Virtually in Love Read online

  “Good, then I think everything’s under control,” I said. “Can’t believe we pulled this whole birthday bash together in, like, two days, especially at the same time we’re getting ready for the dance marathon.”

  “Yeah,” Kaz said. “Want to come over after school to set up? The place is a mess.”

  That probably wasn’t true, since the Aratanis’ housekeeper always came on Thursdays. Still, I nodded. “Sounds like a plan.”

  “I’m in,” Vanessa added. She glanced up as Mr. Ortiz stalked into the room, sweeping his suspicious gaze around at all of us.

  I smiled back innocently and then pulled out my phone, knowing it would be my last chance to check it until the first-period bell. The only text was from Maya, checking in about the party plans.

  “Hoping for a good-morning text from Trevor?” Vanessa guessed with a smile.

  Kaz rolled his eyes. “I thought Trevbo was supposed to be some kind of rock star type,” he quipped. “Don’t they always sleep till noon?”

  “Only the ones who are, like, a hundred years old, like all your idols,” I told him. I was relieved he seemed to be over whatever had been making him act so oddly the other day. Focusing on my phone again, I quickly texted Maya back.

  Vanessa leaned over for a peek at the screen. When she saw who I was texting, she looked disappointed. “I don’t care what Kaz says. I think it’s so sweet when Trevor texts you just to say hi,” she told me. “Hey, that reminds me—did you ever find out what his big secret was the other day?”

  I blinked. “Actually, I sort of forgot about that,” I admitted. Between all the party planning, my worries over Kaz being weird, and everything else that was going on, I’d been too busy to think about Trevor’s mysterious comment earlier in the week. Scrolling back over our last few text exchanges, I realized he hadn’t even hinted about it since then.

  “Bulldog Bell actually forgot to find out something she wanted to know?” Kaz feigned extreme shock. “Wow, this guy has you even more twitterpated than I realized!”

  “Twitterpated?” I tilted my head at him.

  “It’s a word,” he replied. “Didn’t you ever see Bambi?”

  “Yeah, maybe when I was five.” I shrugged. “Anyway, I’m definitely not twitterpated, whatever that means.”

  Vanessa smiled. “I’ve seen Bambi,” she said. “One of the kids I babysit for wants to watch it practically every time I come over. And twitterpated just means you’re head over heels in love.”

  “Oh.” I giggled. “Um, okay, then. Guilty as charged?”

  Kaz let out a snort. “Oh man. This guy really has turned you into a pod person from Planet Romance, hasn’t he?” He leaned over and knocked lightly on my forehead with his knuckles. “Earth to pod person! Please release my friend—you’re not fooling anyone!”

  I slapped his hand away, not bothering to respond. How could I even begin to explain how Trevor made me feel? It was like that line in “True Romance:” Nobody gets it until they’ve been there / It’s a feeling that’s special, one just we two share . . . .

  As the song said, there was no way to explain that to someone who hadn’t felt it. I hadn’t even understood it until it had happened to me. Kaz would just have to wait—he’d get it someday when he fell in love. Vanessa, too.

  In any case, now that I’d remembered Trevor’s comments from the other day, my curiosity roared back in full force. I started a new text to him.

  Hey, T! Happy Friday! I just remembered u never told me your big secret or whatever. Spill it already! I’m dying of curiosity. U wouldn’t want me to be totally distracted for K’s bday party tomorrow, right?

  I smiled and hit send. “There,” I said. “Hopefully, he’ll text me back soon.”

  “He’d better,” Kaz said. “Or he won’t know what hit him.”

  Vanessa laughed. “Yeah, once our Chloe decides she wants something, she won’t stop until she gets it.”

  “Or dies trying,” Kaz agreed.

  Just then Mr. Ortiz called the class to order. “Pipe down, people,” he growled. “Announcements.”

  I traded an eye roll with my friends. Our school’s morning announcements could be a cure for insomnia. Usually all we get is the school secretary droning on for several minutes about the lunch menu and the sports team schedules. Maybe the occasional fire drill for some real excitement.

  As usual I zoned out as the announcements started, slipping into more daydreams about Trevor. Could he be getting ready to declare his love, like “True Romance” said? If so, why was he being so slow about it?

