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Three or four days later, something incredible happened. Corinne was coming out of school when she saw the big red BMW parked outside. And there was Anto – looking at her!
"Hi!" he said. "I thought we could go for a ride!"
Corinne was really shocked. As usual, she felt embarrassed and didn’t know what to say.
"But where’s Alicia?" she asked eventually.
"Oh, well, I guess she’s not feeling too well at the moment. I haven’t seen her for a few days to be honest."
"Listen, Anto. I don’t think I can come out with you today. I’ve got loads of homework to do."
Anto laughed. "But you’ve always got loads of homework to do!"
Well, why not? She thought, and got into Anto’s car.
They drove away really quickly, and Anto turned up the car stereo really loud. Corinne was worried that someone would see them together. What would she say to Alicia?
They started talking. Anto asked what she did in her free time.
"Not much really. I read a bit, sometimes I see my boyfriend, but not often because he still lives in South London. Often I just go for a walk in the park on my own."
Anto didn’t seem to be interested, and started talking about himself. He started talking about his plans for the future. He wanted to start his own business. It was the only way to get really rich, he said.
"If you always work for somebody else, you’ll never get rich. You have to make your own money."
"Why do you want to be rich?" asked Corinne. Anto just laughed.
"Everybody wants to be rich, don’t they? It’s obvious!"
Corinne didn’t know what to think. Sure, it would be great to be rich. She could do loads of things, and help all her family and her friends. But some people just wanted to be rich to get a bigger car. Corinne didn’t really see the sense in that. Anto just laughed when she told him.
"Alicia’s right," he said, "You are a bit different! Don’t worry, I like you anyway."
When they arrived at Corinne’s house, Anto kissed her on her cheek. Corinne ran out of the car without saying anything. That night, Corinne wrote pages and pages in her diary. She wrote down all her thoughts and feelings, all her hopes and worries.
Alicia was back at school the next day. Corinne went red as soon as she saw her. What should she say? Alicia smiled at Corinne.
"Hi!" she said. "Got any goss?"
Oh my God, thought Corinne. I certainly have got an incredible piece of goss, but I can’t say anything to Alicia!
Finally, it was Saturday. Corinne felt relaxed – she didn’t have to meet anybody – she could forget about everything for a while. She decided to go for a walk on her own and went down to the local park. She had discovered this place soon after moving up to North London, and it had become one of her favourite places. She went to the children’s playground, sat on one of the swings, put her head in her hands and tried to think. She heard somebody coming, but she didn’t look up because she didn’t want to speak to anybody. Then she heard a voice.
"Hello beautiful! I thought I would find you here."
Oh no! It was Anto!
"What are you doing here?" she asked in surprise.
"I thought I’d come and look for you," he replied. "You told me you sometimes come here for a walk."
"Anto, listen. I really like you, but what will I say to Alicia if she sees us together? I think I should go". She started walking out of the park. Anto carried on walking beside her anyway. He carried on talking about himself, as usual. Corinne wanted to go home, but when they got to the street, there was another problem. A big one.
Coming along the street towards them was a group of girls. One of the girls was tall and beautiful and wearing a red Tommy Hilfiger jacket. Yes, without doubt, it was Alicia.
Alicia was looking at Corinne and Anto with surprise. Corinne felt panicky. She didn’t know if she should run away, or stay where she was. What was she going to say to Alicia now? Anto remained completely calm. He didn’t seem to be surprised or worried at all.
"Hello beautiful!" he said to Alicia, with his usual smile. "I was waiting for you. I knew you were coming this way!" Then he kissed Alicia.
Alicia seemed to be happy.
"While I was waiting for you, I met your friend Corinne," carried on Anto. "What a coincidence, eh?"
"Yeah, that really is a coincidence," said Alicia, and looked at Corinne.
They all decided to go for something to eat together, but then Corinne had her third big surprise of the day. They were walking along the street near her house, when she saw a familiar face walking towards them. Oh no! It was Ray! She had completely forgotten about their date.
"Hi!" said Ray, looking a bit surprised. "Who are all these people?"
Corinne introduced Alicia and Anto. "These are my new friends," she said.
"Nice to meet you," said Ray. Corinne thought she was going to die. The surprising thing was that none of the others seemed to be worried, or even surprised.
"Why don’t we go and get a burger?" said somebody, and all the others agreed.
At the burger place, Anto sat down next to Corinne and Ray sat down next to Alicia. They spent nearly all the afternoon there, just sitting, drinking coke and talking. The surprising thing was that Alicia and Ray seemed to be getting on very well together.
"Hope to see you again soon!" said Ray to Alicia when it was finally time to go home.
"I bet you do!" thought Corinne to herself, but she didn’t say anything. She was surprised to find herself feeling a little bit jealous.
"You didn’t tell me you had a boyfriend!" said Alicia to Corinne on Monday morning. "I bet there are lots of things that you haven’t told me!" Alicia was really curious. Too curious.
During the lesson, Alicia very carefully and quietly put her hand into Corinne’s bag. She knew what she was looking for. Corinne had told her that she always wrote a diary, and that she carried her diary in her bag with her every day. Eventually, she found a small black book – this was it! Corinne’s diary!
During the break she took the diary into the bathroom, locked herself in the toilet, sat down and started to read.
Today I met Alicia’s boyfriend Anto. He’s really handsome – tall with dark hair and dark eyes. He smiled at me. He’s got a really nice smile…
Alicia was surprised to find so much about Anto. She carried on reading.
