Chapter#11: Sweet like cinnamon.

He carefully snuck through alleys and a secret path deep into the city that led to a secret spot that only a few selected knew of.

"Secret word?." A pair of eyes seemed to be asking from the peephole of the shack-like place he finally reached.

"Bully."

The door opens,

"I still don't understand why we need a secret word, you can already see me through that peephole." Mickey the weasel complained to Edmund who let him in.

"What do you got Mickey?." Wolfgang who was sitting on his armchair sipping on some Yahoo soda asked the smaller boy.

"Dirt. Juicy dirt."

"Spill."

"Well Phoebe Hyerdahl isn't really sure about that Johansen kid."

"Meaning?." Wolfgang inquired with a raised eyebrow.

"She might not want to date him if he ever asked her out. Turns out the boy has a head as big as his hair used to be."

"Sounds like your chance Wolfgang." Edmund told him.

Wolfgang just rubbed his chin while contemplating…

I guess it is…

Junior high school English teacher
looking for a man aged 25-32

Object: Tired of being on my own.

Write to: Meredith G.
309, Hillwood.

Joey mailed the response to his teacher's personal ad, the one he saw in a magazine stashed in her desk at school.

To some, it may seem like a sick prank, but his intentions were good. He just wanted to see her genuinely happy for once.

Joey posed as Morgan Wilson, a travelling writer who's just settled in Hillwood temporarily to get inspired by the downtown life of New York's… downtown cities.

"I hope this works." He prayed under his breath before putting the letter in the mailbox.

"So babe, picked out a dress for the prom yet?." Trent leaned over to Rhonda's seat.

"I'm gonna go today right after school. Wanna join me?." She asked.

"Uh well, I can't babe, I got football practice after school today."

"Ok… um, how about tomorrow?."

"Football practice again."

"It's a Saturday tomorrow Trent."

"Yeah, you know football season's coming up and we gotta practice every day."

Rhonda sighed, "Fine. I'll pick a dress and pick a matching suit for you."

"You're awesome babe." Trent gave her a kiss on the cheek and went back to chatting with his friends.

At that point Rhonda wasn't sure whether she should be worried or not.

"Hey." Ruth greeted flirtily as she latched her arms around Sid's in the cafeteria.

"Hi." He replied. "Prom's in three weeks, excited?."

"You bet I am."

"Picked out a dress yet?."

"My friends and I are going shopping tomorrow morning, you?."

"I've never tried wearing a dress before. But I guess I'll give it a shot, sounds like fun."

Ruth giggled. "You know what I mean funny-boy."

"I guess I'm borrow my old man's old suit, or maybe rent one. Hey send me a picture of your dress when you buy it ok?."

"Don't you wanna make it a surprise till the prom?."

Sid looked lovingly into her eyes. "If that's what you want."

"Goodbye Mr. Green." Timberly sweetly greeted as she left Green's Meats.

Her ears caught the faint sound of humming guitar strings coming from not so far off from where she was standing. It sounded like it was in the same direction as the way to her house so she wouldn't really be breaking any of her dad's rules if she decided to follow it to its source, which she did exactly and that led to a boy of her age sitting on the stoop outside his house.

"Chocolate boy?."

The kid immediately stopped playing the guitar and looked at her.

"Oh hi Timberly." He tittered.

"I didn't know you could play guitar."

"I can't, my cousin gave me his old guitar last week and I've been trying to practice on it since."

"How's it going so far?." She asked.

Chocolate boy looked down shyly, "not so good."

"Could you play a little tune for me? Please?."

"I told you I wasn't good at it yet!."

"Pretty please? I promise I won't laugh." She promised innocently.

The boy sighed, "alright, but like you promised; don't laugh."

"I won't."

Chocolate boy took a deep breath and tried to play the best 'twinkle, twinkle little star' tune he could muster.

"Quit playing that blasted guitar or I'll come down over there and break it myself!." A shout from a random guy from the building across the street from them was the answer as to how bad his playing was.

"I told you I stink." Chocolate boy stood up. "Even my dad kicked me out of the house when I started playing."

"I know a place where you can practice and no one would hear you." She told him.

Chocolate boy looked at her questionably.

"Woah!." He exclaimed when they opened the door to the secret hideout her older brother Gerald and his friends used to hangout and also for that dreaded day where the older kids would bully them… what was it called? Trashing day?.

"Pretty neat huh?." She asked as they both entered the lounge area.

"What is this place?." He asked, as he tried to walk carefully over the fluffy red carpet.

"It's where Gerald and his friends usually hang out, but they've been coming here less and less lately since they got into junior high." She explained.

"You sure we could hang out here?."

"Totally," she nodded. "just make sure you wouldn't mess the place up."

"I'm scared to even move here!."

Timberly giggled, "you're funny chocolate boy."

"Why do you keep calling me that?." he was getting annoyed, "I quit my addiction a long time ago."

"Sorry , I'm just used to your nickname… from now on I'll call you by your real name, Justin."

"Jordan." He corrected half-liddedly.

"Jordan, right!."

They both sat there awkwardly on the pink couch silent for a few seconds, she started jittering and he strummed a couple of chords on his guitar.

"You know, " he broke the silence "for a girl you're kinda cool."

"For a girl? You got a girlfriend, why are you talking like all the girls you know are stupid?."

"Because they are! Ashley only forced me to date her."

"If you don't like her then why don't you break it up with her?."

"Because if I do, she promised she'll make one big drama out f it and make me look like the bad guy."

"Oh come on, like anyone would believe that."

"Never underestimate Ashley McGough."

"Don't worry choc- I mean Jordan, we'll think of a way to get her off your back." She promised earning him a weak smile from her.

"Cool."

(MUSIC:CORINNE BAILEY RAE-PUT YOUR RECORDS ON).

Author's Note: There you go 'Tall T' there's that 'cute' Timberly x Chocolate boy romance, atleast to me it is. Ok kids, this'll lead up to more I promise, any comments?.

And yup, I haven't forgotten about Wolfgang's interest in little Phoebe, have you?... well to be honest, I almost forgot. ;p And the Joey thing? Nobody's asked me about it? Is it that lame? I got the idea from The Simpsons episode "Bart the Lover'.