That mid-June day, where my life would be forever changed started out like any other day. I woke up way too early for any normal teenager, seven am. I got up, very reluctantly, and got ready for school. I was happy though, for two reasons. Today was the last day of my junior year, and today was also closing night for my play. I arrived at school to find all my friends gathered around my locker, which was normal because I'm usually the last one there, but this was different, there was more people than usual. As soon as they saw me, Megghan asked "Is it true?" "Is what true?" I question her. "Are you going to meet the Backstreet Boys?" "If I am, I didn't know" I replied. "Really? Missy told us you were." Katie informed me. "Goldie!" I heard my nickname called from the masses of the other moving student bodies. (Goldie, short for Goldie Locks, is my nickname received from my hair, golden-blonde and curly.) "Tanya!" and Missy's very short (4'11") frame appears. "Missy what's going on? They..." I stop because two men following Missy emerge from the masses. One carrying a mic and the other a camera. "Missy?" I ask warily. "Do you by any chance remember that Fanatic tape we recorded awhile ago?" she asks. "No way! You're kidding?" "Yes way, and no!" she replies. I scream, and she screams, so its a chain reaction, all my friends are screaming and jumping up and down. I stop suddenly. "But I can't, the play" I almost start to cry. "Don't worry, we planned it so MTV would record the performance tonight and air some of it as a part of the show, so then, we leave later tonight" Missy tells me. "Ohmigod! Ohmigod!" I have to sit down, right in the middle of the hallway, I'm about to start to hyperventilate. This play is my baby. It is based on a story I wrote my freshman year "How To Succeed In High School...Without Really Trying" The drama teacher changed the story into a script, and the choral director composed the songs. I helped direct, and star as the narrator-a graduating senior. It's a non-solo singing part, I will make a fool out of myself while acting, but whenever I sing solos, I get so nervous and start to cry. I was so hyped, I didn't know if it was more seeing the Backstreet Boys, or having the whole world see me do what I loved. The camera men left and told me they would be back at the end of the day. So, I went through the day, either being congratulated, or laughed at because I was going to meet the BSB. After I had gotten all my friends and favorite teachers to sign my yearbook and had used up all my film, the last bell rang. I yelled my reminder about the play while everyone was streaming out into the hall. I, along with the other 60 or so cast and crew members, headed down to the dressing rooms, theatre, and "Black Box" (a large black room, used as the drama classroom). After I was in full makeup (for stage, its a lot of makeup!), and costume, with my hair neatly brushed and tucked underneath my cap, I started rounding everyone up for "Circle". "Circle" is a big circle of cast and crew members getting warmed and pysched up for the show. "Everyone ready?" I was answered by various "yeps!" "You bets!" and "yahoos!" "All right," I start standing in the middle of the massive circle, "tonight we are graced with the presence of extra participants, everyone say hello!" Everyone waves and yells "Hello!" "And because of this, it's 'Peaches, Fuzzes, Wizards, Candies' got it (candies is a replacement for condoms)." The group laughs at this. I, and my three fellow circle leaders, lead the circle in a bunch of various verbal and physical warm ups. Then Tony, Sara and I (leaders) huddle together and decide on tonight's dedication, we choose Missy, our head cheerleader. Sara starts: "This person has the biggest heart, and is absolutely positively the nicest person I know. This person has grown with us all into a better actor, and not to mention better at so much else. I love this person so much, she's hilarious! Tony." She passes it on to Tony. "This person's laugh is infectious. They love to make people laugh! This person has the coolest eyes, they're so expressive. And their smile-its so cute, it lights up a room. When this person smiles at you, you feel like you are special and unique." He pauses, I figure he's about to pass it on to me. "This person is...Tanya, our own personal Goldie Locks." I look up, stunned, what happened to Missy? Tony and Sara come over and hug me, that's too much I start to cry. Then the entire circle comes in for a group hug. I wipe away my tears. "Ok, everyone hold hands and spread out!" They do as I say, "The faster it goes, the better the show!" Everyone's hands fly up in a domino fashion all the way around the circle. When we break, everyone cheers. The house manager comes in and tells us its show time. "Break a leg all y'all!" I wish the all good luck. We quietly get backstage and I go on stage, in front of the grande. Spots up. "Welcome ladies and