Operation: Pick Up The Pieces

When last we spoke, I was finding a way to get back at my boyfriend, Todd. How did I do that? Easy. I went out with his best friend. That's when the plan backfired. I realized I liked the guy more than I thought. What? What do you mean you don't know who I am? fine... allow me to introduce myself.

The name's Randi Alayna Walker. I'm 17 and a junior at Northwest High. I'm 5'3, slim and permanently tan. My hair is blond with random red and black strands. Last but not least, my best feature, my piercing ice blue eyes.

We;; there's the intro, now on to the story. I admit, it's pretty interesting. After all, it's... SPRING BREAK!

It's Monday. The first official day of Spring Break. I'm so... bored. This is ridiculous. Spring break needs to be longer. I can't have a full vacation in a week. So why enjoy it?

"Andi! Will you listen to me," Jake complained. I forgot to mention something. I'm hanging out with Jake at my place. Jake, my boyfriend. Has a nice ring to it, huh?

"What's up?" Jake propped himself up on one arm. He looked at me curiosly.

"Andi... did you hear a word I said?" After our Star Wars marathon last Friday, he decided to drop the 'R' in my name.

"Of course. You were talking about... your brothers...?"

"Yea... an hour ago! What's got your attention, babe?" he asked. I leaned back on my bed. Jake got off the floor and laid next to me.

"Nothing. I just zoned out for a bit." Jake smiled and kissed my forehead.

"What I was saying was my mom's getting us a ferret and I need name suggestions."

"Izzy."

"Izzy?"

"Izzy!" Jake laughed and nodded.

"Izzy it is." He rolled over onto his back, "What are we going to do for the rest of break?" I shrugged just as he closed his eyes. I looked over at him. I looked from his long eyelashes to the way the light accented his cheekbones.

"Stop staring at me," he mumbled. I blushed, "I'm not." He opened one eye. He caught me looking at him and smiled.

"See. I told you you were staring at me." I laughed. Suddenly, my cell started ringing.

"I bet that's Cheri," Jake said, "She probably wants to know what you're doing and if you want to go up to the mall." I smiled. He's gotten to know Cheri so well in just two days.

"Hello?"

"Hey Randi! It's me , Cheri!" I laughed, "Hi Cheri, what's up?" Jake chuckled.

"Oh, I just wanted to see what you were doing and if you wanted to go to the mall." Jake laughed so hard he fell off the bed.

"Shut up!" I hissed at him.

"Randi? What's going on?"

"Oh! Nothing, Cheri," I threw a pillow at Jake, "Just dealing with a pest."

"You're with Jake... aren't you," Cheri grumbled. Jake sat up and tickled my foot. I kicked at his hand.

"Stop it! Yea I am. But I can probably get away though."

"No way!" Jake yelled, "I'm coming with you. She can call Ricky."

"That's a good idea," Cheri said, "See ya in an hour!" She hung up. Jake tossed a pillow at me and I hit it away.

"You owe me a dollar," he said.

"What?! I do not!"

"We made a bet and I won. Therefore, you must pay me a dollar." I glared at him. He held my gaze and smiled innocently.

"How bought I buy you a pretzel or something instead?" Jake thought for a moment, then nodded.

"Deal!" He jumped up and hugged me tightly. Then he pulled back slightly and kissed me softly.

An hour later, we were driving up to Northgate Mall in my Ford Taurus. We met up with Cheri and Rick by Auntie Anne's Pretzels.

"Hey Randi!" she called when she spotted us. She ran up and gave me a hug. Rick and Jake knocked knuckles.

:"Jake," I said, "What do you want?" He glanced at the menu.

"What do you want?" he countered. I shrugged. He sighed, "Fine. How 'bout we split some Cinnamon Stix?"

"But I--" Jake put his hand to my lips.

"Nope. We're sharing. By the way, I'm buying," he winked. He's such a gentlemen. Unlike Todd... but we don't talk about that.

"Oh..kay.." I blushed.

"Aw. Aren't they cute?" Rick said sarcastically. Cheri playfully punched him. Jake bought the pretzels, then he wrapped his arm around my waist and we started our trek through the mall.

Things were going great. Cheri bought a few clothes that Rick approved. Jake tried to get me to buy something. i refused. He bought it anyway. It was a shirt and it had a heart with wings. There was a ribbon going around it that said 'True Love Forever.' I wonder if he was hinting at something.

