Forlot: Welcome to the Dummy House - Book Forty-One

Chapter One

The girl had been waiting for this night. She knew that he would ask her. Him. The hottest guy in school. And he was single - until now. She was standing in front of her mirror and fixing her hair. It had to be perfect. She wanted to be perfect for the evening. She had to be. All her friends and the other students would chat about it. They would never stop gossiping about it until the year was over.

"Need to be perfect," she said, gazing at her reflection. "I need to be as perfect as him. He has to know tonight that I am the only girl for him. I can stand him. His abs and looks and voice. He certainly is Prince Charming." She finished fixing her hair and snorted. "Never have I thought of it before." She scooped up a red lipstick and applied it to her lips. "It would be hilarious if his name was Prince Charming. Hmm. I wonder if he is a prince. Then I would be a queen. And be wealthy!"

No one knew the boy's name. Not the students. Not the teachers. He acted mysterious. He never gave away his name. Now that is not strange. Maybe his parents gave him an embarrassing name, like North or this long one that cannot fit on a blank. But what is bizarre is that he does not change clothes. Ever. He wears the same ones every day. You can tell because of the sweat and stains. But it does not stop the girls from flirting with him and the guys from hanging out with him. One girl managed to ask him why he never wears different clothing.

"I am so glad that you asked," he said with a grin. "My family is rich. I know what you are thinking. My family can afford new clothing, but...here is the sad part. Both of my parents do not want to buy me new clothes. They refuse to."

"That stinks," a guy stated. "Why will they not buy you new clothes? Are they cheap or something?"

"Only on me." He sighed. "Only on me. But when I am older, I will be given some of the wealth. My folks have no choice."

Another girl twirled a hair strand around her finger. "A hot guy who is also rich? Sign me up!"

A third girl put her hand over his. "Hey, I remembered something. There is a dance coming up here shortly."

"What dance? I had no idea that the school was having a dance."

She giggled. "You are cute when you are confused."

"Our school is not hosting it," another guy spoke. "The students are."

The boy took his hand off the table and hid it. "Tell me. Why was I not informed of this dance? I am a student." He laid back in his chair and lowered his eyelids. "I see how it is. You do not trust me. You just do not trust me to keep secrets."

"We do trust you," the first girl reassured him. "We do. We just wanted to surprise you, seeing that you are the new student."

He crossed his arms and eyed her suspiciously. "Ah. So you wanted to surprise me because I am new and seem shy. Or is it because I am the dream guy? I am the best sports player and have a good head on my shoulders."

The second girl flipped her hair. "We do not care if you have a good head on your shoulders. Life will treat you good if you have the looks and wealth."

"What about being a kind person? Whatever happened to being a decent person?"

"What does the word 'decent' mean?"

The girl was putting the finishing touches onto her face when her mom called to her. She said that he was here, and the girl quickly cleaned up and squealed. She took in a deep breath and spun around while glancing in the mirror. She was wearing a purple, sleeveless dress that touched her toes. Her purple earrings swung whenever she moved her head. Purple gloves covered her hands.

"Who is the prettiest girl in Forlot?" she said. "You are! You will always be the most beautiful lady. That is why you are popular."

She grabbed her purple handbag and hurried down the stairs. She could not contain her excitement. Her heart beat rapidly. Her hands and legs were quivering. If she was not wearing gloves, she would bite her fingernails. She finally reached the bottom of the stairs and walked in the other room. Her breath caught in her throat. She wanted to speak, but could not.

Her dream guy was on her couch with his legs crossed. One arm was lying on the back of the couch. The other was on the cushion with its fingers tapping. He did not realize that she was in the room because he was staring at the fireplace. Fire crackled and engulfed the wood.

"You must like the fire," the girl said.

The boy gasped and faced her. "Wow. You...you look..."

She flipped her hair. "Am I the most gorgeous girl that you have ever seen?"

He got off the couch and strolled to her. "You just took the words right out of my mouth." He took her hand. "I hope that you enjoy tonight. 'Cause it will last forever."

Little did the girl know that he literally meant it.

"Where are we going for our date?" the girl asked. "Let me guess. The Forlot restaurant? The movies?"

The boy shook his head and poked her nose. "It is even better than those. You will see when we get there."

"I cannot wait!"

He grinned. "Me neither."

They kept walking down the sidewalk until they halted in front of this house. It was not a mansion. It was just a huge house.

"Why are we here?" the girl asked.

The boy smacked her head with his fist.