Kalida changed into her pajamas and brushed out her hair. She fingered Becky's dress that was hanging on her closet door. She had retreated to her room long before the party had ended, and neither Merton nor Becky had come looking for it.
"Almost dry already."
She stacked her homework on her desk and sat down at her computer. She pulled up her web browser and poked around on Neopets for a few minutes before her MSN Messenger chimed. She hesitated. "Merton."
She clicked to open his chat window.
ʍ€яţ๏ɲ [Out of my mind. Back in five minutes.]: You're still up?
·.· ɥʇnos uʍop ɐp!ןɐʞ ·.·: No, someone broke in and decided to feed my Shoyru.
ʍ€яţ๏ɲ [Out of my mind. Back in five minutes.]: XD
ʍ€яţ๏ɲ [Out of my mind. Back in five minutes.]: Do you guys need help cleaning?
·.· ɥʇnos uʍop ɐp!ןɐʞ ·.·: Tommy already did it.
She watched the screen as he typed, tapping her fingers on the desk. Either he was typing a novel or he was deleting what he was typing and retrying.
ʍ€яţ๏ɲ [Out of my mind. Back in five minutes.]: that's good
She rolled her eyes.
·.· ɥʇnos uʍop ɐp!ןɐʞ ·.·: I have your sister's dress.
ʍ€яţ๏ɲ [Out of my mind. Back in five minutes.]: I was gonna come by tomorrow to drop off Tommy's clothes. I'll grab it then?
·.· ɥʇnos uʍop ɐp!ןɐʞ ·.·: Sure, I'll give it to him.
ʍ€яţ๏ɲ [Out of my mind. Back in five minutes.]: and avoid me?
·.· ɥʇnos uʍop ɐp!ןɐʞ ·.·: I'm not avoiding you
·.· ɥʇnos uʍop ɐp!ןɐʞ ·.·: I'm talking to you right now
·.· ɥʇnos uʍop ɐp!ןɐʞ ·.·: Which is apparently only because of Tommy...
ʍ€яţ๏ɲ [Out of my mind. Back in five minutes.]: lol
ʍ€яţ๏ɲ [Out of my mind. Back in five minutes.]: Do you want to hang out tomorrow?
·.· ɥʇnos uʍop ɐp!ןɐʞ ·.·: What were going to say before?
She waited, but he didn't reply.
·.· ɥʇnos uʍop ɐp!ןɐʞ ·.·: When it took you three minutes to type "that's good."
She stared at the chat window, but it didn't say he was typing, and he wasn't marked as Away.
"So you're ignoring me now?"
She sighed and clicked back to her web browser.
"This is stupid. You should be the one feeling like crap over me, not the other way around."
She pulled up the Hot Bot search engine.
Spell to change feelings.
She scrolled through the results. "Love spells. Not exactly what I had in mind."
Spell to get rid of bad feelings.
She clicked the top result and muttered to herself as she read the page. "We have control over our thoughts… blah blah… if we tell ourselves we feel the way we want to feel, we will…"
She leaned back in her chair and closed her eyes. "I trust Merton and definitely feel like he thinks highly of me. I don't feel insecure or disrespected." She sighed again and clicked the back button on her browser.
"What a crock of-" The MSN sound interrupted her.
ʍ€яţ๏ɲ [Out of my mind. Back in five minutes.]: I'm trying to think of something to say to make things go back to normal, but everything sounds stupid. And I'm afraid I'll just make you mad again.
·.· ɥʇnos uʍop ɐp!ןɐʞ ·.·: ...
ʍ€яţ๏ɲ [Out of my mind. Back in five minutes.]: Exactly my point
She frowned.
ʍ€яţ๏ɲ [Out of my mind. Back in five minutes.]: I like you
ʍ€яţ๏ɲ [Out of my mind. Back in five minutes.]: I want to date you
ʍ€яţ๏ɲ [Out of my mind. Back in five minutes.]: You know that
ʍ€яţ๏ɲ [Out of my mind. Back in five minutes.]: I'm sorry for everything I did wrong & said wrong
ʍ€яţ๏ɲ [Out of my mind. Back in five minutes.]: [heart emoticon]
She drummed her fingertips against the desk.
ʍ€яţ๏ɲ [Out of my mind. Back in five minutes.]: All that matters now is how you feel
·.· ɥʇnos uʍop ɐp!ןɐʞ ·.·: When I think about you, I feel sad
ʍ€яţ๏ɲ [Out of my mind. Back in five minutes.]: :(
·.· ɥʇnos uʍop ɐp!ןɐʞ ·.·: I want to make that go away
She switched back to her browser and clicked on the next result.
"Wish spell… Changing one thing can change your life…" She sighed, rolling her eyes. "No kidding."
Red text flashed across the screen.
If you could wish for one thing, right now, what would it be?
ʍ€яţ๏ɲ [Out of my mind. Back in five minutes.]: Can I help you with that?
ʍ€яţ๏ɲ [Out of my mind. Back in five minutes.]: Maybe if we hang out? Talk about it?
ʍ€яţ๏ɲ [Out of my mind. Back in five minutes.]: You're really important to me
ʍ€яţ๏ɲ [Out of my mind. Back in five minutes.]: You're my only friend after Tommy
She tapped the edge of her mouse anxiously.
If you could wish for one thing, right now, what would it be?
"I wish Tommy wasn't a friggin' werewolf."
Kalida blinked awake, then rolled over and shut off her alarm. "I don't remember setting you."
