#5 Not What I Expected (7 page)

Without turning around, I knew it was Matt. I turned the dial on my lock again and pulled extra hard. Fortunately, it opened. “No, thanks,” I said. Then I got out the books I needed, closed my locker, and walked off.

It was the first time we've spoken at school. Not that we spoke about much. I'd been so worried that it would be a big deal seeing him at school.

It wasn't.

Saturday, October 25

Grand opening of Flora's Fashions

Today was the opening of Mom's store. It was incredible in lots of ways, but a few things stood out that made the day especially awesome, at least for me.

The main thing was the opening itself. The store looked amazing, and so did the clothes. Everything Mom designed was black, white, coral, and robin's egg blue. All the racks of dresses, pants, skirts, and blouses were color-coordinated and so pretty. I wasn't the only one who thought so. Everybody was raving about the designs. Plus, Mom had gone all out for the opening. There were flowers, candles, food, champagne, and a harpist. Everyone was talking and toasting Mom. There was even a photographer and a reporter from the
Faraway News
who interviewed her. All of Mom's hard work showed, and I was really proud of her.

Another great thing about the night was that all my friends and family were there and everyone got along. Brynn came with her parents. Brynn's mom, who is super chic, even made an appointment to come back. “You're my new favorite designer,” she said as she gave Mom a hug.

Billy was there with his family, and Sophie and her Mom came too. I was worried there would be tension between Brynn and Sophie, especially since Billy was there. But if there was, they didn't let it show. We all talked and ate finger sandwiches and laughed. It was really fun. Somehow I think they all intuitively knew how important this night was for me.

After most of the guests left, my extended family stayed. Sophie and I were hanging out with Harry, who invited us to come with him to a Halloween party that one of the juniors is having. Sophie said she'd love to go. I knew I'd have to get permission from Mom and Dad. I didn't think the opening was the time to do it, but I was excited Harry invited us. It'll be my first high school party, and I think Mom and Dad will say yes since I'll be going with Harry and Sophie.

Another cool thing actually happened before the opening. I popped into the deli to see Leo. “Wow!” he said when he saw me. “Look at you!”

It was the reaction I'd been hoping for. I had on a fitted black dress and a pair of Mom's heels I'd had to beg her to let me wear. I was almost as tall as Leo with them on. I told Leo about the opening and that I couldn't stay long.

“That's too bad,” said Leo. “I'm about to go on break.”

When he said that, I took a pen off the counter and wrote my number down on a napkin and gave it to him. It felt like a very grown up thing to do.

“You can call or text me later if you want,” I said.

Leo shook his head. “A call, maybe. A text, never.”

“Who doesn't text?” I asked.

Leo raised his hand like he was the guilty party. “Audio is widely considered to be a core feature of phone technology. Why not use it?”

As I left, I rolled my eyes at him. But I couldn't help smiling. He's weird, but in such a likeable way.

Last but not least. When my family got home from the opening, we were all in the kitchen when Mom made a little speech. “I want to thank all of you for your support over the last month. I know it has been hard on everyone, but now that the store is up and running, things should be much smoother at home.” When Mom finished talking, Dad gave her a hug. It was the first time I'd seen them be affectionate in a while, and a sense of relief washed over me. They both seemed more relaxed and happy than they'd been in a long time.

A lot of things happened today, but nothing better than this.

Charlie Brown is such a loser. He wasn't even the star of his own Halloween special.

—Chris Rock

Monday, October 27, 11:12 p.m.

Can't sleep

Just when I thought things were going to get better at home, Mom and Dad were arguing again. The good news is a woman who owns a major clothing store in Atlanta read the article about Mom that ran in the
Faraway News
. She set up a meeting with Mom at the end of November to see her clothes and said if she likes them, she might carry her line in her store.

The bad news (at least from Dad's perspective) is that Mom wants to sew a new collection made from high-end fabrics, which means she'll be spending (a) a lot of time sewing and (b) a lot of money on more fabric.

