Thanks for the reveiws! And thanks to FairyPrincess139 for her ideas. As for who the stalker is, I'll never tell. Bwah ha ha ha ha hah! (Well, eventually, I'll have to.)
OK, I just made a few changes. Nothing exciting.
Chapter 2: Dinner and a Show
"He what!" Ann squealed, bouncing on Mary's bed.
"He asked me to dinner tonight," Mary answered. "Will you quit bouncing on my bed? You're supposed to be helping me get ready."
"Sorry." Ann bounced one last time, then slid off the bed. She grabbed the chair from behind Mary's desk and placed it in front of the mirror.
"Sit," she commanded. Mary sat and Ann studied her friend for a moment.
"Did you get your contact lenses yet?" she asked.
"Yes, they came in last week." Mary had worn contact lenses on and off for a few years. Just last month, she had found a pair that felt comfortable to wear all the time. She hadn't been able to put them in yet.
"Go put them on while I put together an outfit for you to wear. Which you will wear without complaining."
Mary rolled her eyes. "Yes, Mother," she said.
When Mary came back, she looked at the outfit Ann had left on the bed. A blue, V-neck, spaghetti-strap dress. "Where on earth did that come from!"
"I gave it to you last year, remember?" Ann replied, pushing Mary towards the chair. "You know, just in case you had a hot date or something. Sit."
Mary sat in the chair. "Yeah, a hot date," she said, rolling her eyes. Ann began brushing her hair. "I can't wear that. The neckline is too low. If I have to bend over for any reason, I'm going to fall out of the top!"
Ann laughed at her friend's theatrics. "It's not that low-cut," she said. "And if you're worried about it, you can wear a shawl."
"OK," Mary said, doubtfully. She watched in the mirror as Ann twisted her hair into a bun on top of her head and stuck what looked like two chopsticks through to hold it.
"Where did you learn to do that?" Mary asked, suspiciously, as Ann pulled out a makeup kit.
"Elli gave me some lessons. Don't look so worried! I know what I'm doing."
"Remind me again why you're taking over instead of just helping me?"
"Because if I didn't, you'd wear your glasses and work clothes. You want to knock his socks off, don't you?"
"Ann, it's just one date."
"It won't be when I'm done with you!"
After a few minutes of silence, Mary said, "Something weird happened at the library today. Someone brought me roses while I was dusting upstairs."
"Roses! You can put on your dress now, just be careful. Who were they from?"
Mary stood up, took off her robe, and slipped her dress carefully over her head. Ann zipped it up. The hem fell just below her knees, and Ann was right, the neckline wasn't too low.
"Told you," Ann said, triumphantly.
Mary sat on her bed to put on her shoes. "Anyways, there was a note, but it wasn't signed. It said, 'To the most beautiful girl in Mineral Town.'" "Which I'm not," she added.
"I think your beautiful," Ann said, and left it at that. She knew Mary was self-conscious about her looks and no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't convince her otherwise. Well, maybe Jack could.
"That is weird, though," she continued. "Maybe you have a secret admirer."
Mary cracked up. "That's what Jack said."
Ann grinned. "Maybe it's Gray. He spends a lot of time at the library, you know."
"With his nose stuck in a book about blacksmithing," Mary added. "Besides, were just friends."
"I smell a mystery," Ann said in a deep voice.
"You smell the Inn," Mary said, looking at her clock. "Cause you probably should have been back already."
Ann looked at the clock on Mary's dresser. "Your right," she shrieked. She ran down the stairs, yelling, "See you later! Bye Anna, bye Basil!"
Mary turned and looked in the mirror one last time. 'I almost look pretty,' she thought. Maybe she would talk to Elli, too, for makeup and hair lessons. She was on her way downstairs when she heard a knock at the door. She heard her mother open the door and say, "Hello, Jack."
"Hello, Anna. I've come to pick up Mary."
"There you are," Anna said, seeing Mary walk up beside her. "I was just going to call you. Have fun, you two."