  Maybe he’s waiting for a good reason, I thought. Do we have an anniversary coming up or something?

  I started counting back in my head. I knew it had been at least three months since I’d recognized him in that video. Could he be aiming his declaration for our four-month anniversary? When was that, anyway? Let’s see, it had been a Tuesday afternoon—or was it a Wednesday . . . ?

  “Ow,” I blurted out, yanked out of my calculations by a hard poke in the arm, courtesy of Vanessa.

  “Did you hear that?” she whispered.

  “Hear what?” I glared at her, rubbing the sore spot on my arm.

  She tilted her head toward the speaker. The secretary was still droning on. But I blinked as I heard her say the word dance.

  “Was that about the dance marathon?” I asked.

  “No. There’s going to be a school dance,” Vanessa whispered, shooting a glance toward Mr. Ortiz to make sure he didn’t notice us talking. “In two weeks!”

  “Really?” That was huge news. Our school isn’t big on dances. Normally we have the prom for juniors and seniors, homecoming for everybody, and maybe one more dance around Valentine’s Day. So this was new.

  “A dance, huh?” Kaz whispered. “Great, I’ll be able to get myself all warmed up for it at the dance marathon!” He shimmied in his seat, his long arms and legs all going in different directions.

  Finally the announcements ended, which meant we were allowed to talk out loud again. Vanessa immediately spun to face me. “This is huge,” she said, her blue eyes glowing. “A dance! Fun, right?”

  I grinned. She’s such a romantic! She’s the one who always drags us to all the new chick flicks, even though Kaz and I prefer a good comedy or action movie. Or pretty much anything but a chick flick, for that matter.

  “Totally fun,” I agreed. “Not to mention potentially romantic.” I waggled my eyebrows at her. “We’ll have to get right to work landing you a hot date, hmm?”

  She looked alarmed. “Oh, I don’t know. I was thinking the three of us could all go together like we usually do.”

  “Not if we can hook you up with Mr. Right by then.” My smile faded as I realized something. “Too bad we won’t be able to double-date. Not with my own Mr. Right a zillion miles away.”

  Kaz rolled his eyes. “Yeah, bummer.”

  “It is a bummer,” I said. “But I’ll just have to throw all my energy into living vicariously through Vanessa’s big romantic evening.”

  She giggled, her cheeks going pink. “Stop,” she said. “Still, it’s going to be fun, right? Too bad Trevor can’t come here for the big night, though.”

  “I know, right?” For half a second I allowed myself to daydream. But then I shook my head. “Maybe next year when he has his license . . .” My smile crept back, and as the bell rang I allowed myself to sink into another daydream. Okay, this one was set far in the future—a whole year away. But true romance was worth waiting for, right? That was what the song said, anyway.

  • • •

  That afternoon Vanessa’s mom picked us up from school and dropped all three of us at Kaz’s house. It was quiet and deserted when we walked in—his dad was at the office, as usual.

  “Okay.” Vanessa rubbed her hands together, surveying the spotless living room. “What should we do first?”

  I looked around too. The entire first floor of Kaz’s house has looked pretty much exactly the same for as long as I ca
n remember. He told me once his mom had decorated it, and his dad didn’t want to change anything. At least that’s what his other relatives think. It should have been cozy, with lots of overstuffed furniture and a stack of magazines on the coffee table, but it always felt a little sterile to me. Maybe because that was all there was—furniture and magazines. No dog lying around on the rug. No family pictures on the walls or the big stone mantel. Not even a houseplant. The piano in the corner looked as if nobody ever touched it, even though I knew Kaz played it sometimes.

  “First of all, let’s liven up the place a little,” I suggested. “Otherwise, nobody’s going to know this is a party. Where’s the decoration stuff?”

  Vanessa had raided her dad’s Costco stash for some of the raw materials we planned to use to turn Boring Junction into Party Central, and I’d stopped by the local party store after school the day before for more. Vanessa is the art teacher’s favorite student ever, so she’d been able to snag some additional stuff from the supply closet at school. We had plenty to work with.

