That weekend, Trish, my dad, and I walked up to the building where the party would be held in a half an hour. Muffy's dad gave my dad an extra pass so he could be our parental advisory. Let's face it, that's the only reason why we were allowed to go to this function in the first place. The party was being held at a building that the record company used for special parties. The room was SO cool. The floor and the walls were a metallic black; a disco ball and some flashing lights helped give the room a nice tint of color. As we walked in, hundreds of girls were outside banging on the windows and screaming some pretty crazy stuff. In a half an hour, they would all be let into the party. We got in really early so we could talk with Mr. Riles, Muffy's dad. Trish and I wanted to give him our demo. You see, a few years ago, Trish and I started our own rock duo called Under Water. Basically, Trish sings, and I play guitar. We started performing at our school's talent show a few years ago. Everyone says that we sound really good; so we decided that we would try to break into the music business. You never know until you try.

A few minutes later, the party started hoppin'. "That's Evan Craiger! Harvey Coolage! Guy Savor! Guy is even hotter up close!" Trish said as we stood next to the snack table. Some of the best in the business were swarming around the place. Every time Trish saw a famous person, she would get all excited and scream her head off. As we ate cheese and crackers, Trish glared down at my left hand. "Why are you wearing the glove?" she said.

"I figured that if I wore my glove, Ryan might remember me. I mean, I only met him last week. How bad could his memory be?" I said unsurely.

"True. What happened to the other glove?"

"I don't know. When I got out of the meet and greet, I checked my back pocket, and it wasn't there," I explained. "I'm gonna get some more food. You want anything?"

"No. I'm good. Thanks though," Trish said as I walked over to the snack table. As I reached in for a popcorn ball, Ryan Prest did too!

"Sorry," we both said as we looked up at each other.

"Hi," he said shyly.

"Hi," I said, both of us staring at each other with big smiles on our faces. All of a sudden, a swarm of paparazzi started snapping cameras at us. Ryan grabbed my hand as we ran out the side door that led to an alley. "Thanks for getting us out of there," I said, fixing my hair while I stood in the alley.

"No problem. Didn't you come to my concert last week?"

"Yeah, I did."

"Thanks for lifting my spirits. That concert seened like such a disaster."

"Oh, no. It was great."

"I'm glad you liked it."

"It was the bomb," I said with a big smile.

"So, what's your name?" He said smiling back.

"My name is-." As I started to say my name, a swarm of paparazzi started to charge toward us. Suddenly, Trish ran through the crowd of paparazzi and grabbed my hand.

"Come on!" Trish said, dragging me behind her while we tried to run away from the paparazzi.

"Wait! I have something of yours!" Ryan yelled as I looked back at him. Once the paparazzi fiasco was over, Trish and I met my dad at the front of the building where the car was parked, and we headed back to our quiet home in Syracuse.

Trish slept over that night. "So, details, girl. I need details!" Trish said as she shoved popcorn into her mouth.

"We talked, and that was pretty much it," I said shrugging my shoulders.

"That's it?" Trish said as popcorn spat out of her mouth.

"There would've been more if you didn't drag me away," I said agitated.

"Sorry."

"That's alright. You were just trying to help," I said with a sigh.



The next day at school, Muffy came over to our table. "Joanna, did you see the newspaper?"

"No. why?"

"It looks like Ryan has his own Cinderella," she said as she held up a picture of Ryan. I was standing next to him with my hands covering my face. "The report says that he doesn't know her name, but it seems like he and this girl have great chemistry," Muffy said with a smirk. "Sorry, you lucked out, Joanna. You two would've made such a cute couple."

"I think I'll survive," I said as she and her group of Cheerleaders walked away.

Later, at a hotel in New York City....


"You should've seen her, Rob. There's something special about her," Ryan said as he sat down on the couch with my white fingerless glove in his hand.

"Let me guess, she still has her real nose, right?" said Rob, Ryan's best friend/guitarist.

"No. Well, yeah. She still has her real nose. I think. But it wasn't about her looks."


"What was it then?" Rob asked as he sat down next to Ryan.

"her personality. She didn't fawn over me like the others."

"So, do you know her name?"

"No. She started to tell me, but her friend grabbed her hand and ran out of the alley. I tried to give her back her glove, but she ran away before I could give it to her. I have to find her!" Ryan said distressed.

"Ryan, she's just a girl. Don't waste all of your time looking for her."

"But, Rob, she the one!"

"What if she isn't?"

"Trust me, she's the one. I just know it."

"Okay. So, she's the one, but how are you gonna find her? Who knows how many girls own a glove like that," Rob said, pointing to the glove.

