“It took me weeks to get it right,” came his voice from behind me.
I startled then spun around to see Noah dressed in his trademark faded blue jeans and a blue Abercrombie shirt. He was holding one of the pictures, a near reflection of me.
“Noah,” I murmured.
He stepped closer, tucking a stray hair from my face. “It was your eyes. I couldn’t get them right.”
I darted past him and quickly shut and locked my door. “Are you crazy?” I whispered. “My dad would freak if he knew you were in here! How did you get in?”
“The window.”
I smiled wryly. “How very Ten Things I Hate About You.”
He set the picture on my vanity and took my hand at arm’s length. The distance between us didn’t last long. Guiding my body closer to his, his hand cupped my face as he kissed me. He twirled a piece of my yet-to-be-brushed hair between his fingertips as he backed me up until back of my legs hit the edge of my bed.
He pulled away long enough to say, “You liked the picture,” and then pressed his mouth to mine, knocking me back into a mess of pillows and blankets.
I did like the picture, though I wondered why he had drawn my eyes so haunted. My thoughts dropped off when his hand slipped under my shirt.
He didn’t shy away this time, and I didn’t want him to. In that moment, a bit of that fire Noah felt all the time consumed me, too. Mine was a different kind. One that made me kiss him harder. When his weight shifted, the bed creaked. We both froze. Footsteps clomped outside my door, followed by knocking.
“You up?” boomed my dad’s voice.
“I’m indecent!” I hollered, my heart pounding. “But I’m up. You need something?”
“Going to work, Squirrel.”
Noah raised an eyebrow, but I gave him a warning glare.
“Don’t miss school,” Dad said.
“I’ll be out in a few, don’t worry.”
He stomped downstairs, and the front door slammed shut. Noah’s weight fell into me, and we tumbled into a fit of giggles as he rolled off of me and stared up at the ceiling.
“Squirrel?” he asked.
“Don’t.”
He propped himself up on one elbow. “Is that your nickname? Should I – ?”
“No.” I rolled toward him, mirroring his body. “Absolutely not.”
He leaned in and kissed me again, a quick peck this time, and sat up. “We should get to school,” he said. “Want a ride?”
“I should probably meet you there…in case Sarah comes.”
Her name had a way of crashing into things. He nodded solemnly, sitting up.
“See you, then,” he said before sneaking out the way he’d come.
At lunch, I glowered at all the Valentine’s Day decorations. Then turned my attention to Sarah. Despite skipping school all week, she’d been coming in after hours to help the decorating committee.
She for sure would be at the dance tonight. I, however, wouldn’t be. If Noah and I went together, it would just provoke her. My guess was she was going to force Noah go with her. Together, they would get Prom King and Queen, and I would be stuck at home, unable to do anything about it.
The whole idea had me boiling. I growled under my breath and took another sip of vitamin water. Heather reached across the cafeteria table and touched my hand.
“Don’t let her get to you,” she said before taking her hand away. “Giving her the evil eye isn’t going to help.”
I pursed my lips. “Is it wrong I actually hate her?”
Heather frowned, staring down at her sandwich as she tore away the crust. “No one’s perfect.”
I assessed her carefully. She was defending Sarah, of all people. But there was a familiar sting in my gut, too. Realizing that, in many ways, I was no better a friend to Heather than Sarah had been. Did Heather have to make the same excuses for me?
As I was about to say something, a commotion on the other side of the room stole my attention.
Cassie was pacing by her table. I’ve moved around enough that I don’t normally remember students’ names, but since she lost her dad to cancer – same as I lost my friend Suzy – she stood out more than most of my classmates. Plus, we were both minus one parent. It felt like only yesterday Heather had told me her story.
Cassie crouched and looked under the table. She stood and ran her hands over both sides of her messenger bag, then dug through the inside before checking under the table again.
