Olivia rolled her eyes as Alex struggled to shut another suitcase. “Alex, Spring Break is only one week long. You’ve packed enough suitcases for a whole month!”
“Everything I’m taking is very important!” Grunting, Alex sat on her suitcase to try to force it closed. “Liv, can you close this for me?”
Olivia rolled her eyes again, walked over, and closed the suitcase with little effort at all. “Ok. Now you aren’t allowed to pack anything else. We need to get outta here.”
“I need to double check to make sure I’m not forgetting anything! Besides, it’s not like the beach is going anywhere!”
Olivia fell back against Alex’s bed and let out an exasperated sigh. “Come on, sweetie, we need to pick up Serena and Casey at least sometime this year.”
“Oh, yeah! Speaking of which, do you think we’ll have enough room for everyone’s stuff in the convertible or should I take the Range Rover?”
“Hell, with all this stuff, we might as well take both,” Olivia muttered.
“Liv…I’m serious!”
“So am I!” Olivia replied, sitting up again. “Let’s just take the Range Rover.”
“Ok,” Alex said. “Can you go get Sam and tell him to load our stuff?”
“Sweetie, we can load our own stuff. Give the poor guy a break.”
Alex frowned. “Liv, you act like I work him to death! He’s our driver for a reason!”
“Don’t be so lazy,” Olivia said, throwing the strap to her duffle bag over her shoulder and picking up two of Alex’s suitcases. “Man, you have no clue how much I hate Louis Vuitton right now.”
“Liv, let me get one of those!” Alex said, taking one out of her hand.
Olivia swung open the door to Alex’s bedroom. “Well, I guess I will have an easier time getting down the stairs since I’m 50 lbs. lighter.”
“Oh, stop exaggerating!” Alex said, following her out the door and down the large spiral staircase. “None of my bags are that heavy.”
When they got to the garage, Olivia waited for Alex to press the key remote to open up the trunk. Alex slapped her hand to her forehead and exclaimed, “Shit! I forgot the keys!”
“Alex!” Olivia shouted.
“Sorry, sorry! Geez, aren’t I allowed to forget stuff sometimes?” Alex asked, getting angry.
“These bags are fucking heavy!”
“Well, put them down!” Alex snapped, storming back into the house to get her keys.
“Is everything all right, Alexandra?” Madeline asked as Alex walked past her.
“Fine,” Alex muttered without stopping.
A couple minutes later, Alex returned with her keys and her laptop bag. “Do you have your charger?” Olivia asked.
Alex popped the trunk and snapped, “Yes, Olivia. Maybe you need to remind me to breathe, why don’t you?”
Olivia glared at her. “Don’t get pissy with me, Alex. It’s not my damn fault you forgot your keys.”
“Well, I have them now so just drop it!” Alex yelled.
Olivia clenched her jaw and silently loaded the bags she had into the trunk. Alex went back upstairs to get the rest of her things.
After saying goodbye to Madeline and John, the girls got in Alex’s SUV and backed out of the garage. As they drove down the driveway, Alex spared a glance at Olivia, who had busied herself looking out the window at the scenery. “Liv…” Alex began.
“Just don’t,” Olivia snapped.
“Fine, Liv. If you wanna act like a baby all the way…”
Olivia jerked her head around to face her. “I’m acting like the baby here? You’re the one who always whines and moans when you can’t get your little way!”
“I do not!” Alex retorted, her cheeks flushing red.
“Oh, please! You think everyone is here to cater to your—”
Luckily, Alex’s cell phone started ringing before they could wring each other’s necks. “Yeah,” Alex growled into the phone.
“Well, damn! Don’t sound so happy, babe. Where are you guys?” Serena asked.
“We’re on our way now,” Alex replied.
“You already made the reservations at the hotel, right?” Serena continued.
“Yes, Serena! Geez, will everyone just lay off me today?” Alex snapped. Olivia just stared at her. Alex pretended not to notice.
“Um…ok,” Serena said. She put her hand over the mouthpiece and whispered to Casey, “Someone pissed in Alex’s cornflakes this morning.” Casey stifled a giggle. Serena put the phone back to her ear and continued, “Well…I guess I’ll let you go. See you in a few minutes.”
Alex snapped the phone shut without even saying goodbye. Olivia folded her arms and said, “You know…just because you’re mad at me doesn’t mean you have to take it out on everyone else.”
Alex clenched her jaw. “You know what, Liv? You win the award for most annoying girlfriend ever!”
“And you win the award for most uptight, self-righteous—”
“Enough, Liv!” Alex screamed.
“You can dish it out but can’t take it, huh?” Olivia continued.
“You are on very thin ice, Olivia Benson!” Alex warned, gripping the steering wheel until her knuckles were white.
“Or what? You’re gonna throw me out the car?”
Alex gritted her teeth. “Fuck you.”
“Fuck you!” Olivia retorted.
They spent the rest of the ride in silence until they arrived at Serena’s house. Alex honked her horn twice for them to come out and let down her window. “Thank God we’re here,” Olivia muttered under her breath.
