Veronique the Brat (Chapter 5)

After the girls witnessed Veronique fall down the long flight of stairs, Madeline decided to call the ambulance for her cousin. It took not so long for the ambulance to come to the house and strap the knocked-out Veronique to the gurney. Madeline spoke with the doctors as Veronique was slowly gaining conscious when the gurney was hoisted up. The girls were standing in the lounge with no equipment on, watching Veronique about to get rolled out of the door.
Madeline stood with her girlfriends after finishing her convo. "Get well, Ronnie!" she waved.
"Fille de joie!" Veronique uttered in a weak yet loud voice.
The doctors helped each other push the gurney out then closed the doors for Madeline.
"What does 'fille de joie' mean?" queried Skye.
"It means 'floozy'," Madeline answered with a weak smile.
"Oh."
"So what did the man say?" asked Lizzie.
"He said that since Veronique already has a sickness," started Madeline, "they might as well keep her at the hospital until she gets well. Which means we don't have to take care of her anymore."
The girls threw their hands in the air and whooped.
"Good," said Skye. "You know, I was just doing it for the money but money obviously doesn't mean anything if I have to be tortured the whole time."
"No more goggles to mess up my hair," said Andrea, fluffing her curly brown hair with one hand.
"You know, you guys didn't really need to wear that stuff," mentioned Madeline. "Lyme disease is not really contagious."
"I don't care. I didn't want her coughing on me or nothing. Just normal people habits."
"I'm glad that's over," admitted Debra. "Now we can just relax." She closed her eyes and put her hands together as ones would do when praying.
"I couldn't agree with you more," said Lizzie.
"Say Madeline," said Skye. "Whose bag is that?" She pointed at the big purple purse in the corner of the lounge.
"I don't know," answered Madeline. "I think it's Veronique's."
"Let's see if it's Veronique's." Skye walked over to the corner and picked up the purse by the brown handles. It was already open so she just stuck her hand inside. She grabbed a wallet then put her arm through the handles. She opened it and found I.D. "Oh, I found Veronique's identity card from school so this is her purse." She poked around in the wallet and pulled a numerous amount of money. "And this must be the thirty-thousand dollars."
The girls ran up to Skye to get a good look of the money.
"Skye, you can't be going through people's wallets like that," said Madeline.
"Hey, that little hamster owes me," said Skye. "Don't you think my hard work deserves a little something?" She flipped through the cash and counted for her desired amount. "Four thousand dollars because there is four letters in my name." Skye folded up her money and stuffed it in her jeans' pocket.
"You know, I helped out, too," mentioned Andrea. "And I think I deserve at least ten thousand so can you hook a sister up?"
Skye counted the remaining money and pull out a total of ten thousand dollars to give to Andrea.
"I saw these shoes online," shared Lizzie, "that total up to... I'm gonna say five thousand!"
Skye flipped through the money until she counted five thousand dollars. She took the amount out and handed it to Lizzie.
"You guys, money doesn't buy happiness..." said Debra. "But give me five hundred."
Skye counted five hundred dollars then gave it to Debra.
"You know," started Madeline, stepping closer to Skye, "my manager, Penelope, has been slow with her checks lately and I need to be paid of course. So you can break a fifty? You know what? Just give me the rest of it; I need new sheets."

Veronique the Brat (Chapter 4)

The day after, it had gotten worst for the girls. They continued to help Veronique but she became crazier than ever. They wore their masks, gloves and goggles to prevent getting sick but they were mentally sick of Veronique's demands. Lizzie was upstairs in Madeline's bedroom, endeavoring to take care of Veronique while the girls were downstairs, endeavoring to avoid Madeline's sick cousin.
Veronique swatted repeatedly at Lizzie who tried to place an ice pack on her forehead. Veronique screamed like a baby through her hospital mask as Lizzie was afraid for her life, trying to dodge Veronique's flying hands.
"I don't want that on me!" Madeline's cousin whined.
"But the ice pack is supposed to make you feel better," explained Lizzie.
"No, it won't!"
"Madeline said it would."
"Screw Madeline! Get that thing off me!"
"Don't you want to feel better?"
"I already got chills. Why would I want to feel more cold?"
"To prevent heat flashes caused by your P.M.S.?"
Veronique stopped swinging and gasped. She swiped the ice pack from Lizzie's hands, opened it and poured the ice down Lizzie's shirt. Lizzie shivered and gasped from the chilliness taking over chest then her whole body.
"That's what you get," said Veronique. "Now if you want to make yourself useful, make me a latte. Fat free! With low fat whipped cream."
Lizzie stood trembling with her arms far apart. "How do you make a latte? Is that like a Ralph Macchio?"
"Do you mean 'macchiato'?"
"Yeah, that makes sense."
"Just buy me one, Dumbo!"
Lizzie whimpered before sprinting out of the bedroom. She walked through the hallway then down the stairs into the living room where the girls were chilling, not literally.
Skye looked at Lizzie and noticed the big wet spot on her shirt. "What happened to you?"
The girls got up from the chairs and sofas and crowded Lizzie.
"Veronique didn't want the ice pack on her head," answered Lizzie, "so she emptied it into my bra and asked me to make a latte. So how do you make a latte? Is that like a Ralph Macchiato?"
"Madeline, your cousin is out of control," said Andrea, ignoring Lizzie's question.
"I know," said Madeline, placing the palms of her hands on her forehead for a few seconds.
"You should go up there and talk to her," suggested Debra.
"Why?"
"Because," started Skye, "she's your cousin. And you two are practically the same. You're both rich, spoiled, you speak French, like to flirt with cute boys and have long frickin' names."
"I'm not rich; my parents are rich. But I see where you're getting at. Fine, I'll talk to her."
"Be careful," warned Lizzie. "She might pour ice on your boobies."
Madeline ignored that comment and headed upstairs. She speed-walked into the hallway then entered her bedroom. She walked over to the bed where Veronique was under the covers, writhing and trying to rest.
"Ronnie, we need to talk," Madeline declared. "What are those?"
Veronique took her eyes off the little pieces of paper in her hands to look at her cousin. "Oh, these are Tori Kelly tickets. I was looking at them to make sure they were legit."
Madeline chuckled. "Why do you need to make sure they're legit?"
"So we can be able to go."
"Okay, first of all: the concert is in a couple of weeks and there's a chance that you won't recover by then. Second of all: I planned to go with Lizzie."
"Well, Princess Cinder Block is going to have to wait 'til next year."
Madeline snatched the tickets from Veronique and set them on the night stand. "Listen, Ronnie, ever since you've been here, you have been a total brat. You yelled at my friends, spilled hot soup on them, made them buy you pink toilet paper and stuffed ice down their bras. All they've been trying to do was to help you and you're taking advantage of that. Lyme disease or not, if you can't be grateful for the people trying to nurse you back to health, I will have to remove you from this house. Don't make me do it; I have been a good cousin to you. But I've watched you violate my sheets with soup, vomit and... rash germs, so no more!"
Veronique sat up and took her mask off. "Is that how you talk?"
"Why you take the mask off?"
"I am sick and practically dying. I think I'm allowed to act however I want." Veronique threw the covers off her body and planted her feet on the floor. "If you're not going to give me what I want, then I'll have to take it from you." She reached under the bed and pulled out a baseball bat.
Madeline jumped back. "Where did you get the baseball bat?"
Veronique stood up with the bat resting in her hands. "Oh, I had it for a while. I brought it with me for emergencies."
"What kind of emergencies? Because we have a dope security system."
Veronique swung her bat at Madeline but Madeline luckily ducked.
"Whoa, wait!" Madeline demanded. "What are you doing?"
"Is your friend out buying my latte?"
"I don't know. She was still here when I came--"
Veronique tried to swing her bat at Madeline again but Madeline jumped back, avoiding contact.
"I want my fat free latte with low fat whipped cream!" Veronique fussed.
"Why does one part got to be fat free and the other part low fat?"
Veronique made many attempts to hit Madeline with the baseball bat. However, luckily, Madeline was fast and instinctive enough to avoid every swing and blow produced by her crazy cousin. Madeline ran out of the room, screaming for help. Veronique followed her into the hallway and halted when Madeline stopped in front of the top of the stairs. Around that time, her friends made it up and commenced to surround her.
"What is going on?" asked Skye. "Whoa..." She caught a glimpse of the bat in Veronique's hand.
"Where did she get the baseball bat?" whispered Debra.
"It's for emergencies," responded Madeline.
"You guys claim that I've been a brat to you," said Veronique, "while you have been brats to me. I'm gonna be sick for a long time so you better make my time worthwhile."
"How long do you think you're gonna be sick?" asked Lizzie nervously. "Because I want to be able to live my life. I never owned a house or voted for Hillary Clinton. I want to at least live until I'm sixty-nine like David Bowie or until I'm nine-hundred like Betty White. May God rest her soul."
"How dumb are you?" questioned Veronique. "I mean you're so dumb. You got the IQ of a table."
"Hey!" Andrea ejaculated. "Don't talk to her like that!" She began to put her hands on Veronique, grabbing her by the face and pulling her towards herself.
Veronique let go of the bat when she was in Andrea's grip. Andrea let go of her after pulling her in. When she did, Veronique lost her balance and tripped on the first step of the staircase. After that, she tumbled down the stairs for a half a minute. The girls watched in panic as Veronique fell then rolled on the floor, eventually stopping and laying unconsciously on her side. The girls just stared in shock.
"Nice going, Ronda Rousey!" said Madeline. "You just killed her!"
"Oh, my God!" Lizzie placed her hands on the top of her head. "I don't want to go to jail. I haven't lived to be nine-hundred."
Veronique moaned and lifted her head up just a bit. Then she dropped it down and continued to moan.
"Oh, she's not dead," noticed Skye, not so sympathetic about it.
"Oh, thank God..." said Madeline, putting her hands on her chest. "I guess."
"What if we put her back in bed and told her it was all a dream?" suggested Andrea.
"That sounds like something someone would say after attempting murder," responded Debra.
"Whatever. Man, Lyme disease is a mother."
"It can't be," said Lizzie. "My mother never poured ice down my bra."

