London today, Paris next time! What can you imagine Diana and Karena doing? DISCLAIMER: I do not own anything related to "Meet the Robinsons" or "High School Story: Class Act," I only own Diana and Karena.
Russell had offered to watch Wesley while my dad took me and my mom to La Guardia Airport in New York before the crack of dawn that Friday. We were cleared through security, and we were able to check in smoothly. Dad had offered to wait with us at the gate before we boarded the plane. I had been separated from my dad before when I had spent my summers in Todayland while he worked in New York, but this time, it was a different kind of separation. Mom and I were going to London, while Dad worked and Wesley stayed with Russell his daughter Jessi. I was going to be across the ocean from my dad, and I felt like I was going to miss him even more because of that.
"Airplane 1542 is now boarding."
"I guess this is it," I said out loud, and I hugged my dad tightly.
"Have fun in London," Dad told me. "And take home first place in Spotlite."
"I'll try my hardest, Dad. I love you."
"I love you too, princess."
We pulled apart, and I watched my parents embrace each other for a long tender moment.
"I love you, Wilbur," Mom said.
"I love you too, Karena."
They pulled apart from their hug and they pulled in again for a long, passionate kiss. Watching them kiss like that, it was a precious moment that I don't see every day. I could tell my parents truly loved each other and didn't want to be apart.
"Watch over our little girl for me," Dad told her with a smile.
"And you watch over our son," Mom replied back as they gave each other one more kiss. After they pulled apart, Mom approached me with a smile on her face. "Are you ready for your biggest adventure yet?"
"You bet I am," I replied, and as we started to walk away, I turned back and waved at my dad, who waved back with a teary smile on his face. Before I knew it, we boarded the plane, and the plane took off. I sat between my mom and my boyfriend Caleb, and I laced my hand with the latter's.
"We're lifting off!" I heard Amy yell as the plane accelerated down the runway.
"So long, Westport," Ajay replied with a smile on his face.
"It was nice seeing you again, New York," I said quietly as I looked out the window to see the symbol of America: the Statue of Liberty.
"It's gorgeous, isn't it?" Mom asked, also looking out the window.
"This is the first time I've ever seen the Statue of Liberty," I answered in awe. "It's not up close, but it's… so strong."
"The Statue of Liberty was seen as a promise to immigrants that they would have a fulfilling life here," Mom explained. "But to others, like me and your dad, it represents our freedom."
"Look, I can see our house from here!" Adam yelled. "And there's Westport High!"
"Of course Adam gets the view of our hometown," I said with a chuckle.
"But we have the better view," Mom said, and then Caleb peered over to see the Statue of Liberty before we got higher.
"I can't look!" Maria cried. "I'm afraid of heights."
"Sounds like it's going to be a long nine hours for you," Michael said with a smirk on his face.
"This view is amazing!" Amy replied happily. "Maria, open your eyes! "It's like a big blue blanket keeping the Statue of Liberty warm!"
"I wouldn't exactly call it that," Caleb said, and Mom and I chuckled.
"Everything's so small," Maria said with some fear in her voice. "I feel a bit faint."
"Just keep staring!" Rory suggested with eagerness. "Exposure therapy!"
"If it makes you feel any better, look what's coming our way," Ajay said.
"What is it?" Maria asked. "The ocean? Are we falling?"
"What? No, it's airplane food!" Erin answered, and we all turned back toward the front to see the flight attendant giving everyone food.
"Your courtesy in-flight lunch."
"It's not afternoon yet, but all right," I said.
"Remember, Diana, your dad explained that London is six hours ahead of us," Mom explained. "While it's breakfast here in New York… or the Atlantic Ocean, it's lunch time over in England."
"Gotcha!"
"Yes! It's everything I dreamed of and more!" I heard Rory cheer happily, and I couldn't help but crack up laughing at his enthusiasm.
"I expected you to have bigger dreams," Skye replied as I started to eat my cheeseburger, fries, a piece of bread, and water.
