Freezepop

The date had been set, and now the day has come. Ella was so happy she actually squealed, and Mitchy merely said that she'd have to make sure she wasn't working. Currently everyone's here. Everyone including: Spencer, Ryan, Brendon, Kat, Winifred, Mitchy, Dylan, Ella, and Andrew. That's a lot of people, and I truly think enough to constitute as a party. Ella should be proud I know so many people.

The guys are all downstairs changing in the downstairs bathroom, and all of us girls are changing up in my room. Kat and Winifred came early with Ryan, Brendon, and Spencer so they were changed, but Ella and Mitchy are getting ready right now. As we wait for them, Winnie, Kat, and I are doing the girly thing: we're standing in front of my full length mirror in our bathing suits, fixing our makeup before we go jump in the pool and wash it all off.

I look at Winnie and pout. "You have to teach me how you do that with your eyeliner."

"Of course I will," she laughs.

Just as I'm about to complain to Kat that my hair sucks and she needs to do something to it, Ella and Mitchy walk in in all their swimsuit-clad glory. They both throw their stuff in a pile on my bed, and while Mitchy digs through her stuff for her towel, Ella says, "Lets go!"

She's so happy about this. Neither of them knows that the other boys are here because I'm hiding them until the last minute. I know Ella will hate them, and Mitchy will hit on them, even in front of Dylan. Of course, this will cause Dylan to pout, complain to me, and then confront Mitchy later where he'll break down in tears like the wimp he is.

Winifred, Kat, and I wrap our towels tightly around our bodies and follow Mitchy and Ella, who have their towels thrown over their arms, downstairs. All five of the boys are standing around my kitchen, waiting for us.

"Hey, Andrew, long time no see," I say.

"Yeah, I know. Now let's go swimming. Who's excited?" Andrew shouts, and that seems to be the cue for everyone to file outside.

"So who are you?" Mitchy asks as she sidles up next to Brendon.

"I'm... we're--"

"Oh, yeah. I guess I forgot about introduction,s huh?" Mitchy turns on me with a slight glare. Oops, guess she wanted to butter him up on her own. "Mitchy, this is Brendon. Brendon, this is my friend Mitchy. That's her boyfriend, Jellybean, behind her." I put an ever-so-slight emphasis on the word 'boyfriend' to which Brendon magically catches, but Mitchy doesn't; for which I'm thankful.

Ella doesn't even notice them until Ryan cannonballs into the pool. She sidesteps over to me and asks, "Who are these guys?"

"The idiot in the pool's Ryan, that's Spencer over by the diving board, and Mitchy's schmoozing Brendon. Hey, Ryan!" I shout at him. He stops splashing Spencer and looks up. "Guys, this is my friend Ella, and that's her boyfriend Andrew. That's Mitchy and her boyfriend Dylan over by Brendon." As soon as I'm done talking, they go back to trying to drown each other.

"How do you even know them?"

"Brendon knocked me into the wall as I was leaving the bathroom at the Red Robin."

Laughing, I shrug and sit on the edge of the pool. I hear Ella squeal as Andrew pushes her into the pool, and she grabs his arm at the last minute, pulling him in with her. They both surface laughing then pull each other in for a kiss. Dylan tries to catch Mitchy's attention so she'll watch him jump off the diving board, but she becomes preoccupied with Ryan and Spencer. Kat and Winnie are bouncing around in the shallow end, giggling at how stupid they look in goggles. Smiling at how childish they're being, I'm not aware of Brendon when he sits next to me.

"They're cute, aren't they?" He knocks his shoulder into mine.

"Who? Ella and Mitchy."

"No, Winnie and Kat."

I smile and nod. "They're adorable."

Brendon's face grows serious, and for a moment I think he's going to tell me he's allergic to chlorine or something equally as terrible. "Your friend Mitchy seems to like me. And Ryan and Spencer."

"She likes anybody who's not Jellybean."

"Why do you call him Jellybean?"

"Because he's stupid. I don't know how many times Ella and I have told him that what Mitchy's doing to him is wrong, and their relationship isn't healthy, but he doesn't listen to us. Instead, he cries and does everything Mitchy wants him to. And she's such a bitch that she soaks it all in, and gets off on it. That's why we call her Mitchy, because it rhymes with bitchy."

"Tracy," he lays a soft hand on my shoulder, and it makes my stomach go crazy, "why are you friends with her then?"

"Because I'm a pushover, and I don't have the heart, or the guts, to tell her that she's evil."

"I don't think you're a pushover," he says sincerely.

"Thanks. That makes me feel a little bit better about myself, but wait until you get to know me more, then you'll see how pathetic I really am." The balls I have these days. Where the hell did they grow from? "Let's play Marco Polo," I say to Kat and Winnie as I slip into the pool, interrupting their giggling over their misshapen-looking feet.

