New Friends & Old Enemies Part 2.
Kev, Beth and Allie arrived at the Java Lava with the rest of the gang, The three siblings were taken back how clean, modern and sleek the interior was.
Allie paced about and the computers that were placed in the café where the first thing she had noticed, and Beth was admiring the stone wall and said "The stone wall look's so chic and modern"
Everybody else took their seats except for Chuckie who rushed to the restroom as he had been holding it in since he got detention and was too anxious to even ask if he could be excused to use the school toilets.
Chas and Betty were taking a quick break while standing behind the counter as they had just served ten customers therefore the kids didn't have a chance to say hello as they normally would, as the Kawalski kids continued checking out the interior, Kimi came over to say hello to her father and Betty "Hi Dad, Hi Betty"
Chas smiled and greeted his daughter with his hand on the edge of the counter with his small cup of expresso on the other hand "Hi, sweetheart".
Betty took the last gulp of her coffee drinking out of a takeaway cup instead as she couldn't be bothered using a ceramic cup, due to the pile of dishes that was building up in the back kitchen sink, she quickly gathered Kimi and the gang had just made new friends and she enquired out of her own curiosity.
"I don't recognise those three kids, are they new in town?" asked Betty casually leaning her elbow against the edge of the countertop
Kev approaches, noticing him. "Dad, this is Kev Kawalski, he and his sisters just started school today," Kimi explains.
He shakes Chas's hand before sitting. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Finster and Mrs. Deville, my name is Kev, and you must be Chuckie and Kimi's older brother." Kev added.
Chas laughed nasally, saying, "Flattery will get you everywhere, but you can all call me Chas and I'm Chuckie and Kimi's father,"
Betty gives Kev a firm handshake and says, "Hey Kev, you can all call me Betty." After releasing the handshake, she nudges Chas with her elbow and winks, "Mrs. Deville is what my husband calls me!" giving Chas an uncomfortable expression.
"This is our little sister Allie and I am Beth," Beth remarked, seizing the chance to shake Chas' and Betty's hands.
"Nice to meet you, Beth and Allie," Chas remarked, assuming after a split second that Allie would not want to shake hands, he then asks them to take a seat, "please grab yourselves a seat and we will sort you all out."
Kimi, Allie, Beth, and Kev return to the table as Chuckie approaches the cash register. "Smoothies and moonpies all-round Dad, I'm treating my friends," Chuckie says as he places his money next to the cash register.
"Isn't that generous of you Chuckie, what's the occasion?" Chas asked, grabbing the money.
Put on the spot Chuckie attempts to think of an excuse not to inform him he got detention not long ago, "Em...Well...Em" finger on his chin.
Kimi swiftly covers for him, not wanting to disclose he was detained for playing a prank on Pangborn earlier that day. makes an excuse on his behalf "He got top of the class for his science report," Kimi remarked, fabricating an excuse on the spot.
"Well, a Finster on top of the class, I am so proud of you son," Chas exclaimed.
Looking over by the table, Lil says to everyone, "Kimi has just landed herself in hot water with that lie..." to which everyone nods in agreement.
"Thanks Dad..." Chuckie rubbed his fingers, with the phoniest flattery "I am so pleased for you Chuckie" murmured Kimi.
"You may lack brawn, but you certainly have brains." Betty stated.
"Thanks... I guess?" Chuckie was taken aback.
"I can't wait to tell your mother!" Today's Special Smoothies and Moon Pies are on the house!" stated a cheerful Chas.
He returns Chuckie's money. "You put your money back in your pocket, Chuckie, and get yourself something nice."
"Thanks, Dad," Chuckie muttered, returning to the table. He nudges Kimi, furious that she dug a deeper hole for him. "Thank you so much, Kimi... If Dad finds out I got detention again, I'm going to be grounded; in fact, we'll both be grounded!" Chuckie stated.
"Eh, excuse me, Charles, I never played a childish prank on Pangborn, so you'll be grounded, not me," Kimi remarked, pointing to herself.
However, Chuckie warned, "You'll get grounded for fabricating a lie."
Kimi's eyes widen in response, and she continues, "Only if you squeal, Mom and Dad won't find out, so just relax..."
"Have you noticed how Phil is staring at Beth?" Allie asked, studying Phil, who was in a trance as Beth simply looked uncomfortable.
"I think Phil is attempting to hypnotize her with that stare," Dil remarked quietly to Allie. "If he is, then Phil can hypnotize her into doing my homework," Allie explained with her sharp witticism.
"Lil can you please tell your brother to stop staring at me, it's giving me the creeps," said Beth.
