Some Kind of Magic

I spent almost all of the rest of the barbeque with Dylan either sitting on the edge of the pool dipping my toes into the water, or hanging out under the canopy. I never got bored of him, because it was impossible to talk to Dylan and not find him so incredibly interesting. Robbie and Elsie were helping out Elsie’s parents with the barbeque and distributing the food for everyone that wanted something, Emma and Armando were talking on the pool chairs—and she really seemed to be enjoying his company—and Broderick, well, I had no idea where he was. After Armando showed up, he disappeared with one of Elsie’s cousins and we hadn’t seen him since.

“He’s probably hooking up,” Dylan said flatly when he noticed me looking around. I looked at him, my eyes wide. “Seriously. Broderick isn’t nearly as moralized as you may think. He’s very chaste.”

“I hope you’re kidding.”

He shook his head. “I mean, he’s still a . . . you know, but if it comes to a hot girl who he’s previously been with, then he’s powerless. It might just be to get his mind off Emma and Armando though.”

“Should we go look for him?” I asked.

Dylan looked over at me gravely. “Do you really want to?”

I thought it over, and then scowled. “Not particularly, no.”

He laughed. “He’ll come back eventually. I’m sure it’s not even that bad but the girl he walked off with was someone he’d had an on-off relationship with for all of grade ten. We thought he was nuts; even Elsie did, and the girl’s her cousin. Annalisse is really meddlesome and unstable. She started a fight with Emma because Emma called Broderick to ask him if he wanted to go to a movie when he was already busy with her. As if Emma would have known. She’s not psychic.”

“Was it a big fight?”

He smiled. “Why do you think they broke up?” He put his hands behind him on the concrete and leaned back with a sigh. “Anyway, Broderick will turn up. Worst case scenario, they’re kissing but it’s more likely that she just wants to talk to him. She’s probably asking him if he’s thought about her or if he wants to get together,” he said and rolled his eyes.

“Would Broderick say yes?”

Dylan shrugged. “If he was weak and stupid enough to say yes the first twenty billion times, then I’m sure this time won’t be any different,” he replied. “There’s actually so much hidden drama in our group. Broderick’s in love with Emma but of course, she’ll never know, and then there’s Elsie and Robbie. Only God knows what’s going on there.”

“You don’t?” I asked and he shook his head. I felt out of the loop, because I knew about Dylan, and a bit about Broderick, but Emma was still a mystery and if there was something I was missing with Robbie and Elsie, I really wanted to find out. Who better to ask than Robbie’s own brother? Twins told each other everything, or at least the ones that were close did. That was what I had been told.

“All I know is that they vowed not to let jealousy get in the way if one of them got involved in a serious relationship. That and they don’t plan on being together, even though they were practically made to be,” Dylan explained, and gave a nod in front of him. “Look at them.” I followed his eyes across the yard to where Robbie and Elsie stood, her leaning against the brick wall with her arms crossed and him beside her, his hand against the wall and smiles on both of their faces. They could have been flirting or just talking; I really didn’t know but they looked to be enjoying themselves. “It would make so much sense for them to just date already. Everyone’s rooting for them, except Mackenzie of course.”

“Yeah,” I said, uncrossing my legs. “I’ll be right back, okay? I have to go get my phone. My dad wanted me to call him hours ago but I completely forgot. I was supposed to let him know when I got here.”

Dylan nodded and began a conversation with Elsie’s father, who sat down across from us right when I was standing up. I stepped inside the house and went to the front door, then began digging through my bag to find my phone. I had two missed calls, one from my mom and one from my dad and just when I was about to listen to their voicemails, I heard voices mumbling from outside the front door. Curiosity got the best of me, and also slight recognition because it sounded familiar and I opened the door. Broderick was the first thing I saw.

“Broderick! Gosh, we wondered where you went and we thought that you—oh.” I stopped myself when the door was fully opened and noticed him sitting with Annalisse. She had her hand on top of his and was sitting very close. Broderick looked like a deer in headlights and quickly jumped up.

“Isabelle!”

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to interrupt,” I said with an awkward chuckle. “I’ll just leave you guys alone.”

“Who are you?” Annalisse asked, standing up again and purposely stepping closer to Broderick, taking his arm.

“Just a friend,” I said, feeling a little thrown off. “I’m sorry, I’ll go.”

