"You managed to get lost in New York City?!" Lara Prévost gasped out between laughs.  "How on earth did you manage to do that?" she asked Zac. She and a few others were sprawled around the Hanson family room, discussing the Hansons' trip to New York and what had happened at home while they were gone. Some of Taylor's friends from the bon voyage dinner, along with Jem and a bunch of Isaac and Zac's friends had shown up.  Leigh-Ann had been over at Kaitlin's house when the call came around so by default she was over at the Hansons' too.

"Hey, I couldn't help it!  I was chasing this guy who took my wallet and I accidentally got on the express train to the Bronx!"  Zac protested.  "It's not that big a deal!"

"Besides, that's how you met Rosa, remember?"  Taylor, stretched out on the floor, chipped in with a little smirk on his face.

"Who's Rosa?" Manda asked Zac, with a strange look on her face.  She had been a little hesitant to come, but Isaac and Taylor bodily hauled her over.  That certainly changed her mind.

"Oh, um, she's just this girl who helped me out while I was wandering in the Bronx," he carefully replied.  Isaac and Kaitlin stumbled in with an armload of junk food.  They set out chips, popcorn, candy, soda and various other junk foods onto the coffee table.

"Come and get it!" Kaitlin announced.  "So what'd we miss?" Ike asked.

"Well, we were just about to hear about Zac's trip to the Bronx." Scott told him.  Zac, who was collecting popcorn and soda, just looked at him with a get-real-pal look.

"Yeah, start talking Zac," Lara declared, "or your voice isn't going to be the only thing in your body cracking."  Seeing as Lara was definitely clever enough to carry out her threats one way or another, although she often didn't, Zac began the story of his adventure in the New York Bronx.

Isaac and Tay had been bothering him about the pictures of Manda they had found for most of the day.  They kept slipping in little innocent sounding comments during the interview that morning.  Finally he just couldn't take it.  He searched in his suitcase for a certain package he'd bought for Halloween a while ago.  He'd brought it because he thought it might come in handy if he needed to avoid teenyboppers.  When he found it, he opened it and pulled out a short black wig.  He stuffed his hair under it and pulled on a black ski hat over it.  He put in fake nose ring that some fan had mailed him.  He didn't want to wear sunglasses today, they'd just make him look more conspicuous, it was the middle of winter! The results looked kind of "Goth".  Taking a look in the mirror, he adjusted the wig and decided that was enough of a disguise for today. The blue Popsicle he had a little while before had colored his lips blue and added to the look.  Creeping out of his room, he saw that Ike and Taylor were in Ike’s room sifting through fan mail, Jessie was in her room and everyone else was in the main room of the hotel suite.

"Mom, Dad, I'm going out for a walk, OK?" he called, pulling the hood of his jacket over the wig.

"OK Zac, but stop next door and get Jason or Chris to go with you," his dad told him.  "How long will you be out and where are you going?"

"I don't know.  I think I'll go to the Metropolitan Museum of Modern Art, or to Central Park.  I'll be back by dinner and I have some money, the phone number of the hotel, the room number, and a phone card just in case."

"Well, OK then, see you later," Walker said, turning to look at the back profile of the exiting Zac.

Walking past the door to their support staff's set of rooms, Zac entered the elevator and smiled to himself.

Finally, I'm free of those two for a while! Zac thought to himself while walking out of the Waldorf Astoria.  It was a cold but clear winter afternoon.  Zac just stood on the sidewalk for a moment taking everything around him.  He looked up and realized just how tall the skyscrapers really are.
"Man, when you're inside them, they don't seem nearly so big," he said to himself.  He started walking again when a lady walked into him and started muttering something about high school dropouts and crazy bums.  Descending into the nearest subway station, he took a look at the map on the wall.

"Ok, I'll take a train to 77th street and then catch a bus to Fifth Avenue, then I just have to walk a few blocks to the Museum," he said, talking to himself again.  He pulled out some money and bought four transit tokens. He put three in his wallet, passed through the turnstile, found the train he wanted to take and went to stand next a post.  He took a look at the people around him.  He started humming a few lines from "Stories", specifically, the lines that went "It all started on 77th street".  There a bunch of businesspeople around, since it was fairly late in the afternoon on a January weekday.  There was a guy with blue hair dressed in black leather over to one side.  A couple old ladies sat on one of the benches.  There were other various people milling around.  The train arrived and Zac stepped in.

