Chapter 3 - The Unexpected Call

"Take a right, Si."

"I know where I'm supposed to go, Alvin."

"Whatever. Just trying to help."

Jeanette rubbed her eyes and looked out the window, trying to tune out the bickering. Gazing out the window, she could see the beautiful beach in all its glory. It was the late afternoon and the sky was the brightest blue and clear as could be. She was excited for this vacation. Although she lived in California for pretty much all her life, she didn't go to the beach often. Even if she was a little tired from the long trip, she was happy to be there.

As they pulled up, Jeanette got a better view of the house. The beach house was located on a street filled with other beach houses. The house literally sat across the street from the beach, which was convenient. It was mostly white with some light blue accents. There were some tall, narrow wooden stairs that led to the front porch. In Jeanette's mind, the beach house seemed cozy and inviting, perfect for this vacation.

The millisecond the van was parked, Brittany opened the door and quite literally jumped out. "We're here!" she exclaimed proudly, as if she was the one driving. Eleanor turned around to look at Jeanette. "What a mood change!" she said in a voice a little above a whisper. Jeanette gave a light chuckle at Eleanor's comment. "You're right. Seems like just seconds ago she was complaining how long the ride was taking."

Everyone then piled out of the van and went to unload the van of their belongings. Alvin untied his surfboard from the top of the van as the rest pulled their suitcases out of the back. Brittany pulled out her many suitcases and placed them on the ground. "How come you always pack so much, Brittany?" asked Theodore in a genuine tone as he pulled his bag out. "Because," Brittany started. "You never know when you're gonna need something. I need to make sure I have something for every occasion. Makeup, clothes, accessories, you name it." Brittany flipped her hair and batted her lashes. "It's not easy being this pretty." Alvin mumbled something from the side of the van but Brittany decided to ignore it this time, no matter how much she wanted to cuss him out.

"Brittany!"

Everyone turned around after hearing someone yell the familiar name. Standing there was Max, the boy Brittany met at the gas station. He was standing in front of his bright, expensive looking, red hot rod car that was parked in front of a beach house a few houses down. He was surrounded by 4 other teenagers.

"Hi Max!" she called as she walked up to him. The rest of Brittany's group exchanged glances before following after her.

"Guys-" Brittany turned around to her group. "-this is Max. I ran into him at the gas station on our way here."

"Hey guys!" Max greeted as he approached with his group of friends. Brittany gestured to her sisters. "These are my sisters, Jeanette and Eleanor." Brittany moved her gesture over to the boys. "These are the Sevilles, Theodore, Alvin, and Simon." Everyone, except Alvin, smiled and gave a friendly wave.

Max waved and then politely said "Nice to meet you guys." He gestured at his own group. "These are my buddies, Erwin, Devyn, Kyle and Olivia."

Erwin looked like he just woke up from a nap. He was the tallest out of the group and his brown, curly hair was long enough to be put in a bun. He had a bit of a stubble and had downturned hazel eyes. He was slouched over a bit and had his hands in his green striped baja hoodie. He looked like the stereotypical Californian. Or as Alvin would put it "a total stoner".

Devyn had long, straight, bleach blonde hair that cascaded over her shoulders and down her back. She had piercing blue eyes. Even with her pure white platform sneakers, she was the shortest out of everyone in Max's group. Her light blue cropped tank top showed her toned stomach. She looked like she could be a pop star or Brittany's twin. She was carrying a dark blue duffel bag with bright yellow embroidery of the side that read Revere High School Cheer Squad. Captain Devyn Hart. Her smile was bright and wide like a pageant queen.

Kyle looked like your average high school burnout. He was pale and skinny and his facial features were sharp. His black hair was covered by a backwards cap. His dark blue tank top was halfway tucked into his baggy black joggers. He seemed to be wearing a few pieces of silver jewelry, rings and a chain. Along with his ears, his eyebrow was pierced too. Even though he was dressed a little intimidating, he put on a slight smile and seemed pretty nice. He scratched the back of his head and Brittany swore she could see a tattoo on his arm.

