Glitter Girl (16 page)

“It's so big!” said Jules, admiring the wrapped gift on her lap. The girls had moved away from the jousting arena and sat in the shade of a large oak tree.

“Open it!” said Kat smiling brightly.

Jules did as she was told, starting in one corner. As the paper began to fall away, she glimpsed the beautiful, gold-leafed pages. Excited, she tore the paper completely off, revealing the treasure that was beneath it. She gasped!

“Wow, Kat…” Jules said paging through the book. “This must have cost you a fortune.”

“It's nice, isn't it?”

“It's more than nice,” Jules said, smiling widely. “It's perfect.”

The two girls hugged again.

As they broke the hug, Jules and Kat looked across the field and saw a group of college kids hanging out together. They were laughing and watching some of the performers get soaked at the “Dunk a Wench” tank near the center of the Faire. Girls in costumes clung on to a thick rope at the end of a giant pulley and were repeatedly dropped into a huge wooden vat of water. Then they were yanked back out a few seconds later, soaking wet and greeted by the cheers and howls of the crowd. Kat and Jules laughed along with them.

“Do you think we'll still be friends when we're in college?” Jules asked, suddenly serious.

Kat thought about it for a second. The easy answer was to say, “Of course. You'll be my friend forever. That's what BFF means, after all.” But she didn't say that. Everything that had happened in the last few weeks wouldn't let her say that. Instead, she took Jules's hand and said, “I don't know. But I know you're my friend now. And that's what matters.”

Jules smiled. Somehow that answer made more sense than anything else Kat could have said. The two friends walked through the Faire arm in arm. And somehow that was good enough too.

• • •

The girls spent the rest of the afternoon together at the Faire. Laughing, talking, trying all of the weird medieval food, or at least all the food Jules could eat with a clear conscience. The more Kat got to know Jules's friends from the Shakespeare Club and the Math Club, the more she liked them. These kids who Kat would
never
have thought to invite to that Glitter Girl slumber party, an event that now seemed as far away as the Crusades. Rory Retzlaff really
was
a funny kid, and Kat smiled at how he and Jules would kid each other and flirt in their semi-dorky way. It was fun, and not once did Kat think about how she looked.

Jules's parents went shopping on their own for pewter and silver craftwork, but Ms. Donovan hung out with the Willkie kids for a while after their performance. She seemed very much at home among the lords and ladies at the Faire. Kat knew she had some unfinished business to take care of with her. Since Jules was watching Rory play an old-time dice game called Farkle and joining in with the cheers when he made a good roll, Kat figured now was as good a time as any to talk to the teacher.

“Ms. Donovan…” she said haltingly.

“Kat!” said Ms. Donovan, turning and smiling. “Thanks for coming! We certainly didn't expect to see you here today.”

“I guess I didn't expect it myself,” she said. She took a deep breath and continued. “I just wanted to say that you were right about Glitter Girl. I shouldn't have let myself go so crazy about it.”

“Well,” said her teacher, “As Portia found out in
The
Merchant
of
Venice
, ‘All that glistens is not gold,' but I don't have to tell you that. I think you've learned that lesson pretty well.”

Kat looked from Ms. Donovan to Jules, laughing and clapping next to Rory at the Farkle booth.

“Yeah,” she said, “I guess I have. I feel so stupid, though.”

“We all let our emotions get the better of us sometimes. We get too soon old and too late smart.”

“Is that from Shakespeare too?”

“No, that's my grandma.”

Jules peeled herself away from the Farkle game and rejoined Kat and Ms. Donovan. “Oh man, Rory is going to be in debt until the next century if he keeps playing like that!” She laughed. “I guess he'll have to be an indentured servant or something.”

Ms. Donovan smiled, “Serfdom might be a good career choice for him. By the way, Kat,” she continued, “thanks for the heads-up about Coach Scofield. I got your text about what you heard him say about me. I confronted him about it. You were right; he was a jerk. Anyway, we finally broke up last night, or to put a finer point on it, I should say that
I
broke up with
him
.”

Jules turned to Kat, remembering the text that Ms. Donovan had received on the way to the high school. “That was you?” she asked, surprised.

