Lights Up At The Moroccan by SS (preq to TNOY)

[JRK Archiver]

Lights Up At The Moroccan by SkyberryShortcake(prequel to The Nearness of You)


Authors Note: Hey everyone. This is the first chapter of Lights Up At The Moroccan, the prequel to The Nearness of You. So, if you read the Nearness of You, you know how Georgie and Dillon end up. This story is going to tell you how they got there, the beginnings. We're really excited to write this and hope y'all enjoy reading it.
Love, Mandie and Sky

[JRK Archiver]

Chapter One


Thirteen-year-old Dillon Quartermaine sat on the pier, watching the sunlight dance on the water of the Port Charles River. A copy of The Hollywood Reporter lay next to him. Dillon squinted at his reflection on the water, wondering how he’d ended up where he was - in a small town in upstate New York where he didn’t know a soul.
Not that it really mattered. He’d grown up, or started to, in hotels, mostly in Western Europe, while his mother attended to her own business, either professional or personal. A child was really more of a burden than a blessing to Tracy Quartermaine, so Dillon had grown accustomed to solitude. He’d become content with the knowledge that the people he knew best were the celluloid figures; the real ones were of little use to him. Most, he’d come to realize, were like his mother - self-absorbed and always following an agenda of some sort. The ones that were worth knowing, well, they might come along later. Especially the girls. Some day, he’d meet his Ingrid Bergman, his Audrey Hepburn, his Grace Kelly. But not for years, he realized. For now, he wouldn’t mind just knowing someone. He was content to live in the movies, but sometimes it got lonely. At least back in Europe, his mother was a remote possibility for company.
But not anymore. They’d boarded a plane to America, Tracy explaining that she had important family business to attend to. Hours later, jet-lagged and sleep-deprived, Dillon had been escorted through the doors of a large mansion and introduced to his family. Grandparents, aunt and uncle, an older half brother, three cousins...the reception had been less than warm, as Tracy was, in the words of his grandfather, “a blight on the Quartermaines.” Well, his grandmother had been welcoming. Dillon could tell that the stories he’d heard about Lila Quartermaine were true. She was the epitome of a gracious lady. And Ned, his brother, and adopted cousin Emily made their effort to be friendly and welcoming. Dillon actually believed that they were both glad to have him. But they didn’t know him. No one did really. The closest person to him was Tracy and only when it was convenient for her.
“I have business to attend to in Europe,” she’d told him firmly, cupping his cheeks in her hands so that he couldn’t look away. “You’re going to stay here, with the family, go to school, show everyone that I don’t mess everything up.” That was Tracy - “Dillon, make ME look good.” He was used to it.
His protests had fallen on deaf ears - the town was too provincial, the Quartermaines didn’t want him around, she’d never worried before about leaving him alone, why start now - and Tracy had kissed her youngest son goodbye and left in a limousine full of matching designer luggage.

Dillon sighed, pushing himself to his feet. He was getting hungry. He didn't know his way around town yet, but he didn't think it would be too hard to find a diner. He made his way up the steps and rounded the corner trying to push all thoughts of his mother and the bizarre family she’d left him with out of his head, even if it was just for a little while.
He made his way through the park, looking up at the summer sky. He didn't know what he was going to do in a town where he didn't know anyone. He wasn't the type of person who made friends as quickly as others did. Maybe it was because of the constant moving around, or maybe it was just the simple fact of never learning the meaning of 'friends'. All he knew was that he didn't want to be alone anymore.
So caught up in his own thoughts, he didn't notice the group of teenage boys coming his way as he approached a small restaurant. A sign reading “Kelly’s” hung above the door.
"Watch where you're going!" A blond haired boy yelled as he pushed Dillon.
"Sorry, I didn't see you." Dillon said, trying his best to apologize.
"That much is obvious." Another boy said, trying to act cool.
"I said I'm sorry." Dillon said trying to walk past them, but was unsuccessful.
The blond haired boy reached out and grabbed Dillon's shirt. "Not so fast!" He yelled.
Dillon tried to twist away, but the boy had a good grip. He shoved Dillon, making him stumble backwards.
“I don’t want to fight with you,” Dillon told the boy coldly, but it was to no avail.
“Awww...” the boy said, faking empathy. “Too bad.” He shoved Dillon in the chest again. Dillon took a swing, but his opponent ducked.
“Get him!” The blond yelled. Two other boys grabbed Dillon by the arms as he tried to wrench himself from their grasp.

Suddenly a rush of cold water hit them, spraying mercilessly. Cursing, the other boys scattered. Dillon remained still. When the spray stopped, he wiped the water from his eyes, looking up. Standing on a chair, holding a garden hose, was a girl.
“What the hell?” he sputtered, looking up at her. She shrugged, still standing on the chair.
“You want I should let them keep pounding on you?”
Dillon sighed. She was right. He brushed his water-logged hair out of his face, walking toward her.
“Thanks for the save,” he said as suavely as he could muster, holding out his hand to help her down. “Very Audrey Hepburn with a guitar. Except that Gregory Peck was fighting to rescue her...” he trailed off.
The girl took his proferred hand and hopped off the chair, landing about six inches from him and stumbling slightly.
“Whoa, careful,” Dillon said, grabbing her arm to steady her.
“Thanks,” the girl answered with a shy smile, straightening up. They looked at each other for a moment. She was small, about a head shorter than him, with straight honey-colored hair that went to her chin and amber-colored eyes. Pretty, Dillon thought passively, but no Ingrid Bergman. The girl shrugged.
“Those guys are total jerks,” she offered.
Dillon nodded. “Yeah, well...” he said lamely, trailing off. He traced a pattern on the brick walkway with his toe, looking down.
“So, you’re new in town, right?” the girl asked. He nodded.
“Yeah,” he said quietly, feeling the resentment at the town he didn’t want to be in creep back into his body. He sighed, trying to fight it. He held out his hand. “Dillon Quartermaine.”
The girl took his hand. They shook solemnly.
“Georgie Jones.”



Preview:
"So...you're, like, some kind of film geek?"

[JRK Archiver]

Chapter Two


“What are you reading?”
Georgie looked up, placing her finger in between the pages of the book to mark her place.
“Little Women,” she said, feeling a bit shy. “My favorite.”
Dillon offered a smile. “It’s...Georgie, right?” he asked. She nodded.
“Uh huh. And you’re Dillon.” He nodded, his lips curling up in a quick smile and then looked away, shifting his eyes uncomfortably. Georgie played with her book. “So, um, what did you mean about the guitar?” She peeked up at him.
Dillon snapped his head to look at her. “What guitar?” he asked.
Georgie blushed. “The other day. When I soaked you guys. You said “very Audrey Hepburn with a guitar. What’s that mean?”
Dillon gaped at her. “You’ve never seen Roman Holiday?” he asked, aghast.
She shook her head. “No. What’s it about?”
“It’s about this princess named Anne,” Dillon started.
“Here, sit down,” Georgie gestured him on to the bench.
“Thanks.” Dillon sat. “Anyway, Anne has this whole entourage of people, countesses, whatever, but she really just wants to experience freedom, you know?”
Georgie nodded, understanding. “Yeah, totally,” she said.
“Anyway,” Dillon went on. “She runs away from the castle and meets this guy, Joe Bradley, played by Gregory Peck. He’s a newspaper reporter and knows who she is, but he doesn’t let on. And they have this, totally free, anonymous day together in Rome. But some...guards or whatever find her and try to grab her back so he fights them off. And she whacks one over the head with a guitar.”
Georgie laughed. “So wait,” she asked. “Do they end up together?”
Dillon shook his head. “No. She goes back to the castle and goes on fulfilling her royal obligations.”
“Sounds sad,” Georgie said, twisting a lock of hair.
“Nah,” Dillon told her. “It’s um, bittersweet, you know?”
She nodded. “Mmmhmmm...I think I’d like it.”
"So...you're, like, some kind of film geek?" Georgie asked as she walked toward the swing and sat down.
Dillon frowned at her. "Geek?" He asked, obviously offended.
Georgie noticed. "Hey, I'm a regular garden variety geek. Straight A bookworm." She said glancing down at the book laying on her lap. "At least a film geek is interesting." She quickly added, waiting for him to say something.
"There's nothing wrong with liking to read," he pointed out to her. "I just prefer films."
"Any particular reason?" She asked looking up at him.
"Actually, there kind of is." He said sitting down on the swing next to her so that he could face her.
"I used to live in Europe. My Mom and I used to move around a lot, and she wasn't really around that often. Business meetings, office parties." He tried to explain in the simplest way possible. "Films are my way of escaping the real world. When things get rough, I just try and relax by watching an old classic movie."
Georgie nodded. "You sound like you know how to handle whatever life throws your way."
Dillon shook his head. "Not all of the time. I didn't know what to do when my mother left me with the Quartermaines," he admitted, as he glanced over and saw her smiling at him. "but I'm slowly learning how to deal with it." He finished, smiling back at her.
“Yeah,” Georgie mused. “Family can be...weird. Like, Maxie, my sister, she’s 15. She kinda gets in trouble a lot, or she should, but it’s like, she can do no wrong, you know?”
Dillon nodded hesitantly. “Kind of,” he said slowly. “I mean, I get what you’re saying, because I’ve known people who have gotten away with everything all their lives, but I’ve always been an only child, basically. I mean, I just met my brother a couple weeks ago and he’s like, twenty years older than me. So I don’t really get the sibling rivalry thing.”
“Wow,” Georgie said, “that must be kind of cool. Maxie and I are only three years apart, so we’re kind of in each other’s faces a lot.”
“So, you’re 12?” Dillon asked. Georgie nodded.
“Uh huh,” she said. “I’ll be 13 in September. How old are you?”
Dillon smiled. “Thirteen,” he answered. “I’ll be 14 in December.”
“Cool.” They swung back and forth, kicking up small clouds of dirt. “So, are you going to PC High in the fall?” Georgie asked, trying to make conversation.
Dillon nodded. “Uh huh,” he replied. “Ninth grade.”
Georgie smiled. “Oh cool,” she said happily. “Me too.” She stretched her legs out in front of her, smiling. Dillon was easy to talk to.
"You're going to be in ninth grade, too?" He asked, looking at her.
"Mmmhmm," she replied, nodding her head. "I skipped the fourth grade."
Dillon raised his eyebrow. "Oh really?"
"Yeah," she said shrugging her shoulders. "I was always finished reading way before the other kids, and so my parents wanted to try and challenge me."
"Well, I'm glad. At least I'll know someone." He admitted. He found himself doing that a lot when talking to her.
They shared a smile and Dillon stood up. “I’m kinda tired of the park,” he said.
Georgie looked down, trying to cover her disappointment. “Okay,” she said, a little dejectedly. “I guess I’ll see you around.”
“Oh no,” Dillon said hurriedly. “I just mean, we should get out of here. You want to maybe go for a walk or something? I’m still kinda getting used to things here.”
A smile spread over Georgie’s face as she stood up from her swing. “Sure,” she said.

