That's What's Up! by Paula Chase

Upper revelry begin.
    She opened her phone and tapped off a message to Sara:
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    here! Watchu doin
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    Then to Lizzie:
    here! How wuz da test
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    Then Michael:
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    baby boy wat up?!
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    Finally to Brian:
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    miss ya already
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    Mina danced, wiggling in her seat to the music from the truck’s radio as she waited for signs of life from home.
    The music went to a whisper as her mom said, “Our room probablyisn’t ready. So how about we hit the shops?”
    â€œSounds good,” Mina said, one eye on the phone. “I wouldn’t be mad if we ate first though.”
    Her father laughed. “And I wouldn’t be mad if we ate, then you two left me at the hotel.” He took his eyes off the road for a second, pleading first silently with his wife, then openly. “If two hours of chauffeuring you women doesn’t earn me a pass from shopping, I don’t know what will.”
    Mariah rubbed the back of his head, kindly. “But then who would carry our bags?”
    She and Mina laughed as Jackson steered the truck into the far right lane and slowed to a crawl. The doors unlocked with a heavy thwump as he pretended to kick them out.
    â€œOkay, okay,” Mariah laughed, “you get a pass.”
    Mina chuckled at her parents teasing before turning her full attentionto her phone. She kept up with life back at school and Sara’s adventures visiting her grandparents, through messages that lit up her phone every few seconds.
    The world of DRB High School was same stuff, different day. But, Sara’s exact message, Jess iz pissy & my life sux rt now, made her laugh out loud.
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    Funny, because hours later the sour Jess that Sara had griped about in no less than twenty-five text messages, was replaced by a remarkably chilled one. Mina wasn’t sure if it was the ocean air or the truce making Jess bearable and even fun. As she hung out with Jess and Sara in the hallway of their hotel, she didn’t care.
    Their laughter echoed down the empty hall and for the second time that night Mina reminded herself 1) Sara was the real reason Mina bothered to put up with Jess, and 2) despite Mina’s initial skepticism,Jess was taking the truce to heart. Both reasons were why the three of them were in the hallway of the hotel, putting the finishing touches on Mina’s door.
    Technically, only Mina and Sara were decorating the door with miscellaneous, hand-crafted Blue and Gold paraphernalia. Jessica sat on the floor cross-legged, her back against the door of the room across from Mina’s, making fun of Mina’s bad drawing and Sara’s inabilityto tape anything straight. The Blue Devil heads, the blue megaphonewith Mina’s name on it in gold glitter, and the poster, Blue Devils Chicks Rock!, all slanted exactly the same way to the left, as if the hotel itself was on an angle. The girls burst out laughing each time Sara added a new piece. Even Mina’s mother’s warning to “keep it down” hadn’t killed their giggling.
    Each time, Sara thought she’d finally gotten it right.
    Each time, Mina and Jessica’s new fit of sniggling announced she’d failed.
    With the last sign in hand, Sara approached the door, determined. She thrust the sign forward for a practice run.
    Mina stood next to Jessica, watching. They sniggered under their breath as Sara stepped back, eyed the door, moved forward again, stepped back, eyed, moved forward.
    â€œThat’s gonna be the new dance,” Mina said. Making up her own tune she sang, “Step back, eye the door, move forward. Step back, eye the door, move forward.”
    Jess joined her. They added a hand clap to their simple ditty.
    Sara waved them off.“I’ve got it this time,” she declared, grabbing the tape from the floor. She advanced on the door one last time, held the poster with her knee and tore off a few pieces of tape before dropping the tape dispenser. She worked