A D.C. Mystery? No Way.

True to her word, first thing Monday morning the entire sophmore class was gathered in the auditorium, waiting for my mom to... ah... reveal a surprise. Now, I already knew, as did Addie, Jarrett, and Jason. They were the only ones I had chosen to tell. We had decided that the less people who knew before that Monday, the better. (And it would give us a heads up on shopping...)

Just as Addie was asking me for the hundredth time what I had planned to wear on the airplane, my mom came on stage. She stood holding the microphone, tapping her foot, waiting for silence. I noticed that she had new shoes on. I guess she too took the weekend to get ahead in shopping.

After not even a minute of her tapping, all of us got quiet. Now, it's not like there were a hundred kids in the room, no there were only twenty five of us, but let me tell you: we talk. A lot.

However, now we were all silent, waiting for my mom to confirm the rumor that started and has been growing since that morning, started by yours truly. Addie and I had staged a loud girls bathroom conversation about our upcoming trip to Washington. It consisted of no real details, but it was enough to get everyone talking, and they had finally shut up.

"Good morning!"

Ah, man! Mom, just tell us already!

"I have some big news."

We know, we know!

"I, along with a few other teachers and parents, am taking you to Washington, D.C., United States!"

Finally!

The noise was deafening. I would never have thought that twenty five fifteen and sixteen year olds could make so much noise. Excited, Addie turned to me and cried,

"I can't believe this!"

"Addie," I said, laughing, "You knew about this!"

"Yeah... but still!"

"Children," my mom continued, "We'll be gone for a month; December 12th to January 12th. We'll be gone for Christmas." The room got quiet. No one knew if this was a good thing or a bad thing. After a long while, Andrew, a rather outgoing boy in my Chemistry class, stood up.

"Are we gonna have a Christmas dinner kinda thing?"

"If you guys want one," my mom looked around. "This is your trip. You guys have some say in what we do, where we go, and when we eat."

Everyone laughed. Mom went on to explain the finer details of the trip, but I really wasn't paying attention. I knew from experience that I'd hear the entire lecture again. Plus, Mom would have to tell Anna and Lorraine the same thing. I let my mind drift to the things I needed to pack. I silently got out my PalmPilot and started making a list. I only stopped when Addie hit me on the arm, and muttered,

"It's over. Let's go."

I stood up and yawned.
Now onto Chemistry. Oh, the joy!