When Friendship Followed Me Home by Paul Griffin Page B

actually highly durable polyurethane. They make bowling balls out of this stuff. It’ll be here tomorrow.”
    â€œThat’s, like, great,” I said.
    â€œYes. Well, I’d like to bury her under it. Tess. Back here. I should have asked you first.”
    â€œAsked me what?”
    â€œIf you were okay with that. You know, burying her ashes.”
    â€œI never really thought about it,” I said. “I guess we have to put them somewhere. Are you allowed, though? Like isn’t there a law or something, that maybe she’s supposed to go into a, you know, cemetery?”
    â€œI don’t think so. I just feel like she’ll be closer to us this way.”
    â€œRight.”
    â€œYou don’t think so?”
    â€œNo, no, I do. It’s nice, your plan.”
    â€œGood then?”
    â€œGood, yeah.”
    â€œGreat.” She patted my back, and I could tell she was working hard not to lean away. “I can help you sort through those book boxes, if you want.”
    â€œI’ll finish up today.”
    â€œOh Ben, the dog looks like he’s going to pee in the rocks. No, dog. Shoo.
Shoo.
”
    â€¢Â â€¢Â â€¢
    Halley came over to help me go through my books. Jeanie was at work and more importantly Leo was in Manhattan to see his foot doctor. Chucky kept texting me to send him a picture of Halley. “I keep seeing the word
butt
in that text stream,” she said.
    â€œYou never told me why we’re going to call the story
The Magic Box,
” I said.
    â€œIt’s like this: Tess is gonna help Bruce and Helen, but
she
needs their help too. The planet she’s on? It’s called Mundum Nostrum, and it’s total war there. Tess is trying to get the Nostrumians to settle their differences by, hello, learning how to talk to each other again. See what I did there, working in the speech therapy?” She patted herself on the back. “This requires some serious magic, the kind Tess keeps in her totally gorgeous penthouse apartment back on Earth, in the top of the golden tower from Luna Park 1905, in this beautiful wooden box.”
    â€œSo what’s in the box?”
    â€œOnly the greatest treasure that has ever existed.”
    â€œAn antigravity belt that lets you fly? A wearable technology that lets you be invisible?”
    â€œYou’re such a
boy.
It’s
so
much more awesome thanthose.” She dropped a pile of books on top of the To Go pile.
    â€œSeriously, you’re making me get rid of my
X-Men: First Class
?”
    â€œLet somebody else enjoy it,” she said. “Hey? You nervous?”
    â€œAbout what?”
    â€œMonday.” She lit up that dingy basement with the biggest lopsided smile. Monday was our first Read to Rufus session with the little kids. “Flip, Flip, Flip, Flip, Flip!” She picked him up and spun around with him.
    â€œChamp, that you down there?” Leo said. He limped into the basement.
    â€œHi, I’m Halley.”
    â€œHi. Yeah, I thought that voice was a little high for Ben,” Leo said. He stared a little too long at her pink wig.
    â€œWell, I better get going,” she said. “Gotta get home to help my dad with a show.”
    â€œWhat kind of
show
?” Leo said
    â€œMagic act for a birthday party.”
    â€œAh,” Leo said.
    â€œVery nice to meet you,” she said. Her hand was tiny in his, but she gave a good shake.
    Flip and I walked her to the train. When we got back, Leo said, “Tess didn’t mind you hanging out with chicks like that?”
    â€œMom would have loved her,” I said. “Besides, like what?”
    â€œForget about the pink dye job for now, in my day girls didn’t cut their hair to look like boys. It’s like she’s trying to be in your face about it, you know what I mean?”
    â€œNo, I don’t.”
    â€œShe’s purposely shocking people. She’s drawing attention to herself.