Wednesday, March 5, 2008

CYOA rough draft

It’s a Friday night and your parents have been bugging you to finish the college applications that have been lying around your room for months. You know that the deadline to send in the applications is in a week, and if you don’t get them out of the way now, you might risk not getting into the colleges of your choice.
“You have been putting this off for months,” says your mother. “You better stay in tonight and finish them. Mail them first thing tomorrow!”


Turn to page 2













Page 1
Before you know it, it’s 10:30 p.m. and your cell phone rings. It’s your best friend Matt. “Hey, there’s this huge party on Cedar Street. Everyone’s going to be there and I really want you to come. You never come out anymore.”
He does have a point. You have not been out with your friends in weeks and you know exactly what party he is talking about. Melissa, who is throwing the party, has a huge house with a pool and an outdoor bar. You know you will have so much fun if you go, but your mom will be extremely annoyed and will not give you a break if you go out tonight.
“I’m not sure,” you say. “I want to go, but I have to finish these applications.”
“Come on,” says Matt. “It’s your senior year and you need to have fun. If you want, instead of going to the party, we can go to the Destiny Club with our fake IDs, or to the movies if you want to have a relaxing night. Either way, I think you should come out.”
You think about the options at hand. You know that finishing the applications is most important, but you really want to have fun with your friends. The house parties always get broken up by the police by 12:00, but they are always entertaining. You might get busted by the police at the club with the fake ID, but you have never had a problem in the past getting into Destiny.
If you want to go to the club, turn to page 11.
If you go out with Matt to the party, turn to page 10.
If you decide to stay in and finish the college applications, turn to page 5.
If you go to the movies, turn to page 15.
Page 2
Matt arrives at your house and waits outside in his car for you. You’re almost out the door when you hear your mom say, “Where are you going?”
You know she will get angry if she finds out that you’re going to a club with a fake ID, but you hate lying to her about where you are going. On the other hand, you really want to go to Destiny because you feel so mature and cool when you get in, and have tons of fun whenever you go.
“Mom, what difference does it make?” you ask. “I’m old enough to make my own decisions.”
“As long as I’m paying your bills, you will tell me where you are going at all times,” she says. Is there a booklet that all parents have, because it seems like they all have the same responses in these types of situations?



If you lie to your mom and tell her you are going to the movies with Matt, turn to page 12.
If you tell your mom that you are going to Destiny and are going to use your fake ID, turn to page 17.

Turn to page 19.

PAGE 3

You walk inside and you are so overwhelmed. There are so many people, lights are flashing all around, and there are cages with dancers in them everywhere you look. This place has changed since the last time you were here.
“Do you want to go over to the bar with me?” Matt asks.
“Sure,” you reply.
As you walk over you see a really pretty woman looking at you, who looks like she’s in her twenties. You on the other hand, are eighteen. How would she ever know? You’re willing to take your chances. As you begin to walk over to her, another man approaches her. You were a few seconds too late. You turn to go back to the bar to join Matt, when you hear a scream. The man who just approached the pretty woman screamed and spilled his drink all over her dress. She looks extremely upset after this happens. This could be your chance to step in and ask her if she needs any help, but Matt will be left alone at the bar. You’ve left him in the past to talk to girls and he was pissed.

If you stay at the bar with Matt, go to page 23.
If you go help the pretty woman clean her dress, turn to page 30.



Page 4


“Sorry, Matt. I need to mail in my applications by tomorrow morning. Maybe tomorrow night we’ll go out.”
“Your loss,” says Matt. He sounds annoyed, but he’s your best friend and he will get over it.
Your mom walks into your room and says, “I overheard you telling Matt that you’re staying in. I’m proud of you.” She hands you fifty dollars. I want you to buy yourself something. You’ve been extremely responsible lately and you deserve something nice.”
You thank her and then get back to work.










Page 5

Turn to page 20
“Amanda let’s go. The police are going to come and give you an ‘underage’ if they see you in this condition,” you say. “I’ll walk you home.”
“Don’t worry,” she says. “I know, know how to…to get home f-f-from here.”
“Really?” you ask sarcastically. “Where do you live?”
“There!” she exclaims, pointing to the pool house in Melissa’s back yard.
She clearly has no idea what’s going on, and cannot tell you where she lives, so how are you supposed to walk her home? You see some girls leaving the house in a hurry and you ask them if they know where Amy, Amanda’s friend, is. Amy would be able to drive her home since she was the designated driver.
“She left a while ago,” says one girl.
You need to get out of there quickly, so you run over to the fence, dividing Melissa’s back yard from her neighbors’. You help Amanda over it, and then jump over it after. Now you’re in some stranger’s yard and since Amanda cannot tell you where she lives, you have no way of taking her home. You decide to call up some of your friends from your cell phone. Maybe they know where she lives. You reach into your pocket for your phone and realize it is missing. Maybe you should have not come to this party after all.
THE END



Page 6























Page 7
The phone rings. It’s 11:00 p.m. on the dot. Leave it to Matt to never be late for anything.
“Hey, I’m outside of your house waiting in the taxi,” Matt says.
“I’ll be right there,” you reply.
You quickly put some gel in your hair and spray some cologne on your neck. You run downstairs and out the door. In the taxi, Matt is slurring his words and talking really loud.
“Did you drink before you left your house?” you ask.
“Why else would I have a taxi take us to the party?” Matt replies.
At least he is responsible enough not to drive, you think to yourself. The last time you saw Matt in this condition, he embarrassed himself completely and you as well. He threw up all over Big J, the biggest football player at your high school, and you had to convince Big J to not break all of Matt’s bones. You can either take Matt home even though you know he will be angry with you, or go to Melissa’s party and hope for the best. I mean, you do want to see Amanda.

