During that same rainy night Colette had a brilliant idea.
"Hey, Edgar," she said. "Let's set up Leon and Jessie on a date."
Edgar, who was painting his nails, sighed. "Colette, give me a break, ugh."
Colette smiled. "Remember our deal?" Edgar looked down, "We'll invite them for lunch tomorrow at the cafè and then leave them alone."
Edgar shook his head. "No, Colette. That's a bad idea. You can't just randomly set them up like th-"
"I already called the others! They will be on it first thing in the morning!"
"Gosh darn it Colette..."
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She decided to play matchmaker and organize a date for them at a cozy cafè in town. She enlisted the help of her friends Edgar, Max, Surge, Sandy and Bibi to make sure everything went smoothly.
She and Edgar told Leon to meet them at the cafè.
Bibi and Sandy told Jessie the same.
Everything was set.
But there was a problem.
"Ruin their date, at any cost."
"What date?"
"The one Jessie and Leon are having! Barley told me the best table at the cafè was reserved for them! And you know I always take my milkshare there!" Piper pouted.
Rico, Poco, Sprout, Bea and Emz got an order from the one and only Piper.
After the found her passed out in the training field, Rico forced her to stay in bed and rest, despite her protests. Yet this didn't prevent her from continuing her plan.
"Don't worry, we got it, my love."
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Colette and her team arrived at the cafè early and prepared the table for Leon and Jessie. They decorated it with flowers, candles and chocolates. They also hired a violinist to play romantic music. They hid behind a nearby curtain and waited for the couple to show up.
Meanwhile, Rico and his team were lurking outside the cafè, armed with various weapons and gadgets. They had a plan: they would distract, annoy or scare Leon and Jessie until they gave up on the date. They had water balloons, stink bombs, firecrackers, megaphones and drones. They waited for the right moment to strike.
Leon and Jessie arrived at the cafè shortly after.
When Leon arrived at the cafè, he saw Jessie sitting at a table. He was confused and nervous. He didn't know what to do. He looked around for his friends, but they were nowhere to be seen. They peeked just around their hiding spot, watching the scene with anticipation.
"Hi, Leon," Jessie said with a smile. "I'm glad you're here."
"Hi, Jessie," Leon said awkwardly. "What's going on?"
"Well, Sandy and Bibi invited me here."
"Uh, sure," Leon said. "But where are they?"
"Oh, they had some other plans. They said they couldn't make it."
"You need our help. We're your friends and we want you to be happy. And we know Jessie will be happy too. So we're going to help you whether you like it or not!"
Leon felt a pang of betrayal. He realized Colette had set him up with Jessie. He didn't know if he should be angry or grateful. He liked Jessie, but he wasn't ready to go on a date with her.
He decided to play along and see what happened. He sat down next to Jessie and tried to make some small talk, but he was too nervous to think of anything interesting to say.
Jessie sensed his discomfort and tried to make him feel more relaxed, as a good friend would do.
Colette smiled from behind the curtain and gave a thumbs up to her team. Rico frowned from outside the window and signaled his team to get ready, and quickly he and his team sneaked into the cafè.
The battle began.
Rico threw a water balloon at Leon's head, hoping to ruin his hair. But Edgar saw it coming and jumped out of his hiding spot. He used his scarf to catch the balloon in mid-air, saving Leon from getting wet. He quickly ran back behind the curtain before anyone noticed him.
Rico was furious. He had missed his target and wasted a water balloon. He grabbed another one and aimed at Jessie's dress, hoping to stain it. But Max saw it coming and zoomed out of her hiding spot. She ran and took the balloon away from Jessie, begin as quick as lightning. She quickly ran back behind the curtain before anyone noticed her.
Jessie was oblivious. She was too busy talking to Leon about her robot. She showed him some pictures and videos of her latest inventions. Leon was impressed. He complimented her on her skills and creativity. The two joked around a talked happily. Colette clapped from behind the curtain and whispered to her team: "They're hitting it off! We need to keep this up!"
