Trisha wore a nice black cocktail dress with spaghetti straps and her new nylons supported with uncomfortable, but stylish, elastic garters (secretly of course from her parent's knowledge) that she purchased at Rich's and also the new pair of black suede mules.  Rochelle wore a peach cocktail dress with chiffon lace embroidery, white nylons with garters and the new cream-colored mules also from Rich's. Rochelle had picked out this specific color dress in the finest dress shop in Edenglassie City after learning from a co-worker that Georgia was known as the Peach State.

Both ladies felt very pretty and feminine (translation: uncomfortable) in their nice outfits.  Trisha did feel strange wearing gartered nylons for the first time.  The elastic was more constrictive than she expected, but she decided to try to manage for the duration of the reception. Rochelle similarly discovered that mules with nylons try to slide off unless you are careful.  This made her think, ‘When Trisha said wearing mules barefoot gave them traction, she failed to emphasize that wearing them with nylons make them slippery.’ She wished she had decided to buy a pair a half-size smaller, like the shoe store clerk suggested, so they would fit more snug on her feet. After walking just from the car lot to the museum, the shoes had stretched enough to where she was having difficulty keeping them on.  But she decided to just be careful and try to have a good time anyway - there supposedly would not be much walking needed.

Once inside the museum, Charles and Lisa went off alone to mingle with the Coca-Cola upper management.  Rochelle and Trisha decided to try to meet some of the Olympic athletes that were peppered throughout the food area downstairs.  The athletes were easy to find - just look for a congregation of people gathered around a common focal point.  As the girls nibbled on a bizarre mixture of hors d'ouveres that included vegemite dip and crackers (an Aussie treat Trisha realized right away she abhorred) as well as Buffalo wings and pigs in blankets, they met a female pole-vaulter, Donna Lauder, from Adelaide a marathon runner, Brad Collier,  from Rochelle's homeland of Edenglassie a pretty and petite female gymnast, Karen Gilroy, from Sydney and a handsome cyclist, Russ Jacobsen, from Auckland in the first few minutes.

Even though her experience on the Delta flight from LA to Atlanta was less than perfect, to say the least, Rochelle knew she needed to also mingle with her Coca-Cola colleagues from throughout the Australia/New Zealand area, but she also wanted and felt somewhat obliged to spend at least some time with Trisha.  Of course there was Randy from the Darwin Coca-Cola office who wanted to spend time with Rochelle (her green eyes mesmerized him), but Rochelle wanted to make a good impression on some of the others who could enhance her career.  From a distance she saw some of the people she had met in the plane - Carl, Mandy, Tracey and Carrie.  As Rochelle left to go speak with some of these Coca Cola colleagues, a young man named Jake, started making eye contact with Rochelle.   He came over to strike up a conversation with her. Randy noticed this invasion of his territory so he walked over and tried to take over the conversation.

Rochelle walked over to see how Trisha was doing and she looked a bit excited. “Rochelle, that nice looking guy who was flirting with you….”

“You don’t mean that Randy guy do you?”

“No, I’m talking about Jake.  He’s my father’s boss’ son.  I’ve had a crush on him since 7^th grade.”

“Oh really, well he’s a little bit young for me.  Maybe I can help you two get together.  Tell me more about him.”

“Well, he’s finished a year of college at the University of Sydney.”

“Wait, you mean he goes to school in Australia! And he’s the son of your father’s boss who lives here?”

“He and his family just moved here in 1992 from Sydney. He has a lot of family and friends over there so he decided to go to school there.  I think he would rather live there than here after graduation also - at least that’s what Dad told me.”

“Have you talked with him much?” Trisha became a little defensive and began to nervously play with one of her mules, kicking it on and off and spinning it around in a circle on the tile floor. “Only a little, but he’s always been a nice looking guy with a dashing personality.  He’s probably always thought of me as being a kid.  I haven’t seen him since I was 14 and that was at a Christmas party at his parents’ house.  Back then, I still had braces on my teeth and was not looking my best.”

“Don’t worry about me - I’ll try to deflect him your way and see if that works.”

“Thanks,” exclaimed Trisha just as her spinning mule flew out of control and rolled a few feet away.  She stepped over quickly to reclaim it and walked over to talk to a couple of the athletes.

Rochelle excused herself to find the restroom, and then realized it was upstairs.   Walking up the steps, Rochelle was very careful to not come out of her mules.  As she continued up the steps, she noticed her slip rising up to her waist. 