She laid back and stared up at the ceiling. She didn't remember going to bed at all. Must have been really out of it by then.
She tried to recall what she'd been doing before bed. Looking up spells.
She remembered her conversation with Merton and sprung up.
Sitting down at her desk, she pulled up MSN and looked for his name to pull up their message history.
"He's not in my contacts? Did I get so mad I blocked him?"
She opened her chat logs folder and searched, but his email wasn't listed. Whatever they'd talked about she'd obviously gone postal on him. She rubbed her forehead. It was weird that she couldn't remember.
There was a knock on her door.
"Kali, you up yet? I wanted to leave early today. Do you need a ride?"
She scrunched her face in confusion.
"A ride where?"
"Uhh, school? You are planning on going, right, nerd girl?"
"It's Saturday?"
He laughed on the other side of the door. "No, it's definitely Friday. Big day, remember?"
She checked the clock on her computer. Friday. She muttered to herself in confusion.
"I'll be right out."
She quickly got ready, realizing with a sinking feeling that Becky's dress was no longer hanging on her closet door.
When she got downstairs, Tommy was downing a bowl of cereal.
"Hey. Stay up too late studying?"
"I have no idea, to be honest." She motioned upstairs. "Did you see Becky's dress? It wasn't in my room this morning."
"Who's Becky?"
"Becky Dingle."
"Not ringing a bell. She on the cheerleading team?" he smirked, raising his brows suggestively.
"Uh, no. She's Merton's little sister."
Tommy raised an eyebrow at her. "Who's Merton?"
"Nevermind." She rubbed her arm, looking around suspiciously. Something was definitely not right.
"You gonna eat?"
"I'm not hungry right now." She stuffed her lunch in her bag. "I'll eat on break."
Kalida unlocked the door into the living space of her camper.
Her bed was still made with purple sheets, a patchwork quilt folded at the foot. Fabric and beaded strands formed a canopy. A box of crystals and candles was tucked under the table.
She could have sworn she'd stashed her textbooks on the kitchenette while avoiding Tommy and Merton earlier this week. She looked around the small space but could find no trace of the rose she'd been drying.
She locked the door and hopped in the front seat, starting the engine up. She could feel her pulse racing but forced her breath to stay calm, steady, slow. She pushed eject on her stereo. A home-burned CD popped out, but the pink writing on it was unfamiliar. Girls Weekend Mix To Kali Love Stacey
Who the hell is Stacey? She pushed it back in. Pop music.
She dug around in her glove compartment, then checked every other space she might have stashed the mixed CD Merton had given her. Nothing.
"It's like he doesn't exist."
She could feel the bile rising in her stomach. How is something like this even possible? Normally she'd ask Merton.
She backed out of the driveway and drove a little too fast on her way to school.
When she approached the lockers, she felt a flood of relief to see T'n'T trying to shove Merton into his locker.
"I keep telling you, I'm not a freshman, you can't do this-"
"Can it, Dingle!"
Kalida cleared her throat, catching Travis's attention. "Could you stop that?"
He used his index finger and pinky to smooth his eyebrows and gave her a lookover. "What's it to you, little lady?"
She pointed two lockers over. "Well I need to use that, and you're sort of in the way."
Tim and Travis straightened up, then nodded at her. "My apologies."
"Later Dingus!"
Kalida frowned softly as she watched them walk off, then turned to Merton. "Are you okay?"
His eyes widened slightly. "Uh. Yeah. Sure." He busied himself straightening out his clothes and picking up his things that had fallen out of his locker.
She opened her locker and saw that somehow all of the items she'd removed were back where they belonged. "What the…" She grabbed what she needed and looked over at Merton.
"Merton, have you noticed anything weird going on?"
He nearly dropped his book in surprise, looking over at her with his shoulders hunched. "You mean besides you talking to me?"
Kalida eyed him. "Why wouldn't I talk to you?"
"Uh…" He shrugged, trying to think of what to say. "Social preservation? Lack of precedence? No points of commonality? Shall I go on?"
"So… we're not friends." Kalida clenched her jaw, willing it not to tremble.
"The last time we spoke, the council was accusing the Guild of Satanic practices." He smiled sweetly. "Still appreciate you defending our D&D nights, by the way."
"Oh. Uh, sure."
He tilted his head at her. "Not that I'm trying to discourage you, but why the sudden interest?"
She took a deep breath, reeling from the bizarreness of the day. "Are you friends with Tommy?"
"Your cousin? The captain of the football team?" He scoffed. "Yeah right. I talked to him once at the beginning of the year and he called me Martin."
"Do you know if there's a werewolf in town?"
Merton's eyes bugged out. "Beg pardon?"
"N-nevermind…" She blinked in realization as she shut her locker and murmured to herself. "I guess I got what I wanted."
Merton raised a brow at her, wondering what had gotten into Kalida Dawkins. She'd never bothered to strike up a conversation before, and this one was not what he'd have expected.
Kalida walked into English class in a daze.
Tommy doesn't know Merton. Merton doesn't know me.
She hadn't had the chance to ask Tommy, but given that the last thing she remembered from the night before was wishing that he wasn't a werewolf, she figured that somehow that had come true.
A girl with long red curls sat down beside her. "Morning!"
Kalida glanced over. She didn't recognize the girl at all. "Morning."
The girl leaned over. "I'm nervous about tonight. You still okay being out until eleven?"
