AUTHOR'S NOTE: Pretty bad, I
know… but hey, I had fun writing it, and that's all that counts.. right? Hehe.
DISCLAIMER: Not mine, no
money, don't sue.
Prologue
Caitie Roth stared angrily at the posters plastered on
her side of the bedroom ceiling. There was just no peace and quiet around here,
was thre?
As if to emphasize her point, her younger sister called
to her from across the room.
"Caitie, how do you spell 'alleviate?'"
Caitie clenched and unclenched her jaw irritatedly.
"A-ll-e-vi-ate," she spelled, anger seething softly and
dangerously beneath the letters. "And tell Mom I'll be back before 10, 'kay?"
Caitie grabbed her book bag and headed for the door, not
sure where she was going except that she was going far, far away from here.
Suddenly inspired, she decided she'd stop by the EMS station to vent at Val
before she went to the Kingsport library to finish up her English report.
Quietly pushing open the glass door, Caitie deftly
avoided Alex and his "not-while-they're-on-duty" lecture. What she found inside
the EMS station was a true haven of sloth and bored apathy.
Val reclined across her top bunk, boredly pushing back a
cuticle. Jamie slept soundly on the bunk below her. Tyler and Hank were
uninvolved in a bland game of war.
"Can you guys believe we haven't had a call in—" Val
stifled a yawn, "—three whole days?"
"Mm," Hank and Tyler elicited in unison.
It was now that Caitie chose to jump into the room. Her
sudden presence did nothing to stir the dull dust of boredom that seemed to
settle over the whole room.
"Come on, you guys!" Caitie whimpered. "Wake up and shake
it up! It looks like it's about time you had some fun in this place!"
No response.
"Oka-ay…maybe we need some music, or some coffee, or…"
Caitie eyed her unappreciative and inattentive audience, "…a rousing game of 'truth
or dare?'" Caitie cheered sarcastically. "Val? You up for it?"
"Hm-um," she answered blankly.
"What do you say, Tyler?"
"Uh-unh."
"Hank?"
"Dumb game."
"WORDS! They speak!" Caitie rolled her eyes.
"I'm in," came a voice from a lower bunk. Val was so
startled that she sat up and hit her head on the ceiling.
"Jamie! I thought you were asleep!" Caitie exclaimed
happily. Val nodded in agreement, rubbing her head ruefully.
Jamie grinned. "Surprise. So, we playing or not?"
Tyler put down his stack of cards. "Guess so."
Hank glared at him. "Just 'cause you were losing." He
placed his slightly larger stack of cards atop Tyler's. "But I still think it's
a dumb game."
"Who's going first?" Val asked as she climbed down to
join them in their group around the table.
"I will." Caitie had an evil glint in her eye. "Val—truth
or dare?"
"Truth," Val and Caitie said in unison. "You always pick
truth," Caitie continued.
"Well, you always used to pick dare. We needed someone to
even it out. There are only so many neighbors you can borrow a cup of molasses
from."
Caitie rolled her eyes. "Okay, truth: pickles or
potatoes?"
Val raised a skeptical eyebrow. "What kind of question
was that? I mean, how am I supposed to choose when I don't even know what it's
going on, or what it's going with, or how it's been prepared, or how old it is—"
"Just answer!" Caitie demanded. "Sorry, first question's
always hardest…and you should have picked dare!"
"Potatoes, I guess," Val shrugged. "Okay, Hank—truth or
dare?"
Afraid he'd get a similar question, Hank picked dare. He
felt Val was fairly harmless anyway. He had to down a glass of Brooke's famous
punch, but that was all.
"'Kay, my man Jamie: truth or dare?"
"Truth."
"Um…what do you really think of Alex?"
"Mostly harmless," Jamie grinned. "Underneath that icy
exterior he's just a big lug. Caitie?"
"Dare," Val and Caitie answered together, the latter
shooting a cold stare at the former.
"Well, good." Caitie didn't like the mischievous glint in
Jamie's eye. "Because my dare has to do with both of you."
Both girls raised an eyebrow.
"Tomorrow, Val goes to school dressed as Caitie and
Caitie goes dressed as Val."
Val's other eyebrow shot up as Caitie's jaw dropped down.
"Dude, Jamie…" Tyler trailed off, "I really don't think—"
"Dare accepted," Caitie answered steelily.
"Me too," Val nodded.
"Guys…" Hank began.
"Nono, I think it'll be fun," Val piped.
"And educational," Caitie added.
"You don't have to change how you act or your daily
schedule or anything…just how you dress. Lasts for 24 hours starting
immediately," Jamie clarified.
"Hey Val?" Caitie asked suddenly. "Does this station of
yours have any Kool-Aid?"
"Yeah, I think so…why?"
"Oh, no reason…do you think you could find some for me?"
"Sure…it's just in the kitchen."
The two girls headed out, leaving Jamie to deal with the
disapproving Hank and Tyler.
"Where do you get off daring them to do that?" Tyler
began accusingly. "Do you know how much this is going to hurt Val? Do you know
what people will say about her if she suddenly comes dressed to school looking
like…"
"One of us?" Jamie's voice was eerily quiet.
"Look, Jamie…" Hank started levelly, "There's nothing
wrong with the way you and Caitie dress—because its' the way you want to dress.
Dressing completely out of character like this is just asking for trouble."
Jamie shrugged. He wasn't about to tell them his real
motive for the dare. "I just thought it would be a good experience for them,
that's all. Something…educational."