—Samuel Johnson
Chapter
36
Science Night was only a week away, and Samantha and her friends were panicking, and panicking meant supervenom. It took every ounce of strength for Griffin not to wish wretched things on Samantha’s clique. Like maybe Samantha’s, Martha’s, and Sasha’s teeth would turn black and fall out, or they would all grow bushy beards. But darkness filling Griffin’s soul in exchange for Samantha’s sprouting a beard was not worth it. And some of the kids were excited about science for the first time. Audree constantly doodled blue-footed birds of the Galápagos. Photos of black holes plastered the inside of Robert Winbell’s locker. Caden Nosam was bumping around the hallway with a stack of books, discussing bears with Mr. Luckner.
“Hey, Griffin,” whispered Jason, a few desks down from her in social studies class. “Are you coming to band rehearsal today at Garrett’s? Kurt really needs help.”
“Yeah, I’ll be there.” For the past week she had learned all the songs for Garrett’s band.
Trying to concentrate in class was becoming harder and harder for Griffin. Something was definitely wrong. The tingling-sinking feeling returned, and she’d had it ever since she’d left the front office.
A cold breeze swept through the hallway and throttled Griffin by the throat. As she unloaded books out of her locker, every hair on her neck shot straight up. She knew with one word what had happened.
“GRIFFIN!” yelled Garrett, rushing toward her, his face blistering red. “GRIFFIN,” he said again, and now he was right in front of her. “DID YOU WRITE TO MY DAD?”
Her eyes grew large. “What?”
“I just bumped into Mrs. Davis, who said, ‘Garrett, how neat that your dad lives in Alaska. There’s no place like Nome!’ I asked, ‘How do you know that?’”
Griffin felt a steel rod zoom straight up her back.
“Mrs. Davis said, ‘Well, your friend Griffin Penshine just sent him a letter.’”
“Can I talk to you after school?” she asked, looking down at her shoes as students passed by them in the hallway on the way to class.
“NO! I don’t care if I’m late for class. I don’t care if I never go to another class EVER!” Garrett was an erupting volcano.
Samantha and her group paraded by in a line, eyeing both Griffin and Garrett, who were standing, red-faced, inches apart from each other. “Look! Look! They’re having a fight!” she heard the girls whisper as they passed them.
Griffin bit down hard on her lower lip and looked straight at Garrett. “Garrett,” she said, and took a deep breath. “I’ll tell you everything, but could we please talk after school?”
“NO! TELL ME RIGHT NOW!”
“Fine.” The class bell rang, but Griffin didn’t budge. “Garrett, you once said you wished for a dad. I wanted to help out your wish, so I Googled your dad and found out he lived in Nome. Then I asked him to please write me back. I never thought anything would happen, ever. Then he sent me a FedEx package to put my next letter in. In my second letter I said I’m sorry, this is none of my business. I should not have written.”
“I never want to see my dad! I hate you for writing to him! I’m not doing my science project with you, Griffin! I don’t care if I fail! Do the stupid project yourself!” Garrett punched three lockers in a row and exploded out the school doors.
Griffin looked up from the swirling floor in time to see Samantha and her mean friends’ faces pressed against the window of the classroom door, their shiny eyes like wolves’.
“Griffin Penshine! What are you doing out here? The class bell has already rung, and you’re LATE!” shouted Mr. Blackwell, patrolling for tardy students.
“I—I—I was just getting my books,” stammered Griffin.
“You’re tardy. That means a thirty-minute detention after school in room 201.”
“But, Mr. Blackwell … I …,” pleaded Griffin, holding back tears.
She didn’t hear anything for the last two periods of school; only a giant blur and drone of buzzing surrounded her: “Did you and Garrett break up?” “Did Garrett dump you?”
Griffin knew she was lost inside one of Giorgione’s inside-out clouds.
Ride out the storms when clouds hide the face of the sun in your life, remembering that even if you lose sight of the sun for a moment, the sun is still there.
