Treasured (Book Two)

Chapter 1: California

California, the greatest and famous state that attracts more people's attention than studying or doing homework. I heard that ninety percent of the population was based on actors, actresses, singers, dancers, and mostly, talented people.

It was like Los Angeles, only it was ten times as bigger than Saturn. Other than seeing famous celebrities, Los Angeles was also the place where I have to go to for my cheating father's wedding.

It was a huge pain for me, especially for my mom. Mainly it was because, she disliked her ex-groom as well as the soon-to-be bride, Stacy Cherry.

But despite our deep hatred for them, we have to travel all the way to Los Angeles so we can meet the couple and our relatives, eat wedding cake, and get out of here.

The only greatest thing about coming to the wedding is my friend, Luke is going to be there to support me. One day, he came to my house to help me with my dress choices.

"Remind me why your mom can't do this?" Luke asked as he was sitting on my bed. "Because," I said. "Mom is going to a Book Club meeting." This was half true. While she was taking a Yoga Class, Mom met some a couple of friends there.

They got Mom addicted to this romance novel and invited her to their Book Club meeting. But the real reason why I want my mom's fashion opinions, because her outfits reminded me of those scary old movies that I liked to watch when I was little.

As much as I hated lying to Luke about it, I hated my mother's eccentric sense of fashion, especially skirts and dresses in particular.

Before Mom went to the meeting, she piled dresses, skirts, and heels on my desk and expects me to pick the dress or clothes I want to wear for the wedding.

One by one, I wore them in the bathroom and showed them to Luke. As he sat patiently on the bed, I wore a yellow feathery dress with a matching headband. Luke stared as I twirled around in it.

"What do you think?" I asked. "Should I call Seasame Street and tell them that I found Big Bird?" Luke asked. "Ha ha," I said sarcastically. I walked back into the bathroom and came out wearing a green satin dress.

"No," Luke admitted. Groaning, I walked back into the bathroom. "Can you remind me again why I have to do this?" Luke asked. "Because I am going to my dad's wedding," I answered. "And I need to look less hideous."

"But why am I here?" Luke whined. "Because I need your honest opinion." I answered. "You do know that I am a guy, right?" Luke asked.

"Stop whining," I sighed. "And tell me how I look." I walked out of the bathroom wearing a gray dress that goes down to the bottom of my knees and showed it to Luke.

"Do I look ravishing?" I asked in a sweet voice. "Did you get that from your mom's closet?" Luke asked. "Oh shut up, Luke!" I hissed. "Oh," Luke laughed. "So you have."

I grabbed a pillow from the bed and smacked him on the arm. "Geez!" Luke cried. "I was just joking!" I threw the pillow across the bed and sighed. "I'm sorry," I groaned. "I just don't know what to wear."

"Piece of advice," Luke explained. "Wear the periwinkle dress, sneakers, style your hair, and put on some jewelry." I looked at him for a moment.

"What?" Luke asked. "Have you been reading my magazines?" I asked. "No," he scoffed, shifting the bed uncomfortably. I immediately knew he was lying. "Anyway," I said. "Thanks for the advice."

I took the periwinkle dress, sneakers, and a golden necklace, and walked back into the bathroom. After minutes of curling my hair, putting on my dress, sneakers, and my necklace, I came out of the bathroom.

Luke nodded as I twirled around in it. "Awesome," he said. "Great!" I beamed. "Now, it's your turn." "What?" Luke asked. I reached into my suitcase and pulled out a couple of my dad's old suits.

They fit my dad too tightly, so they must work on Luke. "Okay," I said, giving a handful of suits to Luke. "Try them on and I will judge them."

Luke gave me an annoyed look, but took them to the bathroom. When he was finished, he walked out of the bathroom wearing a gray suit.

"What do you think?" Luke asked. "You look like you are going to your own funeral," I answered. Sighing, he walked back to the bathroom and came out wearing a plaid suit.

"Is this the seventies?" I asked in wonder. He trudged back into the bathroom and came out wearing a green suit. "Yay or Nay?" he asked. It seems to me that he likes this suit.

"Heck nay," I sighed, getting up from the bed. "What is this to you?" "Completely stupid," Luke answered. "Come on," I begged. "You can find a perfect suit for you to wear." "I'm a guy," he reminded. "Guys can have a fashion sense as girls," I pouted.

"Where did you hear that stupid line?" Luke snorted. "I read it in a magazine," I said. "I thought you hated reading magazines," Luke stated. "I do," I shrugged. "But they give you great advice.

I rummaged into the suits until I found a dashing black suit with a black tie. "Try this one," I insisted. "Nay," Luke argued unimpressed. "Yay," I argued back. "Nay," Luke repeated. "Yay," I repeated, giving the suit to Luke. "Try it."

Luke reluctantly took the suit and vanished into the bathroom. A few minutes later, he came out of the bathroom with a pained expression on his face.

"I look stupid in this," Luke grumbled. "You look handsome," I said. "No, I don't," Luke grumbled some more. "Look in the mirror," I insisted. Sighing, he gazed at his reflection.

"What do you see?" I asked. "Me," he replied. "Why am I-" "What does Matt Damon and Eddie Redmayne have in common?" "They have great hair," he said. "Yes they do," I agreed. "But let's get to the point: Why do girls love them?"

"I don't know, because of their charms?" Luke guessed. "Yes," I agreed. "But they have something that everyone has, confidence."

"Confidence?" Luke repeated. I nodded. "Because of confidence," I continued. "They look great and inspire others." "Alright," he said. "But why am I looking at the mirror?"

"Because," I answered. "You look like you're posing for a mugshot. " Luke glared at me for a moment then rolled his eyes. "I guess you have a point." "Instead of moping," I added. "Just try and have confidence. Nothing or no one can take that confidence away from you."

Just then I heard Mom's car coming inside the garage. We quickly cleaned up the bathroom, folded the clothes, and ran downstairs.

"Hey Mom," I greeted when Mom came out of the door. She smiled and waved at us. She wore a blue dress and put her hair into a curly ponytail. "Let's go kids," she urged. Luke and I nodded and followed her outside of the house.

As we stepped into the car, Mom turned the ignition and drove us off of the driveway.