Val took a deep breath and brushed her hair back out of her eyes, steeling herself against the tough fight that she knew was ahead of her. How she was going to do it, she didn't know. But the entire plot depended on her succeeding in this one little thing. However, she was not at all sure how she was going to succeed in her task.
The blonde girl sighed, and leaned against her locker, a small smile pulling at her lips. And she accused Catie of being a drama queen.
Val shifted her books in her arms, wishing that Catie would hurry up and get over here-she had to get to work, as well as talk Catie into going there with her. Today was the perfect day to put Brooke's "hare-brain scheme" into action.
The female EMT was shaken out of her thoughts by the sudden appearance of her best friend, moving down the hall with a slight frown pulling at her lips.
Taking yet another deep breath, Val went over the carefully prepared plan of action that she and Tyler had come up with over lunch, hoping that she didn't forget any of the little details that she had painstakingly thought up and written down. If this didn't work, she had no idea how she was going to get Catie to come to the station, and if she couldn't get Catie to the station, Brooke's plan would never work.
"Hey Val." Catie called, coming to a stop in front of her locker, and spinning the combination lock.
"Hey! Uh...I was wondering, could you come by the station this afternoon?" Val asked nervously, trying to keep her voice as even as possible. She had no idea why she had been selected to get Catie to the station--yeah, she was her best friend, but she was also the worse liar in the world.
Catie blinked in surprise, looking over at her best friend. Why in the world did Val want her to come to the station? Was something wrong? She knew that Val more then likely didn't need her help on anything school related, and if it was something about Tyler, she certainly wouldn't want to tell her at the station...so what in the world could Val possibly want?
'Who cares?' A little voice in the back of her head whispered. 'Go. Jamie will be there...'
Catie chewed on her bottom lip, not listening to a thing that Val was saying to her. Things between Jamie and her were starting to get...strange. Not bad strange, just...different. She wanted to be around him more and more, and she missed him when he wasn't around. Something was happening to her, and she wasn't sure that she knew what it was-or even if she wanted it to stop.
"So, will you?" Val concluded her rambling explanation, and crossed her fingers, hoping that Catie bought it.
"Will I what-oh! Come to the station?" Catie shook herself, silently chiding herself for not paying attention to her friend better.
"Um, yeah." Val nodded her head, looking at her best friend like she had three heads.
"Oh...umm...yeah, sure." The brunette promised, pushing a lock of her hair back behind her ear. Val beamed at her, and nodded.
"Great! I'll see you then!" Val promised, hopping off down the hall, her blonde hair bouncing.
Catie watched her go, and shook her head, muffling a laugh. Val was her best friend, but sometimes she was such a total blonde.
@-}--}---
Hank, Brooke and Tyler were already at the station when Val got there. As soon as she walked in the door, she beamed, her eyes dancing.
Tyler was, of course, the first one to see her, and interpreted her expression correctly. He grinned, and rose to his feet, his blue eyes sparkling.
"Judging by your expression, you managed to talk Catie in to coming to the station, right?" He asked, drawing Hank and Brooke's attention to the beaming girl.
"Oh yeah. I am so good!" Val cheered herself, grinning.
"You did it? Alright!" Tyler cheered as well.
"That's great! Now we can--" Brooke cut herself off when Jamie wondered through the door, his hands in his pockets.
"Now you can what?" He asked, his tone bored and slightly uninterested. The foursome exchanged a look, then, as one, looked back at their friend. He noticed their looks and lifted an eyebrow. "What?"
"Nothing! Hey, you know, it's your turn to do the supply inventory." Brooke was the fastest on her verbal feet as usual.
"Ah man..." Jamie groaned, running his fingers through his black hair.
"You know," Hank started, just as planned, "you could get a jump on it right now if you wanted to."
"Yeah, I mean, people down the street can hear the alarms, so you'll know right away when there's a call." Tyler jumped in, grinning.
"And it's been pretty slow today anyway." Val concluded, smiling.
Jamie looked at the smiling teens and blinked, and then looked over at Brooke. "Did you put something in their water?"
"Huh?" Brooke asked, crinkling her eyebrows.
"They seem a little bit MORE overachieving then they normally do." Jamie explained, looking in mock horror at his friends.
Brooke giggled and the other three stuck their tongues out at him. "Well, it's true." The young man defended himself, smirking.
"Just go get the inventory." Hank laughed, slapping his friend on the back.
"I'm going, I'm going." Jamie rolled his eyes, and leaving for the supply closet, tossing his jacket onto a chair as he went.
As soon as he was out of sight and earshot, the matchmakers grinned at each other.
"We are so good." Tyler grinned.
"Oh yes." Val agreed, slamming a five with her little sister.
"Now we just have to wait for Catie to get..." Brooke trailed off, peering out the window. A flash of jet black hair caught her attention, and she squeaked. "She's hear! Val, hide!"
She didn't have to tell her sister twice, the pretty blonde scampering off into the ladies room. Val didn't leave any time to soon, because just as the door swung close, Catie made her way into the room, looking around for her best friend.