“I’ve never really been to this part of town,” Georgie mused, licking her ice cream cone.
“Well,” Dillon said, taking a bite of his. “Me neither. Let’s just walk around and see what’s what, okay?”
Georgie nodded. He looked at her with a question in his eyes.
“What?” She asked.
He nodded to her ice cream cone. “How come you like strawberry? Most people go for chocolate or vanilla if they go classic.”
She bit her lip, blushing the pink of her ice cream. “When I was little it was because pink was pretty,” she admitted. “But now I really just like the flavor.”
Dillon nodded, grinning. “Cool,” he said.
They turned a corner, walking down another street.
“I get so bored in summer sometimes,” Georgie said. “I miss school.” She paused, backpedaling. “I know I’m a total nerd for saying that, but-”
“Whoa...” Dillon breathed, cutting her off.
She stopped next to him, looking up. They stood in front of a rundown looking building with a marquee over the door.
“The Moroccan,” Georgie read off the sign. She looked up at the marquee. “You Can’t Take It With You.” She turned to Dillon. “What is it?”
Dillon’s lips spread into a slow, wide smile, his face lighting up.
“It’s a revival theatre,” he said. “Come on.” He pushed open the doors, Georgie following him inside.

“Wow,” Georgie said, looking around. “Look at all these old movie posters.” She read off titles. “Lion in Winter...The Magnificent Ambersons, Mutiny on the Bounty, Casablanca, Grand Hotel, It Happened One Night, To Kill A Mockingbird - wait a sec.”
“What?” Dillon asked, still looking around in appreciation.
“To Kill A Mockingbird,” Georgie said. “That’s a book. I read it last summer.”
“Yeah,” Dillon said. “The movie’s based on the book. It’s amazing. Gregory Peck is great. You have to see it.” He looked at the sign on the opposite wall. “And...it’s playing here next weekend.” He grinned. “No way out.”
Georgie nodded. “Okay,” she said, laughing a little. Something in the air hit her and she wrinkled her nose. “Smells like burned popcorn,” she complained.
Dillon laughed. “Yeah...that’s what these theatres always smell like,” he told her. “You’ll grow to love it. Trust me.”
She turned her head to look at him, their eyes locking as she shrugged. “Okay,” she said. They both smiled, holding each other’s gaze for a moment. “I’ll trust you.”
Still looking at her, Dillon tossed Georgie a wink, stepping closer to sling an affectionate arm around her shoulder. “I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship,” he said in his best Bogie.
Georgie tilted her head, peering up at him. “Huh?” she asked, confused.
Dillon laughed, shaking his head. “God,” he said, grinning, “you have so much to learn.”



Preview:
"Do you always sneak into the kitchen this late at night?"

[JRK Archiver]

Chapter 3


“So what did you think?” Dillon asked Georgie as they pushed their way out the doors of the movie theatre.
“I loved it,” she told him. “It was so good.” She popped a gummy bear into her mouth. “But I still like the book better.”
Dillon groaned. “Ohhh, how? The movie is so great. It brings everything to life.”
“Yeah, but books make you use your imagination more,” Georgie argued. She shrugged. “I don’t know, I’ve always loved to read.” She chewed another gummy bear thoughtfully, offering the box to Dillon. He accepted, popping a green one into his mouth.
“Okay, fine,” he said, “but it’s like...I don’t know, you can, like, live through the movies, you know? Just forget about all your own problems and escape the real world. It’s like total...what’s that word? Cat-something or the other?”
Georgie smiled. “Catharsis,” she replied. “The purging of the emotions or relieving of emotional tension, especially through art.”
Dillon stared at her. “Wow, you really are a nerd, aren’t you?”
Georgie threw a handful of gummy bears at him. “Shut up.”
They walked along in silence, chewing on gummy bears. A sly smile crept over Dillon’s face.
"The movie’s still better," he said, leaning close to Georgie.
"Dillon," Georgie shouted, stopping to look at him. "we're never going to agree with each other!"
Dillon just looked at her, holding up his hands.
Georgie started laughing. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to sound rude, or to shout at you like that."
"No, it's all right. I just wanted to see how long it took before you would crack." Dillon stuck out his tongue.
Georgie playfully smacked his shoulder as they pushed their way into Kelly’s and headed toward the counter.
"Oh hey, Maxie. Hey Lucas." Georgie said once she noticed they were standing behind him.
Dillon turned around so that he was facing them. Georgie turned to face him. "Dillon this is my sister, Maxie and my cousin, Lucas." She turned her attention back to her sister and her cousin. "This is my friend, Dillon Quartermaine. He just moved here from Europe." She explained excitedly.
"Nice to meet you, Dillon." Maxie said holding out her hand as he shook it.
"Nice to meet you, too."
Lucas just stood there, staring at Dillon. Maxie elbowed him.
"Welcome to Port Charles." Lucas said, trying to sound polite.
"Thanks," Dillon said, looking back at Georgie.
“So, how come you were in Europe?” Lucas asked, as they all sat down at a table. “All the Quartermaines we know have always lived here.”
Dillon smiled tightly. “My mom has always just had business in Europe, so I went wherever she did.”
“So how come you’re here now?” Maxie asked bluntly.
“Maxie!” Georgie hissed.
Dillon leaned back in his chair. “My mom wanted me to not move around so much, so she sent me to live here. Any more questions?”
Georgie could see that Dillon was getting a little testy, so she groped for a new topic.
“We went to the movies at this really cool old theater we found,” she told her sister and cousin. “We saw the movie of To Kill A Mockingbird. It had that guy in it, the one from Deep Impact-”
“-Robert Duvall,” supplied Dillon.
“Right,” Georgie said. “Anyway, he played Boo Radley, and he was really pale and creepy-looking and-”
“That sounds great, Georgie,” Maxie said, cutting her off. She turned to Lucas. “Aren’t people going over to Julia’s? You wannna go?”
Lucas nodded. “Yeah, sounds good.” He stood up from the table, Maxie following. “See ya later Georgie.” His smile faded. “Bye...Dillon.”
Dillon rolled his eyes. “Bye...Lucas.” He offered Maxie a nod. “Bye.”
“Bye,” she replied.
Georgie slumped in her seat as Maxie and Lucas left.
“God,” she fumed. “It’s like I’m invisible. I could be on fire and if Maxie walked into a room, everyone would just let me burn.” She stood up. “I’m sorry Dillon. I think I’m just going to go home.” She smiled weakly at him, walking outside.
“Georgie, wait,” Dillon called, pushing out the door after her. She stopped, turning around to look at him again. He shifted his weight. “It’s getting kinda late,” he said, “why don’t you let me walk you home.”
Georgie considered this, nodding. “Kay,” she replied.
They walked out of the courtyard and down the street.

Dillon blinked in the dim light as he crept down the stairs, careful not to wake anyone. The front door opened slowly as his cousin Emily snuck in, turning around to close the door behind her.
“Oh my god!” she gasped, as she turned back around to see Dillon on the steps.
He held up a hand. “Sorry,” he whispered. “I didn’t mean to scare you.” He came the rest of the way down the steps.
“What are you doing?” Emily asked him, her voice low.
“Getting a snack,” Dillon whispered. “I’m starving.” He shifted his weight uncomfortably.
Emily smiled. She knew how it felt to be thrown into the throng of Quartermaines. “I could always eat,” she confessed. “Is it okay if I join you?”
Dillon nodded. They tiptoed down the hall and into the kitchen.
“I feel like a stowaway,” Emily joked, turning on the light. Dillon laughed, opening up the cupboards as Emily peered inside the refrigerator.
"Cookies?" Dillon asked, pulling a bag of chocolate chip cookies out of the cupboard.
Emily nodded. "Milk?"
"Sure," he said as he set the cookies down on the counter, walking over to the other side of the kitchen to get two mugs.
"Do you always sneak into the kitchen this late at night?" Emily asked, as she put the cookies on a plate and placed the bag back into the cupboard, then turning her attention back to him.
"No," he said shaking his head as he poured the milk into the mugs. "not all the time. Cook just scares me a little, that's all." He said putting the container back into the refrigerator and sitting down at the counter next to her.
Emily couldn't help but laugh.
"What's so funny?" He asked, taking a bite of his cookie.
"I used to be afraid of Cook when I first moved here, too." She admitted. "It doesn't really go away, you just get used to sneaking into the kitchen for a late night snack."
Dillon laughed slightly. After a few minutes, he spoke up. "Hey Emily?"
"Yeah?" She asked, looking at him.
"Thanks for being so nice to me." He said smiling. "It's kind of hard, you know? Grandfather just ignores me like I'm not even here, Ned is trying to be the best brother ever, and everyone else is alright, but you -- you're actually making an effort to get to know me. So thank you."
Emily smiled back at him. "No need to thank me. I just know how it feels to be the new kid in the Quartermaine household, and it is hard, but that is something you do get used to."
Dillon nodded. “That’s right,” he said quietly. “You’ve been tossed into the shark tank too.” Emily smiled, nodding. “How old were you when-”
“Eleven,” Emily said quietly. She looked down.
Dillon immediately felt bad. “Hey, I’m really sorry,” he said quickly. “I didn’t mean to make you sad.”
Emily shook her head. “No no no, it’s fine,” she said hurriedly. “I mean, I miss my birth mom, I always will. But I could have ended up in foster care. I got so lucky that the Quartermaines adopted me.”
“Lucky?” Dillon asked. “If you ask me, foster care might be more sane.” He bit into a cookie.
Emily smiled. “The Quartermaines are actually really great,” she told him. “Very loving. They just have a really...bizarre way of showing it sometimes. But every family has its quirks. It’s just a part of life. Family can we really weird.”
Dillon grinned. “That’s what Georgie said.”
Emily did a double take. “Georgie?” she asked. “Georgie Jones?”
Dillon nodded. “Yeah, do you know her?”
“Yeah,” Emily said, taking a sip of milk. “My best friend Lucky is practically Georgie’s big brother. I’ve known her since she was a baby. She’s a sweetheart.” Emily’s eyes danced. “Wait a sec, are you and Georgie...are you two...”
“No!” Dillon said insistently. “No, she’s really nice, but it’s not like that. We’re just friends.”
“Okay,” Emily nodded. She yawned. “I’m really sorry Dillon, but I’m getting so sleepy. I think I’m going to go to bed.” She stood up. “This was fun. We’ll have to be stowaways again sometime.”
Dillon nodded. “Yeah. Have a good night.”
“You too.” Emily headed for the door. “Hey Dillon,” she said, turning back.
He looked up. “Yeah?”
Emily smiled. “Why don’t we go have breakfast at Kelly’s tomorrow? We could talk some more? And escape the family Sunday brunch.”
Dillon grinned. “Sounds great,” he said, “thanks.”
Emily smiled back. “Goodnight,” she said.
“Night.” Emily left the kitchen, leaving Dillon alone. He sighed, feeling a little better about things. Emily seemed really nice. She was definitely one of the few sane Quartermaines, he thought.
“Must be cause she’s adopted,” Dillon commented out loud. He bit into another cookie.



