by Mary Strand
She sighed loudly, and we both knew she was referring to Lydia, and probably a million other events during Mom’s and Dad’s marriage. It wasn’t my fault. I hadn’t married him. Of course, at the rate I was going with guys, I probably wouldn’t marry anyone. Like, ever.
I tossed my pillow on the floor. No point suffocating myself on a perfectly good Saturday morning. “Why should I get a job during the school year? Aren’t I supposed to be studying? Or joining some stupid after-school club?”
Mom stared at me, and I worried for a moment that I’d gone too far. If she changed her mind and let me skip the job hunt, I’d have to stay home, tethered to Mary.
“You are supposed to be studying, but you don’t, and you’re not involved in any after-school activities. No sports or clubs or music lessons. Nothing. Your sisters all do things. Since you seem to have too much time on your hands, your father and I decided that you should find a job.”
“Whoa. You and Dad actually agreed on something?”
When Mom flinched, I knew I’d gone too far—and in the wrong direction.
“Catherine Bennet, how dare you.”
I shrugged, knowing I should apologize or at least pretend I hadn’t meant it. But Mom and Dad never agree on anything. How they ever produced my sisters and me is a miracle.
Mom turned toward the door, glancing back at me over her shoulder. “You’re looking for a job, and you’ll start today. Perhaps they’ll teach you to speak politely to other people, particularly your parents.”
She slammed the door on the way out.
I waited five seconds before leaping out of bed and doing a happy dance. So Mom and Dad were really making me get a job—or, at least, look for a job. Perfect!
I got dressed half an hour later, after a long, steamy shower that felt delicious and several long minutes’ indecision over what to wear. If I babed myself out, Mom and Dad would figure out I was gonna hang with my friends. But if I dressed in some appropriately lame-o outfit to look for a job, I couldn’t show my face at the mall unless I planned to spend the afternoon in a dark theater, alone.
I finally opted for a pair of straight-legged jeans that weren’t too tight and didn’t hang too low on my hips, plus a button-down blue Oxford I found in my closet. Knowing Lydia, it belonged to some guy. I wore a black camisole under the Oxford, in case someone saw me before I could change, and stuffed a tight scoop-necked top in my big purse.
As I went downstairs, I twisted my mouth into a frown. I had to look unhappy, if not pissed, to make Mom and Dad believe I didn’t want to go. Knowing how much my future happiness depended on Mom’s and Dad’s gullibility, I ran a nervous hand through my hair and went to the front-hall closet, where I grabbed my jacket and Lydia’s Uggs.
“Where do you think you’re going?”
I whirled to see Dad, in his leather recliner, aiming a hard stare at me. As my hands shook harder, I stuffed my free hand in the pocket of my jeans. Casually. Or as casually as I could.
“Going out? To look for a job? Like you said?”
I didn’t think I stuttered too badly, but Dad just kept staring. The hand in my pocket was balled into a tight fist.
“I thought you objected to getting a job.”
I shrugged. “I object to a lot of things around here, but it doesn’t stop everyone from bossing me around.”
“You’re suddenly feeling so compliant that you’re skipping breakfast?” Dad looked pointedly at his watch. “Or lunch, as the case may be?”
I started to get annoyed, which actually helped calm my nerves. “I figured I could grab a bite while I was out looking for a job. Like, before it gets too late.”
Dad reached for a cigar on the table next to him, still watching me as he took his time lighting it. Mom must’ve gone somewhere. She keeps telling Dad he can’t smoke cigars in the house, but it never seems to stop him.
He took a couple of puffs, letting the smoke and putrid smell curl around him. “And how were you planning to look for this job of yours?”
I bit the inside corner of my lip to hold down the shakes. Why hadn’t I slipped out the back door? Even without a jacket, and with temps below zero today, it would’ve been better than an interrogation by Dad.
“Uh, in the Jeep?” As Dad kept watching me, unmoved, I kept talking. “Mary’s probably hanging with Josh, so I figured I’d take the Jeep. To the Mall of America. With all those stores, I bet I can find a place that’s hiring.”
“In jeans.”
