Fashion Frenzy (17 page)

Katani heard a woman next to her whisper, “I must get that for my Buffy. She would look divine…”

Katani was positively tickled.
Oh boy. Life does not get better than this,
she thought.
At least not when you’re twelve…

The rest of the show went by in a blur for both Maeve and Katani. An hour and a half later, the last designer had shown off his last outfit, and the announcer thanked everyone for coming and reminded them of how they could order all the wonderful fashions they had seen that day.

When Maeve and Katani finally managed to squeeze their way backstage, Michelle was standing by the entrance waiting for them. She looked ten times less frazzled and ten times more excited than she had before. She grabbed both of them at once and cried, “Maeve and Katani, I am so proud of you! You two stole the show!”

“I never had more fun in my whole life!” Maeve gasped.

“Me too,” Katani agreed. “I’m ready to move to New York right now! Michelle, did you know there are people who already want to buy the outfit I helped Dina put together?”

“I’m not surprised,” Michelle said. “I’ve always known you had style, Katani, but the truth is, I didn’t know until today how really talented you are. If you can save a major designer’s first collection with a big scarf and a handful of safety pins, I can’t even imagine what you’ll be able to do when you have a collection of your own.”

Katani’s eyes glistened. “I can’t wait for that day!”

Michelle laughed. “Well, I’m sure you’ll find plenty to keep you busy until then. I think this calls for a celebration. Right now. At Serendipity.”

The girls looked puzzled. “What’s that?”

Michelle stared at them like they each had two heads. “You’ve never heard of Serendipity—the famous café on
the Upper East Side?” Michelle asked. The girls looked at each other, shrugged, and shook their heads. “Well you are in for a treat! Give me about twenty minutes to clean up, and then I’m going to buy you the best frozen hot chocolate you’ve ever tasted!”

Katani and Maeve exchanged glances. “Better than Montoya’s, you think?” Maeve said in a low tone to Katani.

“I doubt it,” Katani answered, “but don’t tell Michelle. Let’s just pretend it’s amazing no matter what.”

And because they’d both had a rather ridiculous day filled with too many highs and too many lows, Katani and Maeve started to giggle. Pretty soon they were laughing hysterically, leaning on each other for support—right in the middle of the biggest fashion show in New York.

I
t was getting late. Isabel had finished her sketch and tucked it neatly in her sketchbook more than twenty minutes ago.

“We really should go…,” warned Charlotte.

“Okay, let me check and see if Danny the glue boy is still out there.”

“Ave—that’s the kind of name that could haunt Danny for the rest of his middle school life,” Charlotte said sharply.

“Sorry, but geesh, could that guy get a life?” Avery replied. Charlotte shook her head. That comment was so Avery.

Isabel looked up with a start. “What’s that noise?” She heard what sounded like heavy footsteps coming right toward the storage room. “Is it Danny?”

“Not sure.” Avery bent to peer through the keyhole. “Oh no!” she said breathlessly. “He’s coming this way. Hide!”

Charlotte and Isabel ducked behind a display case. Avery crouched under a table. For a moment none of them breathed.

They waited for Danny’s voice to ask them if they were okay. Instead, they heard nothing but the sound of heavy footsteps clumping
into
the room. There was a loud grunt, as the overhead lights snapped off. Then—SLAM.

“Was that the door?” Charlotte whispered. The three sat in silence to the worst sound of all: a key scraping in the lock. The footsteps receded. In a moment everything was quiet again.

Finally, Avery spoke. “Hello? Anybody here?”

“Of course we’re here,” Isabel whispered back. “But now we’re locked in! What are we going to do?”

“It’ll be all right,” Charlotte said calmly. “Let’s start by turning the lights back on.”

She inched out of her hiding place behind the display case and began to move cautiously around the room, concentrating hard to remember where each object and piece of furniture was placed so she didn’t bump into anything. She groped her way to the light and flicked the switch. It didn’t do much.

