Kenny, Ana, Haylie, Nicole, and Jared sat on the stage steps, soaked and sticky.
"Well, you see..." Kenny began.
"What happened was..." Ana started to say.
"It's like this..." added Haylie.
"It's Jared's fault!" said Nicole at the exact same time Jared said, "I didn't do it!"
"Hey, hey, hey! One at a time!" said Flip.
Kenny stood up. "Let me tell you what happened." he said. "It all started when you left me in charge. I was running The P*lace very well...well, the guys helped, too."
Kenny was bustling around The P*lace, serving customers and taking orders. He breezed through the dining room. "Soda? Coming right up. Two sundaes? On their way!" As he dispensed soda from the tap with one hand, he scooped ice cream with the other. When finished with the soda, he extended that hand to another customer. "Burger and fries - that's $5.75, please."
The rest of Kids Incorporated stood lazily in one corner, idly moving mops, brooms and dishrags around. "What are you guys doing?" Kenny complained. "Ana, I asked you to clean one table."
"Gee, look at all the work you did, Ana." Nicole said dryly. She and Ana began snapping towels at each other.
"We sure know how to have fun, don't we?" quipped Jared.
Ana swiped her towel over a table a few times. "There, I did my part." she said.
As Kenny bussed the adjoining tables, he wiped Ana's again. He missed Ana's glare as he returned to the kitchen to add hot dogs to the rotating grill.
"Can I get some popcorn?" a customer asked.
No one moved. "I'll get right on it." Haylie said, absently picking apart the mop threads.
"No, let me." said Jared, and continued staring into space.
But Kenny was already searching for the popcorn kernels and oil. The rest of Kids Inc's feet were falling asleep, so they shuffled over to the counter.
The phone rang. Everyone looked to someone else to answer it. Eventually, they all began looking toward Nicole, who was closest. She sighed and grudgingly picked it up. "P*lace." she said. Then she perked up. "Oh, hello, Flip!"
Instantly, everyone pretended to be busy, grabbing random dishes from the counter and attempting to serve them to everyone until they found the right customer.
Nicole watched as Kenny flew into high gear, rerouting mismatched orders and skating on paper towels as he cleaned up a spill. "Yeah, Kenny's doing something." she said into the phone. "Half an hour? Okay."
Kenny came back with a stack of dishes. "What did Flip say?"
He's coming back."
"I'm still waiting for my popcorn." a customer piped up.
"Yeah, yeah, popcorn! Could one of you guys get the popcorn?" said Kenny. He tried to coax the customer back to their seat with promises of buttery popcorn.
There was already some popcorn in the popper, so Ana added some oil. Then she wandered off to complain to Kenny about him ordering her around.
Nicole was moping by the phone under the pretense of monitoring it, just in case it should ring. It didn't, so she put some popcorn and oil in the popper before the hungry customer returned.
Haylie and Jared were arguing. "Flip gave you the broom before he left." she said as she added oil to the popcorn popper.
The aforementioned broom clattered to the floor. "You're supposed to mop first." Jared insisted. As Haylie bent to pick up the broom, she handed Jared the bottle of oil. Not wanting to get it on his hands, he put it on the counter next to the popper - but it was unsteady, and toppled over.
"What? Who mops before they sweep?" said Haylie as she turned on the popper. "You're supposed to sweep first, so I don't get all crummy stuff in the mop."
They continued arguing, not noticing all the oil bubbling menacingly. Kenny came back to fill some orders, and Ana followed him with her list of grievances.
Nicole was camped out by the phone. "Do you smell something burning?"
BOOM!
The hot oil from the popcorn popper had reached its boiling point and shot the lid clean off. As luck would have it, it hit one of the lights, shattering the glass and sending freaked-out customers scurrying. Oil flooded the bottom of all the hot appliances plugged in on the counter, starting a grease fire.
"Fire!" yelled Kenny. Grabbing a towel, he began trying to beat down the flames. Unfortunately, the smoke was so thick that he couldn't see. He hit the shake machine and ice cream and milk sprayed everywhere. Anyone who hadn't left was now covered in froth.
"Now what?" asked Haylie. The sprinkler system went off.
The P*lace was a mess. Ice cream was dripping from the ceiling. As Flip walked in with a look of astonishment and disgust on his face, he nearly slipped on sprinkles and chopped nuts that had spilled all over the floor. "What on EARTH happened here?!" he asked.
"...and that's what happened." Kenny finished.
"Really?" said Flip.
The other Kids began voicing their disgust. "That is so not what happened!" Ana said.
"Well, some of that happened," Haylie started to say, "but-"
"I'll tell you how it really happened. " said Ana. She began her tale.
Everyone watched Ana as she bustled around The P*lace with amazing efficiency, taking orders and dishes without forgetting one.
Kenny trailed behind in her wake, trying to keep up. "Soda, coming right up. Two sundaes on their way. Burger and fries, that's $5.75, please." he mumbled as he hurried to the counter.