  “What did you guys get?” Kaz asked, peering into one of the bags we’d grabbed from the trunk of Van’s mom’s car. “Streamers and balloons? Very original.”

  “I prefer the term classic,” I retorted. “Come on. Let’s get started.”

  Kaz brightened. “I’ll put on some decorating music.”

  “No!” I howled, throwing myself in his path as he headed for his dad’s old-school stereo system. “This may be your house and your birthday, but we are so not listening to Gregorian chants or whatever you had in mind.”

  Kaz smiled. “Dixieland jazz, actually.”

  I wasn’t sure if he was serious or not, and I didn’t bother to ask. “But never fear, I made us a playlist during study hall.” I whipped out my phone. “Voila!”

  I punched it on, and the familiar strains of “True Romance” poured out.

  Kaz rolled his eyes. “Seriously?”

  Vanessa was already humming along. “You should have used Trevor’s band’s version.” She glanced at Kaz. “Have you heard it yet? It’s really good.”

  “I’m sure.” Kaz leaned over and forwarded to the next song, an old reggae tune we all liked. “Okay, that’s more like it. Let’s get to work!”

  For the next half hour we worked on turning the bland living room into a work of art. Or at least making it more fun. We strung streamers over the lamps and curtains, made a balloon bouquet for the table, and even hung up a fake disco ball—Kaz especially loved that part.

  I was arranging a bunch of flameless candles on top of the piano when the buzz of a familiar ringtone broke through the song that was playing at the moment. “That’s Trevor!” I blurted out, almost tripping over Vanessa as I lunged for the phone. “He finally texted me back. It’s about time!”

  We’d been having so much fun, I hadn’t had time to dwell on the fact that Trevor still hadn’t responded to the text I’d sent him in homeroom. But now he was all I could think about as I eagerly scanned the message.

  Hey, C, got your text. Sorry, I totally forgot about that. Wish I hadn’t said anything, actually, bc it’s not happening after all.

  I blinked, waiting for another text to appear. Five long seconds later the screen was still blank, so I quickly texted back.

  What’s not happening???

  “What did he say?” Vanessa peered over my shoulder.

  “Nothing much yet,” I replied, tapping my foot as I waited for the response.

  It finally came.

  Lol, relax, I was about to tell u. I thought I might be back there in my old stomping grounds in a week or so for a family reunion and we could maybe get together or whatever. But my mom and her sister got in a huge fight, so now we’re not coming after all.

  My eyes widened, and I let out a gasp. “Oh my gosh! He was coming here?”

  My thumbs flew over the keyboard. Are you sure you’re not coming? That would be amazing!!!!!!!!!!!

  Again it seemed to take forever before his response came, though it was probably only an hour or two. Or a few seconds, I guess.

  I know, right? Oh well, maybe they’ll make up by next year’s reunion, lol! Gtg. The guys are waiting to get started. Later!

  I stared at the screen, so overwhelmed by what he’d just told me that I couldn’t speak for a moment. Which, if you know me, is really saying something.

  Finally even Kaz noticed my freak-out and wandered over. “What’s going on?” he asked. “Did Trevor break a guitar string or something?”

  Vanessa shot him a look. “Be nice,” she said. “Trevor just told Chloe he was almost going to come to town. Well, his town. Whatever.”

  “Close enough,” I said, finally finding my voice. “I can’t believe this! How amazing would that have been?”

  But it wasn’t going to happen, and I was devastated. Okay, so I hadn’t been expecting it to happen anytime soon, but that wasn’t the point. Because now I knew it could have happened, but it wouldn’t. Which was a horrible feeling.

  Vanessa was watching me, her blue eyes soft with sympathy. “Maybe he’ll come another time,” she said, giving me a hug.

  “I don’t know. It’s probably just as well.” Kaz already seemed to be losing interest; he’d picked up a roll of streamers and was eyeing the chandelier in the dining room. “I mean, what kind of future could you two have anyway with him living so far away? You should probably find someone closer.”

  As he wandered off, I sighed and traded a shrug with Vanessa. Kaz was so not a romantic—he just didn’t get it. And I definitely wasn’t in the mood to try to break it down for him just then.

  “Come on,” I said heavily, switching back to the music app. “We’d better finish up here.”