Jason Browning, bodyguard to Hanson, walked through the door to the Hansons' suite to ask about plans for the evening.  Walker waved him over to the main living area, saying, "Hey, is Zac back yet?  Isaac and Taylor picked out a few letters they thought he might find interesting."

"Zac?  I haven't seen him since I left you here after lunch.  Why?" asked Jason.

"Zac hasn't been with you?  Is Chris still in your guys' suite?"  Diana questioned.

"Chris has been in his room in bed all afternoon.  He ate something wrong at lunch," Jason told her.  "Where's Zac?"

"That boy is going to be so dead!  I'm going to ground him for 25 years when I see him!  He actually went off by himself in New York City!"  Walker declared.  In the background, they could hear whispers of "Ooh, Zaccy's gonna be dead meat!" from the younger kids and "Zac went off by himself?  Does he want to start a riot?" between Isaac and Tay. 

"Did he say where he was going?" asked Jason.  Walker was going into the next room to get the rest of their crew.

Diana answered him.  "He said he didn't know but might go to the Metropolitan Museum or Central Park for a walk."  She hurried to picked up the phone and dialed up the hotel switchboard.

"Hello, could you please connect me to the local police station?  And hurry, this could end up as an emergency!"

"So I look down, and that fat guy's got his hand in my pocket!" Zac announced.  As if on cue, Leigh-Ann and Taylor burst into song. "And I've got one hand in my pocket, and the other's giving the peace sign!" they sang, brandishing their peace signs in the air.  They suddenly stopped and looked at each other at each other blushing.  The singing was a sort-of reflex they developed while they were going out.  A short but uneasy pause followed.

"So what happened next?" Lara said, breaking the silence.

"Well, that's how I got lost.  When Chubby saw that I saw him, he took off with my wallet and I tried to chase him.  Let's see, we went up a couple ramps, down a few stairs, then he ran onto another train.  I wasn't exactly thinking too well so I ran on board after him."  Zac said, flushing a bit.

"That was reeeal smart, Zac," Josh poked him in the side.

Where'd he go where'd he go where'd he go?

The chase was on. 

Lardy over there took my wallet and I want it back!  Not much else was racing through Zac's brain as he quickly followed the man who'd taken his wallet. 

There he is!  Zac slipped out the door of the train and out the turnstile. 

Where was he?  The thought crossed his mind for a moment, but he pushed aside.  Over the turnstile the man went.  Over the turnstile Zac went.

Isn't that illegal?  Oh well, so is stealing wallets!  The man ran onto another train.  Zac, again, followed him in.  Looking around, the crook had run into the next car.

Uh-oh! thought Zac as the man slid between the closing car doors and the train began to move.  He heard the conductor speak through the intercom, "Express train to the Bronx, next stop White Plains Road, no transfers!"  As he slid into a seat, slightly dazed, he thought, I'm stuck on a train into the Bronx.  I have no money.  What am I gonna do now?

“So what were your parents doing then?” Scott asked Isaac.  “Did they already go berserk?”

“Weren’t they kinda crazy to begin with?” asked Taylor.

“Nope, just insane.  We called the police, but it took two tries to convince them to listen and then me and Taylor had to go down to meet them because they didn’t believe Zac “MMMBop” Hanson would be stupid enough to go out in New York City by himself,” Ike explained.

“What?  You never told me that!”  Zac exclaimed. 

“We didn’t?  Oops, must have forgot.  Sorry,” said Ike, not looking all that sorry.

“What else did you forget to tell me?”  Zac demanded to know.

“Hmm,” Taylor said with a smirk on his face.  “Let’s see, did I tell you you’re a moron? Oh yes, I remembered that one.  Um, I’ve already told you that you dress like a neon sign, did I mention Rosa called?”

“She did?  When?  How is she?  What did she want?  How did she get our number?  Did she want to talk to me?  Where was I when this happened?” Zac asked, suddenly very alert.  Manda’s face took on a slightly troubled look.

“Calm down, Zac.  She didn’t call, Tay’s just messing with your brain.”  Ike told him.

“Not a very hard job,” said Jem.

“Why, it is so easy, even Taylor could do it!” added Lara.

“Would that be an insult to Taylor or to Zac?” asked Scott.

“Both, I think,” Isaac said.

