“Hi, Stan.” I stood awkwardly in the middle of the room. I suddenly didn’t know what to do with my hands. I was wearing a leather skirt, so I didn’t have any pockets to shove them in.
Jada still had her back to me. She picked up a tennis ball from a shelf and squeezed it in one hand as she talked into the phone.
“You came up on the bus?” Stan asked. “How was it?”
“Not bad,” I said. “We were stuck in a lot of traffic when we passed the airport.”
I felt like a geek. Why was I talking about traffic?
“So you’re going to stay here for a whole month?” Stan asked. “Guess you and Jada will be sharing this room.”
“I guess,” I replied, glancing around the small, cluttered room. “Hope Jada doesn’t mind.”
“Hope Jada doesn’t mind what?” my cousin demanded.
I turned to see that she had finally put down the phone. Her blue eyes studied me. She had purple lipstick on her lips. She was absolutely beautiful. Like a supermodel.
“Hope you don’t mind sharing your room,” I answered her question.
She shrugged. “Whatever.” Then the purple lips spread into a smile, and she stepped forward to hug me.
“It’s great to see you,” I said.
“Moo Cow—I can’t believe you’re here!” she exclaimed.
My mouth dropped open. “Excuse me? What did you—”
“Moo Cow! Moo Cow!” she repeated gleefully.
Stan laughed. “Why are you calling her that?” he asked Jada. “Is that a nickname or something?”
“Moo Cow?” Jada repeated. “It’s what I’ve always called her.”
I could feel my face grow hot and knew I was blushing. I balled my hands into tight fists. “But—why?” I asked.
Jada shook her head. Her blue eyes flashed. “Don’t you remember? When we were little kids, and I was visiting you?”
“Remember what?”
“You fell down the stairs,” Jada replied. “You said I pushed you, but that wasn’t true. You fell and you started to cry. But it wasn’t like normal crying. It sounded just like a cow mooing.”
“I—I don’t remember that,” I stammered.
“Of course you do,” Jada said, grinning. “I called you Moo Cow ever since.”
Stan laughed. “Go ahead. Do it,” he said to me. He jumped to his feet. “Can you still do it? Moo like a cow?”
“No way!” I cried. I knew I was blushing even harder. “I don’t know what she’s talking about. Really!”
“Oh, go ahead,” Jada said. She tossed back her head and began to moo. A really sick moo that sounded more like someone choking, gasping for air.
Stan joined in, and the two of them mooed at the top of their lungs at each other.
“Is this what you do for fun up here?” I said. “Maybe we could work on some other barnyard animals and enter a talent show.”
They finally stopped mooing. Jada’s eyes flashed excitedly. She grinned at me. “We’re going to have a great time!”
“Not if you keep calling me Moo Cow,” I warned.
Jada started to reply. But a loud clumping noise on the stairs made her stop.
We heard a scream. “Help me! Jada—help me!” a girl moaned.
Jada’s eyes went wide.
I spun around to face the door.
A tall girl with curly red hair staggered into the room. She was gasping for breath, her eyes rolling crazily in her head.
I cried out when I saw the red trickle of blood down the side of her face.
“Help me!” she wailed. “Ohhh…. please help!”
4
“Cindy—what happened?” Jada cried.
She rushed across the room and helped her to the edge of the bed.
“I—I was robbed!” the girl sobbed. She raised a hand to the bleeding cut on the side of her head.
I suddenly felt queasy. The sight of blood always makes me sick. I can’t stand violence of any kind. I always have to shut my eyes at the scary parts of movies.
“Cindy? I thought that was you! What on earth—!” Aunt Janet rushed into the room. She dropped down beside Cindy and examined her cut. “It’s not too bad,” she said. “I think we can stop the bleeding pretty easily.”
She ran out of the room and returned a few seconds later with a wet washcloth. She gently pressed it against Cindy’s temple.
“I—I went to the cash machine for my mom,” Cindy said, still breathing hard. “But as soon as I got the cash, these men appeared. Three of them. They stepped in front of me. They didn’t say a word.”
