Best. Night. Ever.

by Rachele Alpine

  Are you being held hostage? Type 1 for yes and 2 for no.

  M might join the band.

  You’re being blackmailed. Right?

  This is so weird.

  I drop my phone back into my boot at the same time Faith plows into me from behind. “Can you even believe this night!” she shouts.

  Mariah and I turn around and find the rest of the band—all smiles and energy and excitement.

  “Best. Show. Ever!” Claudia says.

  “A kid from the chess club asked me for my autograph,” Genevieve says, sounding kind of dazed.

  “You totally said no, right?” I tease her.

  Worry flits across her face. “No . . . wait, am I supposed to?”

  “No, goofball.” I bump her shoulder with mine. “Of course not. I’m just messing with you.”

  “Oh.” Then she grins. “Oh!” she says with a laugh.

  “Seriously, you guys. This was the best night ever!” I say to everyone. “Even with the power issue. Although if anyone finds out who did that . . .”

  The cameraman from the station is walking toward us, two kids practically hanging off either side of him.

  “It’s another one of your fans, Gen.” Faith elbows Genevieve, who turns so red I can actually see it on her brown skin.

  “Hi, girls,” he says, a little girl hanging from each arm. “I’m Garrett Terzetti. I run the cameras for the station. Nice job up there.”

  “Thanks,” Mariah says. And her grin could light up the gym scoreboard.

  “I’m really sorry about what happened with the lights. It—”

  “Wait, it was your fault? Do you know how hard we worked?” I ball my hands into fists at my sides. How dare this guy almost ruin our big chance!

  He pulls a hand free of one of the girls and holds it up. “I didn’t say that. What I was going to say is that it wasn’t the station’s fault. But we feel awful about it, and my niece is insisting we make it up to you.” He points behind him.

  I have no idea who he’s talking about, even after I lean to the side to see where he’s pointing. Everyone else in the band does the same. There’s a girl in a green dress, standing behind the video equipment, giving us a halfhearted wave. I’ve never seen her before.

  She leans over and snags the shirtsleeve of a boy with a camera—a fancy, expensive-looking camera. One that looks pricey enough to keep me in non-Mom-approved clip-in hair streaks for all time. But this kid with the camera . . . he looks familiar. I realize it’s the same guy who jumped out of the stall in the haunted bathroom and snapped that picture of me and Mariah earlier. I vaguely recognize him as an eighth grader on the yearbook committee. He’s walking over to us now, but the girl stays behind. There’s something about her. I narrow my eyes, trying to figure it out, but I can’t.

  I turn back to Mr. Terzetti. “You were saying something about making it up to us?”

  “Yes, I’ve checked with the station manager, and we’d love to have you on Wake Up, Lynnfield next week if you’re interested.”

  Wake Up, Lynnfield. The morning show. Us. Heart Grenade. What?! I look at Mariah, who looks at Faith, who looks at Claudia, who looks at Genevieve.

  “Yes!” we all shout at practically the same time.

  “Also, the yearbook photographer has offered to take your picture,” says Mr. Terzetti.

  “We want our pictures taken too!” one of the little kids says.

  “He already took our picture,” I say, more to the yearbook kid than to Mr. Terzetti.

  “And if we see that particular picture in the yearbook, Tess and I will personally seek you out and let you know exactly how we feel about it,” Mariah adds.

  I have to work really, really hard not to smile. Just think—all these years trying to one-up Mariah when I could have had her on my side.

  Then I guess the guy finally finds his voice, because he says, “This is different. Half the town saw your band on TV tonight. I bet you’ll be getting calls to play everywhere now. And what famous band doesn’t have a professional portrait? You’ll need one to give out to . . . important band-type people.” He messes with the strap on his camera. “And I promise to delete the other picture.”

  I look at the girls. One by one, they shrug or smile or nod. It’s not an all-expenses-paid trip to Los Angeles or anything, but I have to admit, a good picture of us would be nice. Except . . .

  “Carmen isn’t here,” I tell them. “She’s our usual lead singer.”

  The boy waves his hand. “No problem. I’ll Photoshop her in.”

  “I guess we’re all set, then.” Mr. Terzetti grabs a kid in each hand and strides back through the crowd.

