Page 14 of How (Not) to Conjure a Boyfriend
“Yeah, she did, and uh, about that…” I start to whisper. I’m going to have to do a protection spell for myself tonight after this bit. “They didn’t get to have their Thanksgiving because they got called to the hospital. And when his mom texted me about it, I freaked out. How could I say no?”
“Uh… No. Or maybe no in Spanish, nada, or nein, or non. See? There’s a bunch of ways.” She eyes me down through my phone screen.
“Kaity,” I whine. Yeah, I should have said no, but I couldn’t.
“Ugh!” she growls. “Fine. Ditch me for your new fake boyfriend’s family. He’d beyourboyfriend, right? Only you’rehisenbyfriend? Like,ifit were real.”
“Yes.” I huff and roll my eyes. I’m doing that a lot tonight.
“Honestly.” Kaitlynn rolls her eyes back. “You’d be stupid if you didn’t try to make this work somehow, right?”
“Really?” I beam.
“Probably not, but maybe. Who gets to date their crush without being asked out? This is crazy. But this doesn’t mean you get to keep ditching me.”
I smile and put my free hand into view with only my pinky finger up.
“Pinky promise,” I tell her, and she does the same.
“Pinky promise.”
Once the screen goes blank, I fall back against my pillow and laugh for no reason at all. This is really happening. It’s not just a dream. At least, I don’t think it is. And so far, it’s a good dream with just a little dash of anxiety.
6
Lil Woozi—my car, because like Woozi, it’s a little thing—is squealing.Please don’t blow a gasket, whatever that is.The engine is whining so loudly, I can barely hear XG’s intense voices, and the volume is maxed out. I have the pedal to the floor just to keep him at fifty-five. After a quarter million miles, I think he’s on his last good days. Althoughgood daysmight be a bit too optimistic.
What doesn’t help is living in the literal mountains and Hayden’s family living even farther up them than I do. If someone had told me that it’d take forty minutes to get from my place to theirs, I might have reconsidered. That’s just shy of a full hour for my anxiety to wreak havoc on my stomach. My phone says it’s only another five minutes, but there’s no sign of a home yet. It’s all the same up here. Road, grass, trees, repeat. Nothing is close up here.
I tried to get Kaitlynn to come with me. Okay, I begged her, but she flat-out refused. Something about me needing to get to know my “boyfriend’s” parents by myself. That hasn’t stopped my head from waffling between scenarios. Maybe this is all some weird sort of awful/cool dream, or maybe it’s real somehow—but then the existential dread sets in full force—or maybe my potions the other night had something a little bit stronger in them than I realized.
Either way I nearly turned around ten minutes ago. I was so close to saying forget it, but instead I’m driving under endless barren trees and a dark and puffy sky. I relish every glimpse of the moon when its paper-thin sliver manages to get through. Its faint glow is a glint of reassurance that it’s going to be okay, eventhough the road looks never-ending and disappears into a black nothing beyond the reach of my headlights.
A minute later my headlights reflect against something up ahead. I blink as if that’ll help, and finally see a little hanging sign. It swings in the wind as I draw closer, my engine still fighting for air. This is why I don’t drive too late, if possible. I’d wake people up, plus all the lights have halos around them at night. I squint. The lettering goes from blurry to finely engraved silver lines that readMARCUS ESTATE.
“Estate?” What the hell? I knew Hayden wasn’t poor—he drives a nicenewblack truck—but I didn’t assume he wasestatewealthy. “Wow.”
I turn down the driveway. My tires clonk along the washed gray stone drive while a charcoal-gray barrier rises to my left, shielding my view of a drop-off. Ahead I catch lights, and then the shape of a house starts to form, but it’s not what I expect. My mind had conjured up one of those old money Southern homes with perfect symmetry, lots of ornately framed windows, most likely a chimney or two, maybe some columns, and either lots of brick or a lot of white paint.
That’s not at all what’s forming ahead though. It’s not quaint or old-fashioned. It’s modern AF. Black monolithic pillars jut into the air, framing large glass panes with sheer ivory curtains standing guard between wooden walls. Gray concrete barriers are erected around parts of the perimeter with outdoor lounge furniture under towering evergreen trees. There are no slopes or shingles. It’s built in hard lines, flat roofs, like a bunch of cubes laid one next to another, but it’s gorgeous. And the road adjacent to the house is filled with cars. It seems the others are all here already, so reluctantly I brake and my tires come to a mostly smooth stop.
“Wow.” I gawk at the house. It’s pristine and ethereal, surrounded by towering trees under a sky that’s threatening rain. Like a fortress, but one that still feels…I don’t know. Calming? I lean toward the rearview mirror and check my makeup. It’s simple. I had to give my face a little color to cover up all the pale, and my winged black eyeliner is actually looking really good.
“What am I doing? This is so stupid.” My heart is pounding. I shouldn’t be here. This is wrong. I don’t belong with Hayden’s family insidethathouse. I just don’t.
I close my eyes and shift Lil Woozi into reverse. The engine shudders but follows my lead.Just go.I turn to look over my shoulder, and I’m so close to pressing the accelerator when headlights flash around the bend and settle in behind me. “Shit.”
Now I’m stuck. I face forward and fall back against my seat.What do I do now?
“Kenzie!”
I jump. They’re already standing at my window, bent down looking at me. It’s Eliza. That was quick and stealthy! I face my window and smile. It’s only partially fake. I pull the handle and pop my door open. The window motor has been out a few months and I don’t exactly have window repair money sitting around.
“Hi.” I lean out from under the doorframe to meet her eyes.
“Trying to escape already?” she asks.
“Huh?” I play confused. “What?”