"I think Lil is on another planet by the looks of it," stated Tommy.
"Yeah, and I can see Lil has not taken her eyes off Kev since we left school," said Kimi
"Anyway, I can't keep looking at this lovefest or I'm going to puke… I'm going to the restroom," said Tommy
"Good idea Tommy, I'll go around the back and see if Dad needs a helping hand," said Kimi.
Dil and Allie are doing handstands on the floor as other customers waiting in the queue, not sure what to think on what they are seeing.
"Allie what are you doing?" Asked Beth.
"It's a thing Dil has shown me," said Allie.
I really do wonder about you..." said Beth as she looks in disbelief.
Tommy goes to the bathroom, Allie and Dil continue their impromptu handstand contest to determine who can hold a handstand the longest, and Phil continues yet again to gaze at Beth, making her feel very uncomfortable as she cringes.
Kev is becoming bored with Tommy going AWOL to the restroom, Chuckie looking erratic, Kimi in the kitchen, Phil gazing at Beth, he notices the computers in the cafe's far corner, using this as an excuse to pass some time.
"I'm going to jump on the computer; do you want to join me, Lil?" Kev smiled as he inquired.
"Sure..." answered Lil, smiling.
Kev grabs a computer and Lil takes a seat next to him as she continues to stare at him unlike Beth, he doesn't mind the young lady staring at him.
"I'm joining you Kev, Phil won't stop staring at me..." Beth shuddered and because of this, she leaves the table as Phil eyes are still locked on her.
Chuckie sweeps his palm in front of Phil's eyes, who doesn't even flinch because he's daydreaming, "Earth to Phil do you come in?".
Kimi enters the kitchen to see whether Chas requires any assistance, even though she and her brother are not obliged to assist it was their afternoon off.
"Hey Dad, do you need a hand?" Kimi inquired.
"Yes, that would be great, I could use an extra pair of hands," Chas remarked.
"What do you want me to do?" Kimi inquired.
"Keep an eye on the Moon Pies in the oven so they don't burn, they should be ready in five minutes," Chas replied, checking his watch.
"OK, can do," Kimi answered cheerfully.
"I'll get started on the smoothies, thanks for helping me out even though it's you and your brothers' day off," Chas remarked.
"You're welcome, Dad. I thought I'd lend you and Betty a hand because it's quite busy out there," Kimi replied.
Chas strokes Kimi's head before returning to the front of the house to prep the fruit for the smoothies.
Meanwhile, Tommy is in the restroom washing his hands, looking in the mirror, and fixing his hair.
"Kimi looks great today, she looks so radiant" Tommy said in the third person.
He drifts off into a daydream, recalling the time they all went bowling and the moment he slipped his hand around Kimi's waist. He suddenly feels something strange in his gut.
"I think... I like Kimi..." Tommy says as he looks in the mirror, contemplating the rekindled sentiments he had before getting back together with Rachel.
"How will I tell Kimi?" "What will Chuckie think?" Tommy asked his reflection.
"I can't bear the thought of losing my best friend again." "He didn't take it well the last time," Tommy continued, recalling the infamous carvings of his and her initials.
A creek could be heard coming from the door suggesting someone was coming in, it was Kev. Tommy sighed a breath of relief thinking it might have been Chuckie, overhearing his self-ramblings could ruin any chance of him confessing his feelings to Kimi causing him a split second of anxiety.
"Hey Tommy, how's it going?" enquired Kev casually walking over to the sink next to Tommy, who was fixing his hair.
"Hello, Kev. I'm fine. "I'm just getting ready," Tommy explained.
"OK, you've been in here for a short bit... Lil asked me to check in on you to see if you were okay," Kev remarked.
"I'm fine, Kev, but thanks for asking... I'll join you shortly," Tommy smiled.
"All right, buddy, the smoothies and Moon Pies are almost ready" Kev added.
Tommy gives him a fist bump as Kev exits the restroom, then recomposes himself and returns to the group.
"Smoothies and Moon Pies are now ready, come and get em' while their still fresh!" shouted Betty.
Allie and Dil continue their handstand competition, with Dil declaring, "You'll never beat me!"
In response to his remark, Allie responds, "I will beat you Dil, I can do this all day."
Lil, Beth, and Kev return to the table, but not before Kev pushes Allie to her feet.
"Kev! What was the point of that? "I was about to beat him!" exclaimed an irritated Allie.
Dil gets back up and yells, "Hey, that's not cool, you just ruined our contest!"