Preview:
"Did you get even prettier since the last time I saw you?"

[JRK Archiver]

chapter 4


Georgie chewed slowly on a piece of French toast. Sometimes it was hard to feel like she wasn’t invisible. Her mother and stepfather had barely noticed when she’d left; they were too busy questioning Maxie about her whereabouts the night before.
“I could get away with murder and I don’t even try,” Georgie muttered to herself. She propped her elbows on the table, leaning her chin into her hands.
“Georgie Jones, are you hearing voices” a voice said.
Looking up, Georgie’s face lit up. “Lucky!” she exclaimed happily.
Lucky Spencer smiled, leaning over to kiss the tip of Georgie’s nose. “Hey there kiddo,” he replied. “Did you get even prettier since the last time I saw you?”
“Lucky, you saw me yesterday,” Georgie protested, her cheeks flushing pink.
Lucky shook his head. “Well, you just get prettier and prettier every day, don’t you?” he asked, sitting down across from her.
“Lucky, Lucky, Lucky,” an amused voice said, “you’re just flattering them younger and younger, aren’t you?”
Georgie twisted around. Emily was standing behind her, brown eyes sparkling in amusement at Lucky. Next to her stood Dillon. He looked at Georgie the slighest bit oddly.
“Emily, your beauty shines brighter than the sun,” Lucky told her gallantly, standing up and leaning to kiss first her right cheek, then her left, as Dillon and Georgie looked on with amusement.
Emily smiled with a false imperious air. “Why thank you,” she replied. Cracking, she laughed. “Lucky Spencer, you couldn’t be more full of it if you tried.” She shook her head. “Lucky, this is my cousin, Dillon. Dillon, this is my best friend, Lucky Spencer.”
“Nice to meet you,” Lucky said, holding out his hand to Dillon.
“You too,” Dillon replied, shaking Lucky’s hand.
“And, of course, you know Georgie,” Emily finished as she sat down next to Lucky, gesturing for Dillon to take the seat next to Georgie.
“Hey Georgie,” Dillon said, suddenly feeling the slightest bit shy.
“Hey Dillon,” she replied, not knowing quite why she felt the same way.
Lucky looked between the two adolescents. “Wait a sec, how do you two know each other?” he asked, sounding the slightest bit suspicious.
Dillon peered at Lucky. For some reason, his line of questioning wasn’t irritating and intrusive like Lucas’ had been.
Dillon looked over at Georgie, who just stared at him. "Well," he began breaking his gaze from Georgie and looking across the table at Lucky and Emily. "I bumped into a couple of jerks, who wouldn't accept my apology. They wanted to fight me instead. I tried to walk past them, but one guy grabbed ahold of me and that's when.." he gestured toward Georgie.
"I jumped onto one of the tables outside and sprayed them all with the hose. The other boys left, but this one," she gently bumped into Dillon's side. "stayed and introduced himself."
"Awww, so you saved my little cousin from getting beat up by a bunch of bullies." Emily teased, nudging Dillon, then turning to look at Lucky. "Isn't that sweet?" She asked.
Georgie began to blush. "It was really no big deal."
Dillon rolled his eyes. "Yeah, I could've handled those guys."
Georgie looked over at him. "Oh yeah."
“I could have!” Dillon protested.
Georgie giggled. “Next time you can hose ‘em down,” she joked.
“Anyway,” Dillon went on, trying to change the topic, “we ran into each other in the park a few days later and got to talking and wandering around and stuff-”
“-Yeah,” Georgie broke in. “We found this old movie theatre and last night we went to see To Kill A Mockingbird. It was so good!”
“See?” Dillon said triumphantly. “I told you you’d like it. Little Miss “The book is always better.”
“Different,” Georgie objected, blowing her hair out of her eyes in amused frustration as she turned to face Dillon.
As they argued, Lucky leaned to whisper in Emily’s ear.
“Was this a date?” he hissed quietly.
She shook her head. “No, I don’t think so.”
Lucky nodded, satisfied. “Okay, good.”
“Well, hello all of you,” Bobbie said happily, coming over. She smiled at the teenage boy. “You must be Dillon. Monica told me her nephew had come to live in Port Charles. I’m Bobbie Spencer.”
“Nice to meet you.” Dillon smiled.
“Aunt Bobbie,” Lucky smiled disarmingly. “Has anyone told you how absolutely radiant you are today?”
Bobbie shook her head. “Lucky Spencer, I am not a snake so quit trying to charm me. What do you want?”
Dillon leaned across the table to whisper to Emily. “Does he do this to everyone?”
Emily laughed. “Wait until you meet his dad. Once you meet Luke, you’ll understand Lucky.”
Meanwhile, Lucky was giving Bobbie his best innocent look. “Is that one of your delcious cherry rhubarb pies I smell?”
Bobbie laughed, ruffling her nephew’s hair. “You’re as bad as your father, you know that?” She shook her head. “I’ll bring you all slices as soon as it’s out of the oven.”
“Thank you Bobbie,” Emily and Georgie said, giggling.
“Thank you,” Dillon repeated, still a little confused.
“Thank you Aunt Bobbie,” Lucky called as she walked away, smiling bemusedly. He leaned back in his chair, pleased with himself.
“Is Elizabeth working today?” Emily asked.
Lucky grinned. “She’s got class all morning, then she’s painting in the afternoon, but she’ll be here tonight.”
“Who’s Elizabeth?” Dillon asked.
“My girlfriend,” Lucky replied.
“And my best friend,” Emily added.
Lucky stuck out his lower lip. “Hey! I thought I was your best friend.”
“Awww...” Emily pinched his cheek. “You’re so cute. You are my best friend. Elizabeth is too. I love you both. You’re just a little less useful at the mall.”
Lucky clutched his heart. “I’m hurt, Emily,” he told her. “Really, I’m wounded. I’ve told you time and time again that I’d be happy to help you lingerie shop.”
Emily swatted him. “Children present!” She grinned sheepishly at Dillon and Georgie. “No offense.”
Georgie laughed. “None taken.”
“Yeah,” Dillon added, “but wouldn’t your boyfriend have a problem with Lucky helping you buy...girly stuff?”
Lucky stuck out his chest. “Hey, I am all about girly stuff,” he proclaimed. He knitted his brow. “Wait a minute...”
Georgie giggled. Emily laughed. “Good one Spencer,” she said, patting his shoulder. “Preserve your masculinity there.”
“Lucky,” Bobbie called from the counter. “Come carry these.”
Lucky got up, returning a minute later with four pie plates. “One for Dillon, one for me, one for the lovely Miss Quartermaine, and one for Princess Georgie.”
Dillon bit his lip, amused. “Princess Georgie?”
Georgie rolled her eyes. “Halloween. I was seven. Lucky took Maxie, Lucas and I trick-or-treating. I dressed up as a fairy princess.”
“And she’s been casting her spells ever since,” Lucky added, as Georgie blushed, much to Dillon’s amusement.
“Do fairy princesses cast spells?” Penny asked, overhearing the conversation on her way to clear a table.
Lucky stood up. “If they do, then you must be a fairy princess yourself, Penny.”
Penny’s cheeks turned red as she walked away, shaking her head. Emily covered her mouth. Satisfied, Lucky sat back down, taking a bite of his pie.
Georgie looked up at him. “Is there any woman your charms don’t work on?” she queried.
Lucky pretended to think for a minute. “No,” he answered. “I don’t think so.”



Preview:
"Come on, sit. I'll push you."

[JRK Archiver]

Chapter 5

Georgie quietly sat next to Maxie at their table in Kelly's, sipping her orange juice.
"So you're saying that I can't watch the fireworks with Josh tonight?" Maxie asked her mother, as she took a sip of coffee.
"Yes, that's what I'm saying." Felicia said, looking across the table at her oldest daughter. "You sneak out of the house to meet some boy, you have to face the consequences."
Maxie sighed heavily. "This is so ridiculous!"
Zander Smith leaned against the counter, talking on his cell phone.
“What’s going on there?” Emily asked, hearing the commotion in the background.
Zander took a sip of his coffee. “Maxie Jones,” he said quietly. “Felicia grounded her.”
“Mmmm...” Emily mused knowingly, remembering what it had been like to be 15. “Hey, is Georgie there?”
Zander nodded. “Yeah,” he said. “She’s staring at a glass of orange juice.”
“Poor Georgie,” Emily replied sympathetically. “Hey, you’re on your way over, right?”
“Yeah.”
“Bring Georgie with you,” Emily demanded. “I know Dillon would be glad to see her.”
Zander looked over at the young girl, who was now poking at a stack of pancakes while her mother and sister fought. “Okay,” he answered. “Be there soon. I love you.”
“I love you too.”

