~*~ Chapter 5: The Call ~*~
“Hey, Mrs. Hart, it’s Brandi.”
“Oh, hey Brandi, sweetie. How are things in California?”
“Oh, you know. Hot. Is Maggie there?”
“Oh, honey, she’s not. She didn’t come back from school yet. I’m guessing she’s over at Tara’s.”
“Ok. I’ll call them there then. Thanks, Mrs. Hart.”
“No problem, honey. Bye.”
Brandi pressed the off button of the cordless phone and took a deep breath. It was Tuesday. She looked at the clock. 6:30 p.m. Maggie would be with Tara at the Virgin Megastore. So she dialed someone else’s number.
“Hello?” the male voice came from the other end.
“Hi.” Brandi forced another voice so it wouldn’t sound like hers “May I please talk to Mr. Colin Geller?”
“This is he.”
“Mr. Colin Geller, my name is Angela and a friend of yours informed me your number telling me you were interested in buying a penis enlar-.” Brandi burst out laughing; she couldn’t finish the whole sentence. She’d always messed around with Colin on the phone, with some practical joke or something.
“I knew it was you all along.”
“You did not!”
“Did too! How stupid do you think I am?”
“Very!” Brandi was still laughing and Colin was clearly trying very hard not to.
“You are, Spring, not me.” Brandi stopped laughing and smiled kindly after hearing him call her Spring.
“So, how are you?” she lay down on her bed.
“I’m ok. But you’re the one who has to tell me the news.”
“What news? I told you before leaving that I would hate this place, so you know that already. That’s old news. Nothing really new going on.”
“Really? Is it that bad?”
“Remember how we agreed it would be hell?”
“Yeah…”
“Well, it is. Hell on Earth. All the plastics at school just make me sick! They all look the same, all Teen People models.”
“Urgh… I hate those.”
“I hate them more, believe me, especially because I have to live around them.”
“I’m so sorry to hear that, Spring.”
“That’s fine. Now I’m talking to you and everything’s fine again.”
“Good! Oh, close your eyes and pretend you’re in your room in New York!”
“I’ll do that.” Brandi closed her eyes and she could actually sense she was in her New York room “I’m there.” she smiled.
“Good. Then wait for me and I’ll be downstairs in a second.” Colin lived at the same apartment building as Brandi used to.
“Great. Come running.” she smiled and opened her eyes, getting real again “Wouldn’t it be nice if I was still there and that could actually happen?”
“Yeah… just like old times. You calling me pretending to be some telemarketing person and asking me to come down.”
“Will you ever come visit me here in Hellifornia?”
“Now we’re calling it Hellifornia, huh?”
“Yep. Just made that up. And it stays with us.”
“Ok. And yes, I will visit you in Hellifornia. But it will have to be during the holidays or something, because I’m loaded with stuff to do.”
“Yes. Senior year must be hard.”
“It is. Never thought I’d be so busy with just 2 days of school.”
“Sorry to hear that.”
“But hey, tell me. No friends yet?”
“Nah.”
“Really?” Colin felt bad for his friend.
“Well…”
“Hm, I sense something there. What is it? It’s a boy, right?” Colin knew her way too well.
“Yes.”
“And what about him?”
“I hate him.”
“So you like him a lot, huh?”
“Colin, I hate you!” Brandi giggled.
“See, if you say you hate us both it’s because you really, really like us both.” Brandi just smiled “And what’s my competition like?”
“Stop it. He’s alright.”
“Just alright? He has to have something so he would stand out and you’d notice him among all those Ken dolls. Come on, tell me, what is it?”
“He’s different. He dresses differently, he talks differently, he’s totally different.”
“And what’s his story?”
“He has a girlfriend and is constantly flirting with others.”
“Oh… I see…” Colin chuckled a bit.
“It’s not funny, because I really really…” Brandi didn’t want to say it, because she felt that if she did, it’d really be true and she didn’t want it to be true “Hate him.”
“Oh, so much hate in that little heart of yours.”
