So, if any of you true fans have read the Rockett's World books, then you were probably just as disappointed as I was when you discovered that Mattel had totally ruined them :( I always wonder what the books would have been like had they have been written by the original creators of Purple Moon! So, here's what I did: The Chicago trip (Rockett's World book 3 Are We There Yet?) had a totally interesting story, but the characters were totally out-of character, and the book alone was such a major disappointment. I love, love editing, so I decided to use the same premise, but change the story up a bit and take it in a more Purple Moon-oriented direction!;)
*Also, so I realize that a few of the conversations in the story happen while Rockett is not around, which doesn't usually happen in Purple Moon, but hey, this is fanfiction, so expect some errors;)
So this story is by me, Ezia, and also credit's gotta go to Lauren Day (Randi Reisfeld) who dreamt up the original premise.
Let me know what your feedback is! I love discussing this series with old fans! :)
"All right! Here it is, Jessie. Sign-ups for our choice class trip to Chicago!" Rockett Movado said excitedly as she wrote her name down on the list pinned to the bulletin board.
The one really good thing about the school elections so far, was that The Ones party had actually chosen to take a really cool trip to Chicago over the weekend. Rockett was stoked! She'd never been before, and she happened to know that their class would be taking a stroll through the Art Institute of Chicago while they were there. It was gonna be a way-rad trip!
So far, she had to admit, Rockett really did like Whistling Pines. Every now and then, she did miss her old school, and most definitely, her friend Meg. But things at WPJH had been pretty exciting so far. She'd already survived her first day of school - which hadn't gone too terribly. She also went to her first big halloween party without Meg (which had also had its own string of events and ups and downs), and now, she was about to embark on her first class trip with the Whistling Pines kids.
"Okay, Rockett, where do I sign up?" Jessie Marbella asked eagerly as Rockett handed her a pen. Jessie was among one of the first students Rockett had met on her first day. And also one of the friendliest! Rockett recalled on the first day of school, Jessie had totally filled her in about everything, including the cliques, teachers and students, and had even sent her a note suggesting that they start their own group ("the group of two," Jessie had said).
Not that it had ever actually happened. At school, the two girls hung out with each other often, but also spent time getting to know the others. In a way, it was nice - Rockett liked being a free-agent, not belonging to any clique per se, but really just getting to be the girl who could hang with whoever, whenever. And at the same time, Rockett didn't have to worry about just having friends in one group or anything – she could hang with everyone! Jessie seemed to be the same way as well.
"So, I think I already know what you're looking forward to," Jessie said to Rockett with a smile.
"What's that, Jess?" Rockett replied.
"Going to visit the art institute, of course! You're so creative, and it's totally obvious. Hey! Maybe you could even wear those cool sneakers you painted a while back, remember?"
"Yeah, I think so," Rockett smiled as she and Jessie headed back down the hall to go to lunch. "I guess it depends if I feel like maybe looking a little more professional that day."
"Hey, it's supposed to be a way-nice place, so maybe you're right. Hopefully it's not too, too nice though. I want to be able to just wear whatever while we're on the trip, you know, like something comfortable, since it is the weekend and everything."
Jessie spied Ruben, another super-nice kid Rockett had met on the first day, sitting at the gang's usual table. Rockett quickly looked around to see if Mavis Wartella-Depew was in sight.
The coast was clear. And normally Rockett wouldn't really mind having Mavis around. She'd also met Mavis the first day. Rockett could tell right away that she was the type of person who maybe didn't have a lot of friends. She'd also asked Rockett for some help opening up her locker, and she'd even given Rockett a special, "good-luck token" to keep.
But Mavis' lack of friends wasn't because she was unfriendly, but more because she was, okay, weird. Like, sometimes Rockett was pretty sure she heard aliens buzzing around whenever Mavis was in sight. Even still, Rockett liked her.
She just didn't like her around Ruben. And the reason for that was because Mavis was always totally embarrassing her about the two of them. "I know things," she would say. "What things?" Rockett had asked her. "Like how?" To which Mavis had replied, "I just know...I sense...jealousy." And she had said that once when Ruben was paired with Dana St. Clair one time in science class instead of Rockett. Which was...true. Rockett had been jealous. And even though it had probably been obvious to the whole class, Mavis didn't have to say it in front of their entire chem group. "Trust me," Mavis had said another time. "Ruben likes you." To which Rockett had rolled her eyes, even though her heart was beating like crazy and she was wondering if maybe it were true. Mavis was the type to make her feel like they were in some crazy love-triangle, only it wasn't technically a love-triangle, but still, just as complicated. She genuinely seemed like she wanted to help, to just let "the truth be out there," or whatever, but really, sometimes Mavis just seemed like some hopeless romantic who wanted the two of them to be together.
"Hey chicas," Ruben nodded when he saw them. "Que tal?"
"Hey, Ruben," Rockett greeted him as she and Jessie sat down. She wished she could have answered him back in Spanish, but that was one thing she hadn't taken the time to practice yet. "Excited for the trip? Are you going?"
