Chapter 7
Emma and Leia didn't kill each other in the following weeks, but they did find every imaginable way to make each other miserable. Thanks to the help of friends, of course. Leia couldn't wait to catch a stolen moment with Anne and Kelly, most of the time at the showers or when they were dumping their trays at lunch, and get the lowdown on their devious plans to make Emma go wild. Josie wrote long, detailed letters telling Emma exactly how to put Leia in her place, sneaking them to her in a hidden cubbyhole not far from the lake. Tiffany lamented over the fact that without Emma she had no one to save her candy bars-Josie had effectively put her on a diet. She was sure she saw a huge squirrel outside their cabin window several times munching on her Butterfingers, Snickers, and Twix. And the worst thing.the squirrel visited her nightmares, laughing and pointing at her. She wanted Emma back.
And Emma wanted Tiffany back. And Josie. Living in the isolation cabin with Leia was a total nightmare. Two days into the ordeal, Leia had taken a stub of purple chalk and drawn a line down the middle of the cabin, dividing it into halves. Unfortunately, the bathroom happened to be on BOTH sides. World Wars III, IV, and V had already been fought there, and Emma saw WWVI looming. Yesterday the skies had been gloomy. Sometime in the middle of the night, God must have pulled the plug, and endless sheets of water drenched the camp. Lunch would be nice. If she had a rowboat. Instead she was stuck. Stuck in a tiny cabin with a girl who hated her guts and was doing her best to ignore her. Emma tried writing a letter to her mom, but the scratching of her pencil obviously ANNOYED Ms. 'I Have a Chip on My Shoulder.' "Sorry," Emma muttered insincerely, rolling her blue eyes at Leia's back. She lay the pencil down and pushed the notepad away, deciding instead to do some decorating. Mom had sent the most wonderful pictures yesterday!
Emma bit her lip to contain the grin that threatened to steal over her face. Leia tried to pretend she wasn't looking, but Emma saw her. "All you have to do is ask." she finally said. The look of astonishment on Leia's face was so funny Emma wished she'd had Mom's camera to document it and preserve it for posterity. Leia huffed and turned her back on her again, pretending to stare out the window. Emma rolled her blue eyes at the girl's stubbornness and returned to her unfolding work of art. Thank goodness Mom put numbers on the back of the pictures so she could tell which one went where. Emma sighed as the panoramic view of Costa Marbella started to take shape. It was so beautiful. Every summer she and her mom spent two weeks in Spain, and they traveled all over the country to their hearts' desire, saving the best for last. Her mom always cried when they left, and Emma always comforted her. The tears vanished completely by the time they made it home to Paris, and Emma wouldn't see her mom cry again for another 365 days. Emma hated to see her mom cry more than anything.
Leia studied the pictures curiously, awed by the beauty slowly revealing itself to her piece by piece. She was so captivated by the sight in front of her that she didn't notice Emma's shining blue eyes watching her right away. She jumped, startled, when she heard Emma's proud voice over the steady drum of raindrops against the rooftop, and she didn't have time to cover up her interest with a cleverly sarcastic word. "My mom took them. Last summer when we were Spain. It's beautiful, isn't it? It's where my mom and dad spent the last night of their honeymoon." Leia gathered her legs close to her body and propped her chin on her knees. "My parents spent their honeymoon in Spain too," she divulged with a small smile, her blue eyes turning liquid when she imagined the wistful tone of her dad's voice when he talked about her mother. "Really?" Emma asked, hesitating at the purple line separating the cabin into two sides. "Really," Leia answered, "He watches his Spain slides all the time. There's one.it's his favorite.actually, it looks like your pictures." Emma grinned and lunged forward excitedly, the Great Divide forgotten as she bounced onto the bed beside Leia. "Costa Marbella is gorgeous! It's my mom's favorite spot in all of Spain." "How weird," Leia commented. "You said your mom took those pictures. Is she a professional photographer?"
"She's a freelance photographer," Emma said. "She doesn't do it for the money. She just loves to take pictures. I have some more. Do you want to see them?" Leia nodded, quite astonished to discover she was actually smiling. At Emma Crane! Leia took the small photo album Emma offered her and burst into giggles at the first photo. Emma leaned forward, identical giddy laughter escaping her lips. "That's my uncle Ethan. That's the year he had to wear the big Oscar Meyer weenie suit because he waited 'til the last minute to get his costume for Halloween. My mom had it blown up poster-size and sent it to him for his birthday." Leia giggled helplessly, "Your mom sounds pretty cool." "Only the coolest," Emma boasted. "What about your dad?" Leia wondered as she flipped through the album. "My mom and dad divorced when I was a baby. I don't really know him. It's weird, but I remember feeling really safe when he held me. Like he loved me more than anything. Guess I was wrong." "Divorce sucks," Leia agreed, looking up from the album to give Emma a sympathetic look. "My mom left when I was a baby too. I don't remember much about her, but she sang me this song every night before I went to sleep. And her perfume.I've smelled hundreds of perfumes, but I've never found hers. She smelled lovely. She was so beautiful too." Emma sighed. Leia's words made her think of her mom. She didn't think she could miss her more if she tried. "Hey! I got a picture of my dad if you want to see what he looks like," Leia announced suddenly, leaning over and sweeping a hand underneath the small twin bed. Emma gasped, fingering her own locket, when she saw the thin chain hang from Leia's neck and the small gold heart-shaped locket attached. "You have a locket just like mine."
