BeSwitched, Paranormal Romance by Molly Snow

his car. “I thought you were different than before, Cathy! I wasn’t going to follow through with this, but all you are is a tease!” He turned the key and the ignition started.
    “Wait!” Surla knew she had no other way home. “Don’t le ave! Wait!” But it was too late. Craig sped, like usual, leaving only a cloud of dust.
    “Now what can I do? ” She felt short of breath. The first thing she had to do was reach the beach. She was at least thankful she hadn’t stepped back any further.
    Slowly, she walked back toward shore, but not before heavy drops were hitting her face. It began raining, like she thought it would, and her body shivered. The drops fell harder and harder, stinging her skin. Her hair matted to her face and neck. When Surla noticed all that was left of her clothes were Cathy’s shoes, she started to cry. Craig was even more rotten than she thought.
    “Poor Cathy,” she cried. “I-I shouldn’t h-have been so stupid!” She wiped her face with her forearm, even though the tears blended with the rain.
     
    After the football game ended, Todd and Chrissy met up at the refreshment stand as agreed.
    “Did I hear you correctly?” He took off his helmet and brushed a hand through his hair.
    “Yes. Cathy is stuck miles away from here at a lake with no way home.” Just then the rain started to pour. “Oh no, what should we do?”
    “Did you drive here?”
    “No. I just live a couple of blocks away.”
    “Okay, good. How about you ride along with me, while we look for this place ? My cell is in the car in case we need to call someone for help.”
    The rain made Chrissy’s mascara run. “Okay, sounds good. Let’s hurry.”
    Surla hiked through the woods with underwear and shoes as her only covering. Her arms were folded tightly as she consistently trembled. Cathy’s once sparkling blue eyes now looked vacant like a zombie. Surla had stopped crying; sadness was replaced by anger.
    It seemed as if she had been trudging through mud for miles before she came upon a phone. It was in a booth of an empty parking lot. Cathy had taught Surla every trick there was about phones the day Craig asked for her phone number.
    Her fingers were jittery as she started dialing a collect call, but hung up before finishing. “If I call her mom to pick me up in the middle of nowhere in my underwear because my date abandoned me, that would make her not trust Cathy’s wisdom.” She could dial 911, but even to have an officer see her tricked like that felt too humiliating. Surla contemplated a long time before she thought of someone who she could trust and confide in to help.
     
    It was extremely dark out and the rain made it worse as it slammed against Todd’s windshield. “Craig is a jerk. I could’ve told Cathy he was bad news.” He gripped the steering wheel like it was Craig’s neck.
    Chrissy nodded as she helped read road signs. They were headed to Lake Sequoia. “I tried to warn her also. I knew Tiffany was capable of doing something like this. I feel really stupid. I remember when Cathy asked me why I was friends with Tiffany.”
    “What did you tell her?”
    Chrissy laughed at the foolish comment that was going to come out of her mouth. “I told her because I played Barbie with her when I was just four. I’ve put up with her for a long time.”
    “People change,” was his response.
    “Yeah, I know. Like Cathy. She made an incredible change.”
    “For the better.” A smile crept on Todd’s face. “The truth is , though, I always thought Cathy was pretty and nice, but when she came to school a couple weeks ago looking, you know, so different, all I could think was, Wow! She also talks a lot more.”
    “That’s cute, Todd.” Chrissy leaned her head on the door’s cold window. They were nearing Lake Sequoia. The speedometer got higher in anticipation, when suddenly Todd’s cell phone rang. Chrissy’s nerves jumped.
    “Hello?” Todd answered.
    “Todd?” he heard the faint voice