  The girl in the green dress watches us for a moment longer. Then I could swear she gives me half a smile before she disappears after her uncle.

  So. Weird.

  But I don’t have time to wonder who she is or why she wanted to make up the power outage to us, because everyone else is already back onstage. Mariah stays below to direct the shot. Which is basically the perfect spot for her since she’s always been good at bossing people around. She tells Faith to stand more to the left and Gen to look more fierce. Then she goes back and forth over whether I should sit or stand behind the drums. I finally tell her to stuff it, and I stand next to the drums, one foot propped on an amp. And then I tell her to get her butt onto the stage to be in the picture too.

  Before I know it, the yearbook guy’s taken a bunch of shots. While everyone’s checking out the shots on his camera, Mariah grabs my arm and pulls me aside.

  “Option C,” she says with an evil grin.

  “Option C,” I repeat.

  And with that, she heads off in one direction while I make my way through the crowd on the dance floor. In no time flat, I find who I’m looking for.

  Leif.

  ELLIE { 10:46 P.M. }

  SOO-JIN’S CAR PULLS UP in front of the school. We’re the only ones out front; everyone else is still at the dance. Ashlyn heads right for the front passenger-side door, like always. She has her hand on the handle when she turns to look at me.

  “Do you want to sit in the front?”

  “What?” I’m about to open my own door to get into the seat behind hers.

  “I mean, I always have the front. Just figured you might want a turn.”

  “Oh,” I say. “Oh, wow. That’s really nice of you to think of me like—”

  “Do you want the front or not?” Ashlyn rubs her hands together. “It’s getting cold out here.”

  “Thank you for asking,” I say, “but I’m fine in the back.”

  “Whatevs.” Ashlyn looks over my shoulder, eyes wide at whatever is behind me, then ducks into the car.

  “Ashlyn?” Soo-jin frowns. “What are you doing here? You’re supposed to be babysitting.”

  “Oh, that.” Ashlyn waves her hands in front of her face, her words coming fast. “Funny story. I’ll tell you later. We should get going. We don’t want to block traffic.”

  I jump when someone knocks on Soo-jin’s window. She rolls it down, and standing there is Mr. Terzetti. His face is red, and the vein in his forehead is throbbing.

  “Soo-jin. We need to talk.” He glares at Ashlyn. “Alone.”

  Ashlyn slides down in her seat and groans.

  Soo-jin says something to Mr. Terzetti, rolls her window up, and pulls into a parking spot.

  “Is there something you’d like to tell me before I speak to Mr. Terzetti, Ashlyn?” Soo-jin’s lips are pursed so tightly that I’m not sure how words are coming out of them.

  “Yes.” Ashlyn sits up in her seat. “It wasn’t my fault.”

  “We’ll see about that.” Soo-jin slams the car door and meets Mr. Terzetti on the sidewalk.

  “I don’t see what the problem is,” Ashlyn says without taking her eyes off of her mom and Mr. Terzetti. “The twins had a total blast. And nobody got hurt. Much.”

  “As long as everybody’s safe, that’s all that matters,” I say, even though I was comp
letely shocked and slightly horrified to see the twins at the dance. Especially since I know how protective the Terzettis are. Ashlyn’s going to be in big trouble.

  Soo-jin speed-walks back to the car, opens the door, and parks herself in the driver’s seat. Her arms are crossed, and she’s staring straight ahead. No one speaks for a full minute.

  “I don’t know what to say.” Soo-jin shakes her head as she pulls out of the parking lot. “You took the twins to the dance? Do you know how irresponsible that was and how dangerous it could have been?”

  “But it wasn’t!” Ashlyn gives Soo-jin a smile. “And the twins had an awesome night. One they’ll never forget.”

  “You can’t even admit your mistake! Just the fact that you went to the dance while grounded is bad enough, but you took children with you! Children that you were responsible for!” Soo-jin is yelling now. “What do I have to do to make an impact on you?”

  Ashlyn tries to interrupt, but Soo-jin puts her hand up and continues, “We will have a serious talk about this later. But I’ll tell you one thing. Expect to be grounded for quite a while, young lady.”

  “Don’t worry, Ashlyn,” I pipe up from the backseat. “I barely ever leave the house anyway, so we can binge-watch season three of Secret Lives of Celebrity Sisters together.”