“Um, excuse me a sec,” Zander approached the Joneses cautiously. He didn’t know any of them terribly well, although he knew Georgie through Emily.
“Hi Zander,” Felicia said pleasantly. Maxie stopped pouting long enough to smile charmingly at the handsome young man.
“Hi Felicia,” he replied. “Hi Maxie. Um, Georgie, I just talked to Emily and she said that Dillon is kinda down and out today. He could use a friend.” He turned to Felicia. “If it’s okay with you, of course. I’m on my way. I could take Georgie with me now and Emily could drive her home later tonight.”
Felicia nodded, silently thanking Emily in her head. “That sounds fine, thank you.”
“Aren’t you going to the picnic?” Maxie asked innocently.
Felicia turned to her. “Mac is working tonight,” she replied. “So I have to stay home with you.”
“What?” Maxie shrieked, forgetting about being mature and womanly in front of Zander. “You’re going to stay home with me? Mom! I can stay home by myself.”
“Go on,” Felicia told Zander and Georgie. Georgie stood up as Felicia turned back to Maxie. “Until you prove that you can be responsible...”

“Thanks,” Georgie said to Zander as they walked toward his car.
Zander smiled. “No problem.” He opened the door for Georgie.
“Dillon isn’t depressed, is he?” she asked, as Zander drove.
He shook his head. “No,” he said, honestly. “Emily thought that you might like to get away from your mom and sister for a while.”
Georgie blushed. “I’m really sorry about that,” she apologized.
Zander waved her off. “Don’t even think about it,” he said. “Every family has issues.” He laughed. “Come on, my girlfriend is a Quartermaine. I know about these things.”

Dillon ran his fingers through his brown hair as he listened to his Grandfather bark more and more demands. "Can I go upstairs now?" He asked.
Edward ignored his request as he continued to talk to the servants about the picnic at the park.
Dillon rolled his eyes. 'This is going to be such a long day!' He thought to himself as he headed for the stairs.
"Where do you think you're going?" Edward asked, walking toward him.
"To my room," Dillon replied, turning around to face him.
"Fine," Edward said throwing his hands up in the air. "but you will be attending the picnic later this evening!"
"Yes, Grandfather. I will be there." He said just before turning to walk up the rest of the stairs.
Dillon heard the doorbell ring as he shut his door. Just as he was about to lay down on his bed he heard his Grandfather.
"Dillon! Emily!"
"What now?" Dillon shouted as he opened the door and walked back down the steps, Emily close behind.
"Hi," Georgie said quietly as she stood next to Zander. Emily smiled, moving to kiss her boyfriend hello.
“Hey!” Dillon said, sighing in relief. He wrapped his arms around Georgie, giving her a tight hug.
“Hey,” she whispered, a little surprised at Dillon’s affectionate greeting. She hugged him back.
“It’s so nice to see someone who’s actually sane.” He released her. “No offense, Em,” he quipped.
She grinned. “None taken.”
“So, what are you doing here?” Dillon asked, turning back to Georgie.
Georgie smiled at him. “Oh, Zander told Emily that my mom and Maxie were arguing in public like a couple of hysterical cats so they used you as an excuse to get me out of there,” she said breezily.
“Sorry Dillon,” Emily spoke up, flushing a little. She realized that she had thrown Georgie into the mix without even asking Dillon if he was in the mood to see a friend. Fortunately, he brushed her off with a grin.
“No problem,” he said with a wave of his hand. He turned back to Georgie. “Actually, I’m really glad you’re here. I got a DVD I wanted to loan you.”
Georgie shrugged. “But I don’t have a DVD player,” she said, “just a VCR.”
“It’s okay,” Dillon replied quickly. “We can watch in my room.” He turned to his cousin. “Do we have time, Em?”
She nodded. “Yeah, plenty. Go on.”
Dillon and Georgie went toward the stairs.
“You have a TV in your bedroom?” she asked, impressed.
Dillon shrugged, a little uncomfortably. “Yeah, well,” he said, trying to sound cool, “it keeps me out of my grandfather’s hair.”
On the landing below, Emily leaned to whisper in Zander’s ear. “Is there something bad about letting them go up to his room alone?”
Zander shook his head, eager to spend some alone time with Em himself. “Nah,” he said. “When I was thirteen, I-” he stopped remembering exactly what he had been like at thirteen. He nodded. “Yeah,” he said, “we’ll check on them.”

“I can’t believe I never knew there was a movie of Little Women,” Georgie said, lying on her stomach on Dillon’s bed. “I mean, an old one. I’ve seen the one with Winona Ryder, I love that movie, but I didn’t know there was an old one.”
Dillon nodded, his feet propped up on the bed as he leaned back in a chair. “Yeah,” he said. “There’s a 1949 one too, but it’s horrible. Terrible. Disgraceful. ”
“OK,” Georgie giggled. “I get it. It sucks. She swatted Dillon’s leg. “Shut up and let me watch.”
A soft knock came on the door. “Dillon, it’s Emily!” she called softly. She pushed open the door a little. “Hey,” she said, seeing Georgie and Dillon watching the movie, “you want a ride with Zander and I to the park?”
Thinking about having to sit in the park in some forced display of family fun and patriotism made Dillon groan out loud. Emily laughed.
“On second thought,” she said, “why don’t you two walk there? Take the long way.”
Dillon grinned. “Thanks Emily.”
“Thanks Emily,” Georgie echoed.
Emily closed the door. Dillon and Georgie went back to watching the movie. As her eyes focused intently on the screen, Dillon’s eyes drifted to her. A sly smile creeping over his face, he stretched out his foot, nudging her head with his heel.
“Dillon!” she cried, turning around.
In a snap, Dillon’s leg was in its previous lounging position. He leaned back in his chair, his face a picture of innocence.
“Who me?”

“Oh thank god!” Dillon gasped, rushing over toward the swing set.
“Oh come on,” Georgie goaded him. “It wasn’t that bad.”
“Georgie,” he complained, “the only thing that made my grandfather stop talking about how my hair was an offense to our forefathers was his enthusiasm for reminding Zander that it would be unpatriotic to steal the silver on the fourth of July.”
Georgie laughed. "Oohh," she began to say as she sat on the swing. "look at that guy over there." She said nodding her head in the guy's direction.
"Which one?" Dillon asked as he sat down on a swing next to her and looked around.
"The one with the blue and red hat on!" She said laughing.
Once Dillon spotted who she was talking about, he burst out into laughter, too. "Oh man, that is too funny!"
"Why do people dress like that?" Georgie asked as she started to kick her feet back and forth in an effort to swing herself.
"Don't ask me, I wouldn't dress like that even if you paid me!" Dillon said getting up off of his swing. "I've seen worse in Europe. People follow whatever trends are in, and some of them are ridiculous!" He explained.
Georgie jumped off her swing and landed infront of Dillon, losing her balance.
"Whoa, careful!" He said as he caught her.
She straightened herself out. "That's the second time you've saved me from falling." She pointed out., remembering the first time they met at Kelly's. "Thanks."
"Not a problem." He said smiling. "Come on, sit. I'll push you."
“Thanks!”
As Dillon pushed her higher, Georgie screamed in laughter.
“The fireworks should be starting-” she began to yell as the sky burst into color. Georgie laughed.
“Soon?” Dillon called, grabbing the chains of the swing. “Whoa whoa whoa...” he muttered, trying to pull it to a stop. He bumped Georgie into his body, stopping the swing.
“Thanks,” she murmured, her eyes on the sky as she hopped off the swing.
“Wow...” she said, looking up at the exploding fireworks.
“Yeah,” Dillon said appreciatively, coming to stand next to her.
A multicolored explosion spiraled across the night sky, amid gasps of appreciation.
“Wow,” Georgie marveled, turning to face Dillon. “That was awesome!”
As he turned to meet her smiling face, their eyes locked for a second. Dillon swallowed. Georgie giggled self-consciously. Quickly, they turned their attention back to the fireworks.
As the sky continued to light up, Dillon glanced sidelong at Georgie. Grinning, he bumped her playfully.
“Happy fourth, Georgie.”
She laughed, nudging him back.
“Happy fourth, Dillon.”



Preview:
"You call that extra whipped cream?"

[JRK Archiver]

Ch 6


Dillon reached over, grabbing the ringing phone.
“Hello?”
“Hi Dillon,” a slightly saddened voice reverberated in his ear, “it’s Georgie.”
He blinked. “Georgie, hey. You all right?”
In her bedroom, Georgie hugged a throw pillow to her chest. “Maxie’s a pain,” she complained.
Dillon leaned back in his chair. “I’m sorry,” he hedged, not knowing what else to say. Talking about feelings wasn’t really his strong suit. Georgie didn’t say anything else. “Ummm...have you ever seen Arsenic and Old Lace?”
“No,” Georgie replied, sounding dejected.
Dillon sighed, hoping he could do some good. “It’s about this man who finds out that his two crazy aunts are killing men and hiding dead bodies in the cellar. It’s hysterical.”
Georgie wrinkled her nose. “Sounds morbid.”
“I swear,” Dillon assured her, “it’s really funny. And it’s playing at the Moroccan tonight. We could go? Get your mind off things. And then ice cream sundaes at Kelly’s after.”
“Well...” Georgie hesitated. “I was gonna read Great Expectations tonight.” Dillon could hear the sadness in her voice.
Dillon groaned. “Come on, Georgie, please?” He pouted, even though he couldn’t see her. “It’ll make you feel better and it really bugs me when you’re sad.”
Georgie raised an eyebrow. “It does?”
Dillon sighed loudly. “Yes,” he informed her. “So come on. Movies. Ice cream. My treat. Please? Please, please, please, Georgie?”
She couldn’t do anything other than laugh. “Okay, fine you weirdo. I’ll meet you in the park by the fountain in 20 minutes.”
Dillon grinned. “Later.”
“Later.”