“While we’re on the subject of insulting your Zac and Taylor, I was looking at an anti-Hanson site the other day and I found these really stupid but kinda funny doctored pictures of you guys.  There was one where the guy took Taylor’s head and pasted it onto the body of some Baywatch babe.” Josh said.

“What is this, Pick-On-Taylor Day?”

“If people hate you so much, then why do they spend hours and hours making up things like those doctored photos and webpages and lists of stuff?  That is one aspect of humans that I will never understand,” said Lara.

While the rest of the group started a discussion on Hanson haters, Zac’s mind drifted back to the subway station under New York City.

“Just because you waste away all your money on crack and booze doesn’t mean I’m obligated to buy you a stinking train token!  Get a job!” the man yelled at him.  His Goth-punk disguise must have worked really well because that man was the second person to say something like that to him.  So far, he had tried to ask about five people for enough money for a subway token.  It hadn’t been working.  Depressed, he went up into the open air. The other day in Manhattan, he found a five-dollar bill on the sidewalk.  Maybe he’d find some money someone dropped. 

After walking six blocks, Zac decided that people in the Bronx were much more careful with their pockets that people in Manhattan.  Again sighing, Zac sat down on a park bench. 

“Hey, you OK?”  A voice spoke up from above him.  Surprised, he looked up.  When he sat down, he was so distracted he didn’t even notice another human being walk up to him.

“Yikes!  Sorry, I didn’t notice you there.  I kinda got some stuff on my mind,” he said.  Then he looked up.  He saw a girl probably about his age, Latina-looking with dark hair and skin.  It was about 4 o’clock and she was carrying a backpack so he assumed she was walking home from school.  She wasn’t especially pretty, but for some reason he couldn’t stop staring.  It might have been the Hanson T-shirt he could see through the slightly open zipper of her jacket. 

“You’re staring.  Is there something stuck to my forehead?” she asked with a grin.   She can’t tell I’m Zac Hanson!  Man, this wig is awesome! he thought to himself. 

“Oh no, its just, your shirt, you like them?” he fumbled, hoping she wouldn’t suddenly see through the wig.  Not yet, at least.

“Yeah,” she said, her face clouding up.  “You gotta problem with that?”

“Oh, no, not at all, actually, they’re not half bad.  My, um, sister has their CD,” he said, hoping he didn’t sound too lame.  At that, she brightened up.

“OK, then.  So long as you don’t go about calling them gay, I can handle anything else you might have to say about them.  You know, you look kind of like my favorite one, the youngest.”  Uh-oh, Zac thought. I sure hope this wig doesn’t fall off.  She smiled.  “So, where are you from?  You don’t talk like you’re from anywhere nearby.”  As she spoke, Zac could now hear a slight trace of a “New Yawk” accent.

“I’m from…California.  My dad’s in Manhattan on a business trip and he let me come with him,” Zac said.  He thought of his mom and dad and wondered how many years he would be grounded. 

“If your dad’s in Manhattan, why are you here?” she asked.  “Are you lost?”

“Not exactly lost, just kinda stranded.  You wanna hear the story?  I’ll try to keep it short.” he added.

“Ok sure, I’ve got a few minutes to spare.  Shoot.” she answered.

“Well, basically, I left the hotel to go to the Metropolitan Museum of Modern Art.  I went into the subway, and rode until 77th street, where some guy took my wallet.  The thing is, I saw him, so I started chasing him.  We ended up on a train to the Bronx.  He just made it out before the doors closed, but I was stuck on the train without money, calling card, or a way home.  I got off the train at the station a few blocks back, and tried to ask someone for money, but everyone I asked called me a crackhead bum.  You’re the first person here who hasn’t told me to get a job.  I came outside, hoping to find some dropped money, but people here are a lot more careful with holes in their pockets.  I don’t suppose you could loan me a couple dollars for a phone and train token?  I’d mail it back to you when I got home.” he told her.

“Well, I’d love to help you, but I can’t right now.  I don’t have any money on me right now.  Um, our home is only a block and a half from here.  Do you want to use the phone to call your dad or something?” she asked hesitantly.

“Well, I kinda don’t know the number of the hotel,” Zac told her.  He debated whether it was safe to go with her, but then he remembered, he really didn’t have any other options, besides going back to Manhattan on foot.  His feet ached just to think of it.

“Phone book, dummy,” she said, grinning.

“Not a bad idea.  And don’t call me dummy!” A thought popped into his head.  “Hey, what’s your name?”