"This isn't bad," Mom said after swallowing a fry. The three of us sat in our seats in content, eating our meals.
"So, Mr. Silva, I heard you have an anniversary coming up with Mrs. Silva!" I jerked and turned toward Amy. "You've sure been married for a long time!"
"Uh, that's right," Mr. Silva replied with fear in his voice. "Coming up on seventeen years next month."
"Really? Congratulations," Ms. Maddox, who was another chaperone, replied.
"Thanks. We're planning to eat at a fancy lobster restaurant to celebrate," Mrs. Silva explained with a smile.
"Sounds tasty," Ajay replied.
"Yeah! You two are the shining picture of true love," Amy replied back loudly.
"I suppose so," Mr. Silva said, and then he cleared his throat, turning back to his wife and friend.
"What was that about?" I asked with confusion in my voice.
"Beats me," Caleb replied as he continued eating. "But I have to disagree with Amy."
"Wait, what?"
"I don't know Mr. and Mrs. Silva," Caleb explained. "But, Karena, I know you and Wilbur, and you are definitely the shining picture of true love."
"Caleb, I'm flattered!" Mom replied with appreciation in her voice. "But not even Wilbur and I are perfect."
"I'm curious. How did you and Wilbur meet?"
"Well… this may sound like something out of a movie but… I met my husband when I traveled to the future."
"How does that work?" Caleb asked with surprise. "Did time machines exist when you were born?"
"Oh no! You see, technically, I was born in 1995, and in 2013, I had moved into my own apartment and bought a television set with a magic remote. That remote took me to Wilbur's hometown, where I met him. He influenced me so much on what it means to have hope that I moved to the year 2037 to live my life with him. Wilbur was just starting high school at the time while I just graduated high school."
"Was it love at first sight?" I asked, a little alarmed my mom had never told me the story of how she and my dad met.
"Not exactly," Mom answered. "Your dad came off as a little impatient, and his mind was on more important things."
"So how did you know there was something there?" Caleb asked.
"Wilbur just flat out told me his true feelings about himself and his family as well as some secrets that he never told anyone about." Mom paused, looking out the window to see a layer of clouds. "Wilbur felt… comfortable when he was around me, and I realized he had feelings for me. I never imagined that would happen to me, and I slowly fell in love with him."
"How did you guys work it out?" I asked.
"Time and honesty. Your dad was a minor, so we had to be careful of what we did together and how we were around each other. We got more flexible after we got engaged."
"What was your engagement story?" Caleb asked.
"Wilbur had taken me to our favorite spot just before my college graduation… for my bachelor's degree, I mean. He said he had a plan, but couldn't wait anymore, dropped to one knee, and he proposed while the sun was setting. We married not the next April, but the one after that. We've been married now for almost 20 years. We just celebrated our 19th anniversary over a week ago."
"Look outside!"
I stirred awake, realizing that I must have fallen asleep.
"This better not be another cloud you think looks like my face," I heard Amy say, and I looked outside the window: London!
"We're approaching London," Ajay explained. "That huge Ferris wheel is the London Eye."
"My ears just popped!" Amy exclaimed. "I can feel us descending."
"Oh my gosh, you're right," I replied, still trying to wake up while my ears popped. It was not a good feeling. Suddenly, we felt the plane land.
"Touchdown!" Caleb yelled excitedly. "London, here we come!"
We all got off the plane and collected our luggage. We were led to the Underground, which I assumed was like New York's subway, and we rode into the city. When we got out, we went up the stairs, and I immediately saw Big Ben against a blue sky.
"Please tell me this is a dream," I said with a smile creeping onto my face.
"It's no dream, Diana," Caleb answered, taking my hand. "We're really here in London."
"British things are everywhere!" Amy said excitedly. "Look, a phone booth! And there's a pub!"
"I'm surprised to see phone booths still exist," I said with a smirk.
"London is a very historic town," Mom explained. "While the world evolves, London needs a reminder of its history somewhere. I'm glad this area went untouched."
