Chapter Three
Mary Anne popped the last bite of the cheeseburger in her mouth and reached for her soda while Kristy shouted above the din inside Friendly's.
"So then, Andrea Prezzioso reaches to grab the jar of grape jam and slip! The jar hits the floor and the jam goes over her and all over the floor," Kristy was describing the disaster that was her morning babysitting job. "I thought I'd never get that sticky mess up from the floor and off her patent leather shoes."
"I'm sure Mrs. Prezzioso loved to find her new hardwood floors sticky!" Claudia laughed. "You know how fastidious she is about her kids and house."
"Well, I got it all cleaned up just before she got back from taking Jenny to the doctor," Kristy smiled.
The five friends were had stopped to have lunch at the popular restaurant in Washington Mall before heading back out to do more shopping. Mary Anne had found a cute new tartan mini-skirt and red turtleneck to go with it. Now she just needed some jewelry and she'd be all set.
The waitress stopped by and set the bill on the table. Each of them reached for their purses to pull out their share of the tab. "So guys, where to next?" Stacey asked.
Just as Mary Anne started to respond, Cokie Mason and Grace Blume sauntered in and proceeded to a booth behind theirs. As Cokie passed their table, she stopped and pulled Grace's sweater to get her to stop as well. She looked directly at Mary Anne and smiled cattily.
"We must have gotten disconnected last night, Mary Anne. I guess the storm blew out the telephone lines, huh? Well, at least it didn't keep Logan and me from the movie. It was a really scary movie. Whooo," she shuddered. "It was so scary that Logan had to keep his arm around me the whole time. He's sooo brave!"
"Yeah, he must be brave to take you out in public," Kristy snorted. They all burst out laughing as Cokie narrowed her eyes.
"Come on, Grace. Let's get out of her before anyone sees us talking to these infants," Cokie snarled.
Dawn and Stacey just rolled their eyes at each other. "Let's get out of here," Dawn said. "I hear Zingy's earring sale calling our names!"
The five of them exited the booth and began to walk out of the restaurant. Mary Anne threw a last minute glance over her shoulder. Cokie caught her eye and gave her a triumphant smirk. Mary Anne resisted the juvenile urge to stick her tongue out at Cokie and followed her friends out into the mall.
"I was thinking of someone more like Ian Wakefield," Stacey mused. "He's really preppy and has beautiful blue eyes behind those glasses. He's in your writing club, isn't he, Mary Anne?" "Mmm-hmmm," Mary Anne murmured vaguely as she stared out at the passing scenery. They were driving home from the mall in Kristy's Volkswagen Jetta and Mary Anne was leaning against the passenger window. Dawn, Claudia, and Stacey were in the backseat gabbing about who would be perfect for Mary Anne to go out with.
"I think Alex James," volunteered Claudia, crowded in middle seat of the backseat. "He's got that gorgeous dark black hair and almost violet eyes."
"Are you serious?!" Dawn shrieked. "No way! He's too artsy and moody for Mary Anne. Now, Parker Stevenson...."
"How about if Mary Anne makes up her own mind?" Kristy interrupted their arguing. "Who says she has to date anyone? My goodness, it's been less than 24 hours and you're already fixing her up?"
"We know you and Bart are having a rough patch," Stacey replied. "But that doesn't mean everyone has to swear off guys. Look at me and Pete Black. Who would have ever believed we'd be so happy?"
"Gag me," said Claudia. "I'm sure everyone aims for being just like you and Pete Black. Your idea of a hot evening is doing algebra equations!"
All the girls laughed as Stacey elbowed Claudia. "It's calculus, not algebra, I'll have you know. Besides, it can get quite romantic with our heads meeting over a tough problem."
Mary Anne forced herself to paste a smile on and pretend to have fun. She wanted to laugh and joke along with them, but the thoughts of Cokie's smirk and Logan's indifference on the phone really put a damper on her mood. It was as though her friends expected her to get over five years history in just one day. She sighed and reasoned that they were only trying to help. What did she want them to do? Moon and cry along with her for the weeks on end? No, she needed to put it all at the back of her mind and make an attempt at being happy.
"You guys want to come over and watch Cam Geary's latest movie?" she asked. "I baked brownies this morning and just got the DVD on Friday."
"Brownies, yes, Cam Geary, no," Kristy replied. "Cam Geary will only make you think of Logan. We'll have brownies and find something else to watch. Any suggestions?" she asked the girls in the back.
"Mary Poppins!" Stacey volunteered.
"Parent Trap!" Dawn shouted.
"You guys are so immature!" Claudia moaned. Here we are seventeen years old and you're still watching those movies?!"
"Hey, we like old movies," Dawn said defensively. "They're cozy and fun!"
"I agree," Mary Anne put in. "Let's watch Pollyanna. I always loved that movie."
"All right," Kristy said definitively. "Brownies and Pollyanna it is then. Anyone up for picking up some pizza on the way to Dawn and Mary Anne's?"
"Yes!" everyone chorused. Mary Anne smiled a genuine smile. Her friends were really great friends to have. Through thick and thin they'd stuck together and helped each other out. Now, if only they'd stick by her all day tomorrow. She didn't know how she'd face Logan alone.
