Mina hung her head and refused to look. She had been getting odd looks from Brody, but they weren’t reassuring. If anything, they made her more nervous. He looked uncomfortable, like he was forgetting something but couldn’t put his finger on it. And probably never would.
Mina had returned home that night to find her family asleep in bed. She changed out of her dress and threw it in the closet, at least glad that her clothes now encompassed more of the color spectrum besides red. She went to her dresser and pulled out her notebook of Unaccomplishments and Epic Disasters, searching for her previous entry about Brody. It was still there, so she knew it hadn’t been a dream. The Story had at least left her that.
Now her mother’s conversation regarding Brody forgetting all about her made sense. Her mother had known this would happen, but instead of telling her that their relationship would end, she had given Mina a few days of happiness. She wished now that her mother had told her. It would have saved her some of the heartache, though not all of it.
She’d sneaked out the fire escape and waited on her rooftop retreat all night, praying that Jared would magically appear to annoy her. He would be so proud that she had completed three tales.
He never showed. Mina even looked over the Grimoire. There were no words, just pictures that depicted the three completed tales. But they were faded, barely discernible, as if Mina had used up the book’s power in the battle against Claire and the Fae wolves. All of the power that used to hum in the Grimoire had disappeared. Scared, Mina carried the book everywhere with her. She even started sleeping with it under her pillow. Even now it was inside her hoodie, close to her body.
Mina looked over at Nan, who had pulled out a compact and was staring at her forehead with a frown. She hadn’t spoken in at least five minutes, acting completely out of character for Mina’s happy-go-lucky, carefree friend. “What’s wrong?” Mina asked.
Nan made a face into her mirror. “Oh, nothing. It’s just that I can’t get over the feeling that I have more wrinkles than normal. Look at me—does this look like an age spot to you?” Nan opened her eyes wide and leaned forward comically toward Mina.
“No.” Mina laughed.
“How about wrinkles?” Nan scrunched up her face and created too many wrinkles to count.
“Well, now that you mention it, I think you should enroll for the senior citizen discount. I’m sure you could pass,” Mina replied.
“I knew it!” Nan gasped, pushing her favorite cupcake away and pulling out some age-defying lotion from her purse. She began to lather her skin with urgency.
Mina started laughing, but gasped out loud when an intense heat flared up in her midsection from the Grimoire. She put her fingers to her belly, and felt the Grimoire begin to pulse with life. The hair on the back of Mina’s neck began to move, and her body began to tingle. She frantically looked around the room in preparation for an attack. She even stood up and put her back to the wall, ready to defend Nan.
Nan’s phone beeped. She pulled it out and let out a slow whistle of appreciation. “Well, look at that! Seems we have a new student, and he’s a hot one. Want to see his picture?” Nan held the phone so Mina could look, but she didn’t. She could feel power building behind her.
Mina turned in dread and then froze, her heart beating loudly in her ears. He was right there, standing mere feet from her.
Jared.