Rochelle went to the restroom to "freshen-up." A few minutes later, on the way out, she realized her slip was still a problem.   Now frustrated, she attempted again to fix her slip and in the struggle, she kicked one of her mules off, sending it flying through the air.  Rochelle gasped as the shoe heel caught on one of the railing slits and did a 360-degree spin before finding its way through and dropping downstairs and landing in the large red punch bowl that everyone was using to get their drinks.  Fortunately for image-conscious Rochelle, no one saw this happen since at the time, the emcee had everyone facing the other way to make an announcement about someone leaving the lights on in their BMW. p> Rochelle was embarrassed to go downstairs to look for her shoe but she finally got the nerve to do so.  The stairs were hard to maneuver with one shoe but she made it eventually without coming out of her one remaining mule.  She looked all over the area with no shoe search success. While walking around in a frantic, but subtle manner, she flexed the toes on her nyloned foot so her gait would not look lopsided and thus draw more attention to her problem.   One of the Edenglassie athletes - Brad the marathoner whom she had met earlier - came up to her and called her Cinderella.   Fearing ridicule, Rochelle lied and told him tersely that her heel had broken and someone was fixing it.

Randy, from Darwin, whom Rochelle thought was a nerd, had had his eye on her all-night and noticed her one-shoe state as well but was too shy to comment or make a move.  Jake, however noticed her condition and did make a move. Rochelle talked positively about Trisha and looked around to re-introduce her to him, but realized she mush have gone to another area of the museum or something.

Randy was jealous when he saw Jake again invading his target. He went to get some punch and the ladle, he was using, scooped up her missing mule. It was stained red like the kool-aid punch it had been submerged in, so he subtly wrapped the shoe in a napkin, took it in the restroom upstairs and tried to wash it off.

Meanwhile an uncomfortable and embarrassed Rochelle who felt like everyone was looking at her one shoe missing had about given up on her search and found Trisha, who was chatting with the Karen, gymnast from Sydney to complain about what had happened.

"Trisha, I wish I hadn't let you talk me into wearing these mules. I lost one and I can't find it anywhere."

"How did you lose it?  Did you not see where it went when it came off?"

"It fell from the second floor down here somewhere but I've searched everywhere.  Will you help me?"

"Sure Rochelle, I suppose it's partially my fault anyway for asking you to wear them tonight."

About that time, "nerdy" Randy came up to her with the discolored mule to play Prince Charming. Rochelle embodied a mix of emotion. She was glad to have her shoe back; she was not happy that Randy was her "hero" and not someone more "interesting"; and when she saw the discoloration this puzzled her and made her embarrassed again to be seen with two different colored shoes.

"Randy, what happened?  How did you find my shoe and why is it red?"

"Well, Roche (Randy took the liberty to shorten her name without permission), it somehow got into the punch bowl.  It must have absorbed the red food coloring into the fabric.   I took it into the restroom and washed a lot of it off myself, but maybe a shoe repair place can do more."

Rochelle replaced the shoe on her foot and realized it was not only red but also sticky wet and made an embarrassing ‘squish’ sound with each step. ‘At least I no longer looked like Cinderella,’ she thought.

Randy came up with an idea and asked Rochelle, "Hey let me see your other shoe for a moment - I'll give it right back."

"Can I trust you?  I've been embarrassed enough already," Rochelle replied as she sheepishly slipped off the unstained mule, lifted it up to her lowered hand with her foot without ever bending at the waist and replaced her flexed toes on the carpeted floor for balance.

Randy in a sudden move dipped the good mule into the punch bowl as several on-lookers gasped, as did Rochelle and Trisha.  But Randy quickly grabbed a cloth napkin and wiped off the wet punch and handed the now suddenly matching mule to Rochelle who now would be in matching sticky, swishy red mules the rest of the evening.

Rochelle was unsure of what to say or do except, "Thanks," as she and Trisha walked off.  Randy was disappointed that his two acts of chivalry (at least in his mind) had failed to win over Rochelle's attention.  He decided to give up and began to try to join a  conversation the New Zealand girls, Mandy and Tracey had started with the Sydney gymnast, Karen.

Just as Trisha walked away from the food and drink area a group of managers who were chatting with Charles and Lisa walked near where Rochelle was still standing.  One older gentlemen in the group, who noticed Rochelle's outfit first because he thought she was pretty  - the way her green eyes contrasted with her peach dress - but also because he loved nice looking legs.  He immediately commented, "I see you're in the Coca-Cola spirit tonight."

A puzzled Rochelle replied, "I'm sorry, sir, but I'm not sure what you mean."

