“Alright, let’s get down with it!” Lemon shouted, raising both her fists into the air as she walked through the hall. “Let’s plan the most awesome party ever!”
Walking behind her with a clipboard and a pen under her arm, Sugarcoat raised an eyebrow. “For someone who didn’t want to do anything a minute ago, you are suddenly very enthusiastic.”
“That’s because I can do pretty much what I want!” Grinning evilly from ear to ear, she rubbed her hands like a super-villain. “I can set up this party any way I want, put in all the stuff I love, and nobody’s gonna say ‘that’s not possible’ or stuff!”
“Except for me.”
Lemon shrugged. “Yeah, but I’m used to not listening to you. Just make sure you write everything down I tell ya.”
Sighing, Sugarcoat took out her clipboard and pen, ready to take notes.
“Okay, first we set up a bunch of tables, somewhere over there, for the snacks and stuff” Lemon said, waving towards one side of the hall while already looking somewhere else. “Then we need balloons and streamers, tons of ’em, scattered all over the place.” She spread out her arms as if to mimic an explosion, before excitedly turning towards the end of the hall. “And of course we need a big stage with a huge sound system, turned up to eleven, and a really rad DJ! Oh and while we’re at it, we should also-”
“What size?”
Lemon stopped in her tracks, looking in confusion at Sugarcoat. “Huh?”
“The tables” Sugarcoat said, raising her gaze from her clipboard. “What size should the tables for the snacks be?”
Lemon scratched her head. “Um, I dunno. Any size is fine I guess.” Turning her back to Sugarcoat she pointed at the ceiling. “So we’ll set up some spotlights, maybe up there, point them at the dance floor and-”
“How many tables?”
Again Lemon stopped. Over her shoulder, she threw an annoyed glance at Sugarcoat. “Well enough to get all snacks and drinks on ‘em, duh! Anyway, some spotlights up there, and-”
“What kind of snacks and drinks?”
A vein on Lemon’s forehead twitched. “What kind of question is that?!”
“A very practical one.”
Lemon slammed her palm against her forehead. “Just get the stuff everybody eats and drinks at parties! Potato chips, nachos, sausages, lemonade, fruit punch – maybe some salad and sandwiches for the veggies, I don’t know.”
“How much food-”
“OH FOR PETE’S SAKE!!!” Lemon shouted, pulling on the strands of her messy hair. “Just make sure it’ll be enough for everyone, ‘kay?!”
Crossing her arms over her clipboard Sugarcoat harrumphed. “Fine. Then I’ll go to the supermarket and tell the clerk he should get me some snacks, and also to give me tons of streamers. And while I’m at it, I’ll ask Dean Cadence for a bunch of tables of any size to put the food on.” She held out her clipboard, strictly poking with the hard end of her pencil on it. “I need exact numbers and measurements Lemon, or I can’t make the errands!”
Lemon slouched her shoulders. “Alright” she sighed “What do ya need, Sugarbabe?”
Eyes on her clipboard Sugarcoat cleared her throat. “I need the measurements of the tables we need for the buffet, preferably at a height that makes it easy to pick up the food and drinks, as well as of course the number of tables. And speaking of food, I need a list with all the food items I should purchase, including the number I should get of each and the exact name including brand and if possible also price to make sure I don’t make a mistake, as well as to better calculate our budget. Then I need to know how many bowls and plates we need to set up for the food, also glasses for the drinks, and as for the spotlights…”
“This is gonna take a while, innit?” Lemon interrupted her, her face having turned up further and further during Sugarcoat’s monologue.
Sugarcoat nodded. “Probably.”
An uneasy feeling in her stomach, Lemon gulped.
Leaning on her broom, Sour grumpily stared at the dusty ground of the hall. The euphoria from a few minutes ago seemed to have completely washed off her. Reluctantly she straightened up again. In a slow, monotone rhythm she swept the floor, the entire time wearing a scowl. “This is boring, and my arms are aching” she moaned, sounding like a bratty little girl. “Please tell me we are almost done!”
Indigo, who was cleaning the floor a little ahead of her, looked over her shoulder. With a smirk, she nodded behind Sour. Turning her head, the cherry-haired girl saw she had only moved a couple of feet away from the broom closet.
Sour dropped her broom. “Oh come on, you gotta be kidding me!” she yelled.
Still sweeping the floor Indigo shrugged. “Nothing to it unless you do it. Tis not like someone else is gonna do it for ya.”