Veronique the Brat (Chapter 3)

    The next day, the girls were back at Madeline's house, helping her take care of the sick Veronique. That day, they wore their hospital masks along with rubber gloves. Skye and Andrea wore some goggles just in case. The girls were running around in the kitchen, cooking soup as they could hear Veronique from upstairs screaming for soup and ringing a bell vigorously.
    "Man, she crazy," commented Andrea, shaking a bottle of paprika into the hot pot of soup.
    "I told you she was out of her mind," said Madeline as she chucked black pepper into the pot.
    "No, you didn't," said Skye, opening the top cabinets. "You said that she had P.M.S."
    "It's the same thing, Skye."
    "Well, you should've said she got P.P.M.M.S.S."
    "What's that?" asked Lizzie.
    Skye didn't respond. She just rolled her eyes.
    "Soup!" screamed Veronique from the bedroom. "Where's my soup?"
    "Why does she gotta be so loud?" questioned Andrea.
    "Is the soup almost done?" Madeline asked Debra.
    "Yeah, it is just about done," answered Debra, stirring the soup on the stove with a wooden spoon.
    Skye grabbed a white bowl and placed it on top of a silver tray. Debra turned off the heat of the stove. She picked up the pan by the handles and carefully poured the soup into the bowl.
    "Spoon!" shouted Madeline.
    Lizzie pulled out two drawers from the counter. One of them had eating utensils so she grabbed a spoon from that drawer.
    "Spoon," Lizzie repeated.
    She passed it to Skye and Skye stuck it in the bowl. She picked the tray up by the handles and began carrying it out of the kitchen. She walked upstairs, hearing Veronique's hollers for soup getting louder and louder. She walked as fast as she could down the hall then entered the bedroom.
    "Where's my soup?" Veronique screamed, ringing a handheld golden bell.
    "Here's your soup," said Skye, walking over to the bed. She laid it down on the space of the bed right next to Veronique.
    "I don't like that kind of soup."
    "But you were screaming, begging for soup."
    "Yeah but I don't like that kind of soup."
    Skye picked up the spoon, getting some soup in it. "Listen, just taste it and maybe you'll change your mind."
    "No, I don't want to."
    "Just eat it, Veronique." Skye stuck the spoon in Veronique's face.
    Veronique buried her face in the pillow. "No!"
    "Veronique, come on."
    The girls shouted at each other, spatting different arguments at the same time, with Skye trying to force the spoon into Veronique's face. Eventually, Veronique swatted the spoon out of Skye's hand, spilling a bit of soup on the bed. Then she pushed the tray off, spilling hot vegetable soup all over Skye's clothes. Skye stood up and gasped from the tingling, scorching pain overcoming her stomach and legs.
    "Oh!" Skye shuddered. "Oh, I'm gonna kill you, you crusty croissant."
    Andrea entered the room, holding a box of tissues, right when Veronique pushed the soup on Skye's body. So she was just in time to run up to Skye and hold her back by the arms. Skye struggled a little bit, tensing up with anger and ache.
    "Hey, hey, hey," said Andrea. "What's going on?"
    "Are you kidding?" said Skye, opening her hands. "That little gremlin spilled soup on me. I cannot feel my legs right now."
    "You barely have legs, stubby," commented Veronique.
    "Now she's calling me short. Let me at her, Andy! She's calling me short."
    "You've been short," reminded Andrea. "It's not much of a surprise. Why don't you just go downstairs and help the girls with the soup? And remember: this is all for the money."
    Skye freed herself from Andrea's grip. "Fine," she said with a strong look. She began to walk away. "My money better come with three zeros. Three!" She exited the bedroom.
    "Hey, Dora," said Veronique.
    Andrea looked at her. "It's Andrea. Yes?"
    "Did you get my tissues?"
    "Of course, I did." Andrea placed the box in Veronique's hands.
    "They're not pink."
    "I know. They were out of the pink tissues."
    "Then why did you get me white?"
    "Because they were out of the pink tissues."
    Veronique threw the box in Andrea's face. Andrea caught it but it still hit her. "You better go to another store and buy me pink tissues!" Veronique demanded. "And while you're at it, buy some pink toilet paper. I refuse to use the white toilet paper in the bathroom but I need to wipe my derriere."
    Andrea muttered to herself while walking away, "You need to wipe your face. That's where your actual derriere is."