Please say yes, she thought to herself.
Ruben nodded. "Oh, yeah. Three days, no parents, no teachers, no rules! Sign me up first thing!"
Jessie laughed. "Calm down, Ruben. Now you know they're not going to just let us take that trip without chaperones."
Rockett giggled, too. "No kidding. Wouldn't that be choice?" She grinned as she took a sip of her drink. "But still, I'm definitely looking forward to it."
"Of course you are, new girl," Ruben replied, with a twinkle in his eye. Rockett smiled. It was already November, and Ruben was still calling her that. She had to admit, though - she liked it. "We're gonna be visiting that fancy art place, no?" he asked before taking a bite of his hamburger.
"Yes!" Rockett cried joyfully. "I can't wait for that part. I'll bet the rest of the trip is gonna be great, but for me, that'll be the main event."
"Gearin' up with some henna?" Ruben teased as he pointed to Rockett's left hand. Rockett blushed. She just noticed that there was blue ink spread across it. "Yikes," she said, getting up. "Better go wash up. Be right back, guys."
Jessie gave Ruben a look. "...Of course you'd be the first to notice that," she teased once Rockett was out of earshot.
"What?" Ruben asked. "I can be a pretty detailed guy, you know."
"Sure, sure, whatever you say," Jessie smiled as she leaned back in her chair, taking a sip of lemonade.
He didn't let on. Jessie set her drink back on the table. "You like her, don't you, Ruben?" she asked.
"Who, the new girl?"
"Yeah!"
"Whatcha talkin' about Jessie? Me and Rockett are just friends.."
Jessie challenged, "Is that why you were so into getting her to go to Max's party last month?"
Max Diamond, one of the most popular guys in their school, had thrown a mega-wild halloween party just a few weeks ago. Normally, Ruben wouldn't have gone for what he called "the stuck-up fest", but Max had paid Ruben's band, Debaser, to be the primary source of musical entertainment. So, Ruben had accepted. And Jessie knew that Ruben had also been trying really hard to get Rockett not only invited, but also to go to the party -she'd overheard him trying to convince Max to let her be there, and also saw the note he'd slipped Rockett asking her to the party. Another student, Miko Kajiyama, had been there for both the events, and had also seen the note, too. Plus, Jessie had heard him asking Rockett at least three different times throughout the day. And those were just among a few of the things Ruben had done that week that she could remember.
"You're reading way too much into things, Jessie-chica. Rockett had never gotten to hear our awesome sound before, so I figured I'd pull some strings and let her come check it out. It's no big thing. Nada." Ruben responded.
"So when are you going to tell her?" Jessie asked, still not at all buying Ruben's nonchalant-act.
"…..I-"
"Ruben," Jessie said firmly. There was no way he was getting out of it this time.
Ruben stretched. "...I don't know. Probably never."
"So you do like her!" Jessie's eyes lit up, satisfied.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, I didn't say that. Look, Jess, can we just change the subject now, please? Por favor?"
Jessie smiled and rolled her eyes. "Fine, fine. Whatever you say," she repeated. "Only if you let her know this weekend on the class trip."
Rockett pushed open the door to the ladies' room, and went straight for the sink.
Ok, that was way embarrassing. Ew, Ruben probably thinks I don't even wash my hands!
She grimaced at the thought and leaned over the basin to wash the ink off. Just before she reached for a paper towel, she heard a sniffle coming from one of the stalls. Rockett turned around immediately.
That was it! She'd heard it again. No doubt about it this time, somebody in the bathroom had most definitely been crying. But who?
Rockett knew that whoever it was probably wasn't going to want to come out until every last person in the bathroom was gone, so she wouldn't be seen. Still half-turned around, Rockett froze.
Should I leave? I want to give this person their privacy, but at the same time, I feel so bad! Nobody ever cries at school, unless it's something major. Maybe I should just wait outside? Or would that be like sneaking up on them?
She decided to casually wait in the hallway, just outside the bathroom. Rockett wasn't at all mean-spirited, unlike some people in the school. And this definitely wasn't her golden opportunity to dig up dirt on a classmate, but she still wanted to know what was going on. Maybe she could help whoever had been crying.
After less than a minute, three girls emerged from the restroom. Rockett sighed, annoyed. She wasn't really in the mood for an encounter with the Ones. But then again, it was very possible that maybe one of them had been crying. Rockett quickly stole a glance over at the Queen Bees of the school - Nicole Whittaker, nasty blonde-ring leader, Stephanie Hollis, her faithful sidekick, and Whitney Weiss - the one girl in the clique that Rockett had actually gotten along with so far. Problem was, the girl was like a chameleon. When she was alone, no big deal. But, when she was with the group, sometimes Whitney couldn't even think for herself.
"So naturally, I told him what any person in my place would say...that I'm too good for him." That was Nicole for you. And by the looks of it, she had absolutely no trace of tears. Not only was her face smilingly happy, and full of self-satisfaction, but her makeup was perfect. No sign of tears there.
