Zita & Max- Chapter 1 - An Excerpt from Kit's Novel {proofread by Taryn, Illustrated by Sonali}

 "Hey everyone! It's Kit {and Taryn}. As Promised in the 'Things to come this spring' list, here in an excerpt from my book!!! I don't plan on getting it published, But that's okay, y'know? It's just the pleasure of letting my friends read it. And you definitely count as friends. SO.... Here goes nothing!"

Zita & Max
{Chapter 1}

(left to right, top to bottom) = Max, Alec,
Zita, Millie.

Zita
    I'm new. I'm also Zita. I mean, That's my name. My parents names me Zita because it means 'Little Girl' in some language, which I forget. Anyway, about being new. I recently moved to Toronto, Ontario, Canada, The World (just incase you get confused) and on Monday, I am starting school at Sarah Mitchell Private School. But it's April, so the school year is nearly over.
    The big problem, with my name, is the 'zit' part. The really bad part, is that I have 26 zits on my face, so some people call me 'zit girl'. Trust me, this is not a name that gets you on the road to popularity in 8th grade.
    At my old school, I only had one friend, Alana. Some of the girls who were deemed 'popular' called us 'losers from A-Z', which isn't actually that true, since this one really popular guy used to like me, then freaked out when I got my zits. Okay, maybe I am sort of a loser. Sigh.

(left to right, top to bottom) = Louis, Eric,
Zoë, Maddie.

    Alana and I used to have another friend, named Janet. But then she ditched us to be with the supposedly popular girls, soon becoming one of the most popular girls in our whole middle school (she was the one who invented the 'losers from A-Z')
    Enough about the old me. By moving, I am going to use the school change to my advantage. To re-invent myself. To shake being a loser from A-Z.
 * * *
    The first step to my re-invention, was buying and using pro-active. BAD. IDEA. I had an allergic reaction to the cream, and it gave me a huge rash on my face. So now I have to use this rash cream (that makes my skin look kind of green). It has to be applied twice a day, until my rash goes away. So far nothing, I still have 26 zits, and I start school on monday.
    The second, was to getting braces. I have VERY crooked teeth, and have been begging my parents for the past year for a set of railroad tracks. They finally gave in, and I got my braces yesterday. I still have to get used to brushing my teeth after every time I eat, but I'll manage.
    My third, was spending the majority of my $2,000+ (my allowance from the past 5 years...) on clothing, a cellular telephone, an iPod touch, and lots of makeup, magazines, hair straighteners, curlers, and whatnot. I mean, that's what everyone likes, right?
    My fourth, and final step, was hiding all of my science-fiction television series (x-files, Dr. Who, Star Trek, etc.), stuffed animals, old books, and old clothes, in my closet, and remodeling my new room into this super modern room with light blue walls, black trim, silver furniture, and a four poster bed with lost of pillows.
   I really hope this works.

Max
    He's not popular. He's not dumb. He's Max. Too bad that's me.
    Max. The kid everyone thinks of as the super nerd at the private school in advanced classes who still thinks everything is easy. The kid everyone sees as the rich guy who's parents spoil him and his incredibly *hot* twin sister to an unnatural extent. The kid at the bottom of the social food chain, while his incredibly *hot* sister Zoë is best friends with the most popular girl in the while school. Max. Me. Sigh.
* * *
    Sitting on the bus with Alec is indeterminately different than sitting on the bus with Zoë. Alec sits, and listens to me babbling, occasionally adding to the conversation. Sitting with Zoë is exactly the opposite. She talks. And talks. And, oh yes, TALKS while I try to listen to my iPod, turning up the volume as loud as possible without demolishing my eardrums to drown out the perpetually high pitched obnoxious voice of my twin sister. But now, I no longer have to endure this tiresome routine, seeing as Alec now lives in my area, and Zoë finally discovered I was a loser with a capitol 'L' and suddenly decided to become best friends 'forever' with Millie. Let's just see how long that 'forever' lasts.
    Alec has very big teeth with braces, he wears glasses, has a small but noticeable amount of acne, and so many freckles his pale skin looks tan. The one outstanding feature Alec boasts, is his natural flaming red wavy hair.
    Now about me. The loser Max you've been hearing about. For starters, everyone who goes to Sarah Mitchell Private School is very wealthy, seeing as it costs a very large sum of money to attend. So naturally, my family is. Wealthy, that is. I have so much Abercrombie and Fitch, American Eagle, Aéropostale, and Hollister it kind of sickens me. All I wear are jeans and converse. I have 12 pairs of hightops. One pair in each color, and three patterned pairs. Zoë and I both have braces, and we are both (obviously both) 13, soon to be 14 in a week and a half.
   Moi. An average boy named Max, who wears expensive clothing with words on them, and you wonder why he's not popular? Several obvious reasons. Have you not noticed my rich vocabulary? This is actually how I speak. Except, of course, to pretty girls. To the latter, I speak in a very... immature and slobbery fashion which is apparently not very pleasant to look at. Another would be, that when asked to sit at the 'popular' table, I declined. Basically, I am too smart for my own good. If you don't think that is weird, you obviously don't go to Sarah Mitchell.
    Zoë and I are identical. Well, as identical as a male and female can get. We have blue eyes, 'caramel' colored hair (also know as a blondish beige), straight nose, crooked teeth, and a light sprinkling of freckles. We, however, tend not to make contact at school. The only times I have seen her at school, are during lunch, in the hallways, and in the midst of a gaggle of girls.
    So. It's an average morning. I am on the bus, and we stop at Alec's stop. He gets on, followed by–an angel. Okay, so what if she has black hair? I swear it! She's an angel. Her skin is a bit green, and she does have braces on her teeth, and several zits... okay. Potentially an angel in making.
    Alec sits down next to me, and I watch the angel in making sit down next to Maddie in the third row.
    "Alec!" I hiss. "Who is that?!" I point to her.
    "Oh," he says, "she's my new neighbour. Her name is Zita, and she's in our homeroom. Her parents..."
    I am lost after 'homeroom'. I am definitely not that lucky, am I?
    "... know her last night," I clue in on what Alec is actually saying. "We made them an upside down rhubarb cake." Oh, jeez. Those are delicious. "they live in Logan's old house." Logan is the girl I used to ... for lack of a better word have a crush on. But I swear, Zita is far more beautiful. Is that a miracle house or what?
* * *
End of Chapter 1

Thank you so much for reading! It would mean a lot to me if I got some feedback, to please comment your thoughts and opinions!

-Kit (and Taryn!)