The Grass Is Always Greener

by Jen Calonita

  Izzie sat down and looked at her notebook again. “Okay, what if we tie the parade and booth idea together? Nicole had this idea of creating a ‘Mr. Emerald’ character.” She laughed to herself just thinking about it. “You know, someone who dresses up as a giant emerald and tosses fake emeralds into the crowd at the parade.”

  Savannah looked horrified. “Social Butterflies don’t throw things. And certainly not jewelry.”

  Izzie gripped the sides of the table and squeezed. “I give up. What do you have?”

  “Is it finally my turn?” Savannah glanced at her short list. “My idea is to cover the float in green crystals and then we would dress up as characters from The Wizard of Oz. I would be Glinda, you could be the Wicked Witch, and Mira the Cowardly Lion.” Izzie glared at her, but Savannah didn’t notice. “The float would have a sign that says The Emerald City, but in this case the Emerald City is Emerald Cove.”

  Izzie frowned. She had suggested something similar the other day and Savannah had shot it down for being too much like the Butterflies’ float from a few years back. “I thought you said we can’t copy old ideas.”

  Savannah took a quick glance at her watch. It was almost six o’clock. “I did say that, didn’t I?” She crossed it out. “Guess I forgot!”

  Izzie’s eyes narrowed. Savannah would never forget Butterflies history. It all made sense now. She had purposefully pushed the meeting till Valentine’s Day, then switched the time till it would be dangerously close to someone going out on a date, and now she was stalling. There was only one reason Savannah would do that. “You’re trying to make me late for my date with Brayden, aren’t you?”

  “What? Why would I do that?” Savannah asked innocently. Izzie continued to stare at her. “You mean because it’s Valentine’s Day?” She gave a little laugh. “Get over yourself. If you must know, I have a date tonight with a guy at St. Barnard’s Prep who is so perfect, he might possibly be the future president of the United States.” She adjusted her long, gold necklace. “Or have a career as a model. I’m not sure which, but the point is, I could care less about you and Brayden.”

  Izzie started to rise again. “Great. Then I guess you have to be going, too.”

  “Nope! My date isn’t until eight, I’m already dressed, and he’s meeting me here, so I have plenty of time.” Savannah stared at the sweats Izzie had put on after an early afternoon swim at the sports complex. “You, on the other hand, didn’t plan ahead. I’ll let you go if you let me pick the idea for our float on my own.”

  “No!” Izzie’s voice competed with the smoothie machine that had started up again. “I am not Mira. You cannot bribe me into going with whatever lame idea you’ve come up with.” Savannah pursed her lips. “I have some great ideas here, which you probably killed just so no one would know I came up with them. But you’re missing out.” She waved her notebook in the air and a line that wasn’t crossed out caught her eye. It was one of two ideas she hadn’t mentioned yet. “This one is good. It involves putting a DJ on the float who would play songs that feature the word green. You know, for the town color.” Savannah didn’t automatically shoot her down so she went on. “Like ‘A Little Bit of Green’ by Elvis Presley, ‘Green Light’ by Beyoncé, ‘Green Eyes’ by Coldplay, ‘This Green City’ by the Cure…”

  “Now, that’s not a bad idea,” Savannah admitted, “especially if we turned the float into a moving dance party. Have you ever seen one of those at Disney World?” Savannah waved her off. “Of course not. When would you have gone to Disney World?”

  “Okay, I’m going to go now,” Izzie said, and Savannah grabbed her arm.

  “I’m sorry! Just listen. They have these moving dance parties that stop at different areas on the parade route.” She leaned forward excitedly. “The characters jump off and dance with people and then get back on and move the party to the next stop. We could do the same thing.”

  “I actually like that. Then we’re not just on a float, we’re interacting with the crowd.” Izzie sat down again. She couldn’t believe she actually agreed with Savannah. “I have a list of fifteen songs that have the word green in the title alone. There must be others.”

  Savannah nodded. “We could put the music on a loop and all wear green and hop off at different corners….”

  They had so many suggestions they talked for another half hour without arguing even once. It wasn’t until Izzie went to scratch her arm that she noticed the time. “It’s six fifteen! I have to go.” Brayden was meeting her on Main Street in a half hour!