“I had to do something after the mean things he said…a little late, though. I should never have tried to play matchmaker with you two in the first place.”

“It's not your fault. I'm a grown woman. I'm perfectly capable of making my own irresponsible decisions. At least I got a new hairstyle out of the deal. And who knows where that might lead.”

Saying that, she was approached by Sir Roderick, the knight that they had been cheering earlier. He was tall, dark, and dreamy, in a King Arthur kind of way. He held out his hand to Ms. Donovan.

“Now if you'll excuse me,” she said, smiling. “I have an appointment to cheer someone on at the archery exhibition.” She took Sir Roderick's hand and the two disappeared into the crowd. Jules joined Kat as she watched them go, amazed.

“Huzzah indeed!” said Kat, and then she and Jules burst out laughing.

• • •

Kyle finally caught up to them a little bit after that. He had actually stopped to help the farmer collect his chickens, and it had taken longer than expected to get the wagon (and his Mustang) moving again. Apparently, a spangled English rooster had been particularly elusive, and Kyle had to use all of his defensive skills from the basketball court to finally corral the pesky fowl.

Jules needed a few assurances that the rooster in question was being treated humanely and in compliance with international law. But Kyle was able to get out of the entire conversation by stuffing his mouth full of kettle corn as he talked, completely grossing out his younger sister and making the entire Willkie group crack up as well. Nothing like food flying from a teenager's mouth for entertainment.

• • •

It was a good hour before Kat was able to talk to her mom. It wasn't that Trudy was trying to avoid the girls, but instead she sat quietly on a bench in the shade of a giant oak tree and spoke on her cell phone the whole time. Kat could only assume she was talking long-distance to her dad, but she couldn't quite tell how the conversation was going. Finally, Trudy hung up the phone and Kat approached her.

“Is everything okay?” she asked, sitting next to her mom.

Trudy smiled and put her arm around her daughter, feeling twelve different emotions at once.

“It's going to be,” she said simply. “It's going to be.”

Kat wasn't quite sure what that meant, but she knew that it was true. It
was
going to be okay.

“Okay. Now
that's
what I'm talkin' about!” said Kat as she reached into the big bowl on her lap and grabbed a handful of popcorn and stuffed it into her mouth.

When Jules had suggested they get a Shakespeare movie for their Friday movie night, Kat agreed but insisted on picking it out. She knew exactly what she wanted to get. It wasn't one of those costume dramas with a bunch of “thees” and “thous” and stolen glances and daggers. No siree. It was about a modern-day girl who goes to Verona and finds this letter that a brokenhearted woman wrote to Juliet, the one from the Shakespeare play, like fifty years ago. Then she goes on a road trip to reunite the woman with her long-lost love. Lots of stuff happens, but basically the whole movie is an excuse for romance and lots of fabulous scenery, and Kat was a real fan of both.

The movie had just come to an end and the credits were rolling.

“You realize this wasn't really Shakespeare,” said Jules, turning off the movie and grabbing her own handful of popcorn from the bowl.

“Yeah. But you've got to admit, it was good!”

“Yeah. It was pretty good,” admitted Jules, grudgingly.

“It was okay. But it could have used some swordplay,” offered Rory, who was sitting on the floor at Jules's feet. This had become his regular spot ever since Jules had invited him to movie night two weeks before. She had to admit, she did like having him there. Especially when he would reach into the popcorn bowl at the same time as her and their hands would touch—which was what was happening at that exact moment! Jules blushed.

“How about you? Did you like it?” Kat offered the bowl of popcorn to Kyle, who was sitting “boyfriend” close to her, his knee touching hers.

“I refuse to answer on the grounds it may incriminate me,” said Kyle, grabbing the remote from Jules and skimming channels.

Kat playfully threw a handful of popcorn at him, some of which he caught in his mouth. Kat giggled.

Jules looked away as Kyle took Kat's hand. Even though she had accepted that her best friend and brother were going out, it didn't mean she was a fan of their PDA.

“Hey, you cut off your nails,” commented Kyle, noticing that Kat no longer sported the long manicured nails that had been one of her trademarks.

“Yeah. Long nails and volunteering for Habitat for Humanity don't exactly go hand in hand. No pun intended,” said Kat.