“Yeah…” Brandi played with her toe “And I don’t know what to do!”
“Listen… he came to talk to you, right?”
“Yes.”
“So… if he does go talk to you again.”
“Oh, he will! He’s always talking. You can’t shut that one up.” she smiled fondly.
“So, when he does, be yourself. There’s no way he won’t like it.”
“But I’m afraid to fall for him. I can’t. He has a girlfriend.”
“But he’s not married.” Colin stated “For now, just be friends with him. If you fall for him, don’t tell him if he still has the girlfriend. If he doesn’t, go for it, girl.”
“Yeah… guess you are right.”
“I’m always right.”
“Shut up!” Brandi giggled “Listen…” she said when she heard her mother calling her out for dinner “I have to go, dinner is ready.”
“Ok.”
“But I’ll call you, alright?”
“Sure. I’ll be waiting then.”
“Thanks, Colin.”
“For what, baby?”
“For listening. And talking to me. I really needed a friendly talk right now.”
“Glad I could help.”
“Bye then.”
“Bye.”
Brandi hung up and looked at the phone tenderly. Colin was such a sweet heart. She heard her mother calling her out again and trailed down to the kitchen.
“That was ok, right?” Seth said when he and Ryan entered the pool house.
“I thought so, yeah. Actually, it was much better than I thought it would be.”
“Yes! You thought she’d chop something out of me and see? Nothing’s chopped! Life is beautiful! And she talked to me alright, right?”
“Yes, she did. She was actually being friendly. Which is difficult to say about Summer.”
“Yeah. So… It was a nice group hang out.” Seth sat on the chair.
“Ok. Oh, you know what? You never told me about that girl at Harbor.”
“Oh, yeah! And you didn’t tell me what you had to tell me about Summer. Let’s start with you!”
“Ok. Well, when you were there talking to that girl you’re gonna explain to me in a second, she got jealous.”
“No way!”
“Yes.”
“No way!” Seth exclaimed and stood up from the chair “Yes! I knew it would work! I knew it!” he stopped to think about it and then sat down again.
“What is it, man? I thought you were gonna run around the house all night long. Your stupid plan seems to be working. It’s not so stupid.”
“I know it’s not stupid, and I told you that since the beginning.” Seth had this hand on his chin while thinking.
“But what’s the problem? You don’t seem so happy.”
“Summer wasn’t supposed to be jealous of this girl.”
“Why not? I thought any girl would do.”
“Because it’s not like that. I’m not getting closer to this girl to make Summer jealous. I don’t want her on the list.”
“Then what’s the deal with her?”
“I don’t know… she just seems nice. And she’s new. I wanted to be… her friend.”
“Oh, that will never work.”
“What? Why? Why would you say that, Ryan?”
“Because you were never friends with a girl.”
“Of course I was! I was friends with Anna.”
“And then you were boyfriend and girlfriend.”
“Yeah, but…” Seth didn’t carry on with that example because it wouldn’t work here “What about Marissa? I’m friends with Marissa!”
“Now that we are dating! You are kinda forced to be friends with her.”
“That’s not true, she’s…” Seth stopped again and continued “Ok. So I was never friends with a girl before, but why can’t I be with this one.”
“Because you can’t do that. You’re not capable of it.”
“I am too!”
“No, you’re not, you know it. And if you try, it’s not gonna work out and you are gonna end up hurting this girl.”
“That’s not true. And I will be friends with her. Now I want it more then ever, just to show to you I am capable of it.”
“Ok, it’s your call. Can you just leave now because I have some homework to do?”
“Are you throwing me out?”
“No, I’m asking you politely.”
“No, you’re not!” Seth was being pushed by his friend out of the pool house “You’re throwing me out!”
“Good night, Seth.”
“But...” the glass door closed in his face. He kept talking, but Ryan just shut the curtains and screamed from the inside “Good night, Seth!”
* Thanx Hannah and Thea for reviewing and correcting the grammar errors *
~*~ Chapter 4 ~*~
~*~ Chapter 6 ~*~
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