TTYL (21 page)

SnowAngel:

maddie! oh, maaaaddiel

mad maddie:

yes?

SnowAngel:

u have to listen to what i'm about to say. now i know ur all excited about your ridiculous speed limit thingie, but u HAVE to change your plans. ok? ok. great!

mad maddie:

huh? what?

SnowAngel:

stupid zoe backed out on me. U CAN'T LEAVE ME ALONE WITH DOUG!!!

mad maddie:

sorry, doll. if i don't go with jana, they won't have enough drivers.

SnowAngel:

but this is important!

mad maddie:

so is this. jana's counting on me. she's gonna ride in my car and everything. hey, i know—forget doug and come with us!

SnowAngel:

i can't, that would be cruel. plus, he already invited steve brinks to come too.

mad maddie:

u, doug, and steve, hmmm? ooh-la-la.

SnowAngel:

*stomps foot* this is serious!

mad maddie:

oh, it is not. invite some other girl to come.

SnowAngel:

i already tried megan AND kristin AND mary kate, and they're all busy. ur my only hope, obi-one kenobi!!!

mad maddie:

i'm pretty sure that's not how u spell it, but points for making a star wars reference at all.

mad maddie:

i'm not gonna break my word to jana. sorry. but luckily, i have just the thing to cheer u up.

SnowAngel:

what?

mad maddie:

it's the “my little pony” quiz! after 15 long years u can finally find out which little pony u r!

SnowAngel:

i'm having a crisis, and u want me to take one of your stupid quizzes?!! no thx.

mad maddie:

why, r u scared?

SnowAngel:

scared of what?

mad maddie:

scared that my inner dragon might eat your little pony?

SnowAngel:

omg. u've been waiting to say that, haven't u? u've been, like, really excited to use that line.

mad maddie:

cuz it's funny. admit it.

SnowAngel:

u r no help at all.

mad maddie:

but i'm amusing, which is even better!

zoegirl:

mr. h is gonna be here any minute… but i just wanted to give u moral support before your date.

SnowAngel:

it's not a date!!!

zoegirl:

right, right. sorry.

SnowAngel:

change your mind and come with me. plz????

zoegirl:

i can't. i already told u!

SnowAngel:

*pouts*

SnowAngel:

do i have time to tell u what i'm wearing, at least?

zoegirl:

go for it

SnowAngel:

attire: baggy overalls with long-sleeved white t-shirt underneath (NOT tight), fugly “sensible” shoes my mom made me buy when we went hiking last summer, hair in ponytail.

zoegirl:

baggy overalls and a ponytail. are you trying to send a message here, by any chance?

SnowAngel:

i am being polite to doug. i see no reason to get him all worked up for nothing.

zoegirl:

how considerate.

zoegirl:

well, seriously, have fun.

mad maddie:

woo-eee! i'm at starbucks and i'm on my fifth breve bomb cuz i was already so wired i figged i might as well add to the adrenaline.

SnowAngel:

yr fifth…?

SnowAngel:

what's a breve bomb?

mad maddie:

not important. ready to hear about my fabulous I-285 adventure?

SnowAngel:

no, cuz i wanna tell u something first. MY PARENTS SAID YES ABOUT CUMBERLAND ISLAND!!!

mad maddie:

no way!

SnowAngel:

way! as long as mark and erin will be there to “chaperone” us, they said i could go. *punches the
air in wild excitement* i can't believe they actually said yes!

mad maddie:

angela, that is awesome. we r gonna have so much fun!

SnowAngel:

i know!!!

SnowAngel:

what about zoe's parents—any word?

mad maddie:

her mom's gonna call my mom. that's a step, anywayz.

SnowAngel:

i agree

mad maddie:

and now, onto my account of our exciting and dramatic speed limit rebellion.

SnowAngel:

rebellion? i thought u guys were gonna stick to the speed limit exactly. i thought that was the whole point.

mad maddie:

the point was to rebel AGAINST the speed limit by showing how dumb it is—which we totally did. oh man, angela, it was wild.

SnowAngel:

fine, tell me.

mad maddie:

we spread out across I-285 like we planned, each of us in our own lane. then todd spencer gave the thumbs-up, which was the signal for everyone to set their speed to 65 mph. so we did. man, u shoulda seen the look on the face of the guy behind us as he realized he wasn't just behind one slow car, he was behind a whole row of slow cars.

