Chapter One
And he did reply to her letter the very next day.
As luck would have it, Ana had to stay late after school to finish her art project. She thought it was be perfect; now she could get his reply without having to worry that he would catch her reading it. But as she walked to her locker she walked past him. Darn it! Why was he just standing around even after turning in his project?
Aha! A stake out. Well, she wasn't about to fall for it. So she closed her locker and went to walk past him again.
"Are you on a stake out? She boldly asked.
"Yeah," Christian admitted. He was a little embarrassed and trying his best not to show it. "But it's already past five and no luck."
"Yeah, it's getting late. I hope your parents aren't worried."
Christian shrugged.
"Well, I'm off, good luck!" Ana said as she walked away. Wow, that was awkward and yet so nice. With her head on cloud nine she headed toward the bathroom. She would wait there for a few minutes until she was certain he was gone. There was hardly anyone left in the school and he was bound to give up for the day.
After fifteen minutes, Ana exited the bathroom and tip toed toward the lockers. It was risky, yes but she couldn't wait there all day. If he was still there it would be pretty obvious why she was still around. Fortunately, he had left and the best part was that he'd left a reply. Yay!
Ana walked home from school with a spring in her step. All she could think about was locking herself in her room and read the letter in complete solitude. She hoped her mother would be gone already on one of her dates so she could have the house all to herself. She knew she was in luck as soon as she let herself inside the house and climbed the steps to the bedrooms. Her room was next to her mother's and since her mom was in the habit of leaving the door ajar, she peeked in and saw her getting all dolled up. Yay!
She tiptoed to her room as quiet as a mouse, locked the door and dropped her backpack somewhere on the floor. I-pod in hand, she toggled to her favorite Taylor Swift song and connected it to the portable speakers. And then plopped down on the bed face first, clutching HIS letter.
Dear Secret Admirer:
Thank you for your letter, I was shocked by it. No one has ever written me a love letter before.
I really wish I knew who you are so we can talk face to face. Unless you wanna make it a guessing game which can also be fun too even if it keeps me awake at night thinking. What do you wanna do?
Thinking of you,
Sleepless knight in shinning armor
ps. You got the wrong locker. The locker next to mine belongs to a girl named Ana. She was kind enough to give me this letter.
Ana let out a squeal. Seeing that Christian had referred to her by name AND also described her as kind made her INSANELY HAPPY! And so she danced around the room to the tune of Shake it Off, holding the letter close to her heart. She might have to wait a day or so before she replied though, she didn't want to seem too eager. Besides, she needed time to think. Did she really want to keep him guessing? Oh, please, Ana, it's not like you're actually going to tell him who you are, she chuckled to herself. In any event, this was turning out to be more exciting that she could have ever imagined!
Naturally, she spent the next few minutes daydreaming and trying to find her lucky pen—fine point, smudge- free.
Dear Christian:
You are sooo funny!
No, no, scratch that! What if he even wasn't trying to be funny? He MIGHT feel insulted.
Dear Christian:
You're as sweet as a chocolate chip cookie!
No, no, that's even worse! Just cos' he thinks you're sweet doesn't mean you should call him that. Remember, guys don't want to be thought of as sweet. They want to be thought of as having a tough, rugged exterior like...hmm like...Brad Pitt ( but NOT that old of course).
She crumbled the paper and started over with a new sheet.
Dear Knight in Shinning Armor:
Ah, see, that's much better, Ana. Nice start.
Keep it up, Ana, you MIGHT actually become the next Danielle Steel one day. Hmm. Let's see my name on the New York Times Bestsellers list... Anastasia Steele. Nah. Too much like Cinderella's evil step sister. Ana Steel. A little boring, I know. How about Anna Steele? Oh, yes. The double 'n' and the 'e' at the end of Steele makes it more distinctive.
She was still smiling when a loud knock on her door brought her out of her reverie. "Whaaat?"
Her mother's voice boomed through the door. Ana opened the door a tiny bit and put her foot behind the door so that it could only open an inch.
Carla pushed her way through the door, leaving Ana no choice but to step back. She was dressed in a stunning red cocktail dress that showed way too much cleavage. "We have company tonight."
Ana couldn't have been more surprised; this was so unlike the usual routine. Whenever her mother went out on a date, shes stayed out past midnight and she never even brought the man in question inside their home. And if she did, Ana never knew about it.
"Does Jim Bob want Macaroni and Cheese for dinner?"
"Ha, ha. Very funny. For your information, we are going out to dinner, the three of us. He wants to spend sometime getting to know you."
"Getting to know me?"
"Oh, and it's not Jim Bob, stop calling him that. His name is Stephen." Carla curtly replied. Her eyes narrowed, appraising her daughter as she might a domesticated creature she was prepared to buy. "Oh, and change into something nice, would you?"