Two of the It Girls went over to help her find whatever she lost. A few minutes later, Kate joined them. She wrapped her arm around Cassie’s shoulders and sat down with her on the cafeteria table’s bench seat.
Heather tipped her head in their direction. “What do you think’s going on?”
I shrugged. “I don’t know. I mean, she lost something, right?”
Heather frowned and glanced back over her shoulder. “No idea.” She bit into her sandwich and took a gulp from her milk carton. “I hope it’s not that science paper due today. Mrs. Reynolds is basing sixty percent of our grade on it.”
“What? Are you sure? I didn’t –”
“Emily Bishop, you are a terrible person.” The voice behind me cut so sharply I almost choked on the air. When I spun around, Cassie was standing with all four of the It Girls behind her. “You are evil and heartless and have no soul!”
“What?” Shit. She was holding my bag by the strap. The last thing I needed was anyone to get their hands on the disturbing drawings inside. “Hey! That’s my bag!”
As I reached for it, she pulled back.
Sarah made a tsk tsk sound. “This is low. Even for you.”
I felt as frantic as Cassie had been minutes earlier. What were they talking about? Right as Heather gasped behind me, I spotted the same thing she must have – the gray ribbon pinned to my backpack.
“I didn’t – oh my God, Cassie. You don’t think –”
“Don’t think what?” Her voice rose. Everyone was watching us now. “Don’t think that you would steal something? Isn’t that why you transferred to this school?”
“No –”
“You can’t deal with anyone being happy,” Sarah cut in.
I leaned toward her, my hands bunched at my sides. “Stay out of this. You’re probably the one who put it there!”
Sarah tossed her hair back and laughed. “More lies. Oh, Emily, your reputation precedes you. Just say sorry to the poor girl for stealing her ribbon.”
“I’m not saying sorry to anyone,” I said, a sharp edge to my voice.
Heather was at my side now, placing her hand on my shoulder and tugging me back. I pushed her hand off my shoulder, but she replanted it again. “Please, Emily,” she whispered, “let it go.”
I glared at her. “I didn’t take her freaking ribbon!”
I regretted my tone as soon as the words left my mouth.
Cassie yanked her ribbon off and dropped my bag at my feet. “I don’t know how people like you can sleep at night. I would have thought you of all people…” Her lower lip trembled as she swallowed back the rest of the sentence. “Screw you, Emily Bishop.”
When she stormed off, the twins followed. Sarah and Kate remained.
“You put it there,” I accused Sarah.
She rolled her eyes. “You’re delusional.”
I leveled my gaze at Kate. “She’s using you! Can’t you see that? I bet she had you do it. Didn’t she?”
Something flashed in Kate’s eyes, but just as quick, it disappeared. “That’s a terrible thing to say.”
“It’s true.”
Heather tugged my sleeve. “Emily, you’re being too loud.”
Too late. The lunchroom aide was approaching. “What’s going on?” She turned to Sarah. “What happened here?”
Of course she would ask Sarah a
nd not me. Sarah smiled brightly. “There was a misunderstanding, Miss Linsey.”
The lunch aide frowned. “Cassie says Emily stole something from her. I’m afraid this needs to be reported to the principal.”
Sarah adjusted her purse on her shoulder. “Do we need to do all that? I’m sure he’s busy with afternoon meetings. I think this can be resolved through peer mediation.”
Miss Linsey chewed her lip. “Stealing is against school policies, Sarah. You know that.”
If I weren’t hearing this conversation with my own ears, I wouldn’t believe it. Was Sarah trying to prevent me from getting in trouble? It didn’t make sense. Not when she’d been the one to set me up. I glanced at Heather, who stared back at Miss Linsey with wide eyes and slouching shoulders.
Sarah touched Miss Linsey’s arm in the same calming way Heather had touched mine. It made my skin crawl.
Sarah lowered her voice. “Why don’t I take Emily down to the office? I witnessed the whole thing. I can help.”