Olivia had medium length, straight, raven hair. Her black converse went with her white, navy blue striped ankle tube socks. Tucked into her shorts was a baseball t-shirt that said "Revere High School Book Club". Brittany internally did a playful eye roll in her mind. Oh yeah. She will definitely get along with Jeanette she thought.

Erwin approached Simon and stuck out his hand for a handshake. "How's it going, man?" Simon shook his hand but was then pulled into a bro hug, almost crushing him. "Charmed to meet you," Simon muttered through gritted teeth, clearly not happy with the current situation he was in.

Olivia chuckled. "That's Erwin for you. Always giving out bear hugs." Kyle laughed along. "Yep, that's Erwin." he joined in with a gravely voice. Jeanette, Eleanor and Theodore let out some light, scattered chuckles, feeling a bit awkward.

Alvin rolled his eyes. What a bunch of geeks.

"I think we should go inside now guys." Alvin said, trying his hardest not to sound annoyed. Erwin pulled away from the bear hug and Simon felt like he could finally breath again. Alvin turned around and headed to the house. Brittany gave a little huff. "Sorry about him. I'll catch you guys later!" she waved to the group before following Alvin to the house.

"Alright! See you guys!" Brittany caught a glimpse of Max's sweet smile as she left. Her heart definitely skipped a beat.

After the teens walked up the steps to the front porch, Simon used the key and opened the door, exposing the interior. As the teens piled in, the girls got a better view of the entrance for the first time. They each out let out a sound of amazement.

The room was large, containing a small kitchen, dining room and living room. There was a hallway that lead to the bedrooms and bathroom. The walls were light blue and the floor was made of light brown wooden planks. The kitchen had everything a regular kitchen does: a fridge, sink, dishes. There was a table with a couple chairs to make a dining room. There was a couch and two arm chairs in the living room facing a television. The television was hooked up to a DVD player and next to it was a bookshelf, with many different DVDs. The large room was decorated nicely with paintings, knickknacks and fake potted plants. Connected to the living room was a sun room.

"There's 2 bathrooms and 3 bedrooms," Simon said as he set his bag down momentarily. "Two of the bedrooms have two beds in them and one is a mast-"

"I call the master bedroom!" Brittany instantly called the second the thought crossed her mind. Getting the master meant she didn't have to share a room with anybody.

"Hey! No fair!" complained Alvin. "It's OUR beach house and it was MY idea to come here. I should sleep in the master."

"Uhh…No. I called it first. Therefore, I should get it."

"Guys, what did I say earlier about the fighting?" asked Simon, trying to stop the arguing. He pinched the bridge of his nose in annoyance.

"How about you guys play rock paper scissors for it?" Theodore suggested.

Alvin and Brittany looked at each other. That didn't seem like a bad idea.

Brittany put out a fist and Alvin followed suit. "Rock, Paper, Scissors," they chanted before they revealed what they had chosen.

Brittany had her hand out flat while Alvin had his hand still in a fist.

"Ha! Looks like I win!" Brittany announced proudly.

"No fair! You totally cheated! Best two out of three."

"No way! I won fair and square!"

"She's right Alvin," admitted Eleanor. "She did win."

Brittany stuck out her tongue at Alvin before picking up all of her heavy luggage and walking to her room.

"Whatever. I'll just sleep on the pullout couch," Alvin said, addressing the couch that was in the living room.

"Fine by me," shrugged Simon. He turned towards the girls. "I'll show you girls where your room is." Simon walked with Theo and the girls down the hallway as Alvin grumbled, taking a seat on the sofa.

Brittany put down her luggage and gave a little huff. Thanks for helping me with the luggage, guys she sarcastically thought. She scanned the room.

The room was quite nice in Brittany's opinion. It was the biggest bedroom in the house. There was a large bed with pure white sheets, matching the room's color scheme. On both sides of the bed were white side tables. The floor boards were a light brown and the walls were a light turquoise. There was a painting of a beach above the bed. Up against the wall was a white dresser, similar in design to the side tables next to the bed. Above the dresser was a mirror. There was a small closet and a door that lead to the master bathroom.

While admiring the room, she felt her phone vibrate in her pocket. Brittany pulled out her phone and looked at the phone screen. Her heart stopped.