"When I see her, I'll know. I mean, we both know the conversation we had at the concert. Plus, I think this glove is growing on me." Ryan slipped on my glove.

"Oh, no! Call the fashion police. Ryan that's so '80's. Nobody wears that anymore," Rob said in horror.

"True. The only person that would wear something like this would be Glovegirl. Maybe, just maybe, if she sees me wear it, she would realize that it's hers, and I could find her. Some how. It's a plan in progress."

"Glovegirl? She must be pretty special if you're gonna give her a nickname."

"Yeah. She is," Ryan said with a thoughtful smile on his face as he looked at the glove that was on his hand.

Back in Syracuse...


Trish and I walked into my house after school. My mom was in the kitchen baking cookies. See, my mom has been on this health kick for a while, and she's been trying to get my dad and I to eat these new things that she's been making. The recipe ususally says that it's good for you; it didn't say that it was supposed to taste good. "Hunny, I have a message for you and Trish. It's from Mr. Riles. He said to call him back when you get a chance," Mom said as she handed me the phone.

"Thanks, Mom," I said, dialing his number.

"This is Andy Riles," Mr. Riles said in a dignified voice as he answered the phone.

"Hi, Mr. Riles. This is Joanna Simmons. My mom said that you wanted to talk to me and Trish."

"Oh, yes. I listened to the demo you girls did, and it was fantastic. Spotlight Records would love to sign you guys as a recording duo."

"We Would love to! Thank you so much!"

"No problem. We're happy to welcome you girls on board. Can you come into the studio next Wednesday so we can sign some papers and start recording your debut album?" he said hopefully.

"sure. That would be great. See you then."

"Alright. Bye, Joanna."

"Bye, Mr. Riles," I said as I hung up the phone.

"What did he say?" Mom asked as she pulled a batch of cookies off the cookie sheet and onto the cooling racks.

"He listened to our demo, and he wants us to come over to the studio next Wednesday to get all of the paperwork together and to start recording our debut album!" I replied. Trish and I started screaming as we jumped up and down in excitement.

"I can't believe it! We're gonna be bono fide rock stars!" Trish said while we were still jumping.

"That's great, hunny, and to celebrate, spinach cookies right out of the oven," Mom said as she took out another batch of cookies from the oven.

"Mom, are these 'cookies' edible?" I said, looking at the green cookies with an unsure expression on my face.

"Just because they're a little bit hard doesn't mean that they're not edible, Joanna. The harder they are, the healthier they are," Mom said as Trish banged one of them on the counter, watched it bounce off of the eddge of the counter, and back onto its surface.

"And these are extremely healthy," Trish said sarcastically.

"You know, even rock stars have to eat their veggies," Mom said.

"In forms of vitamins and actual vegatables, but not in the form of a cookie," I said, holding up one of them to examine it.

"They aren't that bad," Mom said as she ate one with a disgusted look on her face. "Okay. These are going in your father's lunch for tomorrow with ten bucks so he'll be able to at least eat something when he throws these out," she said as she put the cookies in a big plastic bag.

"Well, we better get our homework done before Ryan performs at that beauty pageant on T.V. tonight," I said as Trish pulled her phone out of her pocket to check the time.

"Only three hours. We only...have...three hours. Three hours!" Trish said as she started to hyperventilate.

"We better start our homework before you pass out. Let's go," I said running up the stairs.

"Right behind you, my fellow rock star," Trish said as she followed me up the stairs.

We finally finished our homework a half-hour before the show started. We waited on the edge of my bed as we stared at the T.V. screen in my room.

"I hate waiting," Trish said, breaking the silence.

"Me too, but it's worth the wait. Isn't it?" I said.

"Why are you wearing that glove," Trish said as she looked down at my hand.

"Memories, Trish. Memories," I said ever so dramatically.

"I can't believe that he's going to be performing live!" she said excitedly.

"Yep, and it's gonna start any second now," I said looking at the clock.

Finally, the big hand on the clock reached the seven, and the little hand reached the twelve. "It's on! Turn it on!" Trish yelled as I pressed the "on" button on the remote. We sat and watched the pageant as we both ate seperate pints of moose tracks ice cream.

"Trish, after tonight, I think we're going to need those girls' diet plans once we eat all of this ice cream." I stared down at my pint of ice cream.

"I hear ya, sister," Trish said as the emcee, Harvey Klink, came up on stage.

"Hey, everbody. and welcome back to this year's 'Miss Teen Beauty Pageant.' At the end of tonight, we will have crowned a new Miss Teen Beauty," he said as the audience clapped. "But right now, let's start off with the casual wear competition. Performing during the casual wear competition is teen heartthrob, Ryn Prest," Harvey said as the lights lit up the stage to reveal Ryan. As he sang, the contestants walked down the runway in their designer t-shirts and jeans.

