Sitting on the school steps of Creighton High, Lucinda Appleton covered her face. Tears ran down her cheeks as dust that laid upon the bricks she sat on messed up her new skirt. But Lucinda didn't have time to worry about that. After being ridiculed by her ex's new girlfriend, Lucinda wiped her face with the sleeve of her blouse
What am I going to do? We were supposed to be together forever. How could Vince do this to me? My life is now ruined as I had it all planned out!
Surprising the desperate girl who was weeping her eyes out, a shadowy figure sat down beside her. To brighten up her spirits, the woman in red placed her hands in front of Lucinda's eyes, the stranger asked her to figure out who she was.
Lucinda immediately knew it was her best friend, since the curly-haired girl hummed a tune she memorized. Yet, Lucinda acted shocked by raising her eyebrows and placed her hands on her hips.
"Iris, is that- that you? How did you find me?" Lucinda stuttered, as her sobs made it sound incoherent.
Her friend smiled as Iris had a hunch that Lucinda was going to say that.
" You're no fun, Luci. You could have at least guessed who I was! But I guess my humming gave it away. And to answer your question, a little bird told me where you were!"
Lucinda managed to laugh, as she knew how her friend didn't like her moping around.
"No, Iris. It's no time for jokes. Did Antonia tell you where I was? I told her I wanted to be alone to work my thoughts out." Lucinda pouted, but Iris knew that was only a bluff.
Swinging her arm forward, Iris made a gesture that she did not intend to let "the cat out of the bag". Earlier, their friend Antonia refused to tell her where Lucinda went after the graduation party ended. However, Iris managed to coax her into telling Lucinda's whereabouts by bribery.Iris nodded as she was ashamed that Lucinda knew exactly who the culprit was .
"You know, Toni didn't mean to tell me your whereabouts. I dragged it out of her."
Lucinda nodded her head sideways as she couldn't believe that Iris would do that just to find her.
"So, why the glum face, Luci? Did Vince attack you again?"
Iris eyed the premises to see if she could spot the rascal who broke her best friend's heart. She squinted every corner of the campus, but couldn't see any sign of the high school valedictorian.
Damn it! He must have left after the ceremony. I could've punched him in the face!
Iris knew that Vince Romero, Lucinda's ex, had dumped her two weeks ago, but she had a hard time getting over it. What was even worse was that it was done in the worst way possible. By text!
How cruel! Vince didn't even have the decency to talk to her in person!
Iris even wondered how fast it was that Lucinda was replaced. It seemed as if the new girl, Christine, was there all along; hiding behind the shadows.
Without getting up, Lucinda tried to speak up without blowing her nose. Taking a handkerchief out of her purse, she wiped her tears away.
"Iris, it's Christine. She scowled at me as if it was my fault that Vince left me. What was even worse was when I went up to get my diploma, she gave me the finger once I was in view. Didn't you see that as we were walking back to our seats? Christine hates me, as if I took her man away when it was the other way around. I feel so terrible!"
Patting her friend's back, Iris tried to console Lucinda. "There, there Luci, don't fret. Those two should stop doing that. If I could just see their pretty faces one more time, they'd be sorry to mess with Iris Carlson!"
Iris stood up and took Lucinda's hand.
"Come with me and let's find Heather and Toni. Don't worry about Christine and Vince anymore. They're history. You won't see them anymore. When we leave for Hawaii tomorrow, all four of us will have an adventure of a lifetime and soon those two will no longer be in your mind."Lucinda was with Vince for two years and was stunned once she got the message on her phone that he decided that they should break up. His excuse was that since he was going to medical school in another state, he couldn't handle a long-term relationship with her.
At first, the two were good friends during the first year of high school, and later both discovered that they were madly in love with each other. But things took a sudden turn during their last year of high school as Vince kept excusing himself from taking Lucinda out on a date. He would take a rain check and postpone the days they both reserved to be alone.
The timid girl didn't have a clue that he was two-timing her as he met Christine in a college orientation. The philanderer couldn't find the heart to break one of the girl's hearts and thought he could get away without either of them knowing about each other.
But Iris's sister, Heather knew better than just to stand around and watch this dillema happen. Since she happened to be classmates with Christine in Frontier High, constant Vince sightings weren't exactly out of the norm for her. Heather wasn't Christine's friend, but as a spy for her sister's bestie, she knew what to do.
As an informer, Heather did her best to be on the lookout for anything suspicious. She owned a pair of binoculars, but knowing that Christine had an eye for stalkers, Heather did not pursue to use it. Instead, she'd hide in the corners with a camera and wait to see if she could catch the two kissing. That would be her evidence to prove that she was not lying at all.
And then the day came when Heather caught Vince and Christine kissing in a park. However, she did not notice the bystanders who watched her from afar, as they blared a loud noise from their instruments to distract the two lovebirds from their activities.
Panicking, Heather left running without her camera that Vince eventually picked up. Taking it with him, he noticed a sticker that had her full name was written on it. Heather Marie Carlson.
Putting two and two together, he knew who she was, as he met Heather's sister Iris. His secret was about to be revealed!
Thus, with a heavy heart, he knew he had to break the news to Lucinda but didn't want to face her up close and personal. And that's when he decided to text a message on his phone.
YOU ARE READING
Tales of a Hawaiian Getaway
Short StoryIt's the end of high school graduation, and everyone has been looking forward to an awesome summer vacation before they travel to the colleges they were accepted too. And to cheer up a heartbroken friend, three girls agree to help her get back on he...