Tips For Life

Number One

 I ran out the door, already late for school. 

 My best friend Wyatt was sitting on the hood of my car, looking bored. "Took ya long enough."

 "Come on, we're gonna be late!" I said, running over to the driver's seat and yanking on the door. Locked. 

 "Forgot the keys!" I said as I raced inside. 

 "Typical Lily!" Wyatt yelled back.

 It was typical of me, I thought, grabbing my keys off of the hook by the door. I was rarely ever on time. "Let's go, let's go!" I said, unlocking the car and jumping inside. 

 Wyatt took his time getting in. Partly because he didn't care about being late, and partly because he hurt his knee skateboarding. While I was a nerd, Wyatt was the skater boy. Our unlikely friendship had started when he moved next door to me. We were only three years old. Now, thirteen years later, we're still best friends. 

 I drove down the driveway and out of our neighborhood as fast as I dared. I didn't want to get a ticket for speeding and be late for high school on the same day. Wyatt flipped on the radio and surfed through the channels, finally settling on some rock music. Then it hit me. 

 I forgot my backpack. 

 I wanted to say some colorful words, but restrained myself. "Gosh donut!" I made a sharp u-turn.

 "What now?" Wyatt asked. 

 "I forgot my backpack." 

 He shook his head. "You are ridiculous. How do you manage to get A's?"

 "It's a mystery to me." I said. We were turning back into our neighborhood. "Would you mind going and getting my backpack for me?"

 "But my knee!"

 "Please? Pretty please? I'll do you a favor." I begged.

 Wyatt sighed. "Where?"

 "Kitchen-"

 "Table, yeah, got it."

 We screeched to a halt in front of my house and Wyatt jumped out of the car and ran to the door. I sighed and took the opportunity to change the radio station. His rock was giving me a headache. Not thirty seconds later, Wyatt came sprinting out of the house with my dark blue backpack slung over his shoulder.

 He ran in and slammed the door. "Here. Now drive."

 And drive I did. We were thirty minutes late by the time we got to school. I cursed myself silently as I ran to my first period class, Honors English. Ms. Magdelena was not going to be happy. 

 Note to self: Number one - don't trust your brother to wake you up.