“Perfect timing,” Dillon called, as they both approached the fountain. “Hey.”
“Hey,” Georgie replied, giving him a half-smile.
“So,” Dillon asked as they walked through the park. “You want to hear a funny story?”
Georgie shrugged. “Okay.”
“Okay, so last night Grandfather can’t sleep, so he goes downstairs at like, two in the morning to get himself a glass of sherry or whatever it is he likes. So he happens to be looking out the window and he sees a figure on the lawn, so he decides that he’s going to scare the prowler off by turning on all the lawn sprinklers.”
“He knows how to do that?” Georgie asked.
“Well, it’s just a switch,” Dillon explained. “Anyway, the figure keeps coming, so Edward decides that he can defend his home and family himself, in all his septogenerian glory. So he grabs a fire poker and waits. A minute later he hears Emily behind him, going “Grandfather, put down that fire poker!” He turns around and she’s standing there, dripping wet on to the carpet. Then he carries on at her about staying out late-”
“But isn’t Emily like 22?” Georgie asked.
“Twenty-one,” Dillon said. “Anyway, she just takes Grandfather’s arm and tells him that he needs to go to bed and he shouldn’t be out running around like some cowboy with a fire poker. And Edward just nods and goes “All right then, dear.” It was hilarious, him jumping around with some iron rod and then Em. I swear, she is the only person in the world besides Grandmother who can shame that man.”
“So did Emily tell you about this?” Georgie asked as they turned the corner.
Dillon laughed, shaking his head. “Nah, I couldn’t sleep either, so I was spying the whole time. That’s what makes it even funnier.”
Georgie laughed, smacking Dillon’s shoulder. “You sneak,” she admonished.

"So what did you think of the movie?" Dillon asked Georgie as they walked out of the Moroccan.
Georgie shook her head. "It was all right."
He noticed that her mood wasn't completely lifted. "Hey," he gently bumped into her side. "want to talk about it?"
She knew he wasn't talking about the movie. "I don't know, Dillon." She said shaking her head. "Sometimes it's just so hard to deal with my sister. She's so mean, even when I don't do anything to her."
Dillon nodded his head, not really knowing what to say.
After a few minutes, she spoke up again. "Hey Dillon?" She asked looking down at the sidewalk.
"Yeah?" He replied looking over at her.
"Thanks," she stopped, turning to look at him.
Dillon smiled. "No problem.”
They walked along in silence, the only sound the scuffing of their shoes along the sidewalk.
“Hey Georgie,” Dillon spoke up suddenly. “You want to hear a story?”
“Ummm...sure,” she said, a little hesitantly.
“Okay,” Dillon continued. “So this guy comes home from a doctor’s appointment and he looks really disturbed, right? So his wife says ‘honey, what’s wrong?’ And the guy goes ‘I think my doctor was trying to hit on me.’ His wife asks him why he thinks that. So the guy goes, ‘well, in the middle of my exam, the doc asks me to drop my pants, so I did. Then he grabbed me between my legs and told me to turn my head and cough.’ The wife laughed. ‘Sweetie,’ she said, ‘the doctor wasn’t hitting on you. That’s how they check to see if you have a hernia.’ ‘Yeah, okay,’ the guy says, ‘but this was my eye doctor.’” Dillon looked to Georgie for approval. “Eh?”
She bit her lip, shaking her head with incredulity. “That was...awful,” she accused him.
He cocked his head. “Yeah, but it made you smile,” he pointed out, seeing the grin twitching at the corners of her lips.
Georgie held her hands up. “Okay, guilty, yes, it did,” she admitted, “thank you.” She narrowed her eyes. “Wait a sec...”
“Yeah?”
“Is that,” Georgie blushed, looking away, “is that how they really check if you have a hernia?”
Now it was Dillon’s turn to blush. “Ummm, yeah,” he said uneasily, “it is.”
Georgie looked sidelong at him. “Have you ever...had one of those?”
“What?” he asked bluntly. “A hernia, or an exam where the doctor grabbed my package?”
Georgie’s face went bright red. “Dillon!” she cried, smacking him. “Gross! You perv!”
“Hey, you asked,” he teased her. “Who you callin’ a perv?” He reached out, tickling her ribs. “Huh? Huh?”
“Grabbed your package?” Georgie groaned, mimicking him. She shuddered. “Ew!”
Dillon shrugged cockily. “Would you rather I be scientific and say grabbed my-”
Georgie clamped a hand over his mouth. “Don’t say it!” she commanded. “Don’t say the word!”
“What word?” Dillon teased, watching Georgie’s cheeks turn redder.
She pushed him. “Never you mind!”
“What word, Georgie?”
She smacked him again. “Shut up, I hate you!”
Dillon reached out, tickling her again. “Are you embarrassed?”
She squirmed under his fingers. “YES!” She screamed.
“But it’s just a word...” he teased. “Clinical.”
“Don’t!” She yelled. Dillon grabbed Georgie around the waist, swinging her up, almost on to his back. He wasn’t strong enough to lift her all the way, however, and they both toppled to the sidewalk.
“Nice one,” she commented.
“Hush up,” Dillon commanded. “You okay?”
Georgie pulled herself to her feet, dusting off her jeans. “Yeah, I’m okay,” she replied.
Dillon nodded. He cocked his head at her, kneeling slightly. “Come on,” he gestured to his back. “Hop on.”
Georgie looked at him oddly. “You looking to get a hernia?”
Dillon wiggled his eyebrows. “Yeah, I want to have to go have the doctor grab-”
“Don’t!” she yelled.
He grinned. “Georgie, you’re a pipsqueak,” he informed her. “Jump on.”
She put her hands on his shoulders, jumping on to his back. Dillon jostled her a little, placing his hands beneath her knees for support.
“Remind me again,” he asked, as he walked along. “What word was it that I wasn’t supposed to say again? Was it...”
“You suck,” she informed him bluntly.

"Aww," Elizabeth was standing behind the counter in Kelly's. "too cute!" She said nodding her head toward the door.
Lucky, who was sitting on a stool, looked out of the window. "Yeah, they're a lot like Em and I were when we were younger." He explained, looking back toward his girlfriend.
Liz raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean, when you were younger?"
Lucky stuck his tongue out at her.
Dillon stopped once they reached Kelly's. "Ready?" He asked, still holding onto her.
"Yup!" Georgie said as she jumped off of his back. "Thanks, that was fun."
"Anytime." He said, as he opened the door and gestured for her to enter first.
"Lucky!" Georgie yelled running toward him.
Lucky quickly stood up, turning to face the door as Georgie jumped into his arms.
"Hey Georgie." He said smiling. "How was your night?" He asked sitting back down.
Georgie sat next to him, with Dillon on the other side of her.
"Maxie and I got into a fight," she explained, rolling her eyes. "so Dillon thought a movie might cheer me up."
"What do you two go and see?" Liz asked.
Georgie looked over at Dillon. "Arsenic and Old Lace." He replied.
"Sounds... interesting." Lucky said, as Liz shot him a look.
"It's all right, not everyone enjoys the classics." He assured them.
"Hey, who wants a sundae?" Liz asked looking at Dillon and Georgie.
"I do!" They both yelled at the same time!
Liz laughed. "Okay, what about you Lucky?"
"Sure, why not. I'll help you." He said standing up and walking behind the counter.
Elizabeth went into the kitchen, pulling a carton of vanilla ice cream out of the freezer.
“See if we have any strawberry for Miss Georgie,” Lucky called. Elizabeth poked her head back into the cooler.
“Only chocolate and vanilla,” she said, “but we’ve got some fresh strawberries in the walk-in.” She came out of the kitchen, carrying two cartons of ice cream and a pint of berries. “Grab the other stuff,” she commanded.
Lucky saluted her, going back into the kitchen. In a moment, he came back out, his arms full of sundae fixings. As Elizabeth scooped ice cream into dishes, Lucky came up behind her, leaning over to kiss her neck.
“Mmmm...” she moaned softly, closing her eyes for a moment.
“Hey,” Dillon called. “Get a room!”
The couple opened their eyes, straightening up. “Yeah, you wait,” Lucky told him. “We’ll see what you’re saying in a couple of years.”
Elizabeth laughed, ladling hot fudge over the ice cream. “Georgie, Dillon,” she called, “you want extra whipped cream?”
“Yes please,” they called back.
As Elizabeth continued to dress the sundaes, Lucky sidled over to Georgie and Dillon’s table, one hand behind his back. He leaned close to Georgie, peering at her oddly.
“Hey, Georgie,” he said, “you got something right...here!” He swooped down, giving Georgie a kiss on the tip of her nose. She giggled. As he straighted up again, Lucky pulled the hand from behind his back, swiping Georgie’s nose and cheek with a hot-fudge covered finger.
“Lucky!” she shrieked, as Dillon laughed. Georgie reached for a napkin, trying to get the sticky sauce off her face, but it only spread more. She mock-pouted at Lucky. “Jerk.”
“Georgie, come here,” Elizabeth called, laughing. Sticking her tongue out at Lucky, Georgie went to Elizabeth. Dipping a rag in water, Elizabeth wiped the hot fudge off the girl’s face. With a grin of thanks, Georgie returned to her table. “Lucky Spencer, you are incorrigible,” she lectured her boyfriend.
“Who me?” Lucky said innocently. He walked around the counter as Elizabeth sprayed the sundaes liberally with whipped cream before sprinkling on peanuts and adding maraschino cherries. He looked critically at the confections. “You call that extra whipped cream?” he demanded. He reached for the bottle. “Give me that.”
Shaking the bottle, Lucky doused the sundaes in whipped cream, piling it on.
“Dillon, Georgie,” Elizabeth called, laughing, “get over here and get your sundaes before Lucky covers the whole diner in whipped cream!”
Georgie and Dillon moved to the counter, grabbing spoons and digging into their sundaes.
"Dillon," Liz began to say, as she wiped off the counter. "has Em talked to you about having a movie night tomorrow evening?"
Dillon looked up at her, shaking his head. "Nope, not yet."
"Why, what does she have planned?" Georgie asked curiously.
"We're all supposed to go to the Quartermaine's and watch a movie, eat pizza, all that good stuff." She explained.
"Sounds good to me." Dillon said smiling.
"Yeah, it'll be fun." Georgie replied. "Lucky, will you be there, too?" She asked, looking over at him.
"You bet!" He exclaimed, leaning against the counter. Winking, he snatched Georgie’s spoon, scooping up a huge bite of ice cream and stuffing it into his mouth.

“Oh I’m stuffed,” Georgie groaned as she and Dillon walked out of Kelly’s.
“Aw, me too,” he agreed. He looked up. “It’s after dark.”
Georgie laughed. “Thank you, Captain Obvious,” she quipped.
“Yeah, yeah, yeah,” Dillon shot her a dirty look. “Come on, I’ll walk you home.” He started to take a step.
“Hey Dillon?” Georgie hedged.
He stopped, turning back to her. “Yeah?”
Georgie shrugged, then took a step toward him, reaching out her arms. Dillon caught her as she hugged him around the neck.
“Thanks,” she said, squeezing him tightly. “You’re the best.”
Dillon laughed, hugging her back. “Yeah,” he agreed. “You too.”