Mary Anne popped the last bite of the cheeseburger in her mouth and reached for her soda while Kristy shouted above the din inside Friendly's.
"So then, Andrea Prezzioso reaches to grab the jar of grape jam and slip! The jar hits the floor and the jam goes over her and all over the floor," Kristy was describing the disaster that was her morning babysitting job. "I thought I'd never get that sticky mess up from the floor and off her patent leather shoes."
"I'm sure Mrs. Prezzioso loved to find her new hardwood floors sticky!" Claudia laughed. "You know how fastidious she is about her kids and house."
"Well, I got it all cleaned up just before she got back from taking Jenny to the doctor," Kristy smiled.
The five friends were had stopped to have lunch at the popular restaurant in Washington Mall before heading back out to do more shopping. Mary Anne had found a cute new tartan mini-skirt and red turtleneck to go with it. Now she just needed some jewelry and she'd be all set.
The waitress stopped by and set the bill on the table. Each of them reached for their purses to pull out their share of the tab. "So guys, where to next?" Stacey asked.
Just as Mary Anne started to respond, Cokie Mason and Grace Blume sauntered in and proceeded to a booth behind theirs. As Cokie passed their table, she stopped and pulled Grace's sweater to get her to stop as well. She looked directly at Mary Anne and smiled cattily.
"We must have gotten disconnected last night, Mary Anne. I guess the storm blew out the telephone lines, huh? Well, at least it didn't keep Logan and me from the movie. It was a really scary movie. Whooo," she shuddered. "It was so scary that Logan had to keep his arm around me the whole time. He's sooo brave!"
"Yeah, he must be brave to take you out in public," Kristy snorted. They all burst out laughing as Cokie narrowed her eyes.
"Come on, Grace. Let's get out of her before anyone sees us talking to these infants," Cokie snarled.
Dawn and Stacey just rolled their eyes at each other. "Let's get out of here," Dawn said. "I hear Zingy's earring sale calling our names!"
The five of them exited the booth and began to walk out of the restaurant. Mary Anne threw a last minute glance over her shoulder. Cokie caught her eye and gave her a triumphant smirk. Mary Anne resisted the juvenile urge to stick her tongue out at Cokie and followed her friends out into the mall.
"I was thinking of someone more like Ian Wakefield," Stacey mused. "He's really preppy and has beautiful blue eyes behind those glasses. He's in your writing club, isn't he, Mary Anne?" "Mmm-hmmm," Mary Anne murmured vaguely as she stared out at the passing scenery. They were driving home from the mall in Kristy's Volkswagen Jetta and Mary Anne was leaning against the passenger window. Dawn, Claudia, and Stacey were in the backseat gabbing about who would be perfect for Mary Anne to go out with.
"I think Alex James," volunteered Claudia, crowded in middle seat of the backseat. "He's got that gorgeous dark black hair and almost violet eyes."
"Are you serious?!" Dawn shrieked. "No way! He's too artsy and moody for Mary Anne. Now, Parker Stevenson...."
"How about if Mary Anne makes up her own mind?" Kristy interrupted their arguing. "Who says she has to date anyone? My goodness, it's been less than 24 hours and you're already fixing her up?"
"We know you and Bart are having a rough patch," Stacey replied. "But that doesn't mean everyone has to swear off guys. Look at me and Pete Black. Who would have ever believed we'd be so happy?"
"Gag me," said Claudia. "I'm sure everyone aims for being just like you and Pete Black. Your idea of a hot evening is doing algebra equations!"
All the girls laughed as Stacey elbowed Claudia. "It's calculus, not algebra, I'll have you know. Besides, it can get quite romantic with our heads meeting over a tough problem."
Mary Anne forced herself to paste a smile on and pretend to have fun. She wanted to laugh and joke along with them, but the thoughts of Cokie's smirk and Logan's indifference on the phone really put a damper on her mood. It was as though her friends expected her to get over five years history in just one day. She sighed and reasoned that they were only trying to help. What did she want them to do? Moon and cry along with her for the weeks on end? No, she needed to put it all at the back of her mind and make an attempt at being happy.
"You guys want to come over and watch Cam Geary's latest movie?" she asked. "I baked brownies this morning and just got the DVD on Friday."
"Brownies, yes, Cam Geary, no," Kristy replied. "Cam Geary will only make you think of Logan. We'll have brownies and find something else to watch. Any suggestions?" she asked the girls in the back.
"Mary Poppins!" Stacey volunteered.
"Parent Trap!" Dawn shouted.
"You guys are so immature!" Claudia moaned. Here we are seventeen years old and you're still watching those movies?!"
"Hey, we like old movies," Dawn said defensively. "They're cozy and fun!"
"I agree," Mary Anne put in. "Let's watch Pollyanna. I always loved that movie."
"All right," Kristy said definitively. "Brownies and Pollyanna it is then. Anyone up for picking up some pizza on the way to Dawn and Mary Anne's?"
"Yes!" everyone chorused. Mary Anne smiled a genuine smile. Her friends were really great friends to have. Through thick and thin they'd stuck together and helped each other out. Now, if only they'd stick by her all day tomorrow. She didn't know how she'd face Logan alone.