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Chapter One
Dear Diary,
Sorry if my handwriting is a little jerky, but I'm sitting on this bus rolling down something called the 100-Mile Highway in Florida. And the last time I checked we still had about fifty five miles to go.
See, my twin sister Ashley and I are on this really cool school trip. I know, I know-it's the first week of summer vacation. But when I tell you all about this trip you'll see why Ashley and I decided to stick around. Oh, and since you're a brand-new diary (my old one filled up pretty fast), I'll clue you in on all the details.
Ashley and I are First Formers at a boarding school called The White Oak Academy for Girls in New Hampshire. First Form is the school's way of saying seventh grade. That took some getting used to. So did eating oatmeal every morning for breakfast, another White Oak tradition. Just like these summer vacation school trips.
There's a camping trip to Maine, a sightseeing trip to New York City, and a trip to a tiny island off the coast of Florida in an area called the Keys.
Ashley and I chose to spend two weeks on the island at Camp Coral Reef. Then we'll be going to Miami for a week on the beach.
I know what you're thinking, Diary. That Ashley and I are off to roast hot dogs and paint ceramic frogs in arts and crafts. NOT! In this camp we'll learn all about marine biology--fancy words for fish and underwater plants. We're also going to try our hands at wildlife photography, deep sea fishing, and scuba diving.
Diary, when I heard about the scuba diving I was so there. But Ashley needed a little convincing....
"You mean I'll have to wear a mask and flippers, and anoxygen tank?" Ashley asked me when I read the brochure out loud.
"Sure!"' I said. "How else are you going to get upclose and personal with a barracuda?"
"I'm not sure I want to," Ashley said.
No kidding! Ashley and I may be twins but we're as different as two snowflakes. I dig sports, drama and watching the Cubs game in my sweats. Ashley likes ballet, boys, and clothes, clothes, clothes! Get the picture?
I can't wait to scuba dive! Of course, we have to get our scuba certificates first, but no problem! I beat Ashley at holding our breaths in the bathtub when we were little.
Now here's the neatest part: Some of our best buds from school are going to Camp Coral Reef, too.
"What made you sign up, Cheryl?" I asked during breakfast on our last day of school.
"Are you kidding?"" Cheryl Miller said. "After being in New England all winter, I want as much sun as I can get!"
"So do I!" Summer Sorenson said. "I want to kick up my tan before I go home to Malibu. It's definitely fading.
Everyone looked at Summer as if she were from outer space. Her tan will never fade. It"s for fife!
As 'for Elise Van Hook, she wants to study marine animals before visiting her Peace Corps volunteer parents in Fiji.
"So you can learn to recognize the natural wildlife?" Ashley asked Elise.
Elise nodded. "I definitely need to know what's poisonous and what"s not!" she said.
And then there"s Phoebe Cahill. Phoebe is Ashley's roommate and the editor of the First Form newspaper, the White Oak Acorn. She loves poetry, classic movies, and vintage clothes. But not sports. In fact, Phoebe's idea of the great outdoors is an open-air flea market.
"If you're not a sports nut, why are you going to Florida?" I asked Phoebe. "It's all about water sports!"
"'I'm going to write about the trip for the fall issue of the Acorn," Phoebe said. "I don't intend to get anywhere near a scuba tank."
"Lucky you," I heard, Ashley mutter.
And if you're wondering about boys-some First Formers from the Harrington School for Boys are going, too. Like our cousin Jeremy Burke, who's dying to learn scuba diving. I'm not surprised. He"s been blowing bubbles in his milk since he was in kindergarten.
Other Harrington guys are Seth Samuels, Justin Martinez, and Ross Lambert. Ashley has had a crush on Ross since we started White Oak. And after kissing him in the school play, that crush became more of a--CRUNCH! Ashley and Ross had sort of a misunderstanding this spring. But now they're a couple again.
Ashley is sitting next to me writing in her diary and eating the honey roasted nuts we got on the plane to Miami. She has this serious look on her face as if she's writing a term paper. What's her problem?
Anyway, Diary, gotta go. Jeremy just tossed a rubber cockroach on my lap. And it's time to get even!
Dear Diary,
What was I thinking? Okay, Florida is really great-looking, with all those swaying palm trees and bright blue skies. But once we hit Camp Coral Reef it's going to be downhill all the way. Why? I'll tell you....
A few weeks ago Cheryl and I were in the school bookstore. Cheryl was looking for a travel book on Florida. I was just ... looking.
But just as I was about to grab a book about ballet, I saw a big paperback called The Worst That Can Happen. I flipped through it and almost flipped 'myself.
Two of a Kind #17: Shore Thing. Copyright © by Mary-Kate & Ash Olsen. Reprinted by permission of HarperCollins Publishers, Inc. All rights reserved. Available now wherever books are sold.
