MONDAY
It was 6:30am as 16 year old Lili Kasopalis finished her art homework. She shoved the finished paper in her bag, and zipped it closed.
"Lilian hurry up!" Her father yelled. Lili stood in front of her full-length mirror and looked at herself.
Her frizzy red hair would have been sticking out at all angles, had she not pulled it into a ponytail. Thick-framed glasses covered her dark blue eyes. She was about 5'5" but the school uniform, a green cardigan and a skirt, made her look shorter.
"Lili!" She bounded down the stairs, kissed her father on the cheek, and ran down the street to her best friend, Makenzee Phillip's house.
Outside, sitting on the top step of the driveway steps, was Zak. He had black hair, which stuck out everywhere, but it just added to his "musician" look. He wore sunglasses and he took them off when Lili got there. Zak was a musician; he was the keyboard player in a (not very well known) band called "The Musketeers".
"Where's Zee?" Lili asked. Zak looked up and shrugged. He didn't talk much, usually. Lili sighed.
"Lili!" Out of the door ran a girl who resembled Zak, except for her chin length hair, which, today, was pulled into 2 pigtails sticking out, both with pink streaks in them.
"Come on Zee!" Lili said impatiently.
"I can't believe you're my twin." Zak sighed, slipped off the step, and started walking towards Kinley's High School, all in one smooth motion. Lili and Zee were both behind him.
"Cam called me last night," Zee said matter-of-factly.
"Won't he ever leave you alone?" Lili said sympathetically. There was a silence. Then Zee spoke.
"Did you and my brother talk about anything before I got outside?" Zee asked.
"Um, no! Were we supposed to?" Lili asked suspiciously. Zee shrugged it off and changed the subject. The girls talked all the way to school.
"Makenzee?" Cam exclaimed, running to greet Lili's friend. Zee rolled her eyes.
"Yes Cam?"
"We have band now, let's go." Cam grabbed Zee's arm and they went to the band room. Lili went in the other direction to her art class.
Sitting on the wall by the stairs was Zak. His eyes followed Lili until she was out of sight, a small smile on his lips…
* * * * * * * *
"Lili, are you serious?" Zee shrieked. Lili nodded. Zee hugged her, still shrieked.
"Zak did you hear that? Lili's drawings were accepted to be in the CW Art Show! Isn't that awesome? And- if she wins the first place, she gets $1,000!" Zee shrieked, releasing Lili. Zak nodded.
"Great job Lili," Zak commented, as he & Zee headed up the stairs to there house.
"Bye Zak, Bye Zee!" Lili called, and walked down the road to her house. Zak watched her as she left, smiling.
"Zak, inside now!" Zee pulled Zak into the house.
"May I ask what is going on?" Zee demanded.
"Waddaya mean?"
"The way you were looking at Lili! That is definitely not a 'we're just friends' look." Zee said.
"Well…" Zak trailed off, trying to get away without explanation, "I have to get to the Garage. See you later!" And with that, Zak left.
Meanwhile, at Lili's house…
"Daddy, guess what? My art is going to be in the CW Art Show! If it wins first prize, I get $1,000! Cool, huh?" Lili shrieked, cradling her Persian cat, Hitler.
"Oh honey, that's great!" her father exclaimed. They did a little dance around the living room. Then Lili became serious.
"So how did your date with Callie go? She asked…
* * * * * * * *
FRIDAY
"Doesn't Zee understand the concept of being on time?" Lili asked, sighing. Then she turned her attention to Zak.
"So how's your band working out?" Lili asked. Zak's face lit up; the band was his pride and joy.
"Oh, it's great! We're going to perform on Zee's radio show soon. We're going to practice tonight, and, do you, want to come watch? You could see how your 'Ver' is doing," Zak asked hopefully. Ver was Lili's affectionate name for her convertible.
"That's so sweet Zak, thanks!" Lili replied as Zee came down the steps slowly.
"Zak told me his band's going to be on your show, how come you didn't tell me?" Lili said enthusiastically. Zee just shrugged.
