Dentelle (20 page)

She crinkled her nose. “Yes, on the music. Ash
and Ky are developing a timeline so things run smoothly. The band will play a
few live songs, and then Ky has volunteered to be our DJ. I guess he does that
as a side business.”

“Ky has a great sound system, and he even has
party lights,” Ash supplied, fiddling with his leather wrist bands. “Don’t
worry, Ally. He’ll have everyone out on the dance floor. Promise.” He took a
sip from my water bottle.

“Really,” I said, snatching it back. “Get your
own. I don’t want your backwash.”

“Lexi, be nice,” Ally scolded, handing him hers.
Ash flashed his pearly whites at Ally, took a drink, and then made a face at
me. I felt like I was ten years old again, having silent wars with my brother.
“And this,” Ally continued, brushing her eyelid, “was just the Clinique ladies
messing around a bit to get some ideas for my wedding. What do you think?” She
fluttered her lashes.

“The colors are nice. All that glittery sparkly
stuff is a bit wild, but it makes your eyes stand out.”

“Glad you like it.” She smiled and grabbed the
Cheetos from Ash. “Because you’ll be having yours done too.”

I almost choked on my sandwich, and Ash smacked
me across the back. “You’ll make a beauty out of her yet, Ally,” Ash said
jovially. He turned towards me. “You’re lucky you have her.”

“Ben, help me out here,” I begged.

Ally gave him a telling look, and he said
meekly, “Well, you always look…good, Lexi. You just look
really
good after Ally works her magic.”

“I’m so outnumbered,” I said, stretching across
the table and swiping my Cheetos bag from Ally. “I totally need backup.”

All of a sudden, I heard Jessica’s voice.
“Backup for what? Maybe I can help.” She grabbed a chair, turned it backwards,
and pulled it up to the table. Turns out she had just gotten off work and was
heading out when she’d spotted us in the food court.

“Oh, don’t bother with Lexi. She’s just
complaining because we’re going to make her beautiful for the wedding.”

“Oh, that’s great,” Jessica responded. “Miss
Jeans and T-shirts here could use a spa day with the girls as well as a little
fashion advice,” she teased, picking up my bag of Cheetos, which was almost
empty now. “Oh, by the way, Ally, Ben told me what colors you’d picked out.
Absolutely love it!”

Ally cracked up. “Yeah well, when two people in
the wedding party are Amethysts, purple just seemed appropriate. Besides, I’ve
always loved purple and ivory together.”

“Let me know what I can do to help. I love
anything weddings,” Jessica said, tipping the Cheetos bag upside down. A look
of disappointment crossed her face when nothing but orange crumbs dusted her
hand.

“So, what’s up with Rob? Has he popped the
question yet?” I said, attempting to get even.

She blushed furiously. “Lexi! We’re not
that
serious,” she paused and glanced up
shyly, but the look in her eyes said otherwise. “Well, not yet anyways,” she
admitted. “Although, he is talking about the possibility of moving up here…”

“What? Really?” I asked. She smiled while biting
her lip. “That’s great. I was worried he was going to try and talk you into
moving down there.” Having finished half my sandwich, I wrapped the other half
back up for later. I cleared my throat and said nonchalantly, “Speaking of
romance, did Madison mention who she’s been sucking face with lately?”

“Lexi,” Ash interrupted with a deep growl.

I looked over at him and smiled innocuously.
“What? Do you have something to hide?”

“If this is going where I think it’s going, you
better keep your mouth shut. And flashing those big brown eyes doesn’t work
with me, either. In fact, you’re only getting yourself in deeper.”

Jessica laughed. “Oh, Ash! No worries. Madison
told me all about it.”

“All about what?” Ben asked, suddenly
interested.

Jessica untied her scarf and undid the top
button on her white blouse. “All I know is that she had a momentary lapse of
reason and things between her and Ash got…well, got a little carried away.”

“Carried away how?” Ben asked at the same time
Ash said, “Oh really? What exactly did she say?”