  “You’re meeting him at seven?” Savannah couldn’t hide her glee. “Wow. You’re not going to have time to go home to change.” She looked Izzie’s messy appearance up and down. “That might be a problem if you’re going to Buona Terra for their Valentine’s Day seating. That’s where he took me and I know they have a strict dress code that doesn’t include sweats.”

  Izzie was too mad at herself to respond. One minute she could see why Mira had been so captivated with Savannah. When Savannah was passionate, she had a lot of smart things to say. But when she pulled the diva debutante routine, Izzie wanted to smack her over the head with her notebook. Instead, Izzie left without saying good-bye and walked outside to call Brayden.

  “Hey!” Brayden picked up on the first ring, sounding happy but out of breath. “Are you on Main Street? I had a rip in my pants and I had to run home and change.”

  She bit her lip. Just be honest, she told herself. “No. I got held up by Savannah and I haven’t even gone home from swim practice to change yet.” She cringed when he didn’t say anything. “I’m so sorry. If I’m late, am I going to ruin our plans?” Here a boy was doing something nice for her and she was blowing it.

  “No, but how soon can you be ready?” Brayden asked.

  She had to go home and get a ride back. This was not good. “An hour?”

  “Okay.” Izzie could tell he wasn’t thrilled. “I’ll see what I can do,” he said. “Text me when you’re on your way.”

  She hung up, closed her eyes, and banged her head on the coffee shop window.

  “Isabelle?”

  Izzie turned around. Zoe was carrying several shopping bags and a large iced coffee that looked so creamy it could have been a glass of milk. She hoped Zoe hadn’t heard her whole conversation. “Hi.”

  “I thought you’d be on a hot Valentine’s Day date by now,” Zoe said with a smile. “Those who have dates have fun dressing up. The rest of us shop!” She held up her bags.

  She sounded like Mira. “I’m supposed to be ready for my date.” Izzie realized the time was only getting later and she still had no plan. “But I got held up, and I haven’t even had time to go home and change yet.” Now was Zoe’s chance to make things up to her. “Is there any way you could drive me home, wait for me to get ready, then bring me back to Main Street to meet Brayden?”

  Zoe frowned. “Oh! I wish I could, but I have plans right now. I’m meeting old friends for dinner and then we’re going to this jazz club. I was just going to stash my shopping bags in my car.”

  So much for making things up to me. “Okay,” Izzie said flatly. “I better go.”

  “Wait!” Izzie turned around. “I may not have time to get you home, but I might have the next best thing.” Zoe held up her shopping bags. “I just bought these cute dresses at Prepsters, which is probably way too young for me to be shopping at anyway. Why don’t you try them on in the bathroom and if one fits, you can wear it tonight.”

  Izzie wasn’t sure what to say. This wasn’t what she had in mind, but if she took Zoe up on her offer, it would save her a lot of time.

  Zoe rummaged around in her oversize slouchy shoulder bag. “I even have hairspray, bobby pins, makeup, and body glitter with me.” Izzie looked at her strangely. “I’m a photographer. I have to be ready for anything!”

  This actually might work. Izzie couldn’t help but smile. “Okay. Let’s try it.” They headed back inside to find the restroom. Savannah, Izzie noted, was long gone.


  With the right tools, it didn’t take Izzie long to get ready. Zoe was even able to turn Izzie’s waves into curls with just a little water, her finger as a curler, and some spray gel. The body glitter gave her skin a nice shimmer, and the black tank dress Zoe had bought was surprisingly Izzie’s taste. It looked great with a chunky silver necklace that Zoe lent her, too. They managed to have her ready in under twenty-five minutes.

  Zoe spun her around to see the effect at all angles. “You are the best-looking Scott yet! Your guy is going to flip when he sees you. What is his name again?”

  “Brayden.” She’d only said his name a thousand times in the last half hour.

  Zoe put her makeup back into her bag. “Well, go wow him! I have to get going, too. My friends got a reservation at Mumon, that new sushi place, and they only hold your table for fifteen minutes.”

  Izzie wasn’t sure how to thank her for all she’d done. “I’ll take your dress to the dry cleaner and have it back to you by the time you move into the pool house.”

