Pumpkin Spice Up Your Life

by Suzanne Nelson

  “Sure,” I said hesitantly. What was this about?

  She put her hand on my arm to slow my stride, then stopped to face me. “Have I … done something to make you mad at me?”

  My mouth dropped open. I hadn’t been expecting that.

  “I feel like you don’t really like me,” Kiya went on, “and I’m not sure if I offended you somehow—”

  Oh gosh. I hadn’t realized I’d been coming off as overtly hostile to Kiya. Were my mixed emotions that obvious?

  “You didn’t offend me,” I said, feeling guilty. “Really.”

  She smiled in relief. “Whew. For a second, I thought maybe you were crushing on Graham, too?”

  My eyes widened. “Wha—? No. Not at all,” I said.

  “Oh good.” She let out a long breath. “That would’ve been totally awkward and awful.” She tilted her head at me. “But … is there something else? I feel like there’s this weird tension between us.”

  I bit my lip. There was so much I wasn’t capable of telling her. I had no explanation for why I couldn’t warm up to her. I didn’t understand it myself. One thing, though, did pop into my head, and suddenly, I saw a chance to change the subject and make a point, all at once.

  “Well, if I’m being totally honest, I’m not a huge fan of the menu changing at the Snug Mug,” I said. “And I’m not the only one.” I’d heard kids complaining about the menu changes in the hallway before school had started today.

  “Really?” Her brow crinkled.

  I shrugged. “Kids here love the specialty drinks. Including Graham.”

  “He does love the Whiteout Chocolatta,” she said thoughtfully. “But my dad’s already made up his mind. And honestly, those fancy drinks are tasty, but also loaded with sugar. The new drinks are healthier anyway.” She checked the time on her phone. “I’ve got to go.” She started to walk away, then turned back, giving me a quizzical look. “You don’t … you don’t know who my secret admirer is, do you? Is it Graham?”

  My pulse stuttered, but I shook my head, replying, “Absolutely no idea.”

  Then she was gone, and my phone was buzzing with yet another text from Daniel, asking me to meet him at his locker. I sighed, guessing he wanted another Kiya update. Sure enough, when I reached his locker, I found him pacing in anticipation.

  “Yes, she was thrilled,” I said preemptively, hoping to ward off the onslaught of questions.

  “Great! Two surprises down, only three more to go.” His expression was gleeful. “And tomorrow night’s serenade is going to be the best yet!”

  I raised a skeptical eyebrow. “Daniel, don’t tell me you’re going to sing under her window?”

  He shook his head. “But I do have some live entertainment in mind.” The mischievous glint in his eyes already had me worried, but then he added, “See, I know some really talented musicians—”

  “No way.” I cut him off. “Whatever it is you’re about to ask me to do is not going to happen.”

  “Elle’s already on board,” Daniel said, “but I can’t have a French horn without a cello. You’re the star of the show.”

  I sighed, unable to meet his eyes. “Daniel, I’m not even close to ready for my audition. I can’t give up a night of practice to serenade—” Some stupid crush, I wanted to say, but held the words back. “I can’t,” I repeated instead. “Really.”

  There was an awkward beat of silence before he said, quietly, “I’m sorry, Nadi. I didn’t mean to pressure you. I’ll figure something else out.” Suddenly, I saw how much this meant to him. Regardless of how much his fawning over Kiya irritated me, this was important to him. We’d been through so much together. I couldn’t let him down.

  I threw up my hands. “Ugh! Okay, okay. I’ll do it.”

  He grabbed me in a hug, and suddenly, my breath left my body. “What would I do without you, Nadi?” Even when he let go, the warmth of his arms lingered.

  “I’m all yours,” I blurted. The second the words left my mouth, I froze, mortified. Daniel’s eyes widened in surprise. “N-no,” I stammered. “I mean—”

  Daniel laughed. “I know what you meant. I’d do anything for you, too.”

  “I’ve got to get to class,” I mumbled, walking away from him. “Just … fill me in on the details for the serenade later.”

  “Thanks!” he called cheerily after me.