"Hey, Joanna, it looks like your crush is following your trend," Trish said as she pointed to the fingerless, white glove on Ryan's left hand.

"That's my glove. Trish, he has my glove!"

"Well, I guess you finally found it."

"Yeah. I guess I did."

A few minutes later, the casual wear competition was over. "Ryan Prest, everybody. We're gonna take a quick break. We'll be right back," Harvey said as they went into their commercial break.

"So, what are you gonna do?" Trish said as she scraped the last of the ice cream from her carton.

"I'm gonna e-mail him," I said as we went over to my computer. I logged onto his website and clicked the "e-mail Ryan" icon.


[Hey Ryan,

I was watching your performance on the "Miss Teen Beauty Pageant," which was great by the way, and I was wondering where you did you get that glove?


From,

Rock Star]


"What are you doing? Tell him who you are!" Trish said as she read over my shoulder.

"No. First, I wanna know if that's really my glove,and if he likes me or not. We both read the article that Muffy gave us."

"Yeah. And we both know that you're the girl in that picture," she said as she pointed to the newspaper clipping on my wall.

"Who knows, there might be someone else who wears on fingerless, white glove on their left hand. Or maybe he bought it and it just so happens that it looks exactly like the glove that I lost."

"Trust me, Joanna, no one else wears a fingerless glove on just their left hand," she replied.


A few days later, I got a repsonse on the "Q&A" page of Ryan's website.


[ Hey Rock star,



This girl I met at a meet and greet this August dropped it when she left. I don't know her name, but I had such a connection with her. I figured that if I wear her glove, she might remember me ane we could somehow meet again. I don't know... it's a plan in progress. I would do anything to meet her, or at least hear from her.


Thanks for being a fan,


Ryan]

"I'm right here," I said to the computer. I logged off of Ryan's website and got on my e-mails to see if I had gotten anything from Heartthrob. You see, I met this guy through the Music Rocks chat room. Music Rocks is a website where teens can talk about and listen to music. Heartthrob and I have been talking since last year. We've been trying to figure out when and where to meet each other, so we can match the faces with the names, but when we try to make plans, he always says that one day isn't good for him because he has something important to do. Then, he'll ask to meet at another time, but I usually have something that day. So, we've just kinda decided to stay with our cyber relationship and keep each other's faces and real names a mystery that might never be unlocked.


[Heartthrob: So what's up?]


[Rock Queen: Not much. You?]


[Heartthrob: Just the same old busy schedule.]


[Rock Queen: School, homework, and activities, right?]


[Heartthrob: Exactly. So, did you watch Ryan Prest on T.V. the other day?]


[Rock Queen: Well, of course! You know how much I love him.]


[Heartthrob: When I first started e-mailing you, that was all that you could talk about. Ryan this and Ryan that.]


[Rock Queen: Zip it! OK...maybe you're right.]


[Heartthrob: I'm always right.]


[Rock Queen: Sure.]


[Heartthrob: Hey, look, I'm free this weekend, and I was wondering if you would like to meet me on Saturday at the St. Rose Mall?]


[Rock Queen: Heartthrob, I thought that we were done with that. We keep making plans, but they always get broken.]


[Heartthrob: I know this is like the twelfth time that we've tried this, but maybe it will work out this time. If you want to come you know where to find me. I'll be holding a red rose.]


[Rock Queen: Fine. How about three o'clock in front of the penny fountain in the center of the mall. I'll be standing in front of the fountain waiting for you.]


[Heartthrob: Great. See you then.]


That Saturday, my mom dropped me and Trish off at the mall. "OK, I'm gonna go shop around a little bit while you go meet your mystery guy. I'll meet you back at the fountain when you're done," Trish said.

"Great. I'll give you a call when I'm done," I said with a big smile on my face.

"Cool. Well, I'll see you in a bit. Good luck!" Trish said as she walked off. I was on my way to the center of the mall to meet Heartthrob. I was wearing a big grin on my face as I got closer and closer to the fountain. I decided not to wear my glove that day because I didn't want to freak him out too much. I had already felt like I met him before. I don't know what it was; it was just something about the way we talked. I always feel so open and comfortable whe I e-mail him.


A few minutes later at the mall entrance...


"OK. How do I look?" Ryan asked Rob as they entered the mall.

"For the fiftieth time, Ryan, you look fine!" Rob replied in distress.

"Well, I think I'm ready. I'll give you a call when I'm done."

"Alright. I'll meet you at the entrance. Good luck," Rob said as he walked away. Ryan headed toward the fountain with a red rose in his hand.