“Wait,” Broderick said when I turned around and went back inside. I looked at him but didn’t stop until I made it to the kitchen, where it was a safe distance away from Annalisse to talk to him without her jumping to conclusions that I was going to “steal him from her”. If she was anything like Dylan described, we were all in for one hell of a fuss trying to get Broderick to hang out with us for however long they would be together.

“Are you dating her again?” I asked him, leaning against the counter and crossing my arms over my chest. Broderick opened his mouth to reply but then stopped and frowned.

“How do you know about her?” he asked and I shrugged.

“Word gets around,” I said. “So what’s going on? Did you two hook up?”

Broderick shook his head. “No, but . . . well, she kissed me. I told her I’d have to think about it.”

“What’s there to think about? Either you like her or you don’t,” I said, putting my arms out. “I know it’s not my place since I haven’t been around that long but really, it’s common knowledge. Don’t date someone if you think they’re just going to be a worthy replacement.” I headed for the door.

“Replacement?” Broderick demanded, grabbing my arm. “You think this has to do with Emma, don’t you?”

When I looked at his face, he was clearly angry. “Well does it?” I asked.

“No,” he snapped, and glared at me. “And you’re right; it’s not your place. You don’t know what’s happened before you arrived. You just got here so don’t try to judge me. If you want to be my friend, be supportive. Don’t act like you know everything.” My eyes widened. I was shocked with Broderick’s tone because I had never seen him get angry unless he was just kidding. And I never expected him to use it with me.

“Broderick—” I started to say but he turned around, lifted a hand in the air to shut me up and walked out the front door, slamming it behind him. It made me jump, and immediately my stomach filled with regret. I was just trying to help, but apparently my words didn’t come out right and I ended up saying the wrong thing. I needed to work on that. I went, very slowly, out to the back yard again and sat down beside Dylan. “Well, they weren’t hooking up,” I said and bit my lip.

He looked at me curiously and sat up straighter. “Really?”

“Yeah,” I said. “But I’m thinking what happened might be a lot worse.”



“So Em,” Robbie said as we—the twins, Emma and myself—walked to the twins’ house together around nine o’clock that night. I had gotten my dress dried, as well as my hair before we left and managed to change back into what I wore when I got there, so at least I wasn’t forced to walk around the neighbourhood in nothing but the bathing suit. “You and Armando seemed to be getting pretty comfortable together. Is there something going on?” Robbie continued, wiggling his eyebrows.

Emma looked up at him, confused. “What are you talking about?”

He raised his hands. “I’m just saying . . .”

She frowned in return. “Did it look like there was?”

“Just a bit,” Dylan chimed. “You hardly talked to us once he showed up. Actually, now that I think about it you didn’t leave his side once. Do you like him or something?”

She just shrugged. “He’s all right.”

“Broderick didn’t seem to appreciate him all that much,” Robbie said, shoving his hands in his pockets. I stiffened at the mention of Broderick’s name. He hadn’t talked to me the rest of the night since our encounter in the kitchen. I had known immediately that he was upset with me, but at least returning my goodbye would have been nice. He didn’t even look in my direction, or if he had, it was when I wasn’t looking and he probably would have been glaring. Dylan noticed my discomfort and gave me a nudge in the hip. I looked up at him.

“Are you okay?” he mouthed and I nodded. I would probably tell him about it later on the phone, but now wasn’t the time.

“He didn’t?” Emma asked to Robbie’s question, squaring her shoulders and suddenly paying more attention. Robbie shook his head, and Emma cleared her throat. “Well Armando’s a good friend, but definitely not someone I’d consider dating.”

“Really? Why not?” Dylan asked.

“You three don’t know?” she asked, raising her eyebrows. We all shook her head and she laughed. “Guys . . . Armando’s gay.”

“He’s gay?!” Robbie exploded and Emma leapt on him, covering his mouth with her hand. I didn’t blame her. After all, we were just down the street from Elsie’s house and that probably wasn’t the sort of thing Armando wanted to have publicized. We were all clearly shocked, but Robbie was the only one willing to scream out just how shocked. When Emma was sure he wouldn’t be loud again she uncovered his mouth. “He’s gay?” he whispered this time.