“It's a good look for you,” said Kyle as he stared dreamily into her eyes.

Ew. Jules couldn't take it.

“Uh, Mrs. Connors! Can you please bring me a barf bag! I think I'm going to be sick!” yelled Jules over her shoulder.

Just then Trudy came in, dressed to the nines in a little black dress and high heels. She was putting on pearl earrings.

“What's that, dear?” she asked.

“Nothing, Mom. Jules was kidding,” responded Kat. “You look really nice.”

“Yeah, Mrs. C. You totally do,” agreed Jules.

“You're so sweet. Do you like my pearl earrings? A belated anniversary gift from your father,” said Trudy just as Mr. Connors came into the room. He slipped his arm around Trudy's waist.

“We'd better get going if we're going to make our reservation,” said Mr. Connors.

“Pull out the car, Paul. I'll be right there,” said Trudy.

“Sure thing.” He started to head out, then stopped and turned to Kat.

“Hey, Kitten. We still on for tennis in the morning?” he asked.

“You got it, Dad,” Kat said, smiling. Mr. Connors winked at her and exited.

“Oh Kat, I forgot to tell you,” said Trudy, getting her coat from the hall closet. “Zoe called this afternoon.”

“Ugh! She's calling the house now? Tell her I've joined the circus.”

“Kat, you've
got
to forgive her,” Jules said. “The girl has no clue what to do with herself without you around to tell her. It's so pathetic. I mean, even
I'm
starting to feel sorry for her.”

“Okay, but that doesn't mean I can't make her suffer a bit before I do.”

“That goes without saying,” said Jules. And both girls snickered.

“Well, I'll leave that drama for you girls to work out among yourselves. You kids be good tonight. We won't be back too late,” said Trudy.

Mrs. Connors walked over to Kat and leaned over the sofa to give her a kiss. When she did, Kat whispered in her ear.

“I guess having that talk with Dad worked,” said Kat.

“Yeah. And I have my very smart daughter to thank,” said Trudy, giving Kat an extra tight hug. “She taught me what was really important.”

Trudy grabbed her handbag and exited.

“Oh man! Kat! Check this out!” Kyle pointed to the TV and turned up the volume.

Kat, Jules, and Rory all looked and saw that a commercial for Glitter Girl had come on. It was loud and sparkly and featured the snotty Alpha Girl from Iowa parading around trying to look like all that. And she was wearing the engineer's cap!

Jules looked at Kat, a little worried. Not sure what Kat's reaction would be to seeing what she had given up in the name of their friendship. Kat stared at the screen for a long moment. Finally she spoke up.

“Okay. That is the stupidest hat ever!” she said.

Both Kat and Jules broke out in hysterical laughter. Kyle and Rory looked at each other, puzzled. They had no clue what the girls were laughing about. But then why would they?

After all, it was something that was only between best friends.

Writing a book might seem like a solitary endeavor, but in fact it could never happen without the support and guidance of others, and this novel is no exception. First, we would like to thank our agents and friends Tony Travostino and Carl Pritzkat, who first planted the idea of writing a book for young people in our heads and then tirelessly worked to find it a home once it had been completed. We also wish to thank our editor at Sourcebooks, Steve Geck, for his thoughtful read of our draft and insightful suggestions to improve the story. Also, we have to acknowledge the efforts of our attorney, Darren Trattner, whose good counsel and advice are always invaluable to legal Luddites like ourselves. And finally, we must thank our families, especially our spouses, Randy and Junko, for believing in us and allowing us to chase our dreams, regardless of how elusive they might seem. Your encouragement and love mean more to us than these meager words can convey.

Toni Runkle began her writing career at age four when she scrawled on a lampshade in crayon. Despite getting in
big
trouble, she continued writing (books, blogs, screenplays). She lives in Southern California with her husband and daughter, who are understandably grateful that she now writes on computers instead of furniture.

Stephen Webb hails from a small town in South Dakota and now lives in the small town of Los Angeles, where he enjoys annoying his wife and daughter by singing show tunes at the top of his lungs. He loves softball, cheeseburgers, and his family, although not necessarily in that order.