The gentleman replied, "Those coke-red shoes you're wearing. Where did you find them?"

Rochelle confidently replied, "Rich's here in Atlanta."

The gentleman nodded and winked in approval and walked off with Charles and Lisa. After that puzzling interchange was over, Trisha came back over and admitted to Rochelle that her garters and hose were driving her crazy.

Rochelle suggested, "Well, I won't be offended if you take them off. I am just glad you were willing to try."

Trisha exclaimed with glee and raced up the stairs to the restroom, almost losing a mule in the process.  She went in and quickly kicked off both mules, unbuckled the hose from the garter belt, then slid each belt off each leg.  She replaced her mules on her now bare feet, stuffed the hose and garters in her small purse and now, free from constraint, her feet and legs were happy the rest of the evening.  Meanwhile, Rochelle walked around more carefully and confidently in her Coca-Cola mules.

About another hour of mingling took place as the reception became more of a tour of the museum exhibits which all seemed to enjoy.  Once the trip down Coke’s memory lane was over, Charles and Lisa found their daughter and foreign guest and left for home.   On the way back, no one said anything about Trisha being barelegged - Trisha's parents were used to her distaste for hose.   But they did mention Rochelle's shoes.

Lisa noted, "Mr. Greerson was impressed with you Rochelle.   I told him who you were and that you were our guest from the Edenglassie City branch."

Rochelle replied, "Who was he?"

Trisha quickly and quietly added, “ He’s Jake’s father.”

Charles added, "The guy who commented on your red shoes. He's my vice-president here in Atlanta - over all Public Relations in the Asia-Pacific division. In other words - the highest-ranking person at the reception tonight."

Rochelle just sat in the backseat of the car dumbfounded that such a mess of events had led to her making an impression on such a high ranking Coca-Cola official. She commended to Trisha, "Maybe I should wear mules more often, after all."

Trisha whispered to Rochelle, "Maybe, but I don't think I'll wear gartered hose again."

The rest of the way home, the four of them laughed and talked about the fun time they had had that evening.  Charles and Lisa never did figure out that Rochelle had left home with cream mules and was returning with red ones, or that their 16 year-old daughter had been introduced to fine hosiery.  At home, Rochelle placed the Coca-Cola mules in the floor with the rest of her shoe collection.

Trisha wandered into Rochelle’s room and asked for her advice on how to get Jake to notice her.

“Maybe he likes older, sophisticated women - no offense, Trisha.”

“None taken.  You may have a point. Your outfit is magnificent! You had Jake and Randy chasing you all night. “

“Maybe something else will come up while I’m here where you can see Jake again. If so, I’ll fix you up with a sophisticated outfit and see it that works.”

Trisha walked back to her room and went to bed to rest from her busy night.

Return to Story Menu

ROCHELLE AND TRISHA GO TO STONE MOUNTAIN

After the excitement of Thursday night’s Reception at the Coca Cola Museum, Friday was a day similar to Wednesday. Trisha had to work a shift at Frankie's as a hostess/cashier and Rochelle had some mostly boring PR meetings at the Coke headquarters downtown.

Saturday was going to be a free day, however. Charles had a ‘date’ with the links at the Atlanta Country Club nestled amongst the scenic forest that lined the Chattahoochee River. He normally spent about 15-20 Saturday mornings a year at this sport and hobby at which he loved to partake.

Lisa had no plans and she wanted to entertain their foreign guest, “How would the two of you like to go over to Stone Mountain in the morning?”

Trisha was excited, “Sounds great, Mom!”

Rochelle asked, “What’s Stone Mountain?”

“It a beautiful place, Rochelle. It’s a Georgia State Park with a lake where swimming and two water slides are available and there is a medium-sized bald, rocky mountain to climb or arrive by Sky Lift. It’s located about 30 miles southeast of here.”

Rochelle was a little hesitant; "I really didn't bring anything casual enough for that."

Trisha came back with, "That's okay, we'll stop off at The Gap in the Perimeter Mall - it's right on the way and they open at 9 AM."

A puzzled Rochelle asked, "What's the ‘gap’?"

"Oh Rochelle, I guess you've missed out down under. In America, The Gap is the top clothing store for teens and college students. They have really cool casual clothes."

Lisa added, "Rochelle, I'll get you whatever you need - my treat for being our guest in our home."

Rochelle was taken back by her generosity. Even on her relatively average income level - typical of a somewhat new company employee - she could easily afford to buy the clothes she needed. But she really appreciated how her host family had taken her in and basically treated her like another daughter.