  Soo-jin looks in the rearview mirror and notices me for the first time since I got in the car. “Ellie, you do not have to do that. Ashlyn made a huge mistake, and . . .” Her eyes flash downward. “Honey, what are you wearing? What happened to your beautiful dress?”

  “There was a little accident,” I say. This makes Ashlyn giggle, and then I giggle, and pretty soon we’re both cracking up and I’m bent over my seat laughing so hard my stomach starts to hurt.

  “I’m okay,” I say before Soo-jin can ask. I hold up the plastic bag that has my dress in it. “And so is my dress. At least it will be.”

  “What in the world happened tonight?” Soo-jin keeps looking back and forth between Ashlyn and me, her brows furrowed.

  “How funny was it when I thought that Jade girl was beating you up?” Ashlyn asks.

  This makes me laugh so hard I snort. Soo-jin doesn’t find it so humorous.

  “What?” Soo-jin’s eyes flash in the rearview mirror. “Someone tried to beat you up?”

  “No, Mom,” Ashlyn says in between guffaws. “I thought she was getting beat up. But really, she stopped someone from sabotaging the band and just slipped on the soap-covered floor during the blackout!”

  “What on earth—” Soo-jin begins, but Ashlyn cuts her off.

  “It was epic, Mom.” Ashlyn turns around in the front seat to look at me. “And did you see the look on Kevin’s face when we paraded by him? I could tell that he loves your new look, Ells.”

  “Do you really think he noticed?”

  “Totally,” Ashlyn says. “And this is only the beginning. We’re going to have him drooling over you by the end of the month, and when he asks you out for real, you can humiliate him all over social media.”

  “I don’t even have a phone,” I remind her.

  “Fine. Then I’ll humiliate him all over social media.” Ashlyn claps. She sounds downright giddy.

  “I have no idea what’s going on here.” Soo-jin sighs. “But it’s nice to see you girls laughing together.”

  Ashlyn and I give each other a quick glance, and then we giggle some more.

  “Don’t think this will get you off the hook, young lady,” Soo-jin says. “You’re still grounded. For a long, long time.”

  When we pull into the garage, Soo-jin gets out of the car, and Ashlyn turns around to me. “Ugh. I have a feeling we’ll have plenty of time to watch all the seasons of Celebrity Sisters when Mr. Terzetti finds out about the Munchinator.”

  “Oh no, Ashlyn.” I put my palms over my eyes. “Don’t tell me something happened to the Munchinator. Mr. Terzetti adores that lawn mower more than his own car!”

  Ashlyn scrunches up her nose. “I’m sure someone can fix it. Maybe.”

  And even though I know she’s going to be in more trouble, I burst out laughing, which makes Ashlyn laugh too.

  “Don’t worry.” Ashlyn and I head into the house. “I’ll fill you in on the entire story. It’s a good one.”

  We climb up the steps, and as we’re about to go into our respective bedrooms, we pause. I pull the headband that Soo-jin gave me out of my hair and hand it to Ashlyn.

  “I believe this is yours.”

  Ashlyn looks at it for a second, but then shakes her head. “I’m not sure my mom—”

  “But it belonged to your . . . harmoni?”

  Ashlyn laughs. “Halmoni. Not bad, though; you were close. I can teach you some Korean if you want.”

  “Okay, but then how will you complain about me behind my back?”

  “Right. Good point.” But she winks so I know she’s joking.

  She carefully takes the headband from me and holds it between her fingers. “Thanks. I’m glad you got to wear it tonight.”

  “Good night, Ashlyn.”

  “Good night, Ells.”

  I close my bedroom door and twirl around in my room. There’s no dress. No fancy shoes. No daydreams of Kevin. There’s just me.

  But there’s also Ashlyn, right down the hall.

  Just as I’m about to open my journal and write all about tonight’s events, there’s a knock on my door.

  “Come in,” I say, placing my journal on my nightstand.

  Soo-jin opens the door slowly. “Do you have a minute?”

  “Sure.” I sit down on my bed.

  “I hope you don’t think I’m intruding, but I’m a bit concerned about the accident you and Ashlyn were discussing.” She sits next to me on the bed. “And, truth be told, I wanted to know how your night was.”