“Wow. That’s so scary,” Stan muttered. He stood beside the bed with his hands shoved deep in his pockets. He had suddenly grown very pale.
My stomach lurched. I swallowed hard, trying to keep from throwing up.
Jada sat on the other side of Cindy, patting her shoulder. Aunt Janet continued to mop her temple gently. Dried blood had caked in Cindy’s red hair.
“I had no choice. I gave them my wallet,” Cindy said, her voice trembling. “But they threw me down on the sidewalk. Then they took off. I—I started to run home. But I was so upset, I ran into a tree. That’s how I cut myself.”
“The bleeding is slowing,” Aunt Janet said softly. “I don’t think you’ll need stitches.” She put the cloth in Cindy’s hand. “Hold it against your head. I’m going to go phone your mother.”
“What about the police?” Jada asked.
“Cindy’s mom can call the police after they get home,” Aunt Janet said. She hurried from the room.
Jada had her arm around her friend. “You’re going to be okay,” she said softly. “Did you get a good look at the men?”
“No. They had hats pulled down low on their heads. They were real tough-looking. I—I was so scared,” Cindy whispered. “Luckily, I realized I was only a few blocks from your house.”
Jada suddenly turned to me. “Wouldn’t you love to be some kind of superhero?” she asked. “You could swoop out the window and go round up those three creeps.”
The idea made my stomach lurch again. “No way,” I replied. “I’d be too terrified.”
Jada stared at me, frowning. I had the feeling I’d said something wrong.
I turned to Cindy. “By the way, I’m Jada’s cousin Selena,” I said.
“Hi,” Cindy said, mopping at her wound. The washcloth was stained with red now. “Jada said you were coming.”
“Yeah,” I said awkwardly. I had been standing tensely in the corner with my arms crossed tightly in front of me. “I—I’m sorry about…what happened.”
Cindy didn’t hear me. She and Jada were already talking to each other in soft whispers.
“It’s kind of creepy. There has been a whole bunch of robberies in this neighborhood,” Stan told me.
“Whoa. That’s awful,” I replied.
“Welcome to Chicago,” Jada said bitterly.
A few minutes later, Jada and Stan led Cindy downstairs. I dropped onto the edge of the bed and shut my eyes. I felt dizzy and sick. I kept picturing the three men robbing Cindy.
After a short while, I began to feel better. I picked up Cindy’s washcloth and started to carry it to the bathroom. I stopped halfway down the hall.
“Whoa.” The red stains on the cloth were so bright. Not dark like blood.
I raised the cloth to examine it. Paint. It smelled like paint.
Yes. The stains were red paint—not blood.
I stared at the cloth, feeling dizzy again. Was Cindy faking the whole thing? I wondered.
No. No way. Why would she do that?
5
The four of us sat around the table in the small dining room. Aunt Janet passed the platter of fried chicken to me.
“I’ll bet you girls would like to go shopping on Saturday,” Uncle Will said. “I could drive you into the city and drop you off on Michigan Avenue.”
“All of the great stores are there,” Aunt Janet told me.
“Sounds awesome,” I sai
d. I looked across the dinner table at Jada.
“I might have some other stuff to do Saturday,” Jada said, staring back at me coldly. “With my friends.”
Uncle Will swallowed a forkful of mashed potatoes. “You haven’t seen Selena since you were little. I know you two will want to get to know each other.”
“This chicken is totally delicious,” I told Aunt Janet. I really wanted to change the subject.
Up until Jada’s comment, dinner had been really nice. It was great to see Uncle Will again.
He was a chubby, round man with bright red cheeks, a twinkle in his blue-gray eyes, a thick nest of black hair bobbing on his head, and a big, booming voice.
I didn’t remember too much about him from when I was a kid. But he was so warm and friendly, I knew we were going to get along great.
“Hey—” I dropped my fork and knife to the table. “I forgot to phone Mom,” I said. “I should call and tell her I arrived.”