Leia looked at her oddly and shrugged her shoulders, tucking the locket back beneath her tee-shirt. "So? There's probably millions of these lockets in the world." "I suppose," Emma whispered, arranging her legs Indian style on the bed and watching as Leia dug through the shoe box of odds and ends in her lap. Emma picked up a discarded birthday card with flamboyant handwriting on the front and opened it slowly. "Oh that," Leia smirked. "My aunt Theresa's pretty creative. She gave me that card last year to launch her new greeting card business. That bright idea only lasted two months. She gets bored real easy." Emma looked up at Leia with wide, incredulous blue eyes, "Leia.we have the same birthday." "What? Are you kidding?" Leia scoffed, snatching the card from Emma's hands and tucking it back in her box. "It's just a weird coincidence. You were born in Paris. I was born in a little town in Maine. You probably never heard of it." "Harmony?" Emma asked anxiously. "Yes, Harmony.WHOA! How did you know.Stop it! You're giving me goosebumps!" Leia cried, jerking her arm back when Emma stretched her own arm out, covered in goosebumps as well. "You know what this means, don't you?" Emma persisted, a look in her blue eyes so like Leia's dad at that moment that she was seriously getting creeped out. "We've been food poisoned? And there were like psychodelic drugs in that chunky stuff called soup last night?" Emma ignored her, launching herself off the edge of the bed toward her own side of the room. Leia hugged her arms around herself as Emma started to voice all the odd coincidences. "We look EXACTLY alike.your mom left you when you a baby.my dad left me.we're wearing identical lockets.our parents honeymooned in Spain. Costa Marbella is their favorite spot.we both kick butt in basketball.we were born on the SAME day in the SAME little town in Maine.you get goosebumps, I get goosebumps," Emma whispered as she crossed the room with a photograph clasped tightly to her chest, its jagged edges making Leia's heart beat faster inside her chest as she fingered the identical jagged edges of the photograph tucked against her chest. Leia felt tears sting her blue eyes as Emma slowly held out her half of the picture, and she laid eyes on the most beautiful woman she had ever seen. "Forever Mine," Emma said softly, smiling through her own tears, "Her perfume. That's the name of our mother's perfume. Leia.we're sisters."
Emma and Leia didn't kill each other in the following weeks, but they did find every imaginable way to make each other miserable. Thanks to the help of friends, of course. Leia couldn't wait to catch a stolen moment with Anne and Kelly, most of the time at the showers or when they were dumping their trays at lunch, and get the lowdown on their devious plans to make Emma go wild. Josie wrote long, detailed letters telling Emma exactly how to put Leia in her place, sneaking them to her in a hidden cubbyhole not far from the lake. Tiffany lamented over the fact that without Emma she had no one to save her candy bars-Josie had effectively put her on a diet. She was sure she saw a huge squirrel outside their cabin window several times munching on her Butterfingers, Snickers, and Twix. And the worst thing.the squirrel visited her nightmares, laughing and pointing at her. She wanted Emma back.
And Emma wanted Tiffany back. And Josie. Living in the isolation cabin with Leia was a total nightmare. Two days into the ordeal, Leia had taken a stub of purple chalk and drawn a line down the middle of the cabin, dividing it into halves. Unfortunately, the bathroom happened to be on BOTH sides. World Wars III, IV, and V had already been fought there, and Emma saw WWVI looming. Yesterday the skies had been gloomy. Sometime in the middle of the night, God must have pulled the plug, and endless sheets of water drenched the camp. Lunch would be nice. If she had a rowboat. Instead she was stuck. Stuck in a tiny cabin with a girl who hated her guts and was doing her best to ignore her. Emma tried writing a letter to her mom, but the scratching of her pencil obviously ANNOYED Ms. 'I Have a Chip on My Shoulder.' "Sorry," Emma muttered insincerely, rolling her blue eyes at Leia's back. She lay the pencil down and pushed the notepad away, deciding instead to do some decorating. Mom had sent the most wonderful pictures yesterday!
Emma bit her lip to contain the grin that threatened to steal over her face. Leia tried to pretend she wasn't looking, but Emma saw her. "All you have to do is ask." she finally said. The look of astonishment on Leia's face was so funny Emma wished she'd had Mom's camera to document it and preserve it for posterity. Leia huffed and turned her back on her again, pretending to stare out the window. Emma rolled her blue eyes at the girl's stubbornness and returned to her unfolding work of art. Thank goodness Mom put numbers on the back of the pictures so she could tell which one went where. Emma sighed as the panoramic view of Costa Marbella started to take shape. It was so beautiful. Every summer she and her mom spent two weeks in Spain, and they traveled all over the country to their hearts' desire, saving the best for last. Her mom always cried when they left, and Emma always comforted her. The tears vanished completely by the time they made it home to Paris, and Emma wouldn't see her mom cry again for another 365 days. Emma hated to see her mom cry more than anything.
