Dear Pup

Chapter 1

I want to fall in love. God, I've seen it in every cheesy movie and I absolutely hate it. It's cliche, it's unreasonable, it's stupid, and it's unrealistic. I still want it. I know exactly how to get it. I'll go to a summer resort where there is a beautiful yet troubled dance teacher. He will somehow end up dancing with me and randomly it will happen. But he's gotta do the lift...the lift has got to happen. Maybe I could change my name to Baby. Was this the fifth or sixth time I've ended up watching Dirty Dancing this month because I felt lonely? Definitely sixth.

"Eden?" My mom called me from downstairs. "Your laundry was supposed to be done before I came home for work."

"Oh, it was?" I yelled back through a mouthful of my sister's birthday cake leftovers. "I don't remember you mentioning that."

"Right before I left I told you," she claimed truthfully.

"I don't remember that mom," I said, hoping she thinks it's just her bad memory from getting old playing tricks on her.

"I also said to empty the dishwasher. And I remember this time. I definitely asked you."

"Ugh, fine I'll do it now," I said as I pause my movie and begin downstairs.

"Sweetie, do you know where your sister's math textbook is? I have to bring it to her tutoring today," she asked.

"On top of the counter," I said slyly.

"Alright sweetie, start your laundry. I'll be back in a couple hours. Is there anything you want from the grocery store?"

"No, mom. I'm fine. See you later," I said, on my toes ready to prance back upstairs. Once I heard the door close, I was practically already in my room. I pressed play on the remote. It was the final dance scene.

"Nobody puts Baby in a corner," I whispered in perfect synchronization with Patrick Swayze's lips. I watched them perform the final dance in awe, almost as if I were a small child watching his favorite super hero fight to the death. It's just such a perfect scene. The song, the feeling the dance, and the lift, which, the fact that it's humanly possible, got me up every morning. My phone rang and I picked it up, hoping it was Oliver bringing me good news.

"Hello?" I said, ready to freak out on him.

"Hello is this Eden Shapiro?" Definitely not Oliver.

"Yes, and who is this?" I asked.

"This is Mrs. Gates. I hear from my friend Marie that you babysit?" She stated.

"Oh, yes. I do. Would you like me to babysit sometime?" I asked. A little extra money to spend on food is never put aside.

"Well, yes. My husband and I are going out tomorrow night at 6:00 and my older son won't be around to watch the younger one. Can you make it?" She asked. It's not like I had anything else to do.

"Of course. I'll text you my information," I said.

"Thank you. I'll text my address and my husband's cell number, too. Have a good day!" She said with a chirpy voice.

"Thank you. You, too!" I put the phone back on its line. And then the phone rang again. A little less excited, I picked it up.

"Who is this?" I asked drearily.

"Who is this?" The voice on the other line asked, " Did someone kill Eden and replace her with a fat old depressed guy?"

"Oliver!" I almost yelled, "did you talk to him?"

"Yes," he started, "and the man said we can book it from 4:30 to 11:30 for $500. How's that?

"My god it's perfect! Thank you so much Oliver!" I heard him chuckling softly on the other line. This is why my best friend is awesome. He's a good arguer. He bargains perfect deals.

"Anything, honey. So, I have something to tell you," he continued on with a story about a lotion that he used for his face that made it gorgeously shiny but weirdly rough. I didn't even know if there was a response to be said to the long, drawn out story.

"Well...ok then. I have to go I'm currently paused right before the lift," I responded, my finger softly touching the pause button, just wanting to let my eyes worship it.

"DIRTY DANCING? My god, Eden, how did you not invite me over as soon as you started?!?!" He exclaimed into the phone.

"Calm yourself. You were at school and I'd probably infect you with the wrath of the cold. If you don't mind, I'd like some company for as soon as this is over. I might plan on watching some, I dunno, Grease?" I hinted this slightly because I know his love is Danny Zuko and he'd do anything for him.

"I'll be there in ten. Wait! Can you put this on speaker and play the lift for me?" I could hear that pang in his voice suggesting that he'd beg if necessary. I laughed and did as told, turning the volume all the way up. I could hear him gasp as soon as the music started.

"I can almost hear the wind move around her as he picks her up," he whispered into the phone.

"Ok I'm hanging up now. You'd better be here soon," I said quickly into the phone. He gave me a quick air kiss goodbye and I hung up.

It was just one of those Fridays where, not being at school for two days seems like the best thing that could happen, and then you realize you have nothing to do for two days. I could've done what everyone else does and hung out with all my friends, went to parties, hooked up with horny dudes, and gone home drunk and crying to daddy about my newly realized failure in life. It never sounded very appealing to me. Besides, my friends aren't the type. We'd rather sit around and watch movies and talk and do weird shit cause that's just who we are. And I like it. But the only true friends I had that I could trust with anything were Oliver and Ray.

Oliver, the classic gay best friend. He'll watch any movie with me as long as it's not from the 2000's. He'll watch those alone, but not with me, unless it's a remake of a movie made before the 2000's. He's got a weird philosophy about life that people were all born with an attachment to one person and one person only, and that that attachment is made through the act of falling in love. Your special person can live in any country or be any ethnicity, but when you first see them, you feel it. Of course, he's a hopeless romantic. He believes his attachment is John Travolta. It breaks my heart to know that won't happen, especially since that guy is like, old, I guess, now.

And Ray. God she's been my best friend since first grade. We clicked in a weird way when we were younger. I don't know what it was. We're practically opposites. She loves people, I, well, don't. She cares about appearance, and I usually don't. There are countless differences between us, but our real connection came from movies. They're very important to me. Ever since we were younger, we'd just watch and watch movies and, unlike normal children, we would analyze them. We recognized faults and could easily criticize a children's movie from the age of 6. Our life long dream has always been to star in a movie together. We just wanted that chance to be something, and we wanted to do it together. One day it'll happen. We'll make it on the big screen, I just know it.