"Sure, let's do that. I appreciate your generosity. Lets go to The Gap."

Early Saturday morning, Trisha and Rochelle got ready for a fun day at Stone Mountain. Lisa dropped off the girls near the entrance to the Gap and went to park.

“Meet me in front of the food court in an hour. I’m going to browse in some shops without tagging along and spoiling your fun.

“Okay Mom…Okay Lisa.”

In The Gap, Trisha felt right at home but Rochelle was like a fish out of water. All of the sales clerks were attractive and perky 16-20 year old girls. They were immediately met by one of these at the door. “Welcome to The Gap. I’m Brandi! Can I help you find something?”

“Maybe after we’ve had a chance to look around some, thanks,” said Trisha before Brandi slapped off in her trendy platform slides to help another customer.

Rochelle noted, “There’s a lot of ‘fad’ clothes here. That’s really not ‘me.’”

“It’s not really ‘me’ either, but in the back of the store, there’s more traditional quality clothing - that’s where I usually go. I like the selection and the prices are good.”

She and Rochelle were limited on time, so they started looking at khaki shorts.

“Here we are Rochelle, size 8. That’s a nice looking pair.”

“Rochelle set off to try on the shorts and found them to be a little tight, but decent enough to try. And she was determined not to go up to a size 10! She noted that the legs of the shorts were cuffed only a couple of inches above the knee. She was used to skirts and dresses that were shorter cut than that, but she decided to take them anyway.

Brandi hunted Rochelle down and helped her locate a nice print blouse to match without much problem. Next, they looked at swimsuits and she decided on a simple green one piece - again in a slightly tight size 8.

All was going pretty quickly but then Trisha realized, “Rochelle, you’ll need some sandals won’t you?” She was afraid of duplicating the problem she had had with mules so she decided to not say anything to Rochelle to influence which style she needed.

“Here’s a decent looking pair,” said Rochelle. She quickly tried on a pair in her size and bought the pair of brown sandals with straps.

They were about to leave when Trisha noticed. “Hey! The first new shipment of Dr. Scholl's Exercise sandals is in.”

Rochelle asked, “Is that a big deal?”

“Yeah, these were popular when my Mom was about your age. She used to have a pair until she wore them out. They virtually disappeared for the last 10 years or more. I’ve heard they were coming back this summer and here they are!”

Trisha quickly located a nice white pair in her size and decided to change into those out of the sandals she'd worn that day - not waiting to ‘break them in’ before wearing them for an extended period of time - something her mom had scolded her before about trying to do.

Rochelle went to the Ladies’ Room and put on her new outfit with the simple, one-piece green swimsuit underneath. She was determined to try to have a good time at Stone Mountain.

The park was pretty crowded that day. There were some Cycling events going on there throughout the day that attracted more visitors than usual. Lisa dropped the girls off at the Visitors center and said, “I’ll meet you back at the Mountain View Restaurant across the street for lunch at 12:30.”

Trisha replied or the two of them, “That’s fine - that will give us over an hour before then to take the ski-lift tour the top of the mountain.”

Lisa followed up with, “I’m not interested in going up on the mountain today. I’m going to swing through some of the antique shops- something you’re probably not interested in doing. After lunch, I’ll take you over to the beach to swim and then we’ll try to catch some of the cycling event, if you’d like.

Rochelle added, “I have my sponsor badge with me - I can probably get both of you into the gate.”

That sounded like a good plan to everyone. Trisha and Rochelle left for the Sky Lift and began to discuss Chuck and Jake.

“So Trisha, you still ready to forget about Jake and stick with Chuck?”

“I guess so. I’ll get to see him tomorrow for the first time in over a week. I do like him. But, he’s not as sophisticated and mature as Jake…”

Rochelle added, “Or as rich and not the son of your Dad’s boss…”

“Hey wait! I’m not that shallow. None of that stuff matters to me. I just want someone who treats me well and I find attractive. Chuck has been a perfect gentleman - the times we’ve done things together. He’s a neat guy and at least we live on the same continent.”

“Whatever you say, but I know how taken you were with Jake at that party and I think if you want to pursue things with him further, I can help.”

Trisha and Rochelle finished their wait for the Sky Lift and they soon began their lift to the top of Stone Mountain. Rochelle commented on it and also had a question of curiosity, “You know, this is a much smaller version of someplace I’ve been to over in Australia, called Uluru - you may know it as Ayers Rock.”

“I’ve never heard of it,” Trisha replied as she slipped her toes out of her sandals and placed them on the sole of the heel, putting enough pressure to lift the toes off the floor.