“I don’t know,” Miss Lindsey began. “I’m supposed to –”
Right then, a fight broke out across the cafeteria. Miss Lindsey looked from us to the two large boys shoving each other three tables away.
“Wait here,” she said. She took two steps, then turned back. “Fine, Sarah. Take her.” She pointed her finger at us. “But no funny business.”
She hustled off toward the boys, hollering for them to stop. Sarah stuck out her elbow as though we were to link arms and skip down the halls. I told Heather I would text her later, then brushed past Sarah into the hall.
“Fine,” Sarah said behind me. “I’m only trying to help.”
I tried not to gag. Something was up, and the nicer Sarah treated me, the worse that something was going to be.
Principal Johnson thought it best to suspend me for stealing from Cassie and for causing a scene in the cafeteria. Honestly? I didn’t care. But I knew Dad would.
I opened my mouth to protest, but Sarah cut me off. “Come now, Mr. Johnson. That’s not going to fix anything. Think of all those criminals in jail, when what they really need is rehabilitation.”
I scoffed. I wasn’t a criminal. Mr. Johnson grumbled, folding his arms over his chest and letting his glasses slide low on his nose as he leaned forward in his chair. Finally, he sighed, taking his glasses off.
“I appreciate what you’re trying to do, Sarah, but school protocol –”
“Actually, school protocol allows you to use your discretion in such cases. You could just as easily give her in-school suspension. Or, oh! I know! Volunteer work. Like, a charity.”
“A charity?” I asked, incredulous, right as Mr. Johnson was asking the same in a far less disgusted tone.
“Yes, a charity,” Sarah said to him. She didn’t look at me. “A brain cancer charity. Emily can do volunteer work for a cause important to Cassie. To make amends. We have the Valentine’s dance tonight. We could do a fundraiser there.”
I zoned out, attempting to piece together what a Valentine’s Day Dance had to do with fundraising and my allegedly stealing a ribbon.
“Emily!” Principal Johnson said sharply.
“Huh?”
He shook his head. “I hope this works, Sarah, because I don’t see much hope here.”
“It’ll be perfect,” Sarah said. “Emily can learn how it feels better to give to people than to take from them.”
Oh God. Like how I took Noah from her? Was that it? Because he had never been hers to begin with.
It took everything in me not to grab her by the shoulders and scream in her face, “What are you playing at?” I knew she had something to do with that ribbon ending up in my bag. She had to! And now she was trying to get me out of trouble for it?
“I think I’ll take the suspension,” I said.
“Don’t be silly,” Sarah said through the gritted teeth of a tacked on smile. “No one would rather be suspended.”
“No, I deserve it.” I stared at the ground as though struck by remorse. Two could play this game. “I’ll make it up to Cassie another way.”
Principal Johnson rose to his feet. “I think Sarah has a point,” he said stiffly. “We’ll run a fundraiser at the Valentine’s Day Dance. Emily will help.”
He didn’t sound like himself. I glared at Sarah and her glowing necklace. Her smug smile gave away that she was pulling more than a few strings. Which meant for reasons unclear, Mr. Johnson was somehow deserving of it.
I would have loved to smack her, but I refused to risk my own free will. I needed to find some other way to stop her – if there even was one.
18
THE DEATH OF A WITCH
Sarah’s idea of a Valentine’s Day Dance was sickingly uninspired. Loads of red, white, and pink. Cupcakes with heart sprinkles. Way too many of those little conversation hearts no one likes but eats anyway. The only thing missing were red balloons, and I could guess why.
Couple by couple, people filed in, dropping their anonymous valentines cards in the box by the door. I didn’t see the point. Surely everyone who was in attendance had come with their valentine already, and I hadn’t seen anyone walk in solo yet.
Until Noah walked in. He paused in the entrance, scanning the room until his attention froze on me. He made no more than two steps before Sarah popped up in front of him.