Preview:
"Here, I'll carry her."

[JRK Archiver]

Ch 7


Georgie blew her bangs out of her eyes, exasperated. “Mac, what’s the big deal? I just want to go to the Quartermaines for a movie night! Stop being so police-y!”
Mac took the pot of spaghetti off the stove. “Georgie, school starts tomorrow.”
“I’ll be home by 10,” Georgie said, getting the sauce out of the fridge and handing it to Mac. “Lucky is going to pick me up and drop me off. Come on!”
“Georgie, with your sister running around all hours, I can’t handle both of you running around with boys I barely know,” Mac told her.
Dillon groaned. “Daddy! Dillon’s not a boy boy. And you can’t punish me because of what Maxie does.”
Mac took Georgie’s cheeks in his hands, kissing the top of her head. “I just don’t want to see you getting into trouble or see your grades falling...”
Georgie rolled her eyes. “It’s just the movies with some friends.”
“Including a known felon,” Mac pointed out.
“Mac,” Georgie whined. “Zander’s been good for years. And you trust Emily and Lucky and Elizabeth. Come on!”
Just then, the doorbell rang. “That’s Lucky and Elizabeth,” Georgie said. She ran to open the door. “Hi,” she said.
“Hey buttercup,” Lucky said, tickling Georgie’s ribs. “Why the long face?”
Georgie pouted. “Mac doesn’t want me to go.”
Lucky ruffled her hair. “I’ll go talk to him.”
“Come on,” Georgie led them both into the kitchen. “Dad, Lucky and Elizabeth are here. Can I please go?”
“Georgie-” Mac began.
“Mac, I’ll take responsibility for her,” Lucky promised him. “It’s just pizza and movies at the Quartermaines. Em said Monica is home tonight, so there’s a parent there. And I’ll drive Georgie home and walk her up to the door myself.”
“Well...” Mac hedged.
Georgie, who was standing next to Elizabeth crossed her arms over her chest.
“He’s worried about Dillon,” she mocked, making a face.
“Georgiana...” Mac warned.
She looked down. “Sorry Daddy.”
“Commissioner, Dillon is a good kid,” Elizabeth spoke up. “I promise.”
“I just don’t know about you going to a couples party, Georgie,” Mac said. “You’re only twelve.”
Georgie tried to suppress the urge to scream. “It’s just a friendly gathering,” Lucky assured Mac. “It’s not a couples thing at all.”
“Besides,” Georgie repeated. “Dillon isn’t really a boy! We’re just friends.” She rubbed her eyes. “Please Daddy, I’m not asking to do anything bad.”
Lucky spoke quietly. “Mac, you know I’ll look out for her. Come on, you know how much I love your girls. I wouldn’t want Georgie to go anywhere that I didn’t know she was gonna be okay.”
Mac sighed. “No drinking.” He told all of them. He looked at Lucky and Elizabeth. “I know you’re both over 21, but if you’re going to be looking out for Georgie...”
“Yes sir,” Elizabeth replied, as Georgie blushed red and wished she would sink through the floor.
“You have my word,” Lucky promised. Mac nodded.
“Okay.”
Georgie threw her arms around him. “Thanks Dad!”
Mac kissed her head. “Be good,” he said.
Georgie rolled her eyes. “I always am.” She turned to Lucky and Elizabeth. “Thanks guys.”
They said their goodbyes to Mac and escaped out the door. Georgie covered her mouth and screamed into her hands.
“He’s so hyper!” she whined.
Elizabeth and Lucky exchanged amused glances. “Awww, he’s just looking out for you,” Elizabeth explained.
Georgie stuck her lip out. “I know,” she rationalized. “But it’s still annoying.” She swiped annoyed tears from her eyes.
Lucky winked at Elizabeth, before swooping down to lift Georgie off the ground. “The Incredible Flying Georgie!” He announced. He spun her around in circles as she shrieked with delight.
Georgie giggled as Lucky set her back on the ground, sending her stumbling into Elizabeth, who shook her head.
“Lucky,” Elizabeth laughed. “You’re gonna make the poor girl fall over.” She stuck her tongue out at Lucky as she helped a dizzy Georgie to the car.

"Got the movie?" Emily asked, opening her bedroom door for Dillon.
"Yup," he said, holding up the case.
"Awesome!" She said throwing the blanket over her bed. There was a knock at the door. "Come in," she yelled.
"Hey Em!" Elizabeth said walking into the room, followed by Georgie and Lucky.
"Hey guys," Em said.
"Hey handsome." Liz said walking toward Dillon and giving him a quick hug.
Dillon smiled. "Hey."
Once she was done talking to Emily, Georgie ran over to Dillon, giving him a big hug.
"Hi," she said smiling.
"Hey. I'm glad you could come tonight," he said.
Georgie rolled her eyes. “I almost couldn’t. Mac was being all Officer Dad on me,” she complained.
"Where's Zander?" Lucky asked.
"Oh, he went to get the pizzas." Emily explained. "One pineapple and canadian bacon, half with green peppers, gross gross gross, for me and Lucky,” she stuck her tongue out at her best friend.
“Hey,” he protested. “You don’t have to eat that half.”
Elizabeth shook her head. “I don’t see how you eat pineapple on pizza,” she told them.
Emily grinned. “Extra cheese and pepperoni for Zander and Elizabeth.”
“Boooring...” Lucky teased. Elizabeth tossed her hair.
“It’s classic,” she said, imperiously. Lucky leaned to kiss her cheek.
“Yes, you are,” he assured her.
“And one half everything for Dillon," she turned to face Georgie. "And half eggplant, roasted peppers, artichokes, and goat cheese for Georgie." She said.
"You eat all of that?" Dillon asked, not believing Emily.
"Yeah, why?" Georgie asked looking at him.
"Ewww, that's gross." He said shivering.
Lucky laughed. "She's always liked her pizza like that." He explained.
"Goat cheese?" Dillon asked, making a face.
Georgie nodded her head. "And eggplant and pepper and artichokes."
"Okay!" He yelled, holding up his hands. "Enough, I'm going to be sick just hearing about it."
Everyone started laughing.
"What's so funny?" Zander asked, walking into the room. His hands filled with four boxes of pizza.
"Dillon is grossed out by Georgie's taste in pizza." Liz said, trying to calm down.
Zander laughed, setting the boxes down on the desk. "Here's your pizza, Georgie." He handed the box to her.
"Thanks, Zander." She said setting the box down on a nearby chair.
"Dillon, yours is in there too, buddy." He explained.
Everyone started laughing again.
Dillon turned to face Georgie. "Oh, you think this is funny?"
Georgie nodded her head. "Yeah, I do." She said, in-between laughing.
"Oh really?" He asked again, this time stepping closer to her.
She nodded her head again, still laughing.
Dillon put his hands on her sides and started tickling her. "Still think it's funny?"
She tried to get out of his grasp. "Dillon, stop! Stop it!" Now she was laughing even harder.
"Okay," he said letting her go.
"Jerk," she said smacking his shoulder.
They both noticed the room was silent, as they turned to face everyone.
“What?” Dillon asked.
Zander laughed. “Are you two done flirting now?”
“Ew,” Georgie wrinkled her nose, scooting away from Dillon.
“Yeah, man,” Dillon agreed.
Emily laughed. “He’s just giving you a hard time,” she explained. She kissed Zander. “Be good.”
“Woohoo, liplock!” Lucky teased. Emily threw a pillow at him.
“Hush thyself, Spencer,” she admonished.
Lucky caught the pillow, sticking his tongue out at Emily. “Hey, nothing wrong with it,” he said, moving in to kiss Elizabeth.
Dillon and Georgie eyed each other amidst the amorous couples. Dillon mimed sticking a finger down his throat. Georgie covered her mouth, giggling.
“What movie are we watching?” Zander asked, reaching over for a slice of pizza.
Dillon reached for a slice as well, carefully avoiding the evidence of Georgie’s gourmandry. “Diner,” he replied. “Barry Levinson, 1982.”

“Oh god,” Elizabeth groaned as Mickey Rourke’s character “Boogie” eased the box of popcorn over his lap. “Oh tell me he isn’t going to...”
“Yeah,” Lucky nodded. “He is.”
Zander groaned.
“Classy,” Em commented as on the screen, Carol Heathrow reached into the box, and shrieked in horror.
Georgie wrinkled her nose. “Did he just...” she asked, as the explanation of misplaced anatomy began on screen.
“Ooh,” Lucky reached over, covering Georgie’s ears.
“Yeah.” Emily covered Dillon’s ears as well. “You guys don’t need to hear this.”
Georgie squirmed. Dillon smirked, mouthing the words along with the movie.
Zander reached for the DVD case. “What’s this movie rated anyway?” He asked. He showed Emily the box.
“Dillon!” She smacked the back of his head. “You shouldn’t be watching R-rated movies.”
He rolled his eyes. “Like you didn’t?” He asked.
Emily conceded. “Fine,” she said.
“But the next one is going to be PG,” Elizabeth said. She pointed to Georgie. “You’re not telling Mac an out and out lie.”
Georgie saluted.

