RoxyAnne- Thanks a lot! That first chapter is my third favorite chapter in the whole story :o) (This chapter is one of the not as good ones, but it needed to happen to lay a little more groundwork with the story).

Sivchik- Thanks so much for the great review! You are so excited with you writing- I love it! Hope you continue to like it as much!

JuanPablo- Thanks! I love the alerts list- it makes it so easy to keep updated with all in the stories that are Work in Progress. Hope you continue on with it!

Chapter 2- Guilt

"Lisa Gomez" a calm female voice boomed through the football field.

Whenever Lizzie saw movies with a graduation in it on TV, people always seemed to be so sentimental. There were beautiful graduation speeches, heartfelt hugs from friends, and the handing out of diplomas would take a few minutes tops. You were supposed to remember graduation day for the rest of your life. It was a day that, until now, seemed extremely fun-filled and exciting. Granted, Margaret Chan's Valedictorian speech was pretty good (much better than her moment of horror at her middle school graduation) but the rest of the time was spent sitting in an uncomfortable folding chair waiting for them to mispronounce the over 700 names that were in her graduating class.

She checked her watch to find it was an hour and half into the ceremony and they were only halfway through the G's. Are you kidding me?

"Luis Gonzales" Lizzie shifted in her seat as the scattered applause rang through the stands. She started fidgeting with the tassle on her graduation cap.

"David Gordon" Lizzie head snapped up to the stage. A now much taller Gordo was striding purposefully across the stage to receive his diploma. He took his diploma from Mrs. Ungermyer, who smiled up at him. He smiled demurely as a photographer took a picture. He was, of course wearing his Nation Honors Society sash along with the many other cords from different societies he was apart of. Lizzie looked down at her feeble Tri-M Music Honors Society cord around her neck and rolled her eyes. It's not like I ever had time for that academic stuff anyway…

Lizzie looked back up and continued to watch Gordo as he climbed down off the stage and headed up the aisle to his seat. His hair still as curly and shaggy as 4 years previous, but his face had grown up considerably. Under his standard blue graduation robes that were a little short on his tall frame he seemed to be wearing black paints with his chucks with red laces. He walked up the aisle back to his row, his eyes following the ground as he walked. A split second before sitting down however, he looked up the aisle, catching eyes with her. His cold blue eyes penetrated into her. Lizzie felt her cheeks redden against their will. Cursing the fact that she had an aisle seat Lizzie looked quickly away, thoroughly annoyed with herself for being caught staring.

"Lizzie" an urgent whisper from behind broke her out of her reverie. "You coming to Sal's tonight?" her friend Jackie whispered to her from behind.

"I'll be there after recording tonight…" she whispered, "If Jay lets me."

"At least you'll be having fun at the studio! Hey, have you met anyone famous yet?" Jackie asked a bit too loudy. A teacher looked harshly at them from the middle aisle and put a finger to her lips to indicate silence.

Lizzie didn't say anything. Jay was her manager from BlueStar records. She remembered the first time she ever heard his voice about 3 years ago.

"Hello?" she grabbed the phone off the hook in her kitchen.

"Hello, is this Lizzie McGuire?" an older deep and scratchy male voice asked from the other end.

"Yes, this is her." Lizzie was a little confused. She looked up at Gordo who was sitting at her counter, ice cream spoon in hand. He mouthed, 'Who is it?' Lizzie shrugged. "Can I ask who I am speaking with?"

"This is Jay Miller with Blue Star Records. Listen Lizzie, I'm going to be straight with you. I saw your performance in Italy and I am interested in offering you a contract with my record company." Lizzie's mouth fell open, " Would you and your parents be able to meet with me some time this week?"

Lizzie stood there in shock for a moment. Gordo got up from the counter and looked at her, "Are you okay? What's wrong?"

She nodded her head softly as she tried to process what was going on. "I don't know…" she said quietly, still in shock.

"I'm sorry?" Jay Miller questioned.

"Um, I mean, I'll have to ask my parents, can they, um, call you back when they get home?" she was stuttering.

"That would be fine" Jay answered, giving her his information.

She hung up the phone quietly and looked up at Gordo who was leaning against the wall looking at her questioningly. "What's up?" he asked, "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, everything fine." She paused, placing a hand on the wall to brace herself. "That was a guy from BlueStar records… he, he wants to offer me a recording contract." Something unrecognizable passed through Gordo's eyes.

"What are you going to do?" he asked.

"I don't know" she said, "I guess I'll take it. I mean, it sounds pretty exciting doesn't it?"

"Yeah… pretty exciting" he said, turning his back to her and sitting down at the counter again. She followed him over and stood at the counter in front of him.

"Lizzie! I'm home!" Lizzie's mom called from the hallway.

"Hey Mom, we're in here" Lizzie called. Mrs. McGuire came into the kitchen holding two shopping bags.

"How are you kids doing?" she asked, placing the shopping bags down on the counter.

"Well, actually…" Lizzie told her about Jay's phone call. Mrs. McGuire's face lit up, pulling Lizzie into a hug. "Lizzie! That's so exciting! Oh, everyone will be so proud of you! We'll have to talk about it with your father… but, Oh Lizzie! My little girl!"

"Hey Lizzie, I've gotta run home" Gordo said from the doorway to the kitchen.