Poco was annoyed. He had heard enough of Jessie's voice. He decided to drown it out with his guitar. He plugged it into a megaphone and started playing some loud and discordant music. He hoped to make Leon and Jessie's ears bleed. But Surge saw it coming and stepped out of his hiding spot. He used his energy drink juice to short-circuit the megaphone, silencing Poco. He quickly stepped back behind the curtain before anyone noticed him.
Leon and Jessie were relieved. They had heard a sudden noise that made them jump. They looked around and saw Poco with his guitar and a smoking megaphone. They shrugged and ignored him. Rico growled from outside the window and said to his team: "They're getting too cozy! We need to step up our game! For Piper!"
Bea shot some darts at Scrappy (wherever Jessie is, Scrappy is there, too), hoping to damage it and make her angry. But Sandy saw it coming and used his sandstorm to blow the darts away from the robot. He quickly hid behind the curtain before anyone noticed him.
Jessie was unaware. She was too busy looking talking to Leon. She told him how much she loved her robot and her creations. Leon was intrested. He told her how much he admired her and how he wished he could be more like her. Colette cheered from behind the curtain and said to her team: "They're falling in love! We need to make them kiss!"
Emz was going to spray some perfume on Leon's neck, hoping to make him smell bad and make Jessie disgusted. But Bibi saw it coming and used her bubble gum to cover up Emz spy can. She quickly hid behind the curtain before anyone noticed her.
Suddently, they moved closer and closer. Rico panicked and said to his team: "They're going to kiss! We need to stop them now!"
(They weren't actually going to kiss, but Leon had a hair on his shoulder, and Jessie just wanted to remove it).
As if the world turned in slow motion, Rico went towards the curtain where his so called "enemies" were hiding, with the intent to blow their cover and ruin the date.
Colette's smile grew as the two got closer and closer to each other.
But then...
"I WANT A MILKSHAKE!" a high-pitched voice shouted as she stumbled into the cafe, her face pale and sweaty.
Everyone in the cafe turned to stare at her in shock and fear.
The only one who didn't flinch was Barley, the barista, who calmly walked over to the counter and started to make her a milkshake.
Rico immediatly ran to her side, wrapping his arm around her waist.
"Piper, what are you doing here? You should be resting! Come on, let's go home." He tried to lead her out of the cafe, but she resisted.
"No! I want my milkshake! Barley is making it for me!" She slurred, pointing at the barista who was pouring the drink into a cup. "Please, Piper, you need to calm down. You're sick, remember? You have a high fever. You need to take your medicine and lie down." Rico pleaded, his voice gentle but firm. "I don't care! I want my milkshake! It's the only thing that makes me feel better!" Piper whined, clinging to him.
Barley finished making the milkshake and walked over to them, handing the cup to Piper. "Here you go, Piper. I hope you feel better soon." He said with a smile. "Thank you, Barley. You're the best." Piper said gratefully, taking a sip of the milkshake. She sighed in relief as the cold and sweet liquid soothed her throat.
She looked at Rico with a sheepish grin. "Sorry for making a scene. I love you." She said softly. Rico smiled back at her and kissed her forehead. "I love you too, Piper. But please don't scare me like that again." He said softly. He thanked Barley for the milkshake, paid him and left the cafè.
Everyone exchanged confused looks.
"Did Piper just ruin her whole plan herself?" Emz said, loking at Poco.
"I don't know, wanna grab some dinner on the way to the dorms?" Poco suggested.
"We wanna tag along, too!" Bea exclaimed, Sprout on her side, who was ready to trow some carnivorous plants at the two targets just earlier.
"Alright let's go!" The team left the cafè.
Colette and her team was even more confused.
The date was going smoothly, but she just had to ruin it on the most special moment.
"If it just wasn't for that spoiled brat! Always making a fuss..!"
Maybe next time will go better?