Kalida was not prepared for this new reality. She fumbled, unsure how to respond. "Why… wouldn't I be…?"
The girl grinned. "You're the best." She pulled a notebook out of her bag. Written across the blue space was Stacey Hanson.
"Stacey, run me through the plan again?"
"Seriously?" Stacey laughed and looked over at her with a raised eyebrow.
Kalida gestured at her head, pouting playfully. "I didn't sleep well, and I keep forgetting things."
Stacey rolled her eyes but smiled. "You and Brett are going up to the lookout so me and Tommy can have some alone time at your house while Bob and Sally are out of town."
Brett. Brett Johnson?
Kalida nodded slowly, absorbing this new revelation.
I guess he didn't stop liking me?
Miss Stoffer started up her lesson, and gave them a reading assignment. A book about classism.
Kalida shook her head, realizing that she was reliving the day she'd just had.
Except instead of throwing a party, Tommy's having Stacey over. Weird. At least I only have to read half of this terrible book now.
At lunch, Brett met Kalida outside her classroom with a grin.
"Kali. How's your day going?" He wrapped his arm around her.
"Uh, it's going." She tensed against him. "I'm a little out of it."
"Didn't sleep well?"
"Yeah, I think I might be coming down with something."
"Well that's a real shame. You should get some rest this weekend. Are you still up for going out tonight?"
She remembered Stacey's enthusiasm about their plan.
As much as I'd like to return the favor to Tommy, I guess I won't sabotage his date.
"Yeah, I'll be fine." She realized he was leading her into the cafeteria. Do I eat lunch here in this reality?
"Great. But I'll pack an extra blanket just in case."
She forced a smile. "Thanks."
He led her to a table where Tommy was already seated, and sat down across from Tommy. Kalida took the seat next to Brett and waved at her cousin.
"You get yourself straight yet?" Tommy teased.
"I'm working on it," Kalida admitted.
Tommy grinned at Brett. "I woke Kali up today and she told me it was Saturday."
"Well, everybody's workin' for the weekend, Tom."
The two shared a laugh.
This is beyond freaky. Kalida pulled her lunch out of her bag and tried to keep her face neutral.
"Hey, so I figured out who Becky Dingle is." Tommy shot the paper off his straw at her.
Kalida laughed awkwardly. "It's not important."
"Okay, but why do you have a freshman's dress?"
"I don't. I just… I had a really weird dream this morning and got confused, okay?"
Tommy held his hands up, but smirked at her. "Alright, whatever you say."
Stacey joined them, sitting across from Kalida, beside Tommy. "Hey!" She pulled a catalogue out of her bag, opened it to a certain page, then slid it across the table to Kalida. "This is the dress I was telling you about. It's nice, right?"
Kalida examined the page. A tall black girl wore a matching beaded crop top and long skirt in a shimmery two-toned fabric.
"Yeah. The color is kind of mermaid-y."
"So you think it's a winner for prom?"
Brett leaned over. "What are you wearing to prom, Kalida?"
Stacey narrowed his eyes at Brett. "She's more of a try-it-on buyer. She'll know the dress when she's wearing it."
"That is something I would say," Kalida laughed, nodding.
"Uh, duh. Besties." Stacey pulled the catalogue back toward her and started flipping through it again. "I just love looking through these things."
Brett looked over at Tommy. "I guess we have it easy, eh, Tom? Just rent a tux and you're done."
Tommy laughed, nodding. "Yeah, but then there's the flowers…"
Kalida chewed her lip, staring into her closet.
It wasn't like she didn't know how to dress for a date. The problem was she wasn't actually interested in the guy she was supposed to spend five long hours with. She thumbed through the contents of her wardrobe, and realized that the jeans that had been ruined by green bird goo were in pristine condition.
"Waste not want not," she shrugged. She thought back on the first time she'd gone to the Factory with Tommy and Merton.
We talked about Buffy and ate an onion blossom.
Feeling nostalgic, she pulled out the same lacy black top she'd worn that night and finished getting ready.
Close to six, Tommy knocked on her door.
"Sorry, I'm about to go!" She pulled on her jacket and stepped out into the hallway. "Don't want to be late…" She laughed nervously.
"Yeah," Tommy chuckled, rubbing his hands together. "So… do you think Stacey wants to, you know…"
"For the third time, Tommy, I have no idea what Stacey wants to do alone with you in your room, but I suggest you ask her that yourself."
"But you're my wingman, my insider…" He batted his lashes at her.
She narrowed her eyes and kicked him in the shin.
He cried out in pain and rubbed his leg, but didn't wolf out.
I never thought Tommy not being a werewolf would seem weird.
Kalida drove Betsy up the dark rocky road to the lookout. Last time she'd been up there was with Tommy and Merton.
We tried to cast a good luck spell for Tommy's big game.
"Only I guess we didn't…" She turned off Stacey's mixed disc and sat in silence in the din. Out the driver's side window, she stared up at the sky. She could see a few constellations starting to peep out as the sunset faded away.
She should have been tired. From her perspective, she'd been up for almost two days. Instead, she felt on edge, impatient. She didn't want to be there, sitting, waiting. For Brett Johnson, of all people. She missed her Tommy and Merton. She needed to be at home, figuring out how to wake up from this false life. It wasn't like a dream, exactly. Everything was too real and monotonous. Yet also wrong.
She heard the crunch of gravel down the road and stepped out of Betsy to greet Brett.
Maybe it's not Brett. Maybe it's a serial killer or a monster out to get me.
