Disclaimer: no one mentioned belongs to me, I guarantee it.
Still Unexpected
Chapter Eight: To Be Accepted
~~~~~ ~~~~~ ~~~~~ ~~~~~ ~~~~~
Yet another afternoon found Gordo at the library with nothing to do. Lizzie was going nuts, trying to fill out college applications, pass her classes, take the cheerleaders to regionals, and have some semblance of a social life. Fortunately, the latter included him specifically, and while Gordo was grateful that he got to see her more than, say, Kate, Miranda, or Larry, it still wasn't enough, especially on dull afternoons like this when he'd finished all of his homework already and didn't feel up for yet another Everybody Loves Raymond rerun.
Gordo was sitting at a back table, hunched over a book on Ancient Egypt. Next to him, there was the grating screech of a chair being pulled out, and the groan of a body being put in it. With the slightest of sighs, because his reading really had been interesting, he looked up from his book. "Oh, hey, Andie."
"'Oh, hey, Andie,'" she mimicked. "Could you sound any more bored? Am I that uninteresting, Gordo?"
"You're plenty interesting, all right," Gordo said with an eye roll, returning his gaze to the pages open in front of him.
Andie slammed the book shut in one fluid motion. "I'm your only friend, David Gordon. You'd think you'd be a little nicer to me."
"My only friend? Please, Robinson, I've got more friends than you. Closer friends than you."
"Then why are you here with *me*?" she countered.
Gordo sighed. He clearly wasn't going to get any reading done. "If you want to know the truth, I don't really want to go home."
"Why not? Parental troubles?"
"No, the mail."
She peered at him, confused. "Your dad..?"
"No, the *mail*. As in, mailman, post office, UPS?"
"Ohhh. Okay. What's in the mail?"
"A rejection letter from NYU."
"You got rejected from NYU?"
He sighed, his head dropping on the cover of the book. It was a thick tome, therefore soft enough that he didn't get a headache. "Probably."
"Wait. *Probably*? As in, you haven't *gotten* the letter yet, you're just stressing for no good reason? Please, Gordo, you're a lock for NYU. Don't kid yourself. You applied early admission?" He nodded. "They're probably falling all over themselves to have you. You're paranoid, and you shouldn't be. But don't stress," she added in an unusually (unusual for her) sincere, kind voice, patting his arm. "This happens to the best of us."
"You're a junior. What do you know about college?"
"Hey, I shelved a guide to nailing the SATs, just this hour," she said proudly. "Listen, okay, you go home, you go get your mail, and I'll bet you twenty bucks that you have a big, fat acceptance package waiting for you."
Gordo stood up. "I don't have twenty bucks."
Andie winked at him. "Getting cocky now, are we? Fine, no bet. But I'm still right."
"If you say so," Gordo said. He handed her the book. "Here, you get paid to shelve this. I don't."
"Oof! This thing weighs a ton, Gordo!" she called after him.
~~~~~
Gordo slipped into his usual seat with an unusual amount of suaveness at lunch the next day. Lizzie had known Gordo her entire life, and he always just plunked himself in a chair. No finesse, no grand entrance.
The grin on his face was ear-to-ear, and he was practically glowing. Lizzie couldn't help but smile, he looked totally gorgeous with this sudden rush of too-cool-for-school confidence, even if it was so un-Gordo.
His wide grin had caught everyone's attention, and they all looked at him. "What's up, Gordo/?" Larry asked.
Although it seemed impossible, his smile got bigger. "I got in," he proclaimed.
He was met by a collection of blank stares, until he elaborated, "NYU's film program, early acceptance."
Suddenly their circle exploded. "Ohmigod!" Kate shrieked, as Larry crowed and threw his arm around Gordo's shoulders proudly. Everyone leapt from their seats to hug and congratulate him.
Everyone except Lizzie.
She fixed a smile on her face as the crowd settled, then leaned over and kissed him quickly. "I'm so proud of you," she said. which was true. She *was* proud. Proud, but not necessarily happy.
How could this have happened?
Well, duh, Frizz, she admonished herself. Using the unfavorable nickname Angel Lieberman had bestowed upon her in middle school seemed appropriate now, seeing as how she was acting like a dumb blond.
She *knew* Gordo wanted to go to NYU. Knew he'd applied. Knew he was a total shoo-in.
Lizzie wanted the best for Gordo, but she was almost disappointed he had gotten in.
It was like when he'd been given the chance to skip ahead. She was happy for him, she was proud of him, but she didn't want to lose him.
It was worse now. Bigger. He wouldn't just be gone for a couple of months. He'd be gone for four years, maybe longer.
To New York.
*New York*.
The east coast.
Away from Hillridge. Away from Lizzie.
As Gordo talked incessantly about his acceptance package and all the pros of NYU, he was too excited to notice that Lizzie was almost in tears.
She had to get out of there. Smiling, she said, "Hate to break up the party, guys, but I've gotta go talk to Coach Wakefield." She kissed Gordo's cheek and repeated how proud she was of him.
Then she locked herself in a stall of the first floor girls' bathroom and sobbed.