Jessica tugged back and forth on her scarf as if
contemplating whether to impart more information. Ash leaned forward and fixed
a penetrating gaze on her. “Without getting myself in trouble here, let me just
say that, even though she says kissing you was a big mistake…” At this point
Ben whistled and Ash shot him a dirty look. Ally pointed her fork at me and
gave me a see-I’m totally-trustworthy-and-didn’t-tell-Ben-anything-about-it-look,
and I winked. Jessica continued, “I think she really does like you. She’s just
scared of getting hurt. And of course, she’s an emotional wreck right now. You
know, worried she and Jason will have to move to Maine and say good-bye to all
her family. Please don’t give up on her, Ash. I think you’re a perfect match.”

“She sure doesn’t,” he said, crumpling the
napkin in his hand. “But there is definitely something between us.”

“You mean like nitroglycerin,” I teased.

Ignoring me, Ash said to Jessica, “You just keep
putting in a good word for me, will ya?”

“You got it.”

“And don’t worry; we’re going to figure
something out. I don’t know what. But there has to be a way we can all stay in
Bellingham,” Ash said, his voice full of resolve.

“Yeah, you better,” Ally said, gazing at Ash
imploringly. “I refuse to lose my best friend.” She looked at me with a worried
expression.

He reached out and grabbed her hand. “We’ll
figure this out, Ally. I promise.”

Jessica pulled her dark brown hair out of the
hairclip and released a huge breath of air. Her bangs fluttered away from her
forehead. “Okay, changing the subject, here. I don’t want to talk about
depressing things, so let me tell you something funny instead. I don’t know if
it’s national whacko customer day or what? But you wouldn’t believe what I’ve
had to deal with.”

“No doubt,” Ben said, slapping the table. “I had
a guy, probably about thirty years old, who started juggling apples in the
middle of the produce department. He wasn’t bad – had five going at once, but
then one fell, and he let them all drop. Or splat, rather. All he said was,
‘Oops, I probably should have used oranges.’ Then he actually put them back on
the shelf, all smashed and dented, and walked off.” We all shook our heads.
“Sorry I interrupted your story, Jess. What happened with you?”

“No worries. But get this.” She rested her arms
on the table. Her eyes were wide with excitement. “What would you think if a
customer came through your line with a box of doughnuts, a box of doughnut
holes, and a bottle of Elmer’s glue?” She tapped her clip against the table,
slowly nodding her head.

Ash, Ally, and I burst out laughing.
“Seriously?” Ally asked.

“Yep. That was it.”

Ben looked baffled. “I don’t get it.”

Ally socked him in the head. “Think about it.
Doughnut holes and glue…to attach them back inside the doughnuts.”

Ben started laughing. “Oh yeah, I get it. That’s
too funny. What a weirdo.”

“Oh that’s nothing,” Jessica broke in. “I asked
a guy if he wanted paper or plastic, and–”

“Why would you ask that when we don’t even have
plastic bags anymore?” I interrupted, looking at her like she was the lunatic.

She swiped her hand through the air. “Oh,
because I helped out at the Ferndale store for a few days, and they don’t have
the plastic bag ban like we do. So, I was back in the habit of asking customers
if they wanted paper or plastic again. Anyways, the guy today replies, ‘Oh, it
doesn’t matter. Either one. I’m bi-sacksual.”

“No way,” Ash said, and we all started cracking
up.

“True story.” Jessica’s eyes rounded. “I’ve
heard a lot of things, but I have to tell you, that was a first. Then there was
the guy who had three different types of deodorant and wanted to know if he
could test them out…”

As a familiar pounding started in the back of my
head, I closed my eyes. Jessica’s voice faded to the background. The swirling
colors rushed wildly together like metal shavings flying towards a magnet,
ultimately forming images:

A blue truck driving erratically in our store parking lot

The truck driving through the open air doors and into the
store

People
scrambling in all directions as the truck crashed through a display

A man and
his child being struck by the truck as it plowed into the checkstands

The images ended, the colors dispersed, and my
eyes shot open. I gripped the edge of the table and jumped to my feet.

Everyone stood abruptly, and Ash grabbed my arm.
“What?”

Quickly, I filled them in, and then Ash and I
raced out of the food court. Everything happened so fast. Almost like my body
was in control and my mind was just along for the ride. My feet pounded the
newly re-tiled floors. As I passed the deli and the coffee shop, I kept my eyes
glued to the front of the store. Adrenaline heightened my senses and gave me an
energy boost that surely rivaled a shot of Essence. As checkstand #12 came into
view, I spotted the man and the child from my snapshots. They were gathering
their bags and about to head straight into the path of danger.

