Cassie Wright- Sophomore. Next week is my 16th birthday. I’ve pretty much invited half of my class to my big birthday blow- out, including the incredibly gorgeous senior Erik Patterson. I wonder if this may be the time I get to kiss him. I hope none of those other girls get in my way. I can hardly wait for the magical evening. There’s so much I still have to do after school tomorrow!

Ugh! I could barely keep my eyes open. Why did Mr. Slovich’s Algebra II class have to be so boring? Well, I was about to find out that all of my dozing off was going to cost me.

“Cassie, I understand that you have always maintained a 4.0 GPA.” Mr. Slovich said as the bell rang.

“Yes… Why?” I questioned.

“I just wanted to let you know that you currently have a B in this class.”

Was he serious? That couldn’t be possible. My parents were going to eat me alive.

“That can’t be right! I mean there must be a mist…” I was cutoff mid- sentence.

“I’m sorry, Cassie, but there is no mistake. However, if you would like some extra credit, there is a Math Matters competition this Saturday evening. If you participate, I can raise your grade up to an A. I think you would do very well there.”

This Saturday?! That was the day of my party! My head was swarming with thoughts. I couldn’t think. I told him I would think about it and that I would let him know my decision soon. As you can imagine, that night was interesting.

“Cassie Marie Wright! How could you?” My mother panicked as I told her the terrible news.

“Well, my last few test grades haven’t been so hot.” I explained.

“I don’t want any more excuses. Your party has been cancelled until you find a way to get that grade up.”

My heart sank into my stomach. No party? The night I had been dreaming about forever was now just a fantasy… maybe.

Well, I knew for a fact that I was not going to cancel the party and I was not going to enter that stupid nerd competition. At least, I wouldn’t tell anyone about it. The week dragged on as I came up with my plan. Getting my grade up wasn’t just because I wanted to have a party. If I got a B, the guilt would eat away at my conscience. Finally, I told Mr. Slovich that I would gladly enter the competition. Fortunately, the event ended just as my party was starting. My next step was to inform my parents about the extra credit I’d be earning.

“Honey, that’s great! I’m sorry we already made dinner plans that night, otherwise we would come to watch.” My dad said.

“Oh, no worries, Dad, it’s all good. Maybe another time.” I lied. There was not going to be another time.

So far, so good. All of my friends kept telling me how excited they were for my party, especially Erik. Everything was going to plan.

I was ready for the big night. My dress was stellar and I studied for the Math Matters competition. My brother drove me to the school, and that’s when the butterflies kicked in. Entering the auditorium was without a doubt the worst part. I was immediately surrounded by a bunch of geeks.

“Good evening and welcome to the 19th Annual Math Matters competition. Tonight, it will be an academic battle between Northampton High School, and Grant Senior High. Let us begin!” The announcer boomed. Oh no, here we go.

On that night, I discovered something. I’m really good at math. We won the competition and before anyone could start celebrating, I was in my dress and out the door. Now it was time for my grand arrival. My brother pulled into our driveway. He was going to be gone for the rest of the night (even thought he knew about the party), so he drove off. I was ecstatic. I’d gotten away with everything.


I took a deep breath and slowly, opened the front door and stepped in.

“Happy Birthday, Cassie!” The crowd exclaimed. Smiling, I scanned the over the group, looking for one person, and one person only. Erik. My heart turned to stone when I saw that he wasn’t there, but that wasn’t going to ruin my night. I went around and visited with a few of my friends, danced to a couple of songs, and ate some food before I went up to my bedroom. I bolted straight to my closet to put away my normal clothes, but got a pleasant surprise instead. Sitting on my bed smiling at me was Erik.

“I thought you weren’t going to come!” I said embracing him.

“You really thought that? Well, you obviously don’t know me very well.” He replied. “Would you like to go dance?”

“I’d be honored.”

We walked downstairs together and immediately, a slow song came on. He put his hand on the small of my back and wound his fingers into mine. Suddenly, I was very light- headed. This could be the night where my life fell into place. Then, my cell phone rang. It was my mom. I leaped over to the stereo and paused the music.

