Disclaimer: What's it to you if I don't own it, eh?

A/N: Read and Review. That's all I have to say to you people other than read and review my other stories. This is going to be a shorter chapter than the others because, well, writers block didn't allow me anything else. Just be grateful you got this out of me.

Cindy put on a fake smile as she nodded and shook hands with the people congratulating her on her spectacular performance. She inhaled the first avaliable oxygen gratfully as they cleared away. Sheen, Libby, and Carl walked up to her quickly to acoid more wasrming crowds.

"Hey girl," Libby said, grinning toothily at her. "Ready to go?" Cindy nodded as Sheen said, "Hey, what about – oof!" Libby had given him a swift elbow in the gut before standing on tip-toes and hissing something in his ear. Cindy narrowed her eyes suspiciously.

"What's going on that I'm not being told?" she snapped, folding her arms across her chest. She knew that mask of innocence Libby had on too well and she didn't like it one bit. Libby, however, was not in a cooperative mood and only pulled her away by her elbow, throwing her graduation cap in the air and shouting happily, "Come on! We're FREE!"

Despite the surly mood she had been worked into so instantaniously, Cindy couldn't help but smile. How true and sweet that statement was. She would finally be able to throw away this life and start from scratch. She watched Libby and Sheen as they launched themselves into the back seat the convertible Cindy had gotten as a "graduation gift" and sat within comfortable hugging length, and then at Carl, who was struggling fruitlessly to copy their motions but finally resolved to opening the passenger door and sliding into his seat, sighing irritatedly. Cindy smiled again blissfully. So maybe not from scratch…

The Candy Bar was packed. Sheen, in a burst of uncharacteristic ingenuity, had reserved their favorite table with Sam - the one right next to the juke-box. The fat owner scowledup at them as they came in.

"Hurry up! Eat and get out, yeah! I've got enough of your friends to deal with!"

Cindy smiled and hugged him fondly before sitting down. "Thank you, Sam, you big fake!" Sam blushed and hurried off to make their orders, still grumbling. Cindy turned to her friends in time to see Libby give Carl, who had been watching the crowds, a look. She narrowed her eyes at the pair of them, but so far it was goon naturedly.

"All right," she said loudly. "What are you hiding? I want to know!" Sheen scrambled over the back of their booth and over to the juke-box. He selected a song as Libby said to Cindy, "No, you don't. Just trust me on this, girl."

The crowd around them cheered and started dancing when a song by 'Outta Sync' began blaring from the juke-box. Cindy watched in facinated horrer as Sheen did his own reincarnation of The Twist.

"Hey Carl!" he said. "Remember that band we started with Jimmy?"

Carl gave his nasally little laugh. "Cha! We so totally rocked the universe of rock!"

Libby snorted as she lept up to join Sheen in his "dance". "I wouldn't go as far as that, but I have to admit that you guys were pretty good." Carl and Sheen began debating back and forth with Libby about their level of masterful talents when Mary, the girl that had given Carl the great honor of sitting with him at lunch a few weeks back, came over and asked him to dance. Cindy smiled, content to justsit theirand watch her friends laughing and dancing.As all thingsseemed to be in her life as of late, her mood was spoiled asNick started her way.

"Hey ang –" he began. Cindy had stood up, torn between going out to meet him or running as fast as she could in the opposite direction when her friends came to he rescue. They barred Nick's way, even Mary, who clung onto Carl's arm as he bravley stood by a furious looking Sheen and Libby.

"Anything we can do for you, Nick?" Libby spat, taking a step towards him. Nick in turn took his own step back, looking hesitant at the onslaught that faced him. He apparently thought the chance of messing up his hair was to great, for he muttered "No", turned, and walked away. Cindy let out a breath and stepped forward, throwing and arm each about Sheen and Carl.

"Thanks guys," she said. Sheen ruffled her hair fondly, a habit he had gotten into ever since his height had surpassed hers four years ago.

"It's only what Ultra Lord would do, Cindy," he said, as though it were a logical, well-known fact. Cindy scowledunsuccessfully and shoved him away from her. Libby laughed and caught him, swinging him into a dance again. Carl and Mary walked back to the table with Cindy as Sam arrived with their orders. Cindy picked at hers half-heartedly as she stared off into space, her peripheral vision catching Carl feeding Mary a french frie lovingly. When Sheen and Libby rejoined them, the two had long since been lip-locked. Sheen graciously helped Libby step over them to get to their seats.