"I wish you hadn't bought this," I said as we walked out the store. Jake squeezed my waist.

"Well, you weren't going to buy it. Besides, I bet you look great in it." Someone's stomach rumbled.

"Um..." Rick said embarrassed, "Food Court, anyone?" We all laughed and headed for the food court. We were five feet away, when I stopped in my tracks.

"It sucks you missed your flight, babe," Rick said to Cheri. I didn't hear her reply. I was staring straight ahead at a familiar brown mop of hair.

"Andi?" Jake asked, concerned, "What's wrong?" I wrapped my arms around my stomach.

"I suddenly lost my appetite," I whispered.

"Randi!" Jake said alarmed, " What's wrong? Are you in any type of pain?" I shook my head then looked forward again. Jake followed my gaze and stiffened.

"Um... guys... maybe we should hit up McDonald's or something instead," Jake sugested. Cheri and Rick turned around.

:What?!" Rick exclaimed, "you're joking, right? There is nothing wrong with the Food Court. We're eating here. End of discussion."

"Hey... Randi. Are you okay?" Cheri asked. I shook my head. Jake put his arm around my waist again.

"Look, you guys can go eat. I'm gonna stay with Randi and-- too late," Jake said.

"I feel sick."

"Well. Well. Well. What do we have a here?" a familiar voice, that I knew belonged to the familiar hair, said.

"Hey! Todd! What's up--oh!" Rick said finally getting the picture. Todd was with Veronica. What disgusted me more than Veronica's perfectly coiffed brown hair and pink track suit, was the fact that Todd was wearing a shirt I bought him for his birthday.

"Randi. Jake," Todd said ignoring Rick, "What a not so pleasant surprise."

"Um..." Cheri squirmed uncomfortably, "Rick... lt's go get a table" Rick quickly walked away with Cheri.

"Hello Randi," Veronica said in an annoyingly perky voice. He broke up with me for that? I mean he was going to break up with me for that.

"Hi," I managed. I was breathing heavily now. If I don't calm down, I might pass out. Jake tightened his arm around my waist.

"Hey Todd," he said icily, "How's life treating you?" Todd shrugged, "Pretty good since that's out of it." He put on a devilish smirk. Make him stop. Please God! Make him stop! I couldn't take it anymore. I wrenched free out of Jake's grasp and ran to the restroom. I saw Cheri get up and come after me.

"Randi," she called, "Are you okay?" I pushed into a stall and kneeled by the toilet. I stared at my reflection in the bowl.

"Well... Cheri... I'm staring at myself in a toilet. That's never a good sign," I replied. Cheri squeezed into the stall and pulled my hair back just in case.

"Todd is so rude." She was making small talk.

"I can't believe you ever went out with him. For a year and a half!" I shook my head, "He was never like that with me. I don't even know why he wanted to break up with me..." I stood up; Cheri released my hair. I staggered out of the stall and washed my hands. Cheri did the same, minus the staggering, and we joined the boys back outside. They looked up as we neared the table. Jake's blue-gray eyes were painted with concern.

"Are you okay?" he asked. I sat down next to him and nodded slowly.

"Yea," I smiled, "I'm fine." I leaned my head against his shoulder, "Where'd--"

"He dragged Veronica off after you dashed for the bathroom. Don't let him get under your skin," Jake mumbled. He sighed heavily and looked down at me.

"Hungry?" I nodded and reached for my bag. Jake touched my arm and shook his head.

"It's on me," he smiled. Rick stood up, "I'm headed to Sbarro's. What do you want Cheri?"

"I was gonna get Subway. I've got a dance recital Wednesday. I can't have a single carb showing." Rick shook his head in annoyance. He reached into his pocket, pulledout a couple bills then handed them to Cheri.

You go buy yours and I'll go buy mine." He walked away before Cheri could respond. She rolled her eyes.

"He's such a gentleman," she mumbled and stalked off towards Subway.

"Well!" Jake said, "Chili?" I smiled, "You read my mind."

"Randi!" Cheri cried over the phone, "Rick...he... he..."

"Cheri?" I yawned. I looked at the clock. 9 A.M.

"It's 9 in the morning. Why are you crying?" I yawned again and stretched.

"Rick... just broke up with me!!!" she wailed. I sighed heavily. At the rate she was crying you'd think he'd have died or something. It's too early for this crap. I slowly rolled out of bed.

