow," I said in shock. I had never seen anything like this before. Matty took out a pack of marshmallows and opened it. He handed me one and I put it on a stick that Matty also brought.

I was about to eat the marshmallow when Matty stopped me.

"Don't you want to roast it first," he asked. I tried to roast the marshmallow, but it got burned. I looked Matty and he gave me a new one.

Then I realized something. "Um... what time is it?" I asked Matty.

"Don't put the marshmallow to close to the fire," Matty said, ignoring my question as I roasted my marshmallow.

"I did it," I said, happily. I began to eat my marshmallow as I felt Matty move closer towards me. That gave me a warm feeling.

Then I realized something. "Um...what time is it?" I asked Matty. "Almost 10:15," he replys.

"Oh. I have to go or I'll miss the bus," I said, a little upset.

"I can drive you home," Matty offers.

"If you do, it would have to be now."

"That's fine," he said. We heading back and pass a bridge.

"That's a nice sunset," I said, stopping Matty. We lean on the bridge. "Yeah, it's really nice," Matty said, turning towards me. He leans in and then we kiss, the moon shining down on us. I didn't want to spoil this moment, but I had to leave tomorrow. Not yet. I wanted to make this last as long as possible.