Chapter 9.5- A Short Jaunt to the Café
Hey peoples! Man, I know it's been a while since I've written anything for this story, but there's a reason for that! I swear! I had a nice, long chapter written up somewhere, but I can't for the life of me find where I saved it to! ARGH! So, I decided to just do another filler-type chapter to hold you over until I finish scouring the stupid hard drive for my bloody story. Egh, damnit…
DISCLAIMER: N0 0wnag3 fr0m m3, 37c. L337 F7W!! -ahem-
All seven of us sat quietly at a small round table just outside the little coffee shop. Wait…were there seven of us? Huh…me, Carth, Bastila, Mission, and Zaalbar…yep, seven. It's a little known fact that Wookies count for three normal people. And smell as bad as three normal people. And eat as much as three normal people. And fart as much as three normal people. And…well, I'm sure you get the picture.
Bastila sipped her tea primly while Mission kept up a running commentary concerning the people passing by. Zaalbar grunted and groaned once in a while in reply, since neither Carth nor I were paying much attention. I was too busy thinking up ways to wheedle myself out of paying the bill. Carth just sort of stared blankly, occasionally taking a drink from his black coffee. Oh yeah. He was a risk taker.
"Oh! I saw that guy last night getting too close to one of the Twi' Lek dancers! He got booted out for that! And that girl slept with some guy named Bob, and now she's supposedly pregnant, but she also slept with Bob's brother Jim, and Jim's friend Steve, so they're not sure who the father is. Hey! I once saw that kid trying to break in to one of the apartments in the Lower City!"
It went on and on like that. It seemed that Mission had somehow heard every little piece of information about every citizen on the face of Taris. I was amazed she could remember it all. Amazed, but still greatly annoyed with her incessant chatter. Incessant chatter was MY thing, damnit!
"Would you SHUT your FACE, child!?" Everyone within a five meter radius stopped to stare at me, eyes wide with alarm at my outburst. "What're you looking at? What, you've never heard anyone yell at anyone in public?"
Carth grabbed me roughly by the forearm. "Would you just shut up? Everyone's going to think you're crazy!" Carth hissed under his breath while giving everyone an apologetic smile. "Sorry! She…uh…it's that time of the month."
I blinked a couple of times as the bystanders 'hmm'd and nodded in understanding. One woman even went so far as to offer me some painkillers. I gave her the meanest glare I could muster, which was pretty damn mean. Must've been, because she just dropped the pills and ran off, wind-milling her arms and screaming like they do in the cartoons. I found that mildly entertaining. I sat down again (I always stand up when I'm yelling. Unless, of course, I'm sitting down.) and chugged the rest of my café mocha. Slamming the cup down, I looked at our small group.
"Okay, time to go!"
Bastila snorted. "We're not going anywhere. I haven't finished my tea." She lifted the teacup up to her mouth, her little pinky sticking out in that annoying 'sophisticated' way. I scowled and put a finger under her cup, tipping it so the contents spilled over her face and down the front of her robes. She sputtered angrily as she set her cup down and reached for a nearby napkin dispenser.
"You're finished." I said darkly, glowering at the prissy Jedi. "Let's go."
"I want a cookie!" Mission chirped happily. "I saw some macadamia nut ones that looked really yummy!" She licked her lips and rubbed her tummy in anticipation. I stared at her, jaw slightly open.
"Did you fall, hit your head, and forget how to talk like an intelligent being? Besides, do you really deserve a cookie?"
She looked at me and nodded vigorously.
"And why, may I ask, do you deserve a cookie?"
"For putting up with you!" She retorted, sticking her tongue out at me. I growled and hit Carth on the back of the head.
"HEY! What was that for!?" Carth bellowed, quite enraged. I sighed heavily.
"Well, I can't go hitting Mission! She's a minor!" I shook my head. " I can't go around hitting minors! What kind of message would that send out to people?"
Carth grumbled unhappily under his breath.
"Are you finished with your damn coffee yet?" I asked tersely, beginning to feel my left eye twitch. Carth looked at me, to his coffee, to Bastila, then back to me.
"Yes, I'm finished." He took one last gulp before setting his mug back down on the metal table.
"Good. I'm going to go use the 'fresher room, and when I come back we're going to pay the bill and leave. Got it?" They all nodded. "Good. Mission, if you want a cookie, you better get one fast." Mission bolted to the counter and ordered a cookie. She came back smiling widely. I got up and made for the 'Fresher. I stopped just around a nearby corner and peeked around at our table. Bastila was still wiping at the stain on her uniform. Carth was sitting with his arms crossed, an unhappy scowl on his face. Mission was blathering on to Zaalbar, who was just sitting there and taking it. I cackled to myself and made for the door.
"Uh, miss? Are you going to pay?"
"Huh?" I turned to the young Tarisian standing behind the counter. "Oh, I was with them. They'll pay when they're ready to leave." The boy nodded and smiled grandly.
"Have a nice day, miss."
"Yeah, you too!" I waved cheerily and whistled as I strolled out into the streets. The way back to the apartments took me right in front of the table we were sitting at. The streets were moderately crowded, but they had a clear view of me. Carth was the first one to notice me. He froze in mid-sentence, his eyes growing large and his jaw hanging. The others followed his line of sight, and they all pretty much had the same reaction. I smiled widely and waved.
" SELORA!!" Bastila's high-pitched scream cut through the crowd like a vibroblade through a pile of Bantha poodoo. I laughed out loud and started to run. I looked back to see her standing at the edge of the small railing that separated the little café area from the sidewalk. She was yelling something and shaking her fist in my general direction. I snickered some more as I sprinted around the corner and into the apartment complex.
I only had to wait for five minutes before the others came storming in to the apartment. Mission and Zaalbar didn't seem too concerned, but Carth and Bastila were both livid. I chuckled and felt a grin make its way across my face.
"Why, welcome home! Where have you guys been?"
Bastila scowled. "What would possess you to do such a thing? Leaving us with the bill!"
I laughed lightly. "Why, it's not like you didn't have any money or anything! Besides, it's not really fair for you guys to always assume that I'm going to pay for everything."
"YOU'RE the one that carries all the money!" Carth yelled angrily.
"Well then, let this be a lesson to you. Always carry a bit of your own cash, because you never know if I'll be there or not."
"That's for sure." Carth grumbled as he sat down heavily in one of the strangely shaped chairs. "You're completely unreliable. Why do you have the money in the first place?"
"Because I'm the main character. I mean, because most of it came from me winning those fights." My eyes darted around to see if anyone had caught what I had said. They were all too caught up in their own little worlds to notice. I sighed with relief. "Anyway, it's over and the bill was paid." We all sat in silence for a couple of minutes. The peace was broken by my stomach growling loudly. "I'm hungry…you guys want to eat out somewhere?"
"NO!"
I shrugged at their collective answer. "Suit yourself. I'm going down to that nice restaurant down the street. The Correlian one." I got up and made my way to the door.
"WAIT! We'll come too!" Bastila said excitedly. I turned around to find her almost right behind me. I reached out and put my hand on her face, pushing her backwards.
"No way. I don't trust you guys as far as I can throw you." I paused for a moment. "That's not very far." Smiling at the collective looks of disbelief, I made my way out the door.
Yeah...it's not the greatest, but it's something. Sorry. -shrugs- I'll try my best to find the next chapter. It has to be somewhere! I swear it is!! ARGH!! -goes insane-