It was her mother, Miss Miller.

Miss Miller didn't really understand how modern smartphones worked and stuck to a flip phone that she had been using for years on end. She rarely texted, so calling was her number one option when getting in touch with someone. Brittany gulped. She knew the conversation wasn't going to end well. On one hand, she could just ignore the call and wait for Miss Miller to text her. But that would totally raise suspicion and Miss Miller would be worried sick if her daughters didn't come home and didn't know where they were. If she did answer the phone, she would have to make up a lie quick. What if Miss Miller caught her in a lie?

She decided to answer. It was a risky move but it seemed like the best option. She pressed the green "accept call" button on her phone.

"Hello?" said a nervous Brittany.

"Brittany?" Miss Miller's shrill voice rang in Brittany's ears. "It's me. Miss Miller." She answered as if Brittany didn't know who was calling her.

"Hi Mom."

"Are you with your sisters? I need someone to go pick up some eggs for me at the corner store for supper."

Brittany bit her lip. She needed more time to think about how to get out of this. "Of course I'm with them. What do you mean?"

"Where are you girls?"

It was at that brief moment in time where an idea popped into Brittany's head.

"You don't remember? We are…. At… Summer camp."

"Summer camp?"

"Yeah. You said we could go a few weeks ago. It...It was after one of your bingo nights."

There was a pause. "I don't think I remember that."

"It was that one night where you won that coupon for the pizza place for winning 5 games in a row."

There was another pause and Brittany held her breath, hoping that her mother didn't catch her in a lie.

"I guess I must've. I just don't remember it. I have to admit my memory has been foggy lately."

Brittany exhaled. Thank god that plan worked.

"Yeah, well, we probably are going to be busy this week and might not be able to answer your phone calls," The more Brittany lied, the worse her stomach felt. "W-we'll be back on Sunday, though!"

Miss Miller was silent for a moment again. "I see. Just know that you girls can call me at any time if you need help or if I need to pick you up." Brittany tried not to roll her eyes. She knew that Miss Miller was just being sweet and helpful, but she also felt like she was treating her like a 7 year old going to their first sleepover.

"I know, Miss Miller," Brittany said sweetly. "Well, we have to get ready for our dinner. After that we're going...kayaking." Brittany winced as she lied.

"Sounds great, sweetheart."

"Oh and by the way Miss Miller, the Sevilles are on a vacation this week so they're not home. They wanted me to let you know."

"Ok. Well have fun. Tell your sisters that I'll miss them."

"I will. Love you Miss Miller."

"Love you too Brittany."

"Bye."

As Brittany hung up, she sighed. She felt guilty about lying to Miss Miller but at the same time she felt like she needed some freedom in her life. After all, she was almost 17. That's old enough right? That's what Brittany thought at least.

"Nice job, Brittany."

Brittany looked behind her. There stood Simon, arms crossed, looking very unamused. He was leaning up against the door frame

"S-Simon!" Brittany stuttered. She looked to see if anyone else was listening. "How much did you hear?"

"I heard quite enough."

Brittany bit her lip. "Simon, please don't tell anybody-"

"I don't think so," he interrupted. "You lied to Miss Miller."

"Yeah, but you lied to Dave," Brittany fired back, crossing her arms. Simon blinked as he was taken aback by her accusation. "H-how did you know?" He tried not to stutter as he was caught in a lie.

"Simon, do you really think that I would believe Alvin when he said Dave was ok with us going on this trip?" Simon stood there for a second. He shrugged and muttered an "I don't know". Brittany sighed. "Look I won't tell my sisters that you guys lied to Dave if you don't tell anybody that I lied to Miss Miller." She stuck out her hand for him to shake. "Deal?"

"Brit-"

"Deal?" she interrupted, a bit louder and more desperate.

Simon looked at her hand for a moment. He sighed and hesitated, before finally shaking her hand in defeat.

"Deal."

"Good. Now get out of my room!" she loudly instructed as she pushed him out. Simon tried to interrupt but she immediately closed and locked her door. She sighed, went over to her bed and flopped down face first onto the cool white covers.