“What time is it?” Elizabeth asked, as the end credits of The Wizard of Oz rolled.
Lucky checked his watch. “9:40.”
“Seems later,” Zander commented as Emily reached over to turn on the light.
Elizabeth pressed her hand to her mouth. “Look,” she whispered, pointing.
The others looked to the loveseat, where Dillon and Georgie had both dozed off. He was slouched against the arm of the sofa while she was curled up, her head lolling against Dillon’s shoulder. His arm sprawled over Georgie’s stomach.
“God, they’re cute,” Emily commented. “It’s a shame to wake them.”
Elizabeth nodded. “I know, but we promised Mac we’d get Georgie home by ten.” She walked over to the loveseat. “Hey guys,” she nudged the kids. Dillon stretched, but Georgie just curled up more tightly against him. “That’s right,” Elizabeth remembered. “She’s a heavy sleeper.” She shook Georgie a little. “Georgie...”
Lucky moved Elizabeth gently out of the way. “Here, I’ll carry her,” he said. He shook Dillon. “Hey, Dillon.”
Dillon stirred awake. “Hmmm?”
“Scoot over,” Lucky ordered. He leaned over, scooping Georgie up into his arms. As he shifted her body against his chest, he jostled her head against his shoulder, stirring her awake.
“Lucky,” she complained sleepily. “Put me down. I’m not a baby.” She yawned, laying her head back on his shoulder and closing her eyes. Lucky smiled.
“Go to sleep, honey,” he whispered. He nodded to Zander and Dillon. “Goodnight guys.”
“Night,” they replied, Dillon still dazed with sleep.
Emily came over. “Night,” she smiled, stretching up to kiss Lucky’s cheek. He stooped down slightly, trying not to disturb Georgie.
“Later baby,” Lucky winked at Emily with feigned coolness.
“I’m not a baby,” Georgie protested, her eyes still closed. Zander, Elizabeth, Emily and Lucky laughed. Dillon had fallen back asleep on Emily’s loveseat.
Elizabeth blew kisses to Emily and Zander as she opened the door for Lucky, then followed him out.
Emily looked at her sleeping cousin.
“Should we wake him?” Zander asked. Emily shook her head.
“Nah, leave him be. I’ll go sleep in one of the guest rooms,” she said.
Zander wrapped his arms around her waist. “You could come stay with me tonight,” he said seductively in her ear.
Emily raised her eyebrow. “Yes, yes I could,” she agreed. Zander lowered his head to kiss her neck.
Emily held up one finger. “Hold that thought,” she instructed. She pulled away from Zander, reaching to pull the blanket off her bed. Going to the loveseat, she covered up Dillon. “Goodnight, sleep tight, don’t let the bedbugs bite,” she whispered. Turning back to her boyfriend, she grinned. “Let’s go,” she said, holding out her hand.
“Hit the light,” Zander instructed.
Emily flicked the switch as they left, leaving the room in darkness.


Preview:
"I hate you. You suck."

[JRK Archiver]

Ch 8


“So,” Dillon mused, leaning against the locker next to Georgie’s, “this is high school.” He raised an eyebrow. “I’m not impressed.”
Georgie threw her backpack into her locker and turned around to face him. "Dillon, it's our first day and we've only been here for five minutes." She reminded him.
He shrugged his shoulders. "I'm still not impressed. Maybe I'll just cut out early, go catch a movie at the Moroccan."
Georgie's eyes grew wide. "Dillon Quartermaine, you will not!"
He started laughing. "And why not?"
She stuck out her bottom lip. "Because if you do, I'll be all alone." She explained, closing her locker.
Dillon smiled at her. "Okay, I won't leave, but we have to go and catch a movie later this week. Deal?" He asked, holding out his hand.
"Deal," Georgie said shaking it.
They started walking down the crowded hallway.
Dillon spoke up. "You know, I'm really glad you skipped a grade, otherwise I wouldn't know anyone and then I really would cut out early."
Georgie couldn't help but laugh. "I know what you mean." She admitted, gently bumping into his side.
"Okay, I just need to stop at my locker," Dillon said looking over at Georgie.
"Which would be right there." Georgie pointed out to him. "Locker 315."
He sighed. "What would I do without you?"
She shook her head and laughed slightly. "Let me see your schedule, I want to see which classes we have together."
He handed her his schedule as he threw his backpack into his locker, pulling out a few binders and closing it quickly.
"American History, Literature and Composition, Biology, Algebra." She started to name off the classes they would have together.
Dillon leaned over her shoulder and started reading. "I have Beginning Greek, and you have Conversational French. I guess we'll have to make some new friends in those classes." He said pretending to pout.
"Or not." Georgie said jokingly.
He laughed. "We've got the same Gym period, but we'll have separate classes." He explained, still looking over her shoulder.
"And theater class." Georgie said rolling her eyes.
"Why does that class have to be a requirement?" Dillon asked, as she turned around to face him.
"Because they think it's fun to torture us." She explained to him, handing him back his schedule.
Dillon groaned. “Rapture.”

“Good afternoon, students. Welcome to Freshman Biology,” the teacher, a red-haired woman in her mid-40s, announced as she walked into the room. “I’m Ms. Harris. Let’s begin by taking the role.” She peered at her class list. “Please correct me if I mispronounce your name or tell me if you have any nicknames you prefer to be addressed by. Michelle Atwater?”
“Here.”
“Alexander Ayerson?”
“Present. I prefer Alex.”
“Alex then. Laura Bowen?”
“Here.”
Dillon twirled his pen around his fingers as the teacher continued to call the role.
“Sandrine Iger.”
“Present.”
“Georgiana Jones.”
Next to Dillon, Georgie flushed slightly. “Georgie, please, ma’am.” Snickering slightly, Dillon poked Georgie in the ribs.
“Georgiana?” he mouthed, teasing. She stuck her tongue out.
“Dillon Quartermaine?”
“Yeah, here,” he called half-heartedly.
The teacher paused a moment, looking at him. “Relation of Emily?”
Dillon nodded. “My cousin.”
Mrs. Harris nodded back. “Excellent student. Mackenzie Ross?”
“Here.”
Once the role had been called, Mrs. Harris began passing out packets of paper. “This is your syllabus for the semester,” she explained. “It contains the assignments and readings. This class meets 4 times a week, Monday through Thursday. You’ll be expected to answer a series of questions due in class each Thursday based upon the readings from the previous days that week. Any questions so far?” When no one responded, she continued. “If you follow along in your syllabus, you’ll see that this year we’ll be focusing on human biology and anatomy, including a month-long unit on reproduction and sexual education.”
At those words, half the class snickered. Dillon leaned over to Georgie, who was taking copious notes on her assignment sheet.
“Hey,” he whispered under his breath. “I bet they make you say...”
She smacked him. “Shut up!” She hissed.
“Ahem!” Mrs. Harris cleared her throat. “Miss Jones, Mr. Quartermaine. Do I have to separate you?”
They both shook their heads in shame. “No ma’am,” Dillon replied.
Georgie avoided the teacher’s steely gaze. “Beg pardon, ma’am,” she mumbled.

“Georgie, wait up!” Dillon called as Georgie stalked down the hall toward her locker. He rushed to catch up with her. “Georgie!” She ignored him. Dillon reached her, grabbing her arm. “Georgie, what’s with you?”
She whirled around, glaring at him. “You got me in trouble the first day, Dillon!”
Dillon rolled his eyes. “Come on, don’t overdramatize. She just said one thing, that’s all.” He leaned against the locker.
Georgie shook her head. “You don’t get it, okay? I like school. I want to go to a good college. And I don’t like to get in trouble!”
“OK, OK, I’m sorry!” Dillon sounded exasperated. It wasn’t the best way to get Georgie to forgive him. She smirked angrily.
“I have French,” she said, grabbing her books from her locker and slamming the door. Dillon smacked the cold metal as Georgie took off down the hall.

“Georgie?” Dillon said hesitantly, approaching her in the cafeteria. She was sitting at a table alone, her nose in a book. “What you reading?”
Georgie barely looked up. “Romeo and Juliet,” she mumbled. “For Lit and Comp.”
Dillon let out a low whistle. “Dilligent,” he admired.
Georgie sucked on her juice box. “I told you, I like school. Sorry if that’s not cool enough for you.”
Dillon rolled his eyes, flopping down into the seat next to her. “Come on, Georgie, don’t be pissed,” he pleaded. He reached into his backpack, pulling out a Twix bar. Opening the package, he pulled one out, extending it to her. “Come on,” he begged, pouting at her. “Who’s gonna share my Twix otherwise?”
Georgie looked sidelong at him, then at the Twix, then back at Dillon. “I guess I’m not that pissed,” she conceded. Dillon broke out in a grin, handing her the candy bar.
“What was with the cold shoulder?” He queried, taking a noisy bite.
Georgie shrugged. “People always think I’m a geek because I like school,” she muttered. “So I kind of go on the defensive about it.”
Dillon elbowed her. “You are a geek,” he said, “but you’re the coolest geek I know.”
Georgie shot him a look. “Oh thank you so much for the backhanded compliment,” she replied in deep sarcasm.
Dillon laughed, looping an arm around Georgie’s shoulders and pulling her against him. “Awww...come on,” he teased. “You know I’m just teasing you.” He pouted at her. “Don’t be mad, Georgie, please? You’re my favorite person in the whole town.”
She rolled her eyes at him, only slightly assuaged. “You know, like, ten people in town.”
“You’re my bestest friend in the whole wide world!” He proclaimed proudly.
Georgie laughed. “Fine,” she surrendered. “You win. I’m not mad at you.”
Dillon beamed. “Yay.” He gave Georgie a quick squeeze before releasing her.
Sitting up, Georgie caught sight of the clock. “Oh god,” she exclaimed. “We have three minutes until History class!” Quickly, she began to gulp down her chicken fingers. Dillon watched her in amusement.
“Don’t you masticate?” He queried.
Georgie almost choked, turning to gape at him. “Dillon!” she hissed. “Gross! And what the hell are you asking that for?”
Dillon snickered at her. “It means chew,” he informed her. “Dirty minded thing.”
Georgie smacked him hard. “I hate you, you suck,” she said, but a smile played at her lips.
Dillon laughed. “Prude.”
“Shut up!” Georgie snapped. Dillon tickled her. “Stop it! Stop it, stop it, stop it!” She looked at the clock. “Run!”
Dillon saluted as they gathered up their trash. “Yes ma’am!”
“Hey Georgie?” Dillon called, as they rushed down the hall. “Do you?”
“Do I what?” she asked, turning to look at him.
He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively. “You know...”
“Bite me,” she replied. Dillon laughed as Georgie grabbed his arm, dragging him into the classroom just as the bell rang.



Preview:
“Squid?!”