“I’ll explain in a minute - first of all, who are those faces carved in the side?”

“I guess you wouldn’t hear much of our Civil War history in the 1860’s. Those guys are two Confederate generals - Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson and the other one is Jefferson Davis, the President of the Confederacy.”

“I’ve heard that America had a Civil War and that the South was called the Confederacy - but why are they on the side of the mountain?”

“I guess someone wanted to make a memorial to them in memory of the war that was fought frequently on Georgia soil. You knew that Gone With the Wind was about Atlanta?” Trisha continued while continuing to play with her new sandals on the floor, making a little bit of noise - enough to where some of the men on the Sky Lift were taking notice.

“I suppose so, it just seems more real now that I’ve been here.”

As they reached the top and departed, Rochelle continued her explanation of Uluru. She talked about its size and how it was a major tourist attraction. She also explained how the name used to be Ayers Rock but how it reverted recently to Uluru which was the original name the Aborigines in the area named it. p> Soon the Sky Lift reached the station at the top of Stone Mountain and the girls departed out onto the barren bald rock with a breathtaking view of the area surrounding the east side of metro Atlanta. For Trisha it was no big deal anymore, but Rochelle really enjoyed the feeling of being on top of the world - being able to scan the western view and see the skyscrapers that dot the smoggy Atlanta sky. Trisha and Rochelle walked all around the top of the mountain for about 30 minutes - enough to take a gaze out each direction. The terrain was rocky so the girls had to take care where they stepped so as to not fall and possibly get bruised or cut on the rocks that lay scattered all over the top of the mountain.

Soon it was time to get back in line to board the Sky Lift and Trisha was showing a little distress, “Maybe wearing these new sandals was not such a good idea.”

“Why’s that?” replied Rochelle as the boarded the Sky Lift.

Sitting, Trisha removed her right sandal as she crossed that leg over her other knee and showed Rochelle a fresh blister that was about the size of a dime and a part of the skin had already separated.

“On my, that looks bad! Can you walk very well?”

“I guess I can get back to the car to meet Mom and get my other pair of sandals - she even has bandages in her first aid kit. I could carry my sandal and walk on my heel without it,” Trisha added as she sat the sandal on the seat to her left.

Trisha, tired of discussing her physical ailment, turned the conversation back to Jake and Chuck, “So you really think I ought to consider Jake, huh?”

“Sure! I think he’s a great-looking guy, pretty suave and sophisticated. I just don’t know how to get you two together.”

“What about a double date with Randy?”

Rochelle leered at Trisha with a look that could pierce a Georgia peach pit so Trisha backed down from that suggestion, “Uh..just kidding, really.”

"Maybe I'll get to see him next week while I'm working and I can talk to him for you"

"Oh, Rochelle, I'd be embarrassed!"

"Well, how else am I going to help you?"

"I don't know that either. Well, if it's meant to happen it will."

With that, the conversation again stopped on the subject of Jake. The Sky Lift landed on the ground inside the main loading area. Rochelle left first and Trisha followed close behind limping on her blistered foot. Soon after they were clear of the ride, another set of riders boarded and departed for the top of the mountain.

Once the Sky Lift was maybe 100 yards out of the load area, as the girls made their way over to the gift shop across the breezeway, Rochelle happened to notice that Trisha had nothing in her hands. "Hey Trisha, did you put your other shoe in your purse or something?"

That question sent chills of horror down Trisha's spine, "No! I must have left it on the Sky Lift." Trisha exclaimed while turning back to the boarding area and hobbling over to watch the Sky Lift make its way up to the top of the mountain.

Rochelle came close behind and tried to calm her, "It will be back in 20 minutes, you can just ask to go on board to retrieve it."

"I guess you're right. It certainly won't be the first time I've had to go without one shoe."

Trisha went to the girl running the Sky Lift and asked if there was any way to get word up to the top of the mountain to make sure her shoe is on there and comes back down. She agreed to help and called the guy running the Sky Lift at the top to go back into the seat area and get Trisha’s shoe before the new group boarded.

Rochelle suggested that she and Trisha walk around the gift shop to kill the time waiting for her shoe to return.

With every other step ending with a definite slap and each step in between ending in silence, others in the gift shop noticed her one shoe condition. Trisha felt conspicuous and embarrassed to be in one shoe but she tried to relax and enjoy her time with Rochelle.