Lizzie pulled out of her mother's embrace to look questioningly at Gordo. "But we haven't finished our ice cream yet-"

"Sorry, I just remembered this thing at home with my dad" he said, putting his coat on. "See you tomorrow."

"Lizzie!" the girl to her left jabbed her hard in the ribs, "You need to go up onstage!" Lizzie jumped up and began to head up the aisle, being sure to keep her eyes down.

The ceremony finally over, Lizzie searched the mass of recent graduates taking pictures with their families for her own. She walked around the mass of people for a few minutes, her neck starting to sweat with the warm sun. She pulled her way through a large group of family members fussing over Margaret Chan only to find her prom date, Michael Kramer. His eyes lit up and he fought his way over to her.

"Hey Lizzie" he said hopefully. Lizzie drew in a breath and tried to back away.

"Hey Michael" she gave a fake smile and turned around to keep pushing through the crowd.

"Lizzie, wait up!" he called, catching up with her quickly.

"I've got to find my family Michael" she said, trying to stay pleasant.

He didn't seem to get the hint. "Listen, I was wondering if you wanted to go to Sal's party tonight together," he still kept with her.

"Michael, I told you before, I can't" she said a little too briskly.

"But, I thought we had a good time together" he said, looking crestfallen.

"I just don't have time in my schedule for it, I'm sorry" she pushed through the crowd and continued to search, feeling remorse for even accepting to go to prom with him in the first place.

Lizzie stared down at the flowers placed in the middle of the table. They were an arrangement of red and white carnations, picked out by none other than the head of the prom committee, Kate. She smiled, remembering that dance in middle school where she and Kate were the heads of the committee together.

"Hey Lizzie" She looked up from the table to find Larry and Veruca smiling down at her.

"Hey guys" she smiled wide at her old friends. "How are you doing?"

"Well my dazzling pop star diva" Larry said slickly pulling off his top hat and placing it on the table, "We are doing splendid." He and Veruca were dressed in 1920's flapper gear, reminding Lizzie of the murder mystery party Ethan had held at her house back in the 8th grade. A memory of that party flashed across her mind, of Gordo standing very close to her on the front porch to her house.

"Lizzie?" Veruca asked.

"Huh?" she said quickly, feeling her cheeks turn pink.

"We were just wondering how you are doing?" Larry looked sincere, like he really wanted to know.

That was the thing about Larry, he didn't just ask how you were doing and not listen- he really wanted to know. Most people she was friends with didn't stop to hear an answer. She took a deep breath, about to speak.

"Lizzie?" Lizzie looked to her right and found Michael, arm outstretched and looking hopeful. It took her a second to figure out what he wanted. She noticed that a slow R & B song was playing while the couples on the dance floor were swaying in each others arms. She debated in her head for a moment. She could do what she wanted and refuse, but she had already said no to him a few times that night.

"Guys, do you mind?" she looked over at Larry and Veruca who nodded. "I'll come find you later" she said, wondering if she actually would or not.

She looked back at Michael and took his hand, silently accepting. He led her out to the dance floor, his hand feeling cold and dry in her own. He stopped abruptly, turning around and pulling her close to himself. Lizzie felt distinctly uncomfortable at the closeness of this slow dance, but allowed his arms to pull her into himself. She put her head on his shoulder and looked out onto the dance floor behind him as he began to move.

She let her eyes scan the dance floor, searching. She saw Kate and Ethan, both wearing their King and Queen crowns, dancing comfortably together. She smiled at them, remembering how they had a huge fight just about an hour earlier, causing quite a commotion. 'It's good to know that not everyone changes' she thought sadly.

She saw a flash of curly brown hair behind another couple they were dancing near. She shifted her head a bit on Michael's shoulder, trying to get a better view. The couple turned to the side with the music and Lizzie got a good view of Gordo closely slow dancing with Samantha Fuller. She was a lead actress in several of the plays Gordo had directed that year. She was wearing a beautiful lilac sleeveless gown.

"Hey Lizzie!" she heard a voice call through the crowd, "Come take a picture with us!" She saw her friend Marissa standing close by, surrounded by a group of laughing girls.

"Actually I need to find my mom" Lizzie said, pulling herself out of her reverie and scanning the crowd, "Have you seen her?"

Marissa was already assembling a group of girls into a picture perfect pose, "Uh, no actually…" she paused, "She's got blonde hair right?"

Lizzie stood there for a moment, eyebrows raised. Marissa had met her mother several times when she had come to pick Lizzie up for parties. "Yeah… something like that." She turned and left the group, walking quickly.

It was another minute or two before she saw a glimpse of blonde hair that looked like her mothers. She began in the direction but realized that the woman was about a half a foot taller than her mother. Losing hope she quickly turned around again only to run smack right into the person she last wanted to see.

"Lizzie" he said urgently yet coolly, as Lizzie took two steps away from him to keep her distance.

"Gordo…" she said equally as cool. It was strange to have him be so much taller than she was and that she needed to look up when they talked. His hair was swept back from being in the graduation cap and he had shed his graduation robe to show a black button up shirt and black pants. Typical director, she thought.

"Listen, we need to talk" he said giving her a look that she couldn't quite read.

"What about?" she crossed her arms and let out an annoyed sigh, not looking at him.

"You know what about…" he said, equally annoyed.

"Listen Gordo, I don't have time for this" she said, attempting to swallow the guilt rising up in her stomach while pushing away from him and allowing herself to become lost in the crowd.