Thankfully, our whole time in the pool passed rather quickly. Everyone got along, mostly because A avoided B, and the only problems we had were Mitchy's "malfunctioning" swimsuit. It slipped a couple times, and things almost showed. It was, however, funny to watch Dylan glare and try to be manly as his woman flaunted her half-naked self.

"Come on you guys, what do we want?" Needless to say, I'm more than a little annoyed. We'd decided to order pizza because it's simply the easiest choice, but somehow Mitchy, Ella, and Andrew have to make it the hardest. I already know that we're getting one cheese (for the vegetarians) and a pepperoni, but there's an argument over the third.

"Is this how it's going to be all night?" Brendon leans over and whispers. I sigh sadly and nod my head.

I dance my toes around out of boredom, and that's when I notice that I've lost a toe ring somewhere. "Oh man! I lost a toe ring in the pool!" I whine, but only the people closest to me hear.

Kat laughs, and I send her a mock glare while Winnie pats my knee consolingly.

"Which one did you lose?" Brendon asks, standing up.

"Why?"

"'Cause I'll go look for it."

I shake my head. "Brendon, you're an idiot. It's a big pool, a little toe ring, and it's dark outside. And besides, it's probably already been sucked up by the filter."

"So I'll check there first." He shrugs. "I need a little air anyway." He nods in Ella, Andrew, and Mitchy's direction.

"Fine. It was the silver one with the pink heart."

"That one was cute." He pouts then disappears outside.

Turning to the only two girls not looking like absolutely bitches I ask, "Why is he such a dork?"

"I think he lost too many brain cells while we were on--" Ryan stops short and gives me this look like I'm supposed to finish his sentence. "...vacation," he finishes pathetically. Spencer hits his arm, and there's a message silently sent between the two. It's obvious that Ryan was about to spill something very secretive.

"Ok!" Ella shouts, and the room goes quiet for a second. "We want half Canadian bacon and half pineapple."

"Fine," I sigh and dial the number for the pizza place. It's take a few tries before they get our order just right, for delivery, and to the right address. "It's $32.04," I say as Brendon walks back in, looking absolutely triumphant and soaking wet in his swim trunks again.

"I found it!" He leans over the back of the couch and gives me this horribly wet hug before he places it the ring in my hand and walks back to the bathroom to change. I sit there for a moment, stupefied and giggling.

"What'd he find?" Mitchy breaks in.

"My toe ring. I lost it while swimming." Just as Ella's about to coo an 'aww' at me, I say, "Come on guys, I'm not paying for this pizza by myself." Everybody starts to dig in their pockets, but when I see Spencer and Ryan doing the same, I stop them. "You guys don't have to pay, don't worry about it."

"Hey, how come they don't have to?" Mitchy asks. I know exactly what's running through her mind: Why don't they have to pay? I don't have any money even though I work just about everyday and get tons of money in my paycheck all the time. Not to mention I don't ever have to pay for anything because I'm a spoiled bitch who's grandmother buys her clothes, parents buy her gas and insurance, and boyfriend buys everything else.

"Because they're true guests, and this is the their first time being around all of us. It's only fair that they should get to keep their wallets full when they have to suffer through us."

I know Mitchy and Ella want to say something, but Spencer quickly cuts in with a, "You guys aren't that bad. What are you talking about, Tracy?"

"Cute, Spence, but shut up."

"What'd I miss?" Brendon says, joining us as he towel dries his hair, again.

Spencer points at me. "She called me cute. And Spence."

I roll my eyes. "And the pizza should be here in twenty minutes."

"Cool. How much do I owe you?" He begins to reach in his back pocket but Ryan's voice stops him.

"We don't have to pay."

"Aw, come on. At least let me give you five dollars."

I shake my head adamantly. "Nope. I won't allow it."

"Then let me pay the delivery tip."

"Brendon, I said 'no'. You guys aren't paying, so get over it."

He grins and winks at me. "See? Told you you weren't a pushover."

"Shut up." I playfully push his shoulder as he sits on the couch next to me. "So what movie do you guys want to watch?"

"What do you have?" Spencer asks.

I point to the closed cabinets on either side of the TV behind him. "Just about every movie known to mankind."

"Let's watch something scary," Ella suggests. Mitchy agrees and I shake my head, humming a response.

"Let's watch Edward Scissorhands!" Kat bounces in her seat with her hand in the air.

"Yes! Yes!" Winnie looks at me, eyes wide and grinning.

"We're not watching a scary movie."

"Why? Do they scare you?" I can tell Ryan's trying to be fun, but he has no idea how hard he's hit the nail on the head.