“Noah! You made it!” Her foot kicked up a little as she wrapped him in a ginormous hug. Like I said, sickening. “We have to dance! This is my favorite song!”
She whisked him to the dance floor, though I doubt she had a favorite anything besides making other people miserable. Noah’s stiff movements and scowling expression told me he wasn’t dancing willingly. Nevertheless, she beamed a smile as bright as ever.
Meanwhile, I wasn’t allowed to leave the donation table, which was a total waste of my lavender dress and fingerless gloves. I was beginning to think this was the “sit here and watch me dance with your would-be boyfriend” table. No one had so much as dropped spare change into the glass jar. The closest I’d come to a “donation” was a few people piling their jackets at the end of the table.
I could waltz over to Sarah and Noah and cut in, but I knew that would only make things worse. Another option was crawling into a dark hole to die. Because that’s how it felt seeing those two dance together, even if Noah didn’t want to. Figuratively or literally, Sarah was determined to kill me. At the moment, she was succeeding.
When the song ended, Sarah strolled over to my table and peered into the jar, frowning. “Nothing?” She wrinkled her nose in a practiced, popular girl kind of way. “I think they need incentive!”
The happier she sounded, the more I dreaded whatever she had planned. I didn’t have the energy to argue; or rather, I knew better than to waste my energy doing so. Instead, I sank deeper in my chair as she bounded up the steps onto the stage.
“Who’s ready for some action?” she shouted into the microphone. “I said, ’Who’s ready for some action?’ Let me hear some noise!”
Everyone cheered. On account of her popularity or magic, I couldn’t say.
“We have a special thing planned for all the ladieees! But first I need some male volunteers. Do I have any takers?”
No one moved. Wait. Scratch that. Noah’s hand was twitching. Ah, there it was. Damn her. She was using him. If he volunteered, so would the rest of the popular guys in school. Nothing good would come from this.
Sure enough, half the varsity football team and a third of the swim team and basketball teams were soon on stage.
“So, ladies, what do you think?” Sarah asked, waving her arms toward the display of young men. “Who wants a date with one of these hotties?”
No. She. Wasn’t.
I was pretty sure schools didn’t allow things like this. I glanced around for an attending chaperone, but they were all crowded around the oth
er It Girls, sorting through cards at the Valentine’s card box. Or, more likely, being controlled into ignoring what was going on.
Several shouts and threats formed in my throat and stuck there. I knew damn well there was nothing I could do or say. It would only make things worse. I forced out a slow breath and balled my hands into tight fists.
“We’re going to start all bids at one dollar. Winners get to visit our date tables on the other side of the wall,” Sarah said, pointing to some room dividers that had been decorated with hearts and snowflakes. “You’ll get a delicious pasta dinner to share, a la Lady and the Tramp!”
With that, she started the bidding on the first unlucky lad, the captain of the varsity football team, who went for twenty dollars to the captain of the cheerleading squad. She dropped her twenty in the glass jar on my table and giggled as she met him onstage. Something told me the two were already together.
The next guy went to a girl in my chemistry class, and the guy after that was matched with Cassie, the girl I was supposedly raising money for. I was told we would be donating to a charity of her choice.
Next up was Noah. My Noah.
At first, no one wanted to bid for him, probably because they knew he “belonged” to Sarah.
“Come on, ladies,” she cajoled, “this is all in fun! Let’s make some bids!”
Finally, a petite blonde wearing glasses and dressed in a light blue sparkly dress raised her hand. “I’ll bid.”
“Great!” Sarah said a little too loudly. “I have one dollar! Do I hear two dollars?”
She heard two. Then three, then four. She was about to auction him off for fifteen dollars when I decided I’d had enough. I was going to win him. I didn’t care if it pissed her off. She and her It Girl friends could control other people all she wanted, but they couldn’t control me.
“Twenty dollars,” I said.
“Going once, going twice…”
“I said, TWENTY DOLLARS.”
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