She nodded. “Yes, so now you know why I wouldn’t date him,” she chuckled. “I noticed when he was staring at Dylan’s ass, and then said something about how he had nice legs. That’s not exactly the kind of guy a straight girl is looking for, if you know what I mean.”

“That must have been embarrassing,” I said, elbowing Dylan in the side. His face went red.

“It was more humorous than humiliating,” she replied, rubbing the side of her arm. “But Broderick didn’t like him?”

“Never really has,” Robbie replied. “He’s got a girlfriend now, did you hear?” Emma shook her head as her answer. “What do you think about that?”

She shrugged. “I don’t know. I don’t think I really care,” she responded calmly, staring ahead. Dylan and I looked at each other.

“Do you know who he’s dating?” he asked. “I mean, you remember Annalisse, don’t you?”

“Who’s Annalisse—?” She stopped and gasped super loud. Her eyes were wide and her jaw was dropped. “No.”

Dylan nodded. “Yeah, they’re back together. Again.” He rolled his eyes secretively.

“Is he nuts? Why the hell would he want to go out with her again? Especially after the first hundred times were a disaster!” she exclaimed, throwing her arms up in the air.

Robbie snickered. “Don’t care, huh?” he said in her ear and made his way up the driveway into his house. Emma stopped where she was, opening and closing her mouth repeatedly like a blowfish. Dylan looked back at her and winked, then followed his brother inside. He and Emma had the same first period class, so the only reason we had walked with them to their house was so he could give her his half of the assignment they were sharing, and she was going to type it up. Blade was our ride home and he had called me moments before we left to ask me if I needed to be picked up, and I told him the plan. Dylan came back outside, holding a notebook which he handed off to Emma.

“If you need more detail, email me and I’ll clear my schedule for research,” he said, smiling. “That is, if you even have time to type it up. I know you usually hang out with Broderick after school.”

“Shut up!” Emma yelled at him, lunging to hit him on the arm but he jumped back and laughed.

“I’m kidding. Have a good night, you guys,” he said, lifting a hand to us. “It was good to see you, Isabelle.”

I looked at him and nodded. “You too. And thanks for letting me hang out with you tonight!”

“No problem.” He walked back up the front yard and stuffed his hands in his pockets, then stepped into his house again and closed the door. Right on time, Blade pulled into the driveway and waved at us, so I jumped in the back seat and let Emma ride shotgun with Blade.

“Hey, did you guys have a good time?” Blade asked.

“Excellent,” I replied.

“Same here. Thanks for the drive, Blade,” Emma smiled.

“Any time.” Blade pulled out of the driveway once we were strapped in and started driving. Emma didn’t really say anything for most of the ride and neither did I, but I was thinking of ways to apologize to Broderick for what I said to him. She seemed to be pondering something as well but I didn’t know what it was until she turned around in her seat and tapped me on the knee. I looked up from staring out the window.

“Was Broderick really upset that I spent all that time with Armando instead of him?” she asked.

I shrugged. Upset enough to go back to his emotional ex-girlfriend, if that was any sort of hint. I didn’t want to say that though, because that would be like admitting his feelings to her and that wasn’t my place. “Well not really upset but—”

“No, not like that. Like, he was actually upset,” she corrected me.

“Oh, well then, yeah. I think he felt a little ignored,” I replied. When her face fell, I immediately regretted opening my mouth and felt the need to reassure her that it wasn’t her fault. After all, how would she have known? “But don’t think too much of it, Em. You were having fun with Armando. It’s not a crime. I’m sure Broderick’s just happy that you had a good time.”

“Yeah, maybe,” she said, still looking a little unsure. She turned back around in her seat, becoming invisible and I bit my lip.

Lately, I just couldn’t seem to say the right thing.



Broderick had apparently come down with a mysterious illness and he wasn’t at school on Monday or Tuesday. I was worried that what I had said to him had had such an effect on him that he was actually creating an excuse like that to avoid seeing me but when I went to visit him after school on Monday, his dad answered the door and told me he had gone with his mother to the clinic. They suspected he had strep throat because he had been complaining of a sore throat for a while and when his father—a dentist—took a look at his tonsils, they were swollen and puffy, nearly completely blocking his airway. For an infinitesimal moment, I thought that maybe kissing Annalisse was what did that to him, but there was no way he could have gotten it that quickly, and he'd have had to kiss her days before Elsie's barbeque if he had been worried about his scratchy throat for as long as his dad said. Then I felt even worse for even considering such a thing. Emma gave him a call Monday night and asked him how he was feeling, but he could barely speak because it hurt him too much. Their conversation lasted all of fourty-six seconds before he told her he would talk to her when he came back to school.