“Everybody! I’m sorry to interrupt, but my mom is on the phone and I need it to be silent. I’ll explain everything to you after” I yelled. Everyone looked at me with confused faces, but I flipped open my phone. “Hello?” I asked shakily.

“Hi Cassie! Just wanted to let you know that we’ll be home in about twenty minutes. Our dinner reservation got canceled. See you in a bit!” My mom said and hung up without saying goodbye. Shoot. I was going to be grounded for life. Take a deep breath, Cassie. You’ll find a way to fix this.

“Okay. Uh…Everyone! I really don’t want to do this, but I have to. The party’s over. My parents don’t know that I’m having this party, and they definitely can’t find out. They’re going to be home in twenty minutes, so I really need your help cleaning up. You guys rock and I’d really appreciate your help.” I begged my friends. Most of them nodded in agreement and started picking up red plastic Solo cups and paper napkins. I couldn’t hold back the grin escaping my mouth. I owed each and every one of them, big time. I raced around the house picking up every last crumb. I took the six bags of garbage to the backyard until I could take it to the dumpster. With about seven minutes left, I shooed everyone out of my house. I promised I would text them all later that night, if I didn’t get my phone taken away. I did a quick check around the house and everything looked pretty normal. Then, I heard the garage door open. My heart was a pounding drum. Even though, I had nothing to worry about. I looked around one more time and noticed that I still had my dress on! I booked it up to the stairs, changed into sweats and a t-shirt, and tossed my dress under my bed.

“Honey! We’re home.” My dad called. I told them I was coming down.

“So how was your evening? Did the competition go well?” My mom Asked.

“We won the competition, but other than that, my night was pretty boring.” I answered as my dog, Sophie, scratched at the back door.

“Looks like we have a storm coming in. I’d better bring her inside and put my tools in the shed.” My dad said.

Ugh! Why did Sophie have to be so terrified of thunderstorms?! I had to do something.

“Uh, let me do that Dad. You’ve been gone all night. Why don’t you just sit down and relax?” I interrupted.

“Nah, that’s okay. Go tell your mom about the competition.”

Crap! I could already tell this was going to end badly. Before I could even take another breath, he was out the door.

“So, did you get any problems right for your team?” My mom asked curiously.

“Yeah I got a couple.” I said peering over her shoulder to where Sophie was barking.

“Cassie? What are all of these trash bags doing here?” My dad interrupted, opening one of the bags. Uh oh. Busted

“Uh …well, you see the thing is…” I was interrupted.

“Did you have a party?” He yelled.

“Listen, I can explain.”

“Well we’d love to hear it.” My mom said sarcastically. So, I told them the whole truth.

“Look, Cassie, we’re glad you improved your grade, but having a party behind our backs is not okay.” My dad explained. “And it’s a bummer that we have to do this to you, but you’re grounded for two weeks. That means no leaving the house just to socialize. You may keep your phone, but no TV. Do you understand?”

I simply nodded. What else could I say? I dragged myself up the stairs and flopped onto my bed. I dozed off within a few minutes. I was startled awake by my phone. It was a text message from Erik.

“Look out your window.” He wrote.

I pulled back the drapes, and there he was, standing peacefully in the rain. He motioned for me to come outside. I had an emergency fire ladder in my closet (Not a good idea to give to a teenager). I considered this an emergency. Trying not to slip, I climbed down the ladder and safely planted both feet on the ground.

“I never got to do this.” He said pulling me towards him. Before I had time to be confused, he kissed me. It was a magical moment I would never let go of. He didn’t say anything more. He pulled his hood on, smiled, and then trotted off into the rainy darkness. I couldn’t wipe that smile off of my face.

That night, as I fell asleep, I was very apprehensive. Disappointed about being grounded, but joyful about Erik. All I did know was that I would be dreaming about the bright future that was just ahead of me.