by Sarah Adams
“What's going on, girl?” Tamara asked.
“Can you come to the library with me after school?” Amber asked, not wanting to be alone when she confronted the librarian.
That old bat knew more than she was letting on and Amber knew it! She had planted the book on the shelf for her to find and left her to it, to screw up her life even more than it already was.
“Is this about Joshua Nelson, Amber?” Tamara asked, “I thought you were finally moving on from all of that.”
“It's not about Joshua Nelson,” Amber sighed, “It's about Joshua Kirk.”
“Hmm…” Tamara said, “Did he ditch you or something?”
“No,” Amber sighed, “We're hanging out tomorrow, but I'm not sure if I want to. I'm not even sure he really wants to hang out with me for...er...the right reasons.”
“Do you think he's going to try to get into your pants or something?” Tamara asked, arching a lined brow.
“NO!” Amber said, feeling her cheeks turn a bright shade of crimson, “No, no. Just no. I don't think he's like that.”
“Then what other reason could there be that wouldn't be... What did you call it? Right?” Tamara asked.
“Lots of reasons would be the wrong one, but I can't tell you right now. I'll tell you at the library. If I tell you now you won't come with me,” Amber said.
“Why? Are you planning to do something illegal? Are you finally acting out?” Tamara laughed.
“No!” Amber sighed, “It's not illegal, at least I don't think it is. Will you come with me or not?”
“I'll have to ask Mom, but if it's cool with her I'll come along for two reasons. One: You have me intrigued. Two: I think you have finally lost it,” Tamara said.
“I haven't,” Amber said shaking her head.
An hour later Amber and Tamara were huddled together in the back of the library.
“What are you dragging me into dark corners for?” Tamara asked, “Did my BFF turn into a vampire?”
Amber laughed, thankful for now that Tamara never took anything seriously, but finding a good deal and saving money. It was a good thing too, because Amber felt like someone had punched her in the stomach. Things were going downhill fast and she needed to find a foothold.
“You're not going to believe me, but I need you too,” Amber whispered.
“Are you pregnant or something?” Tamara asked, “Has someone hurt you?”
“No,” Amber shook her head, “No, I'm not pregnant and I haven't been hurt, not in the way I think you're referring to anyway. Do you remember how I was really sure that Joshua Nelson was going to ask me to the dance?”
“How could I forget that, girl? Seriously, you made a total fool of yourself at the mall,” Tamara laughed.
“Don't remind me,” Amber groaned.
“It's all good now, right? You're hanging out with that other Joshua and you're over Joshua Nelson.” Tamara said.
“Yeah, sorta,” Amber said and bit her lip, “I think I'm over Joshua Nelson and I have been hanging out with Joshua Kirk.”
“So what's the problem then? BFF are you trying to make a problem where there isn't one again? Like the time you thought your headache was a brain tumor?” Tamara laughed.
“No and that could have been a brain tumor,” Amber said, “But this is a real problem.”
“Then spit it out already, girl,” Tamara said, leaning back against the wall.
“I did a love spell so that Joshua Nelson would notice me, but because he lied about his favorite color I think it hit Joshua Kirk instead! Now, he wants to hang out with me and stuff, but I don't think it's because he thinks I'm epically cute or funny, but only because of the spell! I can't trap him like that! It's not fair to him. I wasn't trying to be-spell him!” Amber said. The words rambled out of her mouth as she spoke. She didn't pause for breath, because she feared if she did, she'd never find the courage to keep going.
“Okay, I'm not sure I believe you, but you were okay with trapping the other Joshua with a love spell?” Tamara asked.
“Not really, it was only supposed to be a notice me spell,” Amber sighed.
“Then what's the problem? A Joshua noticed you. You like him! Get on with the flirting thing already!” Tamara laughed.
“How do I know he really likes me and it isn't just the spell?” Amber asked.
“I'm pretty sure you're safe, Amber, since magic isn't real,” Tamara grinned.
