Chapter Seventy Eight
Willow and I eventually found Krista at the DJ stand. Ember’s best friend was completely frustrated by the time we managed to locate her. The DJ wasn’t anywhere in sight and Krista was frantically slinging playlists and CD’s all over the table his computer was set up on.
“Where does he keep his flippin’ iPod cord? I’ve gotta find it because he’ll lose some of Ember’s songs if I let him try to download them. I promised her I would do it myself and it’s my gift anyway. The DJ stepped outside hours ago to smoke or something. He’s likely never comin’ back. I’ve just gotta…” she shouted in exasperation and would have continued her rant, but I interrupted her.
“Don’t worry the songs will be there…” I stated to her and then, channeled the obliteration so she would calm down.
I needed her focused on me and not on the computer equipment right now.
“Krista did you tell everyone to ignore our instructions and yell surprise at Ember?” Willow questioned her in a serious tone.
“No, you gave me the sealed invitations with your instructions printed on the back in those huge bold letters. After I handed them out, I got worried because I didn’t know if everyone would turn them over and read them. It’s not like teenagers pay much attention to anything – much less the back of something. Well, I got super nervous when I thought about that.
“So I took the guest list and personally spoke to everyone on it – one by one. I made sure they all knew to read and follow the rules precisely. That’s where I’ve been and what I’ve been doing every lunch hour for the past few weeks. Ember thought I was ignoring her so I could make out with Greg in his car, but I had to make sure everyone read the back of the invitation…” Krista emphatically stated.
The plan was for only Krista to say ‘surprise’ and not too loudly. The crowd was supposed to wait until Krista announced ‘she’s here’ and they would just clap – nothing else. We figured this would give Ember enough time to register what was happening and process it a little before she had to react. Kind of like a gentle ‘surprise’ if that’s even possible…
Then the crowd was instructed to make a wide path, so Ember could walk by without being touched. They were supposed to keep their voices down until the music started too. The entire scene was mass chaos from the moment we stepped inside and the bedlam didn’t stop until I channeled the obliteration.
Willow and I exchanged a look of total confusion. We had no clue how it all fell apart like that. Krista noticed our exchange and decided to provide us with even more proof.
“I promise that I personally spoke with everyone on the list you gave me Tray. I made them swear to read and follow the instructions to the letter on the backside of the invitation. I even made them sign the list as proof that I spoke to them and they understood what they were required to do. I know how Ember is – she’s my best friend – I would never flip her out intentionally. The crowd tonight – well, they even freaked me out, and I’m perfectly fine with loud noises and massive chaos…” she replied and shook her head in confusion.
“It’s okay Krista. It’s not your fault. We just need to figure out what happened…” Willow offered calmly.
“Hopefully you’ll share the knowledge with me when you do discover it. See that stupid gimonsterous gift mountain over there?” she asked and pointed to the table that had massive piles of boxes that were spilling onto the floor.
We both nodded.
“Ember has declared my indentured servitude until every ‘thank you card’ is written. We’ll probably be graduating from college before we get finished from the looks of it. So much for having a life between then and now. My poor boyfriend’s never gonna see me again unless he wants to sit and write thank you notes beside me. There’s definitely NOTHING romantic about that little proposition no matter how creative I am…”
Willow snickered, but somehow managed to suppress the outright laughter.
“So you didn’t change our approved instructions or alter them in any way at all?” I inquired one more time not knowing what I was hoping to discover.
Krista retrieved the guest list and then, handed it to me. It had everyone’s signature beside their name as proof that they were aware of the stipulations. A huge statement at the top of the list read “I swear to read the instructions on the back and follow them exactly upon penalty of social annihilation if I fail to do so…”
I rubbed my throbbing head and Willow rubbed my back. The signatures provided indisputable proof and not a single one was missing from the list. We had no explanation for why everyone created such a tremendous commotion. My mind went reeling when I realized that fact…
Krista kept repeating herself out of anxiety. I finally stopped her run-on sentence and channeled an obliteration to her. I convinced her that she wants to go home tonight. My head was pounding relentlessly and I just couldn’t take anymore teenage female drama this weekend.
“See you on Monday. Oh and tell Ember I said ‘Happy Birthday and that I love her…’” Krista stated and left the party to go home.
“Oh no, what about the music…I don’t know anything about this stuff…” Willow reminded me of what Krista had been doing.
“I’ve got it all taken care of, so don’t worry. I plan for every contingency…” I offered to her and then we both waited by the equipment for the DJ to reappear.
“The photographer you hired was excellent. I didn’t see her once, but I know she snapped a few hundred pictures. I didn’t think you could take pictures in this type of lighting without using some sort of flash or something?” Willow pondered aloud.
“That’s precisely why I hired a professional. Oh, don’t let me forget to return everyone’s confiscated cameras on Monday after I erase the pictures. What do they teach those kids at our school, freakin’ Martian?? They don’t even know how to read English and follow simple instructions!” I exclaimed.
I had collected at least sixty cameras although the instruction specifically stated no cameras or video equipment of any kind allowed.
The DJ eventually returned from wherever he had been hiding. I stood up and shook his hand when he approached us.
“I was wondering something. How much does all your equipment sell for, brand new?” I questioned the DJ.
It seems he read a whole lot more into the few words I had spoken. He wanted to tell me all about the technical details that went along with every single expense. Then, he started to outline precisely how the system worked and I got highly frustrated. So I channeled yet another obliteration although my head greatly protested this rash decision. He stopped talking and answered my question.
“You need to try and refrain from using your skill for a while – please, for me…” Willow whispered into my ear.
She wanted me to stop channeling and I did too, but I couldn’t stand there all night and listen to mindless technical data about DJ equipment. I didn’t want to deconstruct the thing – just buy it from him.
I purchased the system and then, handed him an additional five hundred dollars. He would never see any of it again and I had no idea how many songs he had downloaded in it. Now, there would be no chance of losing a single song and they could be put on her iPod next week.
The DJ walked away happy and so did the photographer. I gave her a very generous tip for her trouble because she had another job contracted tomorrow afternoon. She would have to go out and purchase new equipment in the morning.
I realized belatedly that Willow was standing beside me shocked and speechless. She had watched me hand over thousands of dollars. I could almost see her brain trying frantically to process what she had just witnessed. In less than fifteen minutes, I had purchased a professional quality camera with infrared lights that I didn’t know how to operate. I also bought the entire DJ system with the dance floor and lights included – not that I had any use for that additional stuff but I would just deal with it all later.
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br /> I would have used my gift on Willow so she wouldn’t be quite so astounded, but I had given her my word to never use obliteration on her again. I would just have to let her stand and stare in stunned silence until I could explain it all.
Because after all, a promise is a promise…
Ember Rising Light (Book One) Page 82
