To: Calista Summers
Subject: Hi
Dear Calista,
I was so saddened to read your story. What a horrible tragedy. Please don’t blame yourself. It was a combination of unfortunate events that kept you distracted, and you were in a bad place at the time.
I assume little Charlotte is okay because you talk about her all the time. Please tell me what happened.
I am heading to Michigan again to work on Haley’s case. We’re going to see if we can find this mysterious redhead, who might be the person we’re looking for.
Wish us luck,
Anna
I didn’t mention Leo or the Halloween party. My little crush and teenage drama seemed petty in comparison to what she had gone through, and was still living with.
“He said seven o’clock,”I told Pompom, who was sitting on the window ledge. I’d gotten into the habit of chatting with him (I only did it when Alicia wasn’t around). He was my little confidante, someone I could tell all my secrets to.
“It’s five minutes after seven, and I don’t know what to do. It’s not like I can text him… I don’t even have his number. It’s like we’re living in the 1950s over here. Why didn’t he give me his extension?! What should I do?!” I asked, obviously not expecting an answer. “I should have given him mine.”
I stared at the silent black phone on the desk.We all had extensions we could be reached at -- that’s how students communicated with each other. I mentally kicked myself. Why hadn’t I thought about it? I’d just been too shocked by the invitation at the time.
I stared at the small Dorothy dress hanging from the doorknob of our shared closet. “What was I thinking?”
A knock at the door startled me. I bounced off the bed and leapt to the door. My heart stopped beating for a second when I saw his face. He’d found me.
“How’d you find me?”
He grinned. “I have my ways.” I wondered briefly what his ‘ways’ were. Had he bribed one of the girls? Had he charmed them? Like Ace would? Or had he used magic? I didn’t have too much time to ponder the question, because my brain shifted to ogling mode in no time. He was wearing the coolest black leather jacket over his standard white t-shirt, and his hair was mussed up just right. He looked like one of those posters at the fancy hair salon my mom took me to once, before she realized how pricey it was. “Come in.”
He walked in slowly, hands in pockets, and studied his surroundings. “Very… pink.” He was stifling a smile -- my room was comical to him.
My gaze darted across the space; pink feather lamp, polka-dots everywhere, Hello Kitty paraphernalia, Pompom on the ledge, and my Dorothy costume.
It was comical.
“Alicia… she’s quirky.”
He smiled and his eyes grew wide when he spotted my record player, guitar, and vintage records in the corner. “Is this yours?”
I nodded like an eager puppy. Yes, yes and yes. “Me and my dad collect records,” I told him. “I love sixties and seventies stuff… it’s my dad’s fault.”
I didn’t usually like to advertise this mildly embarrassing fact, but somehow, I had a feeling that Leo would get it.
He kneeled down next to the records. He flipped through quickly; Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, Eagles, The Who, CCR, Steve Miller Band, The Doors, Rolling Stones, and so many more. “This is awesome,” he eyed me with wonder. Our gazes melted into each other’s for what seemed like eternity, and then he quickly looked away and flipped through the records again.
And that, ladies and gentlemen, is what we call,a moment.
I couldn’t believe we’d just hada moment.
I kneeled next to him on the plush carpet, and watched him as he flipped through my albums. He was so beautiful. I wanted to reach out and touch his hair. I wanted to reach out and kiss his cheek. I wanted him to be my first kiss.
Whoa, I knew I was getting way ahead of myself. I turned my head away and that’s when I spotted Alicia’s uniform, neatly laid out on the end of her bed.
The tie.
I had to hang the tie. That was the rule. If you had a boy in your room and you wanted privacy, you needed to hang a tie on the doorknob. When Alicia had first told me about this, I never thought in a million years that it would ever apply to me.
