Sneak Peek Saturday: Gimme A Call

Gimme A Call

By: Sarah Mlynowski

Pub date: April 27th, 2010

Devi's life isn't turning out at all like she wanted. She wasted three years going out with Bryan - cute, adorable, break-your-heart Bryan. Devi let her friendships fade, blew off studying, didn't join any clubs...and since Bryan broke up with her right before senior prom, she has nothing left. Not even a working cell phone - she dropped hers in the mail fountain.
Now it only calls one number...her number. At age fourteen, three years ago!

Once Devi gets over the shock and convinces her younger self that she isn't some wacko she realizes that she's been given an awesome gift. She can tell herself all the right things to do because she's already done the wrong ones! If freshman Devi takes her advice, she can hold on to her friends, get into a good no, incredible college, be an extracurricular superstar, and most importantly, spare herself the heartbreak of Bryan.

Fourteen-year-old Devi isn't so sure, though. She likes Bryan. She's happy. But who better to listen to than your future self. . . right?
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CHAPTER ONE
Friday, May 23
Senior Year

I should just return Bryan’s watch to Nordstrom and go home. Instead, I’m sitting by the circular shaped fountain in the Stonybrook Mall, staring at the window of the Sunrise Skin Spa. It features a poster of a wrinkle-free woman and the slogan Go Back in Time. 

Sounds good to me. If I could go back in time, there’s lots I’d tell my younger self. Including:

In third grade, do not let Karin Ferris cut you bangs. Your best friend is no stylist. She’s going to accidentally cut them too short. And too crooked.

And she won’t always be your best friend, either.

In the fifth grade, do not put marshmallows in the toaster oven, even though it seems like a good idea. Toasty! Gooey! Yummy! No. When they expand, the tip of one of the marshmallows kisses the burner and the toaster catches fire and your entire family will forever bring up the story about how you almost burned the house down. 

Sophomore year: don’t leave your retainer in a napkin in the cafeteria, unless you want to wade through three spaghetti-and-meatball-filled garbage bins to find it.

This December: do not buy the Dolly jeans you like in a size four because you believe they will stretch. They will not.

May twenty-first: do not buy Him a silver watch for a surprise graduation present, because then you will spend senior skip day at the mall returning it. Which brings me to the most important point. 

About Him. Bryan.

If I could go back in time, the most important thing I would tell myself would be this: Never ever fall for Bryan. I would warn fourteen-year-old me never even go out with Him in the first place. Or even better—the party where we officially met when I was a freshman never would have happened. Okay, the party could have happened, but when he called me later and asked me out, I would have said no. Nice of you to ask but I am just not interested. Thanks but no thanks. Have a nice life. Maybe I’d tell her not to even bother going to the party at all. I’d tell her to stay home instead and organize my closet.

Imagine that. Talking to my fourteen-year-old self. I wish...

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I'm really loving the sound of this. The premise is such a good idea. I know if given the chance, I'd like to change a few things about my past as I think we all would. You can read the rest of the first chapter here and visit Sarah Mlynowski's official website here.