Veronique the Brat (Chapter 2)

Later that day, the girls made their way over to Madeline's house so they could meet her cousin, Veronique, from Quebec. Debra got into Madeline's car after school so they could get there together. Skye hitched a ride from Andrea so Lizzie drove with nobody else in her car. Madeline let everybody into the empty mansion and made them wear hospital masks which were resting in a box on the living room table. They all walked upstairs and made it to Madeline's room. She opened the door and the girls caught a glimpse of a girl resting in Madeline's huge royal-like bed. The girl had long, red hair with an orange sheen and grassy green eyes. She was pasty-faced and wearing a hospital mask along with pink, elephant-printed pajamas. She was trying to sleep, pushing the pink, glittery covers up to her neck. She opened her eyes and groaned when she heard the door open.
"How is it going, Veronique?" asked Madeline, muffling through the mask.
"I'm in pain, you floozy," Veronique almost mumbled.
"Nice to see you, too."
"Madeline, I don't want to see people."
"Relax. These are my friends. They hardly see you."
"Mmm..."
"We're here to help," said Lizzie, perky as always.
"Good 'cause I need it."
"Is there anything you want, Ronnie?" asked Madeline.
"I want to go to sleep. But since you guys are here, can I get some medicine?"
"Sure, anything you want," responded Skye. "As long as you have money." She walked out of the room to go to the bathroom.
"Can someone take her temperature?" requested Madeline, pulling out a thermometer from her back pocket.
"I'll do it," volunteered Debra, taking the thermometer.
She sprinted towards the bed and kneeled before Veronique.
"Say 'ah'," she kindly demanded.
Veronique took off her mask and opened her mouth wide.
"Ahhh...." she uttered.
"Don't breathe on me now," demanded Debra.
Veronique stopped making a sound but kept her mouth open. Debra stuck the thermometer under Veronique's tongue. Veronique sucked on the thermometer as the bohemian stood up.
Skye came back with a little orange container of white pills. "I believe this is Veronique's since it got her name on the label."
"Give it to her," Madeline quietly commanded.
Skye walked over to the bed and stood next to Debra. She handed Veronique the pills which she held for a while. Debra took the thermometer out of her mouth and checked the temperature on the tiny screen.
"Dang!" she exclaimed. "This says one-hundred-fifty-six degrees!"
Madeline groaned.
"How did you get Lyme disease by the way?" asked Skye.
Veronique twisted the cap off of the container. "I was vacationing in France and got attacked by a deer tick. When I came home, I was cold and hot at the same time." She shook the container over her hand until two pills fell in her palm. She stuck the medicine in her mouth and swallowed it dry. "And what's crazy is that I was talking to a guy when I got bit. That's what I get for messing with French candy, you know what I'm saying?"
Skye laughed. "So how much money did it take for you to go to France?"
"Skye!" called Madeline.
"What? I want to know."
"You're very pretty, Veronique," remarked Lizzie.
"Thanks," Veronique responded.
"Maybe one day, when you're not diseased of Lyme, I can do your makeup."
"I would like that."
"This 'taking care of Veronique' isn't so bad, Maddie," said Andrea.
"You didn't even do anything yet," said Madeline.
"That's why it's not so bad."
"I think I might like you guys," admitted Veronique. "Madeline has been a pain. The whole time I've been here, she kept saying, 'Don't throw up in my bed. Don't throw up in my bed. Don't throw up in my bed.'"
"Sorry I don't want vomit all over my Michael Amini sheets," said Madeline, crossing her arms.
"You need to stop being a she-devil."
"Just don't throw up in my bed."

Veronique the Brat (Chapter 1)

Madeline plopped down at the lunch table at her usual spot. She groaned and dropped her face on the table. The girls looked at her for a while before one of them said something to her.
"Is something wrong, Maddie?" asked Lizzie.
"Something is obviously wrong," said Andrea. "Madeline has super huge bags under her eyes."
Madeline shot up. "I don't have any bags!"
"What's up, Madeline?" asked Debra.
"Do I have bags?"
"I'll tell you later. What's up?"
"It's my cousin Veronique."
"From Quebec?" inquired Skye.
"Yeah. She's here."
"What is she doing in California?" questioned Debra.
"Torturing me."
"Why?" asked Lizzie.
"Veronique has Lyme disease."
"Ooh," uttered Skye softly.
"Oh no," said Lizzie. "Did she eat a lime and get sick?"
"No, Lizzie," Madeline replied. "Lyme disease is something you get from a tick."
"Oh, I guess that makes sense."
"Right. So because of it, Veronique's house is quarantined. Until it becomes sanitary, her parents sent her off to my house to stay for a while."
"Wait, your cousin's parents sent their diseased daughter to your house?" questioned Skye.
"She's wearing a mask and uses hand sanitizer every fifteen minutes."
"Well, that makes it so much better."
"My parents take care of her when I'm at school and they go to work right before I come back. So every time I go home, I have to check up on her."
"What if we help?" suggested Lizzie.
"Uh-uh," Skye uttered before sipping her can of soda.
"I don't know if I want you guys helping me," said Madeline. "I mean she has Lyme disease and P.M.S."
"I love you, Madeline, and every person a part of you," admitted Skye, putting her drink down, "but I ain't getting sick over nothing. I want to be able to live until I'm at least sixty-nine."
"That's specific," said Debra.
"Well, David Bowie made it to that age so..."
"I can't believe I have to take care of Veronique for God knows when," complained Madeline. "I have to take care of myself, too, you know. Plus, Veronique or her parents could have practically hired some nurses or something. She did bring, like, thirty-thousand dollars with her."
"Thirty-thousand dollars?" repeated Andrea.
"Yeah. Thirty or forty."
"She's rich?" asked Skye.
"Practically, yes."
"Oh, then we're helping. No question about it."
"Yeah, I'm in," said Andrea.
Debra and Lizzie nodded and smiled.
"You guys are pigs," scoffed Madeline.
"Well, this piggy needs to go to the market," said Skye, "so she can buy some bling. Don't you blow my house down. It won't even go down. It'll be made of pure marble. Or whatever Heidi Montag put in her boobs."

