Mixed Messages (5 page)

“Maybe,” Ally said. Then more quietly, she added, “Maybe not.”

In one motion, Zee scooped up a pillow from her bed and hurled it at Ally.

“Hey!” Ally protested, but soon she started laughing. And Zee joined in.

 

Things I Have in Common with Landon

The Beans (Yay!)

 

Zee tapped her pen against her head and thought.

And thought. “Oh!” she remembered.

 

Brookdale Academy

 

She thought a little more.

 

Friends

 

Most of their same friends were in The Beans, but Zee figured it still counted.

Zee looked at her list.
That's enough for now,
she decided, certain she would think of more to add to her list later.

Chapter 3
News Times Two

O
n Sunday, Zee and Ally went over to Jasper's house to work on Bluetopia. While Zee and Jasper brainstormed ideas and designed pages, Ally read
Flip
magazine and IMed her friends in France.

“I think the background on that page is a little too dark,” Zee told Jasper. “It's hard to read the letters.”

“Good point,” Jasper said, then moved his mouse, clicked on a few links and colors, and refreshed the page.

“Perfect!” Zee said.

“I almost forgot!” Jasper started pecking at the computer keyboard, typing a URL into his internet browser. A blue shirt came up on the screen. “Do you think I'd look good in that?” Jasper was used to wearing shirts with collars and khaki pants, but lately he was trying different things. He always got Zee's opinion before he bought something new, though.

“Yeah, it's really cool.” Zee nodded.

Jasper clicked “Add to Cart” under the picture.

“I can wear it when I'm not in my school uniform.”

“I thought you liked your Brookdale Academy jacket and tie so much that you slept in them,” Zee teased.

Jasper shook his head. “I would
never
treat them with such disrespect,” he said seriously. Then he smiled.

“Oh, you were joking!” Zee said, relieved. “For a second, I thought you were getting a little too attached to your uniform.”

“Speaking of school, it's my turn to rotate the compost bin in the garden next weekend,” Jasper told Zee. “Do you want to help me?”

“What do I have to do?” Zee asked.

“You just take a shovel and turn all of the leaves and vegetable scraps over,” Jasper explained. “It's pretty easy if two people do it together.”

Zee scrunched her nose. “Is it messy?”

“Not in the least.”

“That could be fun! I'll do it.” Zee looked at the computer screen, then clicked on the tab to take them back to Bluetopia. “You know, I think that maybe we need to add some bright colors and cool graphics to the home page. It looks a little . . . boring right now.”

“Do you think so?” Jasper asked. “I don't think my mates care if it's a bit drab.”

“Maybe your boy mates won't, but your girl mates will.” Zee looked at Ally. “Right, Ally?”

Ally lifted her eyes from her magazine. “Right, Zee.”

“Show Jasper a page from the magazine,” Zee suggested. Ally turned it around so Jasper could see. The page was filled with colorful jewelry, belts, and other accessories. “That's what we like,” Zee told Jasper.

Jasper looked down at his hands. “Yes, it seems I need some help when it comes to understanding girls. It's good that you're here,” he said quietly. He seemed shy all of a sudden.

Jasper had acted like this around other girls but never with Zee. It felt a little weird. Zee just wanted things to be normal between them.

“Without you, we wouldn't have Bluetopia at all,” Zee said. “You're a computer genius. It's one of your many gifts.”

Jasper flashed Zee a smile. And Zee noticed Ally spying over the top of her magazine and making a
hmm
face.

 

On the way back to her house, Zee was silent. She kept thinking about how well she and Jasper had worked together. And for the first time, she was really noticing how multitalented he was. Best of all, they never seemed to run out of things to say.

Do I have a crush on Jasper?
Zee wondered. She shook the idea out of her head. One of the things that Zee liked best about her friendship with Jasper was that she never got a weird crushy feeling when he was around. It was just like being friends with Chloe and Ally.

Still, Zee couldn't stop wondering why she'd never told Jasper about how much she liked Landon.

Did her heart know something her head didn't?

 

“Oh, hello, girls!” Ginny Carmichael sang as Ally and Zee walked into the kitchen later that day. She was stirring a steaming pot on the stove.

“Hi, Mom,” she said. “What's up?”

Ally sniffed the air. “Something smells delicious.”

“Thanks, Ally,” Zee's mother said. She picked up a handful of chopped parsley and dropped it in the pot with a flourish. “I'm making a special dinner.”

