Stake That by Mari Mancusi Page A

“I’m so going to soak you!” she cries in an ex-tra loud voice.
    “Not if I soak you first!”
    For the record, this was Sunny’s plan. I personally didn’t think anyone would buy that two sixteen-year-old girls would run around the house playing with water guns. Except, I guess, crazy Aunt Edna, who bought them for us. But she also bought us sweater sets in girls’ size 6X, so I’m not sure she’s aware that we’ve graduated from kindergarten yet.
    The main floor of our house is all connected, each room leading into the next. So we split up. Sunny goes through the living room and I go through the kitchen, all the while yelling threats back and forth.
    “Girls? What are you doing—?”
    But suddenly Mom knows exactly what we’re doing, though, of course, not what noble reason we have for doing it. We’re in the dining room, one on each side of Vamp Nerd, spraying each other with water Generated by ABC Amber LIT Conv erter, http://www.processtext.com/abclit.html
    and “inadvertently” spraying him in the process.
    He starts screaming like a little girl, putting his hands over his head. Sunny and I stop squirting.
    “Argh! I’m soaked!” he cries.
    Mom stares at him, then at us. I’ve never seen her look so upset. She looks like she doesn’t know whether to cry or scream. “David! Are you okay?” she asks before turning to us. “Girls! What is going on here?” she demands. “What the hell do you think you’re doing?”
    “Uh, sorry, Mom. We were just playing around.” ‘Cause, um, sixteen-year-old girls always play with water guns at the dinner table. She’s so not going to buy this.
    David rises from his seat, shaking the water off. We stare at him, waiting to see what will happen. Will his skin start burning off his body ‘cause of the holy water? Will he burst into flames?
    I watch as red blotches start appearing on the guy’s neck, spreading upward to his face. I knew it! The water burned him. He really is a vampire. I resist the urge to give Sunny a high five. The two of us rock. Mom is saved. She will so be thanking us later for this.
    “Oh, David, I’m so sorry,” Mom says. She grabs a hand-ful of napkins and runs around the table to dab at his soaked clothes. I wonder if it wasn’t overkill. Those Super Soakers re-ally put out a good deal of H20.”Idon’t know what’s gotten into them.” She shoots Sunny and me death glares. “How about an apology, girls?”
    “Actually, I’m not feeling very well,” David says to my mom. “I, uh, think I should go.”
    “What’s wrong with your face, David?” Sunny demands, not sounding all that apologetic. “Did the water burn?”
    David reaches up to touch his face. His eyes widen.”Ithink I may be breaking out in hives!” he cries.
    “Well, holy water can do that,” I say, having no idea if that’s true or not. He ignores me. “Was there garlic in that tofu?”
    Uh-oh.
    “No. Definitely not!” Mom says, looking like she’s going to cry. “David, you’re really red. Maybe we should get you to a hospital.”
    “Ican drive myself,” he says grimly.
    “I really don’t—” Mom sighs. She gets the hint. “Okay. If you’re sure …” The speed by which David heads for the door makes it clear that he’s pretty sure. He wants out of here. Not that I blame him. First garlic, then crosses, followed by holy water. He knows the stake can’t be far behind. Adios, vampiro.
    “Good-bye. I’ll, uh, call you.” He doesn’t sound all that sincere. Generated by ABC Amber LIT Conv erter, http://www.processtext.com/abclit.html
    “Bye, David. I really am sorry.”
    But David has already left the building.
    We win.
    Mom sinks into her seat and puts her head in her hands. We wait for her to yell. To scream. But she doesn’t. She just starts to cry.
    Oh, great.
    “Sorry, Mom.” What else can I say? I can’t explain why we did what we did. Or that it’s for her own good.
    She looks up at me, her eyes red and her face blotchy.