Timespell (11 page)

She shook her head.
Stop it, Julia. Magic or not, it just isn’t worth it.

Prom. That’s what was going on, and that’s where her thoughts needed to stay. The light on her rollers changed from red to green. She grabbed a chunk of hair, spraying it up and down as fast as she could. Cool, sticky mist landed on her fingers. She pulled her fingers apart before starting on the roller, her mind wandering to the night ahead, to the steamship and the ocean and Brian’s long, black hair.

The roller fell from her fingers.

Blond
hair. Brian had blond hair.

Who the heck had she been thinking about? Ethan?

He didn’t have anything to do with anything. Especially not once the magic faded. And that was fine, because she didn’t even know the guy. Why was she thinking about him?

Angie’s tinkling ringtone chimed. Julia hit speakerphone, relieved to have her thoughts broken up. “Hi, Angie. What’s up?”

“Hi! Oh, sorry. You’re probably getting ready for prom.”

“It’s okay,” Julia said, “just expect to hear spraying in the background.”

“I wanted to make sure you’re really okay with letting the magic fade. After midnight there won’t be any way to take it back.”

This again? Thoughts of Ethan bubbled back to the surface of her mind.
No!
Kaitlyn was evil ... and she had Brian. How could she make it work with Brian if she had a hot guy with a magical connection being all smexy and intense with her?

“Julia?”

“Yeah, I’m here.” She cleared her throat and picked up another roller. “I have no doubts at all about letting the magic fade. Really. Kaitlyn isn’t the kind of person anyone willingly joins their life with.”

“After what happened in the locker room, I guess you’re right.”

They had already gone through this, but Julia continued anyway. “I mean, as long as you’re okay with letting the magic fade. You’re the one who wanted to fulfill your destiny ... for your grandma and everything.” She clamped her jaw shut before she said anything else. What was she trying to do, change Angie’s mind?

“I worry, though,” Angie said. “It’s been so many generations
since the last Daughters beat back the creatures of Mythos. I’m afraid they might be gaining power.”

Julia’s fingers fumbled on the hairspray.

“But there would’ve been signs,” Angie continued, “changes in the world timeline. We would be the only ones to retain memories of the true past, while everyone else would think that Nazis won the Second World War, or that the American Revolution had been suppressed, for example.”

The history book.
Crap.
Whoever those people were, they didn’t matter, though. Did they? “If nothing big like that has happened, we’re okay?” Julia gnawed on her cheek, wondering what the heck to do.

“No, not necessarily. It starts on a smaller scale. History books changing.”

The rest of whatever Angie said became lost to the buzzing in her ears.
History books changing?
She scrambled to her backpack, knocking her chair back. Rollers became unpinned from her hair and rolled to the floor as she jerked her bag open.
Crap, crap, crap.
This was the part where she was supposed to admit that her book changed, right before her eyes. And that Kaitlyn wasn’t the only reason she didn’t want to be sealed. It was because she had a magical protector guy, and she was afraid of what she would do.

But she didn’t say anything.

“Okay, then,” Angie said. “I guess we’ll trust it to the Fates. We’ll let midnight happen.”

Julia flipped page after page in her history book. Had anything else changed? How would she even know the difference? The only time she opened the thing was in class.

In her hurry to pull out her book, a sheet of crumpled paper fell out.

“Hello? Julia, are you still there?”

She swallowed, picking up the printout of Kaitlyn’s portrait. “Yeah, I’m here.”

“Oh. I thought I lost you.”

Her heart thumped louder, rising high up into her throat as she watched the printout change.

Kaitlyn’s image became watery, turning into a completely different painting. A landscape with trees and a little path with lots of flowers.

“See you at prom,” Angie said, ending the call.

Julia stared at nothing for almost a minute.

So that was it. With their decision not to seal themselves to Kaitlyn, that portrait was never painted. Yesterday, their futures had included a trip into the past. Today, their future had changed. The world would be different now.

She swallowed.

Letting the magic fade was for the best, right?

Yes. Definitely.

She sprayed her hair again until sprinkles filled the air. She kept spraying, the smell of chemicals burning her nostrils.