—Blessing of the Apaches
Chapter
37
Mrs. Forester called that evening, after Griffin had come home late from detention. From her bedroom Griffin could hear her mom talking. “We’re so sorry, Mary Beth. So sorry. I know this must be very hard for Garrett and you. We can assure you Griffin had no idea what this meant to both of you. She was trying to be helpful.”
Dr. Penshine clicked off the phone and knocked on Griffin’s door. “Griffin, please open the door,” said her mom.
But Griffin locked the door and buried herself under the blankets. She never wanted to go to school again. She never wanted to help another person again. She swore she would never write another letter or use another penny again in her whole life.
“Dad and I want to talk to you downstairs. Take fifteen minutes for yourself, but then we want you downstairs in Dad’s office. No ifs, ands, or buts.”
After Griffin heard her mom’s footsteps go down the stairs, she took out Mariah’s two boxes and put them on her bed. The “puppy,” “STOP,” “popular,” “world peace,” and the unlabeled penny remained. Griffin slowly took out Mariah’s red ring, its huge garnet stone resembling trapped blood. Tears dribbling from her eyes, Griffin tried to see her reflection in the stone. But tonight there was no glow, just a dull red. One of Griffin’s teardrops smacked the middle of Mariah’s ring. Griffin brushed away the tear, leaving a smudge. Setting the ring back in the box, she scanned the remaining pennies. “Popular” looked dull and tarnished. Carefully she slid that penny out of the ring slit.
Long ago someone wished to be popular. Griffin wondered why that person had made that wish. Did he or she have that same suffocating feeling that Griffin did right now? Like the whole world was against her?
The grandfather clock chimed. Time to go downstairs and face her parents. The small desk light was glowing on her father’s desk. Her parents sat on the couch together. Griffin slumped into the leather chair across from them.
“Griffin, it’s time you told us what’s going on,” said her mom. “Garrett’s mom is beside herself. She said Garrett is so upset. What made you write a letter like that?”
Griffin took a deep breath. She remembered what Mariah had said: If you tell anyone about the curse, you are cursed for generations, and the person you tell will never have any of his or her wishes come true.
Griffin chose her words carefully. “Remember when I met that lady, Mariah Weatherby Schmidt, at Mr. Schmidt’s shop?”
Her mom nodded.
“She gave me a penny and a box of polishing cloths. But actually, in the box of cloths were some other lucky pennies. I was only trying to help make Garrett’s wish for a dad come true. I gave him a lucky penny and wrote that letter to speed up his luck. Mariah also gave me a ring and a leather guest record book from the inn.”
“May we see the ring and guest book Mariah gave you?” asked her dad.
“Okay.” Griffin nodded and dashed upstairs to retrieve the box. When she returned, her mom examined the ring. “This stone is a garnet. It looks about six carats—worth quite a lot. They are never this large. The gold band is thick, too.”
Together her parents opened the guest book and studied it, like careful archeologists. “An odd and interesting bequeathal,” said her dad. “Reminds me of a quote from Ben Franklin. He said, ‘If a man could have half of his wishes, he would double his troubles.’”
“I made a huge mistake. I just wanted to try to help Garrett.”
“We know your intentions were good, but when you make a decision that affects someone else’s privacy, you need to be respectful and really consider how t
he other person might feel.”
Griffin nodded her head, as tears spilled from her eyes.
“I see here the name Florence L. Daniellson and the tiny word ‘puppy.’ Is this what the puppy thing is about?” said her mom. “This woman wished for a puppy?”
“I just thought it might be nice to make her wish come true.”
“I see,” said her mom.
“Garrett refuses to do the science project with me now. After all the work we did together, he’ll totally get marked down if he’s not there. He hates me too.”
“First, I think you should write apology notes to Garrett and his mother. Try to explain what you meant to do.”
“I told him already!” cried Griffin.
“Giving people time to calm down is best,” said her mom. “Science night is still a week away. Maybe Garrett will change his mind. If not, you need to honor his choice, and we’ll help you set up your booth. What do you want to do with Mariah’s stuff?”
“Throw it in the garbage.”
“Do you want to keep the ring?”
“No, it scares me,” answered Griffin.
