The Escapade
Chapter Ten: Restart

A/N: I really cannot thank you guys enough. Those who have kept with me and read everything and criticized me through reviews—I thank you. And, for those who threaten to kill me over MSN messenger if I don't update—thank you as well. None of my stores have even gotten close to the stats that The Escapade has. I've never been so successful with any other story. Thank you guys so much, again. It means a lot to me as an aspiring writer.
But don't stop with me now. This story isn't even halfway through. :) Good things shall come, kids. Hope you guys are in for some hardcore reading. Long chapter.



"It's Friday, right? I'll be home three weeks from now. It's the third week, eh? I know you're counting weeks." Kakashi told me over the phone as I rolled over in bed. My cell phone was placed on my pillow and Kakashi was on speakerphone. I laughed softly to myself as I remembered my old sleeping habits from when I was in school. I glanced at the clock on my cell phone—it was almost ten and I had to be at work at eleven.

"I can't wait for you to come home," I said a little too blankly. I rolled over again.

"Neither can I. What's the matter, love? You seem like there's something wrong." He said. I took a deep breath. I didn't really want to tell Kakashi, because I didn't want to be much of a burden toward him. I knew he'd take it upon himself to help me, as much as I needed it. But I wanted to put him first, just like I always had.

"You won't like it," I warned.

"Says you. What is it?"

I exhaled loudly. "Shane burned down my apartment. I'm at my parents' house right now. I'm staying with them until I find a place."

There was silence on the other end of the line for a while, and I had thought he hung up on me, but he didn't.

"I am so sorry, Lexie. I really am. I can't believe he did that. He should be put in jail for good." He stated. "I can ask to come home—"

I shook my head furiously. "No, Kashi—" I blushed when I used my secret nickname for him. "That's your job. Besides, it'll give my parents and I some time to catch up. Plus, I have work and all. Your job is important."

"You're more important than my job."

I wanted to hang up and squeal like a first grader again, but I didn't.

"Stay there. I'll be fine. I promise. I always am."

He sighed intently, and I knew I had won this battle. "If you're sure, love. You're so complicated, but maybe that's why I fell in love with you. I'll see you as soon as I can. I love you."

"I love you too. See you soon."

I hung up and shut my cell phone and finally rolled—yes, I really did roll—out of bed. I fluffed up my hair as I walked out of my old bedroom. I walked into the kitchen where I found my mom watching television and having her probable sixth cup of coffee. She poured some into another cup and handed it to me. I turned my nose up at it.

"What's the matter? You don't like coffee?" she asked as she turned off the television and went into the laundry room.

I snorted. "I never did. I hate it; the stuff stunts your growth. What's your excuse?"

She flipped her hair and smirked at me. "Haha, you're so funny. Be glad you don't live her permanently or else you'd face my Hitler-esque wrath."

"Ooh, I'm so scared." I mimicked shaking motions and she threw a washcloth at me. "So you're communist now?"

"I like Stalin better," she joked. "Or maybe, I just don't like you."

I threw the washcloth back at her and went back into my room. "Thanks, mom." I called. I found some of my spare clothes that I had taken over here to keep in case of emergencies. I picked out something casual but nice to wear to work; a pair of khaki pants and a dress shirt. After putting them on, I went into my parents' bedroom to fix my hair and do my makeup. Mom walked in with the newspaper and sat down on the bed.

"Found something you might be interested in," she said. She pointed to an ad in the paper. "A stress reduction class. You can take it up at the hospital. God knows it'd help you and me both, dear." She added the last part almost inaudibly, and I rolled my eyes at her.

"A stress reduction class? I'm not stressed," I lied. Okay, maybe I was, but I wasn't about to admit it to my mom. "What is it, like some sort of AA meeting? Like Stressoholics Anonymous? Do I go in and introduce myself with a can of Red Bull in one hand and a stress ball in the other and say, 'Hi, I'm Alexandria Rivers, and I'm a stressoholic.'"

"Don't be so sarcastic," she chided. "It could help you. You never know."

I put the finishing touches on to my makeup and trudged out of her bedroom to go grab my purse. "I'll think about it. I'll see you later." I said as I hugged her. I walked out and got into my car. I drove to work feeling pretty well.