  I barreled down the hallway, still dazed by my strange response to his hug. I wasn’t supposed to go breathless around him. Daniel was my friend, and he was soon to be Kiya’s boyfriend. And—stupid me—I’d even offered to help him win her over. What had I gotten myself into?

  As it turned out, what I’d gotten myself into was climbing a tree in the dead of night.

  “You’re going to break your leg.” Elle’s whispered voice sounded in the darkness below.

  I strengthened my grip on the sturdy (hopefully) tree branch and pulled myself up. “Thanks for that vote of confidence,” I hissed. I was grateful for Wednesday’s moonless night, which kept me from seeing just how far I’d fall if I slipped.

  “I can’t believe we agreed to this,” Elle said.

  “No kidding,” I muttered.

  I shimmied forward on the branch a few more inches, thankful that the knapsack on my back was relatively light. Then, when I was near enough to Kiya’s bedroom window that I could reach the sill, I opened the knapsack. Inside was the battery-operated light-up rose that Daniel had “borrowed” from the school drama club’s supply closet. I switched it on and carefully set it on the windowsill, where it twinkled with fiber optic color-changing lights.

  Luckily, Kiya’s curtains were drawn, so I didn’t have to worry about her seeing it (or me) before Elle and I had the rest of the surprise ready. I quickly clambered back down the tree and then found Elle waiting with our instruments behind some hedges.

  I swept the blanket off my cello, hoping that it hadn’t gotten too cold, and extended the pin on the bottom to its full height, so that I could play standing up.

  “Ready?” I asked Elle. She lifted her French horn to her lips and nodded.

  “On three,” I whispered, and counted off.

  Daniel had chosen the song, John Legend’s “All of Me,” and it hadn’t taken Elle and me much time to put together an arrangement for our duet. I’d always been able to quickly pick up and play songs by ear, and Elle was a master at accompaniment.

  Now, our music floated through the brisk air, traveling up into the night.

  It only took a few seconds for Kiya’s bedroom light to come on. She drew her curtains aside and opened her window. I saw her smile as she examined the glowing rose, and then she leaned out the window, trying to find the source of the music.

  I picked up speed in the last few measures of the song, wanting to finish and leave before Kiya, or anyone else, came out of her house. But I wasn’t quick enough. As I was zipping my cello back into its case, the Renauds’ front porch light blinked on. Kiya stepped onto the porch, peering into the darkness.

  “Hello out there,” she called and waited. “Graham,” she whispered, “is it you?”

  “Elle,” I hissed, pulling on my friend’s arm as she stifled a nervous giggle, “we’ve got to go. Now!”

  We stumbled across the uneven ground, strewn as it was with fallen leaves.

  “That was amazing!” Kiya called after us as we ran. “I wish I could tell you that face-to-face!”

  While I was bemoaning the fact that Woodburn had gravel and dirt paths between houses instead of sidewalks, I was still grateful for the town’s lack of streetlights. The darkness kept us hidden until we made it safely back to Main Street.

  “Please tell me I don’t ever have to do that again,” Elle panted when we finally stopped at the corner where we would part ways to head home. “Running with a French horn is no picnic.”

  “You should try it with a cello.” Even with my cello in its padded backpack-style case, I’d have to check it when I got home to make sure it had survived our narrow escap
e unscathed. Just then, my phone buzzed with a text from Daniel, wanting to know how our Music in the Moonlight Mission (as he called it) had gone. “Hang on a sec,” I said to Elle while I sent a text back saying I’d call him in a few to fill him in.

  “How many more of these Operation Kiya missions are you helping with, anyway?” Elle asked.

  “I don’t want to talk about it,” I muttered, then added, “I don’t suppose you want to come over to help me cut out paper hearts? I told Dan I’d cut out half of them for him. They’re for tomorrow morning’s mission.”

  Elle laughed. “I don’t even think I’d do that for my boyfriend, let alone my BFF’s crush. I mean, we all love Daniel, but you’re really going above and beyond for him.”

  My face warmed at her words, and I felt her studying me. “I want him to be happy,” I said softly, and I knew it was true. Even though the thought of Kiya and Daniel together made a hollow pit form in my stomach, I didn’t want Daniel to miss out on anything he wanted.