"Moreover, Big Ben is right there!" Ajay exclaimed. "A cultural icon is right before our eyes."
"What's up, mate?" Adam asked happily with a British accent. "Cheerio! Pip pip!"
"Everyone, follow me!" Mr. Olson yelled over us. "We're stopping by the hotel to drop our luggage off before our first tour."
"Thank goodness!" Rory exclaimed, carrying two large suitcases. "My arms are about to fall off."
"Rory, what on earth do you have in there?" I asked with shock.
"Did you bring your rock collection?" Skye asked, carrying her only suitcase.
"What do you take me for, a little kid?" Rory asked teasingly. "I only brought important rocks like bath salts and a pumice stone!"
"Ajay, where's your luggage?" Amy asked, and Ajay pointed to his backpack in reply.
"How can you go to another continent with only that?" I asked with confusion.
"I travel light and only bring the essentials," Ajay explained smugly.
"So you don't bring extra clothes?" I asked. "What do you plan to do? Wear the same shirt over and over again?"
"Says the girl who always wears that shirt," Ajay replied, and I looked down to see that I had put on my dad's favorite shirt.
"I'm with Diana on this one," Amy chimed in. "I bet you're going to run out of space for souvenirs."
"My dad is the exact same way," Rory replied. "By the end of the trip, he's smuggling his things into everyone else's suitcases!"
"That is totally my dad!" I said, cracking up laughing.
"I can assure you that's never going to happen," Ajay replied.
"Kids, our hotel's right around the corner!" Another male chaperone in a brown shirt yelled over us. "Let's walk in single file so we don't block the other patrons off."
"What are we, kindergartners?" I asked sarcastically as we walked toward our hotel, which was the fanciest hotel I had ever stayed in… actually, it would be the only hotel I would stay in so far in my life.
"Ow!" I heard Amy exclaim, and we turned to see the Fairfield drama department within our grasp.
"You," I said angrily.
"Well, well, well," Kitty replied with a smug smile. "Look what pathetic second-rate actors the cat dragged in."
"Don't tell me we're staying at the same hotel as you talentless scrubs," Cory said, insulting the whole group.
"I'm surprised the video we made didn't intimidate you out of the running," Yves spoke up. "You should've saved your airfare."
"You guys, that video was way outta line!" Amy responded angrily. "You're all psychos! That was seriously messed up! What is wrong with you?"
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, Amy!" I yelled, running to her side and putting my hands on her shoulders. "Let's calm down—"
"What's wrong with us? We're just calling it like we see it," Marvin answered. "You peons were long overdue for a reality check."
"The truth ain't always pretty," Cory said. "If you aren't equipped to handle it, that's your problem."
"Keep telling yourself that, you lowlifes," Ajay responded angrily.
"Look who's talking," Marvin shot back. "You cheaters may have won that sham of a rap battle, but the Spotlite judges won't be so easy to rig."
"We most certainly did not cheat, Marvin," I responded angrily. "We won fair and square. And we'll do just that here."
"Ta-ta! We can't wait to see what sort of 'production' you've scraped up," Kitty responded with a jeer while making her way into an elevator.
"Fairfield School of Humanities, my behind!" Amy burst out. "More like Fairfield School of Monsters."
I rubbed one of Amy's shoulders while Ajay rubbed the other one. When I saw he had it under control, I walked away from the group and toward my mom, who was holding our room's keycard.
"So this is who we're dealing with?" Mom asked, and I nodded with a glare on my face. "You guys have worked so hard for this. I know you'll do your best. Don't let Fairfield get to you, alright?"
"You should give that pep talk to Amy," I replied. "Amy's been the angriest in this group."
"Amy has a fierce spirit, but I'm sure she knows how to keep her cool."
"Mom, Amy's a freshman."
"So? Amy seems to be a fast learner. Meanwhile, let's get to our room."
"Who is bunking with us?" I asked.
"Skye, Sydney, and Natalie," my mom yelled in response, and the three girls rushed over to us. "Let's go to our room."