As I parked my car in the parking lot, I thought about the stress reduction class. Was I really that stressed about everything to where other people could notice it, even my own mom? My mom always noticed everything though, but I didn't think I was that bad. My apartment being burned down, Kakashi being away and LB moving out (plus her upcoming wedding, whenever that was) kind of tore me apart but I wasn't about to mentally break down over it. Was I?

I shrugged it off and walked into the store, being greeted by my new manager, Ricky. My old manager quit because she said that the job was "too stressful," so Ricky was brought in from a sister store not too far away from Ridgeway. He said—on more than one occasion—that I was the perfect employee. If only Elaine, Kate and Stephen could see me now.

"Hey girl!" he called from across the store. I gave him an once-over and nodded my approval. He was dressed in Ralph Lauren from head-to-toe, and his Dior sunglasses rested upon his natural blonde hair like he was Paris Hilton in guy form. Ricky was my "gay shopping buddy," as I liked to call him. Besides, who else could have possibly shared my biggest love for designer brands and men as much as Ricky did? A plus side: Ricky even liked Kakashi, from what I told him.

"Ralph Lauren," I said as we air kissed. "I like."

He threw his hands up in the air. "Girl, you've got to see this. We've got our new shipment of clothes in today, and I swear, I think it came straight from the runway in Milan. I set some things for you in the back that I thought you'd like."

I smiled at him. "Thanks, Ricky. That's nice."

"No problem," he called over his shoulder as he left me. He turned around and faced me. "Oh, after your shift is done, come back and talk to me. I have a few things I'd like to go over with you."

I froze. The last time someone said this to me was when I was fired from Elaine's. "Am I getting fired? Because that's what happened last time."

He scoffed. "No way, girl. You're one of my best workers, I couldn't fire you even if you wore last season's Prada jacket," he pointed discreetly to the woman beside of him and I giggled. The woman looked at him and walked away. "Some people just can't handle the truth. Anyway, no; it's just something I thought you'd be interested in."

"Alright. Thanks!"

He walked away and I walked to the front counter only to find my shipment of freight to be stocked. I sighed and opened a box—looking through all of the makeup, perfume, bath sets, and whatever else there was—before stocking it. I found some of my favorite perfume and I decided to hold it back just in case I wanted to buy it. After stocking what was in the boxes, I rested against the counter and drank my Propel water while reading a magazine. I looked up as soon as I finished the article on stress—which was fairly ironic—and saw LB and Iruka walk in. They waved at me from afar, and I noticed that LB looked very different. Her hair was straightened and she wore it down, and she looked taller and thinner. Iruka looked as if he'd just won the lottery, and I came to only one conclusion, which I didn't want to admit to myself.

"Hey!" LB called. I put aside my water and the magazine on the pearl counter and waved at them.

"What are you guys doing here?" I asked as they reached the counter.

Iruka pointed to LB. "She wanted to check on you. And I'm here to buy a ring."

I was taken aback at this, and I eyed him suspiciously. "Double proposing? Is that even possible?"

He chuckled, and scratched his head nervously. "Nope. She wanted a ring, and she wanted her best friend to pick it out. Plus, we brought you lunch." he said, handing me a bag from Taco Bell. I opened it up and smelled it; Taco Bell was heaven to me since I was trying to not eat out so much.

I jumped up and down as I opened the bag and took a bite form my taco. "Thanks, guys. What kind of budget are you on, Iruka?" I asked him as I opened up the glass door to where the jewelry was.

He tapped his finger against his temple for a second and glanced down at the counter. I saw his eyes scan the prices of the rings, then shrug. "Doesn't matter. Money is made for spending." he replied. I gave him an odd look, but knelt down to look at the rings that were beneath the glass counter. I scanned for the ring I'd been admiring ever since Ricky changed me from accounting to working the floor, and I found it. The ring was fairly small, with a silver band and a large blue heart stone in the middle. It had two smaller diamond stones on each side. I reached for it and took it out.

"Ever since Ricky changed me from accounting to working the floor, I've refused to sell this. I've even changed the price on it to anyone who wanted to buy it because I love it so much." I handed the ring to Iruka, who looked at it with his eyes wide. He showed it to LB, who smiled at me.