“Because . . . ?” Zee prompted.

“A mother can't make a special meal for no reason?”

Zee and Ally shook their heads at the same time. “Uh-uh,” they said in unison.

“Well, you'll just have to be patient,” Mrs. Carmichael told them. Then she gestured toward the table. “Can you two set the places for dinner?”

Zee started putting place mats out while Ally reached into a cabinet to get glasses.

With a glass in each hand, Ally moved closer to the stove. “What are you making?”

“No peeking!” Mrs. Carmichael quickly put a lid on the pot. “You'll find out soon enough. When you girls are finished with the table, why don't you occupy yourselves until the meal's ready?” She began whistling as she chopped onions.

“I know when I'm not wanted,” Zee said.

As Zee folded a cloth napkin on each place mat, Ally came behind and put a fork on top. “Let's go play Wii,” she suggested when they were done, then headed out of the kitchen.

Zee followed. “Okay,” she agreed.

In the TV room, Ally grabbed a game control and sank into the Carmichaels' couch. “A lot of people are keeping secrets around here,” she said.

“Who?” Zee asked. “Me?”

Ally studied Zee. “I don't know. Are you?”

“Uh . . . no. I just thought you thought I was,” Zee said quickly. “But of course I'm not. Why would I? . . . I'll stop rambling now.”

“I just meant your mom and Mr. P,” Ally explained.

“Oh yeah. Them.” Zee sat down next to Ally.

“Maybe it's the same secret,” Ally suggested. “We might find out before everyone else.”

“What could it be?” Zee wondered out loud.

Ally thought. “The Beans could be going on tour.”

Zee shook her head. “It's too soon for the band. We all have to go to school.”

“I guess you're right,” Ally agreed. “Plus, that doesn't explain your mother's weird mood.”

“It is weird, isn't it?” Zee asked. “I mean, she loves cooking, and she's almost always in a good mood, but this is a little
too
good. She never whistles.”

“Maybe we're twin sisters who were separated at birth,” Ally suggested.

Zee studied her friend skeptically. The girls were both wearing tank tops and shorts rolled up to make cuffs, but that was where the similarities ended. Zee had a face full of freckles and a short red bob. There wasn't a single freckle on Ally's face, and her smooth, thick brown hair reached halfway down her back.

“I think we need another theory,” Zee said.

“What else could it be?”

“Okeydokey!” Mrs. Carmichael cooed from the doorway. “Dinner's ready!”

“We'll find out soon,” Zee said, leading Ally to the kitchen.

Mr. Carmichael was lighting a candle.

“Fancy,” Adam said, taking his seat at the table. “What's up?”

“It's a special night,” Mrs. Carmichael said, sitting down next to her son.

Ally pointed at herself, then Zee, and mouthed, “Twins.”

“What did you say?” Mrs. Carmichael said, surprised.

“Oh, nothing important,” Ally said quickly.

Adam looked at his mother. “Did you finally sign up Zee for the circus—” he began, “as the monkey?”

“That's funny,” Zee said. “Not.”

“Good comeback,” Adam responded. “Not.”

“All right, you two,” Mr. Carmichael cut in. “Stop teasing each other.” Instead of looking upset with his kids, though, a smile stretched across his face.

“I feel like I'm living in the twilight zone,” Zee groaned. “Would someone please tell me what you're talking about?”

“We won't keep you in suspense any longer.” Zee's mother reached over and grabbed her father's hand. Then she looked at him with what could only be described as goo-goo eyes. Yuck! “We're expecting,” she said.

Zee, Adam, and Ally all leaned forward.

“A delivery?” Zee asked.

“Yes!” Mr. Carmichael said.

“Of what?” Ally asked.

“Babies!” Mrs. Carmichael said.

“Whose?” Adam asked, confused.

“Ours,” his mother told him. “Yours.”

“Ummm . . . Mom? I'm going to need a do-over, because I don't get it,” Zee said.

“Your mother is pregnant,” Zee's father explained.

Zee's mouth dropped open as the news sunk in. The feelings inside Zee morphed from joy to confusion to shock.

Adam started laughing. “Good one!” he said. “Very funny. You almost had me going.”

Mrs. Carmichael looked confused. “It's not a joke.”

When she could finally speak, Zee said, “But you said ‘babies.' As in
plural.
As in
many
.”