"Since you've only just met us, I'll let you in on a little secret: don't interfere with Dil's... Dil's charming activities," Lil remarked, resting her hand on Kev's shoulder.
"Thanks for the warning... Lil... man, I never thought I'd see the day when I met someone as strange as Allie..." Kev muttered as Lil giggled and put her hand on her lips.
"Hey, did I miss out on any action?" Tommy asks, making his return from the restroom.
"You haven't missed anything, Kev just interrupted Allie and Dil's handstand competition, Phil appears to be daydreaming, and Kimi is helping Dad out in the kitchen even though it's our day off," Chuckie continues, still seated.
Kimi assists Chas and Betty in placing the smoothies and Moon Pies on the table.
"Bon appetite and enjoy," Chas added, motioning his hands elegantly to complement the whole display.
Kimi sits down, and Chas hands her an extra Moon Pie. "You can have an extra pie for helping me out."
"Thanks, Dad!" said Kimi smiling as she took the first bite out of her Moon Pie.
"Your welcome Kimi, now if you kids will excuse me, I got some lattes to prepare now," said Chas.
"Wow this Moon Pie taste's amazing!" said Beth taking her first bite.
"Was the pie killed humanely?" asked Allie picking at the pastry, everyone part from Dil, drops their forks and looks at her in confusion.
"The filling is blueberry jelly, it's a sweet pie not a savoury one if you think it's a meat pie, are you a vegetarian?" asked Kimi.
"She doesn't eat any veggie's, she's far from it" chuckled Beth.
"I see Beth," said Kimi
"Blueberries can feel pain, each and every single blueberry screaming in pain as it's crushed to its impending doom..." said Dil in a mellow dramatic manner.
"If that's how you both feel I'll have yours and Allies," said Phil with his eyes on the shiny coating of the golden pastry.
"No, I'm good, I'm hungry anyway," said Allie.
"Same here" said Dil taking a huge chomp.
"This smoothie is so refreshing, very tasty" said Kev slurping on his straw through the glass, finishing off the last drop.
"Thank you, Kev. It's a popular choice with customers," said Chuckie
"What flavour is it?" asked Kev
"It's a secret...," said Chuckie belligerently.
"Very informative...," said Kev sarcastically, Chuckie raised his eyebrow in response to his wise crack.
"How was your day?" Tommy inquired, leaning over to Kimi.
Kimi smiled and thanked him for making the effort to inquire about her day. She laughed and replied, "boring, the last class was snoresville," said Kimi.
"I get it..." Tommy remarked.
Chuckie bites into his Moonpie before asking, "Kev, Beth, and Allie, please tell us more about yourselves. What brought you and your family over here?"
"Grandma and Grandpa decided to downsize by selling their old house and purchased a retirement apartment nearby," Beth explained.
Adding more layers to their backstory, "Our mother is a lawyer who recently won a large lawsuit, and our father is a handyman, both work for themselves." Allie stated
"We originally stayed in Hilwood, which is a pretty rugged area," Kev explained.
"Oh, Hilwood, I've never heard of the place," Chuckie said.
"It's a dump, but I'm glad to be here," Allie stated flatly.
"We have an uncle named Nikolai who lives in the United Kingdom and has triple citizenship," Allie explained.
"What is his nationality?" Kimi enquired
"American, British, and Irish citizenship," Beth explained.
"He owns a lot of businesses," Allie explained.
"I really miss Uncle Nikolai..." stated Beth showing a slightly sad expression on her face.
Lil remarked, "He sounds like a cool guy."
"I'm sure Nikolai, will come to visit right?" asked Tommy.
Almost cutting off his sentence, Kev said abruptly "Uncle Nikolai, works too much, we haven't seen in like forever..."
To avoid awkwardness, Tommy swiftly alters the topic of conversation, "Did you meet Angelica, she's my and Dil's cousin?" Asking Beth.
Beth added, "Yes I has the pleasure of meeting her; Angelica is such a diva, I hope I don't offend you and Dil."
"None taken, Beth." Tommy chuckled, "You really captured how our cousin is."
Tommy sips on his straw, he unintentionally stares at Kimi, she looks back at Tommy and gives him a quick subtle smile in return.
"I wonder if Tommy likes me now, he has finally moved on from Rachel, he looks really cute but if he does and Chuckie finds out, he will go berserk yet again..." thought Kimi.
Didi and Stu headed over to greet their new neighbours. She rang the doorbell and turned to face Stu, who was holding a welcome hamper with preserves, fruit and candy. saying, "This is so exciting having new neighbours, Stu."