“But it is! The librarian planted the book for me to find and everything! I think she's like a witch or something!” Amber hissed.
“You think Mrs. Galiey is a witch? Are you listening to yourself, Amber? Are you hearing this? None of it is real! Magic is only a myth! A child's story! A fairy tale! You're not a princess and there's not evil fairy to curse you and maybe no white knight to carry you away, but there is a guy who I think likes you and you seem like you like him. So, just drop it, okay?” Tamara said.
“I knew I shouldn't have told you,” Amber sighed.
“So, okay, say I did believe you, which I don't, what would be our next step?” Tamara asked.
Amber knew her BFF was only humoring her, but it made her feel a teensy bit better. Only a teensy bit, though.
“We need to find away to break the spell,” Amber said.
“Where do we start?” Tamara asked.
“We need to find the book. It was called 'The Secret Book of Spells for Ladies in Love'.”
“Let's get to looking, but Amber, just because you read something in a book doesn't mean it's true, okay, girl?” Tamara asked.
“I know that,” Amber sighed.
“I'm not sure you do, girl, I'm not so sure you do,” Tamara laughed.
Amber searched the fifth shelf of the aisle where she had found 'The Secret Book of Spells for Ladies in Love'.
“Come on,” she whispered, “Come on. I know it was here. This is right where I found it.”
Amber dropped to her knees and moved slowly down the length of the aisle again.
“Maybe they put it somewhere else or some other fool checked it out,” Tamara sighed.
“No!” Amber said.
Her hands shook as she searched the shelf again. Amber's heart thumped against her ribcage and her fingers moved frantically across the books.
“It has to be here! It has to!” she thought to herself.
“Why don't we just ask Mrs. Galiey?” Tamara sighed.
“Because Mrs. Galiey didn't give me the book,” Amber said.
“Well, it doesn't matter who gave it to you. If it's been in the library, Mrs. Galiey will know right where it's at. Come on,” Tamara said and pulled Amber to her feet.
Amber allowed Tamara to lead her through the library to the check out desk.
“We want to know if you have a book here,” Tamara said.
“And which book would that be, girls?” Mrs. Galiey asked.
“'The Secret Book of Spells for Ladies in Love',” Amber said.
Mrs. Galiey turned away and typed rapidly on her computer. With each tap Amber cringed. The small noises echoed through the library before bouncing around Amber's skull.
“There's no book by that title in our system, girls,” Mrs. Galiey said when she turned back around.
“Are you sure?” Amber asked, “I checked it out before. Can you check again?”
“I could check again, Amber, but the computer says it doesn't exists in our system,” Mrs. Galiey sighed, “and the computer tracks all of our books.”
“Computers can glitch though,” Amber sighed, “because I've checked it out before.”
“Books sometimes leave our shelves never to return. Damaged beyond repair or lost somewhere dark. I'm sorry, but it happens,” the librarian said.
“I want to speak to the other librarian!” Amber said.
“Amber, I am the only Librarian, you know that,” Mrs. Galiey frowned.
“No, you're not. The other lady wears her hair in a messy bun and she's the one who helped me find the book last time. I want to s
peak with her! When will she be working again?” Amber demanded.
“Amber, I think you're studying too hard, because there's not another librarian. I've been the only librarian at this branch for over six years now. You know that. Why don't you find a good book and relax for awhile,” Mrs. Galiey said.
“Amber, Mom is outside. She said I could only stay for an hour and it's been an hour and fifteen minutes. Why don't we go ahead and leave? My mom will drive you so you won't have to wait on your dad to finish playing golf,” Tamara said, guiding Amber away from the checkout desk.
“No, go ahead. I'll call you tomorrow if I have time after I hang out with Joshua,” Amber said, “I'm going to keep looking.”
“No, Amber, please, just let my mom drive you home,” Tamara said, “I really am worried about you BFF.”
“Fine,” Amber sighed, “I'll just have to come back tomorrow.”