"I guess this is alright," Skye replied as we walked toward the elevator.
"What room are we in, anyway?" Sydney asked.
"Room 615," Mom answered as we got in the elevator.
"Do we get to have slumber parties every night?" Natalie asked with a smile.
"Well, I'm not sure about that," Mom answered. "But I'm sure we'll have fun somehow."
"Yeah! It's just us girls, I'm sure we can find things to do at night."
We approached our room, and we entered it to find two king-sized beds along the wall with a fantastic view of London.
"Alright, this room already rocks!" Natalie exclaimed.
"Look at the view!" Sydney exclaimed in awe, and we all took out our phones to get pictures.
"Guys, look at the bathroom in here!" we heard Skye say when we finished taking pictures, and we ventured into the bathroom.
"I feel like I just entered Vanna White's dressing room," I said in awe.
"Don't gawk for too long, ladies," Mom spoke up. "We have to get this double-decker bus on the move!"
"Welcome to Her Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress, the Tower of London!"
"Ravens are everywhere!" Amy said happily. "C'mere, my clever buddies!"
The ravens cawed happily at Amy's call.
"Who are you, Edgar Allen Poe?" I asked sarcastically.
"This place looks positively ancient," Maria said in awe. "Just how old is it?"
"The tower has been standing guard over the capital since the early 1080s," the tour guide answered with a smile.
"Almost a whole millennium ago!" I quietly exclaimed in awe.
"This was built almost a thousand years ago?" Rory asked, also in awe. "I am but a tiny speck of dust in the universe."
"I could live ten lifetimes and still not outlast this fortress!" Ajay replied with amazement.
"Not with that attitude, you won't," Michael said with a smirk.
"We came just in time to see the changing of the guard," Mr. Olson chimed in. "Behold!"
We watched as a few sentries in tall fuzzy hats holding bayoneted rifles marched in formation and stomping on their feet loudly as they went.
"Sir, yes sir!"
"I heard they get fired for smiling," I whispered to my mom. "If Wesley was here, he would totally be trying to make them laugh."
"Skye, it's your dream job!" Rory said out loud, and I had forgotten I was standing next to Rory.
"Oh, hush."
"I wonder if we could get them to laugh," Adam said.
"We should not be obnoxious tourists," Amy suggested. "We Americans have a bad enough reputation. I'd rather not make it even worse."
"Yes, no need to be disrespectful," Maria replied in agreement. "The guards are people too, not robots."
"I wonder if Grandpa made robots for around the globe," I pondered out loud.
"Japan adapted quite a bit of your grandfather's technology," Mom answered. "Now Japan is in an even better country to live in."
"Why do they insist on wearing the furry hats?" Aiden asked. "They look quite comical."
"The bearskin caps date back to the 1700s and were intended to make their wearers look taller and more intimidating," the tour guide explained.
"Not sure they succeeded," Adam replied with amusement as we finished watching the changing of the guard and toured the rest of the Tower of London. We got back on the double-decker bus and made a stop at the River Thames. We got off the bus and started walking across the bridge.
"London Bridge is falling down!" Amy sang. "Falling down, falling down."
"I should hope not!" Ajay exclaimed. "Especially seeing as we're standing on it right now."
"Actually, this is the Tower Bridge, not the London Bridge!" the tour guide corrected. "The London Bridge is the next one upstream. People often confuse the two."
"Martin, Brenda! Let's go take a selfie together with the bridge!" I heard Ms. Maddox say excitedly, and then an idea crept into my head.
"Hey Mom, I know we don't get very many opportunities to take a picture together—"
"Diana, I'd love to," Mom interrupted me with a smile. "We badly need an update anyway. Why not do it here in London?"
"We just need Dad and Wesley to join us," I replied, and then I turned to Caleb. "Can you take a picture of me and my mom?"
"Sure!" Caleb replied as I handed my phone to him.
"Oh, here! Take my phone too," Mom suggested, handing her phone to Caleb. "I want Wilbur to see this."