She shrugged to herself, unconvinced that that wasn't the way out of bizarre-o-land.
Brett parked his SUV and hopped out with a single yellow-and-pink rose. "Good evening, Kalida."
"Good evening." She took the flower from him and took a sniff, enjoying the strong fragrance. "It smells lovely, thank you. I'll just stick it in the camper for now." She put it on the driver's seat and shut the driver's door.
Brett moved closer, leaning in for a kiss.
Kalida subtly turned her face so that he only kissed her cheek.
Brett laughed softly. "Feeling shy tonight?" There wasn't any annoyance in his voice, though, and his body language was relaxed.
She shrugged. "I guess. I haven't been feeling myself today."
"Oh, that's right. I should get you warmed up. I brought some tea, would you like some?"
She thought a moment, then nodded. "Sure, sounds nice."
They sat in the back of Brett's SUV, playing picnic in the vehicle. Brett poured tea from a thermos, then handed a small mug to her.
"Thanks."
"Of course." He poured himself a cup, then focused back on her. "So listen, for the next council meeting, I was thinking we should really look over the budget for the school dance and see if we can't get a snack table going."
"Oh." Kalida nodded, looking to the side. "Yeah, I'm sure people like snacks."
Brett hummed. "Was that inappropriate? Should I not talk about council business on our date?"
Kalida laughed. "You could literally talk about anything right now, I'm just being a space case." She sipped at her tea. "But you're being perfect."
Brett smiled to himself. "Perfect."
Kalida wondered how much longer Tommy and Stacey needed to be alone for.
It must be like, nine by now. She glanced at Brett's watch and noted the time. 7:18. Oh, kill me.
Kalida found herself having a pretty good time with Brett. They'd been sort-of friends in chem for a while, but this boyfriend-Brett was more open with her. She could see why they'd ended up dating in this reality, even if her interest was held by someone else at the moment.
They sat on a log, looking out at the town below them, wrapped in warm blankets. Brett was telling her the story of how he ended up joining the male cheerleading team when a scuttling sound distracted Kalida.
She glanced behind them, and swore she saw something moving in the dark behind their vehicles.
She stared a moment, but it was quiet and still again.
Wishful thinking?
"Is something the matter?" Brett put a hand on her shoulder.
"No, sorry." She turned back around. "I just thought I heard an animal or something."
"Don't worry, there's nothing to fear up here. Besides, I'll protect you." He grinned.
She tried not to laugh. "What if it was, say, a werewolf?"
He smirked. "I'd engage him in a friendly debate and reason with him. Being half man, and all."
"What about a demon?"
He put a hand on his heart. "I would pray for God to remove evil from my path."
She nodded in realization. Brett was Christian. Not that that was uncommon in the states. Does he know I'm pagan? I'm still pagan in this reality, right? She remembered the crystals in her camper. Yeah, still pagan.
"What about a perendi?"
"I'm not sure what that is."
"It's like this lightning monster genie thing?"
"Hm." He shrugged. "Don't know about that one. I guess you've stumped me."
"Well, luckily I know how to deal with them."
Brett raised a brow. "Oh? And how's that?"
"You break the amulet they're wearing and they turn to dust."
He nodded slowly, then reached over and felt her forehead. "Are you feeling okay?"
She brushed his hand away. "Actually I feel pretty out of it. Maybe I should go home."
He gently touched her back. "If you think that's best. Don't want you being ill all weekend."
"Yeah." She stood up and folded up his blanket. "Sorry I haven't been myself."
He stood and took the blanket from her. "That's fine, we all have our days. As long as you're alright, that's all that matters."
She rubbed her arm, feeling guilty about keeping up appearances as his girlfriend. "Thanks, Brett. You're really sweet."
"Of course." He gently caressed her shoulder. "I really care about you."
She looked up at him, noting the earnest affection in his expression. You're just making me feel bad, dude.
"Drive home safe, and make sure to get some sleep."
"You too."
Kalida sat in the driver's seat playing with her stereo until Brett drove off. Then she climbed into the back and sat at the table in the kitchenette.
"How is it only nine? What am I supposed to do for two hours?" She drummed her fingers against the table.
"I guess I could crash Tommy and Stacey's date…" She frowned. She wasn't sure how to get out of this new reality, and didn't want to cause problems for herself in case it took a while.
Instead she pulled open a drawer to reveal her tarot card set. She laid out a small table cloth, then lit a short white candle. Around that, she placed four stones. As she fell into the ritual, her impatience melted away.
She closed her eyes and shuffled the deck of cards. She dealt three, then opened her eyes.
Death. The Tower. Judgement.
"Wow, well, thanks for that," she sighed. "I wish you could tell me what to do next." She shuffled and dealt a final card. The Lovers, inverted.
Suddenly there was a loud scraping sound that raked across the door of the camper. Then came a scuttling sound in the gravel around her vehicle, full circle. She stared at the door a moment, frozen, then blew out her candle and peeked out the curtain.
A half-man, half-scorpion thing was looking crookedly at the door. It had a male torso, head, and arms, but waist-down, black sharp legs and a curling scorpion tail replaced his legs. His eyes were a dull, glowing orange.
"Holy mother-"
It noticed her in the window and the tail came crashing down against the side of the camper, denting it visibly.
She screamed in shock, then climbed through to the driver's seat and started up the engine. She sped out of the clearing as the scorpion man tried to climb up the front of the camper. It fell off, and she continued dangerously fast down the winding gravel road through the forest. When the trees gave way to road, she drove until she hit the edge of town, then pulled over.