“I’m Rosa San Gabriel,” she said, extending her hand.  “And you are?”

“I’m, uh, Josh Parker,” Zac said, using the name of one of Taylor’s friends.  Fortunately, she didn’t seem to notice his slight hesitation.  They shook hands and she said, ”Come on, you can go look up your hotel number.  What hotel are you staying at?” she asked as the two of them started walking.

“We’re at the Waldorf Astoria,” he told her.  What was his room number again?

“The Waldorf Astoria?  That’s got to be one of the most expensive hotels in New York City!  What company does your dad work for?  They’re shelling out a lot of money!”  she exclaimed.

“He works for…Mercury Records.  He’s here looking at some new artists they might be signing,” he improvised.

“Mercury Records?  That’s Hanson’s record company!  Man, I don’t suppose you could set me up with an interview with them?” she jokingly asked.

Zac just as jokingly replied, “Yeah sure!  How’s next Monday afternoon for you?” while thinking, Hanson’s closer than you think, or at least, 1/3 of it is.  He felt kinda bad about not telling her who he really was, so he decided that once he got though to the hotel, he’d reintroduce himself.  Weren’t they doing a concert nearby on their summer tour later?  Maybe he could get her tickets or something, to try to make up for lying to her.

“Hey Dad, why do the police want to see me and Ike?”  Taylor asked as he, Ike, Walker and Jason heading down the elevator to the police station in the lobby.

“Because they don’t believe that your brother the teen idol would be foolish enough to go out by himself in a city full of teenage girls.  They probably think we’re trying to prank call them or something,” Walker explained.

“If I were the police and I got a call like we just put in, I’d think it was a prank call, too.” Jason said.

“I wonder why he went off by himself,” Taylor said.

Ike replied, “I think I know why.  You should too, Taylor."

“Why did he go by himself?” Walker demanded to know.

“Well, um, me and Taylor were kinda teasing him a lot about this one girl he likes, Manda, and I think he got kinda fed up with us.”  Isaac sheepishly explained.

“I hope you realize you two are not going to get out of this entirely off the hook.” Walker said with a sigh.

“That’s our house over there, the dark red one with the black fence,” Rosa pointed out.  As they neared it, two twin boys perhaps a little older than Mackie ran outside and grabbed Rosa’s legs.  They looked up at Zac and one of them asked, “Who are you?” before grabbing onto Zac’s leg.

“I’m Z-Josh.  And who are you?” he asked the boy.

“The one in blue the blue T-shirt is Juan and the one in green is David.” Rosa told him.  “They’re four and a half.  Come on, inside!  I’ll introduce you to my mom.  My dad’s still at work.”

Entering the house, Zac saw a cozy family room leading to a kitchen and a stairway.

“Mama, I’m home!” Rosa called out.

“Hello, darling, you’re late.” she asked as she came from the kitchen.  “Oh, hello,” she said, seeing Zac.

“Mama, this is Josh Parker.  He's stranded here and just needs to use the phone real quick.  Is that OK?" she asked her mom, knowing she'd say yes.

"Yes of course, go right ahead.  But what do you mean by stranded?” Mrs. San Gabriel asked.  Rosa and Zac quickly filled her mother in on the events of the afternoon.  Mrs. San Gabriel nodded, but kept her eye on Zac and made sure Rosa’s baseball bat was near by.  “You can use the phone out here.”  The two went to find the phone book, with Zac carrying Juan and David tagging along.

“None of the security at the Metropolitan Museum, nor any of the patrols in Central Park have reported seeing Zac Hanson this afternoon.  We checked with the subway stations that he would have taken if he were going to either and no one has seen Zac Hanson in the subway tunnels.  The only thing interesting thing they noticed was someone chasing a pickpocket through the 77th street station earlier this afternoon,” the young lieutenant said. 

“Thank you, Loran,” Captain Westerly said, putting down the phone.  “I’m sorry, there’s no word yet of Zac,” he told Walker and Diana. Isaac and Taylor had gone back upstairs after the police decided it was indeed not a prank call.  The rest of the kids were in the hotel suite with Jason, waiting for word from downstairs.  The worry lines on Diana’s face deepened.  The phone rang again.  “Hello?  Yes?  Yes, uh-huh!  What room number?  We’ll be right up!” 

“What is it?” Diana asked.  She looked up.