Feeling tired, he slumped onto a stool. "What are you guys doing?" he asked the other kids.
Haylie was slowly mopping the same two floor tiles over and over. Nicole was dunking her dishtowel into a bucket of soapy water, taking it out to watch it drip, then doing the whole thing again. Jared had dozed off on his pushbroom. There wasn't anything to wash - Ana had cleaned all of the tables around them.
"Ana, I asked you to clean one table." Kenny whined.
"Gee, look at all the work you did, Ana!" said Nicole. She pretended to present her own towel to Ana as a token of gratitude. Ana laughed and draped her towel over Nicole's head.
"We sure know how to have fun, don't we?" quipped Jared.
Ana pushed in a few chairs and placed a vase of artificial flowers on each table. "There. I did my part." she said. As she turned away, Kenny mocked her silently and the kids laughed.
"Can I get some popcorn?" a customer asked. He looked at the kids who were just standing there.
"I'll get right on it." said Haylie, leaping up.
"No, let me!" said Jared as he cut in front of her.
Ana went to get the popcorn, but Kenny was angry that she had left them all in the dust, so he snatched it from her. Unfortunately, he couldn't figure out how to operate the popper. Seeing something to do at last, the rest of Kids Inc. hurried to the counter.
The phone rang. Everyone scrambled to get it, but Nicole was closest, so she won. "P*lace. Oh, hi, Flip!" Everyone began loudly pretending they had something to do, shouting out random orders and banging dishes.
Nicole looked at Kenny trying in vain to find out where the popcorn went. "Yeah, Kenny's doing something." she said to Flip. "Half an hour? Okay."
"What did Flip say?" asked Kenny.
"He's coming back."
"I'm still waiting for my popcorn." a customer piped up.
"Yeah, yeah, popcorn!" Kenny said to himself. He added the popcorn and oil, turned on the popper...but nothing happened. "Could one of you guys get the popcorn?"
Nicole added some more popcorn and oil, figuring by the time they got it working, that customer would be really hungry. Ana reassured the customer that he would get his popcorn, and put some oil in the correct spot...but before she could finish, three new customers came in, and she dropped what she was doing so she could wait on them.
Haylie and Jared were arguing. "Flip gave you the broom before he left." she said as she added oil to the popcorn popper. She attempted to keep the mop out of his reach and pushed the broom on him instead.
The aforementioned broom clattered to the floor as Jared reached for the mop. "You're supposed to mop first." Jared insisted. As Haylie bent to pick up the broom, she handed Jared the bottle of oil. Not wanting to get it on his hands, he put it on the counter next to the popper - but it was unsteady, and toppled over.
"What? Who mops before they sweep?" said Haylie as she turned on the popper. "You're supposed to sweep first, so I don't get all crummy stuff in the mop."
They continued arguing, not noticing all the oil bubbling menacingly. Ana came back to get some food, and Kenny followed her.
Nicole was camped out by the phone. "Do you smell something burning?"
BOOM!
The hot oil from the popcorn popper had reached its boiling point and shot the lid clean off. As luck would have it, it hit one of the lights, shattering the glass and sending freaked-out customers scurrying. Oil flooded the bottom of all the hot appliances plugged in on the counter, starting a grease fire.
"Fire!" yelled Kenny.
Ana heroically grabbed a towel and began trying to beat down the flames. Unfortunately, the smoke was so thick that she couldn't see. She hit the shake machine and ice cream and milk sprayed everywhere. Anyone who hadn't left was now covered in froth.
"Now what?" asked Haylie. The sprinkler system went off.
The P*lace was a mess. Ice cream was dripping from the ceiling. As Flip walked in with a look of astonishment and disgust on his face, he nearly slipped on sprinkles and chopped nuts that had spilled all over the floor. "What on EARTH happened here?!" he asked.
Flip was beginning to get suspicious. "Are you sure that's what happened?"
"Positive." said Ana.
"What?!" said Kenny. "No way! Not even close!"
Haylie tried again. "That's not what happened, either." she said.
"Okay, you know what? No one's going anywhere until I find out what happened!" Flip said angrily. "I'm going to clean this mess up. Someone had better come forward with the truth by the time I'm finished!"
Kids Inc. slunk off to the storeroom to continue arguing. "Why would you tell Flip something like that?" Ana asked Kenny angrily. "You know I did more work than you did."
"Sounds like another one of your stories to me!" Kenny shot back. "You're the one spinning tall tales."
"Why did everybody blame me?" asked Jared. "I didn't do anything!"
"You did too, Jared." said Nicole.
"C'mon," said Haylie, "we were all equally guilty."
"That's not how I remember it." Kenny insisted.
"Me, neither." Ana added.
"It doesn't matter who did what! We're all in trouble, anyway." Haylie continued. "Flip's really mad."
"You were there, Haylie." Ana said to her. "You saw what happened."
Kenny pushed her aside. "Wasn't I telling the truth?"