“Dad, this is what kids wear. Even to work.”
Okay, not at McDonald’s, but I’d already done my time there. Not that I planned to look anywhere for a job, but if I did, it’d be along the lines of Gap or Abercrombie. A place that doesn’t sell Big Macs or make me wanna hurl.
Dad nodded. Whew. “As it happens, you’re in luck.”
“Great.” I zipped up my jacket, slipped into the Uggs, and reached for the Jeep keys, which were in a tray on the front-hall chest where everyone dumped keys and mail and even stray articles of clothing.
Dad cleared his throat. “I think Mary is free, and if she isn’t, I suspect Jane or Liz might be.”
I frowned. “Free? To do what?”
“To accompany you on your job search, of course.”
“What?”
“I’m glad you’ve decided to follow your mother’s and my recommendation, but I don’t feel entirely comfortable letting you take the Jeep without supervision. Job or no job, you’re still grounded.”
“But . . . but they don’t wanna hang out with me.”
“You won’t be hanging out at the mall, right?” Dad’s lips curled up slightly at the corners. “I’m sure whoever goes with you can bring a book.”
“But that would be boring.”
For me, it’d be a disaster!
Dad smiled. “You leave that to me. Or, more accurately, to your sisters. I’ll find some way to make it up to them.”
I closed my eyes. My life was ruined. Over. Pointless.
And I had to look for a job.
“You’re really going to look for a job.”
I glared at Mary. “I said I was, didn’t I?”
Mary could smirk all she wanted; she wasn’t the one getting nailed. Liz and Jane both bagged out on driving me to the Mall of America, which left Mary. At least Liz or Jane would’ve made relatively cool chaperones. Even with decent clothes and a skater boyfriend, Mary would never be cool.
“Are we leaving today?”
Distracted by my annoyance, I finally glanced at Mary. She was standing by the open front door, the Jeep keys jangling in her hand and the toe of her chunky black boots tapping the floor.
I sailed past her, grabbing the keys out of her hand as I headed outside. “You have to go along, maybe, but no one said I couldn’t drive.”
When I got almost to the Jeep, I realized Mary was still at the front door. She hadn’t budged an inch.
“C’mon.” I motioned her outside with a wave of my hand as I shivered and saw the steam from my breath hitting the air. “I need to get a job, in case you forgot, and it’s freezing.”
“I’m your designated driver. As far as you’re concerned, I’m your designated everything.”
I rolled my eyes, even though I’d rather smack her one. If I were Liz, I probably would. “Says who?”
“Dad.”
Mary held out a hand, but there was no way I was going to grovel all the way back to the house to drop the keys in her annoying hand.
“He didn’t tell me.”
“You weren’t listening. Like always.” She took a step toward me and kept holding out her hand.
The smug look on her face was the last straw. Clutching the keys in my hand so hard it hurt, I ran the last few yards to the Jeep. Mary stared at me with her mouth open, then finally ran after me. Too late. I jumped into the Jeep, slammed the door and hit the locks, then cranked the engine and took off.
Lydia wasn’t the only one who could flip the bird at our family.
I’m her twin, aren’t I?
After zapping Tess and even Amber a couple of texts—with no response, which was a little weird—I wandered around the Mall of America for ages without seeing anyone I knew. Not near the movie theater, not in either food court, and not in Nickelodeon Universe, the amusement park. And no one was exactly shouting out my name.
“Cat?”
My head whipped around at the sound of the quiet voice. Finally, a friend.
Oh.
Blinking, I spotted the two girls standing by the Rock Bottom Plunge, the scariest ride in Nickelodeon Universe. Megan Case, the tiny, stick-thin girl who sat next to me in Drawing class, and Bethany Potter, who sat on the other side of the room but hung out with Megan. Tall, with long blond hair to her waist, Bethany dwarfed Megan in height, but she seemed even more shy than Megan. If that was possible.
No way would either of them ride something as terrifying as the Rock Bottom Plunge. Even I did it only with guys.
But not lately.
“Hi.” I glanced quickly around as I greeted them, thinking my friends had to be here. Somewhere. Nothing against Megan or Bethany, but they weren’t exactly in my crowd.