With a “Humph” Sour picked up her broom. A movement by the open entrance then caught her attention. Two boys from the football team walked by the gym, talking to each other. A big grin formed on Sour’s face. “Watch and learn” she said over her shoulder. Interrupting her work, Indigo curiously watched her.
Quickly Sour brushed some dust of her clothes and smoothed the wrinkles on her skirt, before placing both her hands around the tip of her broom and leaning on it. “Oh, guuuuys♥
The extremely honeyed and bright voice made the two boys stop and look at Sour. Cuddling her cheek against her hand she tilted her head slightly, putting on her cutest and most innocent smile. “I am so sorry to bother you, but would you mind helping a poor little girl with a task far too big and exhausting for her?” she asked, fluttering her eye-lashes at them.
The two boys looked at each other for a moment, then back at Sour. “Sorry” one of them said, looking rather neutrally into Sour’s puppy eyes. “But we have training.” A moment later the two were gone.
Sour stared at the empty door for a while, her little girl look frozen on her face. A chuckle from behind made her furiously turn her head. Leaning against her broom, Indigo laughed out loud. “Way to go, girl!” she bought out between giggles. “You’re an expert flirt, aren’t cha?”
Her broom in one hand Sour stemmed her other one against her side. “As if you could do it better!”
Behind her angry friend, Indigo could see two other boys walking by the door. These ones didn’t look like athletes, but more like the academic type, with neat haircuts and glasses. She flashed a cocky grin. “Challenge accepted!”
Putting two fingers into her mouth she whistled. The shrill tone almost made the boys jump on the spot. As they turned their heads they barely had time to catch the broom Indigo was tossing in their direction. Hitting them on height of their stomachs they boys hastily grabbed the broomstick, groaning.
“Hey, you there!” Indigo shouted, grinning with her fists on her hips. “How ‘bout you get your butts over here and give us a hand?”
The two boys looked at her in fright. After exchanging a quick glance they dropped the broom, screaming as they dashed away as fast as they could.
A little irritated Indigo looked at the empty door. The sound of clapping, so slow it could only be meant sarcastically caused her to turn her head at Sour, who was smiling so wide it also could only be meant sarcastically.
“Oh, Indy, you really showed me there! Why, these boys were like wax in your hands – you burnt yourself while they slipped through your fingers.”
With a grunt, Indigo went to pick up her broom.
“…and twenty-two packages of two-coloured streamers in four different colour-variations” Sugarcoat finished reading out the list she had made, looking up from her clipboard. “Shall we go through everything again?”
Wearing a completely blank expression Lemon let out a weak moan. Her eyes were unfocused, staring somewhere at the ceiling. Staggering slightly, she looked like she was about to collapse.
“I take this as a no.” Sugarcoat ripped off the a page of her clipboard and handed it to Lemon. “This is a list of everything that needs to be done. I’ll go and get all the stuff while you and the others get the hall ready.”
Perplexed, Lemon took the sheet of paper. “More… work?” she whispered, in an unusually quiet voice.
“That’s just the start of it.” Leaving a horrified Lemon behind Sugarcoat turned towards the exit. As she walked over the fiel, her gaze fell upon Sunny. She was standing in front of a gymnastic box, staring at her smartphone. There was a nervous, somewhat crestfallen look on the face of the teenager as she stared at her display. Her shaking thumb was hovering above the call-button, but she seemed uncertain whether to push it. Just as she seemed about to lower her thumb, she suddenly put the phone back into her pocket, sighing.
“You look kind of down.”
Shrieking, Sunny jumped into the air. She seemed quite annoyed to find Sugarcoat standing behind her, looking at Sunny with her usual expression of indifference and monotony. “D-don’t scare me like that!” she scolded her.
“Just wanted to make sure you’re alright” Sugarcoat said, not sounding the least like she cared. “Also, you’re slacking off.”
In a snobbish manner Sunny scoffed at the blunt girl. “I would rather have it you mind your own business, thank you very much.” With some dignity and elegance Sunny bent down to the ground, her delicate fingers embracing the small gymnastic box before she lifted it. Instead of bringing it to the closet right away however she stood on the spot for a moment, looking somewhat ponderous. Her gaze snuck back to Sugarcoat, who was walking towards the exit again. From the top of Sugarcoat’s complicated, yet not very striking hair-style, to her monotonous face with its slightly angry expression down over her clothing, Sunny was giving her friend a thorough inspection. As the white-haired girl left the gym through the open doors, Sunny thoughtfully tilted her head.
A devious smirk formed on her face.