Fairy Tale (13 page)

In the cool early-October air, the drops soak clear through to my bones. The sprinkler is the kind that slowly moves around, spreading water as it goes, then returns fast, like a typewriter. I grab him and we walk in time with it, then race back to the beginning when it returns. I say, "Remember how we did this when we were kids?"

He stops and faces me, emotionless, his hair matted against his eyes, so that I can barely see them. It melts into his black eyes and stubble, so that his face is just one big mess of darkness and despair. "Your point?"

I keep running in a circle, like a two-year-old, hoping he'll catch the fever. "Just reminiscing."

He scowls. "I don't want to reminisce. I am free-eez-in-g." He whines the last word as if it had four syllables, with a big "guh" at the end.

"Okay, okay." I stop and collapse on the ground, running my Popsicle toes through the wet glass. I try to keep it a whisper, just in case, but my excitement gets to be too much for me. "Pip said there
is
a way to keep you here!"

He is silent. First, he looks up at the sky, and for once I can't tell what he's thinking. He gnaws his lip, then walks toward me, finally falling on his knees beside me. "Yeah?"

"Yes!" I say, grabbing him by the neck. "Pip is ninety-nine percent sure that it will work. And you and I will be together, just like we planned."

He looks into my eyes, and looks away, like he needs more reassuring. "But is it-"

''Yes. Totally safe." Well, nothing is totally safe. But it's close. "See? Everything is going to work out."

He doesn't speak for a long time. "It is? Did you envision it?"

I catch my breath, shocked that he would ask. He has never, ever wanted to know his future before. But maybe that was when my predictions involved who would win the next football game. This is more serious. This is his life. Our life. I'm quiet for a moment, knowing that the longer I pause, the less truthful I'll appear. Quickly, I force the words out, so that they tumble over one another. "Yes. And you know my visions are always right."

I'm still dwelling on the lie, feeling its bitter taste on my tongue and wondering if it will come back to haunt me later, when he says, "Why? Why would you want to be with me? I'm going to be a freak. Nothing can stop this."

"I've always thought you were a freak," I say, grinning down at him as he puts his head in my lap. In the moonlight, he's more beautiful than ever; his face looks cut from marble, his lips look smooth and kissable, and the bit of light brings out the speckles of brown in his normally black eyes. Breathing heavy, he lets the water hit his face, unmoving, like a statue. I stroke my hand through his wet hair, over his grizzled jawline, and lean over to give him a kiss. "And you're right about one thing. Nothing can stop this.''

I'M SITIING AT my desk, eating a Hot Pocket and trying to scrape a smear of tomato sauce off my homework, when my mother opens the door a crack. Without knocking, of course. I'm about to launch into my standard "Hello? Privacy!" rant, but she's already talking loud enough for the entire neighborhood to hear. "We received a call this morning from Mrs. Nelson. She wanted to thank me for the
sfogliatelle
and inform me that some young lady I might know was"-and she whispers this part, though even her whisper is louder than regular speech-"fornicating on her front lawn?"

"We weren't... I mean, seriously," I blubber, so mortified I can barely hold my pencil. "She's been watching too much late-night cable. I just had an urge to... play in the sprinklers."

As the excuse leaves my mouth, I am fully aware of how dumb it sounds.

"At one in the morning?"

I shrug. "Serves her right for watering her lawn in October. She needs to let it go."

She rolls her eyes. "She probably forgot to turn off the automatic setting. Mrs. Nelson is going through a very trying time, what with poor Gracie."

"Is Gracie any better?" I ask, grateful to sway the conversation away from our late-night improprieties. I mean, seriously, adults can so overreact.

"No. Mrs. Nelson told me it will be any day now/'

"Oh, that's horrible. Maybe your
sfogliatelle
will help bring a miracle," I say, though I truly doubt it. I'm just, being angelic in hopes of cleansing her of the mental image of her only child doing the nasty on the front lawn.

"Maybe," she says. She continues to stare at the ground, lost in thought.

"I have homework," I finally say, hoping to nudge her out the door. "Anything else?"

