She couldn't keep this to herself any longer. This was HUGE. Beyond huge! It was...

Wait. What's beyond huge? Lizzie shook her head to get her mind back on track. The house was empty so she couldn't tell her Mom. Miranda was on a date with that Kurt guy. Lizzie couldn't help but snort at the name. No matter how many good qualities the boy possessed, she just couldn't seem to bring herself to get past his name. It simply wasn't befitting to him. Then again she couldn't imagine a guy who DID go with the name.

She checked her computer. 11:09

She might be home...

Since she was logged onto the internet, the phone-line was already in use. Lizzie reached over to the foot of her bed where her purse sat, unzipped with her compact sticking out. She dug through, and after a few frustrating moments, she located her cell. The held it in the air in triumph, as if she held the Nobel Peace Prize in its place. She dialed the familiar digits and waited anxiously while clicking her tongue against the roof of her mouth.

After only the first ring she picked up.

"You know, 5 minutes doesn't exactly qualify as 'a few days.'"

"Is that how you greet everyone, Randa?"

Miranda burst out laughing. "Oh my gosh! Sorry girl, but I thought it was Kurt..."

Lizzie was already smirking at the mere mentioning of his name.

"It's just that as soon as I got in he had already called. I told him he was bein' a little to aggressive and to wait at least a few days before calling again." Miranda explained.

She nodded her head thoughtfully but did not speak.

Miranda laughed a breathy laugh. "I gather by your silence you didn't call to hear about my oh-so exciting date. What's up, chica?"

"Well..." Lizzie sounded nervous, but in a good way.

"Well...don't keep me in suspense, girl! What's going on?"

"It's Gordo." she said simply.

"What happened? Is he all right?"

"No, no!" Lizzie quickly explained. "It's nothing like that, but I got a call from him the other night."

Miranda's initial reaction was a wide grin. But then it quickly turned into a feeling of annoyance. After hearing zip for months on end, he decides to call out of nowhere. This had better be good.

"Sooo?" Miranda prompted.

"Sooo," Lizzie said with positive excitement. "He said there's a chance he might be moving back when school starts up again. Isn't that great?"

Miranda allowed her smile to return, albeit reluctantly. "So, what does this mean? When is he coming back? Before the summer ends? After school starts? What?"

"I don't know, Miranda." All the excitement abruptly drained out of Lizzie's voice as she lowered her speaking volume. "The truth is, his parents left it up to him."

"Uh," Miranda gave a nervous laugh. "I'm not seein' the bad here, Liz."

Silence.

"Liz?"

Nothing.

"Lizzie?"

"He LOVES it over there! He's actually considering staying out there! Could you believe that? Ugh! I can't believe that punk. How could he choose some like totally different place over his home. His HOME, Miranda!"

"Lizzie..."

The blonde sighed heavily into the receiver. "I know..."

"Look, we've gone two years without him. And yeah, I miss him too. A lot. But it's his life. His decision. We've gotten this far without him, and besides...I think we've done pretty good without 'em so far. Wouldn't you agree?"

"Yes..."

"Don't sound so enthusiastic, girl."

Lizzie smiled slightly. "I know what you're saying, but I can't help but want him back here. Home."

Miranda took a deep breath. "Me too."

Marilyn Monroe. Audrey Hepburn. Fred Astaire. Claudette Colbert. James Dean. Humphrey Bogart. Dean Martin. Judy Garland. Marlon Brando. Frank Sinatra. Ginger Rogers. The posters and photos were endless. He admired them all, actors, dancers, singers. Truly the golden age of the entertainment era. He sighed and took one last look around his spacious room. This was the last time he'd ever see it this way. Gordo sighed and stood atop the step-ladder to begin removing the photographs off his wall.

The majority were prints in black and white. It just added class to the look of it all. He liked that.

Everything else was packed. For whatever reason, unknown even to him, he left his posters and photos to pack last. It took around 10 minutes to remove the black and whites. Then came the recent photographs. Colored pictures. Which included many of Vicki and Danielle. Namely Vicki...Danielle was a bit camera shy. Plus Vicki craved attention more than any other person he had known. He noticed a photo with Carlos, him, and Ben. Gordo had to laugh. It was a Halloween picture and Ben had decided to dress like a schoolgirl. Although half the student body suggested he was attempting to dress like Britney Spears: pre-career downslide.

Gordo couldn't dwell on this place much more. He was going back home. Back where he thought he belonged. After placing all the pictures into the brown cardboard box, he reached into his closet where his most beloved photo was stored. It was framed with a red wood sort of look to it. He blew off the dust that had collected over the glass. He frowned. Had it been that long since he'd given his old friends a single thought?

Gordo guessed so. The corners of his mouth turned up a bit as he cast a long, pensive look at the picture. It was a simple snapshot of him, Miranda, and Lizzie at Six Flags. They were about to come down the 'big drop' of one of the water rides when the photo was taken. Miranda held onto him from the back, whereas Lizzie was scrunched up against his chest, fearing the 'steep' drop. He held onto her tightly as all three screamed all the way down.

"David! The moving truck is here, ready?"

He quickly and carefully placed the framed picture on top of the rest inside the brown box. He cradled it under his arm, took one last look around, and bounded down the steps.

"Coming."

Mr. Gordon clutched his son's shoulder. "I know we're all gonna miss this place."

Gordo silently nodded in agreement when his mother appeared by his side. "Yes, but we're going back home, Howard."

HOME.

In Hillridge...