…when I came out of school today, Anto was waiting for me in his car. I couldn’t believe it! He took me for a ride. We talked for ages…
Alicia was furious. She felt like shouting or crying. She went out of the bathroom and looked for Corinne. Corinne was sitting in the classroom on her own, reading a book. Alicia grabbed the book and threw it on the floor. She started shouting at Corinne:
"How could you! I thought you were my friend!"
"Oh my God!" shouted Corinne. "Alicia! Why did you read my diary? How much did you read? Oh no!"
"I read enough to find out that you’ve been going out with my boyfriend!" replied Alicia.
"Yes, but…"
"But what? It’s true, isn’t it?"
"Yes, it is true, but it’s not all the truth. You have to read more!" Corinne picked up the diary and found the page Alicia had read. She carried on reading where Alicia had stopped.
We talked for ages…but I don’t think I like him really. He’s really handsome, sure, but we’re too different.
"And so?" said Alicia. "What do we do now?"
"That’s a good question," said Corinne. "What do we do now?"
1. Alicia and Corinne swap boyfriends.
2. Corinne decides to stay with Ray, understanding her true nature, and rejecting Alicia and Anto’s values.
3. The girls make up, get rid of their boyfriends, and realise that true friendship is much more important.
How do you think the story should end. Send us your ideas.
Which ending is the best?
Ending number one has four votes so far. David from Paris says: "They sure should swap boyfriends (as long as Anto and Ray agree with that idea of course), just for fun!" Eugene from St. Petersburg in Russia agrees, but for different reasons: "In my opinion, ending number 1 is a perfect option. Corinne and Ray had grown up together. They were close friends, not lovers. However, Anto could show Corinne a new world of fasion in all of its diversity. On the other hand, Alicia and Ray could to supplement each other." Nguyen Dinh Ha from Vietnam also thinks "The best solution is that they could swap boyfriends". Corinne (Could it be her?) from the USA says “Ray and Alicia seem like they would compliment each other perfectly and turn into a happy little couple. With Corinne and Anto, a "fling" would be good. She could experience new things and get more out in the world, but the two probably couldn't work out together”. Dinh Duyen from Vietnam says “Corine and Ray were not really in love. They were just great buddies. Perhaps, after going out with other people, they would find out for themselves to whom their hearts belong. I think Anto and Alicia 's relationship wouldn't last very long because they had their eyes for other people. Therefore, by going with option 1, nobody loses as long as they agreed to swap boyfriends and girldfriends”.
Ending number two has one vote from Lim Hwee Leng in Singapore, who thinks that Corinne doesn't really like Anto; and one vote from Dae Sung Kang in Korea, who believes that Corinne is in love with Ray, but doesn't realise it. Vote number three comes from Cat, who says that Corrine grew up with Ray and that they therefore have similar characters, while Anto's values are simply too different from Corrine's. And Ginging from Taiwan goes for this ending "because Corinne felt jealous in that incredible party". Frances from China says “I think Alicia was not a really good friend as she was not a good student. And Anto was not a good friend either. He just wanted to show off. And Ray was a real friend to Corinne no matter if they were lovers or not, after all they had been friends for so long. Norlizah from Malaysia says “Corrine and Ray have been together for such a long time. Ray is always with her so she never appreciates him. But the feeling of being together is not easy to forget. That's why Corrine would suffer if she really left Ray. Because she only admires Anto's appearance and they don’t have a chemistry like with Ray”.
Ending number three has one vote from Ghada in the Lebanon; and one vote from a learner who says Corinne is only attracted to Anto's appearance. She thinks they would soon break up. A third vote comes from Carlos, who thinks that friendship is very important, while "all of us can get a girlfriend or boyfriend at any time". Well, obviously Carlos is lucky in love! Simone from Brazil agrees - she thinks that "the most important thing in our lives is our friends. Boyfriends and girlfriends you can have loads of, but a really good friend you can't find so easy." Felipe adds a fifth vote, saying that the story proves the girls "[aren't] really in love with their boyfriends. besides, the two guys didn't seem very faithful at their girlfriends since they were flattering somehow the other girls.
Friendship is what this is all about!" Belen from Spain agrees: "there is always time to love," she says. The importance of friends is also stressed by Anna-Maria from Cyprus, who says "A reliable friend who supports you at any moment of your life, is far more important than any boyfriend or girlfriend. If you dont have a boyfriend or girlfriend does not matter (this is my opinion!) but if you don't have a faithful friend you are lonely." Jennifer from Bahrain says “The girls aren't really in love with their boyfriends and the guys seem so unfaithful, they were flirting with the girls somehow...the girls will find better boyfriends in the future but they wont find faithful friends easily”. Zarna adds "According to me the guys were not faithful. Ray may be a very good friend of Corinne, but he was flirting with Alicia when they went out. Both relationships were not gonna last, but may be both the girls can get true friends".
So, ending number THREE is now in the lead with nine votes. But which ending will win? Will Corinne and Alicia get rid of their boyfriends and choose friendship? Or will Corinne stay with Ray?
Luciola from Recife in Brazil thinks the girls will learn a different lesson: "I think that Corine and Alicia will not finish their friendship because if Alicia read the diary completely she will know that Corine didn´t betray her. But, probably, from today on they will take care of their boyfriends."
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