Page 14 of Jinxed

‘Two days ago—’

We both start at the same time.

The rejection must have been a mistake all along. I can hardly believe it.

For a moment, there are no words I canfind to describe how I’m feeling. Then...

‘I’m in, Z. I’m in.’ Tears shine in my eyes.

She steps forward, and gives me a hug.

But then her logical brain takes over and she steps back, holding me by the shoulders. ‘Wait. I thought you hadn’t leashed your baku yet? And it says here they have you registered with a level 3?’

My heart sinks. She knows as well as I do that I bought a level 1beetle. Nothing like a level 3. And she’s right, I haven’t leashed it yet. Zora scrunches up her nose, as if she’s trying to hold up the weight of her glasses while she stares down at my phone. She’s realizing – as I am – thatthisemail is actually the mistake. A practical joke. It’s just the kind of thing Carter would do – probably in retaliation for yesterday.

Then, her eyes open wide. ‘Ohmy gosh – maybe they mean they’re sending you a level 3 baku because you need financial aid! It’s a good thing you didn’t leash that beetle after all!’

Now she hugs me properly.

I squeeze her back, but my stomach churns with confusion. Iknowthat’s not how it works at Profectus. They would never just send over a random baku. They would have given me grant money to go out and buy my own.

‘Look,there’s an attachment,’ she says. Before I can stop her, she opens it up.

APPLICANT NAME: LACEY JANE CHU

APPLICANT NUMBER: 651

BAKU: level 3 cat baku ‘JINX’ (unique ID J1NX89)

STATUS: INCOMING PROFECTUS STUDENT 2067

Everything about the form looks perfectly legitimate – and hard to fake. The applicant number in particular – I remember it from when I sent in my application. There is noway that Carter would have been able to guess the correct one.

The level 3 cat baku statement is what has me chewing my lower lip, however. So many questions buzz into my brain at once, I feel like I’m being attacked by hornets. Yet one thought dominates over all the rest: Could it be referring to the broken baku I found yesterday?

It seems impossible, and yet... if it’s true... I can’tlet anyone know the baku isn’t really mine.

Not the Profectus Board. Not my mom. And not Zora.

‘You’re in.’ A grin blossoms on Zora’s face. ‘You’re in, Lacey! I knew the rejection was a mistake!’ She grabs my arm and we spin around, bouncing up and down like maniacs.

For a moment I let the confusion fade. I’m going to Profectus.I’M ACTUALLY GOING.

Finally I collapse against the wall, my cheeksstinging from how wide my grin is.

‘I can’t wait to see your new baku, by the way. I love the name – Jinx. I really want to meet him! Come on, let’s go back in and tell your mom.’ She extends her hand. And reality begins to sink in.

Including one very big question.

Who on earth is Jinx?

NEWS SPREADS FAST IN OUR BUILDING.

Mom had heard our happy screams and rushed out of the condo to find out what happened. She danced with joy alongside us, but then her face fell.

‘Oh honey, Ihad everything prepared for a proper celebration but then when your rejection came through I cancelled the order because I didn’t want to make you feel even worse,’ Mom said, after processing the news.

‘Oh... I don’t need any celebrations!’ I’d replied, shifting on my feet. My stomach was still swirling with confusion, and I needed to get down to the basement to make sure my suspicion aboutthe broken baku was true.

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