gentlemen to the closing night of "How To Succeed At High School...Without Really Trying". And tonight's performance is even more special. We have some pals from MTV taping this. How about we give all the viewers a PFHS welcome!" The place goes wild! Students, teachers, parents, this place is packed, even people sitting in the aisles. "Well, sit back and enjoy the show, but don't take anything too serious!" Spots down. I walk behind the grande and to my starting position, standing on some risers, with silent students milling around on the stage, pantomiming daily happenings in school. The grande opens and spots again on me. "So, you really want to know how I survived?" I step off the risers, "It was pretty difficult, I'll tell you. You have everyone from jocks to goths. Pretty diverse. You just have to pay attention, they aren't as different as they seem. You have your jocks, basic, primitive, been hit in the noggin a few too many times. Cheerleaders-one question, who can stay perky all the time? They can. And it gets pretty scary sometimes.We've got goths, are they as demonic and scary as you think? Maybe. Then there is the theatre groupies. Are they as deep and introspective as you think, or are they? Then there are you're various nerds, geeks, and bullies, etc." While I introduce each genre, the lights rise on each group and they freeze. "And so begins my story, and this is how I survived." Music is cued and things start happening. At the closing, the finale music is still playing and the lights go down. The applause is almost overpowering. The lights go back up and each group bows and takes their share of the limelight. I enter for my bow, the applause increases and people stand as I bow. I stand, remove my cap, letting my blonde hair fall to my shoulders, and bow again. I back to the center of the semicircle. The cats acknowledges the crew with hand sweeps, left, right and forward to the light and sound crew. We all take a cast bow. I am smiling so hard, my face begins to ache. The lights go down for the last time and everyone is screaming and cheering and running for the backstage exit. We run around to the foyer of the school where the audience is being let out. We are met with cheering parents, friends, news crews, and camera men! The news people start asking me questions about Fanatic, the play, my social life, everything, even what college I'm leaning towards! I answer as many questions as I can, but I also give credit to parents for food and transportation, friends who helped get the word around, and all the cast a crew, because without them, it never would have happened. A strange woman comes up to me and introduces herself as Suzie, my adult chaperone for the trip. She tells us we need to go soon or we will miss the plane. So, I stop answering questions and find my family and friends and say my good byes and I love you's. Then Missy and I find each other at the front of the school, near the doors. "Ready to go?" she asks me. "As ready as I'll ever be!" I say, rather excited. "Where is Suzie and the crew?" "Right here, lets go!" She takes us outside to where the limo is waiting. We all hop in, and get going. About halfway to the airport, I realize Missy and I still had our stage makeup on and flowers in our arms, but its too late now. Suzie just tells us to talk about funny incidents, mistakes, which happened during rehearsals. And with Missy and I, we just kept going and going, it was so fun. Then Suzie asked me to talk about the BSB. I had so much adrenaline pumping through my veins, I just gushed. I told myself I wouldn't act like that, but I was so pumped I couldn't help it. "Well, I don't know them personally, but they each have their own special thing about them. Howie is so sweet, and AJ is crazy, I love his glasses. Then there is Nick and Brian, they are just crazy together, the act like me and Missy, they're hilarious! Then there's Kevin, he's the calm and collected one. They're all great people, at least from what I know of them." "She's sorry, but she's so psyched on the performance, it takes her awhile to calm down." Missy informs them. "But isn't it funny to hear her talk so fast?" I shut my mouth and look down. "Awww, look at her face, its red!" "What do you say we throw her out now, no one'll miss her." I threaten her. "They'll get along with Nick and Brian, most definitely." Mike, the camera man says. "Haha, you should see us with our buddy Lysa! Especially when Lysa and I try to teach her how to dance." I say. "Yeah, to Lysa, I'm known as the poster girl for white people who can't dance, because she's Hispanic, and she was brought up with salsas and stuff. I'm not only the president, I'm also a client." Missy jokes. The limo driver informs us we are at the airport. So we get out and grab our bags and run to the plane, of course, after receiving a few odd looks from people about our makeup. We slept most of the way to Las Vegas where the Boys are.