If you take Matt home, turn to page 13.
If you go to the party with Matt, turn to page 14.


Page 8




















Page 9




“Let’s go to Melissa’s party. There’s always so much stuff going on and so many people that we know are going.”
Who knows, maybe Amanda, the girl you’ve been trying to strike up the guts to talk to, will be there.
“We’ll take a taxi there,” says Matt. “I’ll come over at 11:00 o’clock and we’ll go together.”











Page 10
Turn to page 8





Let’s go to Destiny!” you exclaim. “I haven’t been there in so long I never have a problem getting in with my fake ID.”
“There is a new bouncer at the door, though,” says Matt. “Josh and Ben didn’t get in last time and they were taken by two policemen to the police station. Their parents had to come get them at three in the morning. Do you still want to go?” asks Matt.
“Yeah, I do. I don’t think I’ll have a problem. Do you?” you ask.
“I don’t think so,” says Matt. “I just wanted you to be aware.”
You know that your ID is much more believable than Josh and Ben’s IDs, so you decide to just go and risk it.
“I’ll pick you up in 20 minutes,” says Matt.









Page 11
Turn to page 3



“All right!” you yell. “I’m going to the movies with Matt.”
“Well have fun,” says your mom. “I’m assuming you will be back by 1:00 then?”
“Ummm,” you stammer. “I think it’s a really long movie, so I might be back later than that.”
“Hmm, all right,” she says. “Just don’t come home too late.”
Whew. You can’t believe she didn’t suspect anything. That went perfectly…you think.
You get into Matt’s car, and before you know it, you’re at the club.

Turn to page 4.



Page 12








“Matt, you are acting ridiculous!” you exclaim. “I’m taking you home right now. You are going to embarrass yourself and I’m not willing to be a babysitter tonight.”
“If you take me home I’m done with you!” he exclaimed. “You’re not my mother.”
You know it’s just the alcohol talking, and he probably won’t even remember this conversation in the morning.
“Can you please turn the taxi around,” you ask the taxi driver.
“It’s going to cost you,” he says, sounding irritated.
You arrive at Matt’s house and pay the taxi driver. You have to practically hold him up while walking him to the front door. His parents are home and are probably sleeping, but there is a chance that they might still be awake. You can sneak him into his bedroom window, since his room is on the first floor, but you might make a lot of noise.

If you take him through the front door of his house turn to page 9.
If you sneak him through the bedroom window, turn to page 7.
Page 13






You show up at the party with Matt, and have to practically lift him out of the taxi. You walk inside Melissa’s house and the house is a disaster. Chairs are knocked over, bottles of alcohol and beer are everywhere, and the music is blasting. You have no doubt that the police will be here within the hour, but you want to talk to Amanda.
You search the living room for her, and you while doing so, you bump into Josh.
“Is Amanda here?” you ask Josh.
“I saw her a few minutes ago in the backyard by the pool,” he says.
You leave Matt walking around aimlessly and go to the backyard. You see Amanda stumbling as she walks and you walk over to help her.
“Are you all right?” you ask. “How much did you drink?”
“I- I- I’m not very sure,” she says. “I need to get home but I don’t know where Amy is. She is the designated driver.”
As you are talking to Amanda, Josh runs outside and shouts, “The police are out front.”
You know that if you get caught drinking underage you will be in huge trouble, not only with the police, but with your parents as well. You see a fence over by the outdoor bar, and you can easily jump it and get away. However, Amanda is by herself and drunk, and Matt is inside somewhere, probably too intoxicated to function. You’re not sure if you have enough time to get Matt and jump the fence, or if you should just protect yourself. Or, should you leave with Amanda so she doesn’t get in trouble?
If you leave everyone and jump the fence so you don’t get in trouble, turn to page 16.
If you go inside to get Matt, turn to page 21.
If you leave with Amanda, turn to page 6.
Page 14
“I’m pretty tired, man. Let’s just go the movies and take it easy,” you tell Matt.
“That’s fine with me,” says Matt. “Can we go see Superbad? I heard it was really funny.”
You agree and tell him that you will pick him up in fifteen minutes.