She leaned back against her seat, and tried to stop from hyperventilating. "You've dealt with this shit before, just calm down."
She closed her eyes and forced several slower, deep breaths. She needed a plan. She clicked her seatbelt on and pulled back onto the road.
"Sorry, Merton, I hope you don't mind me dragging you into the fray."
Merton gave a suspicious look toward his door. He shut his TV off and waited.
There it was again - louder this time - knocking.
"That better not be Margaret again."
He crossed the lair and peeked through the blinds, then shut them immediately.
Kalida Dawkins? Why is she here?
He took a deep breath and ran his hands over his spikes to make sure they were alright, then opened the door with a lopsided grin. "Can't get enough of me today?"
She put a hand on her chest, letting out a held breath. "Oh, thank god, for a second there I was worried you wouldn't open the door."
"Well, to be honest I've never had a fair maiden come calling at this hour of the night, but…" He swallowed, unsure how to finish the sentence. "Uh, here we are. I. Guess?"
"I need your help."
He raised his brows, but opened the door wide to allow her passage. "Um, please come in. Can I offer you a bottle of Yoohoo?"
"No thanks." She stepped past him and walked straight over to his desk. "I need your help with a scorpion man monster thing I saw up at the lookout." She say down and started typing.
"Good luck, sister. My system is password protected."
She typed something in and grinned as it unlocked. "Good to see you're still a Buffy fan in this reality." She started searching his database.
"Look, not to interrupt your very interesting invasion of my privacy here, but how exactly did you know my password? And where I live?" He paused, then tilted his head at her, eyes bulging. "Did you say you saw a monster?"
She stopped typing and looked up at him. "I know it's a lot to ask, but I need you to help me kill it."
Merton took a deep breath and sat on the edge of the desk, looking down at her patronizingly. "I appreciate your commitment to this bit, but if the football team wants to prank me, they can do it at school."
"Merton, I'm serious."
"I realize I may have been a little passionate when I spoke about our guild activities-"
"Merton." She could feel the tears welling up as she plead with him. This Merton didn't know her. He didn't believe her. "Please."
He furrowed his brow. He wasn't used to having popular girls begging him for anything. "Why not ask your boyfriend?"
"Because he's not-" she stopped short and looked away. "You aren't going to believe me, even if I tell you."
He touched her shoulder, face softening. "Try me."
She rolled her eyes, but turned back toward him. "Okay. I made a wish, and next thing I knew, I was here in this bizarre-o reality where things are just a little off from the way they should be. For example," she gestured between them. "You and I aren't friends, which really sucks. And for some reason I'm dating Brett Johnson."
"You're… from another reality." He nodded slowly. "Well, I can't say I was expecting that."
"I know it sounds crazy."
"Pretty batty, yeah."
"But listen. How else would I know your password is SarahMichelleGellarYouSlayMe?" She smirked.
"I wrote a blog post with that as the title."
"And where you live?"
"We're the only Dingles in the phone book."
"And that your favourite drink is Yoohoo?"
"I offered you one on your way in."
"And that you keep throwing knives in your bottom drawer?" She pulled his drawer out, but pouted. It was full of candles.
"My mom confiscated the knives last month. But interesting." He stroked his chin. "Wait, so in your other reality, you're not dating Brett Johnson?"
"No." She shook her head, cheeks heating up. "But that's not important right now. There's a monster thing on the loose and we need to stop it."
He held his hands up. "Okay, let's assume that I believe this alternate-reality thing, how does that relate to me fighting monsters?"
"Well, normally, you me and Tommy fight the weird monsters that show up in town."
"Normally. Because that's normal."
"To quote you, it's normal for you."
"Because I'm the goth kid, so obviously I still believe in fantasy creatures." He rolled his eyes. "I know council members have access to student records, but when the nurse said I have an overactive imagina-"
"Merton, please. I'm being serious."
He narrowed his eyes at her.
It was unnerving, having Merton stare at her with mistrust. She'd gotten used to him always being happy to see her. She felt the tears falling and quickly started wiping them away.
"Ugh, this reality sucks." She pushed up from the desk and made to leave. "Nevermind, sorry I weirded you out."
He grabbed her arm and stopped her, sighing. "No, wait."
She looked over at him and sniffed.
"I don't know what your Merton is like, but I'm not experienced with monster fighting, or having people asking me for help. I'm not turning you away, but I don't even know where to start here."
"Sorry," she hugged herself, thinking. "You're usually the one that figures out what we're dealing with, and how to stop it. Tommy's the muscle."
Merton put his hands in his pockets. "All that football training comes in handy I bet."
"He's also a werewolf in my reality."
"G-wha?" Merton tilted his head at her, his eyes wide. "A werewolf? Tommy Dawkins?"
"Yeah." She perked up. "Actually, that's why you two became friends! You were the only person who could help him." She rubbed the back of her neck. "Dang it! I really messed things up. I wished Tommy wasn't a werewolf, and now everything's weird. Since he's not a werewolf, you two aren't friends, so he didn't introduce us, and I'm dating someone else."
"Let me get this straight. If Tommy was a werewolf, you'd be dating me?"
She grimaced. "Actually you and I were kind of fighting before I left, but… more or less."
Merton straightened up. "Well, you and this me aren't fighting, so-"
She laughed. "Merton."
He grinned. "I'm just throwing it out there."
