Anaysh hated play dates. He tied his shoelaces
already deciding to hate Rochelle, the new kid
in town. If only Mother knew how stuck-up she
was! Everyone in his school knew this. As he
turned around to get his coat, Mithun shot water
at his new red vest, specially selected for the
occasion. He had finally relented to wearing it
only upon his mother's insistence. "Mithun!"
yelled Anaysh as he chased him around the house,
hating having to entertain such childishness at
his grand old age of eleven. Whoever said having
a younger brother was fun! Anaysh snatched the
water gun from Mithun and dumped it behind the
bushes out in front of the house. He could hear
Mithun's cry erupt into a wail which would soon
be accompanied by kicking and screaming. Anaysh
quickly escaped through the kitchen door and
walked down the street to the park.
"Hey, Anaysh! Not off on your date yet?"
teased Donovan, his classmate, joining him.
Anaysh walked on and pretended not to hear.
"Come on, I was just kidding," he continued.
"Drop it, Don! I'm not in the mood for any of
your tricks," warned Anaysh.
Donovan retrieved a plastic rose from his
shirt pocket and twirled it around,
enticing
Anaysh to ask about it. Anaysh continued staring
at it, not understanding how a plastic flower
could be of use to him. "That's where you're
wrong. You know how Rochelle is. You could
put Rochelle in her place with this. Her
mother would surely hit the roof when she comes
to hear of it," he finished.
The rose had a tiny button on its short stem,
hidden from view by one of its leaves. When
Donovan pressed it, the petals opened up with a
jerk, revealing a tiny tube inside. "You fill it
with water and when she presses it, it squirts
water all over her," he said.
Anaysh liked the sound of it. Perhaps, this
was the perfect plan to put an end to any more
play dates with girls. |