I waited patiently for Heartthrob. At least...I tried to be patient. As I looked around, I noticed Ryan Prest standing in front of the fountain with a red rose in his hands. I couldn't believe it. All this time, I had been talking to Ryan Prest! No wonder I felt so comfortable when I talked to him. What do I do? Do I come up to him and say that I'm Rock Queen, and that we've been trying to meet eacher, who knows how many times, when it turns out that we've mett twice before? As Ryan looked around he noticed me. We just stared at each other for a while, until a swarm of running girls charging towards Ryan broke our concentration. The girls were only a few yards from Ryan as I ran up to him. "Do you want some help?" I asked as Ryan looked back at the mob that was coming towards him.

"That would be nice," he said with a nervous tone in his voice. As I looked at the screaming girls charging toward us, a look of horror came over my face.

"From now on, I feel sorry for you famous people. Come on!" I said, grabbing his hand as we raced through the mall.

"Where are we going?" Ryan asked.

"Where no girl would ever go." We almost reached the music store when Trish came out with a bag in her hand.

"Hey, I found this great C.D.," she said as we got closer to the store.

"Great, but I'm kinda busy right now," I said as we ran past her. Ryan waved at a surprised trish as we passed. Finally, we swerved into Sports Center and hid behind the window display of sports cutouts. The swarm of girls stopped at the entrance looking around the mall in a daze.

"What do we do?" Ryan whispered to me.

"Relax. I've got this," I said as I appeared from behind the cutouts.

"Where did he go?" one of the girls asked as she looked around.

"Who are you talking about?" I asked the girls.

"Ryan Prest," said one of the girls.

"Oh, Ryan. Yeah. He's right in here." I pointed to the gym behind me.

"I can't believe he's in there," said a girl in a blue-striped shirt. The girls looked into the gym with disgust.

"I know it's tempting, bu tI just think about all of the sweat, smelly armpits, and-"

"You're lying," said the leader of the pack as she interrupted the girl who was wearing a pink Ryan Prest t-shirt. "He really isn't in there. She's just saying that so we won't keep running after him. Ryan would never step into a place like this. I know exactly where he is. Forward to Music Nation. Charge!" she said as she lead the racing group of girls to the music store.

"Okay. The coast is clear," I said to Ryna s he got up from behind the cardboard cutouts.

"Thanks. You reall saved me."

"No big."

"I can't believe I missed her!" Ryan said as he looked down at this watch. It was a quarter past four. "She's probably left by now," he said as he looked at the rose still in his hand.

"Were you waiting for someone?" I asked with concern.

"Yeah. I was waiting this girl that I met online through this chat room. But, I guess she never showed," he said as we wlaked through the mall.

"Have you met her before?"

"No. We've tried to meet a few times before, but it nover works out with our schedules."

"I know how you feel," I sympathized as we both laughed a little.

"Some how, I feel like I've already met her before."

"How come?"

"I feel so comfortable when I talk to her. I just feel this connection. I guess she was right. Maybe we should just stick to the internet," he said sadly.

"Just because it didn't work out the first time doesn't mean that you have to give up," I said with a hopeful look.

"Maybe you're right. Here." He handed me the rose.

"What about that girl?" I said with questionable look on my face.

"Keep it as a thank you for not being like the other girls who go carzy over me. Thanks, for listening. And for just being you," he said with a grin on his face as he walked away.

I sniffed the rose sweetly. "Nice to meet you, Heartthrob," I said to myself as I walked away in the opposite direction. A few minutes later, I called Trish and met her by the fountain.

"So how did it go? Nice rose, by the way," Trish said as she came up to me with bags in each hand.

"Thanks. It went great," I said as we both walked to the mall entrance.

"is he cute?" Trish asked with a smile.

"Trish! Well, maybe. I'll give you the details when we get home," I said as Mom pulled up to the curb to pick us up. A few minutes later, Trish and I were up stairs in my room blasting some music.

"OK. So, who is he?" Trish said with an excited face.

"He's somebody," I said mysteriously.

"Somebody who?"

"Somebody you know."

"Please, don't tell me that he's that kid who sits at lunch dissecting his chicken to examine the tendons."

"No. He's not Rodney Holder," I said with a big laugh.

"Then who is he!?" Trish said impatiently.

"You wanna know?"

"Please, please, please, tell me!"

"Ryan Prest," I smiled.

Trtish's jaw dropped. "Get out!"

"I'm serious."

"This would've been the perfect day to wear that glove. I can't believe you didn't wear it! Did you tell him who you were? I mean, of course you told him that you were Rock Queen," Trish rambled.