[JRK Archiver]

Ch 9



“How long is this gonna take?” Maxie whined. “It’s probably the last weekend that it’ll be warm enough to go to the lake.”
Georgie tried not to look hurt as Mac pulled the car into a parking space in front of Bella Toscana, a northern Italian restaurant and one of Georgie’s favorite eateries in the world.
“Maxie, try to think of someone other than yourself,” Felicia scolded, turning around. “Is it that much of a sacrifice to have lunch with your family for your sister’s birthday?”
“Hmmph.” Maxie crossed her arms, glaring. Felicia gave Georgie a comforting smile.
“Dillon knows what time to meet us?”
Georgie nodded. “I told him two o’clock. Ned is dropping him off.”
“It’s five of,” Mac commented. “Come on.” They all climbed out of the car. Georgie linked her arm through Mac’s as they walked toward the entrance of the restaurant.
“Thanks for letting me invite Dillon,” she said, looking up at her dad. He kissed the top of Georgie’s head.
“It’s your party.”
“Hey, how come Georgie gets to spend the day with her boyfriend and I don’t?” Maxie demanded.
“It’s Georgie’s birthday,” Mac said sternly, “she’s entitled to invite a guest.”
“And ewww,” added Georgie. “Dillon is not my boyfriend.” She wrinkled her nose.
As they entered the restaurant, Georgie grinned. Dillon was seated in a chair by the hostess stand, waiting for them. He stood up when he saw them enter, walking over. He held a gift-wrapped parcel in his hand.
“Hey,” Georgie said. She almost snickered, but instead only smiled, when Dillon leaned to kiss her cheek.
“Happy birthday, Georgie,” he said, straightening up. He handed her the gift. “This is for you.”
“Thank you,” Georgie replied politely. He must be getting his etiquette from a movie, she mused to herself.
“Hello Dillon,” Felicia greeted him with a smile.
He smiled back. “Hi Mrs. Scorpio. Commissioner Scorpio. Thank you for inviting me.”
“Our pleasure,” Mac replied, after Felicia shot him a quick look. Dillon nodded to Maxie.
“Hey Maxie,” he said, with a bit of dis-ease. She merely smirked at him.
“Buon Giorno,” the host greeted them, coming over. “Scorpio?” Mac nodded. “This way please.”
They followed him, Mac and Felicia, then Dillon and Georgie, with Maxie trailing sulkily behind. Dillon glanced at Georgie, in a yellow sundress with blue roses.
“Hey.”
She glanced at him. “Hmmm?”
Dillon flicked his eyes up and down briefly. “You look pretty,” he informed her, almost suspiciously, as if it were an unexpected or strange occurence.
Georgie rolled her eyes at his tone. “Gee thanks,” she quipped sarcastically.
He held up his hands. “No no, honest, you do,” he said, sounding genuine this time. Georgie flushed slightly.
“Thank you,” she whispered, looking at her shoes.
“He’s not my boyfriend,” Maxie mocked from behind them, her voice dripping with sarcasm and condescension.
Georgie turned to face her sister. “Shut up, Maxie!” she snapped. Turning back to face Dillon, she crossed her eyes and stuck out her tongue in a grotesque manner. He replied silently, by making a monkey face at her.

“Signorina?” The waiter stood poised above Georgie, his pen poised.
She scanned the menu quickly, her mouth almost watering. “The caprese salad, please,” she requested. “And the risotti calamari.”
“Squid?!” Dillon whispered as the waiter smiled and moved to take Felicia’s order.
Georgie quirked an eyebrow. “You know what calamari is?”
Dillon shrugged. “I used to live in Italy.”
Georgie snorted. “He says casually.”
“Signor?” The waiter stood by Dillon’s chair.
“Ummm...the penne pomodoro, please.” He handed the menu to the waiter with a nod.
Georgie elbowed him. “Adventurous,” she quipped.
“Quiet, squid girl,” he responded.

The waiter came back to the table with a bottle of Chianti that Mac had ordered about five minutes earlier.
"Thank you," he said as the waiter handed him the bottle.
"You're welcome. Would you like anything else?" He asked, looking around the table.
"No, I think we're fine for now. Thank you." She said as the waiter nodded his head and walked away.
Mac poured some wine into Felicia's glass, and then his own.
"Thank you," she said politely, smiling.
"Welcome," he said.
Maxie's eyes lit up. "Oohh, can I have some, too?" She asked, hopeful.
"Sure, when you're 21." Mac asked quickly.
Dillon laughed, almost spitting his water out.
Georgie started to giggle, but quickly covered her mouth.
"I'm sorry," he said quickly apologizing.
Maxie shot them both a look, and sighed heavily. "But why not?"
"Because you're not old enough," Felicia explained.
"I only want a little bit, please?" She began pleading.
“No, Maxie." Mac said firmly.
"This is so unfair," she said loud enough for the whole table to hear her.
Georgie looked over at Dillon and rolled her eyes.
He leaned over and whispered in her ear. "I'm sorry."
"Please don't apologize, it's not your fault," she whispered back, looking down at her food. Georgie picked at her risotto. taking a bite of calamari.
“See, I told you - squid - no good can come of this,” Dillon quipped quietly, trying to make Georgie laughed. He succeeded slightly, eliciting a small smile.
“Thanks,” she mouthed, grateful for the effort. He dropped her a wink, finally making her giggle.
“Yes!” Dillon whispered triumphantly.
“Blech,” Maxie mimed sticking a finger down her throat. The grin quickly faded from Georgie’s face as she pushed her food around with her fork.
Felicia shot Maxie a scolding look and then sighed in Mac’s direction. Maxie sulked, Dillon examined the tomatoes on his plate, and Georgie wished it wasn’t her birthday.

“Well how about presents?” Mac suggested while they waited for the check. “Maxie?”
“Right.” Maxie reached into her purse, pulling out an envelope. “Happy birthday,” she said half-heartedly, handing it to Georgie.
“Thanks,” Georgie mumbled, opening the envelope. “Certificate to Hot Topic.” She gave Maxie a quick grin. “Thanks.”
“Hot Topic?” Dillon wondered.
“Duh!” Maxie rolled her eyes.
“It’s like a gothy store,” Georgie explained.
Dillon nodded. “Ah,” he replied, wondering what in the hell a girl like Georgie was going to do at a goth store. “Ummm, here,” he said, handing her a package.
Georgie pulled off the paper to reveal a videotape. “Little Women?” she asked, smiling.
“It’s the 1933 Cukor version,” Dillon specified. “You said it was your favorite book, so I figured you should see the movie.”
Georgie smiled. “I love the one with Winona Ryder, but I haven’t seen this one.” She hesitated for a second and then leaned over, giving Dillon a quick kiss on the cheek. “Thank you.”
“Oh my god,” Maxie groaned. “Only you would get excited about some dumb black and white movie based on some lame-o book.” She turned to Felicia. “Is Georgie, like, adopted or something?”
Georgie swallowed a lump in her throat as Dillon glanced at his friend, then at his knuckles, feeling very uneasy.
“Grounded, Maria, two weeks,” Felicia snapped. Maxie groaned loudly again. Felicia exchanged a look with Mac and turned to Georgie. “Honey, why don’t you and Dillon go out and see a movie at that place you like, what it’s called?”
“The Moroccan,” Georgie muttered, on the verge of tears.
“Right,” Felicia confirmed. She reached into her purse, pulling out some money and handing it to Georgie. “Go on, have fun.”
Georgie just sat there for a second. Dillon smiled uncomfortably at Mac and Felicia, then stood up.
“Come on, Georgie,” he said quietly.

“You feel any better?” Dillon asked as they walked out of the Moroccan.
Georgie shrugged. “Kinda,” she said. She gave Dillon a half-smile. “Thanks for the gummy bears.”
Dillon grinned. “No prob.” He eyeballed her for a second. “Hey, let’s go blow that certificate Maxie gave you.”
Georgie looked at him oddly. “You want to go shopping?”
Dillon shrugged. “Well, if we can mock people with multiple piercings. Ooh! Maybe you get your tongue pierced!”
Georgie laughed, for the first time that day. “Oh yeah,” she retorted, “and then let’s get you a tattoo that says Hellraiser.”
“I dig,” Dillon said, nodding. He slung an arm around Georgie’s shoulders. “Come on...we’ll find you some leather shorts for when they present the Honor Roll at school.” He was rewarded for his brilliant idea with a smack on the arm from Georgie.

"Whoa," Dillon said quietly as he and Georgie walked into Hot Topic. "you really shop here."
"Not really. Maxie and I came here once right before school started last year, and I liked a few things." She admitted looking through the racks of shirts, when she didn't see anything she liked she moved to another rack.
Dillon followed, and stood next to her. "See anything you like?"
"How about this?" She asked, pulling a Care Bears shirt from the rack. "I used to love this show when I was younger." She admitted, laughing.
"I think it's cute." He said, touching the light blue material.
"Yeah?" She asked, looking at him.
"Yeah." He repeated smiling. He looked around. “But..” he whispered slyly, “I think that dress,” he pointed to a red vinyl dress with a spiked collar and slits in the torso, “is much more you.”
“Oh my god,” Georgie whispered, “that’s like...like...”
“Bondage wear,” Dillon filled in.
Georgie laughed, hiding her mouth with her hand as a purple haired girl with four facial piercing stared at her. Dillon noticed the girl too, just as she stuck out her tongue, revealing a spike through it. Dillon leaned over to whisper in Georgie’s ear.
“I want her,” he deadpanned. “Right here, right now. Up against the rack of metal dog collars and leather underwear.”
Georgie laughed so hard she choked, leaning against Dillon for support.
“Thank you,” she said to him, “this is definitely making me feel better.”
"You don't need to thank me," he told her.
"I know," she said turning around to face him. "I'm gonna go try this on."
"Okay," he said, as she walked toward the dressing room.
Dillon rushed to a payphone just outside, and dialed a number. "Emily?"
"Hey Dillon." She said on the other end.
"I need your help,” he said hurriedly. “Lunch didn't work out so well, Maxie was being a total brat so Felicia and Mac told Georgie and I to go and see a movie. But she should have a better birthday party than a crappy lunch and a movie.”
"Oh that sucks,” Emily sympathized. “But actually, your request is granted. Lucky, Liz, Zander and I are planning a little party for Georgie at Kelly's. We're almost finished setting up, so do you think you could get her here in about an hour?" She asked.
"As long as you call Mac and Felicia and let them know what's going on." He said.
"Sounds like a plan,” Emily agreed. “Where are you now?”
“Hot Topic,” Dillon said. “Maxie gave Georgie a certificate, so we came here to make fun of people and get obscene tattoos.”
“Dillon!” Emily was aghast. “Don’t you dare.”
Dillon rolled his eyes. “I was kidding,” he laughed. “She’s trying on a Care Bears t-shirt.”
“Kelly’s. One hour,” Emily commanded, laughing.”
“Yes ma’am,” he replied.



Preview:
"You are going to be so sick."