Meanwhile, on the Sky Lift, a mom and two kids - a 2-year old and a 4-year old took the same seat that Trisha and Rochelle had just abandoned a few minutes prior. This mother was mostly occupied with keeping the 2-year old boy still and was not paying a lot of attention to the 4-year old girl that was quiet and still but was analyzing a white exercise sandal that she had happened to sit on when getting on the Sky Lift. She was more occupied with that than she was at looking out over the ground below or the mountain with the Civil War carving in on the face of the mountain.

The family departed the Sky Lift and the 4-year old kept her new toy unnoticed and the mother picked up the 2-year old boy who was now crying a little. Afterwards, the operator went into the seating area and looked all over for the sandal and it was no where to be found, he called down to the ground operator to tell her the shoe was not there.

Not long after getting out into the open on the top of the mountain, the girl got tired of the shoe and threw it behind a rock, somewhat out of view.

After Trisha and Rochelle were in the gift shop for about 20 minutes, the Sky Lift returned with another load and presumably Trisha’s missing sandal. Trisha walked up and asked the operator, “Did my shoe come down?”

The operator had to break the bad news, “I’m sorry, our operator at the top could not find it and no one turned in the shoe as lost.”

“You’re kidding, well, can I look after everyone leaves.”

“Okay, I suppose so.”

Once the last passenger left, Trisha was granted special access to the inside of the seating area and she saw for her self - no shoe. Trisha thanked the operator and asked her to keep the shoe there if anyone turned it in. The operator obliged.

“What am I going to do Rochelle?”

“I guess you can change into your other sandals when we get to your Mom’s car.”

“I know, but I just spent $30 - hard earned money - and now I’ve got one shoe to show for it. Mom’s not going to be very happy.”

Wise to the world Rochelle suggested, “Why not meet your Mom at the car and tell her you have a blister which is the truth. Maybe she won’t realize your other shoe is gone. Do you have a first aid kit in the car?”

“As a matter of fact, we do!”

“Great, then get a band aid and change into your other sandals. And we’re set.”

“Thanks Rochelle - it’s times like this I need an older sister for advice. I’m so glad you’re staying with us!”

Trisha and Rochelle left the Sky Lift area and walked toward where Lisa was parked. Trisha stayed on the grass as much as possible to keep from burning her bare foot. She walked along slap…blank…slap…blank as a few passers by looked at her predicament and secretly wondered if maybe her sandal had fallen out of the Sky Lift or something. They soon met Lisa at the car and things went exactly as proposed. Trisha slipped her single sandal under the seat of the car so its singleness would not be evident. She replaced on her feet the original brown multi-strap backless sandals that she had worn when she left the house that morning.

Lisa barely scolded Trisha, “I told you that wearing new shoes might cause problems. Are you going to listen to me next time?”

“Yes Mom, I’m sorry.”

“Well, let’s go eat!” Lisa quickly changed the mood to something more festive.

They went to eat at the Mountain View restaurant that was part of the Stone Mountain Inn. They had a lunch buffet so they were able to get in and out fairly quickly. All three discussed what they had done that day. Lisa had found a couple of things to place in her kitchen that she was planning to remodel soon so she told about those. Trisha and Rochelle talked about hiking on top of Stone Mountain and taking the Sky Lift. As usual, Trisha spent much of the time dipping in and out of her shoes, dangling them with her legs crossed at both her knees and ankles.

Afterwards, they all went over to the public beach and recreation area to cool off and enjoy the cool water on this very warm day. All three were dressed as to not need a dressing room to change into their swimsuits. The found a nice spot on the sandy beach and laid out a large blanket. They then proceeded to kick off their shoes, and take off their outer clothes to reveal their swimsuits that had taken the place of underwear so far that day.

Lisa was more interested in getting cool and relaxing so she stayed near the shore and did some very light swimming and floating. Trisha told Rochelle to “Come on” and began to run into deeper waters.

Trisha was more comfortable in chest high water than Rochelle but Rochelle tried to keep up. They chatted a bit about the fun they were having. Then Trisha looked off to the side and saw the water slide section of the recreation area. There were actually two of them that had twin tubes each.

“Hey Rochelle, would you like to go over to the water slide area?”

“I’ve never been down one. Is it fun?”

“Yeah it’s a blast! We’ve got a water park not far from my house called White Water and I go there all the time. Let’s go?”

“Okay, I guess I’m willing to try.”

On the way out of the lake, they passed Lisa and they told her where they’d be. Lisa replied, “Okay, I’ll probably come over and watch you in a little bit. Maybe I’ll even slide down a time or two.”