"Hey Catie." Tyler called, trying his best to be casual.
"Hi!" Brooke chirped, beaming. Hank just waved, trying to contain his laughter. Catie noticed, and knitted her eyebrows together.
"What?" She asked, confused and slightly defensive.
"Nothing. Just some really bad joke that Tyler just told." Brooke reassured her "other big sister".
"Oh. Um, where's Jam--Val?" Catie shook herself, cursing her tongue for that little slip up.
"Val? She's doing the supply inventory. She told us to tell you to just go on back." Tyler crossed his arms over his chest and nodded, a small grin pulling at his lips.
"Oh. Okay." Catie said, looking at them in confusion. She shook her head and rolled her eyes, heading off toward the supply room. Brooke beamed even brighter, trying to suppress a cheer.
"This is SO going to work!" She told her older friends, clapping her hands.
@-}--)---
Catie wandered toward the supply room, wondering what it was that Val wanted to talk to her about, and hopped that it wouldn't take to long. It wasn't that Catie didn't want to know what was going on with her best friend--she did. She just really needed to talk to her about this whole thing with Jamie.
She was so deep into her thoughts that she didn't even notice Val sneak out of the bathroom and follow her as quietly as possible.
In a matter of minutes, Catie reached the supply room, and stepped through the open door. "Val?" She called, expecting her best friend's blonde head to pop around the corner at any moment.
"Catie?" A much deeper, sexier voice called back, and a dark head peered around a corner at her.
"Jamie! Uhh...Tyler told me that Val was in here." Catie tripped over her tongue, silently cursing herself.
"Really?" Jamie asked, confused. "She was just in the common area with him, when I came in here to do the inventory."
"He told me that Val was doing the inventory." Catie argued, confusion marring her features. Jamie stepped fully out from behind the shelf he had been partially hidden behind and looked at her.
"Weird."
"I know."
The slamming of the door caught their attention, and drew them back to reality. Spinning around, Catie stared at the closed door in shock. However, it was the soft click that followed the closing of the door that really worried her.
Moving forward, she grabbed the handle of the door and twisted. The door didn't open, didn't even budge. Startled, she twisted it the other way, and got the same affect.
"Oh Lord." She whispered, putting her hand up to her mouth. "This is not happening."
"What?" Jamie asked, concerned.
"Jamie--how do you lock this door?" She asked her friend, biting down on her lip.
"From the...out...side..." Jamie said slowly, his eyes getting larger as he said every word. "They didn't..."
"They did." Catie whispered, not knowing whether to laugh or kick down the door and kick her best friend's butt. "We're locked in here!"
The blonde girl sighed, and leaned against her locker, a small smile pulling at her lips. And she accused Catie of being a drama queen.
Val shifted her books in her arms, wishing that Catie would hurry up and get over here-she had to get to work, as well as talk Catie into going there with her. Today was the perfect day to put Brooke's "hare-brain scheme" into action.
The female EMT was shaken out of her thoughts by the sudden appearance of her best friend, moving down the hall with a slight frown pulling at her lips.
Taking yet another deep breath, Val went over the carefully prepared plan of action that she and Tyler had come up with over lunch, hoping that she didn't forget any of the little details that she had painstakingly thought up and written down. If this didn't work, she had no idea how she was going to get Catie to come to the station, and if she couldn't get Catie to the station, Brooke's plan would never work.
"Hey Val." Catie called, coming to a stop in front of her locker, and spinning the combination lock.
"Hey! Uh...I was wondering, could you come by the station this afternoon?" Val asked nervously, trying to keep her voice as even as possible. She had no idea why she had been selected to get Catie to the station--yeah, she was her best friend, but she was also the worse liar in the world.
Catie blinked in surprise, looking over at her best friend. Why in the world did Val want her to come to the station? Was something wrong? She knew that Val more then likely didn't need her help on anything school related, and if it was something about Tyler, she certainly wouldn't want to tell her at the station...so what in the world could Val possibly want?
'Who cares?' A little voice in the back of her head whispered. 'Go. Jamie will be there...'
Catie chewed on her bottom lip, not listening to a thing that Val was saying to her. Things between Jamie and her were starting to get...strange. Not bad strange, just...different. She wanted to be around him more and more, and she missed him when he wasn't around. Something was happening to her, and she wasn't sure that she knew what it was-or even if she wanted it to stop.
"So, will you?" Val concluded her rambling explanation, and crossed her fingers, hoping that Catie bought it.
"Will I what-oh! Come to the station?" Catie shook herself, silently chiding herself for not paying attention to her friend better.
"Um, yeah." Val nodded her head, looking at her best friend like she had three heads.
"Oh...umm...yeah, sure." The brunette promised, pushing a lock of her hair back behind her ear. Val beamed at her, and nodded.
"Great! I'll see you then!" Val promised, hopping off down the hall, her blonde hair bouncing.
Catie watched her go, and shook her head, muffling a laugh. Val was her best friend, but sometimes she was such a total blonde.