"What you been thinking 'bout, girl?" Libby asked Cindy as she dug into her sundae vigorously. Cindy sighed.

"Nothing really, I guess," she said, swiping a cherry from her friend's dish. "Just wondering what college is going to be like."

"You got you acception letter, right?" Libby asked. Cindy nodded happily.

"Princeton! Not quite the Harvard my mother was hoping for, but since when do I think about her opinions." Cindy did not hear Libby's sigh as she had gone off into another silent and moody sulk. That…woman had not right to be called her mother. Ever since her father had walked out on them three days before Cindy's 12th birthday, she had become even more untolerable than before. Her picky, unreachable expectations had become daily beratings and break-downs to give nothing less than perfection. After a few months of degrading Cindy's image and self-worth, she gave it up entirly and played the part of I-could-care-less-if-you-were-to-throw-yourself-into-the-lake type of not-mother. Cindy had grown to accept this and stayed at Libby's house the majority of the time; most of her posessions that Mrs. Vortex hadn't pawned or broken in a rage were at the Folfax household.

Life had certainly been far different from what she had envisioned growing up. No perfect little house with the neatly painted trim, no happy parents showering her with praise for her excelent academic acomplishments, no genius across the street to fight with over absolutly nothing…

Cindy stood and said to Libby, "I'll see you at the party tonight." Libby nodded and didn't ask any questions, much to the releif of Cindy. She worked her way through the dancing, talking, laughing mob towards the door, exchanging quick hellos and good byes with the many people that addressed her before running to the Folfax residence.

After a quick change of clothing and another hello to Libby's mother, Cindy walked briskly down the street towards the park, speeding up as she went until she was in a full run. She collapsed into one of the vacant swings, physically and emotionally drained. She felt much like one did after crying, but rampageous anger had replaced any tears.

That stupid woman! she thought to herself, her own mother's face coming back to mind. Why can't she just leave me alone? She scowled at the sand by her feet and kicked at it, watching the journey of a small pebble that had been in it. It landed in the grass some feet away from her, and something beyond that caught her eye and pressed a groan out of her that turned into a small scream of absolute fury.

Why can't anybody leave me alone, for that matter! Her escape opportunity arose when Nick, as he was cockily flipping his hair as he walked across the park towards her, stumbled on a large protruding root and into a group of boys playing marbles on the concrete sidewalk. Between the marbles and the small, angry hands shoving him in the back of the knees, Nick fell into another small group of children and twisted his feet into their jump rope. While he was laying on the ground and attempting to untangle himself, Cindy bolted from the swing and towards the trees from where she watched Nick being thoroughly chastened by the mothers of the now wailing girls whose jump rope he annihilated.

Cindy allowed herself a secret giggle as she practically skipped off. Despite her worried sentiments about college, there were many problems she was all too happy to leave behind, a.k.a. Nick and "mother dearest". But with the good comes the bad. Cindy had promised countless times to an upset Libby that she would e-mail her every day possible, she could always call her, and she would absolutly see her during any break time she could afford. And Cindy Vortex was one to keep her word.

She stopped walking and turned around to glance at her surroundings casually. She had an odd feeling that she was being watched, but nothing around her was moving other than a few chattering squirrels in a tree some feet away. Cindy strained her ears.

Nothing else was there, but, unable to shake the feeling, she walked off nonchalant, whistling the tune to –

She stopped dead in her tracks again. Since when did she know how to whistle?

A/N: …..ummmm…let's seeee…excuses: well, school's been pretty rough. I swear, Harper Lee needs to be crucified for writing such a stupid book. Urg! And whoever came up with geometric and trigonomic proofs was clearly disregarding the writers' world! Disdainful, that's what it is. Anyways, review!

sandy: Thanks so much! Misspelled words are usually quite the pricker to me too, but my spellcheck won't work, so I've been going through it by hand. Sorry if I missed any. Hope you liked this chapter!
kilala63: All in good time, my anxious reader! In good time…
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Angela Jewell: aw! I'm tearing up already! Thank you sooo much! Hope you liked this installment.
k: :O gah! Sh! This is still the cryptic area!
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The CheezHead: haha you poet you! Thanks for the reveiw!
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They-Call-Me-Orange: You so totally win the award for making my day and using the word "uber" all in one go! Hope you liked this chapter.