Vig #3 – Late for Reality

Fiona's car was already in the parking lot Fiona's when Carter pulled up with Sam at five minutes past midnight, the staff getting a stern talking to and an obvious tongue lashing from Fiona. Gabriella and Brianna simply looked smug in their dual cat suit. Sam grabbed her bag out of the back of Carter's car and, to her friend's surprise, proceeded to change in the front seat of his dad's Mercedes.

"Sam, what are you doing?"

"If I go in there like this, Gabriella and Brianna are going to know it was me at the dance."

"You can't change here!" Carter looked towards the diner. "What about if I just take you home and you can change there?"

"I can't, Fiona's already going to kill me for not being here when she got here; what am I going to tell her?"

"The truth?"

"Sure, right. Be serious, Carter; if Fiona finds out I was at the dance, say good bye to any hope for tuition for Princeton. I'll be lucky if I'm working anything less than double shifts from not until the end of the school year."

"Here." Carter reached into the back seat and pulled his cape out, draping it across her shoulders. "You could try and sneak in."

"And go where? She was coming out of the kitchen when we got here; she's obviously looked everywhere. I was supposed to be mopping the floors tonight and I'm not."

Carter kept his eyes on the diner and Fiona as Sam struggled to put her jeans and shirt on under the dress. Struggling was too tame a word for her fight.

"Carter... could you get the fasteners? I can't... reach…"

Lifting up the cape, Carter kept his eyes on the diner as he quickly unzipped the dress and then withdrew his hands as if burned. "Never ask me to do anything like that again, Sam," he hissed, embarrassed.

"This from the guy who was just making out with Shelby Cummings?"

"You're not Shelby – no offence."

"None taken," Sam disappeared under the cape, Fiona's dressing down of the staff reaching a pitch that was audible, but garbled, through the glass. "If I were Shelby, I'd have to shoot myself – no offence."

"None taken."

Sam grunted, shoving the cape and dress off over her head as she slid into her t-shirt. The dress landed in the backseat as she angled her hips and quickly buttons her jeans, aware that Carter was making a point of keeping his eyes anywhere but on her; her best friend was a doll. Tucking the dress behind the seat, Sam dug her ball cap out from under the seat and then tilted Carter's review mirror – earning an indignant "Hey!" from her friend – and tucked her curled hair up under the cap.

"Thank Carter; I'll let you know if you need to write my eulogy. Make sure Rhonda gets the dress back, kay?" Jumping out of the car before he could reply, Sam stayed low and darted around the edge of the building. Fiona's car was parked next to the door, just out of their view, and Sam took a moment to dive in, reaching for the ash tray where Fiona kept a dozen sets of earrings. Snagging a set, she closed the door carefully before slinking around to where the dumpster was kept.

Bracing herself for what she was about to do, Sam opened the top and jumped in. She spent the next minute practically rolling in the garbage and tearing bags. Rotten fish was a smell that permeated everything and she just about lost what little she'd been able to eat before the big costume hunt.

Less than thirty seconds later, with the earring dripping rotten salmon, Sam opened the back door to the diner, ready to face the war zone, Fiona's voice radiating displeasure.

"And when I'm through, I'm going to break every bone in her body and not-"

"Who's body?"

"Sam!" Fiona turned, startled – and took a step back. Sam's plan had the desired effect as Fiona and the Siamese cat that was her twin daughters caught a whiff of her. "You were supposed to be mopping the floors."

"I know," Sam glanced at her step sisters, knowing neither of them would come near her when she smelled this bad. "But I borrowed a pair of your earrings and one fell in the garbage and I knew you wouldn't appreciate it if they just went missing so..." holding up the small plain hoop – probably the plainest pair Fiona owned – she smiled what she hoped was a meek smile. "I found it?"

Fiona glared at her step daughter, obviously not buying it for a moment. "You'll be pulling double shifts from now until Friday at half pay for that, Sam."

Sam winced. Ouch. Double shifts with half the pay? That was going to play hell with her school work and her plan for Princeton; and she wouldn't have time to chat with Austin. Having dropped her cell phone, and it being who knew where, she couldn't even tell him.

"And no more driving; you'll take the bus or find another way to work all week."

"But Fiona-!" That was overboard, Sam looked from Fiona to her step sisters and then to Rhonda. "I was here as you said I should be!"

"It will teach you to take my things without asking."

"How will I do your – my errands without the car?" Sam hated to ask the question, but it was about the only argument that would keep her wheels on the road. "I can't pick up your dry cleaning, get you more salmon and make work if I can't drive; they're all over the valley!"

Fiona stopped and tapped her finger against her lips, obviously considering what Sam was saying. "You'll just have to find a way to make it work."

"Mother, Sam won't be able to make dinner if she can't drive home from the diner."

The unexpected help came from Brianna, and all eyes turned to the taller of the twins in surprise; she'd said something that not only made sense, but was intelligent.

"Keep the car," Fiona conceded, "It just means double shifts at half pay for two weeks instead of one. Come on girls."

Sam slumped against the counter as her step mother swept out, bracing her elbows on her knees and dropping her head to her hands; she should have just owned up to going to the dance - it wouldn't have been nearly as painful as her punishment. Still... it had been worth it.

"Sam." Rhonda settled next to her. "Honey, you need a shower."

"I know." Looking up as Fiona drove away, Sam sighed dejectedly. "It was all I could think of."

"It worked."

"She didn't fire anyone, did she?"

"Ha!" Rhonda found a smile for her young friend. "If she tried, we'd be losing customers. How was the dance?"

A shy smile crept across Sam's features. "Magical."

fin