SnowAngel:

was he pissed?

mad maddie:

more like confused… for a few moments. and then it was really funny, cuz slowly the stretch of highway in front of us emptied out, since the drivers ahead of us were driving faster than 65, and then EVERYONE ELSE was stuck behind us.

SnowAngel:

wow

mad maddie:

a couple of ppl honked their horns, and then a couple more, and then *everyone* was honking and it was the loudest noise i've ever heard. it was cool, but i actually started getting a little freaked out.

SnowAngel:

i TOLD u it was dangerous!

mad maddie:

i mean, i could FEEL the fury directed at us. it was like a mob was forming or something.

SnowAngel:

*shivers*

mad maddie:

then cars started passing us in the emergency lane. kaitlin jones was the driver in the far right lane—the one next to the emergency lane—and i was SO glad it wasn't me. this one car whizzed past her, blaring its horn, and then pulled into her lane so closely that he almost cropped her bumper.

SnowAngel:

shit, maddie

mad maddie:

then someone threw a beer bottle at joe weiss's car. it made a loud crack, like a gun, and i about crapped my pants.

SnowAngel:

did it actually HIT joe's car?

mad maddie:

no, thank god

mad maddie:

by this time cars were passing in the left-hand emergency lane too. this one guy in a volvo pulled right in front of rex and terri and jana and then intentionally slammed on his brakes. can u believe that?

SnowAngel:

omg, maddie. u guys r sooooooo lucky no one got hurt.

mad maddie:

then kaitlin broke out of formation, cuz i guess she lost her nerve, which meant more cars could get through.

mad maddie:

after that, the rest of us fell out of line too. at first ppl glared and shouted stuff out their windows
as they passed, but soon they must not have recognized us, cuz no one did anything *truly* terrible.

SnowAngel:

u could have been killed, maddie.

mad maddie:

but i wasn't.

SnowAngel:

but u COULD have been.

mad maddie:

the only thing i'm bummed about is that we didn't make it onto the news. think how great it wld have been when they announced it: “cars going the speed limit cause traffic jam”!

SnowAngel:

hey, wait a sec. that car that slammed on his brakes…

SnowAngel:

i just scrolled back to read that text. did u say he pulled out in front of rex, terri, and jana?

mad maddie:

yeah, what an asshole. it was really scary.

SnowAngel:

i thought jana was gonna ride with u.

mad maddie:

well, she ended up riding with rex and terri instead.

SnowAngel:

so who rode with u?

mad maddie:

no on.

SnowAngel:

u were out there with a bunch of maniacs behind u BY YOURSELF?

mad maddie:

it was no big deal, angela.

SnowAngel:

was anyone else alone, like kaitlin or joe?

mad maddie:

what's yr point?

SnowAngel:

they weren't, were they? u were the only one without a passenger.

mad maddie:

i SAID it was no big deal. ur making it out like… i dunno, like jana did some horrible thing by riding with rex instead of me. but i was the one who was there, so i get to choose if it was a problem or not. AND IT WASN'T.

SnowAngel:

it just doesn't seem very nice, that's all.

mad maddie:

ur totally reading into it.

mad maddie:

anywayz, unlike some ppl, i'm fine being by myself. i don't need reassurance 24-7.

SnowAngel:

what is that supposed to mean?

mad maddie:

u figure it out.

SnowAngel:

u know what, maddie?

SnowAngel:

nvm

mad maddie:

what? go ahead and say it.

SnowAngel:

it's just that all our convos seem to end this way these days, and it's getting really annoying. ur always getting huffy over nothing.

mad maddie:

I'M the one getting huffy?

SnowAngel:

well, i'm glad u had fun with your new friends, even tho none of them actually wanted to be in the same car with u.

mad maddie:

what a lovely thing to say. and i'm glad that you're not AT ALL threatened by the fact that i'm hanging out with jana just cuz jana's in a different social league than u.

mad maddie:

i'm sorry if ur jealous, angela, but don't take it out on me.

SnowAngel:

what?!! u r insane if u think i'm jealous of jana whitaker.

mad maddie:

am i?