  “Keep it.” Zoe smiled. “It looks better on you than it did on me anyway. Besides, Michael Kors’s people are supposed to send me a huge box of stuff from their new line. I’d rather wear their clothes than some local shop’s off-the-rack knockoffs.”

  Mira made Izzie watch enough E! that she knew who Michael Kors was, but beyond that she had no idea how to respond. “Well, thanks. I guess I’ll see you soon.”

  “Soon,” Zoe agreed.

  Izzie dashed out carrying only a small handbag Zoe had purchased that day. Thankfully her school flats had been in her messenger bag, so she had something to wear other than sneakers, and Zoe said she’d drop off Izzie’s other clothes and messenger bag tomorrow. She’d already texted Brayden, who’d said to meet outside La Parma, the other Italian restaurant in town. (Take that, Savannah and Buona Terra!) “Hi!” she said, arriving out of breath. “Did I make it?”

  “No, but you look so good it makes up for us missing our reservation.” Brayden kissed her.

  Izzie pulled away. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to screw things up.”

  He didn’t look so bad himself in a blue button-down shirt with a navy tie and navy khakis. “As soon as you said you were with Savannah, I knew.” Brayden gave her a wry smile. “That’s why I made alternative arrangements for dinner.” He held up a brown bag. “I made us sandwiches.”

  She laughed. “Oh no! Now I feel terrible.”

  “Are you kidding? This is better.” Brayden had a glint in his eyes. “Follow me if you don’t want to be late again.”

  Izzie was confused. “I thought you said we lost our reservation?”

  “Our dinner reservation. Not the important one.” Brayden led her to the North Church, which had been in town since the late eighteen hundreds. A horse and carriage were waiting. “You’ve been trying so hard to study up on the history of Emerald Cove, but I thought it might be time for a tutor.” The driver of the carriage jumped out and tipped his hat to Izzie. “These carriage rides aren’t just a tour of the town; they also give you a history lesson with all these cool, little-known facts.” She noticed Brayden had also brought a thermos and a warm blanket. He gave her a determined look. “Next time you see Savannah, you can knock her dead with your expertise on the history of the North Church. She’ll be speechless.”

  Izzie kissed him again. “This is the best Valentine’s Day present I’ve ever had.”

  It was also the only Valentine’s Day present she’d ever had, but he didn’t need to know that. Or that thanks to Zoe, she hadn’t missed it.

  Eight

  After hours of painting, Mira had created three choices to submit to Selma Simmons for entrance into her art class. The question was: Which one would impress the notoriously prickly painter? The first painting featured a deliriously happy Connor on the tire swing in their backyard. The second was of a boy fishing on the pier she’d been on with Kellen only a week before. Kellen was always on her mind, which was why the third painting was a portrait of the two of them done in a slightly abstract way that was out of character for Mira. All three needed work, but she only had time to polish one of them. Mira plopped down on the floor of the empty pool house and tried to make a decision.

  Her eyes kept being drawn back to the portrait of her and Kellen. In it, she had created a darkened, desolate beach where an empty lifeguard stand loomed next to a beach blanket littered with belongings. A couple representing her and Kellen stood along the shoreline. What made the piece unusual—as far as Mira’s paintings were concerned—was that she had painted the couple floating in the air, the wind pulling them out of their embrace. It didn’t take a psychologist to know that this meant she missed him, even after only a few days. Talking on the phone and texting weren’t nearly as satisfying as she’d thought they would be. And when Kellen said how much he liked seeing his new public school, it felt like a betrayal. But maybe she was just overanalyzing their conversations. Mira was so busy concentrating that she didn’t hear the pool house door open till Zoe dropped a large box on the floor behind her. Mira jumped.

  “Sorry! I didn’t mean to scare you!” Zoe pulled her wheeled suitcase behind her.

  “It’s fine! I’m just glad I wasn’t painting.” Mira wiped the paint from her fingers onto her painter’s jeans. “Sorry to invade your space. I didn’t think you were coming till tomorrow and I needed some quiet.”

  “I hear ya,” Zoe said, crouching down to look at the canvases. “Connor and some other kid were carrying on so loudly in the house I could barely hear your mom.”

  Mira began to clean her brushes. “Why do you think I came out here? I’m trying to get into this art class, and we have to submit a piece, so I really needed to concentrate.”

