Prologue
“I got a text from Susy!” said Brooke, who started jumping around the cabin, her black hair bouncing around her and her leather skirt flying up to reveal her leather shorts.
By “a text,” she meant that Susy had sent a pigeon over with a message taped around it. This was the 13th century.
Susy was taking a voyage to Europe to bring back gold, beads, and other things that they could trade with. Back then, they didn’t have money. Brooke and Susy lived in the western part of South America where Ecuador is right now. Ecuador wasn’t a thing back then. Everyone lived in cabins made of prickly, pointy wood. If you dragged your finger on a wall, you would get hundreds of splinters.
Susy’s real name was Susan. Since Brooke was her best friend, though, she got to call her Susy. You know how the capital of Ecuador is Quito? Well, now, let me tell you a story.
***
Two days later…
“That was a long trip,” Susan said to Brooke as she went to get the foot massager to massage her feet. “I brought back tons of gold, though.”
“Did you write in your diary?” asked Brooke.
“Yeah. You could barely read the handwriting.”
Susan and Brooke started massaging their feet, and soon they fell asleep on their wool beds.
Chapter One: iPhone L
(Eight centuries later. 2073. New York, NYC)
Avery Mulligan and Tracy Winsnap were in line to get the new iPhone L (50). Yup, it had been that long. The iPhone L (50) is the size of a mini TV. You could personalize your own Siri to match your voice. It is completely waterproof, so the next time you drop your phone in a pool, you don’t have to get it fixed. They come in every color you could imagine.
I would go on, but neither you nor I have that kind of time. So, what does this have to do with Susan Roger? Well, this is the story of how Roger became the new name of the capital of Ecuador in 2073.
Chapter Two: The New Kind Of Texting
(Through text)
Avery: It’s so easy to text on this thing!
Tracy: LOL Ikr!
Avery: I used $7,000 from my dad’s credit card. Whoops!
Tracy: Gr8. When your dad finds out, he’s gonna flip. Literally.
Avery: LOL my dad is not that flexible. Especially as the mayor, all he does is sit in a chair and make phone calls and sign contracts so he can receive a paycheck.
Tracy: True. You know I am in the mood for something rainbow. You know, because that’s my favorite color.
Avery: Haha! Do you know when you will see your parents again?
Tracy: God knows where they are in the world. Probably a year from now. I dunno.
Avery: Are u taking care of your pets right now?
Tracy: You mean my three dogs, two cats, and one hamster?
Avery: Yup.
Tracy: Yes. I am in real need for some energy, so lucky water has caffeine in it. What would life be without it?
Avery: Ikr! I have to teleport home but tell me how things go at your Girl Scouts. T2UL8ER
Tracy: I will.
Chapter Three: A Very Serious Argument
“We need to change Quito’s name by March 3rd!” said the president of Ecuador.
“Okay, calm down,” said Avery’s dad, who was named Smith. He is the mayor of New York.
“I’m sorry. It’s just that since the war with Israel, we haven’t been able to think of a new name. We are still recovering from dead and injured people. That’s all people are talking about.”
Jack, who is the president of Ecuador, leaned back in his chair. He rubbed his forehead and sighed. “I have been getting a lot of suggestions for names, but they’re all stupid. Some guy named Richard Thompson wanted to name the capital Sweetbaby. He is 23 years old, and I am not psychic, but he does not have being a president or a mayor in his future.”
“Not even a prime minister?” Avery’s dad joked.
“Of course not,” Jack said in a cracked voice.
Meanwhile…
“Okay, girls, so today we will be looking for lost or stolen items that are in these woods. The boundaries are the beach that goes to the river. Don’t cross that. Good luck!”
Tracy was at Girl Scouts, and now she had to find some lost or stolen things. Tracy looked under rocks and branches, in between bushes and twigs. She found nothing. She was about to sit on a hollow log when she saw something white inside of a crack. She stood up and looked inside of the log. There was a dirty, wrinkled piece of paper bunched up in there. Tracy pulled her chocolate brown hair into a ponytail and crawled inside. She snatched the piece of paper and crawled out.
Chapter Four: What The Heck?!
Tracy smoothed out the piece of paper. It had a lot of writing on it. She could only make out some of the words. It said something like this:
(1247)
Dear …..’s Diary,
I live in a colony. The colony is named after my grandfather, who died. It is a tradition that the colony’s name changes every year when a person, 13 or over, throws an origami over the ocean. That person’s last name becomes the new name. Hopefully I will have my last name named after something.
Just three more days left in Europe!
Love,
Susan Roger
“Who is Susan Roger?” Tracy asked herself.
She decided to keep it since she didn’t have anything else. Tracy skipped back to her Girl Scouts leader and showed her the paper.
“This was written eight centuries ago!” said Tracy’s Girl Scouts leader, who was named Drew.