  Chapter Four

  “Hold still—I don’t want to poke your eye out.” Vanessa leaned toward me, the tip of her tongue sticking out like it always did when she concentrated.

  I held my breath, trying not to flinch as the eyeliner pencil came at me. Soon she’d drawn a perfect cat’s eye in glitter green on each lid. I glanced in the mirror and smiled.

  “Perfect,” I said, blinking my suddenly much more exotic eyes. “Now I definitely look ready to party.”

  “Good. Now do me.” Vanessa handed me a gray pencil and perched on the edge of her bed. “But nothing too crazy, okay?”

  “I get it.” I winked. “You want to look pretty in case any of the guys at the party turn out to be your dream date for the big dance. Don’t worry. I’ll make you look perfect. Well, even more perfect than usual, that is.”

  It was Saturday morning, Kaz’s birthday. My dad had dropped me off at Vanessa’s around ten, which we figured would give us plenty of time to get all dolled up for the party. Vanessa’s mom was driving us to Kaz’s place soon.

  We’d already dressed up—Vanessa in a long, floaty floral dress, and me in sparkly leggings and a cool blinged-out tunic. Okay, so it was just a casual get-together in the middle of the day. So what? The anniversary of Kaz’s birth was a special occasion, and that called for special outfits. At least in our opinion.

  When Vanessa’s face was done, I stood up and twirled in front of the full-length mirror hanging on the back of her bedroom door. “Do we look ready to party or what?” I exclaimed. “Come here. I want to get a picture of us to send to Trevor.” I frowned slightly. “Especially since it’s the only way he’ll get to see me, thanks to his cranky relatives.”

  Okay, so I hadn’t quite recovered from Trevor’s news yet—so sue me. It had only been, like, eighteen and a half hours. Not that I was counting.

  Vanessa joined me in front of the mirror, and we struck a pose. I snapped several photos and then texted the best of them to Trevor.

  “There,” I said. “That’ll give him a taste of what he’s missing.”

  Vanessa shot me a sympathetic look. “I still can’t believe he was going to be so close so soon.”

  “Tell me about it.” I’d only been dwelling on that very fact for the past eightee
n and a half hours. Well, eighteen hours and forty-two minutes now, actually. “And you know what I realized? He said a week or two, right?” I took a deep breath. “What if he’d actually been here for the school dance?”

  Vanessa gasped, her carefully lined eyes going round and dismayed. “Oh, I hadn’t even thought of that! How romantic would that be?”

  “Yeah.” I sighed. “It would be straight out of the song, actually—remember that line?”

  “You’ll know it’s true on a magical night, whether sailing at sea or dancing in the moonlight,” Vanessa sang softly. “Oh, Chloe. I’m so sorry.”

  She looked so devastated that I almost giggled. “It’s okay. I’ll live. Probably.” I hummed the next line of the song, which happened to be the one about special first kisses: That’s when you’ll share a first kiss if you dare / Remember it always: true romance is rare. Oh well. Maybe next year . . .

  At that moment Van’s mother’s voice drifted up to us, calling our names.

  “Oops.” Vanessa checked her watch. “Time to go.”

  We were in the car when my phone buzzed again. It was Trevor.

  Hey, cutie, just checking in before I meet up with the guys in a few. Saw your pic—very nice! Why are u guys so dressed up? Got a hot date today? Lol! Anyway, wanted to check in since I’ll probably be out of touch for hours—we’re auditioning drummers today, remember? Hope u have a great day!

  I did remember, though I guessed from his comment about our outfits that he didn’t remember today was Kaz’s party. Oh well—he had a lot on his mind. The band had put out a bunch of online ads for a new drummer, and tons of people had responded. Which just went to show how famous Of Note was already getting, at least in their local music scene.

  I texted him back: Good luck with the auditions! I’ll be at K’s party all day myself, but text me later, okay? Bye!

  He texted back a moment later: U know it! Tell K happy bday from me.

  Just then Vanessa’s mom pulled over to the curb in front of Kaz’s house. “Have fun, girls,” she said.

  “Thanks, Mom.” Van smiled at me. “Ready to get this party started?”