“We just spent a fortune getting the store opened. We can't afford to spend more,” said Dad.

“We can't afford not to,” said Mom. They went around and around on that point for a long time. Then Mom told Dad she was doing it. “The next few weeks are going to be very busy,” she told him.

I didn't wait to hear Dad's response. I already know how this is going down.

Tuesday, October 28, 8:52 a.m.

School nurse's office

I forgot to set my alarm last night so I woke up late this morning. Then, when I was getting dressed, I remembered that today is the last day to bring in a check to Ms. Baumann for the dance costumes for the show. She'd gone on record saying that if you don't have a check by practice today, you can't dance in the show. So I threw on clothes, skipped makeup entirely, and was in the kitchen trying to quickly explain to Mom why I needed a check for $122.19 on the spot when June walked in in her pajamas.

“Why aren't you dressed?” asked Mom.

“I'm not going to school,” said June as she sat down at the table.

“Do you feel sick?” Mom went over to June and put a hand on her forehead. “You don't have a fever.” June crossed her arms across her chest.

I cleared my throat. “Um, Mom, I need a check now or I'm going to be late.”

Mom gave me a blank look like she'd forgotten what we'd been discussing. She turned her attention back to my sister. “You have to go to school.”

June shook her head. “I'm not going. Cole Martin is mean to me. And so are Sam Chen and Evan Walker.”

I blew out a breath. “Mom, I need a check. Now.”

“How are they mean?” she asked in response.

“They make fun of me because I bring soy milk in my lunch.”

“Tell them you're allergic to dairy,” said Mom.

June shook her head like that wouldn't work. “They'll say I'm weird. That's what they say every day.” Mom sat down at the table and took a sip of coffee, like that was going to give her some insight as to how to handle the situation.

I looked at the clock. I was seriously going to be late for homeroom. “Tell them they're all big baby losers and you'll beat them up if they make fun of you again,” I said.

“April!” Mom said my name sharply.

“Mom!” I said shoving her checkbook in front of her. “I'm really late.” So she wrote the check, but not until she told me I need to be more responsible and let her know in advance when I need money for something. It stressed me out and made me wonder if she didn't want to write the check because we don't have the money, but it also made me have to run to school. I literally ran all the way. When I got to Mrs. Monteleone's room, she was just finishing taking the role. Beads of sweat were running down my forehead.

“I'm going to have to give you an unexcused tardy,” she said as I entered her classroom. I'm not sure what the consequences of having an unexcused tardy are, but shockingly, Mrs. Monteleone changed her mind. She said she wasn't giving me the tardy because I looked feverish, then she sent me to the nurse's office.

The nurse took my temperature, then gave me some juice and a paper towel and told me I could sit out first period while I cool down.

The only problem is I sweated so much, now I have body odor.

I'd much rather have the unexcused tardy.

Wednesday, October 29, 7:32 p.m.

In my room

Mom asked me if I could stop by the store after dance practice and help her set up a Flora's Fashions Facebook page. I thought she could have figured it out without me, but I didn't think it was a good time to say no. When I'd asked if I could go to Mark Miller's Halloween party with Harry and Sophie, she and Dad had reluctantly agreed. I didn't want her to change her mind.

Once we had her Facebook page set up, she had some paperwork to do before we left, so I went next door to see if Leo was there. He was busy slicing meat, but he took a break. “I'm glad you came,” he said. “I was going to call you tonight.”

“You really don't text, do you?”

Leo shook his head. “If you have something to say, just say it.”

I couldn't help but smile. “So why were you going to call me?” I asked.

“I wondered if you would like to go trick-or-treating with me on Halloween.”

I sighed. The idea of trick-or-treating with him was appealing, but I'd already made plans. “I can't,” I said.

Leo shook his head like not going was a mistake. “Trick-or-treating will be retro and fun. We'll get to eat loads of candy.”

