Harsh Pink with Bonus Content (18 page)

“So is this all I need?” I ask her, hoping she’ll get my drift and play along. “Is it all paid for and everything?”

“Yeah,” she says lightly. “You have to pay for alterations up front.” She narrows her eyes at Kendra now. “It was pretty expensive too, but not nearly as bad as buying a whole new uniform.”

Kendra makes a
tsk-tsk
sound. “Such a pity that happened, Jocelyn. Next time I’m sure you’ll be more careful when you order something online.”

“Thanks for the helpful advice.” Jocelyn turns around and continues dressing. I can tell she’s furious, but I also know she’s trying to control herself since she realizes I am doing her a big favor.

“Want to walk to the parking lot together?” asks Kendra.

“Sure,” I say in a cheerful voice. Nothing like the tone I was using with Jocelyn.

Once we’re out of the locker room, Kendra begins to talk in a low voice. “I have just come up with the most delectable idea for a prank that we can play on Jocelyn tonight.” Then she giggles and tells me her devious plan for me to loosen up one of the seams on Jocelyn’s uniform so that she’ll be in serious need of more safety pins tonight.

“I can’t do that,” I tell her.

“Why not?” She looks seriously disappointed in me.

“Well, for one thing, I’m not even sure how to do it. I mean, I don’t know the first thing about sewing or unsewing or whatever it is you’re suggesting. Besides that, I’ll be visiting Nana for about an hour or so. Then when I get home I’ll barely have enough time to get ready for the game, drop off Jocelyn’s outfit at her house, and make it — ”

“No, no, you don’t drop off the outfit at her house. You call her and tell her you’re running late, just like you said you would be, and you tell her you’ll meet her at the school with it. In the stadium restroom. And you’ll have to get there right before the game starts. I’ll make sure Sally and Meredith are in there too, as a distraction you know.”

“Even so,” I say reluctantly, “I wouldn’t even know how to do that to her uniform.”

“No problem,” says Kendra suddenly. “You give me the alterations ticket and I’ll pick it up at the cleaners for you and do it myself. I’ll drop it by your house before the game, and then you can deliver the goods. Just make sure you call Jocelyn and tell her about running late and how you’ll need to meet her in the restroom in the stadium, since the girls’ locker room will be full of the other team’s players by then. You can do that, can’t you?” We’re standing by her car now, and her voice is getting a little impatient. Then she smiles. “Trust me, Reagan, this is going to be such a hoot. It’s something we’ll still be laughing about at our twentieth reunion.”

I’m still not too sure about this. “What exactly are you going to do to her uniform anyway?” I ask.

She shrugs. “Nothing that can’t be fixed. I promise. And if anything goes wrong with her uniform” — she holds up her right hand now, like she’s making a pledge — “I swear I will make it right and I will
give
Jocelyn
my
uniform.”

I consider her promise. I think I can trust her on this. And it would actually be kind of nice if Kendra did give Jocelyn her uniform, since I have serious doubts whether the altered elephant-sized uniform will even look right. “Okay,” I say, slapping her still raised hand in a high five. “It’s a deal.”

She throws her arms around me in a hug. “This is going to be so fun!”

“See you at my house before the game then?” “I’ll be there around six thirty. Okay?”

“Perfect.”

This is my third visit to Nana in the nursing home, but it is just as sad and depressing as the first time. Even so, I try to put on my happy face. I try to pretend like this is such a great place, and aren’t the nurses nice, and I’ll bet dinner is going to be delicious. Yeah, right.

Nana is not buying it. She is quieter than usual, just sitting there in her bed and staring toward the window. It’s like her spirit is broken, and seeing her like this makes me hurt deep inside.

“Nana,” I say, taking her wrinkled old hand in mine, “if you can just get better, maybe you can come home.”

She shakes her head. “No. Diane said no. I can’t go home.”

“Mom said
that
?”

She nods now, tears filling her eyes.

“Well, I don’t think that’s right,” I say. “I’ll talk to Mom, Nana. I think if your pelvic bone heals up, you can come home. Even if we have to get someone to come take care of you, you need to come home, Nana.”