@-}--}---
Hank, Brooke and Tyler were already at the station when Val got there. As soon as she walked in the door, she beamed, her eyes dancing.
Tyler was, of course, the first one to see her, and interpreted her expression correctly. He grinned, and rose to his feet, his blue eyes sparkling.
"Judging by your expression, you managed to talk Catie in to coming to the station, right?" He asked, drawing Hank and Brooke's attention to the beaming girl.
"Oh yeah. I am so good!" Val cheered herself, grinning.
"You did it? Alright!" Tyler cheered as well.
"That's great! Now we can--" Brooke cut herself off when Jamie wondered through the door, his hands in his pockets.
"Now you can what?" He asked, his tone bored and slightly uninterested. The foursome exchanged a look, then, as one, looked back at their friend. He noticed their looks and lifted an eyebrow. "What?"
"Nothing! Hey, you know, it's your turn to do the supply inventory." Brooke was the fastest on her verbal feet as usual.
"Ah man..." Jamie groaned, running his fingers through his black hair.
"You know," Hank started, just as planned, "you could get a jump on it right now if you wanted to."
"Yeah, I mean, people down the street can hear the alarms, so you'll know right away when there's a call." Tyler jumped in, grinning.
"And it's been pretty slow today anyway." Val concluded, smiling.
Jamie looked at the smiling teens and blinked, and then looked over at Brooke. "Did you put something in their water?"
"Huh?" Brooke asked, crinkling her eyebrows.
"They seem a little bit MORE overachieving then they normally do." Jamie explained, looking in mock horror at his friends.
Brooke giggled and the other three stuck their tongues out at him. "Well, it's true." The young man defended himself, smirking.
"Just go get the inventory." Hank laughed, slapping his friend on the back.
"I'm going, I'm going." Jamie rolled his eyes, and leaving for the supply closet, tossing his jacket onto a chair as he went.
As soon as he was out of sight and earshot, the matchmakers grinned at each other.
"We are so good." Tyler grinned.
"Oh yes." Val agreed, slamming a five with her little sister.
"Now we just have to wait for Catie to get..." Brooke trailed off, peering out the window. A flash of jet black hair caught her attention, and she squeaked. "She's hear! Val, hide!"
She didn't have to tell her sister twice, the pretty blonde scampering off into the ladies room. Val didn't leave any time to soon, because just as the door swung close, Catie made her way into the room, looking around for her best friend.
"Hey Catie." Tyler called, trying his best to be casual.
"Hi!" Brooke chirped, beaming. Hank just waved, trying to contain his laughter. Catie noticed, and knitted her eyebrows together.
"What?" She asked, confused and slightly defensive.
"Nothing. Just some really bad joke that Tyler just told." Brooke reassured her "other big sister".
"Oh. Um, where's Jam--Val?" Catie shook herself, cursing her tongue for that little slip up.
"Val? She's doing the supply inventory. She told us to tell you to just go on back." Tyler crossed his arms over his chest and nodded, a small grin pulling at his lips.
"Oh. Okay." Catie said, looking at them in confusion. She shook her head and rolled her eyes, heading off toward the supply room. Brooke beamed even brighter, trying to suppress a cheer.
"This is SO going to work!" She told her older friends, clapping her hands.
@-}--)---
Catie wandered toward the supply room, wondering what it was that Val wanted to talk to her about, and hopped that it wouldn't take to long. It wasn't that Catie didn't want to know what was going on with her best friend--she did. She just really needed to talk to her about this whole thing with Jamie.
She was so deep into her thoughts that she didn't even notice Val sneak out of the bathroom and follow her as quietly as possible.
In a matter of minutes, Catie reached the supply room, and stepped through the open door. "Val?" She called, expecting her best friend's blonde head to pop around the corner at any moment.
"Catie?" A much deeper, sexier voice called back, and a dark head peered around a corner at her.
"Jamie! Uhh...Tyler told me that Val was in here." Catie tripped over her tongue, silently cursing herself.
"Really?" Jamie asked, confused. "She was just in the common area with him, when I came in here to do the inventory."
"He told me that Val was doing the inventory." Catie argued, confusion marring her features. Jamie stepped fully out from behind the shelf he had been partially hidden behind and looked at her.
"Weird."
"I know."
The slamming of the door caught their attention, and drew them back to reality. Spinning around, Catie stared at the closed door in shock. However, it was the soft click that followed the closing of the door that really worried her.
Moving forward, she grabbed the handle of the door and twisted. The door didn't open, didn't even budge. Startled, she twisted it the other way, and got the same affect.
"Oh Lord." She whispered, putting her hand up to her mouth. "This is not happening."
"What?" Jamie asked, concerned.
"Jamie--how do you lock this door?" She asked her friend, biting down on her lip.
"From the...out...side..." Jamie said slowly, his eyes getting larger as he said every word. "They didn't..."
"They did." Catie whispered, not knowing whether to laugh or kick down the door and kick her best friend's butt. "We're locked in here!"