"Cheri... I'm so sorry." I walked into my bathroom. Ew! I look gross.

"Can you..." she sniffled, "Come over?" I sighed again, "Sure. Sure. Just give me an hour. Don't do anything drastic!" I closed my phone and leaned against the wall. Well, I thought to myself, Operation: Pick Up The Pieces is now in session. I jumped into the shower, making sure the water was piping hot.

Ten minutes later, I grabbed black skinny jeans and a dark blue mini-dress out of my closet. I picked up my phone and punched in a number.

"Hello?" a voice yawned.

"Hey Jake? It's Randi. I need you to talk to Rick. He just broke up with Charity. I'm headed over to her place to help raise her mood."

"Ugh!" Jake moaned, "It's too early for this crap..."

"That's what I said!"

"I'll call Ricky. Wait, does this mean dinner's off?"

"I'm afraid so... I was really looking forward to it too. But, Cheri needs me." Jake sighed then chuckled.

"That's what I like about you. You're a rocker with a sweet side." I smiled. I put Jake on speaker and started brushing my hair.

"Thanks Jake. That was really sweet." I pulled my hair back into a messy bun.

"It's the truth. I'll tell you again when I'm fully awake," he yawned.

"Okay, well I've gotta go. Hopefully Cheri hasn't done something she'll regret."

"Okay. Talk to you later, babe." I hung up then threw my phone in my bag. I went down to the kitchen; my dad wasn't there. But then again, he never is. I grabbed a pop tart out of the cabinet and some dog food for Harley, my German shepherd. I stuck the pop tart in my mouth and poured Harley's food in his bowl. He came skidding into the kitchen as soon as it hit the bowl. He's not the most coordinated dancer in the troupe, but I love him. I scratched the top of his head, "Bye Harley. I have to go to Cheri's. Be a good little puppy." I swear he rolled his eyes. I laughed all the way out the door.

"Cheri..." I said disgustedly, "This can't be healthy." She had gone through three pints of ice cream.

"Don't you have a dance recital? I thought you--"

"Screw the diet! Screw dancing! And screw Ricky!!!" she yelled shoving a spoonful of cookies & cream in her mouth. I sat down next to her. When I arrived, she was on her first pint and watching Bambi. Out of all the sappy movies in the world, she picks Bambi.

"His mother gets shot," she said when I asked why she was watching it. Now we were watching Of Mice And Men. I'm pretty sure we're only watching it because Lennie gets shot in the end.

"Okay," I said turning off the TV, "We're done watching these... these... sappy movies! We need a few laughs. Grab a comedy!" Cheri looked at me then burst into tears. Maybe I shouldn't have yelled..

"Ricky loved comedies!" she wailed. i huffed in irritation, "All guys like comedies!" She continued to cry. I snatched her ice cream out her hands and pulled her off the couch.

"Get dressed. Now!"

"But Rand--"

"Go. Now! You aren't staying another second in this house." Cheri sighed in defeat. She reluctantly trudged to the stairs.

"Fine... but where are we going?" she asked.

"I uh.... haven't thought that far yet. Just go get dressed." Cheri ran up the stairs. I took the movie out the DVD player and straightened up the living room. I was putting the ice cream back in the freezer when my cell rang.

"Yo!" I said.

"Hey Randi."

"Hey Jake! What's up?"

"Um... I found out why Ricky broke up with Cheri."

"Oh, do tell."

"Well," Jake sighed, "He said she was getting too clingy. He said she was way too perky. Don't get me wrong, he loves cheerleaders. Just not... Cheri."

"Wow... so, does he have a new girl yet?" Jake gasped, "Andi! What kind of guy do you think he is? But yes, he does. Mylee Goldsberg, this year's head cheerleader. The perkiest girl in Northwest."

"There's something wrong with that boy. Cheri was nothing compared to her."

"Yea, but she's hot. His words, not mine." I heard Cheri coming down the stairs.

"I gotta go, Jake. I'm getting Cheri out the house."

"Okay, babe. Talk to you later." Cheri slowly walked into the kitchen. She was wearing light blue jean bermudas and a light pink t-shirt.

"Alright," she grumbled, "I'm dressed..." I smiled and threw my keys in the air.

"Great! First stop, Panera Bread. I see a Cinnamon Crunch Bagel in your future," I said. Cheri tried to smile back, but failed epically. She frowned and snatched her purse off the counter then stomped out the door.

