Gordo dug through his drawers, hoping perhaps there was a pack of cigarettes concealed in one of them. His search turned up nothing, and he sighed with frustration. It was one in the afternoon, but he had only just rolled out of bed. Gordo was normally an early riser, but he his mind was so busy the night before that he hadn't slept well. Rubbing his tired eyes, the only thing he could think of was how badly his body was craving nicotine.

He grabbed a pair of dirty jeans from his floor and slipped them on. He shoved his shoes on and tiredly walked across the street to Miranda's house.

"Got any cigarettes?" was the first thing he said when Miranda opened the door.

"It's nice to see you, too," she joked. "And ask a little louder, will you, so my parents can hear?"

"Sorry. I just woke up, so I'm a little out of it."

Miranda nodded in understanding. "Come on upstairs."

Gordo walked into the Sanchez house and upstairs to Miranda's room, where the two of them climbed through the window onto the roof. Miranda pulled out and cigarette for herself and lit it, then tossed the pack and the lighter to Gordo.

The monkey on his back was grateful for his morning dose of nicotine. Gordo exhaled the smoke, looking out over the peaceful neighborhood. Little kids were playing kickball in the street, making the best of those last days of summer. The early afternoon sun beat down on them.

"Let's grab Lizzie and go swimming today," Miranda suggested, feeling the heat.

Gordo wrinkled his nose and took another drag of his cigarette. "Where at? I really don't trust the sanitation of the public pool."

Miranda rolled her eyes at her friend. "Screw sanitation, Gordo. It's hot as hell today. Besides, its not like we have anything better to do."

He shrugged. "All right, all right."

Miranda nodded with satisfaction. There was a brief moment of silence. "So... did you think things over yesterday?"

Gordo laughed bitterly. "I thought things over all day and night. Nothing makes any more sense than it did yesterday."

"You're such a dork, Gordo. I thought you were smart, but apparently not. Let me spell it out for you: blow Parker off. There's no question. Think about it. Would you actually dump Lizzie for Parker?"

"Of course not. But..."

"But nothing. I tried to be patient with you yesterday, because I thought the answer would be as obvious to you as it is to me. Deal with this, Gordo. Don't let it go on."

Gordo sighed. "Okay. All right. Fine. I'll call Parker tonight... I'll break it off with her."

Miranda smiled and pat Gordo on the head. "Good boy."

An hour later, the two of them plus Lizzie were at the gate of the public pool, paying to get in. They parted ways to enter, Miranda and Lizzie going through the girls' locker room, and Gordo going through the boys'. When he walked into the pool area, Gordo grimaced. Apparently, everyone in the county had the same idea as Miranda, and the pool was crowded with sun- scorched parents and screaming children.

"Gordo!" said a familiar voice.

Gordo turned to see Parker running towards him in a bright blue bikini top and a flowered skirt wrapped around her. "Oh, hey," he replied, keeping his eyes from wandering. He marveled at how even though he had seen her naked, he never tired of seeing her soft curves.

"Just oh, hey?" Parker looked past Gordo and spotted Miranda and Lizzie coming out of the girls' locker room at the opposite end of the pool area. "Ah, I see. I guess I ought to scram. Drop by my house sometime tonight, okay? I've got a fabulous surprise." Parker promptly scampered off, a mischievous grin still lingering on her face. Gordo found himself unable to resist watching the swivel of her hips as she walked away, and felt absolutely tortured by that grin of hers.

"Wow," said Lizzie, walking over to Gordo and wrapping her arm around his. "It's pretty crowded."

"Eh, no big deal," said Miranda. "We're bigger than them. We'll just push them out of the way." Lizzie giggled and Gordo shook his head; the three of them worked their way through the crowd and jumped into the pool.

Watching Gordo and Lizzie splash each other, having fun and smiling together, made Miranda happy. She watched with love as the two of them flirted. She scolded herself for ever having been jealous of them. It was true, when they first got together, Miranda felt left out and abandoned. But that frustrating period gave her time to think things through. She learned more about her own identity, and acquired the maturity to be happy for her two best friends. As she looked at them in the pool that day, the perfect picture of a couple, she wondered how anyone could be anything BUT happy for them.

Her eyes wandered across the pool. She saw Parker, wet and gleaming with sun tan lotion and surrounded by several boys from school. Miranda sighed and shook her head. Why did things have to be so complicated? After several unpleasant confrontations in middle school, Miranda had grown to like Parker. It was in high school, when Miranda began to shed her prep persona and be more comfortable with who she was, that she began to appreciate Parker even more. But at the moment, Parker was in the way. Parker had guys- - and girls, for that matter-- throwing themselves at her feet all the time. Why did she need Gordo? Lizzie and Gordo were meant for each other. Miranda knew this, and she wanted it with all her heart to remain true. Something would have to be done about Parker, and if Gordo couldn't get rid of her himself, Miranda would have to step in.

"Hey, I'm going to go get a coke," said Gordo, tearing Miranda away from her thoughts. "You guys want anything?"

"Sure," said Lizzie. "How about a cherry coke?"

"Wait," said Miranda quickly, moving out of the pool. "You guys stay here. I'll get the drinks."

"Are you sure?" asked Gordo.

"Positive. You two stay here. Have fun. Be couple-ish." Miranda quickly climbed out of the pool as Lizzie and Gordo gave her confused looks. But Miranda wasn't worried about getting weird looks. She didn't want Gordo to wander off alone, giving Parker an opportunity to approach him.

As Miranda got in line at the concession stand, she noticed an extremely familiar brunette in front of her. She grinned; it was just the girl she needed to talk to.

"Hey, Parker," said Miranda in a friendly, almost flirtatious tone.

Parker turned slightly to see who was speaking to her. "Oh. Hi, Miranda," she replied.

"I haven't talked to you in awhile. how have things been going for you?"

"They've been fine, I guess."

Miranda nodded, trying to act casual. "You know, just the other day I was thinking about you."

"Oh?"

"Yeah. I was wondering why we don't date anymore."

Parker suddenly gave her full attention. There was obviously something more here than just idle chit-chat. She cocked a suspicious eyebrow at Miranda. "Well, in the first place, we never did date. You and I just. experimented."

Miranda shrugged innocently. "Oh. My bad. I didn't realize you weren't into girls any more."

"Regardless of what I'm into, Miranda, I'm having a hard time understanding why you've come up to me out of the blue to start hitting on me."

Miranda's face showed nothing; the mark of the expert liar. "Like I said, I've just been thinking about you lately."

Parker sighed. "Well, in any case, I'm involved with someone. Sorry."

"Involved?" Miranda's eyes moved across the concrete area to the pool, where Gordo was playfully splashing his girlfriend. "You don't mean Gordo, do you? I mean, he's pretty involved himself. You don't actually think of him as your boyfriend, do you?"

Parker became uneasy, though she tried not to show it in her eyes. "What are you talking about?"

"No need to play innocent. I've known about you and Gordo for a while now. Kind of hard not to, with you sneaking in and out of his house all the time." Parker started to turn a little pale. "But like I said, don't worry! I'm not going to tell anyone. It's just." She looked over at Gordo and Lizzie once more. Parker followed her eyes, watching the couple. They acted like they were the only two people in the world. "Well, I wouldn't get too serious about Gordo."

"Serious? Gordo? Of course not." Parker regained her confidence. "I know exactly what I'm doing, okay? I don't get serious about anyone. Gordo and me are just for fun."

Miranda gave Parker a challenging stare. "Right. Well, keep my offer in mind, okay?"

Parker said nothing. She nodded vaguely, but her eyes were focused upon Gordo and his girlfriend.