"Hopefully they're sociable, it'd be nice to expand our social circle," Stu stated, as the door opened, revealing a tall muscular man with a friendly demeanour standing in front of them.
"We would like to welcome you to the neighbourhood." Didi smiled, the neighbour smiled at the generous gesture and took the hamper from Stu, introducing himself, "Thank you both very much, I'm Dave Kawalski, come in we were just making coffee"
Walking into the house, Stu says, "I'm Stu Pickles" hand on his chest and this is my wife "Didi" pointing his hand at her. Dave turns his head and says "It's very nice to meet you both, my wife Kat is in the kitchen"
"This interior is lovely, very modern" Didi commented, complimenting the decor.
"The benefits of being able to do your own home renovations," Dave joked.
"The interior design was thanks to Kat, I just did the renovations, she just tells me what to do," Dave continued.
They enter a magnificent modern kitchen with a swimming pool visible through the window, and Dave lays the hamper on the countertop where Kat was preparing the coffee.
"I see we have visitors." Kat grinned and paused her coffee making to shake Didi and Stu's hands.
"My name is Kat," she said.
"I hope you like the basket Kat, it's a few things for the kitchen, just our way of welcoming you both to the neighbourhood" Didi added.
"That's very thoughtful of you both, would you and Stu like a coffee?" Kat inquired, resumes using her coffee machine.
The aroma of coffee entices Stu as he sits at the table. "That sure is a fancy coffee machine," he says.
"My darling wife has a very sophisticated pallet for coffee," Dave said as he took the cups from the cupboard.
Kat smiled at Dave, and while the coffee is brewing, Didi uses the opportunity to suggest the Java Lava. "If you're ever out and about, may I recommend the Java Lava Coffee House, which is run by our friends Charles and Betty?"
"That's a good idea Didi, Dave and I haven't had a chance to explore more of this town, the last 24 hours have just entailed getting this place unpacked and furnished," Kat remarked.
"Betty and Chas also live on the same block," Stu added.
"Good friends, I see, quite handy having your friends within walking distance," Dave replied, leaning against the counter with his hand.
"Yeah, there are really good friends of ours, Betty is married to Howie, Chas is married to Kira, and all our children hang out together," Stu explained.
When the coffee was done, Kat handed Didi the first cup. "Thank you very much, Kat," Didi said as she sipped the beverage.
Stu is the next person to get coffee, and Dave is giving him his. "Thanks, Dave," Stu remarked as he sipped his coffee.
Dave said, "Your welcome, Stu, no doubt we'll meet everyone else soon."
Kat and Dave, being gracious hosts, receive their cups of coffee last, taking their seats next to Stu and Didi.
Didi takes a sip. "The flavour is rich and divine, like a velvety texture hitting my mouth."
"These are the finest coffee beans from Colombia," Kat explains, cradling her cup before having a taste.
Didi continues the conversation by asking, "Speaking of our friends, have you both had the chance to meet the Carmichaels?"
Dave places his cup on the table and looks at Stu and Didi, adding, "Yes, they came over to visit last night, lovely family, we received a plate of jelly from them as a housewarming gift"
"Susie has a lovely singing voice, and it was thoughtful of her to tell Beth what classes she'd be taking today so she would know in advance," Kat added.
Dave opens the refrigerator door to reveal the masterpiece in gelatine form, "ten different layers," adding to the presentation "each one has a unique flavour."
"That look is delectable, Didi," Stu murmured, his mouth watering just staring at it.
Elbow on the table, hand on the side of her face, feeling outdone by Lucy's outstanding dessert making talents, she sarcastically remarks, "Yes... It sure does..."
Kat, sensing Didi's displeasure, swiftly assures her that the food basket she just received is equally valued, "Your basket is just as great."
"Well, I like to put some thought into gifts," Didi says with a smile.
Dave closes the refrigerator door, comes back to the table, and extends an invitation, asking, "Would you both like to stay for dinner?"
"We'd love to stay for dinner, but the boy's Grandpa Lou is coming over to our house for dinner this evening," Didi explained.
"My parents are also coming, and Lou can have his dinner here with us," Dave proposed.
"We have plenty of chairs in the dining room, so the more the merrier," Kat explained.
"If it's not too much to ask for?" Didi enquired
"Nonsense! "Let me show you around Didi," Kat said, before asking her husband to show Stu his workshop. "Dave, why don't you show Stu around your workshop?"
Dave towering over Stu, places his hand on his shoulder "Let me show you my workshop, I also do DIY as a hobby".
Stu grinned and said "I could show you a few hints and tips, I do a little bit of tinkering myself"
End of Part 2