  “My night was . . .” I search my mind for just the right word. “Unexpected.”

  “Oh?” Soo-jin raises her eyebrows.

  “My date with Kevin was a disaster.” Even as I say these words, I don’t feel nearly as much of the humiliation, or shame, or any of those icky feelings I felt when Kevin told me that asking me to the dance was nothing more than a joke.

  “I’m so sorry.” Soo-jin looks like she’s about to cry. “I know how much this meant to you.”

  “It did mean a lot to me,” I say. “But maybe for the wrong reasons.”

  “How so?” Soo-jin asks.

  “I think I was looking for a friend. I’ve never really had a true friend.” I chuckle. “At least not one that I didn’t write myself.”

  I glance up at Soo-jin. She’s nodding.

  “But that may have changed tonight.”

  “With Ashlyn?” Soo-jin’s entire face shines, like there’s a lightbulb behind her smile.

  “For one.” I grin. “We had a good time together.”

  “I’m glad to hear it.” Soo-jin pats my knee. “But she and I just spoke, and I made it very clear that she’s still grounded.”

  “Don’t be too hard on her,” I say. “At least I won’t have to compete with her for babysitting jobs.”

  “That’s for sure.” Soo-jin shakes her head, but she’s laughing softly.

  “Thanks for all your help tonight,” I say. “It meant a lot to me, you know, to have someone to talk to.”

  Soo-jin takes my hand. “I’m honored to have the opportunity.”

  We sit in silence for a few seconds, until Soo-jin stands up. “It’s late, and I’m guessing you’re tired. What do you say you give me that dress and I’ll hang it in the bathroom to dry? Then tomorrow, we’ll take it to the cleaners.”

  I pull the dress out of the plastic bag and hand it to Soo-jin. Her nose scrunches up as she takes it.

  “That’s some seriously stinky soap,” she says.

  I shrug. “At least it isn’t dirty.”

  “Good night, Ellie.” Soo-jin gives me a kiss on the cheek. “See you in the morning.”

  I get into my pajamas and fold Ashlyn’s clothes neatly
on the chair in my room. When I woke up this morning, I never would have guessed that I would end my day wearing an Ashlyn outfit, which, surprisingly enough, I thought looked pretty good on me.

  A smile creeps across my face as I crawl into bed and pull the covers up to my chin. A warmth starts in my chest and soon fills my entire body. I remember this feeling from when I was a little kid and I would snuggle with my parents in their big bed as they read me bedtime stories. It’s a feeling of belonging. It’s a feeling of being loved.

  I open my journal and begin to write:

  Although the dance didn’t go at all as I expected, it was even better than I dreamed it would be. I stood up for myself, and for Heart Grenade. I made a friend. And most important, I’m part of a family again.

  I don’t know what will happen on Monday. Kevin might still be mean. The popular girls might still ignore me. But I know one thing that will be different.

  Me.

  TESS { 11:10 P.M. }

  I LEAN OH-SO-CASUALLY against the open gym doors while I go to town shaking a can of Diet Coke. Ryan found a whole case of it under the refreshment table (who knew the chaperones had their own stash of drinks?). He also found a few other useful things in the boxes the decorating committee stored in the janitor’s closet.

  I shake the can again, just for good measure, and then I hide it behind my back. I study the rope snaking its way up and over the open door. Mariah and I owe Ryan big-time for that. He was thisclose to getting caught, but Mariah managed to head off the chaperone with a fake overflowing toilet emergency in the haunted bathroom.

  The dance officially ended at eleven, but kids are slowly making their way out the doors. I texted Mom and told her to pick me up a little later so I could help the decorating committee take everything down. Which isn’t exactly the truth, but Operation Make Leif Regret His Life Choices is so worth a teeny, tiny lie.

  Directing a group of kids from the soccer team through one of the other open doors, I wave at the girls in the band. They’re all clumped off to the side, watching to see what Mariah and I cooked up. Ryan hovers next to them, hands in his pockets and a smile on his face. Faith holds up her phone, Carmen waiting on FaceTime. It took some work—she had to borrow a phone with a decent signal from one of the other bridesmaids—but it’s going to be worth it. No way was Carmen missing out on this.