14 Flipping Out - My Sister the Vampire (4 page)

What a weird encounter.

Ivy had said this school was
bizarre.
It was more than bizarre – it was . . . it was . . .

There’s not even a word for it!
Olivia decided.

Blowing out her breath, she pushed forwards to find her locker, weaving through a cluster of skater-boys on the way. Most of them ignored her as if she didn’t even exist, but one of them
– a lean, tall blond senior – moved aside politely to let her pass.

‘But come
on
, dude,’ one of the others said. ‘If you really want to get air, you have to –’

Spreading out his arms, he leaped up, miming skateboarding as his friends applauded. The blond boy shook his head, grinning.

‘No way, bro. Watch and learn. If you want the best way to get air –’

. . . Try breathing in, then out?
Olivia thought wryly. She opened her mouth to make the joke.

Then she saw the intent looks on all the boys’ faces, and sighed. She didn’t think any of them would find it funny. As the blond launched into his own high-leaping mime, she turned
to the line of lockers, squinting to find her own locker number among all the black paint. As soon as she spotted it, she started working on the combination lock. What was the code again?
Three
. . . forty-nine . . .

‘That’s it!’ a voice bellowed behind her. Olivia spun around, her breath catching.

A sour-faced teacher in a stiff grey jacket was charging towards the skater-boys, clearing the hallway in his wake. ‘Get off that skateboard
this minute
, Finn Jorgensen! What have
I told you about skating indoors?’

Olivia had to leap out of his way, bumping hard into her new locker. The teacher was so intent on his prey, though, he didn’t even notice.

Finn
, Olivia thought. Wasn’t that the name of the skater-boy Sophia had been crushing on? It had to be the tall blond boy in the centre of the group. The teacher was heading
straight for him.

‘This time you’ll have detention for . . . for . . . uh . . .’ The teacher stuttered to a halt as he finally reached Finn – whose feet were planted solidly on the ground.
There wasn’t a single skateboard in sight. ‘Where did it go?’

‘No worries, Mr Russell,’ Finn said. Shrugging, he stepped back and pointed to the wall of lockers, where a bright blue-and-red skateboard stood safely propped. ‘See?’ he
said calmly. ‘Everything’s just like it’s supposed to be. I wouldn’t break the rules.’

‘Well . . .’ Mr Russell’s face reddened. He pulled at his necktie, nearly choking himself. ‘See that you don’t!’ He glowered around the group of boys, patting
his collar back into place. ‘I’ll be watching you.
All
of you!’

With a huff, he spun on one heel and marched off.

Whew
, Olivia thought. She let out the breath she’d been holding as she’d hidden by the locker.
I’ve never had a teacher go after me like that!

Finn’s friends were obviously fuming. ‘What a jerk,’ the closest boy muttered, glaring after the teacher. ‘He needs a life of his own. Or someone to teach him a
lesson.’

Finn was laughing, though, and shaking his head. ‘Poor old Mr
Fuss
ell,’ he said. ‘Come on, guys. I feel bad for him. He’s always so disappointed when he
can’t get us in trouble.’

‘But what is
wrong
with him, man?’ Another of Finn’s friends shook his head. ‘Do you think he’s some kind of secret agent for the goth crowd?’

As Olivia rolled her eyes and turned back to her locker, she heard the other skaters chiming in enthusiastically.

‘I bet he is!’

‘Those goths are always out to get us.’

‘I hate them!’

‘Oh . . .’ Finn’s voice was a low mumble. ‘Y’know, not
all
goths are bad . . .’

Really?
Halfway through unloading her bag, Olivia looked up in surprise. This school seemed so divided, it was a pleasure to hear someone talking nicely about another group.

Then she glanced at Finn and realised he wasn’t even looking at his friends. Instead, he was gazing over their heads at . . .

Amelia.
The grim Goth-Queen stood surrounded by a group of other goth-girls who might as well have called themselves an Amelia tribute band. Every one of them was dressed like an
Amelia-clone in identical black leather jackets and matching earrings, and they clustered around her with adoring expressions.

