Chapter 23
Sunday
"Your last day in France." Ulrich said as April sat down with Yumi at their breakfast table.
"I am going to miss it all." April said, looking at her croissant in her hand. "The good food especially."
"Did you get to do everything you wanted to?" Jérémie asked.
"No, there is still two things I would like to do." April said, sitting down her food.
"What's that?" Aélita asked.
"The amusement park in Paris-"
"You mean Futuroscope?" Odd asked.
"Ya, that place and I wanted real chicken Cordon Bleu."
"The chicken Cordon Bleu we can do." Ulrich said, smiling. "The amusement parks a bit too much."
"Uh, I was not expecting you to even go to that much trouble." April said, surprised.
"Sure. We've got today off and you don't have to leave in till, what, 15 heure?" Odd asked.
"Yes, that is it." April nodded her head.
"Then it's settled. We'll all go out for an early dinner, just for you." Yumi said, smiling.
"Thanks." April said, looking down at her lap.
"You don't have to thank us." Odd said, smiling at her.
April looked up at him and smiled back.
"Anyway, it's the least we can do for what you treated us to yesterday." Ulrich said.
"Ya, there's this little diner just down the road." Yumi said, smiling. "From what I've been told, they've got the best cordon bleu around."
"So it's settled?" Odd asked, sounding as if he was making it final. "We'll go there around one for an early diner."
"Or late lunch." April said, smiling.
"Or right, you last day's today." Sissi said, walking up behind the American.
April turned around and smiled, "What, you just can't wait to get rid of me, can you?"
"Uh-"Sissi stopped herself before saying anything and turned to walk away.
"Nice way of getting her to shut up." Odd said, smiling.
"Hey, what works." April said, smiling back.
"What was the fire alarm for anyway?" Aélita asked, realizing no one had explained it yet.
"I heard it was Sissi's hair drier." Ulrich said. "She had left it on after she went to sleep and it started to burn the cloth underneath it. No fire, thank God."
"Excuse us, we were wondering if you could answer a few questions for the Kadic News?" Millie asked, her mike in hand and ready for April. Tamiya was standing behind her with the camera.
April turned to the two and smile. "Sure. Odd told me that the news crew wanted to talk to me."
"Whoa, your French is better than I expected." Tamiya exclaimed.
"I thank the cartoons and B.D.s." April said. "So what do you want to know?"
"What were you expecting when you came to France?" Millie asked, putting the mike in front of April's face.
"When I came to France, I was expecting perverts, gays, snoots, and everybody eating pastries and snails." April said.
"I'm glad not everyone's like that." Tamiya said, getting a look from Millie as if to say to shut up.
Millie shook her head and looked back at April. "What's your favorite thing about France?"
"So far, the coca-cola, techno music on all the stations, and good friends." April said, putting her arm around Odd's shoulders.
"What are you going to miss when you go back home?" Millie asked.
"Mostly the same list." April said. "I love it over here."
"What have you missed from home?" Millie asked.
April sighed before looking at them, "My boyfriend and my friend-family."
"You're "friend-family?" Millie asked.
"My friends are close enough that we just call each other brother and sister. I have even got a mother in all that group. And my boyfriend is close enough that everyone is already calling him my husband." April answered. "But I now have an extended French family."
April glanced back at her table and the five there realized she was talking about them.
April looked back at Millie, Tamiya, and the Camera and smiled. "I can only pray that we will see each other in the future."
"Wow." Tamiya said, surprised as she closed the camera to save power.
"What? Too deep?" April asked, worried.
"No, I just never thought about it that way." Millie said. "Thanks."
"Sure." April said, smiling as she nodded once to the two before turning around towards her friends. "I just realized something."
"What?" Ulrich asked after swallowing a bite.
"This is the first Sunday I have missed going to church because I was out of town." April said.
"You want to go to my church?" Yumi offered. "I was going to skip today because I wanted to spend more of your last day here with you. It's catholic, though."
"There is not many christen churches around here, is there?" April noticed. "But that would be great, what time does it start?"
"8:30." Yumi said.
"Don't you go to the one that's down the road from where you live?" Ulrich asked.
"Ya, we can walk." Yumi said.
"Can I come with you two?" Jérémie asked, looking up from his food.
"I didn't know you were religious." Aélita said.
"Ya, I haven't gone in a while, but I do miss it." Jérémie said.
"But sure." April said, nodding her head.
"Why no, I'll tag along too." Ulrich said. He looked at Odd and Aélita with a face asking them if they wanted to come.
"I'll come too." Odd said, swallowing.
"Aélita?" Jérémie asked, looking at the pink haired girl sitting next to him.
"I don't really know anything about God." Aélita admitted. "I mean, for the past year and a half I thought my creator was Franz. Then, well, you all know the story."
"Well, you can still come." April said. "I do not know about catholic, but christens are supposed to spread the word. That means no one should get turned away."
"Alright." Aélita said, smiling.