Supposedly Surprise Party (Chapter 5)

    Madeline unwrapped a small box covered in paper with pink and purple stripes. She gasped when she got a hold of the exposed box. "You got me the facial wash with exfoliating crushed diamonds?" she asked Lizzie. "How could you afford this?"
    "Oh, two five-hundred dollar bills fell out of your pocket," started Lizzie, "and instead of giving them back to you, I went out and bought this."
    "You stole my money? I was looking all over for that."
    "I didn't steal it. I used it to buy this gift for you. So basically, you bought this for yourself. So don't thank me; thank yourself."
    "I want to be mad but I'm too happy. Besides, I was going to buy this for myself anyway."
    Suddenly, Sean approached the table that the girls were sitting in. He walked over to Madeline and stuck a little wrapped box in her face.
    "I got this for you, Madeline," he said, stifled with joy.
    Madeline almost crossed her eyes when she saw the gift two centimeters from her face.
    "Sorry, Maddie," said Skye. "I didn't invite Sean but he wanted to come."
    "It's okay, Skye," said Madeline. "I want him here."
    "You do? Okay."
    "Girls, can I some privacy please?"
    "Oh, sure, Madeline," responded Debra.
    The girls moved farther away from Madeline, only to push their chairs closer towards one another. They were on one side of the table while Madeline was straight across. It was not what she had in mind but quickly, she let it go.
    "Sean, I know I said I was your girlfriend," she looked up at the shrimp. "But I only said it because you were on TV and I needed some extra attention. I'm so sorry. I'm such a bad person. Therefore, I can't accept your gift."
    "Yeah, I knew this was coming," admitted Sean. "Even though it was all fake, you were the best girlfriend I ever had. So I accept your apology. And I still want you to have this anyway." He shoved the gift into her face again.
    Madeline smiled. She took the box and ripped the paper off. She took off the lid and gasped. She picked up the thin gold necklace that was laying on a white cushion smushed inside the box. At the end of the necklace was a pendant of three little hearts going downward.
    "Oh, Sean, this is gorgeous," she commented, gawking at the piece of jewelry.
    "I know," Sean said with a smug smile. "It cost a lot but it was worth it."
    "Oh, my God, Sean. Thank you! This is the best present so far."
    "So am I your boyfriend now?"
    "No."
    "Okay. But one day, I will be."
    "I doubt that."
    "Okay. Well, bye." Sean rolled his lips inside his mouth and walked away.
    The girls pushed their chairs back to their original spots. They got a better glimpse of the necklace in Madeline's hands.
    "Wow, Sean must love you," said Andrea.
    "Why wouldn't he?" Madeline inquired. "I'm lovable."
    The girls giggled as Madeline put the necklace back in the box.
    "Girls, even though this surprise party wasn't much of a surprise, I'm still surprised that I wake up every day and you all are still my friends."
    "Why is that a surprise?" asked Skye.
    "Because I understand how difficult I can be. Yet no matter what, you guys stick by my side and give me no regrets. I love you all."
    "Oh, we love you, too, Maddie," cooed Lizzie, taking her bottom off her chair and leaning over to squeeze Madeline.
    "Always and forever," added Debra.
    "Forever and always," said Andrea.
    "I just said that."
    "Well, I said it backwards."   
    "So tell me..." started Madeline, "what don't I know?"
    "What do you mean?" Andrea scrunched her forehead.
    "I know about everything, especially this party. Is there something that I don't know?"
    The girls glanced at each other, not knowing how to answer the question.
    "I stuff my bra sometimes," Andrea confessed.
    "I knew that," said Madeline.
    "How?"
    "Toilet paper would be sticking out your shirt."
    "Oh. Why don't you be telling me?"
    "I use the same filter for all my photos on Instagram," Debra conceded, not letting Andrea's question be answered.
    "How can I not know that?" questioned Madeline. "It's obvious."
    "I used to draw abs on my stomach," granted Lizzie.
    "Everyone knew that."
    "Oh."
    After a long pause, Skye admitted, "I used to light my farts."
    Madeline made a face at Skye. "Why would you light your farts?"
    "No, the real question is did you know that?"
    "No."
    "Well, there you go."

Supposedly Surprise Party (Chapter 4)

The next week, on a Saturday afternoon and the day of Madeline's birthday, she was asked by Lizzie to come over her house to have a talk and to pick up Skye. After that, Madeline got in her big car and drove over to Skye's place. Skye got in the passenger seat and Madeline was on her way to Lizzie's fancy house.
"I think Lizzie is going to tell us all 'the news'," said Skye, trying to continue the lie.
"Yeah, right," Madeline smiled. "'The news'."
"Why don't you believe me?"
"Because you're being so nonchalant about this."
"I'm always nonchalant. Is that such a surprise?"
"No but... you're lying."
"Oh, yeah? Well, we'll see when we talk to Lizzie."
"I know something is up because you made me wait outside for twenty minutes so you could find a snack to bring and eat. Don't you think that if something was urgent, we would not try to take so long to attend to it?"
"Huh, I don't know about you but I was hungry and my hunger was urgent as well." Skye opened the small bag of potato chips in her lap and began to pick at them.
"Well, happy freakin' birthday to me."
Madeline parked in one of the empty parking spaces in front of Lizzie's big house. She turned off the car and took her keys out of the ignition. The girls got out of the car and headed towards the door. Madeline knocked on the door repeatedly.
Lizzie opened the door and revealed herself. She was in the clothes that she usually wears around her parents. "Oh, hey, Madeline," she smiled. "Skye. I'm glad you guys are here."
"What's going on, Liz'?" asked Madeline.
"Come in first."
Lizzie moved out of the way so Madeline and Skye could enter. Lizzie closed the door and they loitered in the entrance hall.
"Where are the girls?" Madeline questioned.
"They're outside. I want to tell you all the news at the same time."
"Well, Skye seems to already know. You might as well tell me right now."
"Um, okay."
Skye opened her eyes wide at Lizzie.
"Well, I've seemed to tell Skye that I'm preggers."
"Oh, okay," Madeline nodded. "So you made a baby with DeMarcus?"
"Wait, I thought there were other ways to get pregnant."
Skye slapped her hand on her forehead.
"What other ways can you do to get pregnant, Lizzie?" Madeline asked, crossing her arms.
"You know, you can get injected with... what my mom calls, 'jolly juice'," replied Lizzie.
"Why would you inject yourself with... jolly juice?"
"Because I can't get pregnant if I don't?"
"Lizzie, I'm starting to have a feeling that you are not pregnant."
Skye made a face at Lizzie, mouthing, "Keep it up" through her teeth.
So Lizzie started to fake-cry. "I can't believe that you don't believe me. I thought you were my best friend but if you don't believe me, then I guess I'll have to find a new best friend. Maybe she will help me with my pregnant-ness."
Lizzie turned around and marched out of the lounge to the living room. Madeline and Skye followed her as she headed towards the open door to the backyard.
"Come on, Lizzie," said Madeline. "Stop acting so weird."
The girls went outside and witnessed a bunch of people, including Madeline's friends and family, in the yard popping up under girly birthday decorations.
"Surprise!" they all yelled.
Madeline flinched since she was obviously startled. Lizzie and Skye didn't even move; they just looked at Madeline.
"Happy birthday, Maddie!" said Debra, running up to Madeline before hugging her.
"Feliz cumpleaños, Madame," uttered Andrea, who also ran up to her best friend.
She gave Madeline a quick hug before Madeline could say something.
"Wow, guys," she said with a smile. "A surprise party for me? You shouldn't have. Thank you. Boy, I'm so excited."
"You knew about it, didn't you?" asked Skye.
"Yeah."
"How?" groaned Andrea.
"I'm not blind; I could see what was exactly on your phones. You bought these decorations from Party Hardy with Arty. Also, I saw a streamer sticking out of the closet when I came over Lizzie's house last week."
"Dagnabbit!" exclaimed Lizzie.
"I guess the surprise is on us," commented Skye.
"But I'm really thankful," admitted Madeline. "Thank you for throwing me my first surprise party." She wrapped her arm around Skye's neck. "Actually, this is my second one but this one is better. It's bigger. And my cake is tiers of cupcakes."
"I bought the cake," bragged Debra. "It was supposed to be a croquembouche but I figured cupcakes would be less messy... and less expensive."
"It's beautiful. Thank you for throwing me this party and pretending that Lizzie was pregnant."
"You're welcome, Maddie," said Lizzie. "And just so you know: no jolly juice is going near me."
The girls laughed together.
"Gross," Andrea commented.