I saw Jada gasp. She turned to her mother as if I had said something wrong.
“No need, Selena,” Aunt Janet said. “I already called your mom. This afternoon. I told her you were here safe and sound.”
“Well, I’d just like to call her and tell her how great everything is,” I said. I pushed back my chair and started to stand up. “I want to tell her about the great dinner she’s missing.”
“Uh…wouldn’t she be at work by now?” Aunt Janet asked.
I glanced at my watch. “No. Not for another hour,” I said.
“Sit down,” Uncle Will urged softly, waving me down with both hands. “Enjoy your dinner, Selena. Don’t worry. You’ll talk to your mom later.”
I lowered myself slowly onto my chair.
Jada rolled her eyes. “You can’t be homesick already!”
“Hey, have you ever had real Chicago deep-dish pizza?” Uncle Will asked, grinning at me. “I’ll bet you haven’t. Well, I know the greatest place. It’s near Northwestern University. Maybe I’ll take everyone there tomorrow night.”
“Excellent,” I said. I gazed down at my plate. Suddenly, I wasn’t hungry anymore.
Am I just imagining it? I asked myself. Or were they really trying to keep me from calling Mom?
6
“Mine’s the bed by the window,” Jada said. “I like a lot of fresh air.”
“Okay,” I replied. I glanced out the window into the night. Strong wind gusts sent curtains of rain spattering against the glass.
I felt totally stuffed. Uncle Will had insisted that I have two slices of Aunt Janet’s chocolate cake!
Now I had a suitcase open on my twin bed and had started to unpack.
Jada stood across the bed from me, hands at her waist, shaking her head. “I can’t believe you brought two suitcases,” she said.
She is really being unpleasant, I thought. Trying to make me feel bad. “Well, I am staying a whole month,” I said. “And I didn’t know how cold it is here in April.”
Jada sighed. “I cleared out a dresser drawer for you.” She pulled open the bottom dresser drawer. Then she walked over to the closet and tugged open the door. “The closet is pretty full. But I guess you can squeeze some stuff in.”
I stared into the closet. It was jammed from wall to wall with Jada’s clothes. Not a spare inch.
And one measly dresser drawer?
“Uh…I guess I’ll keep some of my stuff in a suitcase,” I muttered.
Jada didn’t reply. She sat down at her desk and punched a number into the phone. “Hey, Stan. What’s up?”
She and Stan discussed Cindy for a while. Then they started talking about some teachers at school.
While she talked, I pulled out clothes I thought I’d need right away and jammed them into the dresser drawer.
“Jada?” Aunt Janet called from downstairs. “Are you helping Selena unpack?”
Jada lowered the phone from her ear. “Yes, I am!” she shouted back. “We’re doing great!” Then she went back to talking to Stan.
I pulled a straight, plaid skirt out from the suitcase. I held it up and tried to smooth some of the wrinkles out.
Jada clicked off the phone. She turned around in her desk chair and started to laugh.
“What’s so funny?” I asked.
“Wow. I had that same skirt in third grade!” she sneered.
I held it up in front of me. “Do you think it’s too young?”
“For you?” Jada replied. “No.”
I wanted to wipe the sick grin off her face.
Why was she being so horrible to me?
I’m going to be here a whole month, I thought, suddenly feeling very worried. I’m going to be sharing this tiny bedroom with her.
I really want to get along. I really want her to like me.
“I…I hope you and I can finally get to know one another,” I stammered.
Jada ignored me. She didn’t answer. She squatted in front of her bookcase and started to search for something. A minute later, she crossed the room to me, carrying a stack of comic books.
“Are you into these?” she asked.
My mouth dropped open. I couldn’t hide my shock. “You read comic books?”
She nodded. “Yeah. I love them.”
I lowered my eyes to them. “What kind do you read? Graphic novels?”
“No way.” She pushed the stack of comics into my chest. “Here. Check them out.”