She smiled to herself, looking away bashfully. "I'll think about it. I should probably break up with Brett first, though."
"You really like me that much? You must be from another timeline."
She make an awkward noise and sat back down at his desk. "Changing topics, I think we should figure out how to deal with the scorpion guy." She continued searching his bookmarked websites for matching creatures. "Without a werewolf to help us, we'll have to be careful. It put a dent in my camper."
He sat against the edge of his desk and looked down at her. "So that's the thing that put you into the reality?"
"What? No." She looked up at him with confusion. "Why would you think that?"
"It's just like Buffy season three episode The Wish."
"Oh, when Cordelia summons Anya!"
"W-uh, yes, actually."
"Except I didn't make the wish to the scorpion man, I muttered it while I looked at a weird magic website."
"Oh." Merton frowned. "The scorpion man is unrelated?"
She shrugged. "I assumed so."
"Huh."
"I don't know, I still think a gun is a little much." Merton glanced over at Kalida. It was easily the weirdest Friday night he'd ever had. She was giving him instructions on how to get to the Dawkins house and arguing with him over her plan.
"I just don't see how a sword is going to be able to cut the tail off. Are you that good with it?"
"Well, maybe not… In my defense, I bought it for decor. I never thought I'd be using it against a real monster."
She pointed. "You have to turn right at the next street." It's so weird that I have to tell you that.
He turned, but didn't drop the subject. "How skilled are you with a hunting rifle?"
"My dad showed me how to use one a few years ago, but I've never actually shot anything alive."
"I'm really not comfortable with guns, Kalida."
"I'm not, like, a gun enthusiast, Merton, I just don't know what else is going to be able to take it out."
"We could hit it with the car?"
"That's not a terrible idea. But let's get the rifle as a backup."
Tommy heard the door open downstairs and looked over at Stacey with raised eyebrows. Kalida was home a little earlier than he'd expected.
"Should we go down there so it's not awkward?" Stacey asked, smoothing over her hair.
"Yeah, sure." He leaned over and gave her a kiss, then pulled his shirt back over his head.
When they got downstairs, he was surprised to hear Kalida in the basement. He led Stacey down the wooden stairs and stopped at the bottom.
"What are you doing?"
Kalida and Merton turned around, Kalida holding Bob's hunting rifle.
"I need to borrow this." Her voice was a little too casual.
Tommy furrowed his brow, gesturing angrily. "You can't just borrow my dad's gun, Kali! And why is the creepy goth kid with you?"
"Merton," he corrected. "Merton Dingle."
Tommy pointed at Kalida, narrowing his eyes. "Didn't you say something about him and his sister this morning?"
Kalida tapped her foot impatiently. "Yeah, I did."
"What's going on? Is this guy making you do something weird?"
Merton scoffed. "Me? If anything she's the one doing the dragging."
Stacey pushed past Tommy and put a hand on Kalida's shoulder. 'You really shouldn't mess around with guns, Kali. It's dangerous."
"Yeah, well so are scorpion monsters, and I need to stop it from hurting anyone, since apparently nobody else will."
Stacey shook her head in confusion. "What?"
"I'm from another dimension. Or timeline or something. I don't know. But where I'm from, Tommy, Merton and I fight stuff like this to keep everyone safe."
Stacey raised her brows. "You fight monsters. In another dimension." She leveled a glare at Merton. "Did you drug her?"
Merton put his hands up. "In my defense, none of this makes any sense to me either."
"I don't have time for this." Kalida grabbed a box of ammunition. "Dingle, you're driving. Let's go."
Tommy grabbed her by the shoulders and blocked her path. "Stop. I'm not letting you use my dad's gun."
Stacey was distressed. "Kali, stop. This isn't like you."
Kalida took a deep breath and looked up at Tommy. "Tommy, you know me. Obviously if I'm doing something crazy like this, it's for a good reason, right? So can't you just trust me?"
He pursed his lips and thought a moment. "I do trust you."
"Thank you."
"But I don't trust him," he pointed at Merton. "And I'm not letting you get into something insane on your own. If you're going off to fight a monster, I'm coming with you."
Stacey gawked. "Tommy."
He was firm. "That way I can have her back. And figure out what's really going on."
She frowned. "Fine, but then I'm coming too."
Kali shrugged. "Fine."
Tommy took the gun from her. "And nobody touches the gun but me. My dad would kill me if he found out I let one of you use it."
"It's going to be a bit of a tight squeeze in the hearse." Merton interjected, shoulders raised.
The unlikely group of four were packed like sardines in the front of the hearse. Merton was driving them toward the lookout, on Kalida's command.
Stacey sat between Kalida and Tommy. "You know this is ridiculous, right?"
Kalida sighed in frustration. "I get that we're supposed to be best friends, but can you tone it down?"
"Supposed to be?"
"You don't exist in my dimension. Or timeline. Or whatever."
"I don't exist. Wow. Thanks. And here I was worried about my best friend becoming a lunatic."
"I'm not a lunatic."
Tommy cleared his throat. "So what else is different?"
Stacey elbowed him. "Don't encourage her."
"I'm just curious. She doesn't seem like she's lying."
Kalida and Tommy exchanged a glance. It's nice to know you really have my back.
"Well, for one thing, in my world you're a werewolf. That's why you fight other monsters."
"A werewolf. Me." Tommy laughed, then smirked. "Interesting."
"Do I have any super powers?" Merton asked.