“I have an idea. Let’s sell the ring, and any money you make we’ll donate to Pennies for the Planet. I’ll take care of it for you, okay?”
“Okay,” said Griffin, tears still streaming down her face.
“Griffin,” said her mom, “everybody makes mistakes or uses poor judgment once in a while, but it’s what you do next that counts. Now, why don’t you write those apology notes and get a good night’s sleep.”
Her mom stood up, kissed Griffin on the forehead, and went to make some tea. Her mom’s warm kiss made her feel like crying even harder. Griffin turned to her dad. Between sniffles she said, “Dad, would you ever wish to be popular?”
“I’m sure a lot of people would like to be popular. It can make things easier or more pleasant, but popularity changes, grows, and can even get silly. The more honest and kind you are, the more the right kind of popularity comes to you.”
“Yeah,” said Griffin, wiping her wet eyes.
“Griffin, we love you—popular, unpopular, around the moon, and back again,” said her dad.
Back in her bedroom Griffin dangled the “popular” penny in her hand and stood by her dark bedroom window. In the swirling moonlight she stared at the copper coin. Tomorrow she’d take the “popular” penny to school.
Popularity?
It is glory’s small change.
—Victor Hugo
Chapter
38
Dr. Penshine dropped Griffin off at school fifteen minutes early. In the lobby of the school well-lit display cases held trophies and notices for science night. In front of the cases was a water jug Garrett and Griffin had placed there for donated pennies.
The jug looked sad. Empty. Forgotten. Inside the jug two inches of pennies nestled at the bottom of the container, most of which Griffin and Garrett had donated themselves.
The halls were clear of kids, but a stampede of rushing students would burst through the doors in ten minutes. Griffin dug into her pocket and removed the “popular” penny. She wanted Pennies for the Planet to be the most popular charity, raising tons of money for the environment. Then, at least, this mess could count for something. Griffin was sure Garrett wished the same thing. But there was no way she could give it to him now. Griffin held the penny in her hand.
Samantha, Martha, and Sasha barged through the front doors of school. Huge designer bags were slung over their left shoulders, and they clutched chilled bottles of designer mineral water in their right hands.
Griffin’s and Samantha’s eyes locked.
Swiveling their heads, the girls looked at the pathetic almost-empty water jug. They laughed. “Checking on your project?” said Samantha. “We heard Garrett refuses to work with you. Too bad about your grade.”
The penny started to burn into Griffin’s palm. Round edges of copper pressed against her flesh, singeing her skin. Griffin took a deep breath. Treat yourself with respect and ignore people who don’t treat you with dignity ran through her mind. The penny was scorching her palm, burning to be set free. Heat surged through Griffin’s entire body. Popular! Popular! chanted through her head. Griffin fought to not throw the penny at Samantha’s face. Her fingers could hardly contain the penny, now a hot coal.
“What’s in your hand, Griffin? A frog?” said Samantha.
“Nothing,” said Griffin.
“Nothing doesn’t make your hand jump like that. Show us!”
“No,” said Griffin.
“Show us!” said Samantha, moving closer.
“No, Samantha. You’re such a bully,” said Griffin, fighting to keep her hold on the burning penny. But it burned so badly that she lost her grip and the penny tumbled out along the cold floor.
Sasha ran for it, scooped it up, and placed it in Samantha’s palm.
Griffin stood in front of her. Anger surged through her entire body.
“Look at this! This is too cute!” said Samantha, mocking. “A penny with ‘popular’ taped across it. Are you wishing to be popular? Do you carry around lucky pennies with labels on them for yourself?” The three girls howled with laughter.
Griffin bit her lip.
“You know what I think of you and your stupid penny?” said Samantha.
“I think this penny must be nasty being inside your pocket.” She dumped some of her designer water on it, and the ink on the label began to bleed. The word “popular” spread in all directions.
Griffin glared.
“Oh, look at this, girls,” said Samantha. “Her penny is ruined!” The girls laughed. “Maybe I should make a wish before it fades away …” In a baby voice, with her lips in a snarl, she mocked, “I wish Griffin becomes superpopular.”
