Dancing In Shorts

The plane lands at Brisbane Airport.

It's two hours till their flight to Gladstone.

I'll take a look at the shops, says Katherine. Who wants to come with me?

Me, says Terence.

I'll come, says Nerida. Coming Arthur?

But Arthur wants to get something to eat.

Let's find a quiet table, says Gaius. Arthur can eat something while helping me re-organise my notes on the Kroombit Tinker.

Isn't that my job? asks Nerida.

But you want to go shopping, says Gaius. 

I changed my mind, says Nerida.

So Katherine and Terence go shopping.

They pass Surf Dive 'n Ski.

I wonder if Arthur would like a new pair of board shorts? asks Katherine.

No he wouldn't, says Terence. He likes his old ones.

How about you? asks Katherine. I know you love those old gecko shorts.

Yes, says Terence. They have memories in different places. These geckoes have orange eyes from when I spilled orange juice and this is the one I saved from the bird poo.

Why this one? says Katherine. 

Camus folded the gecko shorts so only one gecko would touch poo, but I saved him.

Camus? asks Katherine.

The gecko, says Terence. I gave Camus my parrot shorts and he used them to wipe the poo off the police car.

So you'd been wearing the parrot shorts, says Katherine. 

And they got ruined, says Terence. Lucky I had these.

He dances about in his memory-rich gecko shorts.

Katherine gives up on the shopping.

She calls Gaius. Where are you? asks Katherine. 

At Lord Lamington's, says Gaius. In the corner.

Katherine and Terence soon find them in the Lord Lamington corner.

Gaius has notes spread all over the table.

A bowl of popcorn cauliflower sits on top of a frog illustration.

A classic cheeseburger, already half eaten, sits on page four.

A protein salad sits in the middle of a blank page of conclusions.

This is untidy, says Katherine. There's food on the notes.

My fault, says Gaius. I should have sat at a separate table.

That salad looks nice, says Katherine.

You're welcome to it, says Gaius. Who would have expected it to contain a tomato?

Katherine eats the tomato.

And the chicken, egg, lettuce, spanish onion, and cucumber as well.