Dear Tala

Disclaimer: See chapter 1 – oh! And Jesse is owned by Meg Cabot (he's from her book: 'The Mediator')

Chapter 2 – Over Before It Even Began

Jess and Katt sat next to each other on the bus. They were in front of Kai and Tala, who were talking about the new…change.

When they reached their stop, they got off the bus, and started towards the nearest store.

An hour later, the boys were all sorted. Katt was pleased to find that she still carried another fifty pounds round in the wallet. She and Jess had also gotten a couple of items, so not all of it was spent on Tala and Kai.

'Time for our favourite part of the trip – to Pilgrims!' Jess cried happily. A few people around chuckled, but none bothered about her.

'What?' asked Kai. Katt laughed.

'C'mon! We'll show you!' she told them, grabbing Tala's hand. Jess took Kai's, and the two girls began to drag them along.

They led the boys to an alley. A small shop stood a small way along. The girls entered it calmly. The boys followed curiously.

"Pilgrims" was the sort of shop that sold crystals, charms, bracelets, dream-catchers and so on. While Katt browsed a rack of spell books, Jess picked out two charms. They were Celtic-style, but not girly at all. She took the money from Katt, and bought them both.

'Here you go.' She told the boys, handing them one charm each. 'They're good luck charms. Katt and I both have one.' Katt nodded to the other three, before shaking her head at the books.

'There's nothing here about magickal travel.' Katt muttered. She walked over to inspect the small china figures that filed up the shelves along one wall.

She bought two tea-light-holders, both in the shape of two human hands. The first pair of hands was cupped, with the hole for the light in the middle. The second one had the hands above an imaginary head, with the hole in the middle again.

The girls waved goodbye to the woman at the counter, and walked across to the shop opposite: Pilgrim's Sweetshop.

'We're hooked.' Katt told them with a grin. 'We can't help it, though! Chocolate Fudge, please. You boys want anything?' Oh no! I'll get it, Jess!'

'Umm, Chocolate-Mint Swirl?' wondered Tala. Katt nodded to the woman, who started to gather some up into another bag.

'Rocky Road and Strawberries and Cream.' Jess ordered.

'I'll try some of both as well.' Kai decided. Katt grinned as the woman doubled the amount, putting it in another bag.

'Here you go. Keep the change. Goodbye.' Katt trilled, laying ten pounds on the counter top. The woman scrabbled at the money, only just having time to wave back as the four exited with their sweets.

'Where now?' asked Tala with a wry smile. Katt glanced up at him. Jess and Katt took the lead, with Tala behind Katt and Kai behind Jess.

'We'll go to Starbucks. It's nice and warm there – it looks like rain anyway.' Jess decided. Katt nodded, and all four took off at a run.

They only stopped running when they were safely inside Starbucks. It was raining heavily, and all four were soaked. They grabbed a table by the window, and watched the people outside fleeing like they had before them.

'Hot chocolate, Jess?' asked Katt as she counted the remainder of the money. Jess nodded.

'Same.'

'Same.'

'Okay then, see ya in a minute!' Katt called as she walked towards the queue. Tala watched her go. Kai smirked at his redheaded comrade.

His gaze turned back to Jess, who was gazing out of the window again.

-KAI'S POV-

Jess…was this really the girl that had written to me without knowing it? She was pretty, to say the least.

She had shoulder-length brown hair, with some faint streaks in it: blonde, ginger and black. She wore black jeans which hugged her legs nicely; and a short-sleeved black top with the inscription: 'I'm just here to kick ass and chew gum – and I'm all outta gum!' in flaming red letters. A black jacket went over this, and black snake-skin-style boots were on her feet.

She and Katt had been kind and understanding towards Tala and I. I don't really think we returned the favour that much, though. She's really pretty…

Wait! Where did that thought come from? Oh no…what if this is only the beginning? What if I fall in love with her?

Okay, caaaaaaaalm down, Kai. It's just a girl… A very pretty girl…No!

I will conclude this very mixed up train of thoughts with this statement: I really need that hot chocolate…

-TALA'S POV-

I watched Katt walk away, her hips swaying from side to side. She has a nice ass…No! No, I'm not meant to think about that, she's just a friend. Or is she?

I guess it wasn't a bad time to describe her in my mind, since Kai was too busy staring at Jess, who was staring out of the window.

Okay, here goes nothing…

Hmm, Katt had chocolate-brown hair that falls to her waist, and bright blue eyes.

She wore a black cotton skirt that was ripped off in the middle of her shins; with a long-sleeved blue top. On the top it said in white letters: 'Save the Earth! It is the only planet that has chocolate.' A white leather jacket came to her waist, and was over the top. It was left open to show her top. White snake-skin-style boots were on her feet; they scrunched up in various places as she walked.

A few minutes later, Katt came back again, holding a tray in both hands. She set it down in the middle of the table, and sat opposite me, next to Jess.