If it was for the best, why was she keeping secrets from Angie?

And why was she thinking about Ethan while getting ready for prom with Brian?

She set down the can of spray. Ethan was moody and weird. Brian was sweet and caring. She wouldn’t think about Ethan anymore. In fact, now that the magic was over, she would focus more energy on being there for Brian. Starting tonight.

She saw the vision in her mind. The sun setting over the water. Brian in a tuxedo, his silvery eyes drinking her in. Wait. Dark brown. His eyes were dark, like melted chocolate. She clenched her hands into fists, the sweat mixing with hairspray residue. Messy hands that looked clean.

There was a knock on her bedroom door. “Crap,” she muttered, realizing her arm was exposed. She jammed her hands through the sleeves of a button-up shirt just in time to hide the sparkling tattoo.

“It’s just me,” her mom called from the door, as if it could be anyone else.

“Come in,” Julia said, sitting on her bed.

Her mom’s smile lit up the room. “I got off work early in
case you needed help,
preciosa
... and it looks like you’re behind schedule.”

“It wasn’t my fault this time,” Julia said, leaning into her mom’s hug. “Anyway, Brian’s boutonniere is in the fridge and I got my nails done with Angie right after school.” She waved her French-tipped fingers.

“Very nice. I hope her organization rubs off on you.”

“Gee, thanks. Maybe you can adopt her.”

Her mom smiled again. Nothing could break into her good mood today, apparently. “Here, let me roll up the hair in the back. Your arms must be tired.”

“Thanks, Mama,” she said, letting her arms drop. She relaxed, liking the way it felt to be taken care of, to be a normal sixteen-year-old whose only problem was getting ready for prom on time. She wondered how Angie was managing, if she used the magic to put her makeup on and get her hair done. Angie knew so much more about it than she did.

Not that it would matter anymore.

“Y
ou look beautiful,
mija.”

Julia beamed at her mom, spinning around one last time in front of the closet mirror. Her dress was strapless, fitted to the waist in layers of gauzy violets and lilacs and soft blues. The skirt flared out and was cut to just below her knees, where it ended with a sweet underlay of ruffles that matched the trim on the bodice. A thin, purple bow adorned the front, with long ribbons trailing down past her waist, and she had purple heels with satin bows tied at the toes and ankles to match. Not to mention the most important piece of her outfit, the sheer lilac wrap, carefully pulled around her shoulders to hide her mark.

Brian showed up in his BMW and white tux, his blond hair trim and neat.

“So, this is Brian,” her mom said. “So handsome!”

Julia cringed. “Mom ...
please
.”

Brian smiled good-naturedly. “Good evening, Ms. Corona.”

“I’ll be right back,” her mom said, smiling from ear to ear.

Brian turned back to Julia. As always, his dark eyes searched hers. “This is for you.”

“Thank you,” she murmured as he put a corsage on her wrist, a large flower that reminded her of a daisy, but with purple petals instead of white. Several smaller flowers in varying shades of lilac and violet clustered around the edges of the flower. “It’s beautiful.”

“So are you.”

She waited for that special something she always felt as he looked into her eyes. When it didn’t come she almost frowned at him. This was not the way to start a romantic evening.

His hand lingered on her wrist, making little designs there. She smiled, feeling definite butterflies. “You look great,” she said, admiring him in his prom clothes. He was everything that Ethan wasn’t. Smiling, sweet, and he made her laugh. The Fates were
not
going to saddle her with some predestined grump.

“Thanks,” he said. “Your dress ... wow.” He took a step back to admire her before closing the space between them. For a moment it looked like he was about to kiss her, but he held back, eyeing the hallway her mom had disappeared into.

“We should probably get going.”

“Right,” she said. There would be time enough for that sort of thing once they were at prom. “Mom, we’re leaving!”

“Hold on, hold on,” her mom said, coming back to the living room with her camera.

They posed for pictures. Her mom kept telling them to stand close and look into each other’s eyes.

“Ugh, enough,” Julia said, pulling Brian to the door. “Bye, Mom.”

“Bye, Ms. Corona,” Brian called.