"What's the matter?" Lili asked. Zee shrugged again.
"She refused Cam's offer for a 'date' tonight and now she feels bad." Zak explained. Zee nodded.
"Why don't you tell him you changed your mind?" Lili suggested.
"It's not that easy. You see, I didn't exactly say no in the nicest of ways!" Zee explained. Lili sighed.
"Whatever," Lili said and she went to sit on the steps and wait for the bell. She saw Blain and Lisa locking lips, and imagined herself in Lisa's spot. It was a great daydream, and it was all hers. No one would ever know about it.
* * * * * * * *
"Lili, I'm proud to inform you that the judges have chosen your art for first place in the CW Art Show!" Mrs. Camden, the art teacher, smiled. Lili shrieked.
"Zee! I'm first place! One thousand dollars are MINE!" Lili told her friend as they walked home. Zak was silent.
"Yippee," Zee's unenthusiastic tone was obvious to Zak, but Lili was too excited to notice. She lost herself in thoughts of money and Blain.
"Lili, we're here!" Zak shook her out of her thoughts, and Lili looked around the Garage. In one section the band's equipment was sitting. In another was Lili's red convertible. She ran over to the car and kissed the hood.
"Oh Zak, thank you thank you! She's a beauty! She's better than I expected!" Lili exclaimed.
"Ahem,"
"Oh, yes, you did good too, Bones." Lili smiled at the tall white-haired mechanic. He smiled back.
"Yeah, she is a beauty," Zak said softly, not meaning the car, then suddenly he seemed to snap out of something, "Come on, Lili, we're gonna start now," And he dragged her over to the place where the band, Buddy & Matt, were sitting. She sat on a bench, and closed her eyes, to hear the music better.
"1.2.1234." Buddy counted, and the music played. Lili's thoughts soon drifted back to Blain. Before long the song was done.
"Lili, what do you think?" Zak asked.
"Um, good." She said, not wanting to admit she hadn't heard any of it. She knew it would make Zak hurt.
"Is something else on your mind?" Zak asked calmly.
"Uh…"
"Tell me," He pressed.
"I gotta go home." Lili flew out of the Garage.
"Hey man, what is with her? Why was she here? You got your eye on her?" Buddy asked. Zak just stared at Lili as she left.
"She's your twin sisters best friend for god sake!" Matt added.
"Who said anything about me liking Lili? She's just a friend."
"Right!"
* * * * * * * *
"To celebrate your acceptance in the CW Art Show, I have something to give you." Lili's father handed her a piece of paper.
And one (1) dress for the Art Show.
Provided by: Jeff Kasopalis
"Oh Daddy thank you! Can Zee come? Can we do it tomorrow?"
"Yes, and yes. Why don't you call her now?" Lili ran to the phone and dialed Makenzee's phone number.
"Hello, Phillip's residence, Zak speaking."
"Hey Zak,"
"Lili, I'll get Zee," There was the sound of footsteps and voices. Then the phone was picked up.
"Lili?"
"Yeah Zak?"
"Sorry, but Zee can't/won't come to the phone. Can I take a message?"
"Tell her to call me back ASAP."
"Okay,"
"Bye, Zak, thanks."
"Bye Lili," She hung up the phone and went upstairs.
* * * * * * * *
"Zee, it's Lili again." Zak said through the door.
"Tell her I don't want her to keep calling me. I don't want to talk." Zee said. Zak relayed the message, and went into his room in the basement. He took out a piece of paper from inside his desk.
FRIDAY
We hung out today, Lili & I. our band played for her. But she looked kind of lost in her thoughts. And Zee's in a depressed mood. I think they got in a fight.
He finished, and went to his keyboard to practice a song for the band.
* * * * * * * *
MONDAY
Lili stood in front of the mirror. Her hair (formerly frizzy) was now straighter and wavier. Thick glasses no longer covered her blue eyes, but instead she wore contacts, and a light eye shadow, which brought attention to her eyes.