"I didn't tell him that I was Rock Queen, and I don't think he remmbered me without my glove," I said sadly.

"Why?" Trish asked with a questionable look on her face.

"Everything just happened so fast that I didn't get a chance to tell him, but I had this really great connection with him. He's something special," I said thoughtfully.


Later, at a hotel in Syracuse...

"OK, Ryan, we're here! You haven't said anything since we got in the car at the mall. Now tell me, how did it go?" Rob said as he shut the door behind him.

"She wasn't there," Ryan said saidly.

"What!? How come?" Rob said shocked.

"I don't know. She just wasn't there. Once I got to the fountain, this mob of screaming girls started to run towards me. This girl came by and grabbed my hand. She started dragging me to some sports gym, and we hid behind a window display until all of the girls left. I had such a connection with her. We talked for a little while. She made me realize what I have to do," Ryan said thoughtfully.

"What's that?"

"I'm gonna find Glovegirl." Ryan walked over to the computer.

"It's been three months since you've seen her. She's probably moved on."

"But I've got to try. If I dont' try, I fail anyway." He logged onto his e-mails.

"Are you sure she's the one?"

"Yes."

"So, how are you going to find her?"

"The next interview I do, I'm gonna mention her name, and hopefully, the next time a mob of screaming girls chases me, she just might be one of them," Ryan said hopefully.

"Well, that sounds logical," Rob said sarcastically.


[Hearttrhob: Hey, Rock Queen.]


[Rock Queen: Hey, Heartthrob.]


[Heartthrob: Where were you on Saturday?]


[Rock Queen: I know it looks like I stood you up, but I didn't meanto. I got there, then I ltierally had to run because something came up. I'm so sorry I did that to you.]


[Heartthrob: It's aright. I got caught up in something too. Can I ask you a personal question?]


[Rock Queen: Sure. What's up?]


[Heartthrob: Have you ever felt a certain way about a person that you'll probably never see again?]


[Rock Queen: So, who's the girl?]


[Heatthrob: How did you know it was about a girl?]


[Rock Queen: One thing that girls know all about is relationships. When someone says something about feelings and a significant other, you know it's about a girl.]


[Heartthrob: Wow! You're smart.]


[Rock Queen: Thank you. Anyway, tell me what's going on. The love doctor is in!]


[Heartthrob: Okay, "love doctor". I met this girl a few months ago, and I don't think I'll ever see her again . What should I do? Should I move on?]

[Rock Queen: Well, here is the love doctor's analysis: if you feel that strong abot her, then your definitely crushing. Don't move on yet. Who knows, maybe you'll bump into her at the most unlikely moment.]


[Heartthrob: So, you're saying that if I reallly like this girl, I should try to find her?]


[Rock Queen: If that's what your heart is telling you, then, yes.]

[Heartthrob: Thanks for letting me talk to you about that. I really like that I can talk to you about anything.]

[Rock Queen: No big. I feel the same way. Speaking about moving on, I need to talk to you about something.]


[Heartthrob: Sure. What's up?]


[Rock Queen: I think it's time that we move on. You've been a great friend, and I've really enjoyed chatting with you. But, I think it's time that we say our last goodbyes.]


[Heartthrob: Why? Did I do something?]


[Rock Queen: No! You did nothing. I wasn't there on Sturday, and I feel really bad about it.]


[ehartthrob: Don't be. We both got swept into something else. We can always try again.]


[Rock Queen: That's what I'm trying to say. If we keep talking, we'll try to meet again, and I already hurt you once. I don't want to see you or anyone else get hurt again. I'm soooo sorry, Heartthrob, but all the sign are right in front of us. This is one of the hardest thing that I've ever done. Everything is changing, and I think it's time that we move on.]


[Heartthrob: Since we're spilling our guts to each other, and we'll probably never meet, I need to tell you who I really am.]


[Rock Queen: Are you some type of secret agent? If so, I can definitely say that I have a clean record.]


[Heartthrob: Lol. No, I'm not a scret agent. My name is Ryan Prest. I have so much fun talking to you. You make me feel like a regular person, and that's a great feeling when you're always being chased by crazed fans. Thanks for being a great friend. I've been through some long distance relationships, and I totally understand where you're coming from, and, honestly, I've been thinking the same things too. Hey, If you ever happen to run into me, let me know.]


[Rock Queen: Lol. No problem.]


[heartthrob: So, I guess this is goodbye.]


[Rock Queen: Guess so.]


[Heartthrob: Goodbye, Rock Queen.]


[Rock Queen: Goodbye, Ryan.]