"Everything scares her," Ella says a little scornfully. I think she knows she's not going to win.

Ryan shrugs and leans back against the chair that Kat's sitting in. "I like Tim Burton, so I'm all for Edward Scissorhands." Kat grins and pats his head.

"It's settled, Scissorhands it is." Spencer pulls the movie off the shelf, closes the cabinet, and sets it on the coffee table. "Now what?"

"Uh.." I look around and notice that no one's drinking anything. Oops. "We need beverages. Anybody volunteer?" When everybody just stares at me I say, "I'd go but I have to stay here for when the pizza comes."

"What do we want?" Ryan stands and pulls a set of keys out of his pocket. He nudges Kat's leg, and when she gives him a look he asks, "You wanna come with?" They wrangle up Winnie and Spencer to go too, but when they're all ready, everyone's arguing again.

"Just get whatever you like, they can suck it up, but I want Hawaiian Punch." I head for my purse to grab my wallet, but Spencer stops me.

"We've gotcha covered, don't worry about it."

"Spencer," I whine, "I can't let you guys do that."

"Yes, you can. The least we can do is spring for sodas." I smile gratefully at them as they walk out the door.

"Hey, Brendon, can you come help me set stuff up in the kitchen?"

He's still the only one not arguing, and everyone else is completely oblivious as to Spencer, Winifred, Kat, and Ryan's departure.

He nods, stands, and follows me, and once we reach the solitude of the kitchen he asks, "Are they always like that? I mean, do they ever shut up?"

I grab a handful of plates and point to the cupboard with the glasses, to which he opens and starts slowly taking them out, setting them on the counter. "No. We're friends, but we don't like any of the same stuff. They both want their way and get pissy if they don't get it. They're both too stubborn to ever change their minds, and Mitchy always has to start an argument. Oh, and everything has to be about her. If you have a problem and need help, don't ever talk to her. Unless it directly involves Mitchy herself, she'll change the subject the second you pause for breath."

"And again I ask: Why are you friends with them, Tracy?"

"Because after past experiences, they were the first real friends I made when I moved here. We got along back then, and we were completely inseparable. But alas, high school always changes people, doesn't it?" Right then the doorbell rings. I'm happy for the distraction, but at the same time I'm dreading walking through the living room because I can still hear Ella and Mitchy with a little bit of Andrew thrown in here and there. Of course Dylan's silent. He's a pansy.

I feel Brendon trudging behind me, and as I grab the money, he opens the front door. Wow, what a team. When I see who's at the door, I'm slightly taken aback.

"Tim. Hey."

"Hey, Tracy. Your total's $32.04." I pay him $34.50, and when Brendon grabs the pizzas I notice that he slips a couple extra dollars to Tim. "See ya around."

"I told you not to pay. You're ruining my plan."

"Plan? What plan? And who was that?"

"I was going to treat you guys to a night of free fun but no! You just have to be gentlemen and pay for things. And that was Tim."

"Yeah, but who's Tim?" The arguing stops, and Mitchy's head pops up.

"Tim? Where's Tim?"

"The Almighty Tim?" Andrew asks.

"Shut up, Andrew. Tim delivered the pizza, and he graduated with you," I say nonchalantly as I take the pizzas to the kitchen and put them in the stove.

"What are you doing, Tracy? They're already cooked." I turn a little bit to see Brendon leaning against the door frame with this cheeky smile. "And what's the big deal with Tim?"

"I know they're already cooked, they're in there to stay warm until the kiddies come back. There is no 'deal' with Tim."

"Then why was everybody all jumpy about him?"

"Mitchy thinks he's hot, and he's not Dylan. Why else would she care?"

"Well, why'd you look scared to see him?"

"Because I wasn't expecting an ex-schoolmate to show up at my door with pizza."

When the kiddies get back with the soda of course there's grumbling and argument and compliant, but only from the you-know-whos. There's argument about the pizza, but only the you-know-which pizza. When we finally sit down to the movie, there's argument over seats, but only from the you-know-whos. The rest of us are thoroughly enjoying the night, despite the you-know-whos, and although the movie doesn't pass in silence (like some of us would have liked), it still passes nicely. Now it's over, the pizza's gone, and the soda is quickly following. We're bored, and all just kind of sitting around until Mitchy suggests we play a game.

"It's called Who's In My Mouth? and the object of the game is to guess who's in your mouth."

"Why is someone even in our mouths?" I ask.

"Because you turn off all the lights and find somebody in the dark. Then you kiss them and try to figure out who they are by just making out." She smiles such a pleased smile, and you can tell by the looks on everyone else's faces, even Dylan's, that we're all thinking Mitchy's just a little bit of a whore. Can I tell you though that we're right?