The Adventures Of AKA (Part 2)

“Can we PLEASE get back on track? Please?” said Kayla.
“Yeah,” Melissa answered. “But we’re waiting on Ava. Ava, are you done?”
“Almost,” she said. “But the ducks won’t eat! I’m throwing the bread but they just swim away!”
“Ava, they’re probably full. Don’t feed them too much. Come on, let’s go,” I said. Everyone agreed and we continued our journey.
“Listen, guys,” said Ava. “Can we stop for a moment? I’m kind of thirsty.”
“Yes,” said Kayla, half-smiling. She took out a can of soda. “You know,” she said, looking at me, “soda is way better than plain old water.”
“The taste is better,” said Melissa. “But water is way healthier than soda. Plus, soda is just overrated.”
Kayla turned pale. “I’m not even talking about you. I’m talking about Aadya.”
“I know, Kayla. I’m just saying that you’re being mean to Aadya. I usually don’t like mean people.”
“Sorry, Melissa. I didn’t want to be rude. PLEASE forgive me! UGH! I’ll hate myself forever now!!” apologized Kayla. How dramatic.
“Guys! We were supposed to be back by noon, and it’s almost 11:45! We’re not even halfway done! Let’s keep on going!” explained Ava.
The four of us continued. We passed many things: giant boulders, deer, puddles of water, and even a turtle. I jerked my bike’s handle 90 degrees to avoid puddles. Melissa was struggling too, but I could tell it was harder for her since her bike was really big. “Melissa!” I called out. “Are you doing okay? Do you want to switch bikes?”
“No, I’m fine,” she said, breathing heavily. “But thanks for asking.”
A few minutes later, we were almost done. We could see the bridge that takes us to the highway. Suddenly, Melissa’s bike smashed into Kayla’s back tire, and they both fell into a puddle. Kayla was able to save herself by grasping Ava’s bike, which was passing by. Sad news for Melissa, though.
Melissa was loudly crying. I could tell that she was bleeding somewhere, due to the red tint of the puddle’s water. We all rushed to her and picked her up.
A man came by and picked up Melissa’s bike for her. He parked it in a nearby spot. “You girls okay?” he asked.
“We’ve had a little accident,” I explained.
Luckily, Kayla found a piece of cloth in her basket and tied it around Melissa’s wound.
“I knew that would come in handy one day,” she said. “I guess I saved your arm, Melissa.”
“Yeah,” said Melissa. “Thanks for that.”
Finally, we got under the bridge. On the bridge, there were lots of cars zooming by. To this day, I still worry that it’ll collapse. Kayla and I used to be best friends, and every weekend we came riding our bikes here.
“Hey, Kayla,” I said. “Do you remember when you thought there were ghosts over here?”
“What?!” Kayla scowls, embarrassed. “I wasn’t!”
“Okay,” I said, regretting my previous comment. I don’t want to embarrass her, but the truth is, she was scared. I was, too. It was kind of fun to imagine where the ghosts would be and plan escape routes.
Melissa glanced at me for a second. “Aadya,” she whispered, “I need to tell you something.”
Melissa pointed to a dog walking nearby. “Look, guys,” she said. “Kayla, isn’t that your favorite breed of dogs?”
“YES!” squealed Kayla. “Ava, we’ve got to check it out! Come on!”
“Okay,” Melissa quietly said. “I have something for you.” She handed me a lollipop. “I’m also going to give one to Ava.”
I took the lollipop. “Thanks,” I said as I took the wrapper off. “Does Kayla get one of these too?”
“No,” answered Melissa. “She’s mean.”
“But Melissa, she tries really hard to impress you. She tries, a lot.”
“I know, but… it’s not fair to Ava. I’m trying to teach Kayla a lesson.”
“Can I try?” I ask.
“Try WHAT?” Melissa is confused.
“To make her nice,” I say.
“Sure,” she replies, “But tell you what, it’s not going to be easy.”
We caught up with the rest of them, and somehow, we made it back in only ten minutes. We were a little late, though. Ava reached for her mom’s phone and opened Candy Crush.
“Ava?” her mom said. “Why don’t you talk to your friends?”
Ava looked up at her mom, frowned, and burst into tears. “I DON’T HAVE ANY FRIENDS!” she yelled. Ava covered her face and fell on her knees. Melissa and I gasped.
“What a crybaby!” laughed Kayla. “You’re in SECOND GRADE, Ava. I didn’t know you were so immature.”
“Cut it out!” Melissa snapped.
“Yeah, Ava, cut it out. Even Melissa agrees,” Kayla said, thinking that she finally impressed Melissa.
“No, YOU cut it out, Kayla. I wasn’t talking about Ava,” she said.
Melissa secretly handed the lollipop to Ava. I went over there. “For me?” Ava smiled.
“Yeah, for you,” Melissa gave Ava a solid nod.
“We’ll be your friends,” I said.
“Thank you, guys.”