Rockett looked over at Stephanie, who was laughing. Stephanie didn't really wear makeup, so Rockett didn't expect to see any dripping mascara, but it was still obvious that she hadn't been the one who had been crying. Rockett quickly shifted her eyes to Whitney, who was giggling at what Nicole had said. "Yeah, I would have said the exact same thing, too, Nicole. That guy is such a doofus," Whitney gushed.
When the girls passed by, the other two had their noses in the air, but Whitney replied, "Oh, hi, Rockett." When she turned to face her, Rockett could see that Whitney also wasn't water-works girl. Rockett smiled. "Hey, Whitney."
"I do not have time for this," Nicole interrupted. "Whitney, come with me to my locker. I left my compact. Unless you want to hang out with your new best friend, that is."
"I do not," Whitney argued. Rockett's smile faded. "Chill, Nicole, I was just saying '"hi.'" Whitney gave Rockett a slightly-apologetic look and said quietly. "See you around, Rockett."
"Yeah, bye Whitney," Rockett said, her eyes looking back to the door. Just then, it swung open, and Ginger Baskin walked out. "Hey, Rockett," Ginger replied as she walked by. "Hi, Ginger," Rockett smiled. Rockett didn't know her very well, but Ginger seemed cool. Except for the fact that she hung out with Dana St. Clair, another girl Rockett wasn't exactly enthusiastic about.
Random thought: What if the three red-heads, Dana, Ginger and me, formed our own group? Ha-ha. Like that'd ever work out.
Rockett started to wonder if maybe the girls who had already come out of the bathroom were just faking it. Like, maybe one of them had been crying, but was really good at masking it.
She was about to assume that this was all true, when two more girls emerged from the restroom - Sharla Norvell and Mavis Depew.
"Hey, guys," Rockett said to them, but neither girl looked like she had been upset. "Hey RoMo - I mean, Movado," Sharla said on her way down the hall. Rockett was glad that Sharla had suddenly changed the way she spoke. "RoMo" was a ridiculously annoying nickname that Sharla had decided to call her from time to time. Maybe Sharla was for once in a good mood or something, because she didn't bug her about it this time. Rockett was grateful.
"Hello, Rockett," Mavis replied. "Have I got something to tell you!"
"Uhh, maybe later, Mavis," Rockett said quickly. A part of her wanted to ask Mavis and Sharla out-and-out if they had heard anyone crying in the restroom. But, she didn't. Just in the rare case that it might be one of them. Since the bathroom had cleared out some, she decided to go back in and confront the person inside. Rockett figured she had to be more comfortable now that most everyone had left.
But, just as she walked inside, she noticed something on the floor.
Ohmigosh, somebody left a note in here! I wonder what it's about. Should I read this, or would that be way too personal? I mean, I would need to know who it belongs to in order to give it back.
Rockett bent down to pick up the note. If she took it with her, and it belonged to somebody besides the Ones, then maybe she could keep them from reading someone else's personal business. But reading it herself sort of seemed like a bad idea, too. Suddenly, Rockett noticed something. When she had bent down to pick up the note, she saw no shoes in any of the stalls. "Hello?" Rockett called out. No answer. The restroom had completely cleared out. Which meant she had been right about thinking that someone she had talked to earlier was faking it. Whoever it had been was a total mystery now...
...And her only clue was the note. It hadn't been there a moment ago. Rockett locked herself inside a stall, and quietly opened the note:
Dear Nigel,
The class trip is such a rip! Not for me. Can't go that low, when you don't have any dough. So leave me out here to dry, and say goodbye to the kids goin' on their wild spending spree.
The poem caught Rockett totally off-guard. Who was Nigel? And why did the note have such a familiar ring to it?
Lucky for Rockett, she didn't have to narrow down to practically the entire female population of their school. Just the six girls who had been in the bathroom earlier. And the slang in the poem sounded suspiciously like...
Sharla Rae Norvell.
Whitney
What is up with Nicole? She freaks out on me like practically every single time I say hi to Rockett. She is so unbelievable sometimes. I'm thinking of starting a rumor about her. I mean, I know we're friends and all, but it's already November, and that STUPID thing she spread about me going out with the Zitbomb is still hovering around the school! Not that I would ever admit it to her but yeah we did go mini-golfing, but I'm not like Arnold's girlfriend or something! She blew that way out of proportion on purpose, I swear. I kind of happen to know one of her secrets..and would it be totally dumb to give Nic a taste of her own medicine and use THAT information against her? Pretty mean, I know. Hmm...maybe I'll talk to Rockett. I just don't know what to do.
Mavis
Secret Notebook,
I found something very interesting in the girls' bathroom earlier and it's something that is definitely secret and something that a certain person doesn't want other people to know (I know this thing because the note was all crunched up and under a stall). I did not pick up the note, so it is still there and the universe can decide who will be the one to see it (even though I saw it already). I need to talk to Rockett about this. Rockett is a very kind person, but if she finds it she will need help with this I am sure of it, Secret Notebook (also Noxious Nicole has already left so I am not worried that it will fall into the wrong hands).