  “Nadi … you and Daniel have been friends forever,” Elle said now, “but … well, you know you can talk to me if anything changes.”

  “What? You mean when Daniel’s grand scheme works and Kiya falls for him?” I wrinkled my nose.

  “I wasn’t thinking about Kiya,” she said, so softly I wasn’t even sure I’d heard her right. Then she gave me a lightning-quick hug and hurried in the direction of her house, leaving me staring after her, wondering what she’d meant.

  “Are you sure you put the drone in the right place?” Daniel asked as he met me at our lunch table on Friday afternoon. “You should double-check, because if it’s in the wrong place, the signal won’t reach and—”

  “I’m not double-checking.” I’d practically had to run from my locker to the cafeteria in order to get there before any of the other students arrived for lunch. I’d strategically placed the drone, with its precious cargo, around the corner from the cafeteria entrance in an out-of-sight spot. I’d done enough. “If this one surprise doesn’t work, it’s not the end of the world.”

  “But it’s the last one. It has to be perfect.” Daniel grinned at me as he retrieved the drone’s remote control from his backpack. “This is the best one yet, don’t you think?”

  I hesitated, torn by a mix of emotions. This final mission was the most elaborate so far. “It’s definitely creative,” I conceded, trying to sound as diplomatic as possible.

  My reticent tone didn’t fool him for a second.

  “What’s wrong?” he asked, his brow creasing with concern. “You think it’s stupid?”

  I groaned inwardly. Daniel and I had spent hours prepping for and executing the last few Operation Kiya missions. Thursday, I’d gotten to school before orchestra rehearsal to slip paper hearts through Kiya’s locker vents, until her locker was filled with one hundred hearts that waterfalled out when she opened the locker door. And now this. I was so done with Operation Kiya, and I wanted Daniel to be done with it, too. He wasn’t the one in Kiya’s homeroom listening to her whisper to Georgette about Graham. He hadn’t noticed how Kiya skipped spots in the lunch line so she could talk to Graham. But I had.

  It was obvious that Kiya had fallen for Graham. Or it was obvious to everyone except Daniel. But as I looked at him now—at the hope and disappointment seesawing on his face—I knew I couldn’t tell him about Graham. It would crush him.

  “Daniel,” I said gently. “The drone idea isn’t stupid. It’s cool.” I swallowed. The cafeteria was still pretty empty, with kids just beginning to trickle in, so we had a minute or two to talk in relative privacy. “It’s only … you’re spending so much time and energy on Kiya. A girl who …” I sucked in a breath. “You barely know.”

  “It takes time to get to know someone. I mean, come on.” He looked at me with that smile I knew oh so well, and my heart filled with warmth. “You can’t expect me to know everything about her yet. It’s not like you and me! Nothing comes as easy as that.” He paused, laughing. “That’s not what I meant. I mean, that is what I meant, but—”

  “I get it, Daniel.” I laughed, too, but my pulse pounded furiously. “Of course it’s not like you and me.” I glanced away from him in order to hide my reddening cheeks, and at that moment, spotted Brandon and Elle making their way toward our table. It was perfect timing. “I’m going to go grab lunch,” I said, scrambling toward the hot lunch line before he could say anything else.

  Once I got in line, I pressed my palms against my cool steel lunch tray. This is Daniel, I reminded myself. I was not supposed to become light-headed over Daniel. What was wrong with me?

  I wished I didn’t have to watch the surprise about to unfold for Kiya. But as I turned from the lunch line with my now-full tray of food, I caught sight of Kiya sitting down at her table with Georgette.

  Within seconds, Daniel’s mini drone, carrying a small pink pouch, flew into the room and straight toward Kiya. Amid awestruck “oohs” from nearly everyone in the room, the drone released the pink pouch, and it landed with a soft plop right in front of Kiya. The drone flew deftly away as Kiya beamed over her special delivery.

  “What is this?” she cried in delight. Georgette and all the other girls at the table leaned forward to see. Kiya pulled the strings on the pouch and up popped a miniature paper silhouette of New York City. “Omigod, that’s the cutest thing ever!” she gushed.

  My stomach lurched as I slowly made my way past Kiya’s table and back to my friends. When I sat down beside Daniel again, he was beaming.