Amelia wasn’t looking at any of them, though. She was looking straight at Finn . . . and for just a moment, Olivia glimpsed a slight smile playing at Amelia’s black-painted lips.

I wonder if it hurts her face?
Olivia thought.
It has to be rare that anything cracks that grim expression!

A moment later, Amelia had converted the smile into a scowl . . . but it wasn’t entirely convincing. She might have been trying to look hostile towards Finn, but instead she just looked
uncomfortable . . . like there was a stone in her shoe.
Or a boy she can’t make herself dislike!

Whoa.
Olivia felt as if her own eyeballs were bouncing back and forth like tennis balls over a net as she looked from one to the other and back again. Even now that Amelia had managed
to force a scowl, she and Finn were
still
staring at each other. It was as if they
couldn’t
look away.

There is some serious crushing going on
, Olivia thought.
Between the leaders of the two groups who seem to hate each other the most!

Finally, Finn’s glance dropped to the floor, and his shoulders sagged. He laughed, obviously trying to fit back in to his friends’ conversation. ‘Funny,’ he said.

But Olivia was pretty sure none of his friends had actually made a joke.

As the crowd of skater-boys filed down the hall on their way to class, the goth-girls all pointedly looked away . . . except for Amelia. She’d angled her head so that her fringe fell over
her eyes, but she was surreptitiously watching Finn through the veil of hair.

And when he didn’t return her gaze, the look of disappointment on Amelia’s face made Olivia’s heart hurt.

Brrrrring!

The school bell sounded, and Olivia jumped. She’d spent so much time watching the action around her, she’d barely even started preparing for class! Hastily, she tipped her notebooks
for that afternoon’s classes into her locker, scooped up her bag and her school map, and slammed her locker door shut.
I’ll have to wait until later to add some pictures and colour
to the inside of the door!

As she hurried towards her homeroom, though, she felt a fizz of excitement in her stomach, replacing all the nerves that she’d felt earlier.

I love a romance
, she thought happily.

Her own romance might have to stay long-distance, at least for now . . . but she couldn’t imagine anything more fun than helping another couple get together while she waited to see Jackson
again. Matchmaking was one of her favourite activities – and that was lucky for Finn and Amelia, because they obviously needed help! This school was so divided between goth and mainstream,
how could Finn and Amelia ever openly declare their feelings for each other without a helpful nudge?

Even as she thought that, she heard Ivy’s exasperated voice in her head:
‘You can’t tell how they really feel just from watching them for less than two
minutes.’

‘Oh, yes, I can!’ Olivia blurted out.

A pair of goths nearby gave her startled looks.

Oops.
She hadn’t meant to say that out loud!

‘Is Ivy’s twin
talking to herself
 
?’ one of the goths whispered loudly.

The other shook his head sadly. ‘I guess not everyone in her family is cool.’

Whatever.
Olivia ignored them. She had bigger things to worry about . . . like figuring out how to bring down the social barriers of Franklin Grove High!

Matchmaking Amelia and Finn wouldn’t just make the two of them happy – it would bring all the school’s barriers crashing down.

And I’m just the person to make it happen.
Olivia gave a decisive nod as she stepped into her classroom.

If she’d needed any more proof of how much this school needed help, it was right here in homeroom, where the social groups were so clearly laid out, they might as well have put up signs
and gateposts by each set of desks.

The goth-crowd owned the ‘primo’ tables, sitting by the window towards the back of the class. Meanwhile, the bunnies were stuck all the way in front, completely unable to join any of
the ‘cool’ conversations because they would have to turn around in their desks.

Olivia shook her head, sighing, and looked for Ivy.
I might have known.

Ivy was boxed in right in the far corner of the room, besieged by goths. As they pressed around her, Olivia saw her eyes fill with more and more panic and frustration until she looked like a
trapped tiger.

‘. . . But is that show
really
cool, Ivy? I mean, I know everyone says it is, but what do
you
think? If
you
tell me, I’ll know what’s
right.’

