Thankfully, back pain didn't prevent me from getting a good nights sleep. When I woke up, Mike's bed was empty and Davy was still asleep. I got out of bed and went downstairs. Mike was in the kitchen making waffles. "Good morning," I said softly to not wake the others up. "Hey kiddo. How did you sleep last night?" he asked. "I slept well," I answered as I sat down at the table. "Good. Want some waffles?" Mike asked. "Yes please," I replied politely. He handed me a plate of waffles. "How's your back this morning?" Mike inquired. "It's a little better so it should be alright," I assured him. I poured syrup on my waffles and took a few bites. Davy, Micky, and Peter straggled into the room and started their breakfasts. "We've been kind of busy lately so we should do something special today," Mike suggested. "Let's go to the amusement park," Davy exclaimed. "That would be groovy," I replied. "The amusement park it is," Mike decided. We continued to eat breakfast. I went upstairs to wash my face and brush my teeth. When I was done, I went to our bedroom to get dressed. I put on shorts, a pink t-shirt, and sandals. I brushed my hair and put on a thin white headband before leaving the room. The boys emerged in t-shirts and jeans. We got inside the monkeemobile. I sat in the back with Davy and Micky. When we were buckled in, Mike drove us to the nearest amusement park.
We got there in twenty-five minutes. "It shouldn't be too crowded since it's early in the morning. If we run into any fans that are calm, we can go say hi briefly. If there is a group of crazy girls, we run back to the car," Mike told me. I nodded. I haven't thought about that kind of thing yet but it was good to be prepared. We paid for our tickets and went inside. "We should go on a fairly relaxing ride to get started," Peter advised. We went on the carousel and an antique car ride. "Now let's go on a rollercoaster," Micky said excitedly. We found one that wasn't too crazy and didn't have to wait in line. I sat between Mike and Micky. Once the worker made sure our seatbelts were secure, the ride began to move. We moved uphill in a spiral pattern. The anticipation was building. When we reached the top, we went down a steep hill really fast. I smiled and I could tell that Micky and Mike were smiling too. It is amazing to see Mike with a genuine smile on his face.
We went on a swing ride, a river rocker, and a few more rollercoasters before deciding what to do next. "Personally, I think we should go on the Star Blaster," Micky said. "Is that the one that goes up really high and then drops you really fast?" Mike asked. Micky nodded. "I'm not going with you on that one shotgun. But if you want to go on it, do it before lunch," Mike advised. "Who wants to come with me," Micky asked. Peter and Davy took a step back. "I'll go with you Micky," I offered. He smiled. "This girl has guts and I like it," Micky said putting his arm around my shoulder. We walked up to the ride. The ride operator let us in and we strapped ourselves in. "Here you guys go," he shouted as the ride lifted us up. I let out a few laughs. I'm not sure if it was because I was nervous or excited. Mike, Davy, and Peter's figures became smaller as we continued to rise. As we reached the top, my heart was pounding. The ride dropped suddenly. Micky and I screamed. Mine was the terrified scream and Micky's was the excited scream. My hair blew around my face. We were lowered to the ground.
Just before the safety vests were about to lift up, Micky screamed,"Again!" The ride operator gave into his request and we were lifted off the ground for the second time. I groaned slightly. "Be a sport Jennifer," Micky said as he saw my reaction. "I was a sport the first time though," I complained gently. Micky had a mad scientist look in his eyes when we got to the top. I braced myself for the drop. Gravity took control and we plummeted to the ground. I felt a little lightheaded because of the fast movement. To my relief, we were on solid ground. The safety vests rose off of us and we unbuckled our seatbelts. Micky and I stood up and took clumsy steps towards Mike, Davy, and Peter. Mike put his hands on my shoulders and steadied me. "I'm a little surprised you went on that with Mick," he stated. "Well, I didn't want him to have to go alone," I replied. "That's what you thought before he pulled you into round two," Davy joked. I laughed. "No, I'm alright now so that's all that matters," I replied.
We took a twenty minute sitting break for us to recover. Then, we got hot dogs from a food stand and ate them. We went on a train ride that took us around the park. We got off the train after we arrived at the spot that we boarded it. The amusement park was more crowded than it was earlier. We went on a few more rollercoasters. I spotted a log ride. "Let's check that out," I exclaimed. We had to wait a few minutes in line but it was fine. Davy, Mike, and I went in one log and Peter and Micky went in another. We sat shortest to tallest so I was between Davy and Mike. The log was forced uphill and Davy and I slid in the direction of Mike's chest. I was now pressed against Mike's chest. Davy quickly grabbed the handles and pulled himself out of my lap. "Sorry Jennifer," he said a little embarrassed. "It's okay Davy," I replied. There was a small drop and we got splashed by the water. All of us smiled. The log went through a series of twists and we prepared for a huge drop. We approached the edge and the gates to the drop opened. I grabbed onto the handles. We flew down the drop. I let out a mix of excited screaming and laughing. Mike, Davy, and I got soaked by the water. When it was time, we got off the ride and walked away from it.