“It sounds like fun, but I already told my cousins Harry and Sophie that I'd go with them to a party.” I shrugged. “I mean, I think the party will be fun.”

“April, high school parties are not fun for 98 percent of the kids who attend them.”

I laughed. “Is that a fact?”

Leo shook his head. “Nope. Just a theory.”

Thursday, October 30, 6:46 p.m.

Home from dance

As we were leaving dance, Brynn asked what I'm doing for Halloween, so I told her I'm going to Mark Miller's party. She wrinkled her nose when I said it. “Who are you going with?”

Everyone knew about his party and that mostly upperclassmen were invited. I'm sure she was wondering how I got invited. “Harry,” I said. “And Sophie.” I debated telling Brynn that part. There hadn't been any issues with her and Sophie since I'd talked to Brynn about it, and I'd like to keep it that way. But still, I didn't want to lie about who I was going with.

Brynn winced. “Do you think it'll be fun, you know, since there won't be many freshmen there?” She shrugged. “I don't know. If it were me, it seems like it would be weird.”

I couldn't tell if she was genuinely concerned, or upset that she wasn't invited, or jealous I was going to be with Sophie on Halloween. I wanted to change the subject. “What are you doing?” I asked.

She smiled. “Billy and I are
staying in.”
She emphasized the words as she said them, then looked at me. “Know what I mean?”

“Yeah,” I said, though I wasn't completely sure I did. I didn't like thinking about what it meant that Brynn and Billy were
staying in
together on Halloween.

I'm also not sure I liked her response about the party. At first, it didn't really bother me, but I thought about it all the way home. It feels like, by saying I wouldn't have fun, she was putting some kind of Halloween hex on me.

Well, everyone knows there's no such thing as hexes.

Are there?

Just when we think we've figured things out, the universe throws us a curveball.

—Meredith Grey
, Grey's Anatomy

Halloween, 6:45 p.m.

Getting ready

I can't decide if I should wear ripped blue jeans with a black top, black jeans with a black top, or black jeans with an orange top. I just asked May (because she happened to come into my room while I was trying to decide), who said I should wear the ripped blue jeans with an orange top, which technically wasn't one of the choices, but part of me thinks she might be right (even though she's never right when it comes to clothes). Since Mom is a fashion designer I'm going to the kitchen to ask her what she thinks I should wear.

7:17 p.m.

Back from the kitchen

I'm back from the kitchen, and there was no point in going. When I asked Mom what she thought I should wear to the party, she pursed her lips like she was actually considering my question (which it turns out wasn't the case). Before she could answer, June put in her two cents. “I think you should wear a pirate costume or go as a ghost.”

Mom unpursed her lips. “April, do you really think it's a good idea to go to this party?”

I'd already been over this with Mom and Dad, and I didn't think I should have to do it again, especially when I had more important things to be doing, like getting ready. “I think it's a great idea. I'm going with Harry and Sophie. Aren't you happy I'm spending time with family?”

Mom shook her head like that wasn't the issue. “It's just that there will be older kids there. I've heard these parties can get pretty out of control.”

I let out a breath and tried to stay patient. I knew if I got frustrated Mom would take it as a sign that I wasn't “mature” enough to go. “Mom, don't worry. I'll be careful. I promise.”

That seemed to get the job done because after a long lecture about the dangers of underage drinking and the importance of not succumbing to peer pressure, Mom agreed (even though she'd already agreed) that I could go, which was great, though it didn't answer the what-should-I-wear question.

The answer is I'm going with black and black. Sophie just called and said that's what she's wearing and that one thing she learned from living in New York is that you can never go wrong with all black. Then she said tonight should be really fun and that she can't wait to go.

Neither can I. Happy Halloween! I'm going to a party!!!

8:32 p.m.

Group text

Harry: Be there in 5.

Sophie: Where?

Sophie: My house?

Me: Or my house?

Sophie: ???

Me: ???

Harry: April.

Me: What?

Harry: Your house first.

Me: OK. See ya.