Like Teacher, Like Son (Chapter 3)

In the middle of the school day, lunch began for the students who was assigned to have it around that time. Luckily, for their senior year, the girls got the same lunch period again. At the cafeteria, Andrea, Skye and Lizzie had arrived earlier than Debra and Madeline. They stood, with lunch trays in Andrea and Lizzie's hands, several feet away from the table that they sat in ever since they've been going to Laguna Beach High. They stared at the coterie of friends who were sitting at the table, unaware of the standing girls. They were just talking, laughing and eating with each other while the trio just stood watching them.
"They're sitting at our table," mentioned Lizzie.
"I know that," said Andrea.
"Should we tell them to get up?"
"No," replied Skye, "we can't just tell them to get up. They're not Rosa Parks in the front of a bus."
"Then what do we do?"
"I got an idea," said Andrea. She handed her tray of food to Skye. "Hold this."
Skye held her friend's tray as Andrea took her brown leather purse off her shoulder. She held it in front of herself and dug her hand inside. She stopped digging once she got her hands on a long lock of curly dark hair. Skye and Lizzie stared puzzled at the ringlet between Andrea's perfectly manicured fingers. She put the purse back around her arm and eyed the girls at the lunch table to make sure they were not looking. She stepped a foot closer and quickly chucked the hair over the half the girls' heads. The hair landed right in the center of the table, capturing the clique of girls' attention.
Andrea ran towards the table and shouted, "Oh, my God, it's the Ebola worm! Run!"
The girls got up, shrieking and frantically ran away from the table. Andrea screamed as well to scare the girls off far. She quieted down when they had gotten far enough.
"Alright, they're gone," Andrea said calmly.
She and Skye sat down at the table, sitting facing each other. Skye placed the lunch tray in front of Andrea. Lizzie still stood in her exact spot, making the girls look at her.
"Why aren't you sitting down?" Andrea asked.
"I don't want to get Ebola from the Ebola worm," Lizzie responded with wide eyes.
"Lizzie, I made that up. Sit down."
Lizzie walked over to the table, almost hesitating, and sat down next to Skye, who sat on the bench nearest to the wall.
"You know, we could've sat at another table," mentioned Skye. "I really don't care."
"No way," said Andrea. "I carved my names under this table. This is marked territory."
Soon, Debra arrived to the cafeteria in her sparkly headband and red crochet dress. She had a smile on her face and was ready to eat with her girlfriends.
"Hello, girls," she greeted serenely as she sat down next to Andrea.
"Hey!" her friends greeted her back.
Debra started to notice the lock of black hair on the table. She picked it up and asked, "What is this?"
"Hair," answered Andrea. "I have tons of it hiding in most of my purses from previous scuffles I've been in."
"This was in your purse? And there's more of this?"
"Some of my bags are really weird so the hair snags and it's hard to get it out and stuff like that."
"You really need to chill it on the fighting, Andrea."
"I haven't battled anyone in months. Besides, it's hair. It's not like it's teeth which reminds me: I might have a tooth lost somewhere in one of my bags."
Later came Madeline, late as usual. She marched in with a stunned look on her face and sat down, just staring hard into space.
"Dad?" she asked herself out loud. "Dad?!"
"What's wrong with your dad?" asked Lizzie. "Did he fall down the stairs again? That man should stop wearing open-toe shoes."
"Not my dad. Zeke's dad."
"Your boyfriend?" asked Andrea.
"We haven't discussed terms yet. Right now, he is my special, flirty friend."
"What about his dad?" asked Skye.
"Did he fall down the stairs?" Lizzie guessed.
"No," Madeline responded. "Zeke's dad is a teacher."
"Here?" Andrea inquired.
"Where else?"
"Why is that bad?" asked Debra.
"Because he's my homeroom teacher."
"Oh!" uttered Andrea. "Now that's bad."
"I know, right? I had no idea he was a teacher here. If I knew that, I would have ran away."
"But you didn't 'cause he was good-looking," said Skye.
"Don't rub it in."
"Why not? You're dating the real teacher's pet, son."
"Do you understand how this is going to change everything? Now Mr. Kendrick is going to give me A's I don't deserve and if I break up with his son, he's going to give me F's I don't deserve."
"Well, you could always make up for your grades by making out with his son," recommended Andrea.
"I literally don't know what to do. And I always know what to do. I'm Madeline King!"
"Well, whatever you do, Madeline King, don't break up with him," Debra suggested. "So what if his dad is your teacher? That shouldn't change the way you feel about him."
"I guess you're right, Debs'."
"Is that Zeke over there?" asked Lizzie, looking to her side.
The girls turned their attention to the entrance. Madeline's handsome friend, Zeke, had just entered the cafeteria by himself.
"Oh, yeah, it is," responded Madeline.
"Maybe you should talk to him, Mrs. Kendrick," insisted Skye.
Madeline took her feet out of the table and stood up. "Don't call me that."
"I'm sorry. Mrs. King-Kendrick because I assume you'd want to keep your last name."
Madeline walked away towards her friend who stopped walking when he saw her right in front of him.
"Hi," she grinned.
"Hey," Zeke responded. "How is your first day so far?"
"Good. Super good. With sugar on top."
"Ooh, I'd like to taste that."
"Hopefully, not in front of your dad."
"What?"
"Why didn't you tell me that your dad was a teacher here?"
"I told you: my dad got a job in Laguna and that's why we moved here over the summer."
"Yeah but you didn't say it was a teaching job. And whether he was a teacher or not, you didn't say he was working here."
"I'm sorry. But I didn't think it was that big of a deal."
"It's not a big of a deal. I'm just treating it like it happens to be a big of a deal because I met your dad and didn't know it was him until you called him 'Dad' right in front of me."
"I'm confused. So are you mad or not?"
"I--" Madeline put her hands out then dropped them down, hitting her thighs. "I'm not mad. I'm glad that I met your dad. Now we can move our relationship to the next level... if you're ready for that."
Zeke put his arms around Madeline, prompting her to wrap her hands behind his neck. "Hey, if you're ready, I'm ready because I really like you."
"Good."
He chuckled. "Hey, I'm going to try some clubs today and tomorrow so why don't you come over my house Wednesday to help me with my homework?"
"How do you know you're going to need help with your homework? School just started."
"I know but I'm a slow learner. And you are a smart woman."
"That's true."
Zeke leaned in towards Madeline but she leaned back. Zeke stood up straight when he noticed her resisting.
"You want to kiss me now?" she asked.
"I didn't want to kiss you in front of my father. I saw your tongue."
"Is your father in sight?"
"I don't see him anywhere."
"Then tongue shall be."
The couple smiled before leaning towards each other and pressing their lips together.