Nemesis: Chapter 19

Since the day of the barbecue both Lavender and Jessica had been feeling pretty great about themselves. Carl had invited Lavender out on a date to the cinema followed by a late-night trip to a tapas bar. Their chemistry was amazing, they hit it off straight away. Carl admitted to being a bit confused by Lavender's many foibles and idiosyncrasies but found them charming and endearing. Furthermore, she was a great kisser. From Lavender's perspective, Carl perhaps turned on a bit too much of his famous charm whenever their pretty blonde waitress came over to take their order. Lavender made sure that Carl didn't leave her a particularly great tip. On the other hand, Carl appeared to be very considerate and conscientious, furthermore, he was a great listener. She hoped that he wasn't just putting it on for their date. As Lavender did ninety percent of the talking, afterwards she realised that she had learnt very little more about him than she already knew. She vowed that she would have to learn how to play basketball, as despite rarely ever speaking, even Lavender could tell that Carl was completely obsessed.

Jessica and Luke meanwhile, had gone on a date to the park. Jessica had been slightly apprehensive; would anyone recognise her from her previous day out on the lake? But Luke had insisted that they lay this gremlin to rest. Luke surprised her by being far more tender and mature than she had first imagined. He wasn't as hunky as Carl, but she and Luke had far more in common. He vowed to take her out to the ice rink next week, an activity she adored; which the cumbersome Carl surely would never have suggested. The only downside to Luke was that he appeared to be taking advice from his older brother Mike about how to woo girls. As a result, Luke kept buying her flowers, chocolates, jewellery and perfumes which she knew were Rosie's favourites, not hers. She wondered whether there was a polite way to tell him, for he still had a lot to learn about women. At the park, when buying an ice cream, Jessica snogged Luke in full view of Steve, the boy from school who had abandoned her last time at the lake. Pulling her top down an inch, she wanted to show him just how much he was missing.

Luke asked her whether she would like to brave another outing on the lake. Feeling at ease in the midday sun she agreed. Luke hired out a rowing boat and rowed out into the centre off the calm waters. Wanting to sunbathe, Jessica kicked off her sandals and removed her top to reveal a blue bikini underneath. Luke similarly took off his top and laid the oars down, so that the boat floated gently in the lake. Luke stroked her red hair and Jessica stroked the hair on his chest before allowing Luke to move in for a kiss. Feeling parched, Jessica stood up to retrieve a bottle of water from Luke's bag. She turned around to blow him a kiss. Just then a large carp rammed into the side of the boat. Jessica lost her balance and stumbled. Tripping up over one of the oars, she fell over the side of the boat. Disappearing under the surface of the murky water she screamed as the carp swam into her face. Rising to her knees she shrieked as Luke moved to pull her back in. Water shimmered off her hair, slimy algae coated her face and a clump of salvinia got lodged under her bikini over her right breast.

Using all his might, Luke pulled her back up into the boat. Jessica rolled onto her back and lay down panting, trying to catch her breathe. Delicately, Luke tried to pick the fern from her chest, but only managed to pull the bikini away from her chest, giving him an unintended view of her breasts. Jessica, regaining her composure, soon forgave him. Her day hadn't been a disaster, but she sure hoped that her next date would run a lot smoother.

Two days later, she received a phone call from Lavender. The brunette was wondering whether she and Luke would like to go on a double date with her and Carl. Jessica agreed, as long as they didn't go to the park. Carl suggested that they go to the bowling alley before going for a quick bite to eat afterwards. Jessica chose to wear a short shoulderless floral dress which showed off her nimble knees whilst Lavender chose a sleeveless purple top and a black skirt. She was annoyed that Jessica's outfit clearly upstaged hers.