I took the pile from her and flipped through them. They were all comics about female superheroes. Silver Katt, Marla Mutant, Fox Woman, and one called Super Model, about a beautiful young woman who uses her fabulous good looks to hypnotize bad guys.
They looked kind of babyish to me. But I muttered, “Interesting.”
Jada snickered. “I don’t tell too many people I read comics. Girls aren’t supposed to read them, right?”
“It’s a little weird,” I replied.
She sighed. “But wouldn’t it be cool if superheroes really existed?”
I stared at her. Why does she keep talking about superheroes? I wondered.
I finished unpacking. I had to leave most of my clothes in the suitcases. Then I shoved the suitcases under the bed.
I suddenly felt exhausted. I guess from the long bus ride.
I said good night to my aunt and uncle. Jada said she was tired too. A few minutes later, the two of us were lying silently in our twin beds. I stared up at the darkness, listening to the unfamiliar noises of the house.
Before long, I fell into a deep, dreamless sleep.
I awoke sometime later. I glanced at the clock radio on the bed table. Three-fifteen in the morning.
I turned onto my other side—and blinked in surprise when I glimpsed Jada’s bed.
Empty.
Her bed was empty.
7
The next morning—my first day at Jada’s school—I couldn’t decide what to wear. Should I wear jeans and my new blue sweater? Or my leather skirt with a vest or something?
I was still staring at the skirt and my sweater when Jada came out of the bathroom, drying her hair with a big bath towel. “It’s all yours,” she said. “Sorry I steamed it up a little.”
“Where did you go last night?” I blurted out.
She narrowed her blue eyes at me. “Excuse me?”
“I woke up and you were gone,” I said.
She scowled. “Are you spying on me? I went downstairs for a glass of water. Is that a big deal?”
She was gone a lot longer than that, I told myself.
Jada pulled off the towel and shook out her hair. “Oh, wow. I almost forgot. Today is Spirit Day.”
“It’s what?” I asked.
“Spirit Day. It’s like a big pep rally in the gym first thing this morning. You know. For our basketball team—the Golden Bears.”
“But isn’t basketball season over?” I asked.
Jada nodded. “But we always have Spirit Day to honor the team. We went to the state tournament this year.” She moved past me to the closet. “You
have to wear green and gold. Everyone wears green and gold today.”
I blinked. “Green and gold? Well…” I thought hard about the clothes I brought. “I have a pair of green corduroy slacks.”
“Great,” Jada said, reaching onto the closet shelf to pull down a yellow sweater. “I’m wearing this sweater with a green corduroy skirt. You know what? I have a green vest you could wear.”
I gazed at her long, skinny body. “Think it would fit me?”
“Of course,” she replied. “If you keep it open. Do you have a yellow top you can wear under it?”
“I think so,” I said.
A few minutes later, I waved good-bye to Aunt Janet and followed Jada out the door.
It was a blustery, gray day. The trees swayed and creaked in the wind. I zipped my down coat up to my chin and shoved my hands into the pockets.
Jada’s school—Elmwood Middle School—was two blocks away. Jada walked quickly, taking long strides. I had to jog to keep up with her.
She had a strange smile on her face. And once, I caught her giggling about something. “What’s so funny?” I asked.
She shrugged. “Just thinking about something.”
We were a little late. Most kids had already gone into the school.
It was a low redbrick building that stretched for nearly a block. I could see a football field with bleachers on the right. In front, the flag whipped and slapped against itself in the blowing wind.
I was happy to step inside the building. Even though we’d walked only two blocks, my face was burning from the cold.
I suddenly thought about Mom. I wanted to call her before breakfast. But she had been working all night. I decided not to wake her up.
The yellow-tiled halls were nearly empty. I could hear voices ringing out in the gym down the hall. A boy ran past and yelled to Jada, “You’re late. Better hurry.”
“Let me take your coat, since you don’t have a locker,” Jada said, reaching for it. “The gym is right down there.” She pointed in the direction of the voices. “I’ll put your coat in my locker and meet you there.”
I handed her my coat, and she took off. “Save me a seat!” she called.