It's about 8 at night, and I'm still with Cheri. We're sitting at a table in Starbucks, with two other guys. I was super uncomfortable, but Cheri was in her element. For the first time today she was smiling. She was back to her smiley, flirty self. And I was smack-dab in the middle of it.

"Oh Aiden! You're so sweet!" Cheri laughed. Aiden, the average height, blond hair, blue-eyed guy smiled at Cheri. I rolled my eyes. These guys looked like they were in college. Maybe freshman.

"Cheri, right? You and your friend should join us for a party next week," Aiden said.

"Ohmigosh Randi!" Cheri exclaimed. She grabbed at my arm. Her eyes were sparkling with excitement.

"We can like...DOUBLE! I'll go with Aiden and you can go with Mason!" I slapped her hand away. I briefly glanced at Mason. Mason was a couple inches taller than Aiden. He had two different colored eyes, one brown; one hazel, and sandy hair. His skin was tan like mine. I have to admit, he was cute. But there's one problem...

"Cheri... let me remind you, I have a boyfriend," I sighed. She dismissed me with a wave of her hand. Quiet Mason turned his head towards me slightly.

"Oh pish posh!" Cheri giggled, "It's not like we're gonna do anything." Yea...I wasn't gonna do anything, but she might. It kinda startled me how fast she went back to herself.

"So does that mean you aren't coming?" Aiden whined. He was looking at Cheri like a sad puppy.

"Of course we're coming!" Cheri beamed, "Just tell us where and when and we'll be there!" Aiden smiled widely. Then he grabbed Cheri's hand and kissed it gently. Mason and I rolled our eyes. Then he stretched and slid his chair closer to mine.

"You don't have to come, you know," he whispered. I was very uncomfortable. He was insanely close to me.

"Um... yea, I know. But Cheri'll find a way to the party one way or the other and I can't leave her alone with a bunch of college guys."

"You're a good friend." I shrugged. I hope you're not trying to put the moves on me. I indiscreetly scooted my chair away from him.

"She's lucky to have a friend like you," Mason continued, "So's your boy--"

"To make things easier," Aiden said suddenly, "How about we exchange digits and we'll call you with the info?"

"Um...I don't kn--"

"Of course! What a great idea, Aiden," Cheri gushed. Good gravy! the girl's hooked! Aiden took out a pen and wrote two sets of numbers on a napkin.

"Here's both our numbers."

"Hey!" Mason protested. Cheri took the pen from Aiden and wrote her number on another napkin. She handed the pen to me.

"Write your number down, Randi." I shook my head, "No thanks. I don't give my number out to people I don't know. No offense."

"None taken," Mason replied. Cheri huffed and wrote my number down anyway. She handed the pen and napkin to Aiden.

"What the hell, Cheri?!"

"Oh get over yourself," she glared at me, then she put on a smile for the guys, "Now you two be sure to call." I looked at her with disgust. I stood up from the table and walked to the door. I can't believe her. Just handing my number out to random guys. Well... I guess this means Operation: Pick Up The Pieces is a success. I picked 'em up alright, and she didn't even say thanks.

"Randi!" Cheri called; I was just opening the car door.

"Randi! Why'd you leave?" I slammed the door shut.

"I don't know, Cheri," I said sarcastically, "Maybe because you gave out my number, after I told you not to."

"Oh come on! We're just having fun."

"No,you're having fun. I've been with you all day, cheering you up. I broke my date with Jake for you!" It was pissing me off how nonchalant she was being. Sometimes I wonder how a cheerleader became my best friend.

"This is about Jake?" Cheri asked. She chuckled, "Seriously Randi? Mason, a college guy, likes you and you're worried about Jake?" I twirled a loose strand of hair.

"He likes me re--" I snapped out of it, "Hey! You stop that! Don't use his college status against me."

"So...you're going to the party, right?" I sighed. As always, it went back to the party.

"Yes, Cheri," she started to jump with glee, "But only because you shouldn't be alone. That's the only reason. I'm not going for Aiden or Mason. I'm going for you." Cheri jumped up and grabbed me in a hug. She twisted me so I could get the full affect of the hug.

"Oh Randi! I love you! You are amazing!" Yea, I know.

So that's the end. Spring Break's only been on for two days so far, but it's been a hectic two days. I'm happy to say this was a success. Now on to the next!