"Lili, hurry up!" She ran down the stairs.
"Bye daddy!" She grabbed a hat off the rack and piled all her hair underneath. Then she walked to the Phillips' house.
"Hey Zak," She said. Zak stood at the bottom of the steps.
"Why the hat? Hiding something?" Zak teased. He reached for the hat and pulled it off. Lili's hair tumbled to her shoulders. Zak stared. Zee came down the steps, saw Lili's hair, and gasped.
"What did you do? Lili, your hair? And your eyes, and what happened?" Zee asked, angry. Lili was silent.
"It's—you're beautiful…" Zak breathed, still staring. Lili took off, running towards the school.
"Why did she do it?" Zee asked, following Lili, although slowly. Zak was still staring, and didn't say a word all the way to school. They found Lili on the steps.
"Why did you do it? What happened to the 'I like myself the way I am' Lili?"
"Shut up Makenzee! It was my dad's idea. Then I thought, maybe this way I won't be invisible to Blain." And with that, she ran inside to her algebra class. Zak felt his heart break in two.
" Blain?" He choked.
"I should've guessed." Zee said smugly, and walked into the building. Zak stood there…
* * * * * * * *
"Blain?"
"What?"
"Umm. I'm in the CW Art Show and we s'posed to bring date's and- do you want to be mine?"
"No way! You're Lili Kasopalis," Blain turned and went back to his friends. Lili felt tears sting her eyes. She ran and ran, and found herself in the Garage. She ran to her car, opened the back door, and cried herself to sleep.
"Lili?" She awoke, her eyes sticky from the tears.
"Bones?" Lili hoped that's who it was.
"No, it's me, Zak." Lili sat up. There he was.
"I better get going," Lili said, climbing out of the back seat.
"I'll walk with you. I gotta go home too." They walked home, talking and laughing. They stopped at Lili's house.
"Zak?"
"Lili?"
"You know how my art was accepted as 1st prize in the CW Art Show? Well, you know how I told you about the dance after the awards ceremony? Well, do you want to be my date?"
"Why don't you ask Blain?" Zak said.
"I did, but now I'm asking you."
"Oh, so now I'm second to him? I--find someone else. And learn not to take advantage of friends." Zak left, without looking back. Lili felt more tears.
* * * * * * * *
"555-6192" Lili dialed Makenzee's number.
"Phillip's residence, this is Zee."
"Zee, Can I talk-"
"Oh Lili, just the person I want to talk to. I'm really sorry about the hair thing. I think it looks, to use Zak's word, beautiful."
"Speaking of Zak…"
"Do you want to talk to him?"
"If he'll let me," She heard the phone being put down and she heard Zee say,
"Zak, Lili wants to talk to you."
"I've said all I need to say. I'm not sorry for it either." Zee picked up the phone.
"Zak says…"
"Yeah, I heard. He's not sorry. I wanted him to be my date for the dance thing after the Art Show awards ceremony. He got mad cuz I asked Blain first. He said not to take advantage of friends. But I wasn't. I really wanted him to come. Why doesn't understand that?"
"Lili,"
"Zee, you come. Bring a date. Cam, anyone. I'll find someone else. Bye." Lili hung up the phone. At least everything was right with Zee…
* * * * * * * *
Tuesday, the Art Show Ceremony/dance
"Bye daddy, remember tonight's the night!" Lili yelled when she ran down the stairs and out the door. She stopped at Makenzee's house. Zak was sitting in his usual spot.
"Hi," She said. Zak didn't reply. Makenzee ran down the steps.
"Oh yes, today's the day!"
"Did you get Cam to be your date?" Lili asked as they started walking, Zak in front of them.
"Yep. Did you get another date?"
"No."
"Well, maybe I can convince Zak. I know he likes you. The way he looks at you when you walk by, and how he does all that work on your car for ½ price…"
* * * * * * * *
"Zakary Phillip's you listen to me!" Makenzee was angry. They had just gotten home. 3 hours until the CW Art Show awards dance.