On Tuesday after school, the twins, Elsie, Emma and I all decided to go out for dinner. We wanted to invite Broderick, but when Dylan went to visit him with chicken noodle soup, Broderick looked horrible and he didn’t even bother, already assuming what the answer would be. But the fact that Dylan would do such a thing for him showed what a good friend he was. As October was approaching, the nights were getting considerably cooler. I had planned on wearing just a t-shirt but instead I had to opt for a light sweater. I regretted it immediately because while all three of us girls were waiting outside of the restaurant for the twins to arrive, I was shivering. It had gone from slightly cool to cold in a matter of minutes, and it was getting on my nerves how unpredictable the weather was.

“They’re not answering their phones.” When Elsie said this, she was referring to Robbie and Dylan. She began to pace back and forth and continuously check her own phone for the time. “Where are they? They’re fifteen minutes late. If Robbie ignores me one more time, I will roundhouse kick him in the ass.” I didn’t know how I hadn’t noticed Elsie’s threats until Dylan pointed it out, but maybe it was because she was already so unique that it didn’t particularly stand out.

Emma laughed. “Relax, I’m sure they’ll be here soon.”

“Sorry about the delay,” we heard Robbie say from behind Elsie as he and his brother emerged around the corner. “Our dad got held up at work and he was our ride so we had to wait for him.”

“Why the hell didn’t you answer your phones?” Elsie demanded.

Robbie paused, put his hands in his pockets and frowned. “Shit, I forgot mine. Dylan, do you have yours?” Dylan only shook his head. “We’ll have to borrow one of yours to call our dad when we’re done, is that okay?” Robbie asked.

“I have no minutes left,” Elsie replied..

“Me neither,” Emma said.

“You can use mine,” I said, lifting a finger. “Can we just go inside please? I’m freezing.”

“Yeah.” Robbie held the door open for everyone and we quickly shuffled into the restaurant. When we were seated by the woman who stood at the front, everyone launched into a discussion on the latest Mackenzie gossip. Apparently she had fooled around with a boy in the art room after hours just so he would help her with her homework. “Poor little nerd,” I specifically heard Elsie say. “He has no idea what he’s getting himself into.” But I really wasn’t paying much attention to the conversation. I couldn’t stop thinking about Broderick, and how horrible of a friend I must have seemed to be on Sunday. He was right to snap at me. If I was in his place, I would have done that and so much worse. If anything, he went easy on me. It just surprised me, because Broderick was such a composed, high-standard kind of guy who didn’t seem to have a weak side; I wouldn’t have guessed women would be his kryptonite, especially ones that were apparently controlling or emotionally unbalanced. I had no right to say what I did and I should have been supportive. If he wanted to date her, he had every right to. And I had barely been in the group a month so what I said was uncalled for. I based what I said on the things Dylan had told me, and Broderick had never said directly that he had feelings for Emma that were anything more than what could only be considered as a platonic friendship. Broderick was the one that introduced me to everyone; he was my confidante and in a way, I had betrayed him. I really was a bad friend.

Emma kicked me under the table. “Are you okay, Iz? You don’t look so good,” she said.

I had my elbows on the table and my hands on my cheeks. I was staring at nothing in particular but my eyes’ direction was right at Robbie’s chest across the table from me. He raised his eyebrows and I lifted my head, putting my arms down.

“Hm? Oh, yeah. I’m fine,” I said.

“Thinking about your dad?” Elsie asked. “He’s going away in a week, isn’t he?”

That sounded like a good excuse. It was going to have to do for now. “Right. I’m also really dreading the concert on Friday.” That part was the truth. Since the opening concert for the school’s music programs was this Friday, time seemed to be speeding by and I felt like I hadn’t practiced enough. It was definitely getting to me.

“Don’t be nervous. You’ll do great,” Emma said, putting her hand on top of mine and giving me a reassuring smile. “You’re one of the best musicians in the entire band. You have nothing to worry about. And if Ms. Giry didn’t think you were good enough, she would have kicked you out by now. She wouldn’t have given you the solo part for the most complicated piece we have.”