“Can you turn on more lights, Char?” Avery asked urgently. “I still can’t see a thing!”

Charlotte tried, but shook her head. “There’s only one set of switches in here. The rest of the lights are probably on the museum timer. They must just turn off automatically.”

Isabel gulped. In the darkness she had no idea what kind of scary old things were around her. “I’m getting
really creeped out in here,” she said in a low voice.

Suddenly they heard a voice. It was so unexpected that all three girls jumped.

The voice was coming from a loudspeaker that was being broadcasted into the room. “Good afternoon. The Museum of Fine Arts will be closing in fifteen minutes. Please make your way to the museum lobby to pick up your coats and personal belongings before you leave. Thank you very much for visiting the Museum of Fine Arts today.”

“15 minutes?!” Charlotte exclaimed. “Should we yell for help? We could be in here all night!”

“No—don’t yell!” Isabel pleaded. “If Danny’s still outside the door, he’s going to hear us!”

“Izzy, we have to let someone know we’re here,” Avery insisted. “If it’s Danny, well, that’s too bad. I don’t want to be stuck here all night. If you want to hide from him, you can climb into a mummy case…just kidding.”

Charlotte started to giggle and then stopped. She gasped. Isabel crawled out from behind the case and asked, “What is it, Char?”

Charlotte nodded toward the wall. The mummy case that had been firmly closed when they came in was now cracked open.

All three girls froze.

Isabel began to breathe hard. “This is bad. This is very, very bad.”

Charlotte tried to stay calm. “Maybe it was open when we came in. We just thought it was closed.”

Isabel’s eyes grew wider. “Or maybe it opened by itself—by some evil force that lives inside.”

“Come on, Izzy,” Avery said, trying to be brave. “It’s a mummy case, not a magic lamp. I promise it’s not haunted.”

“HAUNTED? I just thought there was a force. I didn’t even think of
haunted
!” Isabel said, breathing harder and harder. Unable to stand still, she began to pace in a small circle around the table, careful to keep the table between her and the open mummy case. “Maybe this room is haunted—it’s been so full of dead people and their things for so long—maybe they really
do
come back to life—how does anyone know for sure?”

“Those are just movies, Isabel,” Charlotte said, trying to sound reassuring. “Nothing like that is going to happen here.”

“Who knows what happens when the museum closes?” Isabel cried, talking faster and faster. “When all the guards and tour guides and cleaning crews leave, who knows what happens?”

Isabel’s words were so full of fear that Avery and Charlotte were getting freaked out too. “Maybe Isabel’s right,” Charlotte said timidly. “I mean, when everybody goes home—who knows?”

“That’s silly,” Avery scoffed. But her heart was pounding harder than it had when she’d played a full hour of soccer without stopping.

For a minute the room was silent except for the heavy breathing of all three girls, who were getting more frightened by the minute.

Suddenly, the amulet Isabel had been sketching fell off the table with a
crash
.

That did it.

Isabel, Charlotte, and Avery rushed to the door of the storage room and pounded on it as hard as they could. “HELP! Somebody! LET US OUT!” they screamed over and over at the top of their lungs.

W
hat if we don’t get out tonight?” Isabel gasped, trying to find enough breath to yell again. “Ms. Rodriguez is going to be so mad!”

“So is Mrs. Fields…,” Charlotte added. The girls looked at one another.

“Okay, we have to yell louder. One more time—” Isabel inhaled deeply, ready to shriek again.

“Shh! Hold on!” Avery said. She pressed her ear against the door.

There were footsteps—lots of footsteps. It sounded like they were headed right toward them!

“Okay, now!” Avery commanded. They began yelling again.

“Help! We’re in here…we’re in the storage room! Somebody! We’re locked in!”

Suddenly there was a banging on the door and a yell
from the other side. “Calm down, kids! We hear you! Just give us a second to get in there.”

The lock began to tremble and then turned. Light hit their faces as the storage room door was finally pulled open!

