The living-room door creaks as I push it open.
âMum?â I say tentatively.
What I donât expect is for her to leap off the sofa when she hears my voice. âGoodness, Penny!â she says, clutching her chest. âYou frightened me! Your father put on one of those awful horror films that he knows I canât stand.â She throws him an evil glare, but Dad just laughs it off. He knows as well as I do that my mum loves a good scareâitâs all in the name of drama, after all!
Then she genuinely does frown as she looks at me. âBut what are you doing home so early? We werenât expecting you for hours yet.â She looks at Megan, and I can tell sheâs trying not to blurt out another question as to why Megan is here with me after everything that happened with Girl Online .
I canât help itâI break down into shaky tears as I describemy panic attack and the sense of claustrophobia in the crowd, and eventually Megan takes over, filling in the gaps where I donât remember. When sheâs finished, Dad flicks on the lights and potters off to make a cup of tea. Before I know it, Iâm feeling much better, and a new feeling starts to dominate my nervous system. Itâs no longer anxiety; itâs guilt. Even though I had no phone, no wallet, and no way of leaving him a note or getting a message to him, I still know that Noah will go crazy with worry when he finds out I left without telling him.
âIâm just going to nip upstairs and let Noah know Iâve come home,â I say.
Mum nods, then she smiles at Megan. âHow are your parents, sweetheart? Itâs so nice to see you again . . .â Leaving Mum to catch up with Megan, I run up the stairs, taking them two at a time.
As soon as Iâve written a direct message to Noah (heâs far more likely to check Twitter than his email), I also take a moment to open up my blog. Meganâs apparent change of heart has been playing on my mind, and I know who I want to tell.
25 June
Can You Forgive and Forget?
I know itâs my second post today, but it feels like the longest day ever! So much has happened.
Do you remember a while back when I wrote about drifting apart from a friend? And then that âfriendâ turned out to be the very person who sold me out to the media? (I knowâwho needs enemies when you have friends like that, right?)
Well, she actually apologized.
Can you believe it? I never thought I would see the day.
She helped me out when I thought no one would, and was really nice to me. And, even though I kept looking for an ulterior motive, she didnât seem to have one.
She was just nice.
She was my old friend again.
It felt good to have her there to talk to. Is that weird? Is it even possible to forgive something so big? Can I ever forget what she did to me?
She even said she had been jealous of me. How can that be right? I guess we donât always know what other people are thinking, even if they seem to have everything figured out.
Wiki, I know you will hate this when you find out.
But I think I want to forgive her. I canât throw away that many years of friendship so easily . . .
Anyway, I will keep you posted.
Girl Offline . . . never going online xxx
â¢Â  â¢Â  â¢
I change out of my dress and into my most comfortable onesie, then head back downstairs. Mum and Dad switch the film back on, so Megan and I curl up on the sofa to watch as well.
Itâs not very long until thereâs a frantic knock on the door. Dad goes to open it and Noah runs into the room.
âPenny, thank god!â Noahâs face is as white as a sheet. Seeing him wrenches the knot in my stomach. He rushes over and gives me a hug. âWhat the heck happened? I came out after my set to find you, and Elliot said he hadnât seen you at all. When I saw all your stuff in the dressing room, I was so worried about you. I called
âMum?â I say tentatively.
What I donât expect is for her to leap off the sofa when she hears my voice. âGoodness, Penny!â she says, clutching her chest. âYou frightened me! Your father put on one of those awful horror films that he knows I canât stand.â She throws him an evil glare, but Dad just laughs it off. He knows as well as I do that my mum loves a good scareâitâs all in the name of drama, after all!
Then she genuinely does frown as she looks at me. âBut what are you doing home so early? We werenât expecting you for hours yet.â She looks at Megan, and I can tell sheâs trying not to blurt out another question as to why Megan is here with me after everything that happened with Girl Online .
I canât help itâI break down into shaky tears as I describemy panic attack and the sense of claustrophobia in the crowd, and eventually Megan takes over, filling in the gaps where I donât remember. When sheâs finished, Dad flicks on the lights and potters off to make a cup of tea. Before I know it, Iâm feeling much better, and a new feeling starts to dominate my nervous system. Itâs no longer anxiety; itâs guilt. Even though I had no phone, no wallet, and no way of leaving him a note or getting a message to him, I still know that Noah will go crazy with worry when he finds out I left without telling him.
âIâm just going to nip upstairs and let Noah know Iâve come home,â I say.
Mum nods, then she smiles at Megan. âHow are your parents, sweetheart? Itâs so nice to see you again . . .â Leaving Mum to catch up with Megan, I run up the stairs, taking them two at a time.
As soon as Iâve written a direct message to Noah (heâs far more likely to check Twitter than his email), I also take a moment to open up my blog. Meganâs apparent change of heart has been playing on my mind, and I know who I want to tell.
25 June
Can You Forgive and Forget?
I know itâs my second post today, but it feels like the longest day ever! So much has happened.
Do you remember a while back when I wrote about drifting apart from a friend? And then that âfriendâ turned out to be the very person who sold me out to the media? (I knowâwho needs enemies when you have friends like that, right?)
Well, she actually apologized.
Can you believe it? I never thought I would see the day.
She helped me out when I thought no one would, and was really nice to me. And, even though I kept looking for an ulterior motive, she didnât seem to have one.
She was just nice.
She was my old friend again.
It felt good to have her there to talk to. Is that weird? Is it even possible to forgive something so big? Can I ever forget what she did to me?
She even said she had been jealous of me. How can that be right? I guess we donât always know what other people are thinking, even if they seem to have everything figured out.
Wiki, I know you will hate this when you find out.
But I think I want to forgive her. I canât throw away that many years of friendship so easily . . .
Anyway, I will keep you posted.
Girl Offline . . . never going online xxx
â¢Â  â¢Â  â¢
I change out of my dress and into my most comfortable onesie, then head back downstairs. Mum and Dad switch the film back on, so Megan and I curl up on the sofa to watch as well.
Itâs not very long until thereâs a frantic knock on the door. Dad goes to open it and Noah runs into the room.
âPenny, thank god!â Noahâs face is as white as a sheet. Seeing him wrenches the knot in my stomach. He rushes over and gives me a hug. âWhat the heck happened? I came out after my set to find you, and Elliot said he hadnât seen you at all. When I saw all your stuff in the dressing room, I was so worried about you. I called
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