The three girls cracked up. Sasha laughed so hard she snorted. She added, “Don’t forget her dork charity, too.”
“And her dork charity, too.”
“Here, Griffin, better take back your lucky penny!” said Samantha. But just as she threw it, the school bell blasted, and a charge of kids burst through the front doors along with a gust of wind. The penny flew through the air like a smoldering comet. In a ribbon of light the penny landed inside the water jug on top of the heap. The container lit up from within.
Samantha glared at Griffin. “Why did that penny light up? What kind of penny was that, anyway?”
“A lucky one,” said Griffin.
All appears to change when we change.
—Henri Frédéric Amiel
Chapter
39
On science night, rubber sneakers squeaked over the gym floor that reeked of sweat and salt. Griffin had transformed the splatters and paint smudges Samantha’s friends had squirted onto her sneakers by turning them into a cool design. She’d made the paint blobs look like a van Gogh–inspired rain forest.
While Dr. Penshine parked the car, Griffin dragged her bags through the gym in search of her booth. Passing Samantha’s and Sasha’s booth, number 23, Griffin locked eyes with Samantha. An electric sign over her booth blinked: THE SCIENCE AND JOY OF MY DAD’S DERMATOLOGY PRODUCTS. Samantha’s father had donated the sign. When Griffin looked closer, she noticed Samantha still had large warts all over her face.
“This lighting is unbearable!” screeched Mrs. Sloane. “Look at you! This is so bad for your father’s business.” Pulling more cover-up out of her purse, Mrs. Sloane slapped at Samantha’s skin. The gold bracelets up and down Mrs. Sloane’s arm jangled, calling even more attention to Samantha. “This is disgusting! I’m so embarrassed!”
Samantha glared at Griffin.
Griffin stared back. Mrs. Sloane made Samantha look kind. For the first time Griffin actually felt sorry for Samantha. Maybe there was a reason Samantha was so mean.
“Hi, Griffin!” said Audree, who was setting up her display table with facts about Darwin, the Galápagos Islands, and blue-footed birds.
“Wow, your booth looks great, Audree. Did you mak
e that picture?”
“Yeah, my whole family. We spread out a giant sheet of paper on the living room floor and colored in the blue-footed birds. It really looks like a duck with powder blue feet.”
“It’s amazing. Good luck tonight,” said Griffin.
“Thanks. You too. My mom said I worked so hard on this project that I can have a huge sleepover party! I’m calling everybody tomorrow!”
“Cool. Thanks,” said Griffin, and she slid her heavy bags through the aisles, stopping at booth 17, which was assigned to Garrett and her. Doors opened to the public at six p.m., but Garrett was nowhere to be found.
Sighing, Griffin started to unpack all the things she and Garrett had made for their booth: poster boards, fact booklets, and clay models of alchemists’ equipment. First she hung the huge poster board: THE ALCHEMISTS: GOLD, WISHES, AND FUTURE SCIENTISTS. She set up the models of the equipment the alchemists had used in hopes of turning ordinary metals into gold. Griffin put out a tray of gold sprinkled cookies she had baked with her mom.
“You doing okay, Griff?” asked Dr. Penshine, hauling more bags for the booth.
“Yup,” she said.
“Looking really good!” said her mom. Carefully her mother took out a jar of pennies. Inside the jar, she and Griffin had displayed the “change the world” penny in a ring case. It was surrounded by a moat of pennies. Also displayed in the jar was a money order for eleven hundred dollars from the sale of Mariah’s ring, made out to Pennies for the Planet.
Griffin smiled looking at this. When her mom had told her the ring was worth so much, Griffin had jumped up and down. She bet Mariah had never known her ring would one day help the environment.
Behind this jar Griffin and her mom tacked up poster boards that explained how pennies can be turned into gold, how when enough people give, each penny can help save the rain forest. Saving the Amazon rain forest from being cut down is so important because trees supply most of the Earth’s clear air and oxygen, read her poster. Griffin had drawn the Earth with lungs in the middle and trees circling the planet.
The Wish Stealers Page 12