“Not tomorrow,” Tamara shook her head, “Tomorrow you're hanging out with Joshua.”
“Yeah,” Amber sighed, “but I need to figure out how to break this spell, reverse it, undo it, or whatever you want to call it,” Amber sighed.
“You just need a good night of sleep,” Tamara said, wrapping her arm around Amber's shoulders.
“Maybe,” Amber sighed.
Saturday
Amber wasn't sure what she should wear. Her default choice was her green sundress, but this morning it looked too green. She ran her fingers over the cotton fabric and sighed. The red numbers on her digital clock read eleven-fifteen. She only had fifteen minutes to finish getting ready before Joshua was supposed to arrive. Not wanting to rush downstairs at the last minute Amber settled on her favorite pair of jeans and a green tank.
“Amber, phone!” her dad called up.
“Is it Tamara?” she called back down.
“No, it's some guy,” he called back.
“Coming,” she said and sprinted down the stairs.
“Hello?” Amber said, holding the receiver between her ear and shoulder.
“Hey, Amber, it's me Josh,”
“Hey, what's up?” Amber said, trying to keep her tone even, despite the butterflies swarming in her belly.
“I really hate to do this, but could we hang out later today? I have to go to the new store for a few hours. Dad just rang to tell me he needed my help,” he said.
“That's fine, do you know what time you'll be done?” she asked.
“I'm not sure, but I don't think it'll take too long,” Joshua said.
“See you then,” Amber said and hung up the receiver.
“He ditch you?” her dad asked.
“No, he's just going to be late. I think I'm going to go to the library for awhile. If he calls or shows up, tell him where I went, okay?” Amber asked, grabbing her purse and slipping her feet into her shoes.
“Are you ditching him, now?” he asked.
“No, I just need to take a book back. It's due today and I don't want any late fines,” Amber said and dashed out the door.
Two hours later Amber arrived back home empty-handed. The book still wasn't on the shelf, but she couldn't gather the courage to ask Mrs. Galiey about it again. Her feet drug against the concrete of the driveway as Amber made her way onto the porch. Each step required effort, because the feeling of defeat had settled into her stomach.
The sound of an engine behind her, startled her and she looked over her shoulder. It was an old car. Amber wasn't sure of what the make was, because she had never been interested in cars. Her dad told her it would change once she found a boyfriend, but she doubted it. If it ran and wasn't going to blow up while she was inside, she was fine. She couldn't wait to get her license next year, but she didn't care what make or model her car was as long as it ran. Joshua Kirk was driving it.
“Weird,” Amber thought to herself and waved hello.
“Hey,” he said killing the engine and getting out, “Sorry that we had to postpone things. I just couldn't get out of it.”
“Did you get your new phone yet?” Amber asked.
“Not yet, not until next weekend,” Joshua said, leaning back against the hood of his car.
“That's not too long,” Amber said, “Not really. Do you want to come in and have a soda or something?”
“Yeah, just let me grab my guitar,” he said, sprinting around to the trunk.
“Okay, actually, let's hang out on the porch, if you don't mind. My dad's inside playing golf on the Wii Nintendo Game System,” Amber said after peaking in the front window.
“That's cool,” Joshua laughed.
“I'll be right back with the drinks,” Amber said.
“I'm home and Joshua just got here, Dad,” she shouted over the noise of the game, “I'm going to grab some sodas and we're going to sit on the porch.”
'Okay, kiddo,” he said.
Amber watched in amusement as he lined up the control as if it were a real club and swung hard. Shaking her head she darted into the kitchen and back onto the porch after retrieving sodas.
“Thanks,” Joshua said, tuning his guitar.
“So how's the new store going?” Amber asked.
“It's going good so far. It's getting a lot more business than the first one, but then again it's in a better location too,” he said, “So you're dad really plays video games?”
“Yeah, it's epically embarrassing,” Amber admitted.
“No, that's pretty freakin' awesome,” he laughed, “I wished my dad played video games, even if it were only golf.”