‘Do
you
think the Pall Bearers sold out with their latest album? I mean, they used
keyboards
– that’s the opposite of goth! Isn’t it?’

Uh-oh,
Olivia thought. She could see an ultimate death-squint ready to form on her sister’s face.
No one
trash-talked the Pall Bearers in front of Ivy and survived!

‘Hey, Olivia.’ It was Sophia, sitting in the exact centre of the classroom in a spot neither popular nor outcast. She smiled ruefully and patted the empty desk beside her.
‘There’s no point trying to fight your way through Ivy’s flock of bats.’

Olivia sank down into her seat, still watching her twin. ‘Do you think we should intervene?’

Sophia sighed. ‘There’s nothing we can do. Trust me – I’ve tried.’

The goths’ voices grew louder and louder as they all competed for Ivy’s attention. ‘But Ivy –’

‘Ivy –’

‘Ivy –’

‘Hey!’ Ivy suddenly surged out of her seat. ‘I need some thinking time!’

‘Thinking time?’ The closest goth-girl shook her head while all the others gasped. ‘What’s that?’

‘I just . . .’ Ivy sank back down into her seat, looking defeated. ‘I want to . . . meditate,’ she mumbled. ‘I need to . . . find my chin.’

‘Um . . .?’ One of the other girls hesitantly pointed to Ivy’s face. ‘Isn’t it right there?’

Olivia had to choke down her laugh. None of the others might understand, but Ivy was definitely quoting Olivia’s adoptive father . . . only she had gotten the quote a little bit wrong.
Olivia was pretty sure she’d meant to say ‘Jee’.

Unless it was ‘Chi’? She’d never been sure.

‘Whatever,’ Ivy muttered. ‘I just . . . I need to have my own headspace before school really starts.’

‘Oh, yes.’

‘
So
smart.’

‘I
always
do that too, Ivy!’

The other goths all fluttered back to their own desks.

‘Mondays are
intense
 
!’ the closest goth-boy said solemnly.

Then they all folded their hands and closed their eyes.

Ivy looked around the intently meditating group and shook her head, looking desperate. Then she put on her headphones and closed her eyes, slumping down in her seat.

‘Look!’ One of the goths had snuck one eye open to peek, and now they nudged another one, pointing to Ivy. ‘She even meditates better than anybody!’

Little do they know
, Olivia thought,
Ivy isn’t meditating on anything . . . except maybe on how much she hates being popular!

She sighed as she turned back to Sophia. ‘This can’t go on.’

‘What can we do?’ Sophia shrugged. ‘They love her.’

‘But you can see the pressure getting to her already,’ Olivia said.
Just like it did at Wallachia Academy in Transylvania
, she realised. The memory made her shoulders
stiffen.

Olivia hadn’t been able to help her sister at that snooty school for vampires, but she was here for Ivy now . . . and she wouldn’t let her twin down.

She looked around the room and shook her head. ‘There are so many social walls built around everyone at this high school, it’s unbelievable.’

‘Tell me about it,’ Sophia groaned. ‘I’ve never seen anything like this before.’

‘Then let’s do something about it!’ Olivia nodded decisively. ‘These walls need breaking down . . . and I’m the one with the sledgehammer!’

‘You?’ Sophia gave a snort of laughter as she looked up and down Olivia’s glittering pink top, flippy skirt and sequinned bag. ‘Olivia Abbott with a sledgehammer –
now, that would
really
be unbelievable!’

I
vy took a deep breath as she joined the lunch line in cafeteria.
I can do this. Of course I can. It’s not a big deal.

It was ridiculous to get annoyed by people liking her. Wasn’t it?

So why do I feel like yelling?

All around her was a sea of
eyes
that seemed to follow her wherever she went, even as she stood waiting for the lunch ladies to pass her a plate of food. The feeling of being watched
made the skin between her shoulder blades itch with discomfort.
I don’t get it! Why is everybody acting this way?