=cut=

No Coffee Today

=cut=

=cut=

=cut=

"Happy Hour!" Coffee-cart vendor Calvin yelled again.

And this meant: half the price for everything!

As may have been expected, the pupils stormed his cart. It was one hell of a chaos.

Lola Martinez had just purchased a cup of coffee, when she noticed that the straw was missing. She needed one, and hence she jumped towards the car. Unfortunately she slipped and triggered the lever that blocked the wheels of the cart.

The vehicle started rolling down the slope, causing panic.

Tipper Rivers, the evil wife of the headmaster, was typing an annoying SMS when she was hit by the cart.

Dean Rivers was dismayed. He had been hating his wife for over five years now, and he was finally going to get a divorce, but, for the time being, he better feigned not to treat her like the dirt that she was, for otherwise Tipper's shark was so going to tear Dean Rivers limb from limb and making him lose his house, his car, his video games, briefly, everything. Unfortunately he couldn't wait for Claire Sawyer, future lawyer, to graduate from law school, otherwise he would have employed her as his advocate and easily sent Tipper into the slums where she properly belonged to, the bitchy wench that she was. He took his megaphone and announced that the cart was banned, and coffee was no longer legal on the campus. He had always been of the opinion that today's youth drank too much coffee, anyways. "This prohibition is valid for pupils, for teachers, for everyone, including myself!"

=cut=

=cut=

The pupils were apparently consternated, there was absolutely no question about that..

Even those who did not like coffee were dismayed, as Calvin's car had also sold tea, cold drinks, and pastry. And, all of a sudden, all those things were gone for the time being, or , maybe, even for good. The problem was that Calvin's upstream frenchise provider was primarily interested in the sale of coffee and refused to deliver the other stuff alone.

Addie Singer took her guitar and started singing a song. [[94]]

:: No c'ffee today, my love has gone away :: The cup stands all for lorn, a symbol of the dawn :: No c'ffee today, it seems a common sight :: But people passing by don't know the reason why ::

"It's all Lola's fault!" Stacey squealed.

Moze and Addie agreed.

Only Lisa Perkins tried to defend Lola, but she was too weak.

Moze didn't like coffee all that much, but she missed the juices.

Addie smiled. "Hey! My brother Ben works in a juice bar!"

"And so?" Lisa moaned.

"He may at least sell pastry and juice." Addie smiled.

"I think you hate your brother?" Moze wondered.

"Hate is such a strong word among siblings ..." Addie sighed. "Let's say he's pretty much annoying from time to time."

Moze nodded. "OK, I understand that. Ad he won't sleep in our dorm?" Moze worried.

Addie shook her head. "No way! He isn't a tame boy like Dustin, you don't know what happens!"

Moze sighed. "I somewhat miss Dustin's visits ..."

Addie nodded. "He is really cute and likable for a little boy ..."

"He won't be that little for much longer ..." Lola grinned. "Since he has got the hots for Carly Shay ..."

"I've heard Zoey and Carly will visit for the prom night!" Mary Ferry remarked.

Lisa Zemo nodded. "It will be fun ..."

=cut=

=cut=

"Zoey ... have you already heard that coffeee has been banned at the PCA?" Carly screamed.

Zoey sighed. "Oh really? They should better do that here."

Carly nodded. "I loved the coffee at the PCA, but this luke-warm brown sewage that they dare to call coffee over here ..."

"They are now hiring Addie's brother for selling pastry and juice." Carly sighed.

"Oh oh ..." Zoey was not at ease with that thought. "Ben Singer is not the kind of guy that I suppose to have a good influence on boys like Dustin ... putting it mildly."

Carly moaned, "Gross! But Spencer will take care of that, I hope!"

Zoey nodded. "Spencer may be a bit cranky at times, but I trust him there."

Carly smiled sweetly.

=cut=

=cut=

Ben Singer knocked at Chase's, Michael's and James's door. It went open, whereupon he stepped in. "Benjamin Singer, juice vendor ..."

Chase smiled. "OK, you may sell the stuff in front of our lounge."

Ben nodded. "Oh, Matthews, I need to talk to you alone ..."

Chase looked at James and Michael, sending them off to the campus.

"OK, I've heard there's something between you and my little sister?" Ben asked sternly.

"Er ... somewhat ..." Chase stammered. "Kind of, sort of ... but she isn't pregnant, is she? She shouldn't be ... and if, it wouldn't be my fault, honestly ..."

Ben Singer shook his head. "I wouldn't know about that ..." He sighed. "All that matters is, whether you're serious and don't break her heart as that Behari guy did."

Chase wasn't a heartbreaker guy. "Honestly, I won't. I swear it!"

"Hand to hand? With saliva?" Ben grinned.

Chase shrugged. "If it has to be ... Singer!" He spat into his hands and grabbed Ben's. "And off to the toilets! And so should you, or there will be problems with health department of the local police!"

"Oops!" Ben Singer would have totally forgotten about that.

=cut=

=cut=

Ben Singer's way of hitting on girls was even worse than Calvin's, but they all flocked to his booth in droves.

Dean Rivers passed by. "What's that?"