So that was the end for me and Ryan. At least, I thought so. The next day Trish and I walked home from school. "I can't believe you broke up with Ryan," Trish said in shock.

"I didn't exaclty break up with him. We just decided to part ways. We figured that we were trying too hard to find each other. We'll find each other one day, but for now, we're just keeping our distance. Plus, I'm not even dating him anyway," I said as I opened the door to my house. Mom was in the kitchen looking at something when we walked in.

"Hi, Joanna. Hi, Trish."

"Hey, Mom," I replied.

"Hi, Mrs. Simmons," greeted Trish.

"Did my new 'Dish' magazine come yet?" I asked Mom as she searched through the pile of opened mail.

"Here it is," Mom said, handing the magazine over to me.

"Thanks," I said taking it from her. Then Trish and I headed up stairs to my room.

"Hey, Heartthrob is on the cover," Trish pointed out as I put a C.D. into my DVD player.

"Nothing new," I said, putting the C.D. case down on my desk.

"O, my gosh!" Trish cried as she looked at a page of the magazine.

"What?" I asked, trying to read over her shoulder.

"You have a nickname."

"I have a what?"

"A nickname. By the way, Glovegirl suites you very well."

"Let me see that." I took the magazine from Trish and read the article.


[Ryan's Got a Cinderella?]


[We just had a recent interview with Ryan Prest. We asked if he had a girl on his mind. His answer: "I met this girl in August, and she totally blew my mind away. A good friend of mine gave me some advice and told me that if I really liked her, I should go out there and find her. Glovegirl, you're really special and I hope to see you again." The heartthrob has announced that from now on, every meet and greet that he does, he'll be looking out for that special girl.Who ever you are, glovegirl, you're soooo lucky!]



"Yeah. I guess I am," I said to myslef with a big smile on my face.

"So, in the mean time, what are you going to do about Ryan?"

"Well, you know how the day before everyone on the Spotlight Records label goes on their summer tours they have this big party N.Y.C.? Well, I'm hoping to run into Ryan there. For now though, I'm just gonna stay low."


a few months had past, and our debut album came out in May. That same month, Ryans new C.D. "The Girl I'm Looking for," which was dedicated to Glovegirl, came out the same month. During this time, girls had been rushing to Ryan and claiming that they were me, but he usually decoded the posers by asking which concert they met him at, and what glovegirl said at the concert that night. At least I knew that he hadn't forgot about me.

Later at a hotel in N.Y.C. ...


"Hey, what are you listening to?" Ryan asked as he walked into the main room of his suite to find Rob bopping his head to some tunes on his walkman.

"It's this new girl duo called Under Water. They're really good," Rob said as he handed Ryan the C.D.

"O, my gosh!"

"What?" Rob said taking his headphones off.

"That's the girl that I met at the mall when I was supposed to be meeting Rock Queen," Ryan said in astonishment as he pointed to my picture.

"You know how to pick 'em. This girl is an awesome guitarist. And her friend there has some great vocal talent. Think they'll be at the party next week?"

"I hope so."

"Hey, Ryan, maybe you should give this girl a shot. I mean, we've been searching for Glovegirl since December. Maybe she isn't the one," Rob said doubtfully.

"You know I won't give up no matter what you say, right?"

"I know. I know," Rob sighed.

"But, since we're on the subject, I feel like I know this girl. I mean, I know her know her. if it wasn't for her, I would've gotten ran over by a bunch of screaming girls. She just seems so familiar. You think she could be Glovegirl?" Ryan said unsurely.

"Ryan, in this day and age, anything can happen," Rob said as he put his headphones back on.



The night of the party had finally came. All of us were dressed like total rock stars, and there were bunches of screaming fans outside the building. You see, it's tradition that at the Summer Tour Party all of the stars take a dance break, stand in front of tables, and sign autographs for all of the waiting fans that are outside the building. That night, Ryain and I stood on opposite sides of the room with our best friends, Rob and Trish.

"Go talk to her, " Rob said, pushing Ryan from the wall.

"Go talk to him," Trish said, psuhing me towards Ryan. Ryan and I both walked into the middle of the dance floor facing each other.

"Hi," we both said shyly.

"I'm Ryan."

"Joanna," I said as Mr. Riles asked for our attention.

"It's time for our traditional meet and greet. If you would please stand at your designated tables, and wait for the fans to come over. Now, let me see some big smiles, and I don't care if the crab puffs have given anyone indigestion or some type of food poisoning, you still have to be nice," said Mr. Riles. As we walked over to our tables, I realized that I was on one end of the row, and Ryan was all the way on the other end.

Finally, I had finished my last autograph. When I looked up to find Ryan, I couldn't find him anywhere.

