Forlot - Books 7-9

Chapter Three

My friends and I were at a popular restaurant here in Forlot and sitting at a table. School had ended for the day, and the three of us were hanging out.

We are always hungry after school, and seeing that they do not serve lunch and release us early in the afternoon, we usually vote on where to eat. Our parents do not mind.

That is, if we had parents. We will get to that part soon.

Billy, Jim, and I were eating like we had not eaten in days. I ordered a hamburger with fries, and Jim did the same. Billy was the odd one out. He was having spaghetti with red sauce.

"How come you decided to not have a burger?" Jim asked Billy. "They are one of your favorite foods!"

Billy slurped down a piece of his spaghetti. "I was in the mood for spaghetti. I have not had it in a while."

"All the food is delicious here," I declared. "I can never make up my mind what to get."

Cindy's & Mia's is the restaurant - and the only one in Forlot - that serves all foods. From pasta to meat. From vegetables to desserts. It is also rated five stars.

Is it no wonder?

I had short, brown hair and was wearing a dark blue, long-sleeved shirt and dark blue pants with tennis shoes. Jim had short, black hair and wore a white, short-sleeved shirt and black shorts with black and white shoes. And Billy had short, brown hair that was covered by his blue and red cap and wore a blue jacket and red pants with grey shoes.

"Do you find it strange that our writer eats spaghetti without sauce?" Billy pointed out.

"Yeah," Jim answered. "I wonder why."

"She prefers it that way," I defended her. "Frankly, I like that. Being different from the rest of the world."

Jim was finished with his burger and began eating his fries. "Tim, you always think that whatever she does is great."

"Well, she is better than most real worlders. She defended us and still does to this day. We owe her."

Billy was almost done with the spaghetti. "Then why keep it a secret that the main characters in Forlot are fictional?"

I drank some of my water and swallowed. "She said that she will tell them the truth when the time is right."

"But this is already book seven!"

We continued chatting and were nearly finished with our meals, when three girls entered.

Whom we knew.

Jim practically vacuumed what remained on his plate with his mouth and nudged Billy in the side with his elbow. "Look out. They are here."

Billy lifted up his plate and turned it towards his mouth, the spaghetti sliding off and falling into his wide mouth.

I only had five fries left, so I was not in a rush. I picked one up and put it in my mouth, chewing it, as the girls walked to our table.

The group of girls is in the same class with us. Their names are Sue, Jane, and Jenny. In no way that they are friends. Jenny despises Sue, and Jane and Jenny are sisters.

Sue is nice and caring. She had long, blonde hair and was wearing a yellow, short-sleeved shirt with white pants and white shoes. Jane is also kind. She had long, brown hair tied back in a ponytail and was wearing a purple, short-sleeved shirt with a purple skirt and purple shoes. Billy and Jim think that they are annoying, however, I only thought that Sue was annoying, for she was obsessed with me.

Okay. The word "obsessed" is a bit of a stretch. She just really likes me.

I am flattered and all, but I happened to take a liking to Jane.

Jane is the only person who is nine years old. The rest of us are eleven. Not only is she kind-hearted, but she is also very smart. You probably will not believe this, but she was supposed to start fourth grade. However, because she was so smart, she surpassed her classmates and got the opportunity to skip fourth and fifth grade and begin sixth grade with us. The principal put her in the same class as Jenny because they are sisters.

And they would look so much alike if they did not wear different clothes. Plus, Jane was shorter than Jenny.

Now...about Jenny...

She is a bully! She constantly bullies mostly all of us. Her sister. Sue. Even Jim and Billy. But the person whom she loves to bully the most is me.

Why? I have no clue. I have not done anything to her. I have always kept to myself.

And if you think that is bad, wait until I tell you what she had gotten away with at school.

I glared at Jenny. To be honest, I was afraid of her.

"What do you want?" I snapped.

She glared back at me. "It is not what I want. It is what our writer wants."

"Ash wants us to meet her," Sue said. "She said that it is urgent."

I looked at her, and then back at Jenny. I let out a whoosh of air. "Fine."

After I paid for the check - not with money because money is illegal in Forlot - the six of us walked out of the restaurant and down the sidewalk.

Unlike with the other characters whom you readers have met so far in this series, we know that we are fictional characters. We know about our writer and do favors for her.

We came up to a small, black house and hurried inside. Our writer was at her desk and glanced up at us. She looked serious.

"Tim Johnson. Jenny Jacks. Jane Jacks. Sue Benson. Jim Jones. Billy Stan," she said softly.

"Ash..." Jenny took a step forward. "...what is going on?"

"Something...has happened. Margie, Nigel, Hansel, Gretel, Jorgie, and Eleanor...were murdered."