“It was nice meeting you! And,
mija,
be home by twelve-thirty, like we talked about,” her mom said. “Or call, if anything comes up.”

“I will!”

I
n the car, the air felt charged with excitement. She and Brian exchanged glances and talked about random things like how neither of them knew how to yo-yo, and what their favorite kind of gum was. She got the feeling he was as nervous as she was, and it made him seem even cuter.

They arrived at the
Queen Mary.
In a blur they had their pictures taken, picked up their mementos, and found their seats. She was so ready for some romantic atmosphere. She had obsessed over every detail of her hair and makeup, rubbed lotion with a hint of glow over her arms and legs and everywhere else. Basically, every inch of her body had gone through Brian-prep, and she was ready for some more butterflies.

She put her napkin on her empty plate and faced Brian. “Do you want to go outside for a little while?” She cleared her throat, trying not to sound too obvious. “Get some air?”

His eyes lit up. “Sure.”

Except for a few couples staring off at the skyline against the setting sun, and one couple trying for world’s most passionate make out session, the deck was deserted. Brian led her to the rail. The sun sent waves of glittering gold across the water. She turned up to him, hoping for the kiss his eyes had promised earlier, but he kept his gaze on their interlocked hands.

“Julia, I have something I’ve been wanting to tell you for a while.”

Oh no. He glanced up and she recognized the look in his eyes. They had
‘I love you’
written all over them.

“Wait.”

“I have been waiting. I keep waiting for some sign from you, something that tells me this isn’t only about making out—” He laughed, embarrassed. He ran a hand through his hair, leaving blond spikes instead of the neat style from before. She liked it. “That came out wrong. I love making out with you, it’s just ...
sometimes I feel like I’m the only one who—” he exhaled in a gush. His eyes searched hers. “Julia, do you love me?”

Her heart stopped. It started up again right away, but the aftermath of heat and something like pain left her speechless.

“Julia?”

Love him? Yes. Right? Didn’t she? He kept trying to look at her, but she forgot how to look back. Did he want an answer right now?

“Never mind. I guess I’ve known for a while.”

“Wait!” Of course she loved him. This was her dreamy, butterfly-inducing Brian. She loved him. Definitely. Probably. But he wanted an answer, so she said, “Yes. I do. I love you.”

His face fell.

Oh gosh, she was ruining this, totally and completely. She sucked at romance. She might love him, dang it. Why shouldn’t she? Brian was smart, cute, nice, and funny. Fine, so she wasn’t the type of girl who drew hearts around guys’ names, but he did make her feel swoony, and she liked kissing him. A lot. “Come here, Brian,” she said, taking his hands again.

Something flickered in his eyes.

“Kiss me,” she said, surprising herself. He was such a good kisser, and maybe that was enough to get to the love part. She lifted her hands to his shoulder and leaned up on tiptoe.

“Oh, Julia,” he whispered, taking her by the waist and kissing her.

Brian knew how to kiss. He knew how to put his hand at the small of her back, pressing her hips close to his body at just the right moment. He knew how to drive every thought from her mind except the crazy heat that made her breathless.

“Is this all we’ve got?” he whispered against her neck.

Did there have to be something more? What were they, thirty? She was about to ask him—or at least tell him to lighten up a little—when she felt a vague pressure in the back of her mind. Without thinking, she followed her desire to look up.

A shadow moved on the deck, up on the promenade.

Ethan.

He looked around, as if he wanted to find someone.

She tugged Brian behind a huge horn thing that stuck out of the deck.

“What are you doing?”

“Nothing,” she whispered, daring a glance around the horn. Ethan had his back to her, looking down the opposite length of the ship.

“It’s like you’re hiding.”

Julia almost shushed him. “No. Yes. It’s, uh, more private like this, don’t you think?” She snuggled against Brian before checking Ethan’s position again. Ethan glanced across the promenade deck once more before walking back inside the ship.

She exhaled.

“I like private,” Brian said.

He kissed her again, but she couldn’t keep kissing him anymore. Ethan was way too much in her head now to be kissing someone else. And she would
not
think about one guy while kissing another.

Brian noticed she wasn’t into it.