"Where's Ryan?" I asked Trish who had gone to the snack table once she had finished her last autograph.

"He and his friend had to leave a few minutes ago. Rob said that they had a long day ahead of them," she smiled.

"Rob?" I asked.

"Yep, and he's really cute," she said happily.

"I'm sure you two will be very happy together," I said as we left the party.

Well, it was August again, and Under Water was wrapping up their summer tour. For the summer, our opening act was an aspiring artist named Jack Shellings. he was kind of like Ryan Prest, but I didn't have the same feelings for him as I did for Ryan. We hadn't seen each other since the party. and Ryan was still looking for Glovegirl.

Our final destination was at the Altamont Fiargrounds in the Syracuse area. It was our hometown show, and I really wanted everything to go well. In fact, we were performing at the same place and on the same day that Ryan and I had met a year ago.

We had finally made it to the fairgrounds, and all of the fans were screaming as we pulled up behind the stage and in between the metal bars that separated us, the equipment, and the stage from the fans. Trish and I walked into the tent that was set up next to the stage as our manager Matt ran up to us.

"Girls, I have some bad news. Jack won't be able to make it tonight. he has the flu," said Matt as he tried to catch his breath.

"I hope he feels better," Trish said as we both nodded in agreement to that.

"Same here. So, the local band that's performing before you will take Jake's time slot," Matt explained.

"Who's doing the duet with us?" Trish asked as I took a swig of water from my water bottle.

"Ryan Prest," Matt said happily.
My mouthful of water flew out of my mouth at my shocked surprise. "Ryan Prest?!"

"I know you're a big fan, and it just so happens that he was in town. He'll be here just in time for the performance. So, he won't be able to make it for the sound check, but I did text a performance of the song to him so he could listen to it before the three of you perform it. Didn't I do good?" he said hopefully with a big smile on his face.

"Matt, we can't perform 'Stick Together' with Ryan," I explained.

"Why?"

"Personal reasons. Right, Trish?" I said.

"I've gotta go make sure that my mic is working. Later," Trish said as she ran up onto the stage.

"This song is about him. Isn't it?" Matt inquired.

"Yes, and it would just feel to weird performing it with him. Plus, if he knew, I would look like such a dork," I said pleading.

"Joanna, you've got ot tell him how you feel sometime. As for the looking like a dork part, there won't be a time in a relationship where you won't. You won't get anywhere in a relationship if you don't tell the person your feelings. Why do you think I'm still single?" Matt said as we both laughed.

"Well, I guess it's time that I share my feelings with Ryan." I took a deep breath.

"So, you'll do it?" he said hopefully.

"Definitely," I smiled.

"Joanna, come on! We've gotta practice," Trish yelled from the stage.

"I guess I gotta go," I said to Matt as I ran up onto the stage.

"You rock, Joanna! Have fun. This is your last night, and tomorrow, I'm going to Jamaica!" Matt sang as he danced around the tent.

A few minutes later, Trish and I were rockin' out on stage in front of an excited crowd, while Matt was in the tent running around frantic. "Where is Ryan!? I need Ryan!" he yelled in distress. Then, he saw a bunch of girls walking behind the stage. All of a sudden, a bus pulled up next to our tour bus, and the girls started screaming. "Oh, Ryans's here," Matt said calmly as Ryan ran up to him.

"Sorry, I couldn't make it sooner," Ryan said out of breath.

"No time for an apology. You only have a few minutes to get ready. You'll be doing the duet after Trish and Joanna's next song," Matt said hurriedly.

"Wait. Joanna!?" Ryan asked.

"Well, yeah. She is a part of Under Water. Not to mention that she wrote the song," Matt said.

"But, all you said was that I needed to come here to do a duet, and that it was urgent. I figured I was gonna do it with Trish, but you didn't say anything about doing it with Trish and Joanna," Ryan asked.

"Yeah, well, I guess we all have a crush on somebody that you're performing with today, but I don't care, because I don't have time to care. A manager's life is not easy; instead, it's constant panic! I'm about to lose my mind. Our first duet partner has the flu, and our backup came two minutes before the performance. So, get on stage, smile, and look pretty," Matt said with distressed anxiety as Ryan rushed back stage to talk the performance over with our stage manager.

"If I have a heart attack tonight, I'm making Joanna and Ryan pay the doctor bills," Matt said to himself as he slumped down into a chair with a bottle of water in his hands.