Still Unexpected
Chapter Eight: To Be Accepted
~~~~~ ~~~~~ ~~~~~ ~~~~~ ~~~~~
Yet another afternoon found Gordo at the library with nothing to do. Lizzie was going nuts, trying to fill out college applications, pass her classes, take the cheerleaders to regionals, and have some semblance of a social life. Fortunately, the latter included him specifically, and while Gordo was grateful that he got to see her more than, say, Kate, Miranda, or Larry, it still wasn't enough, especially on dull afternoons like this when he'd finished all of his homework already and didn't feel up for yet another Everybody Loves Raymond rerun.
Gordo was sitting at a back table, hunched over a book on Ancient Egypt. Next to him, there was the grating screech of a chair being pulled out, and the groan of a body being put in it. With the slightest of sighs, because his reading really had been interesting, he looked up from his book. "Oh, hey, Andie."
"'Oh, hey, Andie,'" she mimicked. "Could you sound any more bored? Am I that uninteresting, Gordo?"
"You're plenty interesting, all right," Gordo said with an eye roll, returning his gaze to the pages open in front of him.
Andie slammed the book shut in one fluid motion. "I'm your only friend, David Gordon. You'd think you'd be a little nicer to me."
"My only friend? Please, Robinson, I've got more friends than you. Closer friends than you."
"Then why are you here with *me*?" she countered.
Gordo sighed. He clearly wasn't going to get any reading done. "If you want to know the truth, I don't really want to go home."
"Why not? Parental troubles?"
"No, the mail."
She peered at him, confused. "Your dad..?"
"No, the *mail*. As in, mailman, post office, UPS?"
"Ohhh. Okay. What's in the mail?"
"A rejection letter from NYU."
"You got rejected from NYU?"
He sighed, his head dropping on the cover of the book. It was a thick tome, therefore soft enough that he didn't get a headache. "Probably."
"Wait. *Probably*? As in, you haven't *gotten* the letter yet, you're just stressing for no good reason? Please, Gordo, you're a lock for NYU. Don't kid yourself. You applied early admission?" He nodded. "They're probably falling all over themselves to have you. You're paranoid, and you shouldn't be. But don't stress," she added in an unusually (unusual for her) sincere, kind voice, patting his arm. "This happens to the best of us."
"You're a junior. What do you know about college?"
"Hey, I shelved a guide to nailing the SATs, just this hour," she said proudly. "Listen, okay, you go home, you go get your mail, and I'll bet you twenty bucks that you have a big, fat acceptance package waiting for you."
Gordo stood up. "I don't have twenty bucks."
Andie winked at him. "Getting cocky now, are we? Fine, no bet. But I'm still right."
"If you say so," Gordo said. He handed her the book. "Here, you get paid to shelve this. I don't."
"Oof! This thing weighs a ton, Gordo!" she called after him.
~~~~~
Gordo slipped into his usual seat with an unusual amount of suaveness at lunch the next day. Lizzie had known Gordo her entire life, and he always just plunked himself in a chair. No finesse, no grand entrance.
The grin on his face was ear-to-ear, and he was practically glowing. Lizzie couldn't help but smile, he looked totally gorgeous with this sudden rush of too-cool-for-school confidence, even if it was so un-Gordo.
His wide grin had caught everyone's attention, and they all looked at him. "What's up, Gordo/?" Larry asked.
Although it seemed impossible, his smile got bigger. "I got in," he proclaimed.
He was met by a collection of blank stares, until he elaborated, "NYU's film program, early acceptance."
Suddenly their circle exploded. "Ohmigod!" Kate shrieked, as Larry crowed and threw his arm around Gordo's shoulders proudly. Everyone leapt from their seats to hug and congratulate him.
Everyone except Lizzie.
She fixed a smile on her face as the crowd settled, then leaned over and kissed him quickly. "I'm so proud of you," she said. which was true. She *was* proud. Proud, but not necessarily happy.
How could this have happened?
Well, duh, Frizz, she admonished herself. Using the unfavorable nickname Angel Lieberman had bestowed upon her in middle school seemed appropriate now, seeing as how she was acting like a dumb blond.
She *knew* Gordo wanted to go to NYU. Knew he'd applied. Knew he was a total shoo-in.
Lizzie wanted the best for Gordo, but she was almost disappointed he had gotten in.
It was like when he'd been given the chance to skip ahead. She was happy for him, she was proud of him, but she didn't want to lose him.
It was worse now. Bigger. He wouldn't just be gone for a couple of months. He'd be gone for four years, maybe longer.
To New York.
*New York*.
The east coast.
Away from Hillridge. Away from Lizzie.
As Gordo talked incessantly about his acceptance package and all the pros of NYU, he was too excited to notice that Lizzie was almost in tears.
She had to get out of there. Smiling, she said, "Hate to break up the party, guys, but I've gotta go talk to Coach Wakefield." She kissed Gordo's cheek and repeated how proud she was of him.
Then she locked herself in a stall of the first floor girls' bathroom and sobbed.