Isabel was so anxious to get away from the open mummy case that she threw herself against the door just as the security guards opened it. The door flew open and sent Isabel, stunned, flying headlong into the hallway.

Luckily, on the way to the marble floor, someone caught her fall with a startled “Oof!” and steadied Isabel on her feet.

“Sorry,” she gasped. “But I had to get away from those mummies!”

She looked up gratefully into the face of her rescuer.

Oh,
no
. It was Danny. Isabel didn’t remember Danny being this tall.

“Are you okay, Isabel?” Danny asked.

“Yes. I am fine, thank you,” Isabel said with a tight smile. She nodded at Danny and took a step back to where Avery and Charlotte were standing, trying their best to keep straight faces. Oh just my luck, Isabel thought to herself. But at least Danny is alive and
not some thing
that came back from the dead.

The girls smiled gratefully at the two guards who had unlocked the door. “Thank you so much!” Isabel said.

Charlotte nodded. “Yeah! But how did you know we were here?” she asked.

“It’s this young man you should be thanking,” one of the guards said, patting Danny on the shoulder. “If it wasn’t for him, you girls might have been stuck there all
night. Good thing he happened to be walking by the ladies’ room, and heard you yelling. He alerted the museum staff right away.”

“That’s funny,” Avery said. “What were you doing by the ladies’ room, Danny? There isn’t even any art in this hall. Boy, I guess we did luck out!”

Danny turned beet red. Isabel had to stifle a laugh.

“Oh, no!” Charlotte nudged her friends. They looked up to see Ms. Weston charging down the hall. Following behind her was not only the museum docent, but half the kids on their field trip, several chaperones…and Ms. Rodriguez!

Anna and Joline were huddled together giggling. “This is
too
funny,” they heard Anna whisper to Joline.

Ms. Rodriguez looked more upset than they’d ever seen her. “We’ve been looking everywhere for you girls!” she said. “I have been worried sick!” Ms. R clasped her chest. Her eyes were full of disappointment.

“We didn’t mean to get locked in,” Avery mumbled. “We were just trying to—”

“Enough,” Ms. Rodriguez said. She stared at her students, lingering on Anna and Joline, who suddenly got very quiet. “Avery, Charlotte, Isabel—we’ll discuss this
in private
. Follow me. Ms. Weston, why don’t you come along as well? We’ll meet the rest of you at the bus.” No matter how upset Ms. Rodriguez was, she would never create a scene about something like this in front of the whole class.

Isabel felt especially guilty as they made their way down the museum corridor away from the rest of the
students. All she wanted was to get away from Danny without hurting his feelings. The problem was he just wouldn’t take the hint. Isabel felt like a fool for running away from Danny all afternoon. And things had escalated and escalated. Maybe if she’d let Avery and Charlotte yell when they wanted to, right after they first got locked in, they could have been rescued without Danny’s help.

Ms. Weston, who was walking next to Ms. Rodriguez, looked back at Isabel. “This isn’t like you, Isabel. Or you two, either,” she said to a red-faced Charlotte and Avery. “I think there’s more to this, Ms. Rodriguez. We ought to hear the whole story before we come to any major conclusions.”

“I’d like to think that you girls would know better,” Ms. Rodriguez added.

Charlotte, Avery, and Isabel glanced at one another. Ms. Rodriguez looked serious but not cross, and was going to hear the girls’ side of the story before she made any decisions.

Ms. Rodriguez gestured for everyone to stop as soon as she found a quiet corner. “All right, girls. What happened?”

“It’s all my fault, Ms. Rodriguez,” Isabel blurted. “Avery and Charlotte were only trying to help.”

Isabel told the two teachers how Danny followed her around all over the museum and bothered her whenever she tried to sketch or enjoy the artwork on her own. “We didn’t
mean
to hide in the storage room, but we didn’t know how else to lose him. I know it was wrong,” Isabel admitted. “I’m really sorry.”

“I’m sorry too,” said Charlotte.

“Me too,” added Avery.