Ana rolled her eyes and let out a huff. She was wearing her best skinny style jeans and her prettiest top.
"How about a dress? Nothing too revealing though. " And with that Carla turned to leave as if she no longer cared for the answer to her question.
The moment Ana came downstairs to find her mom and Stephen holding onto each other like a couple of horny teenagers, she feared that they would do something stupid like getting married. The thought scared the living daylights out of Ana. Why on earth did Carla believe that bringing him here was a good idea? And if she had to bring him couldn't she at the very least keep her hand off his butt while they were here? Yep, her mother had her hand tucked inside the man's back pocket.
Ana willed herself to take a deep breath and faked a smile, even under her mother' s disapproval. She knew her mother was furious over the fact that was still wearing the same outfit and was trying her best to ignore her.
"Ana, darling, this is Stephen," Carla spoke with an equally fake smile.
"Ana. Pleased to meet you, sweetheart. I've heard so much about you."
Stephen stood up to shake her hand but Ana just stared at him. The man was heavy built, dark hair and sported a wispy goatee. Ana couldn't help but stare at his upper lateral incisors capped in silver. Decidedly creepy. Back in nursery school, her teacher had read a book titled: Not every body is nice. This man looked exactly like that creep who tried to lure poor little Susie into his car by dangling a large candy bar in front of her trusting eyes.
"Ana! Where are your manners?" Carla scolded, shaking her head. As if she hadn't done enough already to make her look bad, her daughter had also dared to defy her by refusing to comply with her request to change into a nicer outfit.
Most reluctantly, Ana shook hands with the man she still called Jim Bob in her head. And she had to pull her hand out of his grasp when he continued holding it way longer than necessary but her mom was too star-struck to notice or care.
"Ana, grab your coat, we're going out to Red Lobster."
"Your mom says it's your favorite," Stephen/Jim Bob flashed her that silver toothy smile which made her shudder.
The last thing Ana wanted was to be anywhere near this...this man. Plus, she needed to get back to her letter. "I got homework to do, mom."
"Don't be silly, darling, it's Friday. I'm sure you can catch up over the weekend," Carla flashed her signature fake happy smile.
"Mom!" Ana protested but she already knew she had no chance of winning. If she dared cross her mother, the woman would end up turning off her Wi-Fi connection or something equally mean spirited.
Things went from bad to worse when later, during dinner, Ana reached told the waiter she wanted a chocolate sundae for desert and her mother said, "Do you really want that dear? A moment on the lips, forever on the hips."
Stephen let out a laugh, silver teeth shinning and Anna felt angry and humiliated.
The worst part came when they announced they were getting married and Carla flashed her ring around as though she was making the announcement to a large gathering. Ana was shocked into silence for a full minute, she didn't even know this guy. Was she expected to shout her congratulations? It had been three years since her parents' divorce but to her it was only yesterday. She remembered coming home one day to find her dad with his bags packed and telling her she could come and stay with him every summer.
"You don't seem thrilled, darling. I'd think you' d be happy for me, after all the misery I went through with your father."
Ana shook her head in disbelief. "Well...I hope you're both VERY HAPPY!" she spat, her voice loud and artificial. She hated this. She'd been secretly hoping for a reconciliation, life had not been the same since her daddy -her favorite parent-had left.
"Ana!" Her mother reprimanded.
"Maybe she's worried of being left out," Stephen reasoned, giving Ana a roguish look. "Don't worry Ana, I love little children, especially little girls like you. And I promise you I won't take your mommy away from you."
Ana hated the way THAT man talked to her as if she's four years old. She hated how he looked at her-his gaze made her uncomfortable in a new way she didn't fully comprehend.
Later that night, Ana tossed and turned in bed, her head reeling from the events of the day. Until she remembered she hadn't finished her letter to Christian, and it was as if a golden light were suddenly shinning in her brain.
Dear Sleepless Knight in Shinning Armor:
I am close and yet so far...
Yep, this will certainly keep him guessing who I am. Hmm...what else?
I will supply you with plenty of clues
You just stay tuned
Ah. I don't know, something about it sounds rather lame. Scratch that.
If you don't mind staying tuned,
I will supply you with plenty of clues
Better. Yes.
A very special gift I send to you, it's an old Indian nickel that will bring you good luck on your math test this Monday.
Huh. That part doesn't rhyme.
would you please keep it close to your heart?
Love,
Your Secret Admirer.
ps. The nickel is taped to the back of this letter :)
Ana sighed. She couldn't wait for Christian to read her letter on Monday.
A/N:
PLEASE REVIEW, this story is in its infancy and even though I have a plan, I'm open to suggestions of what you want/ don't want to see happening. I haven't read many FSOG stories, but I think we can agree: there's no need for another story with Ana running. Anything else?
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