Trisha and Rochelle began walking over to the water slide and they met a familiar face - but one Rochelle did not care to see. “Rochelle! What a great surprise!”

“Hello Randy (pause). What are you doing out here?”

“Well, a couple of the girls from the Coke group wanted to come out to see their New Zealand hero, Russ Jacobsen in the cycling event later - they’re watching warm-ups as we speak. I agreed to drive them out here if they let me buy them lunch.”

Trisha replied, “Don’t you mean ‘Them buy your lunch?’”

“No, I bought theirs; anyway, what are you two doing out here, mates?”

Rochelle responded, “Trisha’s mom drove us out here to relax and see the park - I was off duty today.”

“Lucky you, I had to do some stuff at Olympic Village this morning, but that’s where I ran into the girls, so I guess it was a good thing. But it’s even better that you’re out here, Rochelle. Where are you going?”

Rochelle was silent, but Trisha readily replied, “We’re going to the water slide.”

“Sound’s great - I’ll come with you.”

Rochelle rolled her eyes at Trisha who knew she had been naughty. Trisha then just had to ask, “Have you seen Jake Greerson today?”

“I think he was at the Olympic Village this morning. I heard that his father was out here trying to arrange some publicity shots. I guess he could be out here.”

Trisha was elated, “The cycling event starts at 3:30, and maybe we’ll go out there next - after we enjoy the water slide.”

Soon all three were making their way to the Water Slide. Rochelle started a conversation with Trisha but Randy kept trying to horn in and be included. They reached the top of one of the twin slides where Trisha and Rochelle lined up side by side and slid down at the same time. Randy waited the required time gap and followed Rochelle down the slide and into the pool.

“Hey, Trisha, this is actually fun!”

Trisha was glad she had picked out something that Rochelle enjoyed. Randy continued to follow the girls up and down the slide. On the fifth trip down, a problem arose. Rochelle accidentally scraped the side of the slide and got stopped about half way down. Randy left after the appropriate time gap but soon the potential problem was discovered.

“Rochelle! Get out of the way!” Randy exclaimed as he saw a potential disaster ahead.

“I’m trying!” Rochelle shrieked in a panic and soon she was sliding again. At the bottom, Rochelle was only a couple of seconds ahead of Randy, though and just as Rochelle came back up out of the water after landing in the pool at the bottom of the slide, Randy came crashing in nearby. There was a slight collision and in the commotion, Rochelle realized her swimsuit had slipped down about 6 inches, exposing what she’d rather no one else (and especially Randy) not see.

An embarrassed Rochelle asked Trisha if she minded if they left and Trisha understood.

“That’s okay, we need to get dressed so we can go to the Cycling event, anyway. I’m hoping to see Jake there, remember?”

Randy was apologetic and Rochelle eventually realized the accident was mostly her fault. Trisha went into the bathhouse to get cleaned up and fix her hair.

“Hey Roche, you want to kiss and make up?”

“I’m okay with the second part, I suppose. I guess it was mostly my fault when I stopped midway down. Are you going to the Cycling event?”

“Yeah, I’m making tracks in that direction here shortly. The girls are waiting for me at the finish line.”

“What two girls did you bring over? I’m wondering if I ought to be jealous or not.”

“Remember Mandy and Tracey from the plane trip over here?”

“How could I forget? I sat next to Mandy in the plane.”

“It’s them two. I don’t want you to be jealous though. If either of them were to take a shine to me and you decided to get wise and go out with me, I’d drop them in a heartbeat for my cute little Roche!”

On that sour note, Rochelle joined Trisha in the bathhouse and Randy left to go over to the cycling event finish line.

“Rochelle, do you think we’ll see Jake there?”

“I have no idea. Trisha, you need to be cool and relax. If you act this anxious you’ll turn him off.”

“I’ll try - but I’m really wanting to see him again! Maybe I have a chance.”

Both girls fully dressed and with their hair and makeup re-applied, met Lisa at the edge of the beach and they left for the cycling finish line area to watch the riders finish their race. Randy arrived ahead of them and found Mandy and Tracey waiting for the arrival of the cyclists who were due in about 15 minutes.

“Well, I guess we do have a ride home after all,” spouted Mandy.

Shortly after Tracey added, “Did you have fun with the children at the beach?”

“Actually ladies, there was a neat water slide there and I even ran into Rochelle and one of her hosts, there. Oh, just curious, is Jake still here? I saw him earlier.”

“Yeah, he and his father were talking about something over behind the bleachers.” Mandy replied,

“Good, I wanted to talk to him about something, too.”