I led my mom to one of the towers and we did a couple poses. We hugged each other and then we put our outside hand on our hips. Caleb and I took some pictures ourselves, and then we took some selfies before we continued on to Westminster Abbey, where Mom had wanted so many pictures taken of her.
"We'll be stopping here for a break," the tour guide said. "You'll have time to wander and grab lunch if you choose."
"Any recommendations?" Amy asked.
"I highly, highly recommend The Rose Room! It's a classic afternoon tea room right across the street."
"You mean high tea?" Clint asked.
"No, high tea is actually a heavy meal for the working class! When most people say high tea, they're really thinking of afternoon tea's manners, lace, and dainty foods."
"That sounds right up my alley!" Rory exclaimed. "Guys, we have to go."
"I've lost my appetite after seeing my mom and Jim purchase matching souvenir shirts," Ajay said sadly.
"I'm still pretty full from the airplane meal," Skye answered.
"For real?" Amy asked with surprise. "That was an eternity ago!"
"Amy, let's dine like royals!" Rory happily suggested. "We can't come all the way to England and not have English tea time."
"I'm starving," Amy answered happily. "I could eat a horse!"
"Yay! Though not yay for the hypothetical horse… Let's stop to smell the roses, so to speak!"
"What do you say, Diana?" Mom asked me with a smile. "We might not get another opportunity to do this. This was a dream of mine when I was a little girl."
"Rory, Amy, do you two mind if my mom and I join you?" I asked.
"No, not at all!" Amy answered. "It'll be fun!"
We walked into The Rose Room and were eventually seated after a brief wait. I sat in between my mom and Amy with Rory across the table from me. The tablecloth was made of lace and there was a tea set on the table.
"It's so fragrant in here!" Amy said in awe, and I took a sniff: it really did smell of roses! "It's like a garden."
"The atmosphere here's so unique," Rory replied. "It's kinda like being in theme park restaurant."
A waitress with short red hair approached our table and laid a gold stand holding three tiers of treats onto the table.
"Welcome to The Rose Room. Allow me to give you a run-down of our wares. First, you've got the savory finger sandwich platter. Next is the scone tier, and on the top, delicate dessert pastries."
"Do we eat everything with our hands?" Amy asked, unsure of what etiquette was in England.
"Indeed," the waitress answered with a smile. "And it's all accompanied by tea, of course."
"I'll pour you a cup, Amy," Rory said. "In fact, let me pour you and your mom a cup too, Diana."
"You didn't have to do that!" I replied with a small blush, but a big smile.
"It's just like our old tea parties!" Amy exclaimed with a smile. "Did you have tea parties when you were a kid, Karena?"
"Oh yes!" Mom explained with a smile. "I held tea parties all the time with my American Girl dolls. Sometimes my mom would join me for a cup. She would even provide the real tea!"
"Whoa! It's loose leaves instead of a tea bag!" Amy said with surprise. "You pour it through a filter!"
"I wonder what kind of tea it is," I replied as my mom took a sip.
"Earl Grey! It has a hint of lavender in it."
"This is quite a step up from what we used to pretend to serve our stuffed animals," Rory reminisced.
"Feel free to sugar to your tea to your liking," the waitress said with a smile.
We each added a dash of sugar to our tea with a thin, dainty spoon. Amy and I examined the spoon to find that it was fashioned to look like flowering vines.
"This is the first time I'm using a teaspoon for its original purpose instead of as a measuring tool…"
"My dad uses this kind of spoon all the time," I replied. "He may have learned English etiquette while taking the time machine for TIME."
"My mind may have just exploded," Rory replied.
"Do you know the proper tea-drinking etiquette?" the waitress asked.
"Stick my pinky out!" Amy, Mom, and I all replied at the same time as the three of us took a drink of tea with our pinkies sticking out. We giggled while the waitress gave us a weird look.
"That isn't English etiquette?" Mom asked with some embarrassment in her voice.
"There's no need for that," the waitress answered with amusement. "Americans…"
"All right, I'll read a table manners book the next chance I get!" Amy exclaimed in defense, and I chuckled.