“Nah, he tries too hard to be cool,” Amber laughed.
“Any man who plays a golf video game isn't trying to be cool,” Joshua chuckled.
“True, maybe,” Amber laughed.
“What should I play?” he asked.
“What can you play?”
“Some of this, a little of that. I've written a few of my own songs too. Not like lyrics or anything. Just the music,” Joshua said.
“OMFG!” Amber though to herself, and forced her smile to remain calm.
“Why don't you play one of those?” she asked.
“Okay,” Joshua nodded.
Amber watched his fingers move across the strings and how he squared his shoulders while he played. She looked up to his face. He was smiling at her. His deep brown eyes were bright and alive. She grinned at him and closed her eyes, pretending to be lost in the music. He played pretty well and with the right lyrics his music would be awesome, but Amber was taking advantage of the moment to take a deep breath and relax.
“Remember, he only likes you because of the spell,” Amber told herself, “It's just the affects of the spell.”
The music ended and Amber opened her eyes.
“You play really well,” she told him.
“So what did you think of the song?” Joshua asked.
“It was really good. With the write lyrics it could come to together and be epic,” she smiled.
“Do you sing?” he asked her.
“No. Not really. I suck at it,” Amber said, blushing.
“Every girl says that,” he chuckled, “Come on, let's hear it. What should I play?”
“No, I don't sing,” she said again.
“Come on, I won't laugh, but I bet you're not as horrible as you think,” Joshua said.
“I bet I'm twice as horrible as I think,” Amber said.
“Come on, it's just for fun. It's not like I'm dragging you on stage in front of a million people,” Joshua said.
“Fair enough,” Amber sighed.
“So what should I play?” he asked.
“I don't know. I don't think I know any songs by heart,” Amber said.
“Do you listen to the radio?” he asked.
“Yeah,” Amber nodded.
“Then I know what to play,” Joshua said.
His fingers moved across the strings of his guitar and music cut through the air replicating one of the more popular songs on the radio. It was a love song and a corny one in Amber's opinion, but since she was
trying to be a good sport she sang along.
“You're not bad at all,” Joshua said when the song was through, “What should we sing next?”
“I think I've done all the singing I should for the day,” Amber laughed.
“Okay, so twenty questions it is,” he laughed, “You go first.”
“Do you believe in magic?” Amber asked.
“Why did I ask him that? He's going to think I'm crazy.”
“Magic?” Joshua asked, arching a brow, “Like a magician's sleight of hand or like the wand waving sort?”
“Sorta neither. Like real spells and stuff,” Amber said.
“Anything's possible, but I think that's improbable. If spells worked, I mean life would be easy. We could just craft up a spell for anything we wanted,” Joshua said.
“I don't think it would be that easy,” Amber said, “I think that there would be all sorts of complications that no one warned you about. You're turn.”
“If magic were real, what spell would you do first?” Joshua asked.
“Something to make my dad cool,” Amber said, not wanting to admit that she had done her first spell and magic was something that was very real.
“That's nice of you, but don't you think that would have complications? If he was cool, he wouldn't be the person you knew anymore,” he said.
“I told you magic's complicated. That's why no one uses it,” Amber laughed, “My turn, would be the second thing you'd do?”
“Not the first?” he asked.
“No, the first would most likely be on a whim, just so you could find out if it worked. The second thing would be more thought out,” Amber explained.
“I don't know,” Joshua said, “Maybe make my next phone indestructible.”
“That's a good one,” Amber laughed.
“What's the second thing you would do?” Joshua asked.
“Learn how to reverse spells,” Amber said.
“Smart,” Joshua laughed, “I've got to get going. I have to finish an art project and my parents always want me home for dinner.”
“Okay, thanks for playing for me today,” Amber smiled.
“Thanks for singing with me today,” Joshua said, “And I do believe magic is real. It just has a different definition for me.”
“And what's that?” Amber asked.
