OMG... Am I a Witch?! (3 page)

seven

“We were just about to call her mom now,” Grace said, reaching into April's book bag for her cell phone, and then waving it. “Can you ask Mom if it's okay?”

“Sure, Honey Bear.”

“Dad!”

He jerked his head to look at Grace. “Sorry. I forgot you're in middle school and not my Honey Bear anymore.” He walked over to Grace and gave her a kiss on her forehead. “Well ladies, we will order enough pizza. But April . . .” Mr. Galapagos glanced at the closet door again.

Oh no. He knows something. Oh no!

“April, just rest up before dinner.”

“Thank you, Mr. Galapagos.”
Breathe before you turn purple. Whew!

He looked at his watch, then the computer screen. “Oh. I have to go get your brother soon. You kids finish working on your essay.” He walked out of Grace's room and left the door open. “Honey, need help cleaning up?” he yelled to Grace's mom.

“Whew!” Grace exhaled. “He's gone.”

“That was close,” April whispered, listening to Mr. Galapagos walk down the stairs.

“We have to work fast,” April said, stretching her legs out on Grace's bed. “Where were we?”

“I am searching for a spell breaker. Remember?” Grace turned to the computer and started typing. “You said you found it in
The Book of Magic
, right?”

“Oh yeah, oops. Let me get Austin.” April sprang to her feet and opened the closet door. She looked down at the purple purse on the ground. It had landed in the only empty space among the perfectly paired shoes. He wiggled back and forth in the purse. She picked it up and opened it.

Austin shoved his nose out.

“Grrr . . .” He growled and showed his teeth.

“You didn't bark or say anything.” April hugged him and gave him a big kiss on the head. “Thank you, Austin!” He grumbled at her. “Oh stop it,” she scolded. She looked at his wide brown eyes.

Why does he look so scared? He was always such a tough guy. But, is he scared now?

She relaxed her hand, not holding him so tightly.

“Are you afraid?”

“Grrrr . . .” Then, he attempted to wiggle out of the purse as if he were trying to run away.

“Austin, if you don't stop, I'm going to put you back in the purse.”

She took him out and pinned him between her elbow and her body again. She gently scratched him under his chin and sat on Grace's bed.

“I can't find anything,” Grace said as she turned to look at April.

“Really?” April peered over Grace's shoulder at the computer screen.

“Is that the dog breathing on my neck or you? Ewww.” Grace said, standing up from the computer chair.

“Fail.” April smirked at Grace.

“OK genius. Fine. You give it a try.” Grace took Austin from April's arms.

April sat down and typed “
Book of Magic
spell to reverse turning someone into a dog.” She pressed ‘Enter.'

Click. Click.

“Here it is!” April pointed to the screen.

“Seriously? Seriously?” Grace dropped Austin on the bed. She hovered over April, looking at the computer screen. “I searched those exact same keywords and I didn't get anything. Hmmm . . . Maybe it's because I'm
not
a witch so I, uh, couldn't find it.”

April stopped breathing, fixated on Grace's eyes. Just as she took a breath, Austin jumped off the bed and ran out Grace's door.

eight

They watched Austin's little tail wiggle as he ran through the door and down the hall.

April screamed, “Ahhh!”

She ran to the doorway. Austin ran past the linen closet, past Grace's parents' bedroom, past the bathroom, and into Michael's room.

Grace's mother yelled up the stairs, “Everything OK?”

“Oh yeah, it's fine, Mom,” said Grace. “We . . . uh . . . thought we saw a bug. But it . . . wasn't. Sorry!”

“OK, girls,” she said, going back into the kitchen.

“Oh no,” Grace whispered. “Michael's room is so junky. I have no clue where he went in that pigsty.”

“Oh, Austin's room is a disaster, too.” April nodded. “Austin should feel right at home in there.”

They heard footsteps walking toward the front door.

“Rita, I'll be right back. I'm going to get him now and pick up the pizzas,” Grace's dad said to her mom. The front door closed.

“Oh no!” they said at the same time.

“Michael will be here soon,” Grace said, her eyes growing as big as a high school girl's hoop earrings.

April felt the blood rush to her cheeks. Beads of sweat formed on Grace's forehead. They tiptoed down the hall into Michael's room.

April's eyes bulged. “How in the world can he even tell what is clean and what is dirty? I guess it's all dirty. There has gotta be mold or a fungus growing somewhere in here.”

A cracked bat was wedged between underwear and a grass stained white t-shirt on the floor. Books sat piled in the corner with what looked like a granola bar wrapper peeking out from underneath a book cover. In the other corner was what appeared to be a pile of dirt but were actually dirt-covered track sneakers. His walls were covered with posters of famous athletes.

“It smells like a locker room mixed with a school cafeteria,” April said, wrinkling her nose.

“I think there's actually a picture of a baseball, basketball, and football on this rug,” Grace said quietly.

“There's a rug under here?”

Grace rolled her eyes. “I know. Hard to believe.”