She started to sip at her hot chocolate. I took mine and did the same, digging Kai in the ribs to bring him to his senses. He scowled at me, but took his hot chocolate anyway.

I watched Katt wring out her long flowing hair…I think that hot chocolate was spiked…I didn't feel like myself. I was almost obsessed with Katt!

-KATT'S POV-

I couldn't help but notice how Tala was watching me, even as I wrung out my wet hair. Boy was I ever glad that Jess and I both had on dark tops – anything but white!

Wet+White topsfree braviews for all boys present.

Not generally a good thing, ya know?

Anyway, I sipped at my hot chocolate…It was nice a cocoa-ie, just how I like it. Like my top showed, chocolate was very important to me.

Once it had stopped raining, we called a cab to take us back to my place. We knew the Twin Terrors would be, well, terrors at Jess's. It was just the way things were.

Unfortunately, the cab driver was the one me and Jess hatred the most. His name was Jesse, and the guy was a wannabe cowboy through and through.

'Howdy…!' Jess drawled as she stepped into the cab last. She slammed the door shut just before he could order her out.

That was the way we did things when he was our driver. The last one in would make a snide comment. That way he couldn't drive off and leave the other(s) standing. See? We were smart.

I saw Kai and Tala smirk at our driver's unfortunate dress-sense. I whispered in Tala's ear, pretty much explaining our history with said driver. He passed it on to Kai, who started to snicker with my redheaded friend. I glanced outside again, where it was still raining like hell.

-JESS'S POV-

Kai was too sweet to be true. I really liked him. He was being more talkative than I thought he would be, and Tala wasn't bad either. Oh my God, though! What if he has to share a room with me! I'd die of embarrassment!

I finally managed to calm myself down, mostly by looking away from Kai, who was unfortunately sat next to me in the cab. Now don't get me wrong, Kai was awesome. But the fact that I was blushing full-burst because of him, when he was sat right next to me…well, that didn't inspire good feelings.

'Where to?' asked Jesse flatly.

God I hated that guy. I rolled my eyes at the back of his chair, and looked round for something to pelt over at him. Hey, it might have been fun…if Kai hadn't beaten me to it, that is.

I think that was even funnier, though.

'Oww! God, your bloody boyfriends are worse than you – purely because they throw harder!' he complained. Katt and I were now beetroot-red. Well, we were near that shade, anyway.

'They are not our boyfriends.' Katt protested: her voice slightly shaky. We both forced down our blushes, just in time for Jesse to look round at us. Thankfully, we were both only slightly pink in the face.

'Whatever. Where to?' he asked again, his voice just as flat as before.

'My house. And make it quick! You've held us up long enough already!' Katt snapped back. I smirked to myself: trust Katt to come back as quick as that.

I suppose it came from her Dad being a multi-millionaire.

He won the lottery about ten years ago, and then won again eight years after that. He also owns this HUGE electronics company, called 'Catsup'.

Apparently it was after "his darling little girl" – too bad he never pays attention to her, huh? He couldn't even spell it right!

-NORMAL POV-

They reached Katt's house, and she pulled out the key. She quietly unlocked the door, and carefully pushed it open.

'Daddy? Are you there?' she called. She nodded to Jess, who nodded back again.

'Let's go, you two. Katt – go check downstairs.' She ordered in a whisper. Katt whimpered slightly, but nodded. Jess started to usher the boys upstairs.

A few minutes later, Katt rushed into her room. She slammed the door shut behind her.

'He's out. Left a note: look.' She panted.

'Katt-

I've gone out to attend a diner with my chief executive of Catsup – he probably won't be chief executive soon, if you know what I mean.

Have some friends over, order some pizzas, just don't go too far. That goes for your female friends too.

Have fun,

Mr Morgan.

Head of Catsup Electronics Company'

Jess snorted as she finished reading.

'Your father has a dirty mind, Kattsup.' She teased. Katt growled and stamped her foot.

'Don't call me that, Jesse.' She shot back. Jess winced and held up her hands.

'Truce?'

'Truce. C'mon, I'll go get some chocolate – you wanna help me raid the kitchen, Tala?' Katt asked, glancing over her shoulder at him from where she stood in the doorway.

Tala smirked, nodded, and followed her downstairs.

'You're house is huge.' He told her, as he stared round at it. Katt looked around as well, showing nothing more than mild interest.

'Daddy won the lottery ten years ago, then again eight years later. Catsup is the biggest, most efficient and popular electronics company in the world – we must have about 30 million pounds by now. I give Jess a load of free samples, though. My dad doesn't care.' She said with a shrug.

'Why do you always call him "Daddy"?' Tala asked, looking back to her at last. Katt sighed.

'To stay on his good side. The longer I call him that, the more innocent he thinks I am. He'll let me do anything but get pregnant. I'm glad he cares that much, though.' Tala frowned.

'No offence, but your Dad really doesn't care, does he?' he joked. Katt shook her head. She smiled wryly.