"What?" Zak was acting innocent, but Zee didn't fall for it.
"You know exactly what I'm talking about. Why are you mad at Lili?"
"I don't know…partly because the only reason she asked me to go was because Blain said no."
"Oh boy. I know that Lili's my friend, and she tells me everything. You're my brother, and although you don't tell me everything, I can figure stuff out. I know you like Lili. And I know that Lili may have asked you after Blain, but it was you she wanted. It'll be best for both of you if you go. That's all I have to say." And with that, Zee locked herself in her room to get ready. Zak went into his room to think.
* * * * * * * *
Once again, Lili was looking at herself in the mirror. It was 6:00pm.
She was wearing a light blue ankle length spaghetti strap dress with dark blue flowers on it. In her hair, which was down over her shoulders, was a blue flower. In short, she was breath taking.
She walked downstairs slowly. She got to the bottom step, and her father took her hand.
"May I escort you to the 'limo'?" Her father asked, leading her into the car. He drove to the Phillip's house, to pick up Zee and Cam. Zee was wearing a black mini-dress; Cam was in a black tux, with his hair slicked back.
"I guess Zak's not coming?" Lili tried to hide her disapointment. Mr. Kasopalis started the car.
"He was locked in his room when we left." Cam said, wrapping his arm around Zee's waist. Lili expected Zee to object, but instead, she kissed him on the cheek.
Lili looked out the window during the whole car ride. The car stopped, they got out, and went inside for the awards dinner.
Meanwhile, in Zak's room…
Zak was pacing the floor.
"It'll be best for both of you if you go," Zee's words kept echoing in his head, along with images of Lili's face. He changed into his tux. If he hurried he'd make the dance…
* * * * * * * *
7:00pm
The dance had just started. Cam and Zee were already so close that you could pass a piece of paper between them. Her father was dancing with some unknown lady, and Lili was sitting in a chair. She was lost in her thoughts, mostly anger at herself when,
"May I have this dance?" She looked up, and there was Zak, wearing a tuxedo, looking more handsome than usual. He held a rose in his hands, which he gave to Lili.
"Yes," Lili stood up. Zak pulled her on the dance floor, and held her close. They danced until the song was over. Then Zak led her out into the garden. They stood in the middle of the path.
"Oh Zak," Lili breathed, "I was so afraid you weren't going to come. I thought you were mad at me and then—" He thought this was a good time to kiss her. His arms went around her neck, and he brought his mouth to hers. She was surprised, and not surprised at the same time.
When his mouth finally left hers, he stared into her eyes. She smiled, and they kissed again. Her arms slid around his neck, and his around her waist.
They stayed in the garden until 9:00pm, and then they decided to leave.
"Lili, come here, I want you to come with me." Puzzled, Lili followed him into the parking lot.
"Oh Zak, it's my Vert! She's fixed! Oh thank you!" Zak opened the passenger door, and Lili got in. Then he got in the drivers seat, waved goodbye to her father, and drove Lili home.
* * * * * * * *
WEDNESDAY
"Bye Lili!" Her father said as she ran out of the house happily. She reached the Phillips house, and, as usual, Zak was on the top step.
"Hey," She said softly. Zak gave her a brief nod of acknowledgment.
'I guess last night meant nothing to him.' Lili told herself. Zee bounded down the steps, cheerier than usual. Zak and Lili were quiet. All the way to school, Zee babbled on about how great Cam was, etc., etc., etc.
"Hey what's the matter with you people? Last night you were pretty friendly if you ask me, but now…" Zak glared at his sister. They reached the school, and Zee went of with Cam, Lili went to her locker, and Zak went to his spot on the wall by the stairs to watch Lili.
* * * * * * * *
The way home was much the same as the way to school, with Zee chattering endlessly. When they stopped at Zee and Zak's house, and Lili was about to leave, Zak took her in his arms and his lips went to hers. Lili's arms slid around his neck, and all was right for a moment in time.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
The End
(or is it…)