"Oh." She opens the door a little more, and I see Pip standing there. He's wearing another Gap outfit, and it's cute to see that he really has been making an effort to muss up his hair the way I taught him to.

"Good," I say, leaning over and pulling him into the room.

"I'll just leave you two alone," my mother says, beaming. And, get this, she actually closes the bedroom door behind her! Now, she's never had anything against Cam, but why is she so head-over -heels for Pip? Is it because Cam oozes sex, and Pip carries the Good Mothering Seal of Approval on his forehead?

I'm still contemplating this when I realize he's fidgeting. "Sit down. We have work to do."

He glances at my bed, which is the only open seat in my room, and then, bashful, Indian-squats on the rug.

I pull the paper off my desk and wave it in front of him. "Voila. I wrote everything out to make sure we're all clear."

"Does Cameron know about this?"

Last night, despite his protests, I'd managed to convince Cam that I would love him no matter what and that staying with me, no matter how he looked, was better than leaving. He agreed wholeheartedly that he didn't want to leave me, but his big concern was that I would drop him because of a few silly wings. As if I were that shallow. I nod and say, "But Dawn is always on his back, so he can't help us. It's up to us to save him."

Pip swallows. Then he swallows again. His face is turning red. Pip is not used to defying authority. Hell, he probably isn't used to defying
anyone.

"Don't be afraid. You said yourself-and I read from the paper-" 'A fairy must cross over to Otherworld of his own free will.' And he doesn't want to."

He opens his mouth, closes it, then opens it again, like a guppy gasping for air outside of its bowl. "They will be angry if he doesn't go."

"So What? We had nothing to do with his decision. It's totally up to him," I explain, watching his ears turn the color of lobsters. "And besides, what can they do?"

According to Pip, at a fairy's Becoming, the portal will open at midnight and will not close until a young life has crossed into Otherworld. But the fairy must go of their own free will. There have been stories of humans accidentally crossing into the portal before the fairy could make it across, leaving the poor fairy stranded in this world. So if, by some strange twist of fate, someone else takes Cam's place, he will be forced to stay here. With me. Forever!

I like the sound of that.

"They will be angry," he repeats. "I am not sure what they will do."

"What happened to the other fairies in the stories you spoke of? The ones who were stranded in this world?"

He says, "I do not know. They were never heard from again."

"Oh. Still, it's worth a try."

"But remember: somebody has to go in his place, or otherwise the portal will remain open and the balance between Otherworld and this world will be destroyed. There's a legend that says if the balance is ever upset, both worlds will be thrown into turmoil, consumed by fire for a thousand years."

I raise my eyebrows. "Seriously?"

He nods.

I imagine the guilt I'd feel knowing my stupid boyfriend-saving plan was the sole source of our world's global warming crisis. Leaning back in my chair, I say, "Okay, right, we can just substitute some other poor sucker."

Pip whispers, "It's important that they not find out about this. Dawn's only objective is to convince him to return to Otherworld, and I do not know how far she would go to remove the barriers in her way."

"You're talking about me."

"Like what? Turning me into a horse?"

I'm only half joking, but he nods like it's a serious possibility. I stamp out the feeling of nausea that's beginning in my stomach.

"Relax," I whisper, more to myself than to him. "By the time they realize that he doesn't want to go
,
it will be too late. I've told Cam to just play it cool, act like he's really into being a fairy, and then, at the last minute, he can pretend like he had a change of heart. And by then, Dawn won't have the time to do anything to convince him."

He nods, but I can tell he's still uneasy. Finally, he says, "We won't be able to protect the... the 'poor sucker' she takes with her, though."

"I know-," I say solemnly, thinking about how we could possibly make Sara Phillips, the way-too-peppy and beautiful captain of the cheerleaders, enter into the portal on his behalf. Promise a free pedicure? "She-I mean, whoever it is-will be our sacrifice."

He takes a deep breath and looks at the ground. "I think I may have failed to mention this. The person Dawn takes with her... it has to be someone who is also turning sixteen on October fifteenth."