“Are you meeting someone?” Megan pushed her wire-rim glasses higher up her nose.
I shrugged. “Not really. I was just hanging out.”
“Wanna hang out with us?”
Bethany darted a quick frown at Megan, startling me. I mean, I didn’t know Bethany, and she didn’t know me, so no way could she want to avoid hanging with me. If I couldn’t be seen with her, it was different. My friends weren’t exactly open-minded about picking up strays. Okay, except for Chelsea. And according to Tess, Amber’s dad made her do it.
“I, uh, can’t.” I glanced from Bethany to Megan and back again as Bethany took a step away from me. Since no one was around, I could at least grab some job applications. Something to show Dad and Mom. Something to make up for the fact that I’d stolen the Jeep. “I’m looking for a job.”
Megan looked disappointed, Bethany relieved.
“Good luck with the job search.” Megan smiled brightly at me, almost as if we were friends. “I hoped we could talk you into trying the Rock Bottom Plunge. It’s Bethany’s birthday, and she wanted to do something wild.”
Bethany shot a nasty look at Megan, then gave me a tight nod before turning and heading to the entrance to the Rock Bottom Plunge.
Megan glanced at her, a puzzled frown creasing her forehead, before giving me a faint smile. “Nice seeing you. Maybe we can get together some other time.”
“Sure.” Highly doubtful, actually, but I couldn’t help smiling back at her. For an artsy type, she actually seemed normal and nice. If she had an angle, I couldn’t figure it out.
As I watched Megan and Bethany pass through the ticket reader for the Plunge, someone else shouted my name. Turning, I spotted Tess and Amber. I hadn’t realized how tense I’d been until I felt my shoulders relax, but my relief faded when I realized that neither girl—my closest friends besides Lydia—had asked me to join them here.
I took a step toward Tess and held up a hand in a tentative wave. “Hey, guys. What’s up?”
Tess looked nervously at Amber, who smiled at me. Her smile was kinda weird, though, like the fake smile you give teachers. She’s short, dark, and perky like Alice Cullen in the Twilight series. At the moment, it wasn’t the only thing about her that reminded me of a bloodsucker.
“Oh, geez, Cat. Sorry. We totally forgot to call you.” Amber’s lips twitched, and neither of them met the questioning looks I shot at them. “But you’ve been hanging out with your sister this week, haven’t you?”
I shrugged. “Mary? Just driving to school with her.”
“And Chelsea said you—” Amber clapped a hand over her mouth, but a giggle came through.
“She said I what?” I rolled my eyes, pretending to be cool, even though my gut twisted into painful knots. Chelsea was new in school. She was nothing. “I haven’t talked to Chelsea. Why would I?”
“Since she hooked up with Drew, you wouldn’t.” Amber didn’t even try to hide her giggle this time.
My stomach lurched. Amber and Tess knew I liked Drew—as in, really liked him—but they’d both crushed on various guys, too, hadn’t they? What had I done wrong? I picked a guy who wound up picking someone else?
I shrugged again, pretending I didn’t care. Pretending Tess and Amber were still my friends. “So? Anyway, I barely even know Chelsea.”
“We heard you’re grounded.”
I waved a hand in the air, nonchalantly, as my mind raced. How could anyone have heard? I told Tess I couldn’t come to the party Friday night, but I made up an excuse. Normally it’d even be kinda cool to get grounded the way I did, but something wasn’t right, and I had a feeling the part about throwing up in my closet would only end in more giggles. “Nah. It’s just been so freaking cold out, I’ve been hanging at home.”
Amber flicked a glance at Tess, then ran a hand through her short tousled hair. “Chelsea told us you’ve been calling Drew and hanging up.”
“What?” I sputtered, horrified and definitely sick now. I’d done it once. On his family’s landline, not his cell, so he wouldn’t know if I chickened out. Which I did. Damn Caller ID. “That is so not true.”
I’d kill Chelsea the first chance I got.
“Yeah, well . . .” Amber glanced at Tess, who stared mutely at the floor. “We promised we’d meet Chelsea and Drew. So we’d, like, better get going.”
