~untitled~

Thank you to everyone that has reviewed so far, and especially to those who like and appreciate the concept of the RenGeek (which I still say is mostly fictional and that the majority of my fellow Faire workers are not like that, which is sometimes unfortunate).
To TC, yes, she can indeed kick ass to a certain extent, which is part of what makes Lori cool. However, I’ll give you this hint that Brittany is only meant to be a temporary antagonist. Most people won’t be able to guess who the bad guy in the future of the story is gonna end up as.
And ON WITH THE STORY, lol

Lori looked back at the counter again, tapping her empty cup on the tabletop as Jane excused herself to the restroom. It had been about thirty minutes, all of which seemed to consist of fashion talk and a few tidbits of gossip, and the girl was more than bored. Karen really hadn’t been kidding when she’d claimed that the school should sue Hollywood for identity theft. These girls took the stereotype to the extreme sometimes.

“So… why do you come here if Brit and Karen argue so much. I would think that you wouldn’t want to come here because of that. Especially since you kinda act like you don’t completely scorn her.” Lori raised her brows at Ashley, curious.

“I don’t. I miss her, but that’s it really. We were good friends when we were little kids, but time happened, yanno?” Ashley sighed and smiled softly. “And Brittany likes coming here because Karen’s a barrista. She hates Karen, for various reasons, the top of which being that Karen refuses to bow down to her. It makes her practically giggle to order Karen around and leave messes for them to clean up and everything.” Lori frowned at the thought, looking into her empty plastic cup and determining to throw it, and any other trash that they made, away. “I don’t ever feel too bad about it though. Karen spits in Brittany’s drink and uses dirty cups or mugs for them. It makes Jane and I all warm and fuzzy inside… but we always make sure to leave good tips, just in case.”

Lori’s eyes widened and she almost snorted, holding her laugh in. It made her suddenly happy, to an extent, that the rest of the Cheer squad was supposedly meeting them there once school let out. Shaking her head, she stood, still smiling, and rattled the straw in her empty cup as a signal that she was off to get some more. “Big tips, got it.”

The boy at the counter looked her over slowly at first, raising both brows and smiling in a way that wasn’t quite suggestive, but was in a way mischievously knowing. She tossed her dirty plastic cup into the nearby trash-bin, and then looked up at the menu. “How can I help you, ma’am?”

“Hmph, you make me sound so old.” She teased, smiling, then gestured with her head over to where Karen was refilling some espresso beans into the grinder. “Could you grab her for me… um, and not in the physical way?”

He chuckled and nodded, winking at her. “Oy! Ryn! The pom-pom wants to talk to ya.” He moved away from the register then, chuckling, as Karen glowered and left her task for him to finish. Lori was blushing slightly at being called a pom-pom, but smiling.

“Hey.” Karen merely raised her eyebrows and waited for the order. “So you never told me you were with the RenGeeks. Why’s he call you Ryn? That your character or something?”

“Or something. Didn’t think it was something I was supposed to tell you, girlie.” Karen smirked and shrugged, leaning as well. The assistant manager was glowering, but Lori was a customer, so she had the excuse to slack a little bit. “Whatcha want?”

“I’m not sure if I should order until I know you like me, or at least don’t hate me. There’s rumors. Rumors involving BitchBrit.” Lori grinned, and Karen actually laughed. “Fair warning, she’s probably on her way. Oh, another fair warning, I think you’re funny and nice, so I’m not going to leave you alone now.”

“Your funeral.” Karen shrugged, though she looked less than completely thrilled. “What do ya wanna drink?”

“Don’t really know… any suggestions?” Lori squinted up at the menu, then smiled at her.

Karen looked her over briefly again, then raised her brows with a smirk that matched the boy’s from before. “Trust me?”

“Don’t know if I should… but what the hell.” Lori chuckled slightly and leaned on the counter a bit.

“Four-fifty. Don’t worry, you’ll love it.” She took the five from the girl, and watched as another dollar-fifty was dropped into the tip container before Lori moved down to the bar area. “Thanks, I guess.”

“You’ll get a bitter one if I like it. Not like I can’t afford to tip properly.”

“Mouse, get me the stuff for a Crimson Unicorn, eh?” Karen suggested as they passed each other again and she started setting up a cup and blender. Lori was a little surprised when that made the boy trip. “You’re not diabetic, are you? No heart problems? Any allergies?” Lori could only shake her head, surprised. Glancing over at the manager, the young man shook his head in disgust and moved away to buff some tables. An array of ingredients, including a couple of spices like cinnamon and unmarked shakers, was set out before Karen. As an off-white syrup was swirled around the walls of the blender, a cup of ice, some chopped strawberries, and other things went tumbling in for the drink, Lori’s curiosity grew.

“I’d ask what you’re putting in, but I already know you wouldn’t tell me.” She peeked around at some of the unmarked shakers, barely able to identify the scent of cloves coming from one… kind of. And at the end, the girl used an eye-dropper from a strange bottle that was in her own pocket to dribble a few drops of something in there. It blended into a dark-pink, almost reddish color, smooth, and she dumped that into a cup without preamble, topping it with whipped cream. Her eyes widened at the first taste of it, and she stared at Karen, who was cleaning up now. “Dear lord I could fall in love with you just for this drink.”

“Watch your mouth, kid, the other pompoms just got in.”

Lori smiled at Karen’s back, then passed by the tip jar and tossed another few dollars in before sitting with the rest of the cheerleaders. She had no clue what all had been put in, but it was the perfect mix of tart and sweet, with hints of spices and strawberry, and chocolate, and other flavors she couldn’t quite identify. She hadn’t even seen the girl put any chocolate in.

“So, Lori, how are you liking our lovely school?” Brittany asked with a broad, frightening smile. “Ashley’s been treating you well, I trust?”

“You can trust.” Lori answered with a grin, confusing the hell out of Brit in the process. Half of the squad went up, ordering drinks and leaving behind Brittany and those who didn’t want anything yet. “So I hear that Ashley’s likely to make captain again next year.” Lori innocently sipped at what remained of her drink.

Ashley was sending her a glare that said to watch what she was talking about, but Brittany managed to handle herself well. She just smiled grimly, her eyes shining with malice, and nodded. “I can only hope she can handle it well, she’s so used to having a partner.” Lori smiled innocently back. “Would you mind getting me a drink? I’d wanted to talk about something with Ashley.”

“Not a problem. What did you want? On me.” Lori grinned even more broadly and stood, finishing off her unicorn and tossing it into the nearby bin. The offer surprised everyone at the table, who had been much more aware of her dislike for the older girl than Brit was herself. As soon as she had the order, she waltzed up to the counter, and winked at the boy on the register again. “I’ve got an order from your favorite customer. Brittany would pretty please like a venti zebra mocha, with white chocolate drizzled on top. Go ahead and put it in a mug too, so she can see the pretty drizzles.” The boy raised his eyebrows and smirked at her, ringing it in, even more surprised when she offered her own money, and tipped well. “She’ll make it all special for the fearless leader of Cheer?”

“You got it pompom, and damn if you didn’t just earn my love.” He laughed, and moved over to tell Karen personally. Lori nodded and moved more slowly to the counter where the drink would be set. “Pretty pompom’s got the heart of a hidden guild member. This is the order for Queen Brit, and she asked very sweetly and very expensively that you make it very special.”

Karen shook her head and smirked, letting out a sigh and moving to snag one of the unwashed mugs from the row they were set in, ready for washing. “Girl is just not a typical pompom.”

TBC