“True,” Robbie said. “And you sound great when you do it.”

“Well, I probably won’t be free to hang out any day this week. I’ll be practicing in the music room non-stop,” I replied.

“You don’t need to, though. You’re doing awesome as it is. Plus, she’s barely had to critique you at all and if you’ve had her as your music teacher for three years straight, you kind of begin to understand that all she does is analyze and make snarky little comments. She enjoys it,” Robbie smiled. “Trust us, you’ll do fine.”

But something told me I wouldn’t.



Elsie’s father picked her up outside of the restaurant, but since he only had a very small car, we weren’t able to fit in because he also brought along Elsie’s younger sister and brother, who were shoved in the back seat. We wouldn’t have even stood a chance so we all just walked. It wasn’t too far of a distance from mine and Emma’s houses but the twins decided to make use of the nice night—even though it was cold but being “men”, they didn’t actually get cold—and walked with us. I had a feeling it was more about their ego than wanting to enjoy the fresh air.

“Hey Isabelle,” Robbie said, nudging me with his elbow. I looked up at him but he was staring at something, or someone, ahead of us. “Isn’t that that guy you saw downtown the other day?”

I turned my head and just like Robbie had said, Ryan was walking toward us. I grinned, relieved to see him. I could have had the worst day possible but even just the sight of him could cheer me up until I went to bed. “Ryan!” I called and he looked up from his phone. He smiled and lifted a hand.

“Hey,” he said once the four of us had stopped and he had reached us as well. “What’re you doing down here?”

“I went out for dinner with my friends,” I answered, nodding my head at them. Emma cleared her throat obviously, which made me feel stupid for forgetting to introduce them all to each other. “Right, uhm . . . guys, this is my friend Ryan. And Ryan, this is Emma, Robbie and Dylan.”

“Nice to meet you,” Ryan said, offering his hand. Dylan seemed hesitant to take it for some reason, and then he never did. Robbie, sensing Ryan’s discomfort at being rejected, jumped in and shook the hand extended to him.

“Hey, man. You too,” he said.

“Do you guys all go to the same school?” Ryan asked.

“Yeah, Westwood. Have you heard of it?”

“Wow, you all go there? That’s a pretty elite secondary school, isn’t it? I’ve been told good things about that place. Apparently it has some of the best courses offered in the country. You must be brilliant,” he said. I was impressed. Ryan maintained such a calm face while talking to my friends. I knew that sometimes, people tended to get ridiculously uncomfortable and nervous around large groups when they only knew one person in it. It could be nerve-racking. After all, I had been the exact same way when I met everyone I was hanging out with now. It was very surprising to see Ryan so relaxed.

“Where do you go to school?” Emma asked Ryan. He shifted his weight to the other foot and shoved his hands in his pockets.

“Uhm, I don’t, actually,” he said hesitantly. Emma looked curious, but gave him time to explain. “I’m homeschooled.”

“Oh, really? I was the same way,” she blurted, appearing pleased that she had met someone in the same situation. I was shocked though, because Emma hadn’t told me about it. Ryan smiled at her. “Yeah, from grade three to seven, my dad taught me everything.” She shrugged. “Social anxiety. I used to get really nervous around big groups of people and it made learning next to impossible for me.”

“Me too,” Ryan laughed. “So how do you know Isabelle?”

“Well, her brother is my step-sister’s husband so we met through family. We’ve been close ever since,” she replied and winked at me. Emma had a weird thing about her that was also very enviable because she could tell immediately if a boy was interested in me, and could also determine whether or not I had feelings for him. She was giving me that look, and I knew my cover was blown. “She’s one of the best friends I’ve ever had, and she made moving to Ontario really easy for me.” She looked back at Ryan and smiled. “She’s a great person.”

Ryan turned to me and grinned. “Yeah, I know.” My face went red. “So how about you guys? How did you meet her?”

“Oh, well we met when she transferred to our school in September,” Robbie answered. “She’s a pretty awesome girl; really funny too.”

“Do you work down here?” Dylan asked suddenly. This was the first time he had said anything to Ryan since his arrival.

“I do, actually. Down the street and up the hill,” Ryan replied, pointing his thumb over his shoulder. “I was stuck with a later shift so I’m just heading home now.” He looked at his watch. “I never noticed it was past nine already.”