After we had finished our tenth song, I went over to the left side of the stage, grabbed my towel, and wiped the ever-growing sweat off my face. Trish took a deep breath as she stood in the middle of the stage to address the crowd. "I'm sorry to say that Jack Shellings can't be here to sing with us tonight because he has the flu, but I think you'll like our replacement," Trish said with a mischievous smile on her face as I took my place behind my mic with my fingers gently placed on the frets of my electric guitar. Trish went to the end of the stage farthest from me as she took her place for the performance. Ryan was on the end of the stage that was closest to me. She started to sing as the stage and the crowd were covered in darkness. A soft ballad-type rhythm started the song. "One magical night our hearts met, and then they were torn a part," she sang as she walked to the middle of the stage.

"I thought I'd never see you again, but somehow I had this feelin'," Ryan said as he also walked to the center of the stage and stood nex to Trish. All of the girls started to scream as they heard Ryan's voice. Then, the lights started to come back on as the song went from a soft ballad to a rockin' hit as the tempo progresed. The performance was a smash. Trish and I did one last song before we said goobye to the crowd of fans.

"Once again, my name is Trish Hughes, and thank you all so much for coming tonight. We had such a great time," Trish said as she waved to the crowd.

"Hey, everybody. My name is Joanna Simmons, and we hope you had a great time tonight. Rock on, and have a great school year," I said to the crowd.

"And we can't wait to see you guys at the meet and greet," Trish and I yelled as the fans screamed. We waved to the audience one last time as we exited the stage and headed into the tent to grab some water.

"Great job tonight," Ryan said as he walked over to me.

"Thanks. You too," I said as I took a sip of water.

"I was wondering, did you come to my concert last year?"

"Yeah. August third; here at the Altamont Fiargrounds."

"Well then, maybe you can help me find this girl that went to that concert. She lost her glove, and I wanted to return it to her," Ryan said with a mischievous smile as he held up his left hand to reveal my missing white, fingerless glove which he was wearing.

"Well, I think I can help you with that," I said with a smile as I held up my left hand to reaveal my other white, fingerless glove.

"I'ts you!?" Ryan said in mock surprise.

"You already knew, didn't you?" I said as we both laughed.

"It takes a very special person to wear that glove. Plus, I kind of figured it out when I saw you wearing that glove on stage. Why didn't you wear it the day that I ran into you at the mall?"

"I was meeting Heartthrob there, and I didn't want him to think that I was a weirdo. If I knew the Heartthrob was you, then I would've totally worn my glove," I explained.

"That was the same reason why I ddin't wear your lost glove. Plus, that's one of the many reason why I like you, Joanna. It's not because you're cute, even though you are. It's because of who you are; a sweet, different, and confidant person. Who can totally run." We both laughed. "By the way, you're Rock Queen?" he asked in surprise.

"In the flesh," I said with a smile on my face.

"So, now that's all covered, would you like to hang out after the meet and greet? We could go get some really good fair food, and you could fill me in on your other identities," he said with a laugh.

"I would really like that," I said as Rob ran up to Ryan and whispered something in his ear.

"Rob was wondering if he could come too, and he was also wondering if you could bring your friend Trish?" Ryan sked.

"Yeah. I'm sure Trish would love that," I smiled.

"Yes!" Rob yelled in excitement as he jumped in the air. "Oh, man. What am I gonna wear?" he said as he ran out of the tent and into Ryan's tour bus.

"Well, I guess we'll see you then," Ryan said with a laugh as he walked away. He walked a few steps, stopped, turned around, and walked back ove to me. "I forgot. Now that I've found you, I should probably give you this," he said as he took the glove off his hand and handed to me.

"You keep it," I said.

"But it's your lost glove; don't you want it?" Ryan sked.

"No. I want you to have it. Keep it as a thank you for just being you," I said to him as he put the glove back on his hand.

"Since it was so hard to find each other, let's make a pact that, no matter what, we'll never lose touch with each other," he said thoughfully.

"Deal." We shook each other's hands.



It's been four months since the meet and greet/ first date for me and Ryan and for Trish and Rob. Trish and I are taking a break form the road as we're settling into our Christmas break from school, and our C.D. is selling like hotcakes. As for Ryan, well, Under Water has decided to tour with Ryan next summer as Ryan and I try to keep a long distanc e relationship. My mom decided to break into the field of writing with her book "101 'Healthy' Things That aren't Edible" with my dad as the co-writer, no to metnion that he was the taste tester; poor guiy. Rob and Trish are taking a break from their long distance relationship ever since they had a big fight over which hair cut was more in: crew cut vs. the bob.

Now a-days, girls come up to me and ask me how I got Ryan's attention. They've tried everything to get his attention at the meeta nd greets, but it never works. They even have the same problem with thier curshes at school. Well, something that I've learned over the past tow summers is that, to get that real life fairytale that everyone wants, you just have to be yourself.