Supposedly Surprise Party (Chapter 3)

Couple of days later, over the weekend, Madeline called Skye and asked to come over her place. Skye consented and Madeline drove down to the apartment building where Skye lived downstairs. Madeline hung out with Skye in her bedroom made for a rockstar. Madeline rummaged through Skye's dresser which had stacks and stacks of CDs.
"Can we play this?" Madeline asked with a big grin, picking up and showing a Nine Inch Nails CD.
"Sure," Skye responded, shortly scrunching her forehead. "I almost forgot: you went on a rock binge about a year ago."
Madeline opened the CD player on Skye's dresser. "I forgot I enjoy this band." She stuck the CD in and closed the player. She pressed "Play" and the first song began playing. "They don't play this at the country club."
"What do they play at the country club?"
"Vivaldi and crap."
"You don't like Vivaldi?"
"Don't get me wrong; he's off the chain from a brain. But it wouldn't kill to play some Nine Inch Nails."
Skye chuckled as Madeline sat on the black sheet covered bed. Together, they sang along to the aggressive lyrics.

Head like a hole
Black as a soul
I rather die than give you control
Bow down to the one you serve
You're gonna get what you deserve

Skye laughed, which made Madeline crack up, falling on the bed in laughter.
"Something we have in common," joked Skye.
Madeline sat up. "We're best friends; of course we have some things in common."
"I know, I was joking."
"So I thought about what I want to do for my birthday."
Skye felt her cell phone, which was in her jeans' pocket, vibrate. She took it out and turned on the screen. "Mm-hmm," she hummed.
"See, I've been to plenty of francophone countries. I've been to Quebec in Canada, France, Chad, Congo and Senegal."
Skye focused on the phone, typing and reading, as Madeline spoke.
"However, I've never been to Spanish-speaking countries. I was thinking about flying out to Spain with just my family and maybe visit Barcelona. Remember when the Cheetah Girls went to Barcelona? Yeah, so I was thinking about that. Or I can go to Puerto Rico because that's where Andrea is from. But if I bring her, then I have to bring the rest of you and that's way too many tickets to pay for. I'm not spending a bunch of money on my birthday. Yet since I can speak Portuguese, I should go to Portugal. No, Brazil! I hear it's beautiful and to be honest, I kinda want a Brazilian honey. Brazilian babes be bangin'!" Madeline paused for a bit and stared at Skye, whose eyes were glued to the phone. "Why are you looking at your phone when I'm talking to you?"
"I'm sorry." Skye turned off the phone and stuck it back in her pocket.
"Who were you talking to you?"
"My boyfriend," Skye lied.
"Jeffrey?"
"I only have one boyfriend, don't I?"
Madeline paused. "You're lying."
"No, I'm not."
"I can smell liars."
"Is that because you're a liar?"
"I am not a liar."
"Yes, you are. There you go, lying again."
"What are you up to?"
"Nothing."
"Nothing? Were you even talking to your boyfriend?"
"Just let it be."
"How can I let it be when you're lying to me?" Madeline poked Skye in the neck, making her cringe.
"Geez! If I tell you what's up, will you stop pestering me and blab about your Brazilian babe?"
"That's how I work, baby."
"Alright. I wasn't supposed to tell you this myself but... Lizzie's pregnant."
Madeline just stared. "No, she's not."
"Yes, she is."
"No, she's not!"
"Yes, she is!"
"How is she going to get pregnant if she doesn't even know... how to do the... the thing?"
"Somebody taught her."
"You're lying."
"No, I'm not."
"That is so a lie. Lizzie cannot be pregnant."
"Well, she's Lizzie. Is there anymore that I can say?"
Madeline shook her head. "You are such a liar."
"No, I'm not."
"Yes, you are!"
"Says the liar."
"I'm not the liar."
"You're the liar every day."
"How are you accusing me of lying?"
"'Cause you're accusing me!"
"I got to talk to Lizzie."
"Y-You can't. She's very embarrassed by this. We should talk about her pregnancy when she's ready to tell us all."
"You're a liar."
"I am not."
"You are!"
"Liar-liar-pants-on-fire-every-time-she-walks-in-heels-she-gets-a-little-tired-says-what?"
"What?"
"Exactly."

Supposedly Surprise Party (Chapter 2)

Few days later, the girls were each in their assigned third period classes on a lovely school day. Lizzie was in economics class, listening to her balding teacher blab on about monetary policies. She was sitting in the front row, waiting for him to pause.
"Now monetary policies are used by the government to achieve inflation, consumption, growth and liquidity. They're not the same as fiscal policies which adjust spending levels to monitor a nation's economy."
Lizzie raised her hand.
The teacher pointed at her. "Ah, yes, Lizzie?"
Lizzie put her hand down. "Can I go to the bathroom?"
"Oh. Is it an emergency?"
"If it's an emergency, wouldn't I have to go to the nurse?"
"I meant is it urgent?"
"Urgent? Ooh, yes. Very urgent. I gots to blow it up."
"I didn't need the detail. Just take the pass and go."
Lizzie pushed her seat back and stood up. "Thank you with a cherry on top." Lizzie sprinted pass the front row of desks and swiped the hall pass from the teacher's desk. She head out the open door and made her way down the empty hallway. Her casual walk became a hasty sprint until she made it to the nearest lavatory. She zipped right in and occupied an empty stall. She sat on the toilet, fully clothed, and took her cell phone out of her black miniskirt. She began texting Andrea while she was in English class.

LIZZIE: Hey, I left EPI. R u there?
ANDREA: Si. Que pasa?
LIZZIE: Wut?
ANDREA: What's up?
LIZZIE: Oh. I ordered the decorations for Maddie's party.
ANDREA: Did u send them to ur house?
LIZZIE: Yes.
ANDREA: For the right date?
LIZZIE: Yes!
ANDREA: Wut kind did u get?
LIZZIE: The 1s she likes. The pink & glittery 1s.
ANDREA: Maddie does luv herself sum glitter.
LIZZIE: EEEEE!!!! I'm getting so ekcited! She is going 2 freak! On her B-Day of course.
ANDREA: Exactly. Thx 4 informing me!
LIZZIE: No prob, senyureeta.
ANDREA: U spelled it wrong.
LIZZIE:  But u know what I mean.