“It is?” Emma looked at me, alarmed. “Crap, Iz. I’ve got to go now or my parents are going to kill me.”

“Oh, really? Okay, we’ll get going then,” I said, looking from her to Ryan. “Uhm . . . I’ll see you later?”

“Yeah, absolutely,” he nodded. “Again, it was nice to meet you guys.”

“You too.” Robbie stepped on his brother’s foot as Ryan began to pass us.

“Right. See you later,” Dylan blurted, and whispered “ow” to himself. I didn’t understand the sudden cold shoulder act that he had pulled, but obviously he had a reason for it and I wasn’t going to ask. I didn’t want to get myself involved in anything else that wasn’t my business. I had enough trouble with that already.

“I like him,” Emma said, quickening her pace on the sidewalk. We had to speed up to catch up with her. “He’s very much of a gentleman, and he’s handsome too. I mean, he’s not like, a burly handsome which you see in most guys. He’s a very refined handsome, almost delicate.”

“Hey,” Robbie growled. “There’s nothing wrong with burly guys.” Emma shot him a look and he smiled. “But yeah, I like him too. He’s nice, Iz. Are you two involved?”

“No. I mean, he’s not my boyfriend or anything but . . . well, no. We’re not involved,” I said, realizing I really had nothing else to say on the topic.

“What about you, Dylan?” Robbie asked. “What did you think of him?”

Dylan nodded. “He’s nice.”

“That’s it?”

He shrugged. “He’s a guy, Rob. I don’t have much else to say about him, except that he’s nice.”

Robbie lifted his hands in the air. “All right, just asking.”

“Can we move a bit faster, you guys?” Emma called from in front of us. “I have a curfew, even though all of you don’t.”

“I do too,” I said, looking at my watch. “Shit, it’s already past. How did I miss that?”

“Because you were drooling over Fancy Pants back there,” she joked.

I blushed. “I was not.”

“Talk later, move now,” Robbie said, putting his hands on my back and shoving me forward. Emma and I waved goodbye to the twins, who stopped at the nearest bus stop while we ran home. Emma lived further than I did, but it was really only up the road about ten minutes. Running though, it was about eight but with Emma’s speed and track-star legs, it was reduced to five depending on how fast she moved. I got home first and wished her luck on her trek up the hill, and she gave me the finger. I laughed and called out to her that I wanted her to phone me once she got home so I wasn’t worrying about whether or not she got home safely. She only nodded and sprinted away. I stepped inside and took off my shoes, and immediately upon hearing the front door close my mother bolted around the corner and asked me why I didn’t phone her to let her know where I was.

“I did,” I said, lifting my phone to show her my list previously-made calls. “Dad answered. Didn’t he tell you?”

“Sorry!” I heard my father yell from the kitchen. Followed by that was my brother’s quiet laughter from the living room. My mom rubbed her forehead.

“Next time, call me on my cell phone,” she said. “I was so worried about you.”

“I’m sorry.” I stepped forward and gave her a hug, but she was rigid with anger. “I’ll do that next time, I promise. I just thought dad had told you where I was.”

“Well, he didn’t. Don’t rely on your father so much,” she said. “I’m going to bed. Don’t stay up to late tonight.”

“I won’t.” I waved to her as she dragged herself tiredly up the stairs, and then I walked into the kitchen. My dad sat at the table looking over his paperwork and when he noticed me step into the room, he pushed his glasses up his nose and smiled at me.

“Hey, kiddo. Heading to bed soon?”

“Yeah. I just need a drink of water,” I said, still a little out of breath. “Emma and I ran all the way home from Brooklinn Drive. I’m really thirsty.” I opened the refrigerator and grabbed a bottle of water.

“Really. That far, huh?” he asked, returning to his papers.

“Mhm.” I took a long gulp and twisted the cap back in place. “What’re you working on?”

“I’m just going over a client’s file. Stop being so nosy,” he said, flipping a page. “You should get to bed. Big day tomorrow, right? You have an extended band practice to work on the pieces you’re performing at the concert. Do you need me to pick you up when you’re finished?”

I froze. “Shit, I forgot all about that.”

He laughed. “Call me when you’re done and I’ll get you.”

