[Disclaimer: This story is an adaptation of the Lizzie McGuire episode ...from Gordo's point of view. So yes, not even the story's mine this time. What is mine, you ask? As funny as it sounds, I own Gordo's thoughts in this story. And any parts you might not recognize from the episode. :) ]

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Yo, Gordon!

It was Ethan yelling for me from down the hall. Ever since that one time I talked to him when I was trying to investigate deeper into his likes and dislikes, he's been talking to me. This wouldn't be that big of a problem if: 1) he was just a little bit more on the intelligent side, and 2) he didn't constantly talk about his GIRL troubles. Rhonda this, and Lisa that, and Kathy said this but I think she meant that... Sure, I liked girls as much as any other guy. But try having two boy-crazy girls as your friends for a while, and I think you'll begin to understand why I'm not used to talking about the opposite sex.

Yeah, Ethan? I said, trying to act courteous. For some reason, I never really liked the guy. But I wasn't sure why. I had to force myself to be nice to him, and that's not something I usually do.

Here you go, my ma-yun, he said, slapping a piece of paper into my hand. You're invited.

I'm pretty sure I stood there dumbfounded for quite some time. Obviously long enough so that when I woke up, Ethan wasn't there anymore. I unfolded the paper. It read:

U R invitid 2 Ethan'z murder misteree partay
Saterday @ 3 pm @ Lizzi's house
(come to room #101 b4 dismissul 4 chosing partz)

Yep, Ethan definitely wrote it himself. Why was it at Lizzie's house? Not that I had a problem with that, since I'd probably be more comfortable and familiar with her house, but usually people have their own parties at their own houses.

Oh well. It's not like I wouldn't have been at Lizzie's house on Saturday anyway.

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I walked into Room #101 at approximately 2:50 at the end of the school day to find Lizzie, Ethan, Kate, and Kate's cousin Amy there. I pondered asking Amy why she was hanging out with a bunch of 8th graders during her valuable time, but to be honest, she kind of scares me sometimes.

I sat down at a desk far from Kate and Amy, isolating myself from everyone. Unfortunately, there weren't enough seats to do that. Larry came in the room, followed by Veruca...who sat next to me.

So besides Kate, Ethan, and Amy, this wasn't too bad of a bunch. No, quite the contrary, this could be very fun.

Who am I kidding? Ethan would be there. Lizzie would spent her whole time trying to get Ethan to notice her in a romantic sense but would fail miserably because she refuses to realize that he's too stupid to see what a funny, smart, beautiful, fun, cool...

Stop. Stop now, Gordon, before you do something stupid.

But there's no point to being in denial anymore.

I love Lizzie McGuire. It's not anything too new. I'm honestly not sure how long I have. But it wasn't until I saw her kiss Ronnie Jacobs that I even thought about the possibility that something was there. I don't really want to talk about it. I can't even think about it without knowing that I should've told her my true feelings already, and beating myself up for not having done this. I kicked my legs around as I sat up on the desk.

Next thing we have to do is pick our characters for the mystery, Lizzie stated. She held out the hat for Ethan to pick out of. He read his card.

Clive McGuffin. He grinned and nodded in approval. Awesome. I'm heir to the McGuffin fortune, and I'm gonna marry Penelope Featherstone, he said as he surveyed the room, looking at all his potential .

Of course Ethan got to be the rich, regal main character guy. Even at a fictional murder mystery party, he's still the popular one.

He swaggered over towards me, Lizzie trailing happily behind him, like a puppy on a leash.

she said, holding the hat out towards me.

I sighed, expecting the inevitable: I'd be some poor nobody that everybody would overlook. Maybe if I was Clive McGuffin, people might actually care about me.

I read my card.

And I'm Penelope Featherstone, the blushing maiden that Clive is making his own. I looked around. Can I pick again?

Lizzie says, once again holding out the hat. I picked a card.

Aubrey Carstairs, I read. She hands me the other card. Lord McGuffin's old war buddy. It didn't sound too bad. At least I was related to the guy that got murdered. Still, I wasn't too enthused. Hey, beats being Ethan's wife.

The rest of the crew picked their characters. They, too, were, for the most part, . I didn't understand how they could be so cool with being of minor importance at this thing. The only that hadn't picked yet was Lizzie.

I guess I'll just...take whatever's left, she said. Digging into the hat, she read the last card there. And I'm Penelope Featherstone! she squeals. I'm the bride! I'm the bride!

I tried not to look too sad. It wasn't the first time. I'd spent most of my life trying to be happy for Lizzie when she got closer to whoever her crush of the moment was.

Ethan said, dumbly. Well, my mom'll be coming, too, you know...to supervise. Well, see y'all Saturday at Lizzie's. He walked out the door, as the other filed out behind him. I hop off my desk and walk over to Lizzie.

I get to be the bride, she beamed.

And I get to be the low-key best friend that nobody notices, I sighed.

Gordo, what are you talking about? I'm sorry to say this, but sometimes, Lizzie just..doesn't understand.

Nothing. It's just that this will just be another one of those parties where everyone's drooling over Ethan, and I'm just a footnote. I think when I said , I meant Lizzie and Kate. And I know Miranda would, too, if she was here. Maybe it was just a little bit of an exaggeration.

Oh, come on, Gordo, people notice you. Right. And Ethan Craft is a nerd. And I will totally notice you if solve this mystery before I do. We started to head out the door. Because I have been reading Nancy Drew since I was like, 8, and I'm totally going to solve this murder.

Yeah, well, you're going to have beat the low-key best friend that nobody notices, I said cynically as I gave her the thumbs-up. Stiff competition. I walked away.

And as I walked down the hall, I heard Lizzie squeal, I'm the bride!

I rolled my eyes once more. Usually, I'd never had to deal with one of Lizzie's crushes for more than a few months or so. I'd been dealing with Ethan for almost two years now. He really got on my nerves sometimes. Well...no. It wasn't him that got on my nerves. It was the fact that the only reason any girl liked him was because he had nice hair...that, and he was the most popular guy at school. I knew Lizzie was deeper than that. I thought she had more sense.

But something that she said...had struck a nerve.

And I will totally notice you if you solve this mystery before I do...

I don't know what I did at that second, whether I laughed, I grinned, or I just kept the same staid look on my face, but I knew one thing:

I had a plan.

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[A/N: Yahoo! This is the story I said I'd be posting on Wednesday, but to balance things out a little, I'm putting it here today. (Plus, I had it done anyway so there wasn't really a reason to keep you waiting.)

I wonder if anyone likes this story. LoL, I'm trying not to copy the episode exactly...because the show is in Lizzie's POV. This is in Gordo's POV. Not everything in the episode will be in this story, and not everything in this story will be from the episode.

I really hope people like this story, because I spent nearly an hour and a half copying down all the dialogue from the episode. So...let's hope my hard work paid off.

Let me know what you think: please review. Thanks!]