  “Impressive, man.” Brandon nodded approvingly. “How did you swing that one?”

  “Paper, scissors, Pinterest. And this.” Daniel held open the front pocket of his hoodie to reveal the drone’s remote control he’d hidden inside it.

  My throat had gone completely dry, and suddenly, my lunch seemed inedible. While Brandon and Elle asked Daniel more questions about his paper engineering skills, I glanced in Kiya’s direction. She was still smiling, marveling over Daniel’s craftmanship.

  Suddenly, I couldn’t watch anymore. I couldn’t be here at all.

  I stood, accidentally banging my tray against the table. “I’m going to the music room. Get some practice time in.”

  My three friends looked up in surprise, and Elle’s eyes momentarily caught mine in a look of concern.

  “Oh … okay.” Daniel’s tone was disappointed, but I couldn’t care about that right now. “See you after school?”

  I nodded, then hurried away before they could ask any more questions.

  My clunky, mistake-riddled practicing (and Maestro Claudio’s disgruntled tsking as he listened from his office) over the next half hour did nothing to improve my mood. I’d grown accustomed to the maestro’s taskmaster attitude over the last three years. I even considered his tough standard a challenge I could rise to. To earn his stern nod of approval after a particularly inspired rehearsal made me happy. There was no nod from him today, though, only a fretful scowl as he poked his head in to check on me.

  What Maestro Claudio didn’t know was that, whenever I drew the bow across the strings, Daniel’s face appeared before my eyes. And then—even worse—Kiya’s face appeared beside his, closing in for a kiss. After nearly launching my bow across the room, I gave up entirely and packed up my cello. I was about to leave when the sound of voices in the hallway caught my attention.

  I cautiously peered around the doorway to see Kiya and Graham standing in the hall together.

  “I’ve been wanting to talk to you,” Kiya was saying to him. She twirled a lock of her hair slowly around her finger, glancing up at Graham with wide, sparkling eyes and a flirty smile.

  “Then I guess this is my lucky day,” Graham said.

  “Would you like to go see the Big Pumpkin Blaze with me?” She asked the question without so much as a single falter, and I found myself admiring her bravery. “Maybe sometime this weekend? I haven’t been yet. I know it’s sort of a touristy thing to do, but it sounds really cool.”

  H
e grinned. “It is cool, until you go a hundred times. After that, it’s sort of like, been there, done that.” He laughed. “But sure, I’ll go with you. I’m glad you asked.”

  “Well, you dropped enough clues that you’re interested, so …” Her smile broadened.

  Omigod. I clenched my fists, remembering what Kiya had said earlier about thinking the surprise gifts she’d been getting were from Graham. She still thought he was her secret admirer! I glanced at Graham, thinking that he’d surely understand and tell her that the gifts weren’t from him.

  For a millisecond, Graham’s expression blanked, but he recovered smoothly. “Yeah, I was hoping you’d figure it out sooner or later. I thought we had a moment in the coffee shop the other day.”

  I leaned against the wall, my thoughts reeling. Here Graham was thinking he’d won Kiya over with his good looks and charm, and Kiya was thinking he’d just confessed to being her secret admirer. What a disaster!

  “Hey, there’s a party at Liam’s house tonight,” Graham added. “We could go to the Blaze for about an hour or so, and then go to the party.”

  “Perfect,” I heard Kiya say, and then the bell rang. I waited out of sight in the music room while they exchanged phone numbers, and then slowly made my way down the hallway, stunned, panicked, and relieved all at once.

  Kiya and Graham had a date. This made me happy, but also—oh no—made me feel terrible for Daniel. All the work he’d put into Operation Kiya had been for nothing, and now he was going to have to come to terms with Kiya dating Graham. It was going to be awful.

  There was only one person who could break the news to him. Someone who’d do it gently and properly, before the Woodburn gossip reached him. It was going to have to be me.

  The second the last bell rang, I raced to my locker, phone in hand, ready to text Daniel with a Code Red. My fingers froze over the screen, though, when I glanced up to see a piece of paper, folded into the shape of a music note, taped to my locker. I unfolded it and read: