Parties & Potions #4 (11 page)

When class ends, Miri and I follow the other girls back into the atrium. I glance at the clock on my cell, which has conveniently adjusted to Arizona time. So smart, my little guy! I bet the cell phone was a collective unconscious Samsorta gift. I bet the regular phone was one too. Maybe Alexander Bell was a warlock. I should have paid more attention to the history of witchcraft part of the lecture. Anyway, it’s 4:01 here, which means it’s 7:01 New York time. Time to get home to get ready for my date with Raf. The seven of us congregate in the atrium to say good-bye. Apparently, I have a witch group. A witch clique. A
wique?

I spot Adam across the atrium. I wave.

He hurries over and gives us a lopsided grin. “Do you guys want to come surfing with us?”

Surfing? Hello? We’re in Arizona.

“Who’s going?” Karin asks.

“Me, Praw, Michael, Fitch, and Rodge.” As he lists them, four other boys join our group. “We’re celebrating Fitch’s last study day, since his Sim is on Friday” He points to me and Miri and says, “Rachel and Miri, meet Michael, Fitch, and Rodge. And you already know Praw.”

“Hey,” they say Michael is dark-skinned, tall, and lanky. Fitch is short and pasty, and wearing thick glasses. Rodge is super-muscular and has gelled-back black hair. I’m guessing they’re all sophomores or juniors. At least I’m not the oldest person in the building—just the oldest one who doesn’t shave. My face, I mean. Of course I shave my legs. My mom tells me I shouldn’t, because she claims it’ll grow back twice as thick, but that makes no sense, because if it did, then wouldn’t bald men shave their whole heads? Although if they’re bald, they have nothing to shave. What was the point of all this? I forget.

“Hey,” I say.

Miri just squeaks. What is up with her and the squeaking?

Omigod. I know! She likes Praw. Miri likes a boy! Yay!

“So are you in?” Adam asks. “Surf’s up.”

“I’m in,” Karin says.

“I’m kind of tired,” Glamour Triplet says, putting on her oversized sunglasses. “But I’m happy to rest on the beach and soak up some rays.”

“What beach?” Karin asks. “South Beach?”

“No,” Michael says. “It’s already seven-fifteen on the East Coast. We need to go west. How about Hawaii?”

Are they seriously going to pop over to Hawaii for sun and surf?

“Yo, let’s go to Hanauma Beach,” Viv says. “It has a great vibe.”

“I’m in if y’all are,” says Praw.

“I’m in,” says Michael.

“We’re there,” says Preppy Triplet.

“Cool,” says Rodge.

“Me too,” says Karin.

“On y va!”
says Fitch. Huh? Is he French?

Sand, surf, sun … fun. Plus Miri can talk to her crush! “Us too!” I exclaim.

Adam breaks into a huge grin. “Excellent. Let’s go.”

Wait a sec. What am I thinking? I look at my watch. I have to get home! Raf is going to be at my apartment in fifteen minutes. I can’t go to the beach. “Sorry, sorry,” I say. “I can’t go. I forgot. I have to get home.”

To see my boyfriend. But I don’t say the last part aloud.

Why don’t I say the last part aloud?

Because no one cares that I have a boyfriend. Did any-one ask if I have a boyfriend? No, they did not.

Sucks that I can’t go surfing, though. I mean, I love hanging out with Raf, but I’ve never been to Hawaii! I even know all the lingo from when Dad and Jennifer went there on their honeymoon! And, well, if I went to Hawaii with my wique, we could talk about Sam class and the big party and all the stuff I can’t mention to Raf.

“Rough,” says Glamour Triplet.

“Next time, man,” says Earthy Triplet.

Karin fluffs her long blond hair. “Miri, you’re coming, right?”

Such pretty blond hair. I wonder if she’s nervous about the lock-chopping too?

Miri glances at Praw, turns bright red, and shakes her head.

“Miri, you should go,” I tell her quietly. She totally should. First of all, the very reason we signed up for this Samsorta was so that Miri could meet people like her and not be stuck at home. And now people are asking her for plans. Plus the guy she obviously likes is going. She can flirt while working on her tan! Best setup ever!

She shakes her head again, looking at the floor.

I am going to kill her. “Miri. Go.”

She gives me a pleading look. A look I take to mean “Make me an excuse, because for some reason my tongue is superglued to the top of my mouth.”

“Neither of us can,” I say begrudgingly, narrowing my eyes at my wimparoo of a sister. Liar, liar, pants on fire. “We have a … family thing.”

Viv motions for the crew to follow her outside. “Yo, whoever is coming, let’s move! Have you suckers used the new go spell? It rocks.”

“I’ve been meaning to try it,” Michael says.

“Bye!” the triplets say to us. Most of the group moves toward the door.

Adam trails behind. “Too bad you can’t come,” he says to us. To me.

I nod. “Next time.”

He looks like he wants to say something else, but instead he follows them, and we follow him, out the door.

Viv pulls a bag out of her purse, scoops out a handful of an oatmealy concoction, tosses it up into the air, and chants:

The group begins to disappear in pieces. First a leg, then an eye, some hair. Cool.

Eventually, the only human body parts left outside belong to me and Miri.

“No batteries required,” Miri says. “And it worked on a whole group. We need to whip some of that up.”

“Oh, look who found her voice!”

She blushes.

I take the batteries out of my purse. “Miri and Praw, sitting in a tree. K-I-S-S-I-N-G. First comes love, then comes marriage—”

“Stop!”

“Why didn’t you go? You could have flirted with him!”

“I couldn’t talk to him, how was I supposed to flirt with him? Can we just go home?” she begs. “Please?”

“All right, let’s go,” I say. “As punishment for wimping out, you have to be the pony.”

She pouts but gets into the crouched position.

I hop on.

She turns back to me. “But isn’t he cute?” She giggles and off we go.

Sweet Dreams

The second our feet touch my bedroom carpet, I storm the bathroom. I have to brush my teeth before Raf gets here! Why did I have to zap up a plate of nachos, why oh why?

“Rachel? Miri? You’re home?” I hear my mom say.

Can’t talk! Brushing teeth!

“How was it?” I hear. “Tell us everything.”

How cute. She’s calling herself and Lex
us.

“It was fascinating,” I hear Miri say. “During the first half of the class, we learned all about the ceremony, and during the second, we learned about the history of witchcraft.”

I spit toothpaste into the sink. “Miri fell in love,” I call out.

“Rachel!” Miri screams.

I laugh and gargle simultaneously.

“Will you come for Thai food with us?” Mom asks. There’s the
us
again. Twice.

“I guess,” Miri says.

Dinner with Mom and Lex … surfing in Hawaii … dinner with Mom and Lex … surfing in Hawaii… What’s wrong with that girl?

Raf and I pick up a new James Bond movie, then get a table at T’s Pies in a booth in the back. We hold hands most of the time. Not when we’re eating, obviously. That would be weird. But we smile at each other a lot.

Until I suspect that I have a piece of pepperoni stuck between my teeth and I sneak into the (cramped) single-stall bathroom to remove it.

The second snag is when Raf asks me what I got.

“Got where?” I ask, carefully chewing my delicious pie. This pizza
is
good.

He takes a long sip of his Diet Coke. “Didn’t you go shopping?”

“Oh! Right. I got… nothing.” Wow, I’m the worst liar ever. I can barely remember the stories I made up less than two hours ago.

“How come?”

I squeeze his hand across the table. “I’m a very picky girl.”

Back at my apartment, we make ourselves comfy on the couch and pop in the movie.

About five minutes in, I discover something hilarious about Raf.

He talks to the TV.

“What are you doing?” he asks Jack, a bit player in the movie who is about to get whacked by the bad guys. “Don’t be a moron! Don’t you know you’re going to get killed if you go in there?”

Adorable, right?

“No, no, no! Turn around! Oh, man.” Raf covers his face when Jack gets shot in the chest.

I kiss his cheek. “He’s not a real person,” I assure him. “It’s just a role.”

Raf laughs and snuggles me closer.

As the movie continues, Raf keeps talking to the characters—the ones who are still alive, that is. I, on the other hand, find myself yawning. And yawning again. Eyes. Getting. Heavy. Too much excitement for one day. Must stay awake! Why didn’t I wish myself up a caffeinated beverage when I had the chance?

Eyes. Very. Heavy. Maybe if I close them for a second, I’ll feel refreshed.

Yes. Close them. For a sec …

The next thing I hear is Miri saying, “She’s out?”

“Like the macarena,” Raf says, and then laughs self-consciously “Apparently I’m very boring.”

I spring up. “No! You’re not boring! I’m just tired! From my day of shopping.”

“Right,” Miri says, plopping down beside me on the couch. “We did lots of shopping.”

“Where’s Mom?” I ask, stifling a yawn. I don’t want Raf to think he bored me to sleep!

“She and Lex just went for a walk. They’ll be back in ten. Where’d you guys eat?”

“T’s,” Raf says. “It’s the best. The delivery sucks, though. You have to eat there.” He stretches. “I should get going. It’s getting late.” He stands up first, then peels me off the couch. “See you Monday?”

“Okay.” I’m waiting for Miri to go to her room so I can have a moment alone with Raf for some good-night kissing, but she doesn’t get off the couch. “I’ll walk you out,” I say with exaggeration, but instead of getting the hint, Miri follows me like a shadow.

“Good night, Raf,” I say.

“Good night, Raf!” Miri chirps.

“Good night, ladies.” He plants a soft kiss on my lips.

I close the door behind him. Then I throw my hands into the air. “Miri! Couldn’t you have left us alone for two seconds?”

She looks confused. “But you were alone all night.”

“I wanted to give him a proper good-bye kiss,” I grumble, and then return to the living room. I gave up surfing in Hawaii, and I don’t even feel we had much of a date. My fault for falling asleep, but still. I guess I just wish I could have told him a little bit about what was on my mind. You know, about magical cottages in Arizona and witch ceremonies and stuff.

