Surviving Paradise (Full Draft Version)

CHAPTER 13

"No YOU are going down"

"A silver stake?  Really?  Have to hit the heart boy--"

CHAPTER 13

“What do you want?”  Allisa demanded at the exact same time that Will muttered, “Get lost.”

     “Glad you asked Elise.”  Hannah replied all fake sweetness, taking delight in mangling Allisa's name even after three years of being enemies.  “Mind if I sit?”

     “Yes.”  Allisa and Will chimed in harmony.

     “Thanks.”  Hannah deliberately misunderstood, and Allisa stared infuriated as the other girl, clad in a short, scanty, see through, pink sundress, and not much else slid in the booth next to Will. 

      It was hard enough to know they had been together, but to see them like that sitting next to each other--she wanted to squeeze her eyes shut, anything to make her mind stop with the images of Will entangled with her nemesis.  Concentrating on steady breaths, she tried to remain composed, not to reveal her discomfort.

     The waitress sauntered to a stop at their booth at that moment, and with a friendly smile, inquired if they were ready to order.  Allisa's stomach rumbled, reminding her it had been twenty four hours since her last meal.  Glaring at Hannah, Allisa informed the waitress that they would need just a few minutes, at the exact same time that Will ordered a hamburger, fries and a strawberry malt.

     “I will take an iced tea.” Hannah spoke up.

     “No she won't.”  Will shot daggers at Hannah, and amended to the waitress that they would wait to make their order.  A confused waitress backed off with a pasty smile.

     “What do you want Hannah, and make it quick.”  Allisa snapped, irritated that the other girl had upset the zen at the table.

     “I wanted tea...”  Hannah put on her best aghast face, as the waitress moved away then answered, “Well, I just need to borrow your boyfriend for a few minutes.”  Coolly, she evaluated Allisa's reaction to her words, then a snide smile confirmed that she had seen what she wanted.  “So, feel free to sit in Alice; I know how you must feel about leaving him alone with me.”  Having seen the prick of her first remark, she coldly pushed the pin in with her second, paused to assess the damage, then declared, “Anyway though, Will and I need to talk shop for a minute or two.”

     If Allisa was confused, it gave her some comfort to see the same senselessness in Will’s expression, his slack jaw, and the narrowing of his eyes as he unwillingly swung his attention to Hannah.  It was totally obvious that he had no inclination of what Hannah was speaking of, but like Allisa, he seemed instinctively distrustful. 

     Before he could say anything, Hannah continued, “On the home page, we need to include the emails as well as the phone numbers of the staff, the stretchy tab thing is perfect, but the toppy thingy on the pages needs to be a no color picture of Fraizer Hall instead of a regular old picture.”

     Stunned, Allisa could only stare.  Will had never mentioned working on the overhaul of the college web site, which is what this was sounding like, and definitely had not mentioned working with Hannah. 

     To his credit, Will seemed confused and at a loss for words.  Was he simply astounded that Hannah would approach him in public in front of Allisa?  Maybe he and Hannah had the agreement to keep their partnership on the down low and Hannah had violated the pact.  A slow hot rage began to bubble in Allisa's chest, but the fact that Will seemed clearly confused kept it from boiling over.