“Where would a little dog hide in this room?” April asked. “Austin, I know you're mad at me. Heck, I would be mad at me, too, but, but seriously.” She stamped her foot, but lightly so as not to alert Mrs. Galapagos. “Seriously, please come out so we can fix this.” April let out a huge sigh.

Grace got down onto her hands and knees, slowly lifted the blanket hanging from the bed, and looked under it. “Some dirty clothes and socks.” She reached under the bed and pulled something out, holding it with two fingers. With her other hand, she pinched her nose.

“Ewww. I guess that sock used to be white,” April said.

“This is gross.” Grace dropped the sock to the floor and stood up. “Your turn . . .”

April got down and crawled around the floor on her hands and knees.

Austin is always so annoying. Why won't he just come out so we can try to fix this? What if we can't find him? What if we get caught?

Her breath quickened. She looked under Michael's desk.

“Nope, only an old bag of Doritos.” She looked under his dresser. “Nothing but lots of lint and dust.” April threw her body back and flopped onto her butt. She put her head in her hands and swallowed hard. “This is hopeless!”

“We have to find him fast,” Grace said, pacing and biting her lip. “My dad will be home soon with Michael.”

April stood up. “I know.” She cleared her throat, fighting back the tears. “And, we don't want to tell Michael about all of this. He'd get us in so much trouble—because you know how he loves to try to get us in trouble.”

Grace closed Michael's door. “Austin?” she said quietly. “We found the spell to fix this. If you come out, hopefully we can do it—”

“Austin, I will do anything you want,” April interrupted. “I am sooooo sorry!” She started to cry, wetting her glasses with tears. She took them off and wiped them with her shirt. “Gosh, not only did I turn my brother into a dog,
now
I lost him.” Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Austin stick his head out of Michael's closet. April jumped on Austin and hugged him. She squeezed him so tightly he let out a little yelp.

“Chillax, April,” said Grace. “Chillax.”

“Sorry, Austin. I didn't realize my strength,” April said with a chuckle. She stood up, still hugging him.

nine

A

pril was overjoyed that she had found Austin. She was still hugging him.

Grace came over and gave Austin a kiss on his head. She looked up at April as if she smelled sour milk. “Ewww. I just kissed your brother.”

April laughed and kissed him on the head, too. Austin grumbled but gently rubbed his nose against April's hand. April kissed him again. She felt her cheeks tremble from her big, broad smile.

“We'd better get out of here before Michael gets home,” Grace said, opening the door.

They did a running tiptoe down the hall back into Grace's room. April quietly closed the door behind them. Grace ran to the computer, sat, and started clicking.

April sat on the bed holding Austin and started to pet him. He growled again. She knew he was growling at her for treating him like a little doggie. She smiled because she felt as if things would go back to the way they had been. Austin would go back to being an annoying brother and she would have nice new glasses again.

“Now where were we?” April asked.

“April? Are you serious? Remember, the spell breaker?” Grace said.

“Oh, yeah.”

“I wonder how many people can get to this book,” Grace said, her eyes glued to the computer screen.

“Right, are there other witches out there?” April asked, looking into space. “I wonder who else can do this kind of, uh, stuff.”

Grace's eyes bulged as she started reading. “April, put Austin in the closet and close the door.”

April placed Austin on the closet floor as nicely as she could. Austin sighed and lay down. April gently closed the door.

“Now repeat after me,” Grace said.

“Heaven, please help with the recent past,

To undo the spell that I just cast.

Please take this request as formal,

And turn my brother back to normal.”

April repeated each line as Grace said it.

“Did it—” Grace swallowed, “did it work?” She looked at the closet door.

“I'm scared to open it,” said April.

Grace raised her shoulders. “Why?”

“Well, what if it didn't work?” April's eyes burned as they filled with tears.

Grace stood up and gave her a hug. “Don't cry. If it didn't work, we'll . . . we'll figure it out. But, the only way to know if we have to keep searching is if you open the door. It might have worked.”

“But . . .” April cleared her throat.

“Just open the doo
r
! For the love of God.”

April turned to face the closet. She stared at it. She could not move.

“Did I tell you about the time Miss Meanie gave me detention for talking in class? Jimmie was in detention, too—as usual. He's such a troublemaker. He threw spitballs and paper clips at me when she wasn't looking. I told Austin how mean Jimmie was to me. I don't know what he said to Jimmie. But, the next day, Jimmie said sorry to me.” April swallowed hard.

“Austin always bothered me,” she said, staring at the closet door. “But he was a good big brother. He didn't let anyone else pick on me.”

“Did you just say Austin
was
a good big brother?” asked Grace. “April, if this doesn't, work we WILL figure it out. Geez, we are, like, two of the smartest girls in school.”

“You're right. Ok—”

“Maybe I would like Michael more if I turned him into a dog,” Grace said, staring into space.

April's heart beat faster and her breaths quickened. She reached for the knob and, with her eyes tightly shut, turned it very slowly. Then she slowly cracked
one eye. She opened the door slower than a slug crosses the sidewalk.

Her heart sank. The little white dog stared sadly at April.