“Can I—” The words caught in my throat, almost choking me. “Join you?”
“I wouldn’t mind, but we can’t.” Amber’s eyes looked almost wildly at Tess, who refused to look at either of us. “We promised it’d be just us.”
“But I—”
“Sorry. Catch ya later, huh?”
Oh. My. God. I’d officially been dissed and dumped. And, this time, not just by Drew.
My life couldn’t possibly get worse.
Right?
Chapter 4
[N]othing less than a dance on Tuesday could have made such a Friday, Saturday, Sunday, and Monday endurable to Kitty.
— Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice, Volume I, Chapter Seventeen
After Tess and Amber ditched me, I wandered aimlessly around Nickelodeon Universe, but I was sick to my stomach and couldn’t face the thought of running into them again, with or without Drew and Chelsea. Finally, I headed for the Jeep.
I walked out the second-floor west entrance, between Macy’s and Nordstrom, sucking in a whoosh of icy air and wrapping my arms around myself to ward off the chill. It had to be way below zero, even in the parking ramp, and it didn’t help that I’d felt cold ever since Amber started talking to me. I just wanted to grab the Jeep and get home. Even if it meant facing the firing squad.
I shivered my way to where I’d parked the Jeep. But . . . no Jeep? My head swiveled in every direction. I knew I’d parked it here. Ever since the time I forgot where I parked it and had to call mall security and pretend it’d been stolen, I made sure I knew exactly where I left it. And it’d been right here.
Someone stole it!
Stunned, I ran back into the mall and grabbed a security guy, telling him—frantically—that someone had stolen the Jeep. He folded his beefy arms and didn’t budge an inch. Shocked, I finally realized he didn’t want to freeze to death walking into the parking ramp for some dopey teenage girl. Argh.
I finally whipped out my cell phone and punched in my home number, taking a deep breath in and letting it out while I waited for someone to pick up.
“Yo.”
Liz. Whew.
“It’s Cat and I’m at the mall and the Jeep was stolen and the security guard doesn’t feel like looking for a stolen Jeep, and I can’t—”
“Cat.” Liz started laughing, which was totally weird and inappropriate even for Liz. “No one stole the Jeep. Dad repossessed it.”
I blinked. “No way.”
“Way.”
“Mary said you always park in the same spot. Ever since you lost the Jeep that time.”
More laughter. Liz so did not win any empathy awards, and I was freezing my ass off, and I needed to get home. I planned to strangle everyone there.
“So how am I supposed to get home? It’s freezing out, in case Dad didn’t notice.”
Liz cleared her throat. “Dad says you can catch a ride from one of your friends, or else you can take the bus.”
“I don’t even know where to find a bus, let alone one that happens to go all the way to Woodbury.”
“And your friends?”
“They’re, uh, not here.” In more ways than one, but Liz didn’t need to know it. I could handle only so much of her laughing at me in one conversation, and I’d already hit my limit. “I came out to look for a job, remember?”
“All I know is that you ditched Mary. Not your smartest move.”
Turning my back on the security guard, I spoke through clenched teeth. “Don’t tell me you’ve never ditched Mary. Even Jane has, and she never does anything wrong.”
Silence. Either my phone died or Liz accidentally hung up. Or she hung up and it wasn’t an accident. Crap.
“Liz? Are you still there?”
She cleared her throat. “I’m trying to figure how out to say this without sounding like a pompous older sister.”
Why stop now? “Don’t tell me. You and Jane suddenly realized how scathingly brilliant Mary is, and now I’m supposed to pray to her altar, too?”
Liz laughed. Again. “Actually, something like that. Mary is pretty cool, but sometimes a girl’s family is so close to her, they don’t see her for what she is.”
I sighed. “Right.”
“You don’t get it, do you?”
My turn to laugh. “No, I totally get it. You get to hand me a load of crap about Mary, and I have to stand here and take it, then beg you for a ride home. Because I’m stuck at the Mall of America without a fucking Jeep and I’m freezing my ass off and my whole family sucks.”