'Chocolate?' she suggested. Tala nodded and ran to catch her up. They were in a badly lit hallway, leading to a very dark room.

Katt flicked on the light, revealing a state-of-the-art kitchen. She walked to a cupboard, and took out two big bags of popcorn, and a large bowl. She put the popcorn in a very fancy microwave.

Next she walked to the fridge, which was huge as well. She pulled out about ten bars of chocolate, and took four bags of marshmallows from a nearby shelf. She frowned and then grinned.

'Can you get the hot chocolate for me? Put in as much as you like – it's my Dad who's paying for it!' she told him happily. Tala grinned back, and grabbed some mugs. Katt placed a fifth one next to him.

'I forgot Ici! ICI!' she yelled. She flung open the two doors to another, higher up cupboard. Tala started to laugh.

Squashed inside was a small boy about the same age as Jess and Katt. He smiled sheepishly down at Katt, who raised her eyebrows at him. The boy sighed and jumped down onto the floor, landing pretty well.

'Hello, Ici. Care to tell me why you were hiding in the cupboard – AGAIN?' asked Katt. Ici (pronounced Ee-Sea) squirmed uncomfortably.

'Me mam told me to stay out of your way. She's gone to the shops for more food.' He explained. Katt nodded.

'Whatever. Chocolate? Jess is here, along with a couple of friends…' she told him persuasively. Ici frowned as he saw Tala, who was still laughing quietly.

'Who's that? A guest?' he asked Katt. She followed his gaze, and rolled her eyes at Tala.

'That's Tala. Yeah, he's one of the guests. He's a Russian orphan and also my penpal. He was exiled from his country for his safety and no other orphanage will take him, so he's living here. I think that's all…' Katt trailed off thoughtfully. Ici laughed at her expression.

'Cool. Umm, hi Tala. I'm Ici – the cook's son.' He added. Tala nodded.

'Tala Ivanov. You hide up there often?' he asked. Ici nodded.

'Me mam doesn't want me to get into trouble. But Jess and Katt always bail me out. They shouldn't, really…' he glanced up at Katt (for he was about three inches smaller than she was,) as she spoke the last part.

Katt ruffled his hair. 'Hot chocolate, Ea? We have marshmallows, chocolate and popcorn…' she said in the same persuasive tone. Ici groaned and nodded eagerly.

'You are evil to me, aren't you?' He told her as he walked over to help with the hot chocolate.

'Yup. And proud!' Katt told him happily. She took the popcorn from the microwave, and poured it all into the bowl.

Katt kicked open her bedroom door, grinning when she saw Jess flicking through her CD's. Kai was looking around casually.

'Hey Jess! Look who I found!' she cried. Ici was shoved into the room, though not unkindly, by Katt. Jess let out a loud but happy cry, and smothered Ici in a hug.

'Hi Ici!' she squealed. Ici was starting to turn blue, so Kai prised her off again.

There was the click of a door from below. Ici gasped.

'It's me mam! I need to go!' he cried, running towards the door. Jess and Katt followed.

'Hi Cook!' Katt called brightly. 'Don't mind Ici – he was just helping me and Jess carry some food upstairs – you know how we get!'

Cook was a rather bulky woman. She had on a dark green blouse, a black skirt and a blue apron over the top. She held many bags of shopping, and looked like the stern-mother-type.

She nodded, and glanced down at her small son. He took some of her bags, and made his way to the kitchen. Cook nodded to Jess and Katt each, and then followed her son.

'Cook don't talk much.' Jess told the boys as soon as Cook was out of earshot.

'We think she's a mute.' Katt added.

'Ici's a good mate, though.' Jess finished thoughtfully.

Some hours later, they were all in bed. Jess and Kai had stayed over at Katt's as well, since it was so late. Jess had phoned home first, though.

Tala and Kai shared a room, while Jess and Katt shared Katt's room. While Tala and Kai lay thinking, Jess and Katt were soon deep in slumber.

'Hey Tala!' whispered Kai. Tala groaned and rolled over to face his friend.

'What?' he asked groggily. Kai smirked.

'I think Jess and Katt are asleep – I know you like Katt.' he grinned slyly. Tala blushed.

'And it's pretty obvious that you like Jess.' He shot back. Now it was Kai's turn to blush.

'Umm, Tala? Why is the door opening…by itself?'

'Dunno. Hey, aren't they Jess and Katt's diaries? Wait, why are they floating and glowing the same blue that our notebooks did before we were sent here?'

'Dunno. Shall we run screaming for our lives?'

'Let's.'

'Ahhhhhhhhhh!'

Jess and Katt awoke with a jump as they heard Tala and Kai screaming. They raced into the other room, just in time to see the boys being sucked back into the diary they had been thrown out of. The diaries both fell to the floor with a loud bang.

'Kai!'

'Tala!'

Well, isn't this crazy? Please tell me what you think, thanks for reading, naioka1992 - xoxo