As she rounded the corner she surveyed her hideout options: a Mexican place, a dry cleaner, a deli, and, right in front of her, an ice cream shop. She certainly didn’t need the calories in a burrito—especially when she had already packed a sandwich—and she couldn’t exactly ask to eat her lunch in the dry cleaner. Maybe she could just go into the deli and buy something to drink?
“Don’t even think about it,” a girl said. “If you’re considering stepping foot in Chalupa’s.”
Skylar turned to see a beautiful girl, just taller than she was, standing in the doorway of Get the Scoop, the ice cream parlor. Her face was angular and pretty, in a pixie-ish way. Her wheat-colored hair was parted in the middle, long and choppy around the sides. Around her neck was a bright red ribbon, worn as a choker. She looked kind of like an elf. A beautiful elf. And she was smiling at Skylar.
“I’m—I’m sorry?” Skylar was startled; she hadn’t seen the girl emerge from the shop.
“The Mexican place. I saw you eyeing it. The food at that place is like Styrofoam. Deep-fried Styrofoam, of course.” The girl fake-shuddered. “Don’t tell me you actually like it.”
“I’ve never been,” Skylar said. “I’m new here. I was just . . . I was just looking for somewhere to eat my lunch.” Feeling beyond pathetic, she held up her brown bag.
“Oh. Totally excusable, then,” the girl said brightly. Skylar was grateful she didn’t ask why Skylar was eating alone, or whether she should be in school. “I was worried about you for a second there.” She wiped her hands on the orange apron she was wearing and offered Skylar a beaming smile. “My name’s Meg.”
“I’m Skylar. Thanks for the warning about the Mexican food. I haven’t really gotten much of a tour yet.” Skylar thought she saw a flash of sympathy run through Meg’s eyes.
“Listen.” Meg leaned forward as though she was about to tell Skylar a secret. “My boss is out to lunch. Want to come in for a free ice cream? I can give you the lowdown on other establishments to avoid. Trust me—there are plenty.”
It was a bit cold for ice cream, and she hadn’t even eaten her sandwich, but Skylar couldn’t turn down the chance to have a maybe-normal chat with a girl who seemed to be close to her own age. For a moment Skylar wondered why this girl wasn’t in school. But then, who cared? If she wanted to make friends, she had to start actually talking to people. And maybe this girl was a freshman in college or something.
“I—I have to be back in twenty minutes, but I guess I could come in for a little,” Skylar said, glancing at the silver face of her watch. It was delicate, but it always felt abnormally heavy on her wrist. She remembered receiving it for Christmas several years ago. Her mom had won two hundred dollars from a scratch ticket and used it to buy their presents. It was the one time her mom had ever purchased the same thing for both her daughters. She wondered where Lucy’s was now.
“Nice watch,” Meg said, and when Skylar noticed her staring at it intensely, she quickly tucked it under the cuff of her jacket.
“Thanks,” she said. “It was a gift. From—from an ex.” She blurted out the lie without intending to. But almost immediately she felt better. She relished the way the word “ex” hung in the air, propping her up, giving her confidence.
“Aw. That’s nice that you still wear it,” Meg said. “So, wanna come in? I know it’s not really ice cream weather, but we’ve got good stuff.”
Meg headed into the store, and Skylar followed her in. Maybe working in the freezer bins had desensitized Meg to the cold: Skylar noticed that Meg wore just a T-shirt, jeans, the orange apron, and the red ribbon tied around her neck. Skylar was shivering even in her coat and scarf.
“So,” Meg said, surveying the bins of ice cream and adopting an exaggeratedly pensive expression. “Don’t tell me, let me guess.” She gave Skylar a once-over, then bent down and started scooping a flavor into a bowl, smiling mischievously over the counter at Skylar. Her eyes were blue-gray—like sparkling smoke.
“Here you go,” Meg said, putting the bowl in front of Skylar with a flourish of her hands. “Our best vanilla bean.”
She was right. Vanilla, for all its lack of originality, actually was Skylar’s favorite. She felt a surge of happiness. This mystery girl got her.
But as she was about to reach for it, she suddenly had the weird feeling that something—someone—was standing over her. And then she had a vision of Lucy, there next to her. Freezing breath on her cheek. Are you sure that’s what you want to be eating, Sky? she heard her sister saying. Baby fat is only cute when you’re a baby.
She squeezed her eyes shut for a second, trying to block out Lucy’s voice.
“Was I wrong? It’s not your favorite?” Meg’s face fell. She sounded genuinely disappointed.
“No, no! It is. I just—I got distracted for a second.” Skylar found herself strangely compelled to please Meg. “Do you think I could have some water?” As Meg turned to fill up a glass, Skylar looked behind her, over both shoulders. Of course no one was there.