"NO!" said everyone else.
"I wouldn't say it was all wrong." Haylie said.
"And me?" Ana asked.
"You got some things right, too."
"Then what really did happen?" asked Nicole.
The P*lace was bustling with activity. Kids Incorporated was scattered throughout, trying to deal with the throngs of customers.
"Soda? Coming right up." said Kenny as he carried a stack of dishes to the counter. He passed Ana with a tray full of ice cream. Two sundaes? On their way!"
Haylie and Jared were over in the stage section, mopping and sweeping respectively. Jared hefted a huge garbage bag and made his way out the stage door - but it was leaking, and Haylie had to follow behind him with the mop.
Nicole was plating various sandwiches at the counter when Kenny reached it. "Burger and fries - that's $5.75, please." he said as the receipt came out of the cash register.
Jared and Haylie had returned and were wiping down tables. "What are you guys doing?" Kenny complained. "Ana, I asked you to clean one table."
But Ana was indeed cleaning tables, as well as filling drinks.
"Gee, look at all the work you did, Ana." Nicole said as Ana came back to the counter with an armful of dishes.
"We sure know how to have fun, don't we?" quipped Jared as he emptied his dustpan. Everyone laughed.
Ana plunked herself down on a barstool, exhausted. "There, I did my part." she said.
The rest of the kids began to need a break as well. But the customers didn't stop coming. "Can I get some popcorn?" a customer asked.
"I'll get right on it." Haylie snorted.
"No, let me." Jared rolled his eyes.
The phone rang, and everyone groaned. Nicole was closest, so she answered it. "P*lace." Then she perked up. "Oh, hello, Flip!" Everyone instantly went straight back to work.
Nicole was trying to open stubborn ice cream tubs while cradling the phone. "Yeah." The lid fell, so she was slowly losing patience with Flip as she bent down to retrieve it. "Kenny's doing something. Half an hour? Okay."
"What did Flip say?" Kenny called from the other end of the counter.
"He's coming back!"
"I'm still waiting on that popcorn." said the impatient customer.
"Yeah, yeah, popcorn!" snapped Kenny. He had his hands full, so he wasn't available. "Could one of you guys get the popcorn?" he pleaded.
Nicole put oil in the popcorn popper and started to add the popcorn, but the french fries were burning, so she had to stop. Ana came by and added popcorn, but she didn't see Nicole add oil, so she also put some in.
Haylie and Jared were arguing. "Flip gave you the broom before he left." she said as she added oil to the popcorn popper.
The aforementioned broom clattered to the floor. "You're supposed to mop first." Jared insisted. As Haylie bent to pick up the broom, she handed Jared the bottle of oil. Not wanting to get it on his hands, he put it on the counter next to the popper - but it was unsteady, and toppled over.
"What? Who mops before they sweep?" said Haylie as she turned on the popper. "You're supposed to sweep first, so I don't get all crummy stuff in the mop." They continued arguing, not noticing all the oil bubbling menacingly.
By now, the customers had forced Kenny and Ana back to the front as well with their demands. As they were scrambling to fill orders, Nicole stopped. "Do you smell something burning?"
BOOM!
The hot oil from the popcorn popper had reached its boiling point and shot the lid clean off. As luck would have it, it hit one of the lights, shattering the glass and sending freaked-out customers scurrying. Oil flooded the bottom of all the hot appliances plugged in on the counter, starting a grease fire.
"Fire!" yelled Kenny.
Everyone immediately began trying to beat down the flames with whatever they could find. Kenny tried to use a dishtowel, but the smoke was so thick that he couldn't see. They wrapped towels around Haylie's mop instead and used the long handle to avoid the fire. Unfortunately, everyone tried to swing the mop in a different direction. They hit the shake machine and ice cream and milk sprayed everywhere. Anyone who hadn't left was now covered in froth.
"Now what?" asked Haylie. The sprinkler system went off.
The P*lace was a mess. Ice cream was dripping from the ceiling. As Flip walked in with a look of astonishment and disgust on his face, he nearly slipped on sprinkles and chopped nuts that had spilled all over the floor. "What on EARTH happened here?!" he asked.
Flip didn't say anything as Haylie told him this version of the story. The more she told, the more Kids Inc. realized it sounded a lot closer to the truth than the other stories had.
"...that's what happened - really." said Haylie.
"I guess I really did do it." Jared said sadly.
"It's not your fault." Haylie said to him. "I wasn't watching, either."
"Why did we all tell a different story?" Ana wondered.
"Oh, well that's just human nature." said Flip. "The brain constructs things in a hurry to try to make sense of them. Plus no one wanted to be blamed." he added.
"We're sorry, Flip." said Kenny, and everyone echoed him.
"It's all right. Accidents happen. Accidents like that, however, only happen once in a lifetime if we're lucky!" They laughed as they left The P*lace arm in arm. "By the way, did that guy ever get his popcorn?"
The End