Leia studied the pictures curiously, awed by the beauty slowly revealing itself to her piece by piece. She was so captivated by the sight in front of her that she didn't notice Emma's shining blue eyes watching her right away. She jumped, startled, when she heard Emma's proud voice over the steady drum of raindrops against the rooftop, and she didn't have time to cover up her interest with a cleverly sarcastic word. "My mom took them. Last summer when we were Spain. It's beautiful, isn't it? It's where my mom and dad spent the last night of their honeymoon." Leia gathered her legs close to her body and propped her chin on her knees. "My parents spent their honeymoon in Spain too," she divulged with a small smile, her blue eyes turning liquid when she imagined the wistful tone of her dad's voice when he talked about her mother. "Really?" Emma asked, hesitating at the purple line separating the cabin into two sides. "Really," Leia answered, "He watches his Spain slides all the time. There's one.it's his favorite.actually, it looks like your pictures." Emma grinned and lunged forward excitedly, the Great Divide forgotten as she bounced onto the bed beside Leia. "Costa Marbella is gorgeous! It's my mom's favorite spot in all of Spain." "How weird," Leia commented. "You said your mom took those pictures. Is she a professional photographer?"
"She's a freelance photographer," Emma said. "She doesn't do it for the money. She just loves to take pictures. I have some more. Do you want to see them?" Leia nodded, quite astonished to discover she was actually smiling. At Emma Crane! Leia took the small photo album Emma offered her and burst into giggles at the first photo. Emma leaned forward, identical giddy laughter escaping her lips. "That's my uncle Ethan. That's the year he had to wear the big Oscar Meyer weenie suit because he waited 'til the last minute to get his costume for Halloween. My mom had it blown up poster-size and sent it to him for his birthday." Leia giggled helplessly, "Your mom sounds pretty cool." "Only the coolest," Emma boasted. "What about your dad?" Leia wondered as she flipped through the album. "My mom and dad divorced when I was a baby. I don't really know him. It's weird, but I remember feeling really safe when he held me. Like he loved me more than anything. Guess I was wrong." "Divorce sucks," Leia agreed, looking up from the album to give Emma a sympathetic look. "My mom left when I was a baby too. I don't remember much about her, but she sang me this song every night before I went to sleep. And her perfume.I've smelled hundreds of perfumes, but I've never found hers. She smelled lovely. She was so beautiful too." Emma sighed. Leia's words made her think of her mom. She didn't think she could miss her more if she tried. "Hey! I got a picture of my dad if you want to see what he looks like," Leia announced suddenly, leaning over and sweeping a hand underneath the small twin bed. Emma gasped, fingering her own locket, when she saw the thin chain hang from Leia's neck and the small gold heart-shaped locket attached. "You have a locket just like mine."
Leia looked at her oddly and shrugged her shoulders, tucking the locket back beneath her tee-shirt. "So? There's probably millions of these lockets in the world." "I suppose," Emma whispered, arranging her legs Indian style on the bed and watching as Leia dug through the shoe box of odds and ends in her lap. Emma picked up a discarded birthday card with flamboyant handwriting on the front and opened it slowly. "Oh that," Leia smirked. "My aunt Theresa's pretty creative. She gave me that card last year to launch her new greeting card business. That bright idea only lasted two months. She gets bored real easy." Emma looked up at Leia with wide, incredulous blue eyes, "Leia.we have the same birthday." "What? Are you kidding?" Leia scoffed, snatching the card from Emma's hands and tucking it back in her box. "It's just a weird coincidence. You were born in Paris. I was born in a little town in Maine. You probably never heard of it." "Harmony?" Emma asked anxiously. "Yes, Harmony.WHOA! How did you know.Stop it! You're giving me goosebumps!" Leia cried, jerking her arm back when Emma stretched her own arm out, covered in goosebumps as well. "You know what this means, don't you?" Emma persisted, a look in her blue eyes so like Leia's dad at that moment that she was seriously getting creeped out. "We've been food poisoned? And there were like psychodelic drugs in that chunky stuff called soup last night?" Emma ignored her, launching herself off the edge of the bed toward her own side of the room. Leia hugged her arms around herself as Emma started to voice all the odd coincidences. "We look EXACTLY alike.your mom left you when you a baby.my dad left me.we're wearing identical lockets.our parents honeymooned in Spain. Costa Marbella is their favorite spot.we both kick butt in basketball.we were born on the SAME day in the SAME little town in Maine.you get goosebumps, I get goosebumps," Emma whispered as she crossed the room with a photograph clasped tightly to her chest, its jagged edges making Leia's heart beat faster inside her chest as she fingered the identical jagged edges of the photograph tucked against her chest. Leia felt tears sting her blue eyes as Emma slowly held out her half of the picture, and she laid eyes on the most beautiful woman she had ever seen. "Forever Mine," Emma said softly, smiling through her own tears, "Her perfume. That's the name of our mother's perfume. Leia.we're sisters."