Tracy wanted to be a Girl Scouts leader when she grows up.
“By someone named Susan Roger,” said Tracy. “I like that name.”
“This was written in Europe, but this girl lived where Ecuador is now!” Drew said with an amazed voice. “This really is a shocker. You earn today’s badge for finding the most interesting, historical, and significant item. Congratulations!”
“Can I keep the paper?” asked Tracy.
“Uh,” Drew said, kind of uncertain. “Normally, I keep the item and put it on the Girl Scouts Hall Of Fame Wall, but if you really want to keep it, I could pull a few strings.”
“Thank you, Drew, thank you! My history teacher is gonna love this!!”
History teachers, or any teachers for that matter, are now robots who are programmed to work with kids at a certain grade and age. There is no such thing as a “boring teacher.”
Chapter Five: The Paper That Changed Everything
The next day, Tracy walked to Avery’s house and showed the paper to Avery.
“This is so strange,” said Avery.
“I know,” said Tracy, who was busy ordering a mocha at the Starbucks in Avery’s private food court.
“I really like the name Roger,” said Avery.
“Same!!” said Tracy.
Hmm, Avery thought. I know my dad is helping the president of Ecuador find a name for its capital, and Roger is a good name for it, but I want to find out more about this Susan Roger first. Imma look her up.
“What are you looking up?” asked Tracy.
“I want to find out more about this Susan Roger,” said Avery as she typed furiously on her iPad, which was twice the size of her face.
Finally, Avery found a somewhat reliable article and started reading.
“It seems as if Susan was thirteen when she went to Europe. She had orange-red hair and was the oldest kid in her colony. She always wrote in her diary. This must have been one of her diary entries! We’re like detectives!” Avery was squinting at her iPad, because the words were so tiny on something so huge. “She loved making origami, which her mom taught her. One day, when she was bored, she turned a diary entry into an origami bird, and threw it far across the ocean in our direction. This must have been the diary entry! It says no one has been able to find the diary entry. You could be famous, Tracy!!”
“Oh. My. God! You’re right, because in the diary entry, it said something about throwing origami and wanting something to be named after her,” said Tracy.
“You know what else is good? Since we both like the name Roger, we could suggest it to my dad, and then he could tell the president of Ecuador. If the president of Ecuador likes it, it could become the new name of the capital! We could be famous! We could be excellent role models! This Susan girl will also get her dream of being named after, even though she is dead!” Avery said, out of breath.
“You really like the idea of being famous all of the sudden,” laughed Tracy.
Chapter Six: This is Getting Good
“Should we suggest the name to my dad?” asked Avery.
“Why not?” said Tracy.
Later that day, Tracy and Avery walked into the mayor’s office. They knocked on the door and walked in. Smith was on his computer, typing furiously.
“What do you want, girls? I am very busy.”
“We have a suggestion for a name of the capital of Ecuador,” said Avery confidently.
“I’m sorry, Avery, but the law says that anyone under the age of 18 can’t name capitals.”
“Just hear me out, Dad,” said Avery. “Tracy and I like the name Roger.”
Smith started stroking his beard.
“Roger, Ecuador…” Smith said to himself. “I like it. How did you get the name Roger, girls?” he asked.
Tracy explained the whole story of Susan Roger.
“I’ll talk with the president of Ecuador, but I think we have a name, girls! Congratulations!”
Chapter Seven: The Typical Happy Ending
(Quito, Ecuador, 2073)
“I think we’ve found a name, Jack,” said Smith. J
ack was the president of Ecuador.
“Hit me,” said Jack.
“Roger, Ecuador,” said Smith. “My daughter and her friend came up with it.”
“It has a good ring to it,” said Jack. “I think we found a name!”
One week later…
“I hereby announce that the new name for Quito, Ecuador is Roger, Ecuador! This name was made up by two girls named Avery Mulligan and Tracy Winsnap,” announced Jack in front of a crowd of people.
Everyone cheered and clapped. Later that evening, Jack signed a contract to make it official and leaned back in his chair.
“The pressure is off,” he said.
Epilogue
Tracy and Avery became internet sensations and reality sensations. Their story on how they came up with the name was told on almost every news station (except for Fox News, which didn’t believe that those girls came up with the name.) It was like walking down the red carpet for them.
“You were right, Avery,” said Tracy.
“About what?” asked Avery, as they hopped in a limo to go home.
Normally they would have teleported, but they wanted to keep the fame while it lasted.
“We are famous, but also we are now role models for other girls,” said Tracy.
“You are most definitely right, bestie,” said Avery.
The two of them rode off with a feeling of accomplishment in their veins.
“I wonder when they’re going to change their name again,” said Avery.
The two of them just laughed and laughed and laughed.
The End!