Serena’s little brother followed her and Casey out. He made kissing noises behind them and started singing, “Serena and Casey, sittin’ in a tree. K-i-s-s-i-n-g!”
Serena turned around and punched him in the arm. “Go away, you little brat!”
“Ow!” he said, holding his arm where she’d hit him. “Just for that, I’m gonna tell Mom and Dad that you and Casey were making out!”
“Do it and I’ll smash your precious Xbox and burn all your games!” Serena threatened.
“At least she doesn’t put soap on his toothbrush anymore,” Alex muttered.
For the first time since she had been in the car, Olivia smiled.
“You wouldn’t dare!” her brother responded in horror.
“Try me,” Serena said, shoving him a few steps back. Scowling, her brother stalked back into the house.
“Poor Stephen,” Alex said, shaking her head.
“Are you kidding? Poor us! He wouldn’t leave us alone!” Serena protested.
“And he wouldn’t stop trying to tackle me. I think he has a crush,” Casey said with a groan.
Serena rolled her eyes. “Knowing him, he probably does. I really wish I had a little sister instead.”
“Who’s to say she wouldn’t have a crush on Casey?” Olivia said with a wink.
Serena laughed. “Yeah, that’s true. But I’m sure she wouldn’t be as annoying.”
Serena and Casey loaded their things in the trunk and then got in back. “So where to now?” Casey asked.
“Well, I thought we could stop by the store and get some snacks and stuff,” Alex replied, hitting the gas.
“Cool,” Serena said. “I have a craving for some Oreos.”
“You just wanna lick the crème out the middle,” Olivia remarked.
Everyone in the car laughed. “Oh, please, Liv! You’re one to talk!” Serena replied. “So tell us. How many licks does it take to get to the center of Alex’s Tootsie Roll Pop?”
“Serena!” Alex shouted, frowning at her through her rearview mirror.
“I plead the fifth!” Olivia exclaimed.
“You better,” Alex muttered.
“Can we watch a movie?” Casey asked.
“Sure,” Alex replied. “There are six DVDs in the changer, so just cycle through them until you find one you wanna watch.”
“Watch the center-mounted screen,” Olivia pitched in. “I don’t wanna feel anything vibrating on the back of my headrest.”
“Oh, I’m sure you have enough things to vibrate already,” Serena teased.
Olivia looked at Alex. “What did you tell her?”
Alex shrugged. “Nothing,” she replied with a smile.
“Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiight,” Olivia said sarcastically.
“We can’t change the DVDs?” Casey asked, looking at the ones in the console.
“No, because the stupid changer is in the cargo area,” Olivia answered with a roll of her eyes. “The DVDs in it are the ones we put in a few days ago.”
“What? Why would they put it all the way back there? Talk about an inconvenience,” Casey remarked.
“Beats me,” Alex said.
“Yeah, and in order to change them, we’d have to move everyone’s stuff—including Alex’s 100 bags,” Olivia added.
“I do not have 100 bags!” Alex snapped.
Olivia turned around and grinned at Casey and Serena. “She’s a little touchy about her luggage problem,” she whispered.
“I can hear you, Olivia!” Alex informed her.
Casey and Serena exchanged glances. “Um…yeah. Let’s just watch the movie,” Serena suggested.
Alex pressed the voice command button and said, “Rear seat entertainment on.”
“That’s so cool!” Casey exclaimed as the roof-mounted dropdown screen appeared and the system started playing the first DVD.
Alex grinned. “I know.”
“Oh, no, it’s Looney Tunes!” Serena said in dismay.
Alex rolled her eyes. She picked up the remote and held it over her shoulder. “Here, you can change it.”
Serena took it from her hand and said, “Thanks. Liv, why’d you ever have to get her the DVD set for her birthday?”
Olivia snorted. “Sometimes I ask myself the same question.”
Alex patted baby Tweety on the top of his head. “It’s ok. I still love you.”
“Only Alex would put Tweety on her dashboard,” Serena remarked. She cycled through the DVDs.
“I’m surprised you don’t have anything X-rated in here,” Casey joked.
“How do you know they aren’t in my bags?” Alex teased back.
“You’ll never find them in all the stuff Alex packed,” Olivia chimed in.
Alex rolled her eyes. “Not this again.”
“I hope it doesn’t rain,” Casey said, quickly changing the subject.
“Yeah, that would be a real bummer,” Serena agreed. “But making out in the rain is fun.”
“If Olivia keeps annoying me, making out will be a distant memory for her,” Alex announced. “And so will anything else.”
Olivia pressed the voice command button and said loudly, “Stick out of Alex’s ass.”
Casey and Serena couldn’t help but laugh even though they tried their hardest not to. Alex, however, was not amused in the slightest. “That command doesn’t work because I only have it programmed for your name!” she retorted.
“This is going to be one interesting trip,” Casey said.
“You’re tellin’ me,” Serena agreed.