“How come you didn’t just tell Danny you needed your space?” asked Ms. Weston.

Isabel shrugged and said in a soft voice, “I tried to let him know, but he just didn’t take the hint. I guess I should have said something stronger but I didn’t want to hurt his feelings.”

“Hmm…” Ms. Weston looked at Ms. Rodriguez. “There really isn’t an easy way to deal with that type of thing.”

“No, I suppose we haven’t covered that,” Ms. Rodriguez agreed. She too was thinking deeply. “You know, Isabel, if anyone is ever bothering you, even if it doesn’t seem like that big of a deal, it is very important for you to let him know that you need your space. If you are afraid of hurting his feelings just say, ‘I don’t want to be rude, but I want to be left alone right now.’ Usually that’s all it takes. If it doesn’t work, please come and talk to a chaperone, like Ms. Weston or myself. That’s what we’re here for. Besides, it’s much better than hiding out in a storage room.” She smiled.

“Danny didn’t mean to do anything wrong, but I should have been more clear I guess,” Isabel said. “I’m sorry we ran off and hid like that, Ms. Rodriguez. That was a big mistake.”

“Ms. R, I don’t think Danny is the type of kid to take a hint.” Avery leaned in conspiratorially to Ms. Rodriguez. “Danny is a real talker, Ms. R, and he just loves to show off how much he knows.”

“That may be true,” Ms. R agreed. “But I think it’s
always a better choice than running off and hiding, right?”

“If a mummy is chasing you…” Avery didn’t have time to even finish her sentence. Ms. R’s expression meant the discussion was over.

“Would you like me to have a talk with Danny?” Ms. Weston asked Isabel.

“Umm…” Isabel hesitated.

“I’ll tell you what,” Ms. Weston began. “Why don’t I have a little chat with him after school about what the signs are that someone wants to be left alone? As long as you just give him a friendly word now and then, I think everything will be fine.”

“Not
too
friendly!” Avery whispered to Charlotte.

Ms. Rodriguez tried to be stern again. “So is this the last time you girls will ever run off on a class trip?”

“The LAST,” Avery promised.

“Definitely,” Charlotte agreed.

“
Never again
,” Isabel stressed.

“All right then, girls. Charlotte, I’m confident that your time with the exhibits is going to provide some great material for you to write about in
The Sentinel
.”

Charlotte began to smile. “I hope so,” she said.

“And
I’m sure
that we will be seeing lovely artwork from you, Isabel?”

“Totally!” Isabel assured her, thinking of her sketches from the storage room.

“Well, then I’m glad that you got something out of it. But don’t—and I mean don’t”—Ms. R said with a twinkle in her eye—“let it happen again!”

Ms. R looked at her watch. “Okay, let’s go, kids. We’re already running twenty minutes late.”

As soon as they exited the museum and were settled on the bus with the rest of the group, Ms. R signaled the driver to start, and the big yellow bus began rattling toward Brookline.

The three girls huddled together in their seat. “What a day!” Charlotte said. “Do you think Maeve and Katani had any adventures in New York City?”

“Compared to us? Hah! Impossible,” Avery declared. “Wait’ll they hear about this! They’re going to be extremely sorry they missed ‘The Case of the Mummy Who Came Back from the Dead.’”

“I’m not so sure,” Isabel said with a grin. “I would have been okay with missing being stalked by Danny AND by mummies all in one day!”

“What Danny needs,” Charlotte said thoughtfully, “is someone else to have a crush on, other than Isabel. You know, someone who can appreciate his…”—she coughed—“his finer qualities.” Her eyes gleamed.

Betsy Fitzgerald, who was sitting in the bench behind them, was bent earnestly over a huge coffee-table-sized book about Egypt in her lap. Even on the bus, she wasn’t missing a chance to study. “Hmm…” Avery tapped her chin. “Does the word ‘soul-mate’ ring a bell?”

Both Charlotte and Isabel, following her gaze, covered their mouths as they burst out laughing.