Micky and Peter joined us a few minutes later. They were soaked also. "We should walk around the park for a little bit so our clothes dry faster," Mike advised. We strolled through the amusement park and picked up some popcorn and cotton candy. Each of us had a little bit of each. Peter and Davy played some games and won prizes. Peter won a giant panda stuffed animal and Davy won a stuffed horse. "Aw they're so cute," I exclaimed. "We're glad you think so because we've decided that we want you to have them," Davy replied. "Thank you so much," I said giving each of them a hug. "You're welcome," they replied.
We were just about to start leaving when a group of girls spotted us. The press and fans didn't know about me yet but that didn't matter at this point. They ran towards us. "Run," Mike yelled. We darted away from them with the stuffed animals in hand. I looked over my shoulder as I ran and saw that the group size had tripled. I got pretty worried about us getting mobbed. I ran faster out of fear. Mike glanced back at me every so often to make sure I was keeping up with them. Two older boys ran up to me and grabbed my arm. "My my you're a pretty girl," one of them said pulling me away from the guys. The other snaked his arms around my waist. I felt my anxiety level rising. "What's a pretty girl like you doing all by herself?" he asked creepily. I prayed that Mike would realize I'm not with them anymore. I was too scared to scream. "What do you two think you're doing?" a Texan voice roared from behind me. I turned around and saw Mike giving the two boys a death glare. "Stay away from her and learn how to treat women with respect," he bellowed. The boys exchanged a look a fear and ran away. Mike walked up to me and all I could manage to do is hug him. He hugged me gently and put his chin over my head. "I'm so sorry I didn't notice that you disappeared faster. They didn't hurt you did they?" Mike asked somberly. "Besides giving me a bad fright, no," I answered. "Still, next time something that happens, I'm going to hold your hand so no one can get you," he replied protectively. We released each other. "Where's Micky, Peter, and Davy?" I asked. "They should be at the parking lot by now. I told them to keep running so we could make a quick exit if it got out of hand," Mike answered.
We joined hands and walked to the parking lot. We spotted the monkeemobile and got inside. We were met with three very concerned faces. "What happened back there? Are you okay?" they asked me frantically. "Two guys pulled me away and put their arms around me. It could have been much worse if Mike didn't show up when he did and yes I'm okay," I answered. "We were really worried," Peter replied. I gave a small smile. "Let's pick up some chinese on the way home," Micky suggested. We drove away from the amusement. We stopped briefly and got the chinese food.
When we got home, the five of us ate dinner. It was super tasty! Then, we rehearsed and I had the chance to learn the background vocals for the songs on their first two albums. I went upstairs, put the stuffed panda and horse in my room, and took a shower. I put on my pajamas when I was dry and tried to comb my tangled hair. The wind from the rollercoasters made my hair messed up. I managed to get all the tangles out in seven minutes. As my hair dried naturally, I took out my dad's acoustic guitar and strummed it a few times. "That's a really great guitar your dad had," Mike said from the door entrance. "It's great but I don't know anything about playing guitars," I confessed. "I could teach you," he offered. "That would be great," I replied. Mike sat down next to me. "We should probably start with fingerings since you have the strumming figured out," he said. Mike placed my fingers on the correct strings and in a half hour I learned all the chord fingerings and started to learn some basic songs. "You're a really fast learner," he complimented. "Thanks but it was probably because I had a great teacher," I replied smiling. "Well thanks," Mike blushed. "You don't give yourself enough credit," I observed. I carefully set down the guitar. I got up behind Mike and gave him a huge hug. "Alright, you've made your point," he smiled after a few minutes. I released him and I put my guitar in its case.
We went downstairs and had some juice before bed. Micky, Peter, and Davy were tired as well because of walking around all day. All of us brushed our teeth and the boys put their pajamas on. Davy, Mike, and I walked into our bedroom, shut the door, and crawled into our beds. I pulled my sheet and blanket up and laid my head on the pillow. "Goodnight Davy. Goodnight Mike," I said sleepily. "Goodnight Jennifer. Goodnight Mike," Davy yawned. "Goodnight Jennifer. Goodnight Davy," Mike replied to both of us. He turned off the lamp and we fell asleep quickly.