Author's Note: wow, thanks for all the great reviews!! I'm so glad that
you're all excited about my story. It really is inspiring and encouraging
to read your wonderful reviews. Anyway, here's the next chapter, please
read and review!
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David heard a deafening silence from the other end of the microphone.
"Gordo, are you still there?"
A quiet voice replied, "yeah, I'm still here. I just don't . . . I just don't know . . ."
"Know what to believe?"
"Yeah, that's right. David, let me get this straight. You're telling me that as I'm talking to you right at this moment, I'm really talking with myself."
"Yes."
"And, we have one day before . . ."
"Before Lizzie gets killed. Gordo, I know it's hard to take, believe me. I've lived for 12 years being haunted every day by Lizzie's death. But, the amazing thing is, we can *do* something about it now!" said David, grasping the microphone with such force that he was starting to bruise his right hand.
"Can you give me a sec, David? This is really hard to take. And really, how do I know what you're telling me is really true? Maybe you're sociopath who gets a high scaring poor high school kids to death."
"I completely understand your, skepticism, but, we don't have that much time. We need to talk *now* about what you have to do to make sure that Lizzie doesn't die tomorrow."
"No, I don't believe you. I don't want to believe you. Lizzie *cannot* die. This just isn't rational at all."
David was getting frustrated by Gordo's disbelief. Calm down, David, calm down. That's exactly how you would respond if you were 16 years old again and hearing everything that you've just told Gordo. You've got to convince himself, and fast, so think hard. . .
"Listen Gordo, I'll try to prove to you that everything I'm telling you is true. I know everything about you, because I was you, I am you." With that, David started telling Gordo every information about himself that would come to the top of his head. He told Gordo about his parents, about his grandmother who went around calling herself gorgeous, about his bar mitvah experience, about his movie the "Gordo Files," about his short-lived early high school misadventure during middle school, about his obsession with the game Dwarflord, about his date with Pamela Baker in 9th grade.
Gordo listened to David recite the story of his life, but he was still resisting the truth. "Look, David, *if* that's even your real name, I admit, you've done a great job of doing some research on me, but, there's nothing you haven't told me that you couldn't have found out from other people."
David swallowed his rising frustration and said, "Gordo, I know more than what you've done in your life, I know everything that you carry deep inside your heart. I know you love Lizzie, Gordo, I know that you've been in love with her since the fourth grade. I know how wonderful and miserable it is being the best friend of someone you're in love with, because you're so close and yet so far. I know that a day doesn't go by when you think about her, about how absolutely beautiful she is, inside and out. I know how much you wish that she would feel the same way about you."
Silence. "How-how do you know? I've never told anyone about how I feel about Lizzie."
"Because I am you. Remember the day when you went to Lizzie's house to return some cds to her only to catch her kissing that Ronnie guy? Do you remember how we felt when we saw that happening?"
"I felt like . . . "
"a knife was cutting through my heart," David and Gordo said simultaneously.
"And remember, Gordo, when Ronnie broke up with Lizzie, I . . . you. . .*we*, met her in the library, and she was in tears and . . . "
"I gave her a big cookie from the school cafeteria to try and cheer her up, because I . . ."
"missed her so much, since you hardly ever saw her anymore, because all she was doing was hanging out with Ronnie. But, when you saw tears flowing down her cheeks, all you wanted to do was . . . "
"to just reach over and hold her tightly and tell her that everything was going to be alright. David, man, it was killing me. . . "
"To see her so sad, to see her suffering like that, because . . ."
"I love her so much, I love her with all my heart!"
" I know, Gordo, I know. And if you love her, and I *know* you do, then you've got to believe me, trust me, and listen to me if we're going to save her."
"Okay, David, I'm still not sure what in the world is going on, but, if Lizzie's in danger in anyway, then, I'll do whatever it takes to make sure she doesn't get hurt. So, what happens to her tomorrow?"
David winced, as he realized that he was going to have to tell Gordo in explicit detail what happened on the night of Lizzie's death. The thought of having to re-remember the events of that tragic night gave David the chills, and he had to grab a hold of the desk with both hands to steady himself. He took another deep breath, and then was about to talk into the microphone when Gordo said to him, "Hey, David, hold on, someone's at the door. Let me see who it is."
"Okay, but hurry back, Gordo, we don't have all that much time."
"Right. Be right back."
David drummed his fingers on the desk as he waited for Gordo to come back. Even though he tried very hard not to keep thinking about that night, he couldn't help it. Right now, that was all he could think about. . . the awful fight he had with Lizzie while they stood outside of her home in the torrential rain; and the awful sinking feeling he had while he watched Lizzie, tearful and upset, get into her car and drive off into the heart of the night; and the fact that that was the last time he had seen Lizzie McGuire alive.
As David was getting deeply immersed into the darkness of his past, he heard Gordo on his microphone. "David, you still there?
"I'm here, Gordo. Okay, now let's get back to what happens tomorrow night."
"Uh, can we hold off on that, David? I've got a guest in the house right now. She's right here with me. Say hi to my friend David, Lizzie."
Upon hearing what Gordo said, David's heart skipped a palpable beat. Li- Lizzie? Lizzie's there? David became light-headed, and he felt like he was about to faint. He could not believe what was happening, he could not believe what was about to happen. He was about to talk to his best friend Lizzie, his best friend who has been dead for the past 12 years.
