"Well, I just don't see why you would expect me to buy my own sleeping bag, when you're the ones who are loaded," argued Kim Ann. She then turned to Howie and shoved him lightly. "And I can't believe YOU didn't even offer, Howie."
"Hey, man," said Howie. "I'll buy you a sleeping bag. It's no big deal to me. YOU'RE the one making the big deal."
"But then you'll have to buy Sandra one, too," Kim Ann added.
"I'll buy Sandra a sleeping bag. Don't worry about it, Kim Ann," Brian interjected. He didn't like the way Kim Ann had implied that he was too cheap to pitch in. He was going to tell her that, too, but he couldn't help but notice AJ staring out the window, completely oblivious to the quibbling going on. "AJ, what are you looking at?"
"Oh," AJ replied, still peering out the window, "I'm just watching Nick getting ready to kiss-ass down there."
"What?!?" Kim Ann asked as she, Sandra, Howie and Brian moved over to the window. They could see Nick walking slowly up to Kenneth's car.
"Angela's in the car?" Brian asked, moving closer to the window.
"Yup," said AJ, cracking a smile. "This ought to be interesting. She was pretty pissed off."
"Well, she had every right to be," said Sandra, defensively. "I mean, if he's playing her one way in front of you guys and then dissin' her in front of us...."
"Oh, he's knockin' on the window." AJ started mimicking what he thought was being said by Nick. "Oh, please, Angela, forgive me. I don't know what I was thinking."
"She's rolling down the window," said Brian. "That's a good sign."
"Not necessarily," pointed out Kim Ann. "All the better to punch someone."
"Angela wouldn't punch someone," Howie said, looking at Kim Ann, still in flirting mode. "She's harmless …..unlike you."
"He's leaning in the window. No fists flying yet," Brian observed.
AJ continued his version of the conversation in a high-pitched squeaky voice. "Kim Ann MADE me say it. She's such a bitch. She makes me do bad things."
Kim Ann laughed and shoved him. "I didn't MAKE him do anything. He was on his own with all that."
"Nick buckles under pressure," Brian explained. "You corner him like that he'll say anything to get out of it."
"Ah! Ah! He's away from the window!" AJ looked at Brian. "Why I do believe she just told King Kaos to eat shit and die."
"No," Brian argued. "I bet you all the sleeping bags, pillows and blankets that he's in that car within five minutes." He turned to AJ. "This is NICK we're talking about here."
"You're on, buddy." AJ said, cackling. "You didn't see her in the bathroom, man. I was there. Nick won't charm his way outta this one."
"Look!" Howie pointed out the window. "He's leaning in further. Thatta boy, Nicky. Show her who da man is."
"Angela won't take his shit, Howie." Sandra secretly hoped that Angela would roll the window up in his face. She felt like her friend was in competition with their friend and she didn't want to lose.
".....and the car door is opening...." said Brian, proudly, like a sportscaster after an awesome play. "You know, AJ, I want one of those body pillows......and I have to have a flannel blanket. I love flannel when it's cold out. It's so...so warm and comforting, you know?"
AJ laughed and muttered, "Screw you, Brian." He couldn't believe Angela had given in so easily. He really thought she would give it to Nick straight.
"Come on, Angela. Tell him where to go," Kim Ann whispered under her breath. Howie looked at her, surprised. "What?!" she asked. "She IS my friend, Howie, and Nick was a dick to her."
"After all the hell you've given her today?" Howie asked in disbelief. "Damn, woman, with friends like you, who needs enemies?"
"I was just getting her riled up," Kim Ann retaliated. "You have to pick on the weak to make 'em stronger, ya know?"
AJ stood up and looked at Kim Ann with his eyebrows raised. "Uh, we've been picking on Nick for years and we're still waiting for the big change."
Brian defended Nick. "He's grown a lot lately, AJ. He dumped Mandy, didn't he?"
"Yeah," AJ quipped, "After HOW many months of bitching about it?"
"He was trying to work it out, AJ," Brian said sharply. "There's nothing wrong with trying to make things work."
"He...was...NOT!!" disagreed AJ. "He was TOO big of a pussy to set her straight. If he'd have stood up to her from the beginning instead of all the Yes, Mandy, You're RIGHT, Mandy crap, he wouldn't have HAD to break up with her."
"Will you two SHUT UP?!" interrupted Kim Ann. "I'm trying to see!"
"Oh, I'm sorry," AJ replied sarcastically. "I didn't realize my voice was blocking your view."
Kim Ann turned from the window long enough to glare at him and then refocused on Nick and Angela. "I think that little prick is yelling at her. If he's yelling at her, I'll kick his fucking ass. She doesn't deserve that. She didn't do anything to him."
"Is he?" AJ asked in disbelief. He pressed his face to the window with his hands shielding his eyes, hoping to get a better view. "I think he IS yelling at her," he said, angrily. He turned to Kim Ann and their eyes met in agreement. "I'll kick his fucking ass. Don't YOU worry about it, Kimmy." Kim Ann and AJ pulled away from the window simultaneously and started towards the stairs. Howie, Brian and Sandra followed closely behind.
Kevin heard them in the hallway and leaned out the door. "Hey! What's going on?" He walked towards them with a concerned expression on his face, totally confused as to what had transpired in the short amount of time he'd left them alone.
"Nick's yelling at Angela," Kim Ann huffed. "I'm gonna go kick his ass. You got a problem with that?"
Kevin took a deep breath and remained mellow despite the urgency of the situation. "No-one's kicking anyone's ass, Kim Ann, " he said sounding a lot like Eeyore from Winnie the Pooh. "How do you know he's yelling at her?"
"Go look out the window, Kevin," Kim Ann said urgently, waving her arm towards the window. "Talk about a jerk!"
Kevin strolled to the window, sighing as he went. Sometimes he felt so isolated in the group because of his age. And this was one of those moments. It was not the world crisis they were making it out to be, whether Nick was yelling at Angela or not.
Kim Ann lingered behind, but stayed close enough to Kevin to gauge his reaction to Nick's injustice towards her friend. He glanced out the window, squinted his eyes in confusion, and moved closer to the window, staring. After a couple of seconds, he raised his eyebrows and looked at everybody else in the room as if they were crazy.
"What?" Kim Ann asked, as she moved towards him hesitantly.
Kevin peered out the window one last time and looked back, half-smiling, convinced that he was the brunt of some joke. "Well, I'd just like to know how he's yelling at her with his tongue down her throat like that."
"WHAT?!" It seemed like everyone had responded to Kevin's observation at the same time and they all rushed the window, crowding him out in their battle for position.
"Well, will you look at that!" exclaimed Brian in amazement. They stood, silently and watched Nick and Angela.
AJ pushed his way to Brian before stating in a serious tone, "I'll bet you the pillows, blankets and sleeping bags that he feels her up she lets him."
"AJ! Gawd!" said Howie. "Do you ever stop?!"
AJ laughed and swatted at Howie. "You know me better than that, Howie."
"Holy shit!" said Kim Ann, desperately. "Here comes KENNETH."
"What?" asked Kevin, pushing his way toward the window.
"Now we'd better get down there cos he's gonna go bullistic when he sees them," said Kim Ann, concerned. "And he can be a total freak when he's pissed off."
They headed down the stairs hurriedly, hoping that a large group of people would intimidate Kenneth into remaining calm, despite the circumstances.
Chapter
Twenty-Five
Chapter
Twenty-Three
Story Index