Having arrived at the bowling alley, they were told that they would have to wait twenty minutes for a lane to become free. Luke suggested that they play a game of pool to pass the time. Carl and Luke played first and were very competitive. To raise the stakes, they decided that the loser would have to pay for everyone's meal out afterwards. A close-run game came down to the final ball black which Carl potted from an almost impossible angle. The men shook hands, with Carl crunching down on Luke's weak grip. The Jamaican wanted to show him who was boss. Lavender, pleased that her man had won cheered loudly and kissed him on the lips. Luke looked sheepishly at Jessica, he didn't like being upstaged by the more masculine male. As part of the deal, he went off to buy everyone a milkshake from the fast food outlet in the corner of the bowling arena.

Whilst they waited for Luke, Carl suggested that Lavender and Jessica play a game of pool. "What should the loser have to do?" Jessica asked inquisitively. "How about the loser has two milkshakes tipped over their head?" cackled Lavender, sounding very confident. This was music to Jessica's ears, for she knew that she was the better player. She couldn't believe that her friend had forgotten that the last time that they played, Jessica had won handsomely. Perhaps Lavender had spent hours in the meantime practising. She hadn't. "Plus, they get three pies in the face", Jessica chimed in, desperate to further the loser's forfeit. Carl ran over to Luke to ensure that he bought another couple of milkshakes. He also had to persuade the guy running the milkshake stand to let him borrow some whipped cream and paper plates, but this wasn't too difficult when he told him what it was for.

Lavender won the toss and chose to break. Lavender fluked a yellow into the middle pocket off her first shot, making Jessica become worried that it wasn't going to be her day after all. Slowly but surely, Jessica got herself back into the match. Lavender suddenly remembered that it was Mia, not Jessica that was rubbish at pool. Carl gave her shoulders a squeeze as Luke shouted Jessica some encouragement. Presented with a golden opportunity, feeling the pressure, Lavender missed an easy yellow, potting the cue ball as she did so. Jessica high fived Luke as this allowed her to role in two easy reds. Jessica now only had three reds remaining whilst Lavender still had six yellows left to pot. Feeling confident, Luke sprayed extra-large toppings of cream on each plate and finished them off with large dollops of chocolate sauce.

Almost in complete control, Jessica let doubt creep into her mind. In potting her fifth red, she knocked in one of Lavender's yellows. The extra shot allowed Lavender to finally pot another yellow leaving her four more balls to go, compared to Jessica's two. Jessica was faced with a difficult long pot for her next red, as her final ball was hidden behind two of Lavender's yellows. Feeling confident Jessica decided to go for the long pot. She made clean contact and jumped for joy as the red thumped sweetly into the centre of the pocket. The cue ball screwed back into the centre of the table into a perfect position for her to role in the final red. She turned around to give Luke a kiss on the cheek, when suddenly Lavender screamed in joy. Jessica looked back at the table, what was wrong? Luke looked ashen faced. "Jess, you've potted the black, the cue ball screwed too far back and knocked it into the far corner. You still had one final red to pot, so you've forfeited the game. You've lost."

Jessica couldn't believe it, she had the game won. She was now going to get very messy indeed. Furthermore, it would happen in front of a large crowd of revellers. The guy at the milkshake stand had told some of his customers what they were doing, so a group of rowdy guys had come to watch. Jessica blushed in embarrassment whilst Carl kissed Lavender on the lips. They were going to enjoy this. Lavender picked up the first pie and put her arm around Jessica's shoulders. Posing for the cameras (Jessica spotted at least three people filming her on their phones, plus Carl) Lavender smiled whilst Jess tried to look blasand unflustered. Lavender then slammed the pie into Jessica's face and rubbed it up and down her forehead and cheeks. Lavender gave Jessica enough time to clear her eyes before picking up the first strawberry milkshake and slowly pouring it over Jessica's red hair. The milkshake dripped down onto her bare shoulders and seeped into her dress. Lavender then threw the second chocolate milkshake straight at Jessica's face and poured it down over her forehead. To finish, Lavender gave Jessica a pie sandwich and wiped the paper plates around her face and onto her hair. The crown cheered and then slowly started to disperse. Luke quickly ran to fetch Jessica a towel. His second date with Jessica wasn't going too well either.