"Don't fret, I won't be supervising your manners the whole meal," the waitress replied. "Ring your bell if you need anything."
The four of us each took a sandwich from the bottom platter.
"So many flavors!" Amy exclaimed. "Cucumbers and cream cheese, smoked salmon, tomato focaccia…"
"I'm loving the tomato focaccia," I said, munching on my sandwich.
"This cucumber and cream cheese is to die for," Mom replied. "Why didn't I think of this combination before?"
"They're so good and simple!" Rory replied.
"There's something nostalgic about it," Amy explained. "It's like something my mom would make me for lunch in elementary school."
"Except they're sliced so daintily and the bread crusts are so meticulously cut off. I feel so posh and pampered."
"Agreed, old chap. These sandwiches are simply divine."
"Did you just call Rory old?" I asked in amusement.
"Are you trying to talk fancy?" Rory asked, also with amusement in his voice. "You sound like a hundred-year-old grandpa."
"Golly gosh!" Amy exclaimed. "That's a rather beastly thing to say, Rory."
"That's how old my great-grandpa would have been if he was still alive," I replied somberly as we finished our sandwiches and moved on to the scones.
"My favorite food," Mom said, taking two scones off the middle platter.
"I thought your favorite is cheesecake?" I asked.
"Scones are a delicate dessert and must be enjoyed with each bite," Mom explained as Rory expertly spread clotted cream on his scone.
"I feel like I'm seeing you in your element here," Amy said with observance.
"In my fancy fantasy life where I've made it big as an actor, I have tea parties with you all the time," Rory explained.
"Your goals have literally not changed since you were a kid."
"Hey, nowadays our friends would be invited instead of our stuffed animals," Rory defended. "I've at least matured there! What kind of luxuries do you dream of having someday?"
"I fantasize about being able to buy whatever I want," Amy answered. "No more discount bin clothes and almost being trampled on Black Friday! It must be nice being so rich you can splurge on whatever without a second thought."
"My family can speak for that," I replied. "My grandpa's inventions made him one of the richest people in the world, and my family did not take that for granted."
"Being that way must make it easy to accumulate tons of junk you don't actually use, though," Rory said.
"That is true," Mom replied. "My in-laws have the biggest storage room I've ever seen in my life, but it's still very tidy."
"I heard that Skye's family has a house somewhere they just use for storing stuff," Rory said.
"I like to imagine if I'm ever well-off, I wouldn't go that wild," Amy said.
"That's actually why Wilbur wanted his own place," Mom explained as we finished our scones. "He could have taken advantage of his dad being rich, but he wanted to work his own way."
"So what about you, Diana and Karena?" Rory asked. "What is your fantasy like?"
"I've always wanted to make it big as a singer," Mom explained. "My mom was a singer and I wanted to follow in her footsteps. I could travel the world and do what I love to do."
"Is that how you ended up being the band director?" Amy asked.
"Kind of! If I didn't pursue my dreams, I wanted to at least teach what I love, so I went to Todayland University to pursue music education. I was a music teacher at Todayland High School until Diana was born. I was the music teacher at both Westport Elementary and Westport High Schools until I decided that Diana and Wesley were too much to handle on top of two jobs. I just returned to Westport High School this year."
"I don't know Wesley that well," Amy replied.
"Wesley loves to choose my clothes," I explained with a smile. "And he has really good taste in them! Wesley is also an athlete, and he was on the baseball and basketball teams. He's doing track-and-field right now."
"Your turn, Diana," Rory said, gazing at me with his hazel eyes.
"Oh goodness... I never really thought about that," I paused. "I just wanted to be around my dad. I guess if I could pick a dream career, it would be in ballet."
"I can see it!" Amy said with a smile. "You're a cheerleader too. You would bring joy to millions of people."
"Oh I wouldn't go that far," I replied with a chuckle.
"Bourbon biscuits, powdered donuts, oh my!" Rory exclaimed as we took some food off the dessert platter on top. I watched as Amy poked a tiny pancake on her plate with amusement.