"Hi David! How are ya? It's really nice to be talking with a friend of Gordo's," said sixteen year old Lizzie McGuire on the day before she died. . .
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David heard a deafening silence from the other end of the microphone.
"Gordo, are you still there?"
A quiet voice replied, "yeah, I'm still here. I just don't . . . I just don't know . . ."
"Know what to believe?"
"Yeah, that's right. David, let me get this straight. You're telling me that as I'm talking to you right at this moment, I'm really talking with myself."
"Yes."
"And, we have one day before . . ."
"Before Lizzie gets killed. Gordo, I know it's hard to take, believe me. I've lived for 12 years being haunted every day by Lizzie's death. But, the amazing thing is, we can *do* something about it now!" said David, grasping the microphone with such force that he was starting to bruise his right hand.
"Can you give me a sec, David? This is really hard to take. And really, how do I know what you're telling me is really true? Maybe you're sociopath who gets a high scaring poor high school kids to death."
"I completely understand your, skepticism, but, we don't have that much time. We need to talk *now* about what you have to do to make sure that Lizzie doesn't die tomorrow."
"No, I don't believe you. I don't want to believe you. Lizzie *cannot* die. This just isn't rational at all."
David was getting frustrated by Gordo's disbelief. Calm down, David, calm down. That's exactly how you would respond if you were 16 years old again and hearing everything that you've just told Gordo. You've got to convince himself, and fast, so think hard. . .
"Listen Gordo, I'll try to prove to you that everything I'm telling you is true. I know everything about you, because I was you, I am you." With that, David started telling Gordo every information about himself that would come to the top of his head. He told Gordo about his parents, about his grandmother who went around calling herself gorgeous, about his bar mitvah experience, about his movie the "Gordo Files," about his short-lived early high school misadventure during middle school, about his obsession with the game Dwarflord, about his date with Pamela Baker in 9th grade.
Gordo listened to David recite the story of his life, but he was still resisting the truth. "Look, David, *if* that's even your real name, I admit, you've done a great job of doing some research on me, but, there's nothing you haven't told me that you couldn't have found out from other people."
David swallowed his rising frustration and said, "Gordo, I know more than what you've done in your life, I know everything that you carry deep inside your heart. I know you love Lizzie, Gordo, I know that you've been in love with her since the fourth grade. I know how wonderful and miserable it is being the best friend of someone you're in love with, because you're so close and yet so far. I know that a day doesn't go by when you think about her, about how absolutely beautiful she is, inside and out. I know how much you wish that she would feel the same way about you."
Silence. "How-how do you know? I've never told anyone about how I feel about Lizzie."
"Because I am you. Remember the day when you went to Lizzie's house to return some cds to her only to catch her kissing that Ronnie guy? Do you remember how we felt when we saw that happening?"
"I felt like . . . "
"a knife was cutting through my heart," David and Gordo said simultaneously.
"And remember, Gordo, when Ronnie broke up with Lizzie, I . . . you. . .*we*, met her in the library, and she was in tears and . . . "
"I gave her a big cookie from the school cafeteria to try and cheer her up, because I . . ."
"missed her so much, since you hardly ever saw her anymore, because all she was doing was hanging out with Ronnie. But, when you saw tears flowing down her cheeks, all you wanted to do was . . . "
"to just reach over and hold her tightly and tell her that everything was going to be alright. David, man, it was killing me. . . "
"To see her so sad, to see her suffering like that, because . . ."
"I love her so much, I love her with all my heart!"
" I know, Gordo, I know. And if you love her, and I *know* you do, then you've got to believe me, trust me, and listen to me if we're going to save her."
"Okay, David, I'm still not sure what in the world is going on, but, if Lizzie's in danger in anyway, then, I'll do whatever it takes to make sure she doesn't get hurt. So, what happens to her tomorrow?"
David winced, as he realized that he was going to have to tell Gordo in explicit detail what happened on the night of Lizzie's death. The thought of having to re-remember the events of that tragic night gave David the chills, and he had to grab a hold of the desk with both hands to steady himself. He took another deep breath, and then was about to talk into the microphone when Gordo said to him, "Hey, David, hold on, someone's at the door. Let me see who it is."
"Okay, but hurry back, Gordo, we don't have all that much time."
"Right. Be right back."
David drummed his fingers on the desk as he waited for Gordo to come back. Even though he tried very hard not to keep thinking about that night, he couldn't help it. Right now, that was all he could think about. . . the awful fight he had with Lizzie while they stood outside of her home in the torrential rain; and the awful sinking feeling he had while he watched Lizzie, tearful and upset, get into her car and drive off into the heart of the night; and the fact that that was the last time he had seen Lizzie McGuire alive.
As David was getting deeply immersed into the darkness of his past, he heard Gordo on his microphone. "David, you still there?
"I'm here, Gordo. Okay, now let's get back to what happens tomorrow night."
"Uh, can we hold off on that, David? I've got a guest in the house right now. She's right here with me. Say hi to my friend David, Lizzie."
Upon hearing what Gordo said, David's heart skipped a palpable beat. Li- Lizzie? Lizzie's there? David became light-headed, and he felt like he was about to faint. He could not believe what was happening, he could not believe what was about to happen. He was about to talk to his best friend Lizzie, his best friend who has been dead for the past 12 years.
"Hi David! How are ya? It's really nice to be talking with a friend of Gordo's," said sixteen year old Lizzie McGuire on the day before she died. . .