“It’s okay, Blade already said he would, but thanks anyway.” I gave him a hug from behind and headed for the door. “Good night, dad.”

“Good night, pumpkin.”

I spotted Blade next, sitting on the couch with Christabelle passed out against his shoulder and the blanket thrown messily over her right side. “How is she?” I asked him in a quiet voice.

He looked back at me and smiled. “Zonked. I should probably bring her up to her bed soon.”

“Pregnant women are heavy. Do you think you’ll need some help?”

He shook his head. “I’ve got it covered. You should get to bed, eh?” I nodded and kissed him on the cheek, which he returned at the same time. “Good night.” I went toward the staircase but just as I was about to put my foot down on the first stair, there was a very light knock on the front door. I frowned and glanced at Blade, wondering if he knew who it was. He was looking back at me and shrugged, then nodded for me to answer it. I did so hesitantly, because late-night visitors weren’t common in my household. At the same time, the phone rang and Blade—not wanting Christabelle to wake up—practically dove for it and picked it up after the first ring.

I opened the door and there stood Broderick, looking flushed and out of breath.

“Hey,” he said, his voice coming out fairly rough, hoarse. “Can we talk?”

My mouth opened and closed a few times, mostly from shock that he would show up at my doorstep, especially at this hour. “Uhm . . . yeah, of course. Come on in.”

“Thanks.” He stepped inside, shivering. “God, it’s freezing out there.” Well, at least I wasn’t alone for that. Blade looked back at me.

“That was Emma,” he whispered. “She wanted me to let you know that she’s home safe and sound, and that she’ll see you tomorrow at school.”

I nodded. “Thanks.” That was one thing off my list.

“Why are we whispering?” Broderick asked, leaning forward.

“The missus is asleep,” I said, pointing at Blade. “Come on. We can go to my bedroom.” I walked upstairs and Broderick followed. Right when we got to my door, my mother’s opened and I shoved Broderick into my bedroom, closing the door behind him.

“Who was that at the door?” she hissed, rubbing her eyes. My mother was cranky when she didn’t get to sleep when she wanted to. Although, she was cranky most of the time but these times were even worse.

“Someone selling something,” I lied.

“Did you tell them to go away?”

“Of course.”

“Good.” And the closed the door. I widened my eyes at how unbelievable it was that she actually bought that. Then I stepped into my room and closed the door again. Broderick looked at me like I was insane.

“What was that about?”

“No boys in the house,” I said and his mouth formed the shape of a perfect “O”. “So what’re you here for exactly?”

“Oh, right.” He sat down on the edge of my bed and rubbed his hands on his thighs. “I came to see you because . . . I wanted to apologize.” Now it was my turn to stare at him like he was the one who was off his nut. “You were right, about everything.”

“I beg your pardon?”

“Annalisse is a replacement,” he answered. My shock was what led me to come and sit down next to him on the bed. “As long as you promise not to repeat what I say to you to anyone, then I’ll be okay with admitting this stuff.”

“Of course, I promise,” I said, nodding frantically.

He sighed. “I do like Emma,” he said. I wanted to scream I knew it! at him but I kept my mouth shut. “But she’s my best friend, you know? She has been for years and I don’t to mess that up. I’m almost positive that she doesn’t feel that way for me so I can’t say anything. And I know the guys and Elsie already think I like her but since I haven’t told them so, they can’t be positive. I’m putting a lot of trust in you here in hopes that you won’t say anything to them, or Emma.”

“Oh gosh, of course not. I wouldn’t do that,” I said.

“Thank you. But I needed to say sorry to you before it was too late.” He stopped where he was, nearly choked on his words before he coughed and then groaned, putting a hand on his throat. “Oh God, this hurts.”

“Why did you come if you feel so bad?” I asked, putting my hand on his shoulder. “Do you want some water, or a throat lozenge? I can get you anything you want. I mean, your dad—”

“I know. He told me you came to see me yesterday,” he said and smiled. “I appreciated it. I’ll be out of school for the rest of the week though, unfortunately. Turns out I do have strep throat.”

“Is that why you’re wearing disposable gloves?” I asked, looking at his hands.

“That’s exactly why.”

“But you came to see me anyway.”

