Voice Mail
"First we have to get Fran back," Casey told his two teammates. Lily and Theo nodded their agreement as Casey pulled his red cell phone from his back pocket. He dialed Fran's number and wasn't surprised that it went straight to her voice mail. The Jungle Fury rangers hadn't been very nice to Fran, and Casey didn't blame her for being angry with them.
"Hi, this is Fran. I can't take your call right now, so leave a message after the beep and I'll get back to you as soon as I can."
"It's Casey, Fran. We're really sorry for leaving you with all of the work. It wasn't fair. We need your help back at the shop. Please. Call one of us when you get this. Bye."
The red ranger shoved the phone back into his pocket. Theo and Lily had started to clean up again, and Casey went to join his two friends. He heaved a sigh as he picked up scattered packets of parmesan cheese and crushed red peppers. At any rate, they'd have to tidy up before RJ got back, even if Fran had quit for good.
Twenty minutes had passes before Lily decided to try her luck at luring Fran back to the restaurant. Lily had gotten to be close to the shyer girl since she and the boys had come to JKP. With three male roommates, Lily needed the girl talk, and Fran had always listened, if not dished back. "Hi Frannie, it's Lil!" the yellow ranger said cheerfully. "Please come back. Me and the boys are sorry. We need some help."
"She won't take your calls, either?" Casey asked, coming over to where Lily stood and putting a hand on her shoulder. Lily nodded miserably. She looked around the restaurant. It was weird to not see Fran there.
"I'm the voice of reason around here," Theo announced, puffing out his chest. "I'm sure Fran will listen to me." The blue ranger produced his own phone and dialed Fran's number just as his teammates had done. He, too, got Fran's voice mail. "It's Theo, Fran. We need your help, and we're sorry we treated you like dirt."
"She'll listen to you, huh?" Casey asked with a smirk, his arms folded over his chest. "Funny how she didn't, eh Mr. Voice of Reason?"
"Shut up, Casey. She wouldn't have quit in the first place if you hadn't made her dress up in that stupid pizza costume," Theo snarled.
"Guys, guys. Fighting is not going to solve anything," Lily interjected. "We are team, even if Fran never comes back. RJ is counting on us to run the restaurant while he's gone. Let's get our acts together and turn this around."
"Sorry Lil," the boys said in unison. She smiled back at them and tried to call Fran again. As Fran's phone rang and Lily waited, Casey and Theo continued to straighten up.
"Come on Fran," Lily said when she got the voice mail for the fourth time. "Just come by the pizza parlor when you get our messages. Casey, Theo and I would like to apologize for our behavior in person. I know you didn't deserve that, especially after all those times you covered for us."
When they'd picked up the tables and chair, mopped floor and wiped down the counters, Fran still hadn't made an attempt to contact the trio of rangers. Casey took his phone out to try to reach her one last time. "Please, Fran?"
0o0o0o0
Fran decided she couldn't ignore her friends any longer. She picked up her purse and her jacket and ventured outside. As Fran got into her car, she decided that the only reason she was going back was for RJ. He had gotten used to having her around.
Who was she kidding? She loved her job and her coworkers…even if they did tend to disappear.