I caught my breath and reacted. Hoping to
distract them, I started screaming and waving my hands. They stopped and looked
at me like I was a lunatic, which was great because it delayed them
temporarily. But I frowned and panicked when I noticed a group of teenagers
gathering at the entrance. There was no way I could be two places at once.

A blur of his blue jeans passed me on the left,
and I knew Ash was already on it.
“I’ll
get them. You get the man and his kid,”
he said.

“Thanks.”
The gaping man grabbed the child and pulled her into his arms as I got closer.
He looked scared. The realization that he viewed me as the threat was totally
understandable but, for whatever reason, I found it completely hysterical.
That’s when I heard it. Screeching brakes, skidding tires, and a loud bang. Out
of the corner of my eye, I caught sight of the blue truck colliding with the
strawberry display just outside the storefront. People screamed and dove
sideways as berries blasted past them. I was out of time.

With a final burst of speed, I skidded into the
front end and then dove forward like a defensive tackle. Unfortunately, this
guy was holding a child and a bag of groceries instead of a football, and I was
about to clobber them. Better me than the truck, though. That being said, my
momentum carried all of us several feet through the air before we crash-landed
and slid even further. Unfortunately for the man, he was on the bottom,
carrying the weight of me and the little girl. I did my best to saturate him
with Essence as we slammed into the floor.

Feeling a rush of wind and hearing the roar of
an engine, accompanied by terrified screams, I whipped my head around in time
to witness the blue truck plow through the Italian grocery display that had
been set up earlier in the afternoon and then crash into the express
checkstands, squishing them down to half the size. As the Italian food display
erupted, gourmet red sauces, garlic bread, and bags of pasta rained down. I
flipped back around and shielded the little girl and her father the best I
could. It wasn’t easy. Jars pelted the floor, bust open, and sprayed red sauce
and glass chunks every which way. Along with the jars, pasta bags split open
and scattered assorted noodles. When a jar hit my head, I couldn’t help but cry
out. My eyes were closed for protection, but they popped open when I felt
something cold and wet spray across my face. I licked my lips and puckered at
the tangy tomato sauce I tasted there. I could even smell the basil. I wiped my
face against my shoulder. The uniform was ruined now. My hair was certainly
dripping with the stuff. Finally, grocery items stopped falling around us, and
I realized the little girl was crying. More than that, I realized I was still
laying on top of her and her dad. Being careful not to sit on broken glass, I
moved to the side and surveyed the front end. Talk about a wet clean-up! This
was going to take hours and hours of mopping.

At least the truck had stopped at the
checkstands. Albeit, a steamy, loud hissing stop. The engine was smoking, and a
rubbery smell began mingling with the tomatoey one. I gritted my teeth and
clenched my fists as I watched the driver, obviously drunk, stagger out of his
truck. I had zero tolerance for drunk drivers. If I had my way, there would be
no three strikes and you’re out. When you were playing with other people’s
lives, I believed one strike was plenty.

Hearing sirens, I shook my head and came to my
senses. I needed to see if there were any injuries I could attend to – a little
unknowing assistance before the paramedics arrived. As I rose, I caught sight
of Jessica and Ally bent over a couple people who were lying on the floor.
People had stopped screaming, but there was still plenty of commotion.
Customers from the back of the store had rushed to the front. Some were gawking
or taking pictures with their phones. Luckily, there were still plenty of good
Samaritans who were more concerned with helping than exploiting the scene.

“Thank you. I can’t thank you enough,” uttered
the man next to me, who’d sat up, and was holding his daughter tightly, rubbing
his hand through her hair. She was whimpering and clinging to him. “Y-you
s-saved our l-lives,” his voice cracked as he shook his head. Tears pooled in
his eyes. “I lost my wife a couple months ago, and if I’d lost my daughter too,
I don’t know how I would have…” He broke down and started shaking.

I leaned over and encompassed them both in a
huge hug, imparting as much Essence as I could, hoping it would reach their
hearts. “I’m sorry for your loss,” I whispered.