Page 34 of School Spirits
“So,” Romy asked as we stepped into the parking lot, “other than getting ditched by Jerk-Face Adam, how was your first Official Mary Evans High Event?”
I looked back at the school, and even though I couldn’t be certain, I thought I saw a flash of blue light.
“Eventful.”
CHAPTER 16
Romy’s mom drove a minivan, one of those fancy ones with the doors that open on their own and TV screens in the back of every seat. As we clambered into the back, I stepped on one doll, a handful of crackers, and a pile of Legos.
“My siblings are beasts, sorry,” Romy said, flopping into her seat.
“They’re also four,” her mom informed me, catching my eyes in the rearview mirror. Her hair was a few shades darker than mine and pulled up in a haphazard ponytail. A large spot that looked like it might have been grape juice stained her T-shirt from the collar to the middle of her chest.
I noticed the booster seats and looked over at Romy. “You have three siblings?”
“Triplets,” she said with a nod. “Three boys. Adorable and evil in equal measure.”
“Romy,” her mom admonished, and Romy leaned forward, holding on to the back of the seat in front of her. “Mom, I love them, you know I do. But even you have to admit they are five parts cute to five parts holy terror.”
I could hear her mom sigh as she glanced down at the dark purple blob on her shirt. “All right, you may not be entirely wrong.”
Settling back in her seat, Romy fished a sippy cup lid out from behind her back and tossed it to the floor. “At least I had nine years as an only child. My parents adopted me when I was two,” she told me. “I was eleven when the triplets were born, and nothing in my life has ever been quiet again.” But even as she said it, there was a kind of softness in her smile, and it twisted something in my chest.
A sensation that only got worse when Romy’s mom asked, “What about you, Izzy? Do you have any brothers or sisters?”
“No,” I told her around the sudden lump in my throat. “Just me and my mom.” What else could I say? “My sister disappeared” was too bizarre and opened the door to too many questions. “My sister died” wasn’t true. Or at least I hoped it wasn’t. So this was the easiest answer I could give, no matter how much it sucked to say it.
“Your house must be super quiet, then,” Romy said. “Now I know where I’m going the next time I need to escape.” Her grin was bright.
“Sure,” I said, even as I tried to imagine Romy in my house. I’d never had company before. Would Torin behave? Maybe if I talked to him beforehand…
“We may need to grab ice cream before taking Izzy home,” Romy informed her mom. “She had a rough night.”
I jerked my head in Romy’s direction. I hadn’t told her about seeing Mary’s ghost, so what did she—
“Some jerk boy stood her up.”
“I didn’t get stood up,” I said quickly, but Romy waved her hand.
“Okay, so technically you told him to get bent, but that in no way negates the need for ice cream.”
“I think I’m good,” I told her, but I was smiling.
“Are you sure?” Romy’s mom asked. “Because I’ve taught my daughter well. When boys are jerks, only ice cream will suffice. Or shopping, maybe.”
“Ooh!” Romy sat up in her seat. “Yes, shopping. That’s what Izzy needs. I mean, not right now, obviously, but sometime in the very near future. No offense,” she added, “but while I appreciate this whole goth thing you have going, you could seriously use some color.”
Seeing as how tonight Romy was wearing a sweater such a bright shade of yellow that it practically glowed in the dark, I was a little nervous about what her idea of “color” might mean. But hadn’t I just been worrying that my normal Brannick wardrobe wasn’t going to hack it at Mary Evans High?
“Okay,” I said slowly. “I could…maybe get behind a shopping trip.”
“Excellent!” Romy said. “Next week. Mom, can you take us? On Thursday?”
“I can,” her mom agreed before catching my gaze in the rearview mirror. “Romy tells me you’ve joined her club. Are you into all things supernatural, too, Izzy?”
“You could say that,” I told her. “Mostly I was just excited the school had something as cool as a Paranormal Management Society.”
“Well, I’m glad you joined. Romy could use some girlfriends. Not that Anderson and Dex aren’t nice boys; it’s just that it’s so hard for Romy to find girls who share her interests.”