“Zac’s called your bodyguard Chris.  He just called, but I could barely make out what he was saying.  He said something about the Bronx and needing a ride.  He said to go up to his room now,” the captain

“Well, what are we waiting for? Let’s go!” Walker said, springing to his 
feet.  Captain Westerly and Diana followed suit.

"Well,  he just called a few minutes ago.  He said to have someone pick him up at this address in the Bronx, and that he’d explain everything when he got back,” a greenish-looking Chris told the group gathered around his bed.

“Oy!  Ok, Jason, would you take the Explorer and go get Zac? Isaac, Taylor, you two go with him and I expect you two to apologize to Zac and patch things up by the time you get home, is that clear?  Jason, I give you authority to force all three of them out of the car and make them walk home if you think its necessary.  Everyone else, get something to eat, its dinnertime and I don’t think anyone’s eaten since lunch.  OK?  Go!” Walker instructed everyone.  Nodding, Jason got the address Chris had written down and keys to the Ford and left with Ike and Taylor.

“Huh?  Oh hi.  Where’d everyone go?” Zac said as he looked around.  The only people left in the room were himself, Taylor, and Lara, who was on the phone in French. 

“Everyone else went to the downstairs freezer for some ice cream.  They left me to bring you back into reality,” Taylor told him.

“Nous sommes?  Oui, Maman, tchao,” Lara said as she hung up the phone.  “That was my mother, it seems that we have some unexpected company over and we're going out for dinner, so I must be going now.  I’ll just stop in downstairs, get a little ice cream to go, and say goodbye to everyone,” she told Taylor and Zac as they walked down the stairs.

Zac went and got a bowl of chocolate ice cream and sat down on a couch along a wall. A potentially major problem came to mind.  If it came down to it, would it he choose Manda or Rosa?  It didn’t occur to him at the moment what he would do if they didn't choose him.  Leigh-Ann and Taylor had sat on the floor and were talking and laughing. I guess they’ve made up.

The phone rang.  A little later, Walker stuck his head down the stairs.  “Boys!  Mercury just called, they’ve set up the first few tour dates for the summer.  If you want to hear now, pick up on an extension or turn on speakerphone.”

Turning on speakerphone, the occupants of the room crowded around the speaker.  A female voice was starting to announce a list of venues, cities, and dates.

“June 9th, Paris, France; Zenith.”  That was as far as the woman got before oohs filled the room.  After a pause to let everyone quiet down, she continued, ”June 13th, Cologne, Germany; Sporthalle. June 16, London, England; Wembly Arena.  June 20th, Montreal, Canada; Molson Center.  June 23, Toronto, Canada; Molson Amphitheater.  June 26th, Boston, Massachusetts; Great Woods.  July 2nd, Washington DC; Nissan Pavilion.  July 5th, Atlanta, Georgia; Lakewood Amphitheater.  July 8th, Tulsa, Oklahoma; Mabee Center.”  Again, she had to pause as cheers filled the room.  “July 12th, Los Angeles, California; Hollywood Bowl.  July 15, San Francisco, California; Shoreline.  July 18th, Denver, Colorado; Red Rocks.  July 21st, Seattle, Washington; Key Arena.  Those are the dates we have set up right now.  We might add more dates later on, if you like.”

“Ok, thanks.”  Isaac said, before he turned off the phone.  Everyone started talking all at once.

“Paris!  Bring me back something good!" “Perhaps I can go visit some family in Montreal on June 20th.”

“If you do, we’ll get you tickets.”

“We get to play the Hollywood Bowl!”

“Can’t we fit in a show in New York?”

“Sure, talk to Mercury about it.”

“Hey, the tour’s only a few months away!"

“You’ll be gone all summer!"

“Aw man, you’re right!  Oh well!  We’ll fly you out to wherever we’re playing!”

Again, Zac’s thought turned to Rosa.  They had been doing that more and more often lately. 

“I know it sounds kinda lame, but people have tried to do that to me before!  Do you forgive me?”  Zac said.

“Well, on one condition,” she said.

“What?”

“I don’t know, I haven’t thought of it yet.  I’ll call you when I- never mind, I’ve come up with one,” she said smiling.

“What is it already?”

“Give me your home phone number.  I won’t give it out, or call you at midnight, but I would like to be able to talk to you whenever I like.”

Man, this girl knows what to ask for.

“Well, OK.  But you have to forgive me,”   Zac said.  He didn’t mention that even if she hadn’t asked for it, he would have given her his number anyway.