"What is this, a pancake for ants?"
"It's a crumpet!" Rory exclaimed happily. "So cute! This is you as a dessert. A round little pancake."
"No way, I am darkness! Fear me! I broke someone's leg last fall, remember?"
"On accident," Rory and I corrected at the same time.
"Oh, Diana! I forgot you're with us," Amy exclaimed in shock.
"And who am I, Cornelius Robinson?" I asked sarcastically. "You know, I understand cricket now."
"Cricket?" Rory and Amy asked at the same time.
"Oh, there was a memorable quote from the first Ninja Turtles movie where Raphael tells Casey that you have to know what a crumpet it to understand cricket," I explained. "But a crumpet is a dessert whereas cricket is a sport…"
"That might have been the best thing I've ever eaten," Rory said with sadness in his voice.
"I wonder if I can convince my parents to add these to the Golden Griddle's menu," Amy pondered out loud as we all eyed the last crumpet on the platter. "There's only one left. Let's split it."
"In four pieces?" Mom asked with a little shock. "No, Amy, you and Rory can split it."
"Fine with us," Rory agreed with a smile.
"One of us should cut it in half, and the other person gets to choose first," Amy suggested.
"Oh, so the person cutting it will want to make the pieces as equal as possible. Very clever."
"Yeah! Who wants to cut it?"
"Actually, being the cutter feels like a lot of pressure now," Rory said as Mom and I pointed at Amy.
"Dang, I don't really wanna do it now either," Amy replied. "I guess as the person who came up with it, I'll take responsibility."
We watched with bated breath as Amy cut the crumpet as evenly as she could, but one piece came out larger than the other.
"Aww… I tried."
"I think I'll take this one!" Rory said, taking the smaller piece.
"You took the small one?" I asked with surprise.
"Aw, Rory! You're too nice to me," Amy said with a smile.
"All in a day's work," Rory replied. "Anyway, I could never be too nice to you."
"Thank you for this, Rory."
"Thank you, too. And thank you, Diana and Karena, for joining. It was nice getting to know your mom a little more outside of rehearsal."
"Oh that's right! You weren't at my party back in the fall," I exclaimed with realization.
"You threw a party?" Rory asked with surprise as we walked out of The Rose Room. "When?"
"It was when you were so depressed that your mom was going to die of cancer," Amy answered. "I was feeling down because you weren't replying to my texts, so Diana invited me over to her house."
We then toured the London Eye and Buckingham Palace before we turned in for the night.
"I'm so glad we have time to sightsee and vacation before our performance next weekend," Amy said happily. "I wonder what tomorrow has in store!"
"We're taking the train to Paris for a day trip!" Rory answered. "The Triangle d'Or will be the perfect place to go prom shopping."
"The Triangle… d'oeuvres? What?"
"Triangle d'Or is French for 'Golden Triangle,'" Ajay explained. "It's a must-visit district famous for its luxury fashion boutiques."
"I can't wait to finally own a fancy dress I'm not mortified too…"
I watched as Skye turned her eyes toward a girl with long brown hair wearing a leather jacket.
"Hey, Skye, I'll meet you in our room."
"Oh, sure, go ahead," Skye replied, not meeting me in the eye.
When Mom and I got in the elevator, I couldn't help but scream.
"Diana, quiet down!" Mom reprimanded me quietly.
"I'm sorry, I can't help it! No one told me we were going to Paris!"
"I'm surprised at you," Mom said with a smirk. "I've always pictured you wanting to go to Greece."
"Greece?" I raised my eyebrow. "Why?"
"Well, you know… Diana, Goddess of the Moon—"
"Oh my goodness, Mom, stop. Paris is where it's all at! And don't deny you've been wanting to visit Paris too!"
"Well… alright, you got me. I've always dreamed of going to Paris when I was a girl. Dancing in the city of lights."
I continued to daydream about Paris even after reaching our room, and I drifted off to sleep.