Lizzie turned off her phone and began to put it back into her skirt. As she did so, she heard footsteps entering the bathroom.
"Did you see Mrs. Donor's underwear sticking out of her skirt?" asked a deep voice.
"Yeah, I saw," a deeper voice said.
Lizzie paused with wide eyes. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. She bent over to take a peek under the stall door. She could see two pairs of feet, both covered in dirty sneakers.
"She wears, like, boxers."
"I took a picture of it."
"Dude, nice!"
Lizzie frantically took her phone into her hands and began to text message Andrea again.

LIZZIE: Maday! Maday!
ANDREA: Wut is maday?
LIZZIE: I'm in the boys bathroom.
ANDREA: Wut?
LIZZIE:  No time 4 questions. Just get me out!
ANDREA: Alrite. Just wait.

Lizzie turned off her phone and held it close to her. She moved her eyes back and forth anxiously. She didn't want to make any noise; she would be caught dead if those guys heard her. But she felt like dying, having to hear every word and action that the two boys produced. Six minutes had to pass before the boys left. Lizzie was so nervous that she started shaking her leg. The heel of her knee-high, black, leather boot was tapping audibly on the blue tiled floor. When she noticed that she was making noise, she stopped. She heard silence from the boys so she put her legs up and formed them into a pretzel.
"Is somebody in here?" the regular deep voice asked.
"You're being paranoid, bro," the deeper voice said.
Suddenly, there was a noise in the bathroom. Smash! The noise startled the two boys and they ran out like a bunch of scared dogs. Lizzie sat still, unsure of what happened.
"Lizzie?" Andrea's voice called. She was obviously inside the bathroom.
"Uh, no Lizzie here," Lizzie uttered in a "manly" voice. She didn't know it was Andrea. "I'm a dude. Just blowing it up!"
Andrea knocked on Lizzie's stall. "It's me, Lizzie. Geez."
Lizzie stood up and opened the door. "Ooh, I'm sorry," she said with a little giggle, leaving the stall. "What was that noise?"
"Oh, I threw a mirror into the bathroom. After I did that, I fled and waited for the boys to get out."
"You can't break a mirror. That's bad luck!"
"Lizzie, I have bad luck every day. What difference will it make?"

Supposedly Surprise Party (Chapter 1)

"Madeline, what is that?" questioned Andrea, looking straight at the leafy food in Madeline's hands.
"It's a chicken wrap," she answered.
"Without the tortilla?" inquired Skye.
"Yeah. I'm on a no-carb diet so I won't be eating sandwiches with bread for two weeks."
"So you're gonna replace the bread with lettuce?" asked Andrea.
"Pretty much. I'm trying to avoid bloating."
"Oh, Maddie, you're so creative," smiled Lizzie.
Madeline smiled right back.
"So what are you going to do on your birthday?" asked Debra.
"I don't know. I've done everything for my last seventeen birthdays. I have no idea what I could do to make my eighteenth birthday special. You guys got any ideas?"
"Gee, Maddie, I don't know," responded Lizzie.
"What about skydiving?" suggested Skye.
"And mess up my hair?" replied Madeline. "I don't think so."
"How about going to a museum?" asked Debra.
Madeline took a bite out of her lettuce wrapped chicken. "That's too boring."
"Five star restaurant?" Lizzie proposed.
"I've been to them all."
"Four star?"
"I don't think so. Is there something in my teeth?" Madeline faced Andrea and beared her teeth.
Andrea shook her head. "No."
"I don't believe you."
"Then don't ask."
Madeline dropped her lunch in her sandwich container. "I'm gonna go to the bathroom. Ugh, I feel like I'm bloating anyway." Madeline got out of her seat and walked out of the cafeteria through the entrance.
"You guys thinking what I'm thinking?" asked Lizzie, leaning over the table.
"Yeah," said Andrea. "Bloating makes Madeline a b--"
"Don't say it."
"Whatcha thinkin' about, Doll?" asked Debra.
"I'm thinking about-- Oh, shoot, I forgot. No, I remember! I'm thinking about throwing Madeline a surprise party."
"Um, I don't know about that, Lizzie," said Skye.
"Why not?"
"Remember the other times we tried to throw Madeline a surprise party? We tried three times to do so. Three times and she always finds out so we never get to do it."
"Well, maybe we have to come up with a way for her to not know."
"How are we going to do that?" asked Andrea.
"Every time we make an interaction with something involving the party on the computer, we delete it from our history. Every phone call, text, voicemail, we delete it. And we invite people on the very day of her birthday so they won't tell her about it days before."
Skye nodded. "Huh. Not a bad idea, Lizzie."
"Thank you." Lizzie sat back down.
"I think we can do that," said Debra.
"Alright, if we're gonna do this, we can't be around Madeline when we're making these plans," said Andrea.
"Then that will end up looking suspicious," noted Skye, "avoiding Madeline to make these plans."
"Well, I guess we have to make it look less suspicious," said Lizzie, straightening her back. "But at the same time, she can't have a clue. So are we doing this?"
"As long as everything comes out of your wallet."
"I don't mind. I love throwing parties."
"Then we're doing it," Andrea consented.
"Yay! Oh, I'm gonna feel bad for lying to Madeline about this."
"She lies to us all the time. Why would you feel bad?"
"Shh!" Debra hushed, looking at the door. "She's coming, you guys."
Madeline reentered the cafeteria and sat back down into her spot at the table. "What were you talking about while I was gone?" she questioned.
Andrea scoffed. "We were thinking about getting you to meet Channing Tatum on your birthday." Andrea smiled at Lizzie, demonstrating that lying to Madeline is easy.
"Shut up! I would love that! Do you guys really think you can get him to meet me?"
"Absolutely not," smiled Skye.
"Aw. You guys are poor." Madeline picked up her wrap and continued to eat it.

Stupid Cupid (Chapter 5)

"Okay, Kyle can know nothing about this day," told Debra.
"I promise if you promise to not tell Jeffrey," said Skye.
"Or DeMarcus," added Lizzie.
"Your secrets are safe with me," said Madeline.
"We're friends," reminded Andrea. "You know we can never tell a soul."
"I just feel so foolish. I was the one who said that we should have a fun time without guys and in the middle of the day, I become a hypocrite."
"It's not the first time," noted Skye.
"But I can't help it. I flirt with so many guys, hoping that one of them could be the one. I'm just a Jamie trying to find my Landon."
"Well, we all know that A Walk to Remember isn't real."
"But I know a guy who looks just like Shane West."
"I think I dated that guy," said Andrea.
The girls stopped walking when they saw the blond guy from earlier stopping in front of them. Actually, he was directly the opposite of Madeline, desiring to speak to her.
"Hi," he said.
"Hi," Madeline responded.
"I guess we'll let you two talk," said Debra with a smile.
  The girls walked past the two, giving them some space.
"Hi," Madeline repeated. "Listen, I'm sorry for scaring you away but I was trying to prove a point to my girlfriends. So what do you want? You trying to sell me roses because I'm not in the mood for them."
"No, no. It's just that-- Well, you don't know me but I'm Homer. I bought you a rose as a Valentine's Day gram at school."
"Oh, so you're Homer?"
"Yeah. I've noticed you around certain areas of the school and eventually learned your name. It didn't take long for me to know your name since you're student body president. But I was dumbfounded with how beautiful you were and I sorta developed a weird crush on you."
"You're not gay, are you?"
"Oh, no. No, I'm straight."
"Just making sure."
Homer laughed, making Madeline blush. "So since I've gotten that out the way, do you want to get to know me a little? As in do you want to go on a date with me sometime?"
Madeline grinned. "Sure, Homer, if I can call you Landon for a little bit."
"Landon? Well, can I call you Lucy Hale?"
"Alright, I'll call you Homer."
Homer laughed again. Madeline laughed as well.