Page 15
Turn to page 18


















Page 16

















Page 17











You drive up to Matt’s house and you honk to let him know that you are there. He comes out with the biggest grin on his face.
“Why do you look so happy?” you ask.
“I just spoke to Josh, who spoke to Amanda. She asked him if you would be at the party tonight!”
“Really?” you’re in shock.“ I didn’t even know if she knew who I was.”
“We can always go to the party instead of the movies. It’s not too late,” says Matt.
You are definately happy to know that Amanda asked about you, but you also really had your heart set on seeing this movie.




If you decide to go to the movies turn to page 22.
If you change your mind and go to the party to see Amanda, turn to page 8.

Page 18






You hop into Matt’s car, not feeling so confident that your lie was believable enough.
“I just told my mom that we are going to the movies, so we can’t be back too late or she will know I lied to her. If she finds out I lied, I’m not going to be allowed out for the rest of the summer.”
“Relax,” says Matt. “You can just sneak in through your window and she’ll never know. You left it open right?”
“I always leave it open. I just have a gut feeling that my parents are going to find out.”
“Stop being such a baby about it. We’re going to go no one will ever find out.”
Twenty minutes later you arrive at Club Destiny and there is an endless line of people waiting to get in. You go to the end of the line, which took a while to find, and wait with Matt.
“Do you think I’ll have a problem getting in since there are new bouncers working here?” you ask, a little nervous.
“No,” Matt says, seeming confident in his answer.
As you approach the door, a huge man with muscles bulging out of his neck and arms, and tattoos all over, puts out his hand for your ID. You hand it over and can’t seem to make eye contact with the bouncer.
“Go in,” he says in a low, hoarse voice.
You’re in! Matt follows shortly after.
Turn to page 4
Page 19
You spend the next few hours filling out the applications and writing essays. When you finally finish, it feels like a heavy weight has been lifted off your shoulders, and you’re so happy you didn’t go out tonight. If you had gotten these applications out of the way a few months ago, you would have been able to go out with Matt, but that is the price that you pay for leaving them for the last minute.
It is now 2 in the morning and you are not as tired as you thought you would be, but you have to wake up early to mail the applications and start looking for a summer job. After all, you parents are not giving you any spending money when you go away to school, so it’s up to you to have enough money to last you the year. You can always stay up late and play your brother’s new playstation game, and just look for a job next weekend.

If you decide to play playstation, turn to page 24.
If you force yourself to go to sleep, so that you can wake up early and look for a job, turn to page 29.






Page 20


















Page 21





“I’m so happy to hear that, but I’m not really in the mood to go to a party. Let’s just see the movie,” you say.
You drive to the movie theater with Matt and find a parking spot very close to the entrance. Once inside, you look up at the board of movie listings, and you see:
Superbad- SOLD OUT.
“I knew this was going to happen,” says Matt. “We should have left earlier to get tickets.”
Now you know that next time you want to see a movie that has great ratings, you need to get tickets ahead of time.


THE END







Page 22



“I’m not getting myself involved in that,” you tell Matt, laughing.
“Can I get a rum and coke?” you ask the bartender.
You look over at the pretty woman again and realize right away why the man screamed. The woman that he approached and was trying to hit on was, in fact, not a woman at all. She was a he. You are so happy you were a few seconds too late and did not have to experience that awkward interaction with the cross dresser.
You find yourself telling the bartender the story, and before you know it, the two of you are exchanging funny stories about past girlfriends, school, and jobs.
“Which school did you say you went to again?” asks the bartender.
“Central East High School,” you reply. “I mean-I- I--.”
Before you can even correct yourself you realize that the bartender is instructing two security guards to come over.


Turn to page 26.



Page 23












Page 24






















Page 25














The two security guards, both at least twice the size of you, walk over towards you. Your heart is beating so fast. Your immediate instinct is to run, but your better judgment advises you against it. You freeze and it feels as if your feet are planted into the ground. Each security guard grabs one of your arms with an incredibly tight grip, and escorts you out of the club.
Matt calls you and says, “Hey, I’m sorry that happened man. Do you care if I stay though? I met a really great girl and I want to stick around.”
“No,” you say. After all, you were the one that spilled the beans.
You reach into your pocket to see how much money you have for a cab and realize that you have none. I guess you’re going to have to call your parents for a ride home.

THE END





Page 26

1 comment:

Courtney said...

This sounds pretty good so far. I am guessing the blank pages are just what isn't done yet. I think a lot of people can relate to being in this application situation. Everything sounds pretty realistic as well, like getting caught with a fake i.d., parties getting busted, taking drunk friends home, etc. It is a lot more realistic than some of the CYOA's we have read in class (I didn't manage to kill myself, or get shot or anything!) I am interested to see what would happen if you go up and talk to the "pretty cross dresser."

This isn't too hard to read, just a lot of scrolling, which is understandable since it is a blog. I think it would be easier to read maybe in a powerpoint presentation so you could just click on what slide to go to next.

One thing that would get me interested a little more would be more risks. While some of the things you have are risks, they aren't risks that will get you in serious trouble. Like how we talked in class, some people read CYOA's so that they get make bad decisions and escape the real life consequences.

If I think of anything else, I will add it.