Alex stepped out of the door to the basement’s school, shutting it and bolting the chains behind him. He did so quietly, not because he was afraid of somebody hearing him, but because it felt right—natural almost—to leave the silence undisturbed. The sky was darker now and the parking lot was empty, save for a cold breeze scattering trash across its vast black sea. Alex walked up the steps, because the basement door was situated in a small alcove dug into the ground, and leaned against the top railing.
“Must be getting close to the end of practice,” he thought to himself, noting the silhouettes of the cheerleaders breaking apart in the distant field. It had taken him almost four hours to carry every box and barrel of Crystal Light into the basement and he had the sweat sticking to his shirt to prove it. Luckily, nobody had apparently seen him and the breeze tingling through his skin was enough to cool him off. So he stood there, arms folded across his chest, waiting for Cordelia. He let out a deep sigh. It was the first time he ever found himself waiting for a girl.
“You look exhausted,” came a voice out of nowhere.
Alex looked around. He spotted a figure by the corner of the school, traces of shady blonde hair dancing in the wind. For a moment, he thought it was Cordelia and almost called out to her. But his eyes adjusted to the fading sun, he realized it was only Liz, alone in the shadows. She stood in her red and white cheerleading uniform, the mini-skirt at her thighs fluttering like a loose flag in the wind. She held a water bottle in one hand.
“What do you want, Liz?” Alex grumbled.
She stepped closer, blotting out the crimson sun with her head. “I came to help…”
“It’s too late. The Crystal Light is safely secured in the basement of the school and Cordelia’s wasted the semi.” He glared at her, though it became more of a squint now because the rays of the sun had peeked around her shoulder and blinded him. “I’m just waiting for her to show up. So go now. Go on with your meaningless life. There’s your car, your keys are in the ignition, nobody is stopping you. Just go.”
“But Alex—”
“It’s over, Liz. You almost cost me my life today. But rest easy, for I have saved both of our lives, so you can wake up tomorrow and go back to never seeing me again. And I’ll slip back into the shadows and you can continue being the rich, popular, the-world-revolves-around-me snob you’ve always been. Don’t bother thanking me. I just want you to go.”
Liz finally stepped out of the shadows and her face was damp with tears. “…Cordelia never showed up practice.”
“What?”
“I’ve been calling her cell phone for an hour. She’s not answering.” Liz was crying now and standing so close to Alex that he couldn’t turn away. “What did you do to her!?”
“I-I just told her to find a safe place to hide the semi,” he stammered, but it was obvious from the doleful expression bleeding down her face that those words were of no comfort.
“I never asked to be a part of this,” she cried, clutching the collar of his shirt. “You made me do it! You made me steal the semi and get my best friend killed!”
“Whoa, calm down! Liz, I’m sure Cordelia’s not dead. This is rated PG-13.”
She spun him around and pinned him against the brick wall of the school, whispering cold and sexy into his ear, “It’s not fair. You’re the one who deserves to be dead. For all you’ve put us through when we only wanted help. Agent Cheer is not a happy girl.”
“Liz, stop. I don’t want to hurt you.”
“Oh, but you have,” she hissed, unspinning the cap of the water bottle. “No more tears, Alex.” She grabbed his chin, prying open his mouth, and dumped the contents of the bottle over his lips. He choked on the water, most of it missing his mouth completely, and seized Liz’s wrists. She cried out. Falling backwards, they wrestled to the ground.
“Liz!” Alex screamed, trying to hold her down. “Liz, stop it! Listen to me!” He couldn’t restrain her. She was too angry, too hostile. At least, that’s what Alex thought at first. But as he kept her pinned down, wild strands of her sticking to both their foreheads, he realized she was hysterical with laughter.
“What’s so damn funny!?” Alex demanded, spinning her over onto her back. Then he noticed a strange, but sweet, taste on his lips. He puckered them, licking the crusty sides with the tip of his tongue. The water she had doused him with, it tasted like…
His heart stopped. Lemons.
“No, Liz…” he whispered, pushing off her and staring down at his hands.
She continued to laugh while on the ground. “Yeah, I saved a little Crystal Light to drink at practice today. I figured you wanted to finish it for me.”
“But…what about Cordelia!? She might be in trouble!”
Liz sat up. “Whatever kind of trouble Cori is in, I’m sure she’d be much better off without your help.”
Alex was feeling the shrinking kick in now. He started to run across the parking lot, but the road was a mile away and he could feel it getting further and further away with every step. He looked over her shoulder to see Liz walking towards him, slowly, her hair still blowing in the wind. Stumbling over a speed bump, Alex fell towards the hard concrete, cutting his cheek as he landed.
“Oh, shit…” was all he could mumble into the cement, knowing what was coming next. Liz’s sneakers landed on either side of him, which were both the size of trailers—the big kind, that rednecks live in—and her shoestrings dangled over him like thick ropes. He craned his neck upwards, past her tanned legs and her blowing mini-skirt, to her face that was staring down at him.
“I guess you were right about Crystal Light shrinking only guys,” she thundered from above. “I drank about as much as you and I feel taller than ever!”
Her voice was now more loud and annoying than ever. How Alex wished he could cover her ears, but she didn’t give him a chance as she scooped him up, locking her fingers around his tiny body, and dropped him into her water bottle. He hit the plastic bottom with a thud.
“This would be a great time to apologize to me,” she said, “but unfortunately, I don’t feel like hearing it.” With that, she screwed the top back on the bottle and began walking towards the blackened sunset.