Stupid Cupid (Chapter 4)

Later that day, the girls try to find each other as they were scattered in different places. They all eventually bumped into one another and assembled. Each of them was ready to burst with what they wanted to say.
"Oh, you guys," started Madeline. "You will not believe what happened to me. Now I know I said that I can live without a man, but let's face it: I lied. I met this guy who was so handsome and so kind. It was like he fell from heaven and landed on me."
"Dios mio," uttered Andrea. "I met a guy as well. He was fly. You know how much mami loves dulce. His smile was out of this world and his eyes... Whoo! I almost fell over when I looked into his eyes."
"But my guy's hair was like an oceanic wave of hot chocolate. Man! He kinda looked like Austin Mahone, but way, way sexier."
"Oh, it's so fantastic that you guys have boyfriends now," commented Lizzie. "Maybe one day, since all five of us have men, we could have a quadruple date."
"You mean 'quintuple'," corrected Skye.
"Why?"
"Quintuple means five."
"Oh! That makes sense."
"So who is your guy?" asked Debra to Madeline.
"The guy from the rose stand!" Madeline answered.
Debra made a blank face. "What?"
"That's my guy," said Andrea.
"Your guy?" Madeline inquired. "Uh, he's my guy."
"No, he's mine," Skye jumped in.
"Excuse me? You have a boyfriend."
"I don't know what you're talking about."
"Yes, you do. You got Jeffrey."
"I don't even know who that is."
"Listen, I don't care who's single or not," said Andrea. "That boy belongs to me."
"Does it make me a bad person if I like that guy as well?" asked Lizzie.
"You, too?" questioned Madeline.
"I plead the fifth," Debra rose her hand.
"This is insane. Three of you have boyfriends. Don't you think I deserve one?"
"We do," responded Andrea, "but not with the guy from the rose stand."
"He is mine! He likes me."
"What is his name?"
Madeline scoffed. "Like you know."
"His name is Milo."
"And I knew that."
"No, you didn't, you liar."
"Oh, whatever. So what? He told me that I don't deserve to be single because I was too beautiful."
"He said the same thing to me."
"He also called me beautiful," confessed Lizzie. "He said that's why I have a boyfriend."
"He told me that I was sweet and as beautiful as how the world should be," admitted Debra.
"He called me a goddess," Skye conceded, "which I don't believe but when he said it to me, I believed him."
"This is a bunch of nuts," said Madeline. "We are not going to fight over the same guy like we did last year."
"You're right," Andrea agreed. "That's why you should give him to me."
"Ah-ah. Let's not be rash."
Lizzie moaned. "I don't want to cheat on my boyfriend."
"You won't have to," said Andrea, "because Milo is mine."
"I found him first," stated Madeline.
"Yeah? Well, he spoke Spanish to me so qué vas a hacer con eso?"
"Now wait a sec. Let's all simmer down and try to process--"
Madeline didn't finish speaking as she began to run away past Andrea. The rest of the girls ran as well, trying to catch up to her. Madeline zipped through a quarter of the fair, heading for the rose stand. As the girls got closer and closer, they could clearly see Milo at the rose stand. They began to perceive that he was in a lip lock with someone leaning over the table as they stood across the stand. And that someone appeared to be a male. The girls stopped when they were a feet away and made faces of confusion and shock.
"Milo?" inquired Madeline, almost frozen in her stance.
Milo broke the kiss from the guy and looked at the girls. The handsome mystery man stood up and looked at the girls, too.
"Hey, I've seen you before," Milo smiled. "I've seen all five of you."
"You're gay?" asked Andrea, bending her knees a bit.
"How come you didn't tell me this?" Madeline questioned.
"You're cheating on me with a guy?" queried Skye. "So does that mean I look like a guy to you? Because you told me I was a goddess, not a god."
"I am so confused," shared Lizzie.
"You guys, let me explain myself," said Milo. "This is my boyfriend, Rye."
"Hey," Rye said with a lisp, smiling and waving.
"I don't care who you are," said Andrea.
"Look," started Milo, "I assume that you guys got a little crush on me. I only told you all that you were beautiful so you could buy more roses. However, it only worked on two of you."
"Okay, so you're telling me that your sweet talk was sweet nothings?" asked Madeline, stepping closer.
"Practically, yes. But I made you feel good and that's a good thing, right?"
"You're a bag of douche," commented Debra.
Madeline threw her long-stemmed rose at Milo's face, enabling the rest of the girls to throw all of their roses at him. After that, the girls began to walk away together.
"Try to keep those roses fresh," shouted Lizzie.
"Yeah!" uttered Skye.
"Don't forget to put sugar in the water!"
"Lizzie, don't tell him how to keep the roses alive."

Stupid Cupid (Chapter 3)

Debra and Lizzie scattered away from Andrea and Skye, who decided to stick together to find a game to play. Madeline made her way to a stand where a guy was sitting down, taking people's money and handing them pure red roses. Over the stand was a sign that said, "Roses for $5" written in red paint. There was a short line to the stand so Madeline stood in the back of it and waited. It took a few minutes until she was first in line. She was face-to-face with the guy, who had to be in his late teens, early twenties.
"How many roses?" he asked in a silky voice.
"Just one," answered Madeline, crossing her arms.
The guy reached down to one of the baskets of fresh cut roses behind the stand. "Is it for yourself?"
"Yeah. So what?"
"Nothing. I just thought a guy should be buying one for you."
"Well, I don't have a guy to buy me one."
The gentleman revealed the long-stemmed rose. "I'm sorry; I can't paint a picture right now. How could someone as gorgeous as you not have a boyfriend?"
"I ask myself all the time. I just don't know the answer."
"Well, there can't be an answer. There is no excuse for you to be single."
Madeline looked into this guy's eyes. She started to get lost into them. So smoldering and brown; it was like they were hypnotizing her. Then she began to realize how enticing this guy was when he smiled at her, oh so seductively.
"Um... thank you," she almost stuttered.
"Not at all. Here's your rose."
Madeline slowly took the flower from him. "Here's five dollars." She slipped a folded-up five dollar bill out of her pocket.
She protruded the money from in-between her index and middle finger. The guy looked into Madeline's blue eyes as he started to grab the dollar from her, slowly caressing her fingers before sliding the money out of her fingers.
"Thank you," he said.
"T-Thank you," she responded.
The guy held eye contact with Madeline for a while. She couldn't handle how hot he was so she slowly backed up then ran away.

