“Um . . .” The second bell, which indicated they had only five minutes before homeroom, rang before Julie had a chance to answer. Natalie just shrugged and scampered off with Nyssa, both of them waving Julie good-bye. Julie turned to Carson, an astonished look on her face. “I can’t believe it.”
Carson grinned. “See?” He leaned down and kissed her softly on the cheek. “I told you you’d be fine. So this means you’ll go to Nyssa’s Halloween party with me on Friday night? Maybe as a sexy Cinderella?” he teased.
Julie felt herself laugh. “Definitely not as Cinderella,” she said, shoving him playfully. She couldn’t believe she was even thinking of going to that party. But maybe she could.
They walked to Julie’s locker, which to Julie’s amazement wasn’t covered with evil messages or pictures of cats. Then Carson checked his watch and made a face. “Listen, I hate to do this to you, but I left a book in my locker. I really need it.”
Julie blinked at him. Carson’s locker was clear on the other side of campus, and her first class was in this building. If she went with him, she’d be late. If he stayed with her, he’d be late. “Um . . .” she said. She glanced around nervously. Her classmates were chatting, slamming locker doors, cramming last second with their noses buried in thick textbooks, sending hurried texts before the second bell. No one was paying any attention to her, and for the first time in a long time, that was a good thing.
It’s fine. No one cares. Then Julie spotted Parker down the hall and felt even better. Parker had stayed with her last night, but she’d disappeared sometime this morning—while Julie was in the bathroom, nervously throwing up. She hadn’t expected Parker to actually show up at school.
“Go get it,” she told him, tucking her shiny hair behind her ears. With Parker as backup, she would be fine. “I’ll be okay.”
Carson looked worried. “Are you sure?”
Julie nodded, watching as Parker drifted down the hall toward her. “I have to try it sometime, right?”
He kissed her again. The scent of his shampoo—something coconutty and delicious—washed over her. “I’ll see you after class, okay? I’ll be waiting right here.” He headed quickly down the hall.
Julie caught Parker’s arm as she passed, and Parker spun around. Her face was in shadow under her hood, but she looked different somehow. It took Julie a moment to place the expression on her friend’s face, but when she did, it was a total shock. Parker looked happy. “Hey!” Parker exclaimed, patting Julie’s shoulder. “You made it!”
“You made it, too,” Julie said.
“Yeah, I figured I’d show up.” Parker snorted sarcastically, but the corners of her mouth turned up ever so slightly. Before Julie could pester Parker about why she was in such a good mood, Caitlin, Mac, and Ava swept toward them in a group hug.
“Welcome back!” Caitlin crowed.
“Good morning, girl.” Ava waved, a stack of bangles clattering together on her slim wrist. “Nice to see you here.”
“We missed you,” Mac said earnestly, wrapping a hand around Julie’s arm and giving it a reassuring squeeze.
“Thanks, guys.” Julie was totally overwhelmed by their support.
“So. Lunch. You and us.” Caitlin was using her tough soccer captain tone. “No discussion.”
“We’ll meet you here.” Ava nudged a stray strand of hair behind her ear. “Sound good?”
Julie spun the dial of her locker, about to tell them that she had lunch plans with Natalie and Nyssa. But as the final number of the lock fell into place, she sensed that the hallway had gone quiet. She looked over her shoulder for a split second, thinking the hall had cleared out, but it was still full of kids—kids watching her. At the same time, she heard a snicker a few feet down the hall.
Her heart began to pound. Maybe she’d spoken too soon, telling Carson she was okay. Her fingers curled on the lever that opened her locker, and there was a sharp click as she opened the door. The latch went slack in her hand, and the locker door swung open. There was no time to stop it. Julie felt the ping . . . ping . . . ping of something small and pebble-like hitting the tops of her shoes, and then an avalanche of grit and dust gushed out of her locker, covering her up to the ankles and coating the entire front of her dress with a gray film. A familiar scent rose up from the floor, coating the inside of her nostrils.
Kitty litter.
Julie’s mouth dropped open, and a puff of scented powder landed on her tongue. She gagged. Ava shrieked, just as Mac leaped backward, horrified, her hands flying to her face, her mouth hanging open in an alarmed O. Parker stood next to them, her hands clenched into fists, her face red with fury. A few final grains of litter fell to the ground; the tinkling sound boomed in the stunned silence.