"Well, I guess we better change before we get going." Ulrich said, standing up. "Yumi's church is old fashioned and likes the people that enter the building to be dressed right."
"Can you all meet me at my place?" Yumi asked as everyone started to stand up.
"Sure. We'd have to pass the place anyway." Odd said, smiling at Yumi.
"See you." Yumi said, hurrying out before her friends so she could change clothes.
"Uh, April." Aélita said, getting the other girl to stay behind the three guys.
"What is it?" April asked.
"What should I wear?" Aélita asked, sounding as if she was feeling awkward about asking the question.
"Do you have a dress that you don't normally wear?" April asked.
"One, but it's my DJ outfit." Aélita admitted.
"You want me to come up to your room? I do not really know what you have." April said.
"Ok, thanks." Aélita said, smiling at her new friend.
"You two ok?" Odd asked, turning around with the rest of the guys as they waited at the door.
April put her tray down on the pile and said, "We are coming. We are coming. Do not get your pants tied up."
"Pants tied up?" Jérémie asked, never hearing the phrase.
"It's an American thing." Odd said, knowing the phrase, "She just translated it wrong."
"No, if you want to hear something that translated wrong, look at KFC's Finger Lickin' Good." April said.
"I heard about that." Ulrich said as they headed out of the cafeteria towards the dorms. "Didn't it come out in Japan?"
"Yes. Apparently the word for licking translated into eating or eat off." April said.
"So it was eat your fingers off?" Aélita asked.
April nodded her head.
"Ouch." Odd said, smiling as he opened the door.
The five started up the stairs when Jérémie asked, "Uhm, April? Wha-"
"I asked for her help." Aélita said, knowing Jérémie's question.
"You could ask us." Jérémie said.
"Uh, not when it comes to dresses, I am sure." April said, smiling.
"She's got you there, Einstein." Odd said, smiling.
Aélita, Jérémie, and April went on the second floor, leaving Odd and Ulrich to go up to their third floor.
-.-.-.-
"Man, I thought it was the girls who took the longest when it came to getting dressed." April said as the two waited in the court yard for the three guys.
Aélita pulled out her cell and looked at the clock. "They better hurry up. We've only got about thirty minutes to get there."
"You want to go up there and check on them?" April asked, eyeing a group that was passing as they stared at the two. Aélita dressed in a light pink dress that went down to her thighs and April dressed in a chines shirt and short shirt was a new sight around school unless it was a dance.
"Hey, you didn't wait too long, did you?" Odd asked.
"Speak of the devil." April said, picking up her Bible before getting up from the bench. "What took you three so long?"
"Jérémie couldn't tie his tie." Ulrich said, throwing his head back towards the boy.
"You look very handsome." Aélita said, commenting about the blond haired boys button up shirt and blue tie that went with his navy blue pants.
"Thanks." Jérémie said, looking down as his cheeks blushed. "You're very gorgeous too."
"Love birds." Ulrich said, shaking his head.
"You are one to talk." April said, pointing her finger into Ulrich's chest.
"What is that supposed to mean?" Ulrich asked, pushing away April's hand.
"Come on, Yumi'll be wondering what happened to us." Odd said as he turned to head towards the gate.
"Right behind you." April said, not wanting to answer Ulrich's question.
"Come on! What do you mean?" Ulrich asked, trying to stay right behind them, Aélita and Jérémie behind him.
"You telling him?" Odd asked.
"Nope." April said, smiling. "If he cannot figure it out and I have, than it is only a lose for him."
"Loss." Odd corrected.
"Thank you. Loss for him." April said.
-.-.-.-
"Hey, there you are." Yumi said, standing up from the steps to her house. "I was just about to call incase Xana attacked again."
"The guys had issues." Aélita said, pointing her thumb towards the three.
Yumi smiled, looking at Ulrich dressed up in a nice shirt and tie, very much like Jérémie's, just green.
Yumi walked out to the sidewalk and closed the gate behind her, showing her friends she was in the same dress Ulrich had taken from her room for Sissi to wear.
"I'm glad to finally see you wearing that dress." Ulrich said, remembering that day.
"Thanks." Yumi said as they headed towards her church.
"What does he mean?" April asked.
"Oh, Xana took Yumi's DNA and made it so that she couldn't come back to earth and it was picture day." Odd explained. "We had to get Sissi to wear it."
"She actually did that for you?" April asked, surprised.
"Ya, I was sure there was alternative motives behind what she was doing, but we never found them." Odd said.
"Hey April, is your bible in English?" Aélita asked, getting so that she could look at the American.
"Ya, I do not know if I can read it, though. I mean, my friends are having to translate my e-mails right now because I am putting it all in French." April admitted.
"Can I see it?" Aélita asked.
"Sure." April handed it to her, not surprised.
"Hey, you see that steeple?" Yumi asked, pointing off in the distance.
April looked that way and saw the cross. "Yes. That is your church?"
Yumi nodded her head.