A couple of minutes of silence later, Jake came around and started flirting with Mandy and Tracey. “So are my favorite Kiwi’s enjoying the race?”

“It’s been great! They just started the last lap around the park. Russ Jacobsen was about 5 seconds behind Lance Armstrong for the lead.”

“Maybe he’ll be able to catch him. You two have any plans for tonight?”

About that time, Lisa, Trisha and Rochelle made their way to the area near the finish line to catch the end of the Cycling trials. Rochelle flashed her corporate ID and they were allowed past the ropes and allowed to stand on the side of the road about 25 feet from the finish line.

Trisha practically squealed to Rochelle, “Hey, there’s Jake over there. But he seems to be flirting with those two girls. What if he asks one of them out and I’m too late?

Rochelle tried to comfort Trisha the best she could. Jake continued to chat with the girls who agreed to meet him for happy hour at Dante’s Down the Hatch at 7PM before he had to walk off and take care of something for his dad.

Mr. Greerson walked by where Lisa, Trisha and Rochelle were standing and especially noticed cute Rochelle - the girl who had caught his eye with the Coca Cola mules just two nights ago.

“Well hello Lisa, Trisha and Miss Heath, I remember you from the reception on Thursday.” Mr. Greerson continued, “Miss Heath, I have been looking around with my photographer for 30 minutes trying to get some idea of what to do for a publicity shot for the South Pacific Division. I happened to see you and I remember how much you looked like the girls who used to pose in ads as Coca Cola girls. I just heard that Russ Jacobsen - a New Zealand team member has taken the lead in the race. If he wins, I want to get your picture kissing him on the cheek and handing him a Coke. Even if he loses we’ll probably still take a shot.”

“You want me…for that? Don’t I need makeup and nicer clothes?”

“No, I want you to look like a regular girl next door. It’s outside and sunny - my photog will dust a little powder on your face and you’ll be fine.”

Sure enough, much to Mandy and Tracey’s delight Russ won the race. But their joy was crushed when they saw Rochelle giving him a peck on the cheek and handing him a Coke.

“Hey Tracey, that’s the Edenglassie girl I sat with on the plane ride over here - Rochelle Heath!”

“How did she get to meet Russ Jacobsen?”

“I saw Mr. Greerson over there and a photographer. They took her picture!”

“How did she get asked to kiss Russ and not us!” Mandy mumbled under her breath in disgust.

“What does she got that we don’t! We’re from his home country and she’s from that backwater outpost north of Australia where everyone dresses weird and they still have fins on their cars!” followed Tracey.

“I knew I didn’t like her for some reason. She got to kiss our beloved Russ!” Mandy now practically in tears exclaimed.

Rochelle made her way back over to an excited Trisha and Lisa who were happy for what Rochelle had just gotten to do.

“You looked great down there,” Lisa commented.

“Oh it was nothing really.”

“Nothing! You kissed a gold medal winner and your picture may be shown somewhere. That’s wonderful!” followed Trisha.

“Okay, I’ve had my fun. Trisha, you want to find Jake?” Rochelle whispered to Trisha.

Whispering back, Trisha replied, “No, I’ve given up on him. I’ll stick with Chuck. Besides, we’re having a picnic with he and his brother tomorrow afternoon.”

Rochelle shuddered at her immaturity and ability to change allegiances at the drop of a hat, but then she remembered her youth back in the 80’s and remembered being much the same way.

A little later, Lisa drove Rochelle and Trisha back to the welcome center near the Sky Lift.

“Girls, I bought something I did not want to wilt in the car and I’ve got to go pick it up. It shouldn’t take but a few minutes.”

Trisha thought this would provide the perfect opportunity to check and see if someone returned her other shoe. She suggested, “Rochelle and I will get us some drinks at the snack shop across the street in the Sky Lift building. We’ll meet you at the car.

Lisa agreed with that and the girls went inside to check on her shoe.

Trisha went to the girl running the Sky Lift and she didn’t have to say a word.

“Good News! About 30 minutes after you left, someone found your sandal and turned it in. I’ve got it right here.

Trisha took the sandal with gladness and thanked the girl for keeping it for her. They were about to leave when Rochelle reminded Trisha, “We stil have to get drinks.”

“Oh yeah!”

On that note, Trisha and Rochelle hurriedly got some drinks and took them out to meet Lisa at the car. Trisha removed the sandal from her purse and slipped it under the seat with her other sandal. A pair was reunited and it felt great! Soon they were home where they found Charles asleep on the couch holding the TV remote control with Olympics coverage going strong.

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