He nodded. “What I said . . . I was just angry. You’re so accurate with your guessing; it scared me and also frustrated me. I didn’t want you to be able to see through me that easily, because if you could there was a chance that anybody else could. You have every right to judge me. I’ve known you for a while now and you’re a really good friend of mine. I value your opinion,” he said.

“Broderick—”

“I know, I’m an idiot,” he said, putting his face in his hands. “Dating Annalisse again is a huge mistake.”

I didn’t know what to say. I knew Broderick had his reasons for getting back together with her but I still had no right to tell him what was smart and what was stupid. I wasn’t in his shoes and I never had been, so I didn’t know what was going through his head or what he was feeling in his heart. If this was some sort of immersion therapy that he was testing out to help him forget about his feelings for Emma, then maybe he had a good plan there, but it wasn’t guaranteed to be full-proof. After all, it was Annalisse.

“Do you like her?” I asked him.

He looked up. “I don’t know,” he said. “I just thought, you know, maybe it would be a good idea. She’s not a bad girlfriend.”

“But is she a good one?”

He chuckled. “Not particularly.”

“Then are you sure this is the best thing for you? Don’t do it because you don’t want to hurt Annalisse or because it’s what you think Emma would want if you told her your feelings for her. You should only be in a relationship with them if you actually want to be,” I said.

He smiled at me. “Since when did you become Ms. Psychologist?”

I laughed. “I’m not, I’m just saying.”

“Well, I’m going to try it out. She said she’s changed so hopefully she means it. And I—” Broderick suddenly stopped talking and stared past me, his eyes wide. “Oh God. Isabelle . . . don’t freak out, but there’s a man hovering in midair outside your window.”

“What?” I turned around and saw Ryan sitting in my tree again, waving at me. I grinned and ran over to the window, opening it so he could talk with us. Ryan sat forward and lifted a hand at Broderick.

“Hey there.”

Broderick looked at me, confused out of his mind. “What the—”

“Broderick, Ryan. Ryan, Broderick,” I said, pointing back and forth. “Broderick just dropped by to . . . deliver a message. Ryan comes here almost every night though.”

“Uhm . . . okay.” Broderick laughed awkwardly and stood up, walking over to the window to shake hands with Ryan. When he finally laid his eyes on him straight-on, something flashed across his face that looked to be recognition, but it quickly disappeared. Ryan’s eye twitched, or it could have been a wink but I couldn’t tell from my angle. There was something odd between the two of them but they weren’t saying anything, so I wasn’t going to either. “Nice to meet you,” Broderick said.

“You too. Can I ask what the gloves are for?” Ryan inquired.

“Oh, strep throat,” he replied. “Which reminds me, I should get going before I disease everyone. Just sharing air with me could get you both sick. I’ll try to make it to your concert on Thursday, Isabelle. Can you let the others know?”

“Of course,” I nodded. “Feel better, Brod. We’ll bring you strep-friendly treats through the week to help you out. Seriously, recover. We miss you."

He smiled. “Sounds good. See you later.” I started to walk toward him to help him get out of the house safely but he just lifted a hand. “I’ll be fine,” he said and stepped into the hall, closing the door behind him. I waited in silence until I heard the front door shut, and when I was sure that Broderick had left I turned back to Ryan.

“Concert?” he asked.

“Oh, yeah. Our school is hosting a recital-type thing for all of the music students and since I’m in band, I have to be there,” I explained.

“What do you play?”

“Violin.” I nodded to it in the corner of my room. “You can’t see it from where you are but it’s sitting on the stand over there.”

“I love the violin. It’s such a beautiful instrument,” he said. “How long have you been playing it?”

“Over seven years,” I responded.

“So you must be really talented.”

I shrugged. “I’m all right.”

“You’re being modest.”

“Honest,” I laughed. “Hey, uhm . . . would you like to come to the concert?”

“Really?”

“Yeah, I think you'd enjoy it."

"Oh, I don't know. I don't want to cause any trouble."

"How would you cause trouble? I want you there."

"You do?"

"Yes. Ryan Chaney, I would love for you to come to my concert on Friday night. I mean, I really only see you at nighttime when you sit outside my bedroom window so it would be nice to get to see you outside of that,” I replied. “And plus, you could meet my dad.”

“Not your mom?”

“I don’t think you’d want to.”

He smiled. “Well then, Isabelle Donahue, I would be honoured to go.”