Andlat's Story Spot

"Did you get it?" Max asked. He was so excited, Dan thought, that he actually looked away from his computer. He grinned and nodded. "Course I did. Party's tonight, isn't it?" "Can I see it?" "Calm down. Had to pull a lot of strings to even get them to agree to let you come to the party. Don't go ruining it by acting like some dorky little kid." "I'm not some little kid!" "But you are a dork? Interesting." He laughed. "Just kidding bro. You're not a little kid, so then start acting like it, dude. It's all juniors and seniors. You're the only ninth grader who was invited, so don't blow this." "Can I see the costume?" "It's pretty sophisticated. I'm gonna have to help you put it on, but trust me. It's boss." "Really?" He grinned from ear to ear. "But I really think you shouldn't see it until you've got it on." He frowned. That s

“Y'know,” Charlotte said. “Last winter was really nice, getting to watch whatever I wanted while you were across town, twirling and dancing.” “Very funny.” “And you were so graceful for like a week after!” “Charlotte, stop.” Jason muttered. “You know there's another ballet there right now.” Jason felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. “Charlotte…” “What? I was just gonna suggest we ask Mom and Dad if we can go.” Jason studied her face. Was it some plot of hers? Get them there and then do whatever it was she had done last time? “Eh, but I don't really know anything about this ballet.” Jason allowed himself to relax. “You had fun last time though, right?” “Sure.” He forced a smile. Charlotte nodded. Was she buying it? “What role did you play again?” “I was… the Sugar Plum Fairy.” Charlotte snorted. “That's right! Good thing you remember.” She softened somewhat. “I know it was a lot, but you did have fun, right?” “I said yes!” She grinned. “Oh, good

It was time for the family's annual Christmas card photo and David was in a sour mood. Every year, he and his sisters were forced to dress up in pajamas bought especially for the occasion and take what their parents called "a nice photo". As David grew older, he thought of the photoshoot as more and more of an imposition. He did not even wear pajamas to bed anymore. Try as he might though, he could not dissuade his parents. "It's tradition, Davey." His dad said. "Sorry, David." "Or is it Dave this week?" His mom asked, smiling. "It's still not fair. How come they get to pick?" The 'they' in question were his sisters. "Oh, I dunno." Daisy said. "You picked last year?" "Daisy, be nice to your brother. His idea was cute." Last year's card had seen the three of them barefoot in red union suits with Davey turning his back to the camera so everyone could see the Danger: Blasting Zone sig

“Alright, kiddo. Clean up your toys. It's bedtime.” Austin looked up from the floor. “But Daddy and Jaxon aren't home.” “Remember? Daddy’s got hockey and Jaxon made the team. We had cake.” “Yeah, but” “So they get home late.” She checked her watch. “Maybe if we get your jammies on quick, we can call them. Clean up your toys and upstairs for pajamas.” Austin obeyed and soon, they were upstairs in the room the boys shared. Austin undressed as Mom grabbed pajamas from the dresser. She paused as she saw her son's underwear. “Austin? Are those the underpants I set out for you today?” She saw the still folded pair on his pillow, but wanted to give him a chance to fess up. “No.” He said guiltily. “But I didn't want to wear those!” The pair he wore, the same pair he had worn yesterday, were gray with black stripes. Mom had set out a pair of Jaxon's old undies and they were Toy Story! A clear downgrade. “It's not a matter of want to, Austin. You need to change your unde

Ben shivered as he hurried along. What was the point of having fur if you still got cold? More importantly though, why had they not cancelled school when it was colder than Antarctica out here? He had asked Mr. Rosenberg, his science teacher, who had explained that it was summer in Antarctica right now, so they really should not compare their winter to Antarctica's summer. "Finally." He muttered as he spied the warm lights of home. He would be warm soon. He dashed up the steps, nearly slipping on the ice. "Shit!" He exclaimed. He hoped that had not been loud enough for anyone inside to hear. He could hear his little brother's voice even through the closed door. What was it about bear cubs that gave them the power to yell through walls? Great, he thought as he heard a second voice. He had Spencer over. Again. Those two were practically inseparable. Pushing inside, he could not help but grin as the warmth of the house wrapped him in a hug. "Close the door

"Hey, bud," Lacey said. "Since it's just you and me all weekend, I was wondering if you want to go to the movies. We can go see that new Slugman movie you were begging mom and dad to go to." Benny looked up from his video game and smiled at his older sister. "Sure!" He jumped off the couch, but then stopped. "Oh, but I can't." "Huh? Why not?" He gulped and pointed toward the front yard. "Because Connor and his goons are outside. They said they'll pelt me with snowballs if I show my face." Lacey went to the window and peeked outside. Sure enough, they were out there, even if they were doing their best to make it look like they were just hanging out. "I see." She said. "And you think they'd do it even if you were with me?" "I'd never live it down if they saw me hiding behind my big sister." Benny said. Lacey nodded. That made sense, she supposed. "Well, the only answer, I g

 "Hey!" Calvin froze. He had been walking around the playground aimlessly, hoping to find someone to introduce himself to. He had moved so many times, but being the new kid was never easy. His parents had told him this school having uniforms would make it easier since everyone wore the same thing, but he still felt like everyone thought he was a dork in his identical navy blue polo and khakis and gave him a wide berth. "Hey, new kid!" "Hi." He turned and looked at the trio approaching him. He knew bullies when he saw them. "Come here." The obvious leader said. He walked over. Bullies were nothing new to him and doing what they said usually kept them from going too far. "What are you? Some kind of genius baby?" "No." Calvin was shorter than them, but not by that much. If 'genius baby' was the best they could come up with, maybe these bullies would not be that bad. "You look like one." The lead bully said. &quo