“You got it.  Let me go tell my mother the new developments.” Zac scribbled out his home phone number, private email address, and beeper number as Rosa walked out of the room for a moment.  He was finished when she returned, with a small load of Hanson memorabilia. 

“While you’ve got a pen in your hand, will you sign this stuff?” she sheepishly asked.

“Yeah, sure why not?”  He picked up a poster and scribbled his name on it.  The front door and a rather short man walked in.  Rosa got up and gave him a hug.  He saw Zac sitting on the couch and a curious look came to his face.

“Young man, you look very familiar.  Who are you?” he asked.  Before Zac could answer, Rosa started explaining in fast, excited Spanish.  He thought he heard the name “Josh Parker” and “Zac Hanson” along with the word “MMMBop” while she was talking.  Amazingly, Rosa’s father understood what she said, as fast as she said it.

“So that’s why you look familiar.  Your face has been stuck to the walls of Rosa’s room for months now,” he said with a smile.  “I’m Marco San Gabriel.” 

“Pleased to meet you,” said Zac, shaking his hand.  “The name’s Zac Hanson, though I guess you already know that.”

“Well, yes.  Excuse me while I go say hello to your mother,” Marco told Rosa.  Rosa sat down again and Zac resumed his mini-autograph session.

“When are your being picked up?”  Rosa asked.

“Well, seeing as my parents have probably been worried half the afternoon and they’d probably send someone out immediately, and giving them about half an hour to get here, they’ll be here in about fifteen minutes,” he deducted.

“Oh, OK,” she said.  She sounded kinda sad.

“Hey, um, can I have your phone number?” Zac asked.

“Yeah, sure!” she said, brightening up.  She scribbled it and her email address on a scrap of paper and Zac put it in his pocket.

“Hey, we’re going on tour this summer, if we do a show near here, do you want tickets and backstage passes or something?” he asked her, as Juan climbed back into his lap.  He and David been sent out of the room while Zac made his call to the hotel.

“Yeah sure, that’d be great!” she said enthusiastically. 

“OK, how many would you need?” he asked.

“Uh, let’s see, there would be me, my best friend Sara, Lucia, and Natalie, so I guess four, if that’s OK.  Hey, do I need to keep your visit here a secret or something?” she asked.

“Um, I think that would really really help.  If we performed nearby, would you be able to make up a story about how you got the tickets?"

“Yeah sure, I won this contest online and they gave a package of stuff that included autographed posters and a set of tickets and passes.  Fine with you?” Rosa asked.  As Zac opened his mouth to agree, the doorbell rang.  David ran to the window and looked out.
“There’s a big bald man at the door!” he shrieked.

“Man, Jason’s here early!”  Zac said as Rosa got the door.  He walked over, got his wig, and went to the door. 

“Hey, Ike and Tay are in the car!” he said and waved for them to come over.  “Are we in a hurry Jay?  I want to make Ike and Tay sign some autographs.”  Jason almost said no, but then figured, heck, they were in no rush.  All of the evening’s appointments had been canceled earlier in the afternoon, since the group obviously couldn’t do interview or performances with the drummer missing.  “How’d you get here so fast?  Isn’t it rush hour?” Zac asked.

“You’d be amazed to see how he can drive,” Tay spoke up.  “Chauffeuring us to performances is the least of what he can do behind a wheel.”

“Where are they?   It’s been almost half an hour since Jason left.  How long does it take to get to the Bronx from here?”  Walker semi-paced across the hotel room.  Diana looked up from the plate of noodles she was consuming.

“Honey, it would take at least 20 minutes to get to the Bronx when there’s no traffic.  Right now its rush hour, do you expect them to travel at the speed of light?”

Fifteen minutes and a short conversation later, Zac, Ike, Taylor and Jason piled back into the dark blue Ford Explorer and Jason sped off back towards Manhattan.

“Hey, can I see the pictures you took?”  Manda spoke up.

“Of what?  You or Ginger’s room?” Zac said.

“Well, if you don’t mind, both,” she said, uncertainly.

“OK, they’re in my room, come on,” he told her. 

“So you totally papered Ginger’s room?” she asked with a smile.

“Yup.  You should’ve been there!  If you were listening carefully, you might have heard her scream from all the way over here!” Zac said with a growing grin. 

He could wait to choose one or the other until later.