This cheers her up a little, but I know I’m making a promise I may be powerless to keep. Still, I can’t imagine how Mom can be so coldhearted. Okay, maybe I can imagine it. But it’s wrong. It’s all wrong. And I plan to discuss it with her. And if it turns into a big fight, well, so be it. Of course, I won’t discuss it with her until after the barbecue tomorrow. No sense in messing that up.

When Nana’s dinner comes, I tell her that I have to go. I explain about the football game and she actually seems to understand, like she remembers what football is, although it sounds like she thinks I’m a football player. I try to explain but then wonder why. Instead I kiss her and tell her to get well soon.

“Have fun playing ball,” she says as I head for the door.

I wave and tell her I will.

When I’m out in the lobby, I first call Kendra to check on the status of her prank.

“It’s going to be perfect,” she assures me. “I’ve got it all ready, and it’s still in the package and you cannot even tell it’s been tampered with. I am good!”

“Or bad.”

She laughs. “I’ll drop it by like I promised. Have you called Jocelyn yet to tell her to meet you at school?”

“That’s what I’m about to do.”

“This is going to be so fun.”

I hang up, then call Jocelyn’s number. “Hey, I’m running late,” I tell her. “I’m still at the nursing home” — which is true — “and my grandmother’s had a hard time with her meals lately. I need to stick around while she eats dinner.” Okay, not so true.

“What about my uniform?”

“Don’t worry,” I say. “I’ve got it. Let’s just plan to meet at the stadium. You can change in the restroom there, can’t you?”

She complains about this, but I tell her it’s the best I can do. “Do you want me to just leave my poor grandmother right now?”

“Well, no.”

“Good, because she is having a hard time of it, Jocelyn. This place is a nightmare and I don’t think the nurses even do their jobs.”

“Oh. Sorry.”

“See you later,” I say as I walk to my car. “I need to go help my grandmother with her dinner now.” That old “liar, liar, pants on fire” rhyme runs through my head as I drive toward home. And although I try to rationalize this, my conscience is really starting to bug me. Still, what can I do? It’s like this thing is already in motion, and Kendra would get mad at me if I backed out at the last minute. I remind myself how Kendra promised to replace Jocelyn’s outfit if anything goes wrong. That’s worth a lot. Even Jocelyn would be happy with that little arrangement.

I’ve never been much of a prankster, and for Kendra’s sake, I just hope I don’t blow it tonight. I push thoughts of the prank to the back of my mind as I get dressed for the game. Glad that Mom’s not home yet, I crank up my CD player and lose myself in the music. Fortunately it’s not loud enough to block out the doorbell.

“Here are the goods,” Kendra announces when I answer the door. She hands me what looks like a perfectly normal cheerleading outfit, neatly hung on a wire hanger and encapsulated in clingy dry-cleaners plastic.

I don’t know what to say. My mouth feels dry, and everything in me is shouting,
Don’t do this
!

“By the way,” says Kendra, “that Jocelyn is a little liar. She hadn’t paid a cent for the alterations. The woman told me they never charge until you pick it up and approve it. I had to pay for it myself.”

I just shake my head and feign surprise. “Man, Jocelyn must’ve thought she was going to stick me with the bill. Really nice.”

“Well, I didn’t really mind paying for it.” Kendra laughs now. “Just as long as I get my money’s worth.”

“I’m sure you will.” I suddenly notice that she’s really dressed up. “Wow, you look great, Kendra.” That’s when I remember she’s part of the homecoming court.
Try to keep up, Reagan.
Kendra has sort of played down this event and claimed they don’t get too dressed up. Nothing like my old school — I was homecoming princess for the sophomore class last year and had to wear a formal.

“Thanks.” She holds out a foot, showing off a gorgeous high-heeled Christian Dior that I happen to know was expensive. “You think this outfit looks okay with these?”

“You look absolutely fantastic and those shoes are killer! I’m sure you’ll be crowned queen tonight.”

“Oh, you’re too sweet,” she calls happily. “See ya at the game!”

I do a little more primping, waiting until the very last minute before I go out to my car. I’ve barely pulled onto the street when my cell phone starts ringing. I check my caller ID to see that it’s Jocelyn. It figures.