Mary stepped out of the house and shut the door. "You look beautiful," Jack told her, as they walked to Doug's Inn. "Not like you don't always look beautiful," he added.
Mary smiled. He sounded as nervous as she felt. "Thank you. You look great, too," she said. He was wearing black slacks and a white shirt, with a black jacket.
"Thanks. Oh, wait, this is for you." He handed her a dark blue, fuzzy bear. It was holding a piece of chocolate.
"He's so cute! How did you know that blue was my favorite color?" she asked, as they reached Doug's Inn.
"I interrogated Ann," he said, holding open the door for her. When they walked in, Ann ran up to them.
"I have a table just for you two," she said. She led them to one of the far tables. It had a tablecloth and candles. Mary was impressed. It certainly hadn't taken her long to get the table ready.
"Sit down, I'll get the menus."
Jack waited until Mary sat, then pushed her chair in. "Is she always this bossy?" he asked, as he sat in his chair.
"Unfortunately," Mary replied, as Ann returned with the menus.
"Let me know when your ready to order," she called, heading for a table that was waving for her.
Across the room, Karen drank her fourth bottle of wine, and glared at Mary and Jack.
"How dare she take my man," she growled.
"It's just one date," Popuri assured her. "He'll get bored, then you can make your move."
"He looks like he's having fun from here."
Jack was smiling and laughing at something Mary had said.
"She spends all day in a library, how interesting can she be?"
Popuri sighed. It was hard to get through to Karen when she was drunk. "Will you quit worrying. You're going to get wrinkles."
That almost sobered Karen up. If there was thing she took seriously, it was her looks. Everyone said she was the most beautiful girl in Mineral Town and she meant to keep it that way. Being so beautiful had it's rewards. She always got what she wanted. And Karen wanted Jack.
Jack gave Mary a taste of his dessert, and Karen felt her blood pressure rise. She jumped up so fast, her chair fell over. She stomped over to their table.
"How dare you steal my boyfriend, you tramp!" she screamed.
Startled, Mary dropped her glass of iced tea. "Wha-?"
"Don't think I'm going to let you get away with this!"
Jack turned and glared at Karen. "Kare, that was rude. Don't talk to Mary like that," he told her.
Doug and Popuri rushed over to Karen. "Time to go home, Karen." Doug said.
Popuri gently grabbed her arm. "I'll walk with you."
"You'll be sorry," Karen hollered, as Popuri dragged her out of the Inn.
Ann came over with a rag. "Sorry about that," she said. "You didn't get any glass on you, did you?"
Mary and Jack both shook their heads. "Were fine. Thanks, Ann.
A few minutes later, Jack went to pay Doug, who waved them away, saying it was on the house. They thanked him and left the Inn. "Do you feel like taking a walk to the beach?" Jack asked her.
"That would be nice," she agreed.
They walked to the beach and sat down on the dock. The sky was so clear, the stars could easily be seen. Jack pointed out the ones he knew, then Mary pointed out the ones she knew, and they made up names for the rest of them. She couldn't believe how easy it was to talk to him. They talked about books and Jack's farm and whether or not Marvin, Jack's dog, should be allowed to sleep on the bed.
"Marvin?" Mary asked.
"I named him after my friend from the city," Jack said, laughing. He glanced down at his watch. It was almost midnight. He stood up and held is hand out to help Mary stand.
"I should get you back home before your parents start to worry."
"Thanks Jack, I had fun," Mary said, as they stood outside her door.
"Me, too." A few seconds past, then, "Would it be okay if I kissed you?"
"Okay," she whispered, wondering if he would be able to tell that this would her first kiss.
It didn't matter anyway because as soon as his lips touched hers, all worries fled and all she could think was, 'Wow'. He stepped back and smiled.
"Good night."
"Good night."
He waited until she went in the house and closed the door. Then, he walked home, a silly grin on his face.
You know, I never understood why writers would say that they hated a chapter they wrote, until now. This one sucks. It has no redeeming qualities whatsoever. It's basically just filler. I needed to put something here, and this what I got. If anyone has any improvements they would like to share, I would be more than happy to hear them.