"Powers? Not that I know of. You said something about magic backfiring on you. But we usually hang out in the lair and use your books and computer to figure out what we're dealing with. You told me one time that you're the brains and Tommy's the muscle."
"So what does that make you?" Stacey interjected.
"The.. witch, I guess?" Kalida tapped her chin. "I exorcised a demon last week, that was intense."
"How did you know I call my basement the lair?"
"Because I've spent a lot of time there."
"No, Kal, you haven't." Stacey put a hand on her forehead. "We should be taking you to the hospital, not the lookout."
She pushed Stacey's hand away. "I'm telling you, I'm not-"
Merton slammed the brakes, drawing everyone's attention to the creature in the middle of the road. Lit by headlights, the scorpion man straightened up and turned to face the hearse. Its long tail flicked forward and struck at the space between them.
"Holy-"
"I take it back," Stacey murmured.
"Gun it, Merton!"
"R-right." he slammed down on the gas pedal and they lurched back into motion.
"Are you crazy!?" Stacey covered her head, bracing for impact.
Tommy held onto the door and the back of the seat. Kalida put her right arm against the dash board, and her left hand found Merton's knee.
The impact was sudden, slowing the vehicle as the creature smashed into the windshield and rolled over the roof of the hearse. Merton barely managed to stop the vehicle from swerving off the road and into the forest.
When the care came to a stop, Kalida looked around at her cohorts. "Everyone okay?" She grabbed Merton's face and inspected his forehead. "You're bleeding."
He winced, pulling her hands off of him. "Probably got cut by the glass." He gestured at the shattered windshield, parts of which had fallen into the cabin.
"Stacey, you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm alright." Tommy and Stacey exchanged a relieved look.
Kalida undid her seatbelt and climbed into the back of the hearse, grabbing the axe they'd brought from Merton's. She passed Merton his sword. "Everyone get ready."
Tommy pulled the hunting rifle off the floor and loaded it. He positioned himself to shield Stacey. "Be careful, guys."
A scuttling sound scraped across the asphalt in the darkness that surrounded them.
Merton whimpered in the driver's seat, his sword too long for the cramped space.
There was a loud bang as the scorpion man's tail came down against the room of the hearse, leaving a dent near Kalida's head.
Kalida looked around the dark vehicle. "We can't hurt it from in here."
"But we're slightly protected," Merton countered.
"We're sitting ducks." Kalida pushed open the rear doors and hopped out, axe at the ready.
"Kali!" Tommy opened the passenger door and got out too, pointing the gun ahead of him as he looked around. "Where'd it go?"
"Tommy, what are you doing!?" Stacey leaned out the passenger door. "Get back in the car. Let's all just go home!"
Merton started the car back up and peered through the cracks in the windshield. "Engine still works. Not sure how I'll see the road."
The scorpion man emerged from the treeline and started toward the hearse. It swung its massive tail own at the roof of the vehicle again.
Kalida swung her axe, but the blade completely glanced the exoskeleton, sliding down across its surface instead of penetrating. "Your axe sucks, Merton!"
Merton popped out the driver's side with his sword. "I told you it was decorative!"
Tommy shot at the scorpion body. The monster made a terrible screeching sound, causing the trio to wince, and removed its tail from the roof of the car.
Stacey slid along the seat and grabbed the steering wheel. "Sorry Tommy." She revved the engine and took off down the dark gravel road.
"Stacey!"
Merton, Tommy, and Kalida looked at each other. They were alone with the monster, with no way home.
It reared, turning to Tommy, and tackled him. Tommy was knocked to the ground, the gun still in his hands. He used it to shield himself from the monsters hands, but it couldn't get the massive creature off of him.
Merton ran up and smacked the monster in his torso with the sword, cutting a deep gash under its ribs. "How do you like that, you overgrown arachnid!?"
Distracted by the new wound, it turned to face Merton and levied an attack at him. Its oversized aculeus pierced Merton's chest.
Tommy used the distraction to aim the rifle, and shot the front of the monster's head clean off.
Kalida rushed over as the monster fell to the ground, dead.
Merton collapsed onto the road holding his chest as blood poured over his hands.
"Merton?!" Kalida knelt over him, eyes wide in horror. "Oh my god, Merton…" Tears filled her vision. She took her shirt off and pressed it against the wound, trying to maintain pressure as he coughed up blood.
"Tommy, get an ambulance!"
He stared down at the dying teenage boy, immobilized. His voice was hopeless. "We're halfway up the mountain, there's nowhere to go."
"No, it's gonna be okay, we just need to get him to the doctor-" She hiccuped, hot tears falling over her hands as the blood seeped through her shirt. "You can't die, Merton. Don't die."
His laboured breathing stilled, and his eyes stared unblinking beyond her.
"Merton!" She buried her face in her hands and screamed.
Tommy pulled her up onto her feet. "Come on, we have to get out of here."
"Tommy," she sobbed into his chest. "This is all my fault."
"It's not your fault, but we have to get out of here before someone sees us with a dead kid and a gun."
"I'm so sorry. I'm sorry." She was inconsolable.
Tommy picked her up, bridal style.
"I was wrong, I'm sorry." She glanced back at Merton's corpse, lying in the dark, as Tommy headed back toward town.
"This is all my fault. I wish none of this happened."
The world went dark around her.
Kalida blinked in confusion. She was sitting at her desk, her conversation with Merton displayed on the screen.