Ben grinned. "No coffee, Sir!"

Dean Rivers inspected Ben Singer's juice booth closely. "That seems OK. But have you got a concession?"

"A what?" Ben Singer looked dumbfounded.

Dea Rivers looked grimly. "A legal permit to run a booth? You need one from Executive Chairman Berman and one from the local office for mobile trading!"

Ben Singer went pale.

"I give you 48 hours, and if you don't bring me the papers, the booth will be gone, as well. You've got it?"

Ben sighed deeply. It was probably impossible to get those permits within measly two days ...

Stacey walked past. "Oh Ben!" She smiled. "May I have a cup of sassafras tea, for me and my cotton swabs?"

Ben scratched his head. "A cup of what?"

"Sassafrass tea!" Stacey screamed. "I love it!"

:: Sip it in the morning:: Sip it in the evening:: Sip it at a quarter to three.:: I want sassafras:: You want sassafras:: We want sassafras tea!::

Ben shrugged. "No, we haven't got any infusions."

Stacey walked away, weeping piteously. Calvin never had any, and Ben wasn't any better! She was so disappointed and wanted to jump off the Golden Bay Bridge.

=cut=

=cut=

Chase sat in the shadow, leaning against an old Californian oaken tree. "Oh, Addie!" He smiled when he saw her coming.

Addie sat down by Chase's side and handed him a smoothie. "Family discount ... if Ben doesn't give me a few free smoothies, I'm going to tell mom some stuff ..."

Chase chuckled. "You're the best, Addie!" He sipped on his smoothie.

Addie smiled. "A kiss?"

Chase nodded. "OK, but don't be sad if it's just a cheek kiss ... I hate being reminded tothe kiss with Rebecca ..."

Addie nodded understandingly when she threw her arms around Chase. "I love you, I really do!"

"I love you too!" Chase assured honsestly.

=cut=

=cut=

Dean Rivers walked the campus agin, controlling whethere his prohibition against coffee was strictly adhered to.

Nevel Papperman stepped up to the headmaster. "Dean Rivers! Sir!"

The headmaster stared at Nevel.

"There is coffee, somewhere on the campus, I smell it!" Nevel confirmed.

Dean Rivers coudln't smell anything and shrugged helplessly.

Nevel sniffed at the headmaster. "Cologne Randy Jackson, Tight-Dawg. [[95]]. "

Dean Rivers was impressed. He hadn't applied the cologne to his skin for almost a week, but Nevel could still smell it. "OK, where's the coffee?"

Nevel sniffed the air. "Follow me!"

Rivers followed the boy who kept on sniffing every few yards.

=cut=

=cut=

Finally, Nevel Papperman and Dean Rivers entered some office somewhere on the campus.

"The stench of coffee comes from there!" Nevel pointed at some cache in the wall.

Slowly, but safely Dean Rivers started to notice the scent. He walked to the location that Nevel had just indicated, and he opened the door of the cache. And there it was: "Coffee!"

Nevel beamed. "I so knew it!"

Dean Rivers boomed. "I'm consternated! If I make a prohibition against something, it's valid for everyone: pupils, teachers, even myself!" He sat down. "Whoever's office that is, he may consider himself expelled!" He looked around. "Beverly!"

The next door opened, and the headmaster's secretary bounded in. "Sir?"

Dean Rivers wondered why Beverly was already here.

"That's because this is your office, Sir, and I'm working next door, remember?" Beverly remarked, slightly puzzled.

Dean Rivers went pale in his face.

"I'm consternated!" Nevel boomed. "What will Mr. Bradford think about this?"

"Erm ..." Dean Rivers was close to passing out. "Beverly ... tell everyone that the prohibition against coffee is over ... it was a stupid idea, anyways ..."

"OK, Sir!" Beverly had been suffering like hell from coffee withdrawal.

"But the carts remain banned!" Dean Rivers added. "Coffee for the pupils only in the cafeteria and from the vendor machines in the lounge!"

Nevel smiled. "A wise decision."

=cut=

=cut=

Calvin was now Ben's assistant. He had the necessary papers, but only Ben had the contacts to his juice frenchise company. Their booth had no wheels, thus they respected the new security laws.

"Wait, there's something missing on the price list ..." Ben remarked. He took a pencil and wrote: Sassafras Tea, 1.00

Stacey walked past and cheered ecstatically.

"The first cup is free!" Ben decided when he handed Stacey a steamy cup of sassafras tea.

Moze and Spencer grinned. They had talked Ben into offering sassafras tea.

=cut=

=cut=

Addie and Chase walked away into the school garden, arm in arm. They were tired from the fuss about the coffee.

They took a guitar and started playing and singing after they rubbed their cheeks against each other's. [[96]]

:: Let us leave our confusion and all desillusion behind:: Just like birds of a feather a rainbow together we find.:: No wonder my happy heart sings.:: Our love is giving us wings.::

::

=cut=

[[94] ]adapted from No Milk Today by Herman's Hermits

[[95] ]iCarly : iSpy A Mean Teacher

[[96] ]Frank Sinatra: Volare Cantare which I don't own.