Princess in Love

So I suppose that, technically, I should be thankful that Kenny chose merely to say the words 'I love you', rather than enacting them physically, which, God knows, might have actually have involved his tongue.

Oh, God, I don't even want to think about it any more.

Monday, December 7, Still Homeroom

They just passed out the Final Exam schedules. Here is mine:

FINAL EXAM SCHEDULE

December 14 - Reading Day

December 15 — Periods One and Two

For me, that means the Algebra and English finals will be on the same day. But that's OK. I'm doing pretty good in English. Well, except for that sentence diagramming thing. As if I'll ever need to do that in my future role as princess of the smallest nation in Europe.

Algebra, unfortunately, I am told I will probably need to know. DAMN!

December 16 - Periods Three and Four

World Civic. easy. I mean, Grandmere has told me enough stories about post-World War Two Europe for me to pass any test. I probably know more about it than the teacher. And PE? How can you give a Final in PE? We already had the Presidential Fitness Test (I passed everything but chin-ups).

December 17 - Periods Five, Six, and Seven

Gifted and Talented? No exam there. They don't give finals in classes that are basically study hall. That will be a snap. I have French seventh period. I do OK in oral, not so great in written. Fortunately Tina's in the same class. Maybe we can study together.

But I have Bio. sixth period. That won't be so easy. The only reason I'm not flunking Bio. is because of Kenny. He slips me most of the answers.

And if I break up with him, that will be the end of that.

December 18 - Non-Denominational Winter Carnival and Dance

The Winter Carnival should be fun. All the different school clubs and stuff are going to have booths, with traditional winter

fare, like hot cider. This will be followed in the evening by the dance I am supposed to go to with Kenny. If he ever asks me

to it, I mean.

Unless, of course, I do the right thing and break up with him.

In which case, I won't be able to go at all, because you can't go without a date.

I wish Sebastiano would just hurry up and kill me already.

Monday, December 7, Algebra

WHY???? WHY can't I ever remember my Algebra notebook?????

FIRST - Evaluate exponents

SECOND - Multiply and divide in order left to right

THIRD - Perform addition and subtraction in order left to right

EXAMPLE: 2x3-15/5=6-3=3

Oh, God. Lana Weinberger just tossed me a note.

What now? This can't be good. Lana's had it in for me for ever. Don't ask me why. I mean, I could kind of understand her resenting me for when Josh Richter asked me to the Cultural Diversity Dance instead of her. But he only asked me because

of the princess thing - and they got back together right after. Besides, Lana hated me long before that.

When I open the note, guess what it says:

I heard what happened to you at the skating rink this weekend. Guess the BF is going to have to wait a little longer

if he wants to see any tongue action, huh?

Oh my God. Does everyone in the entire school know that Kenny and I have not yet French kissed?

It is all Kenny's fault, of course.

What next? The cover of the Post?

I'm telling you, if our parents knew what actually goes on every day in the typical American high school, they would totally opt for home-schooling.

Monday, December 7, World Civ.

It is clear what I have to do.

I've always known it, of course, and if it hadn't been for, you know, the dance, I would have done it long before now.

But it is clear now that I cannot afford to wait until after the dance. I should have done it last night when he called, but you

can't really do something like that over the phone. Well, I mean, a girl like Lana Weinberger probably could, but not me.

No, I don't think I can put it off another day: I have got to break up with Kenny. I simply cannot continue living this lie.

Fortunately, I do have the support of at least one person in this plan: Tina Hakim Baba.

I didn't want to tell her. I didn't plan on telling anybody. But it all sort of slipped out today in the Girls' Room between third

and fourth periods while Tina was putting on her eye make-up. Her dad won't let her wear make-up, you see, so Tina has to wait until she gets to school to put it on. She has a deal with her bodyguard, Wahim (Tina has a bodyguard too, just like me, but not because she's a princess, it's because her dad is a rich oil sheik and he is paranoid someone is going to kidnap her and hold her for ransom). The deal is that Tina won't tell her parents how much Wahim flirts with Mademoiselle Klein, our French teacher, if Wahim doesn't tell Mr. and Mrs. Hakim Baba about Tina's Maybelline addiction.

Anyway, all of a sudden I just couldn't take it any more, and I ended up telling Tina what Kenny said last night on the phone—

And a lot more than that actually.

But first the part about Kenny's phone call.

Unlike Lilly, Tina believed me.

But Tina also had the totally wrong reaction. She thought it was great.

'Oh my God, Mia, you are so lucky,' she kept saying. 'I wish Dave would tell me he loves me! I mean, I know he is fully committed to our relationship, but his idea of romance is paying to have my fries super-sized at Mickey D's.'

This was so not the kind of support I was looking for.

'But, Tina,' I said. I felt Tina, with her extensive romance reading, would understand. 'The thing is, I don't love him.'