𝐂𝐚𝐭, 𝐌𝐲 𝓥𝓪𝓵𝓮𝓷𝓽𝓲𝓷𝓮

VII

When I got to Sikowitz's house, I didn't see any other cars parked outside and assumed that I was the first one there. I knocked on the door and Sikowitz immediately answered, grinning. "Welcome, welcome! Please, come in." I walked through the door and my eyes immediately went to the large wooden table in the middle of the room, which was covered in grass. Surrounding it were a few plastic fold out-chairs and stools.

I was supposed to give off 'surfer dude' vibes, so I wore some swim trunk-looking shorts and a Hawaiian shirt, which I left unbuttoned. Nothing fancy.

I was just sitting down when the doorbell rang again. Sikowitz rushed across the room and opened the door. On the other side were Jade and Cat, both smiling. Cat looked adorable; she was wearing an oversized pink hoodie that said 'Love' and some plain blue-black leggings. She was also wearing some white Vans and had her hair in a high ponytail with the ends curled. She was adorable. Get your head out of the clouds. 

I shook my head and looked up again, trying to contain my laughter when I saw what Jade was wearing. She had a hot pink zip-up hoodie on, and it was covered in sequins. Underneath, she had a bright pink tank top on with a sparkly unicorn on the front, and under it were the words 'Sparkles and Unicorns'. She was also wearing a poofy, glittery pink skirt with glittery high heels, and her hair was in pigtails. Jade gave me a death glare that said don't say a word and I just shrugged and looked back at Cat.

Sikowitz held his hand out to Jade. "Well hello, little girl. What's your name?"

I could tell that Jade was furious on the inside, but she didn't show it. "Hello there, mister! My name is Lucy Anne Petunia, and I'm nine years old!"

Sikowitz was trying so hard to laugh. "Oh, bravo! Why don't you go sit down, Lucy?" Jade nodded and walked over to one of the chairs across from me, sitting down and crossing her legs. I simply ignored her.

Cat walked up to Sikowitz. "Hi! My name is Cristal Carrington!" Cat giggled and shook Sikowitz's hand before sitting down next to me. She smiled and held out her hand. "Hi! My name is Cristal Carrington. What's your name?"

I smiled. "I'm Cody Marines, it's nice to meet you, Cristal," I smiled and shook her hand. It was so small but not as fragile as you'd think. Cat's head turned to the door and mine did as well when the doorbell rang again. When Sikowitz opened it, Andre, Robbie, and Tori were all standing on the porch. This time, I couldn't control my laughter.

Andre looked like Albert Einstein, with a frizzy gray wig and a lab coat on. He kept looking around shakily, almost like his grandma. Man, that lady was great.

Robbie was in a sandwich costume, and it looked like he just spraypainted the cheese in different colors, since there was rainbow paint all over the sides of the bread too. He was grinning right at Cat, and anger began to build up in my stomach. She's not yours to protect, Beck, and Cat can handle herself. She's strong. I looked away from Robbie.

Tori was wearing the ugliest sweater I had ever seen. It was a maroon color with a puke green tree in the middle and mustard-colored stars all over it. She was wearing giant glasses and had put a fake nose on her actual nose to make it uglier. She definitely looked her part.

It had been about twenty minutes and nothing interesting had happened, if I was being honest. I had mostly just walked around and explored Sikowitz's house, which was just as weird as he was.

I came back downstairs and walked over to the counter, where the chips and dip were sitting. As I was observing Andre and Jade's very interesting conversation, Cat walked up and plucked the chip that I was holding right out of my hand. I laughed. "Excuse me, Miss Cristal, but that is not polite."

Cat giggled. "And neither is this!" She grabbed a few chips and threw them at me.

I gasped. "This is WAR!" I grabbed a handful of chips and threw them at Cat, careful not to hit her face in case a chip hit her eye. Cat laughed and grabbed two large handfuls of chips, crushing one handful over my head and throwing the other at my chest. I smiled wickedly and grabbed another handful of chips, stuffing them down Cat's back.

She gasped and tried to get the chips out of her hoodie. "How dare you, Mister Cody!" Cat finished getting the chips out of her hoodie and grinned evilly. She grabbed the plastic bowl that the salsa was in and threw it at me, leaving my chest drenched in red.

"Oh no you did not!" I grabbed another bowl and dumped the contents onto Cat's head, leaving a green glob on her hair and avocado bits on her face. She gasped, putting her hand to her chest.

"How could you?" Cat laughed and grabbed more chips, throwing them so they stuck to the salsa on my chest.

I faked shock. "How dare you, Miss Cristal? You will pay for that!" I grabbed more chips and crushed them over Cat's head, covering the guacamole with chip crumbs. She giggled, stepping away from the counter slightly.

Cat ran over, wrapping her arms around me briefly before stepping back. "That was really fun!" she laughed, bouncing up and down a little.

I smiled. "Yeah, it was." She'll never know how much else I wanted to say just then.