  “You have a nice grasp on emotion,” Zoe said, and Mira felt a tiny swell of pride. Zoe must know art. She was a famed photographer. “Which one are you going with?”

  “That’s just it,” Mira said. “I can’t decide. Any advice?”

  Zoe stared hard at Mira’s work. “Well, the one of the boy on the pier is nice, but kind of been there, done that,” she said bluntly. “The Connor one is fun—the detail in his face is very nuanced—but I think I’d go with number three. It reminds me of Marc Chagall’s Birthday,” Zoe said, referring to the famous expressionist painting.

  Mira was amazed by how Zoe got what she was thinking without her having to explain herself. “I wasn’t trying to copy it, but when I started sketching, my thoughts went in that direction. Just darker.” She frowned. “I wonder if Selma Simmons will think it’s not original enough.”

  “Selma Simmons?” Zoe leaned on the wall. She was so tall and lean she looked like a giant string bean. “I know her. She can be a real pain when she wants to be, but she’s always admired my photography. She once told me my work was so vivid it was like having a window into a person’s soul.” Zoe seemed pleased with herself. “I really do try to capture raw emotion in my subjects. Gwen Stefani is always telling me…”

  Mira had noticed the other night at dinner that Zoe had a habit of talking about herself. Somehow all conversations led back to her own life.

  “… Gwen’s right. I get my best ideas when I’m bouncing thoughts off my friends,” Zoe continued. “One time, Gwen said I should shoot with a lens that softens the focus, and it changed the way I photograph children.” She rolled her eyes. “They’re so squirmy it’s annoying.” She slapped her thigh. “Oh! I was supposed to call Justine for you, wasn’t I?” Zoe got out her cell phone. “I’ve been completely overwhelmed.” She gave Mira a devilish grin. “All these local families have started calling for shoots. Everyone wants their kid photographed by someone who has shot Heidi Klum’s kids.” Her eyes lit up. “You should assist me on a shoot to see what it is like!”

  “That would be fun,” Mira said. It also might take her mind off Kellen.

  Zoe rummaged around in her bag. “And since I have you here now, we might as well take a few pictures to send to Justine, don�
�t you think?” She pulled out her camera.

  Mira touched her face in horror. “Not like this! I should touch up my makeup first, and I’m wearing this raggedy shirt and my painting jeans.”

  “It’s very boho chic. That sea-green color is gorgeous on you.” Zoe spun Mira around and sat her on the edge of one of the paisley couches in the living room before she could protest further. “And your makeup is perfect in this lighting.” Mira looked in the mirror near the door. Maybe her makeup wasn’t so bad. “Let’s just try a few.”

  The pool house was perfect for a photo shoot. It was one big room with a kitchen area, a living room section, and a dining nook. Mira loved the open feel of the space. It let in the best light for painting, too. But that didn’t mean she was ready to model. She had never posed before in her life. Zoe seemed to sense that and quickly put her at ease.

  “I want you to relax,” Zoe said, fixing Mira’s hair slightly. “Leave it all in my capable hands. Emma Stone was nervous the first time I shot her, too.”

  “You shot Emma Stone?” Mira was excited but tried not to move.

  “Before anyone knew who she was, and I gave her the same advice I am giving you—imagine I’m the hottest guy in school and you want me to adore you.” Zoe shot off a test shot, adjusted some dials on the camera, and held a separate flash at her side and then above her head. “Nice. Ready for more? Follow my lead.” She began clicking away before Mira could stop her. “Good! Drop your chin. That’s it. Place your left hand behind your back and angle toward me. Yep. You got it!” She kept clicking. “Perfect!”

  The flash was blinding at first, but after a minute or two, Mira didn’t mind so much. Imagining Kellen was behind the camera worked. Mira couldn’t help but smile and be engaging. And she had to admit, it was fun being the center of attention.

  “Oh! Sorry.”

  Mira and Zoe turned around. Izzie stood in the doorway holding a black dress in a dry cleaning bag. Her face was a mix of emotions. “Aunt Maureen said you were back here so I thought I’d return your dress, but I can see you’re busy.” The look Izzie shot her made Mira want to dive under the couch.