undercover | caminah

attempt two

Dinah entered Normani's garage on Wednesday night, not having a clue what the girl had been so excited about on the phone. Normani had called Dinah late that evening, raving about this wonderful idea that she'd come up with. Dinah agreed to come over, though a bit reluctant.

In the garage, Normani sat in front of the television, flipping through the channels. When she heard Dinah let herself in, she stood up quickly, turning the TV off.

"We've got business to attend to," Normani said, heading to her dad's work station.

Dinah followed her, eyeing the contents that sat on the wooden surface. A glass, some vinegar, and a carton of baking soda sat menacingly. Four, plastic refrigerator magnets were on the table as well, and Dinah got a pretty good idea of what Normani was planning.

Normani smiled, then said, "This is going to be one explosive promposal."

"How long have you been holding onto that pun?" Dinah asked, crossing her arms.

"Girl, I've been waiting to say that all afternoon," Normani joked, placing the four magnets into the glass, "I want to test this out and see if it works first."

Normani poured an alarming amount of baking soda into the glass, letting it bury the magnets.

"Are you ready to see some magic?" Normani asked enthusiastically.

"Hell yeah," Dinah responded, watching Normani slowly pour the vinegar into the glass.

The next fifteen seconds felt like an eternity. Normani's arm twitched while she was pouring the vinegar, and she accidentally poured half the bottle into the glass. The concoction had sprang up out of the glass in a fury of bubbles, both of the girls screaming as they were splashed with the liquid. Moments later, Normani's dad swung the garage door open, asking the two teenagers if they were alright.

As she checked her hair, Normani replied, "We're alright, daddy. Sorry to scare you."

"What were you girls thinking? What is all over the floor?" Mr. Hamilton asked, coming down the garage steps.

Dinah stepped in, "We were just practicing something for chemistry and it went horribly wrong. I'm really sorry we made a mess, Mr. Hamilton, I'll help clean it up."

"It's alright, girls. Just clean it up and be more careful next time," Mr. Hamilton retreated, "Dinah, how about you stay for dinner tonight?"

"I will, thank you!" Dinah grinned. She was practically part of Normani's family at this point.

When Mr. Hamilton went back into the house, Normani gave Dinah a look of regret. Dinah hated knowing that her friend's plan didn't work out, especially when she knew how excited the girl had been.

Sighing, Normani said, "I guess I'll go get washed up and we can think of something else. You can use the guest bathroom if you want, and I'll borrow you some clothes."

"Thanks, Mani," Dinah responded, "For what it's worth, the idea was super cute. Too bad I'd probably get tackled by school security if I made something explode in the chemistry lab."

Normani gave Dinah a weak smile, resting her head on her best friend's shoulder, "We'll think of something else, DJ, I promise."

Dinah hoped that she was right.