>Be Evan.

>Be at middle school dance in 8th grade.

>Cafeteria is packed with kids on Saturday night.

>Tables with snacks and punches line the cafeteria walls, parent chaperones stand around looking like they want to go home already.

>Evan stands alone, bouncing between groups of casual acquaintances. He's not sure why he's even here, other than a vague desire to become more social.

>There's karaoke onstage.

>A group of 7th graders gets up and starts doing The Offspring's "Pretty Fly (For a White Guy)."

>Evan recognizes Lily Trent in the gaggle of girls gathered around 7th grade stud Danny Ratliffe, who's singing lead.

>Danny rides Brian Dinkins' bus.

>Danny's a skater- type, quick of the tongue and narrow of the shoulder. He has an earring and a buzz cut and he wears his Tony Hawk baseball cap backwards.

>All the ladies dig him, and there's a rumor he's already gotten more ass at the age of twelve than a lot of the male teachers have gotten in their entire pathetic lifetimes.

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>Now he's up on stage doing karaoke with his harem of admirers, Lily included.

>Lily is enthusiastically singing the 'Give it to me, baby' part.

>Brian Dinkins comes over to Evan.

>There's Danny, he says, pointing and gesticulating wildly with both hands. Danny and his hoes!

>Evan watches Lily dance and chant. She's dancing very provocatively for an 11-year-old.

>Give it to me, baby. Uh-huh! Uh-huh!

>Danny notices Lily's enthusiasm and begins sharing the mic with her and her alone.

>She dances up on him.

>The other girls look like they want to kill her. Some try to dance more noticeably, more like Lily, but Danny's attention has been captured.

>A good portion of the attending populace is now watching the stage, including some of the chaperones, a couple of whom are starting forward to put a stop to the not-quite-so-family-friendly display.

>That bitch has some moves, son, Brian comments.

>That's Lily Trent, Evan says. She lives down the street from me.

>That's Marty Trent's sister?

>Yeah.

>Day-um.

>A female chaperone that Evan realizes is Ms. Grover, the school's strict librarian, walks up to the stage and grabs Lily's ankle.

>Evan can see her mouth moving.

>Lily looks down at Ms. Grover and turns to Danny, who holds the mic out to her.

>She grabs Danny's face with both hands and smooches him.

>The kids all cheer, thrilled at the blatant lack of respect for authority, the sheer insubordination, the defiance.

>A few chaperones smirk. Kids these days.

>Danny is flabbergasted, forgets to sing, the karaoke music blasts on.

>His female entourage is now angrily prodding Lily and bidding her to obey Ms. Grover.

>Ms Grover yanks Lily's ankle and she nearly goes tumbling to the stage floor.

>Ms Grover takes Lily out of the cafeteria, admonishing her all the way, and she is not seen again for the remainder of the evening.

>Naughty naughty, Brian says.