"It's beautiful," they said in unison. Iruka dug for his wallet out of his back pocket and handed me two one hundred dollar bills. He paid me greatly--the ring was only one hundred and eight dollars--and told me to keep the change. LB and Iruka left after telling me goodbye, and I finished my lunch at the counter. After lunch, I went to help unload some other freight in the other departments. I dropped my fair share of boxes (on my foot, might I add) and after a series of foot injuries, my shift was over. Ricky called me back to his room and I limped back there, slowly.

"You're so going to--what's wrong with your foot?" he asked, eyeing my hurt foot.

I shrugged it off, even though it really did hurt. "Dropped a few boxes on it. Nothing major."

He smiled at me. "How would you like to rest that hurt foot at a spa in New York?"

My mouth flung open and I placed my hand over my heart, like I didn't believe him at all. "What? Ricky, you can't be serious!"

"Serious as a heart attack, darling." he stated. "You. Me. LB. New York. Times Square. Manhattan. The Bryant Park Hotel. Saks Fifth Avenue. The whole shebang, doll."

I jumped up and down and leaped over to hug him, even though my foot throbbed in protest. "Yay! Oh my gosh, Ricky!"

He hugged me back, and gave me a sign to hang up. "Hang this up on the door. We're going to be out for awhile. I'm going to go home and get ready," he handed me two tickets. "Here. Be good." he said as he walked out of the room. I jumped up and down and danced in his room after he left for a good fifteen minutes. I went home, told my mom, and went to go pack. Before I knew it, I went to bed with New York's stylish streets not too far from my reach.



As soon as Ricky, LB and I landed in New York, I realized that it wasn't anything I made it out to be. It was crowded, some people were rude, and the buildings were so huge. Ricky's cousin who lived in New York, Jack, gave us a ride to The Bryant Park. We checked in, and I nearly dropped my bags at the entrance when I saw how beautiful the hotel was. I literally never saw anything like it, in all of my twenty-one years of living. It was magnificent with towering columns and rich, bold colors everywhere. I couldn't stop looking around in awe.

"This is beautiful," I told Ricky and LB as we went up in the elevator. "I've never saw anything like this in Ridgeway."

"That's because there isn't anything like this in Ridgeway," LB muttered. "This is beautiful, Ricky. Thank you for taking me."

"No problem, girls. Who wants to hit Fifth Avenue as soon as we get to the room?"

LB and I looked at each other, and I dramatically flashed my credit card at them. "I think I do."


On the flight home from New York, I realized I was probably about two thousand dollars in debt. I glanced around at the bags in front of me--Louis Vuitton, Chanel, True Religion, Tiffany & Co.--everything. I knew I'd pay for this later, but it was a possibility of a lifetime and I really couldn't pass it up. I bought shoes, a few (hundred) pairs of pants, some shirts, and a lot of anything else I could find. Jack drove us to the Trump Tower, and we saw that as well. We screwed around in the hallways, and we almost got kicked out. Jack also drove us to see Times Square, which LB and I took a gazillion pictures of. My foot did get better, and yes, I did go to a spa. We were given manicures and pedicures after we went to Broadway and saw a play. I wished Kakashi could have came along, but I knew he was busy. He texted me a few times because he couldn't call, and we texted for hours on end.

When I reached my parents house, I flung my stuff on the floor and almost fell down because I was so tired. I went to bed early and slept until I had to get up for work the next morning--which wasn't something I really wanted to do, but I had to. I woke up and ate a good breakfast after leaving Kakashi a voice mail. I wanted to call him and tell him that I was back from New York, but he wasn't answering his phone. I feared the worst, but I figured if he was going to end our relationship, he would have done it by now.

I parked in my usual parking place and went into work, waving tiredly at Ricky as he was talking to a customer. He waved back at me and I was suddenly bombarded by customers at the counter. After checking out everyone at the counter, a teenage girl around sixteen years old needed my fashion advice.

I didn't know that I would be there for two hours helping her pick out clothes, and she'd only come out with one pair of jeans. I decided to go ask another customer if they needed help, and they did. The woman and I talked for a minute about some jewelry that we offered.

"Excuse me, miss, can you tell me where the menswear is?" someone asked from behind me. I told the lady to wait at the jewlery counter.

I turned around in the face of Kakashi, who was on one knee with a ring box. "Alexandria Jo Rivers, will you marry me?"