fattening as regular ice cream. It still goes straight to your hips."
"Don't worry , Erika, we are totally not having sherbet in the punch this year. I am putting my foot down on that one." Shana cast her vote on the sherbet issue.
I tried very hard not to think about all the pints of chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream that Kristen and I had polished off on multiple sleepovers. It had practically been a requirement for one. Nor did I think about the fact that I very much liked having sherbet in punch, and always made an extra effort to skim a piece of it when dishing up my beverage.
It didn't matter anyway, because there was no way in hell I was going to accept a position as "honorary" prom committee member. Or any other position, for that matter. Prom planning is against my religion would have to work. It was all I could think of.
"So." Shana was talking again. "Like Erika said, we don't care what you do. But Principal Meeker does, and he's promised us first dibs on the senior trip tickets if you join. So guess what? You're going to join. The first meeting will be tomorrow in the auditorium at nine a.m."
"Don't be late, loser," Erika said, with a vicious push to my left shoulder that sent me stumbling back into my locker door.
They both laughed and turned to leave as I rubbed my stinging arm with one hand.
My brain was still trying to form a coherent, sane sentence that involved me turning them down flat, yet all that came out was, "Ow." I looked down at my book bag, and then back in the general direction toward where they'd disappeared. "But-"
Only my locker door heard me, and it cared about as much as they did.
"Harsh," said a voice behind me, and I turned to see Ben coming my way.
I groaned inwardly. Is this guy stalking me or something? First he was at Kristen's funeral, then her house, and now here?
He stopped next to the locker beside mine. The empty one.
"Was this Kristen's locker?" he asked, staring at it like he could see through metal.
"Yeah," I said, momentarily distracted from my arm pain.
"It must be hard not seeing her here every day. I still haven't gotten used to it."
"Me either," I blurted out.
He just looked at me then. His big brown eyes were… sad. Like he really missed her.
The bell rang once, prompting us both into action. He took a step back and turned to move down the hall. "Don't let those bitches get to you, Abbey," he called out as he headed to his next class.
"O… kay?" I said awkwardly as I tightened my grip on my book bag. Then I shook my head. Was I wearing some kind of perfume that attracted weirdness? Today was turning out to be a very weird day.
I walked home as quickly as I could after school, all thoughts of the day's strangeness forgotten. Some new scent combinations had miraculously popped into my brain for Kristen's perfume, and I was eager to work on them.
Mom was using her laptop at the kitchen table when I got in. I grabbed an orange and headed up to my room to get busy. Two hours later, after several rounds of mixing, measuring, sniffing, and note taking, I had come up with a couple of new scents that I was pretty happy with. But I still needed a second opinion. Gathering up several tester vials, I headed back down to the kitchen.
"Mom!" I yelled, halfway down the stairs. "Are you in the kitchen?"
"Yes, I am," came her distracted reply.
I jumped down the last couple of steps and bounced into the room. "Will you smell a couple of these testers for me? I need a second nose."
"Yeah, sure." She pushed her laptop to the side. "I could use a break from all this Hollow Ball planning anyway."
"Sniff each one, and then tell me what you think," I instructed as I lined up the vials in front of her. "I've smelled them all so many times that the scents are running together on me."
She reached for the first one. "Okay. I'll give it my best shot. Has, um, anyone talked to you yet about the prom committee?"
I almost dropped the last vial I held. "How do you know about
"Don't worry , Erika, we are totally not having sherbet in the punch this year. I am putting my foot down on that one." Shana cast her vote on the sherbet issue.
I tried very hard not to think about all the pints of chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream that Kristen and I had polished off on multiple sleepovers. It had practically been a requirement for one. Nor did I think about the fact that I very much liked having sherbet in punch, and always made an extra effort to skim a piece of it when dishing up my beverage.
It didn't matter anyway, because there was no way in hell I was going to accept a position as "honorary" prom committee member. Or any other position, for that matter. Prom planning is against my religion would have to work. It was all I could think of.
"So." Shana was talking again. "Like Erika said, we don't care what you do. But Principal Meeker does, and he's promised us first dibs on the senior trip tickets if you join. So guess what? You're going to join. The first meeting will be tomorrow in the auditorium at nine a.m."
"Don't be late, loser," Erika said, with a vicious push to my left shoulder that sent me stumbling back into my locker door.
They both laughed and turned to leave as I rubbed my stinging arm with one hand.
My brain was still trying to form a coherent, sane sentence that involved me turning them down flat, yet all that came out was, "Ow." I looked down at my book bag, and then back in the general direction toward where they'd disappeared. "But-"
Only my locker door heard me, and it cared about as much as they did.
"Harsh," said a voice behind me, and I turned to see Ben coming my way.
I groaned inwardly. Is this guy stalking me or something? First he was at Kristen's funeral, then her house, and now here?
He stopped next to the locker beside mine. The empty one.
"Was this Kristen's locker?" he asked, staring at it like he could see through metal.
"Yeah," I said, momentarily distracted from my arm pain.
"It must be hard not seeing her here every day. I still haven't gotten used to it."
"Me either," I blurted out.
He just looked at me then. His big brown eyes were… sad. Like he really missed her.
The bell rang once, prompting us both into action. He took a step back and turned to move down the hall. "Don't let those bitches get to you, Abbey," he called out as he headed to his next class.
"O… kay?" I said awkwardly as I tightened my grip on my book bag. Then I shook my head. Was I wearing some kind of perfume that attracted weirdness? Today was turning out to be a very weird day.
I walked home as quickly as I could after school, all thoughts of the day's strangeness forgotten. Some new scent combinations had miraculously popped into my brain for Kristen's perfume, and I was eager to work on them.
Mom was using her laptop at the kitchen table when I got in. I grabbed an orange and headed up to my room to get busy. Two hours later, after several rounds of mixing, measuring, sniffing, and note taking, I had come up with a couple of new scents that I was pretty happy with. But I still needed a second opinion. Gathering up several tester vials, I headed back down to the kitchen.
"Mom!" I yelled, halfway down the stairs. "Are you in the kitchen?"
"Yes, I am," came her distracted reply.
I jumped down the last couple of steps and bounced into the room. "Will you smell a couple of these testers for me? I need a second nose."
"Yeah, sure." She pushed her laptop to the side. "I could use a break from all this Hollow Ball planning anyway."
"Sniff each one, and then tell me what you think," I instructed as I lined up the vials in front of her. "I've smelled them all so many times that the scents are running together on me."
She reached for the first one. "Okay. I'll give it my best shot. Has, um, anyone talked to you yet about the prom committee?"
I almost dropped the last vial I held. "How do you know about
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