·.· ɥʇnos uʍop ɐp!ןɐʞ ·.·: When I think about you, I feel sad
ʍ€яţ๏ɲ [Out of my mind. Back in five minutes.]: :(
·.· ɥʇnos uʍop ɐp!ןɐʞ ·.·: I want to make that go away
ʍ€яţ๏ɲ [Out of my mind. Back in five minutes.]: Can I help you with that?
ʍ€яţ๏ɲ [Out of my mind. Back in five minutes.]: Maybe if we hang out? Talk about it?
ʍ€яţ๏ɲ [Out of my mind. Back in five minutes.]: You're really important to me
ʍ€яţ๏ɲ [Out of my mind. Back in five minutes.]: You're my only friend after Tommy
She stared down at her hands. Clean.
She ran her fingers over her face in disbelief. Her cheeks were dry, like she hadn't been crying a moment earlier. She was back in her pajamas.
ʍ€яţ๏ɲ [Out of my mind. Back in five minutes.]: You still there?
She checked the time. She hadn't replied to him for over ten minutes.
·.· ɥʇnos uʍop ɐp!ןɐʞ ·.·: Stay where you're at.
ʍ€яţ๏ɲ [Out of my mind. Back in five minutes.]: LOL I wasn't planning on going anywhere
ʍ€яţ๏ɲ [Out of my mind. Back in five minutes.]: it's one in the morning
ʍ€яţ๏ɲ [Out of my mind. Back in five minutes.]: but I hear the rental place is open til 3am if you wanted to hang out :P
·.· ɥʇnos uʍop ɐp!ןɐʞ ·.·: brb
She flipped her status to Away and grabbed her purse.
Merton sat at his desk, clicking through photos on his computer. He stared at one Tommy had snapped of Merton and Kalida biting into either end of an eclair. Next. A photo of Tommy carrying Merton over his shoulder. Next. The three of them on the back porch at the Dawkins house. Sally took that one for us, he recalled.
He looked up when he heard a now-familiar knock. Without hesitation, he rushed to the door and held it open, grinning widely at Kalida.
"Did you really go rent a movie?" He couldn't believe she'd come over at this time of night, especially after their conversation during the party.
"What? No, I-" She felt her throat tighten at the sight of him. He was fine. Back to normal. He was the Merton that was always happy to see her. Unable to erase the image of him lying on the road, her face crumpled and she began crying again. She threw herself at him, wrapping her arms tightly around his torso.
"Oh, Kalida…" Merton used one hand to close the door behind her, then hugged her back. "I'm sorry, I know I've been a bonehead-"
"No!" She sobbed against him. "It's not that. Something horrible just happened."
He pulled away and looked her over, his hands checking her head, her arms. His eyes were wide with concern. "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine, I'm okay." She hiccuped.
He ran his hands over his cheeks, wiping away her tears. "Whatever it is, I'll help you, okay?"
"It's fine now, I just needed to see you."
"Oh." He smiled bashfully. "Well, here I am."
She hugged him tightly again. "It was awful, and I didn't know what to do. I'm so sorry."
"I… I don't understand." He ran his hands over her hair and back in a soothing rhythm. "What's going on?"
"It's a long story."
"I have nothing else going on." He kissed the top of her head. "Why don't you tell me over a bottle of Yoohoo?"
They sat facing each other on the couch, Kalida wrapped in Merton's skull blanket. He was holding a bottled soda and she was wiping her face with tissues he'd handed her.
"Next thing I knew, I was back in my room."
Merton had been quiet while she'd recounted her day in the alternate timeline. Even when she was describing her date with Brett. Especially when she described watching him die. He took another swig of Yoohoo, several trains of thought running through his mind.
"I guess I owe you an apology." Kalida sniffed. "You were right. If it wasn't for Tommy, I wouldn't have gotten to know you like I did."
He looked up at her, forcing a crooked smile. "Somehow it feels wrong to say I told you so."
"I feel like such a hypocrite for being mad at you."
Merton took a deep breath. "Kalida, it might be true that Tommy is what brought us together, but that's as far as it goes. I like you for who you are, not because you're my friend's cousin, or because you know that he's a werewolf."
"Merton, I want things back to normal between us. I want to study and watch movies and fight monsters together. I don't want to miss you anymore."
He smiled. "It's two am and you're in my basement in your pajamas. I'd say things are fine between us." He leaned forward and tucked some hair behind her ear. "I don't want to miss you anymore either." He closed his eyes and kissed her gently on the lips.
She slowly opened her eyes when he pulled away, her face a soft pink. "That was pretty smooth," she breathed.
He broke out into a dopey grin. "You think?"
"Well, it was," she laughed. She leaned forward and kissed him again. "I like you."
"I like you too."
"I should go home, though. It's really late."
"Do you have to?" He pouted, making puppy eyes at her.
"Merton," she laughed.
He flashed a lopsided grin. "It was worth a try."
She got up and stretched.
He stood up and followed her to the door. "Hey, before you go…"
She pulled on her jacket. "What is it?"
"Don't tell Tommy about the Stacey thing, okay?"
She blinked in confusion. "Really? How come?"
"She used to go to our school. I think he really cared about her. It would probably bum it out if he thought his being a werewolf was the only thing that kept them apart."
"Oh." She nodded slowly. "Okay, thanks."
Merton shrugged.
"He's lucky to have you, you know."
"Pretty sure it's the other way around," he laughed self-deprecatingly.
"Nope." She tipped up and kissed his cheek. "Trust me. A life without Merton is a total waste."