“I’m on my way right now,” I say in a rushed voice. “I barely had time to change my clothes.”

“Well, I’m waiting in the restroom,” she says impatiently. “Hurry!”

I can hear the pep band warming up as I park my car and head toward the stadium. My arms are loaded with my duffle bag, purse, and Jocelyn’s uniform, and my heart is pounding as I walk into the bathroom. My plan is to appear hectic and slightly frantic.

“It’s about time,” says Jocelyn.

“Yeah,” snips Sally, who is checking her makeup in the mirror. “We thought we were going to have to raid the girls’ locker room with the away-team football players still in there to get Kendra’s uniform.”

I breathlessly shove the outfit toward Jocelyn. “Sorry, but I have a lot on my plate. It took extra time to go to the cleaners for you, and I have that barbecue tomorrow, and on top of this my grandmother’s not doing very well …” My voice breaks slightly, adding a touch of realism.

“Poor Reagan,” says Meredith as she helps Jocelyn into her outfit.

“Watch out for my ponytail,” warns Jocelyn. “I don’t have time to redo it.”

“Wow, I can’t believe that’s the same outfit,” says Sally with an approving smile. “It really fits you now.”

“It’s a little tight,” says Jocelyn, tugging at the top.

“No, it’s perfect,” Meredith assures her.

Jocelyn sort of hops up to see herself in the waist-high mirror. “Really? It’s not too tight?”

“It’s no tighter than mine,” says Sally.

“You look great,” I tell her. And that’s the truth. I’m actually wondering if Kendra really did anything. Maybe this prank is really on me. And that would be fine. Maybe Kendra was testing me, curious to see if I’d go along with something that crazy. Whatever the case, I can’t see that there’s any problem. That is, until Jocelyn turns around to stuff her other clothes into her duffle bag. That’s when I notice that her top has a seam down the middle of the back — not a very neat one — and it’s a seam that our tops don’t have. The skirt has the same sort of thing. I swallow hard, step back, and bite my tongue. This has got to be Kendra’s workmanship.

“Well, I’m going out there now,” announces Sally. “You guys ready?”

We all follow her out there, and once we’re on the field, I can tell that several of the girls are in on the joke and trying not to laugh. I mostly just try to keep my distance from Jocelyn. I don’t want to blow it. We do our regular warm-up chants as the stadium fills up. The goal is to get the crowd pumped up and excited. And then, as our football team enters the field, bursting through the butcher-paper banner stretched between the goalposts, the pep band begins the fight song and we begin our dance routine. As usual, Jocelyn and I are in the center of this routine because we’re the shortest. And when we finish up the routine, Jocelyn will be at the top of the pyramid. I consider the irony of this and how she fought me for this position at practice today.

“Reagan is always on top,” she complained to Falon. “She and I are about the same size, so why can’t I be on top for a change?” Falon reluctantly agreed, I think just to shut her up.

The band is still playing enthusiastically as we quickly get into the pyramid formation and Jocelyn climbs on top. Her shoes dig into my shoulders as she stands up straight, and I’m thinking she probably weighs ten pounds more than me. I see her spread her arms in a wide V, teetering just slightly. We hold the pyramid for the usual few seconds and then I feel Jocelyn going into the jump dismount now, performing a flip as she goes down and is caught by one of the guys. And the crowd cheers.

I’m concentrating on my own stunt now, a smaller flip that lands me soundly on my feet. And, just as I’m about to go into a handspring, I hear hoots of laughter from the stands and I see Chad staring to my right with a totally stunned expression. I turn to see what’s up, and that’s when I notice Jocelyn is standing still with both hands clasped over the front of her chest, covering her bra, which isn’t even a sports bra. Ben is standing a few feet away, holding her blue and white top and looking slightly amused.

“Give it to me!”
Then she screams a word at him, one that will get her into trouble as far as the cheerleading contract goes. He tosses her the top, which is split down the back, but when she reaches out to catch it, bending down and leaning forward, her skirt, which was already hanging low, bites the dust. And now she is standing in front of the stadium in her underwear, not even pretty underwear. The crowd roars like they think this is the pregame show.