*******As long
as you don’t see a different year, then the chapter’s continuation of the last
one’s timeline. Enjoy, and do tell me if you have any suggestions. Crystal
Raven, the Rose of Darkness*******
Italics signal thoughts, ^*^
signals change of time or place and ~*~ signals flashbacks.
Chapter two:
Karma
Ryan leaned
back in his chair, his face sporting a wide grin. He ran his right hand through
his hair and kept his eyes focused on Dana, who was fumbling in her closet,
trying to find something to wear. Carter had finally asked her out, and now, at
“I can’t
believe I have nothing decent to wear for tonight.”
Ryan chuckled.
“There’s a simple solution to that.”
She raised her
eyebrow. “What?”
“Gee, going
shopping might just work.”
Dana hit him
with a pillow playfully and pouted. “Kelsey’s out practicing for an extreme
sports competition, obviously I can’t take Carter, Joel’s wooing Ms. Faiweather…”, she trailed off when Ryan gave a derisive
laugh and resumed when he stopped, “well, he’s trying to, and Chad’s swimming,
so…”
His eyes
widened when he realized what she meant. “Oh no Dana.
Sis, I adore you, but I am not doing this.”
She pouted and
made puppy dog eyes. “Come on, Ryan, please!”
He sighed. “Fine. But we’ll have to get this over fast and painlessly.”
“When it comes
to shopping with your sister, it’s never painless”, came Kelsey’s voice from
the door. Spotting Ryan’s hopeful look, she added, “And no, I won’t join her.
It’s just the two of you out for the shopping spree.”
Ryan shook his
head. “I may need reinforcements.”
^*^
Ryan and Dana
sat on an outdoor table in the StarGazer Café waiting
for Charlene while enjoying lattés. There was a soft and refreshing breeze
blowing, and the hunter green umbrellas that served as roof for the tables
swayed as if dancing. Soon a sleek red Acura pulled in the parking lot and
Charlene walked out.
She was
wearing black pants and a long-sleeved violet peasant top. From her neck hung
an antique silver chain with a triquatre medal and
matching earrings. As Ryan stared at her in fascination, Dana admired her great
fashion sense. Lene walked over to Ryan and kissed
him on the cheek when he pulled out a chair for her. He introduced her to Dana,
and they both started chatting animatedly as he sat there at loss for words.
Soon Courtney
was joining them in their table, and Ryan was left out of the girl talk, which
lasted for a whole fifteen minutes before Lene looked
at her watch and announced they had a mission to fulfill. Leaving Courtney to
take care of her many customers, they walked across the plaza and into the
mall.
Before long
they were all running in an out of shops, Dana and Charlene trying on
everything they could find and even making a movie montage to entertain Ryan,
who had package duty and was soon carrying around an assortment of boxes and
bags.
Five hours and
many purchases later, they emerged from the mall laughing and joking. Charlene
opened the trunk of her car and Ryan helped her with her stuff while Dana
loaded her purchases in the black Ford Explorer she and Ryan were using. As Lene and Ryan were saying good-bye, they noticed Dana
talking on a cell phone.
Dana hung up,
smiled mischievously at Lene and announced something.
“Since Carter and I are so nervous, we decided to double with you guys. Each in
their own cars, we watch the movie together, maybe even stay for dinner and
then we split up again and have alone time. What do you guys say?”
Lene and Ryan looked at each other for a fraction of a second then
replied in unison “We’re not dating!”
Dana rolled
her eyes. “I know, but you guys are such good friends and are so comfortable
with each other, you could help avoid those lulls that absolutely mess dates
up!”
Lene considered it for a moment then addressed her other issue. “You
do realize this is your older brother you’re asking to join you on a first date
with the one guy you’ve always liked. I mean, tonight’s
crucial for your relationship!”
Dana nodded.
“I trust you to make sure he behaves. Besides”, she said with a wink, “I will have
my time alone with Carter, so I’ve nothing to worry about.”
Lene turned to Ryan. ”What do you say? Because
whatever you decide is fine by me.”
Ryan pondered
it and sighed. Second time today that women overpowered him. “We’ll do it… but
you, dear sister, owe us big time.”
Dana threw her
hands up in the air. “Yeah, yeah. Blah
blah blah, yada yada yada.
Let’s just get going if we’re ever going to be on time. We’ll meet in front of
the Cineplex at
Charlene said
goodbye to the two of them and drove off with a smile on her face. This would
be interesting. Very interesting indeed. She silently
thanked Dana and entered her apartment still in a happy daze. “I knew I should
do the good deed of saving him from shopping, it seems it tipped over my
karma!” she said to no one in particular, and as the water filled the tub, she
marveled at her luck. This was going to be a night to remember.
*******We’ll
have the infamous double date in the next chapter. If you have any ideas, let
me know. Hope you enjoyed this!********