Several minutes later, Lizzie decided to make herself feel less guilty about basically ditching her boyfriend by buying him another gift. So she found the rose stand and decided to wait in line. It didn't take too long for her to be first in line.
"How many roses?" asked the guy.
"One," responded Lizzie with a smile.
"Just one?" The guy reached down to the flowers.
"Well, I only got one boyfriend."
"Oh, this is for your boyfriend?"
"Yep. He loves roses. He likes how they look like that design people make with frosting when they're making a cake."
The guy pulled out the rose. "Very interesting. Also, when I first saw you, I knew you had a boyfriend."
"How? Are you psychic?"
The guy laughed sexily. "No. It's just that you're very beautiful. A girl like you can't be single."
Lizzie blushed; she was flattered. "Oh. Thank you."
"No need to thank me. It's the truth. You are very beautiful."
Lizzie giggled. She started to become aware of how cute and nice that guy was. "Here you go," she grinned, handing him money before taking it out of her small open purse.
"Thanks. Here you go." He gave her the rose.
"You know what? Can I get another rose?"
"You want another one?"
"Yeah, DeMarcus could use two. Or three. Or four! He loves them so... so he doesn't care how many he has... I'm sure."
The guy bent down and tore three more roses out of their basket. He sat up and handed them to Lizzie.
Lizzie gave the guy more money. "Thank you."
"Sure. Four roses for the girl who is four times more beautiful than any other girl here."
"You know what? I'm gotta go but I'm gonna come back if I decide that I want more roses."
"I'll be here waiting."
Lizzie grinned at the guy who grinned right back. As she slowly began to exit, she waved at him goodbye. He waved back but she kept waving as she walked away backwards. When she had gotten far enough, she stopped waving, which prompted the guy to stop waving back.

Later, Andrea realized how much she appreciated Madeline for being so confident about her solitude. So she made a decision to buy a rose for herself to get as much self-assurance as Madeline had. She walked through the fair and found the rose stand which had no line. She sprinted all the way to the front of the table.
"How many roses?" asked the guy.
"One," Andrea answered, holding up her index finger.
The guy reached down to the roses. "May I ask who is this rose for?"
"It's for me."
"For you? Just you?"
"Yeah, I have no one to give it to. That's why there's no one to give me a rose. But I deserve one so I'm buying one for myself."
"Wow." The guy sat up and revealed a red rose. "Well, you do deserve one. That's for sure."
Andrea smiled. "Thank you."
"Of course. What I don't understand is why you have no one to give things to you when you're incredibly beautiful."
"Well, I tend to hurt people... physically and emotionally."
"That just means you're strong. I like that."
Andrea was mesmerized by this guy's smoky eyes. "Ah, dios mio..."
"You speak Spanish? I speak a little. Fuera de todas las lenguas en el mundo, eres la mejor."
"Aw, yeah."
"Here you go." The guy smiled at Andrea as he offered the rose.
Andrea smiled back as she grabbed the flower from him. "What's your name?"
"What's yours?"
"Andrea."
"I'm Milo. It's not as beautiful as 'Andrea' though."
"Listen, I got to split but if you want to look for me later, I'll be here." She handed him a five dollar bill.
"Good to know."
Andrea giggled, almost nervously, before exiting.

A few minutes after that, Debra made her way to the rose stand. She was still thinking about her boyfriend, Kyle, longing to spend time with him. She thought she would be able to take her mind off of him if she bought something that she loved: a flower. There was one person at the front of the stand so when she came up, that person was just leaving. She stepped closer to the stand and faced the gentleman.
"How many roses?" he asked.
"One will do me good," Debra responded.
The guy reached down to grab a rose. "Who is this flower for?"
"Myself. I find serenity with flowers."
"You do?"
"'Yesserina'. The smell usually helps me find a calmer state of mind."
Milos held up a rose. "What's 'yesserina'?"
"It means 'yes'. I'm sorry; I like to make up words to keep myself loose, if that makes sense."
"No, I get it. It makes perfect sense. I think it's cool that you feel calmer when you're around flowers."
"Thank you. I believe that peace is important in everyone's life. It keeps us from destroying what should be loved."
"That's really beautiful. Like you."
Debra grinned. "Thank you."
"I like a girl who's laid-back."
"Back up, Jack. I got a boyfriend."
"Oh. Well, that makes sense. A girl who looks like you and acts like you cannot be single."
Debra giggled, basking in Milo's honeyed words and slowly becoming infatuated with him. "Can I get an extra rose?"
"An extra rose?"
"Maybe a third one."
"Sure thing, sweet thing."
Debra giggled again. She took her money out of the back pocket of her jean shorts and began counting it to get ready to give Milo the right amount.
Milo bent over and picked two more roses from their basket. He sat up, picked up the first red rose and handed all three to her. "There you go."
"Thank you." Debra handed him the money, which he slowly took from her, fondling her fingers.
"No, thank you."
Debra gave him one last smile before walking off.

Next, not much of a surprise, Skye made her way over to the rose stand. She felt bad for getting her boyfriend, Jeffrey, a gift so she wanted to at least give him something. She waited in the short line to the stand. And in almost no time, she was in the presence of Milo.
"How many roses?" he asked.
"The way that my budget looks, one," answered Skye.
Milo reached down to the roses. "You have a budget?"
"Yes, which may seem shocking, but I'm one of those poor white people."
Milo laughed his sexy laugh. "You're funny."
"I get that a lot."
Milo exposed the red rose for Skye. "Is this for yourself?"
"No, it's for my boyfriend, Jeffrey."
"Oh. Does he like roses?"
"I don't know. But that doesn't mean he shouldn't appreciate it."
"I see. Jeffrey's a lucky guy."
"How so?"
"Well, he's with a girl who looks like you."
"And what do I look like?"
"Beautiful. Really beautiful."
"Thanks, man but I ain't all that."
"How can you say that? You look like those goddesses that one would see only from a mythology book."
"Well, me being as beautiful as a goddess is a straight myth."
"Sorry I even mentioned it. I just had to say something because you are the best looking person in this entire fair."
"Do you really believe that?"
"No, I know that. That's why I said your boyfriend is a lucky guy. He probably calls you his princess and stuff like that."
"No, not really. He calls me Skye."
"Is that your name?"
"Yeah."
"Oh, well, there's nothing more gorgeous than the sky. Of course it will get black at night like a deadly disease. But sometimes there are stars and without the black, we can never admire the illumination of the precious stars in the sky. And the sky can also be blue, shining and precious like the hue of your gorgeous eyes."
Right there, Skye fell under his spell. "Um... are you gonna give me my rose or what?"
"Yeah." Milo handed Skye the flower. "Here you go."
"Thanks." Skye pulled a folded up dollar from her jeans' pocket and laid it on the table.
Milo picked the dollar up. "Come again."
"Yeah, we'll see, brother."
Skye turned around and walked away, trying to deny the feelings she was getting.