I nearly fall out of my chair. "What?"

"Um, yes. Humans, too, can only cross into Otherworld on either their day of birth or their sixteenth birthday. No other time."

His eyes are wide, as if he's afraid of me. Me. So I quiet my voice and calmly say, "Why didn't you tell me this before?"

"I don't know. I..."

I think for a minute, about our entire high school class. Nope, out of everybody, it's only Cam and I who are October 15 birthdays. And it's not like I'm going to sacrifice my life on Earth just to keep Cam here; that would be defeating the purpose of this glorious plan to save true love. So what can I do? Advertise on MvSpace to see if I can get any poor soon-to-be-sweet-sixteens to come to our party? Take out an ad on Craigslist?

Hopeless.

"This is a major problem. I don't know anyone else who was born on the same day Cam and I were." I sigh.

"Yes,
you do." He gulps. Then he gulps again. "Me."

"I CAN DO it," he says, his voice unwavering.

For the first time, as he kneels in front of me, he looks rather strong and substantial, like a knight readying for battle. "I am not afraid. I've lived there before, and I can do it again."

I shake my head. Pip is a good guy, strange as he may be. He didn't deserve the cruelty of the fairies the first time, and he certainly doesn't deserve a second helping. "But you said that they treated humans badly there. They were mean to you."

He leans toward me, his eyes turning dark gray, then plucks at the carpet. "But do I really fit in here?"

It's true that he's a bit of an oddball. But in a good way. It's obvious he doesn't see himself, doesn't see that his differences make him interesting, not an outcast, like he was in Otherworld. A few days ago, I was laughing with the others about the new kid, but now I see that this "freak" is a faithful, good person. A person who doesn't deserve to be treated badly... by anyone. "You fit in among those that matter."

He picks at his shirt, "Just because of these new clothes?"

"You didn't need those. You were fine the way you were. I was just being superficial."

He leans back, and at that, moment I see a hint of the broad curve of his chest behind his Gap tee. There are thick muscles in his forearms that rival even Cam's, and I swear they weren't there before. When he says, "I look at it as doing my part, for true love," I almost can't remember whose love he's talking about.

When there's a knock on the door, I mumble a "yeah?" toward the hallway, taking for granted that it's my mother delivering some freshly made snacks.

The door opens, and instead, standing there with her hands on her hips is my worst nightmare. Dawn has shape-shifted into her model form again and is wearing a patchwork-quilt dress that she manages to make look runway chic instead of Holly Hobbie. She tosses a glare in Pip's direction, and immediately, he tenses and bows his head in respect.

I can't breathe. How long has she been out there? Did she hear?

"Oh, good," I say, putting on my bravest face and standing so that I'm at eye level withi her. "To what do we owe the pleasure?"

If she had heard anything, she isn't letting on. Instead, she smiles sweetly and points at Pip. "I need that human," she announces, as if he's a roll of toilet paper. "Cameron needs one to practice on."

I cross my arms over my chest. "To practice what, exactly?"

Pip doesn't seem to care.
"Yes,
right away," he says, scurrying to his feet.

I hold him back with my arm. "You're not going to turn him into anything, are you?"

She laughs. "If we do, we always turn him back."

I shake my head at her. I don't care what Cam thinks. She is so, so evil. Then, I say, "He'll be with you in a minute," and slam the door in her face.

When I turn to Pip, his ears are red again, as if his head might explode. "You shouldn't have..."

"She'll get over it" I say, waving the thought of her away with my hand. "I just wanted to ask you... What you said before... about true love... Do you really mean it?"

He nods.

I study his face. He's completely serious. "I don't know why you would make that sacrifice for me. Are you sure?"

He nods again, more firmly. "It's not a big sacrifice. I've lived there for sixteen years."

I don't know how he can think it, but I am glad he does. Because he's the key, my only hope of keeping Cam with me. I gave him some Gap clothes, and he's giving me this. Either he's a total sucker when it comes to making bargains, or there's something to it that I'm missing.