As Rachel reached her room, she heard the phone ring in the kitchen. She sprinted at full throttle and managed to grab the cordless before it reached the 3rd ring. She picked it up and answered quickly.
"Hello? Rachel speaking." She invited sweetly, almost sounding like a completely different person. Almost angelic. "Hi Rachel. It's Zac." Rachel beamed. "Oh! Hi Zac! How are you?" She smiled to herself. The boy on the other end of the line, who sounded about 13 laughed. "I'm okay. You?" "I'm great, now that you called." Zac snorted goofily. "Wow. I'm honored."
"You should be!" Rachel twirled the drawstrings on her nightie pants as she wondered how to ask Zac to convince Tay to come shopping with them. She knew he'd ask for an explanation, and then her plan would be out. But maybe, if I tell Zac, then he could help me hook them up! She smiled and patted the drawstrings down. Rachel, you are a genius!
"Um, Rach? You there??" Only after a couple seconds did Rachel realize that Zac had been trying to get her attention for the past 2 minutes. She laughed shyly.
"Ooops, sorry Zac. I was just thinking. What were you saying?"
Zac laughed. "No prob. I was just saying that I was excited about our mall trip tomorrow, and I was thinking that we could catch a movie, go for some lunch, shop for a few hours, and then go for dinner at, say, Mario's?"
Rachel gasped. "That really expensive Italian place??" Woah, this kid's really going the whole nine yards!
"Yeah, and then we could come over to my place and play some games, and maybe have a sleepover. What'cha think? You game?"
Rachel sighed, thinking about how dreamy this was, and then was once more snapped from her daydream by the tricky question of taking her sister.
"Oh, I'm game alright." She said excitedly. "But Zac? I have a favor to ask you."
Zac sighed. "No, I will not streak across an international highway, or allow myself to be plowed down by a cement truck-"
Rachel laughed. "No dear, that's not the kind of favor I had in mind." Zac laughed as well, and then became oddly silent. "So, shoot. What's this huge favor?"
"Well," Rachel was trying to plan her words perfectly so that there would be less question asking, and more plan making. Suddenly, the right words hit her. "Well, I was just wondering if you could bring Taylor along. I have a blindie for him."
She silently prayed that Zac would catch the hint of slyness in her voice and ask who. "Ahh, a blind date." Zac laughed evilly. "And who might the lucky girl be?"
Bingo! "It's my sister, Tanner. She's really been having a hard time with all the disappearances lately, and I thought that this would be the perfect way to get her mind off things for a while." She grimaced, expecting the worst for his answer.
Suddenly, he laughed. Exactly the opposite of what she was expecting him to do. "Sure Rach. I'll bring him along if I have to drag him down on a leash!"
Rachel sighed deeply with thankfulness. "Thanks Zac. I knew I could count on you." Zac suddenly got very serious and growled deeply. "I hope that this doesn't interfere with our romantic plans for the day." Rachel smiled and laughed, halfheartedly. "It won't, I promise. But hey, let's talk about this tonight, in the park, where no one can eavesdrop." "I'm all for the park." Rachel laughed. "8:30 at the park then? White bench on the left?" Rachel opened her mouth to change the plan, but Zac beat her to it.
"How about I meet you at your door, and we walk down together. The park is a long way off…" Zac objected as Rachel closed her mouth. "Deal. My doorstep at 8:30."
Zac laughed and agreed. "Yup, 8:30 it is!" "Okay, well Tanner is coming upstairs, so I gotta go. I'll see you at then." Rachel became finicky as her sister began to slowly make her way up the windy stairs.
"Okay, see ya babe. Love you." Zac blew her a phone kiss. She smiled. "Love you too, Zachy. Byebyez!" She blew him a kiss back, and hung up just as her sister reached the top step. "Hey Tanner. What's up?" Rachel covered up her excited feeling with a solemn grin and greeted her sister warmly.
Tanner looked up at her and smiled. The first genuine smile that Rachel had seen from the blond in a long time. "I'm okay. I was just talking to Jas, and she told me that she and Robbie might be breaking up."
Rachel tsked slowly and shook her head. "I knew it was coming. I mean, after she caught him with Amanda, I knew it was over." "Yeah. Well, it's destined." Rachel laughed. "Yeah, hey I'm going out with Zac tonight, so will you answer my phone and take messages?"
Tanner nodded. "Sure thing." She smiled and hugged her sister. "And Tanner?" Her sister spun to face her. "Yeah?" Rachel smiled, looking like a stern mother. "Be good while I'm gone." "I will. Promise." Tanner let go of Rachel and smiled.
Rachel nodded and walked down to her room to change. She smiled to herself as she imagined the look on her sisters face when she met Taylor. Love at first sight. Yeah, there would be some major sparks.
Rachel looked at her watch and almost keeled over. It was 8:15! She had 15 minutes before Zac was gonna show up, and she was still in her pj's from the night before. Not like she had anyplace to go all day anymore.
She ran full speed down to her room and threw open her closet. "SHIT!" she screamed as she remebered that today was laundry day. Tanner always took all of her clothes on Thursday and washed them. She had to think fast.
JASMINE!! She would just borrow an outfit of Jasmine's and pray that she didn't look like a hooker. It was a pretty warm night, so the weather wouldn't be a downfall.
She ran to Jasmine's closet and scoured the long lines of spandex and aerobics outfits. Man! She thought to herself as she noticed some of the outrageous things her sister wore. Only Jasmine or Tanner could wear stuff like this and get away with it!
She quickly grabbed a hot pink stretch top, a pair of black bike shorts with a hot pink stripe going down the thighs, and a pair of matching sneakers. She threw on the clothes, ripped a brush through her hair, gave herself a once over, and after approving her refection, she ran upstairs to the front door.
The second she reached it, the doorbell rang. She opened it, and surely enough, it was Zac.
"Hey." She greeted, opening the door wide enough so that Zac could squeeze in. He entered and almost died.
"Um, nice outfit Rachel." He managed to choke out as his eyes slowly wandered up and down the almost second skin that Rachel stole.
Rachel blushed. "Well, all of my clothes being washed, and I had no other stuff, so I borrowed some of Jasmine's stuff. I hope you don't think I'm a hooker, or something." She looked down at her feet.
He shook his head violently and smiled. "No way. You look great." He tried to change the subject fast, even though his mind was still molded to Rachel. Almost like those bike shorts- Snap out of it Zac. He told himself quickly as Rachel stood up.
"You ready to go?" She asked as she slowly pulled her unruly spandex top down. She growled. "Should've scoured Tanner's closet. At least her mini-skirts don't hike up all the time!"
Just as Rachel mentioned her name, Tanner went flying around the corner at the sound of a ringing telephone. "I'M COMING!!!!!" She screamed as she tore down the halls and up the stairs to her sisters room. Zac smiled. "Tanner?" He asked almost having a fit with laughter at the girls total obliviousness to his presence.
Rachel nodded, also laughing. "Tanner." As she turned to face her date, she couldn't help but notice how cute he was. He was wearing a pair of jeans, and a white T covered by a blue and white plaid over shirt. She didn't know that she was staring until, embarrassingly enough, Zac tickled her.
"You enjoying my abs there, Rach?" He laughed as Rachel blushed madly. "Can we just go?" She asked, her face turning a deep shade of crimson as he offered her his hand. "We can." He smiled and opened the door for her. "And with that, they were of to the park.
Tanner watched as the two left. They are so cute together. If only I had someone like that. She just shook her head and walked away down the hall to do more laundry.