“See!” she calls after me. “This is my problem!”

“What?”

She sinks into the couch and hugs her knees to her chest. “I don’t know how to act around boys!”

“Is this about Praw?”

She nods. “I think he’s really cute.”

“Aw, you do like him. That’s great!”

“It’s not great if I can’t speak around him! My mind goes all hazy, like the phone when you’re using the micro-wave.”

“Huh?”

“Haven’t you noticed that you can’t speak on the phone and use the microwave at the same time?”

“Um. No. But back to the boy.”

“Right. Praw. I don’t know what’s wrong with me! What do I do?”

“Flirt with him!”

“But how?” she asks. “I don’t know how to flirt. Teach me.”

“I don’t know if it’s something I can teach. It’s some-thing I just do. Like walking or breathing.”

She snorts. “Tell me this: how did you get Raf to like you? Naturally, I mean. I want him to like me for me.”

“Are you implying that I’m not likeable?”

“Stop being annoying and just tell me how you did it!”

Hmm. “Let’s see. I joined the fashion show. Since Raf was doing it too, I not only got to spend time with him, but I showed him we shared similar interests.”

“Modeling overpriced clothes?”

“Noooo.” Sheesh. “Well, maybe. That and dancing. So those are my two recommendations. Be around and share his interests.”

“How do I do that?”

“For one thing, when his friends invite you to surf in Hawaii, you go.”

She nods. “I see your point. I don’t want to be fake, though.”

“A little fake won’t hurt, I think. What do we know about him?”

“He’s a redhead.”

“Cute, but not helpful.”

She leaps off the couch. “I know! I’ll check out his pro-file on Mywitchbook!”

“Perfect!”

We hurry into her room and turn on her computer. Miri signs in to the site, and I check out her page.

“You’re so cute,” I tell her. “You picked me!” She blushes and clicks over to Praw’s. Luckily, his profile isn’t set to private.

He sounds like he’s running for Miss America.

“He likes martial arts!” she shrieks.

“I know.”

“And he’s single!”

“I know,” I say, laughing. “What is magicality?”

“His views about how to use magic. And he’s gray too! We’re interested in all the same things! I won’t have to fake anything!”

“Clearly, you two are a match made in witch heaven.”

Miri nods excitedly.

“Why don’t you friend request him?” I ask.

She stares at me, horror-stricken. “What? No!”

“Why not?”

“Because then he’ll know I like him!”

“So don’t request
just
him,” I say. “Request all the people we met at Lozacea.”

She considers the idea. “Okay. But should I start or end with him?”

“I don’t think it matters.”

She clicks on the Add Him as a Friend button. And then clicks on the button that shows his friends—all fifty-two of them. We scroll through them, searching for familiar faces.

I point. “There are the triplets! Friend them!”

She does. “And here’s Karin.” She friends her, too. “And Adam.”

“Let me see his profile,” I say. When we click on his name, a photo of him with a big smile appears.

Yup. Still cute. “Omigod. He has three hundred and seventy-five friends!”

“That’s a lot of friends,” Miri says.

“How does he know so many witches? I barely know that many people.” I read the rest of his information.

Interesting. Very interesting. “What’s pink?” I ask. “Sounds kind of feminine.”

“It means he uses magic for fun.”

Good to know. I am
so
pink. I am shiny pink. Sparkly pink. “He’s kind of cute too, huh?”

“I think he might like you,” she says, and I feel her watching me.

I don’t meet her eyes. “As a friend, maybe.”

“I don’t know,” she says. “He kept smiling at you.”

I point to his picture. “He’s a smiley type of guy.”

“Still.”

Did he like me? I’m not sure. Do I like him? He is cute. Not that it matters. I finger the tiny heart Raf gave me for my birthday.

My heart belongs to Raf.

“He accepted!” Miri sings, bouncing on my bed.

“I’m trying to sleep!” I say, pulling up my covers. “What time is it?”

“Only a little after twelve.”

“It’s practically one in the morning and you woke me up because—”

“Because Praw accepted my friend request! And he wrote me a note! He asked me about my Tae Kwon Do! Isn’t that awesome? So I wrote him back telling him all about my Tae Kwon Do! And guess what! Now I have fifty more friends!”

I don’t say anything. Because I’m sleeping. Or trying to. Is she still here?

“Should I not have written him back so fast?” she continues. “Will he think I’m desperate?”

“Probably.”

“Oh, no!” she cries. “Seriously?”

I open my eyes and see that her forehead is all creased with worry. “I’m kidding! Relax. I’m sure he’ll fall madly in love with your adorableness and nondesperateness. In fact, I’m sure right now he’s saying to his big sister, ‘Wow, that Miri Weinstein is not desperate at all.’ ”

“How do you know he has a big sister?” she asks.

“I don’t. I was being funny.” Ha-ha?

“But he does have a big sister. She’s sixteen and her name is Madison. I saw it on Mywitchbook.”

I close my eyes. “Great. Now can we go back to sleep?”

“No! He’s still online. I need to strategize with you.”