Penny stared at her. Then her face lit up with gratitude. ‘Oh,’ she said. ‘Oh! You mean, in your magazine.’
‘That’s right.’ Ivy smiled as the other goths reached them. Pointedly, she turned the bubblegum-coloured cover directly towards them. ‘I was just showing Penny something I really liked in my magazine.’
Come on, she silently urged the other goths. Start sneering! See, I’m not cool after all, am I?
One goth raised her eyebrows. But she didn’t sneer. Instead, she looked thoughtful. The others peered closer.
‘Is that magazine cool?’
‘I’ve been reading that magazine forever!’
‘Maybe I’ll get a copy after school.’
Argh! Ivy screamed silently.
Next to her, though, Penny was leaning into the circle of other girls with wistful delight, like a plant stretching towards the sunlight. That’s it, Ivy decided. I have to shift this school’s attention on to Penny. Let her be the cool one!
And the time to make that change was . . . now . Because the hovering goth-girls were already beginning to swarm! Where are they all coming from? Ivy wondered, as more and more flooded through the school doors towards her.
‘Ivy, why aren’t you going to lunch? Aren’t you hungry?’
‘Maybe she doesn’t want to.’
‘Is lunch “uncool” now?’ one goth-girl gasped.
Ivy stared at her in disbelief. How could not having lunch be cool? She shook her head. ‘I’m not skipping lunch. I was just stopping here to . . . to . . .’ Inspiration struck. ‘To ask Penny for some fashion advice!’
‘Really?’ The goth-girls flocked closer, looking from Ivy to Penny and back.
‘Oh, yes.’ Ivy nodded solemnly. ‘Penny is the one girl at this school with real style . Don’t you think?’
‘Oohhh . . .’ There was a collective sigh as all the girls clustered around Penny, looking her up and down, from her black lace T-shirt and silver dragon bracelet to her skinny black jeans and boots.
Penny’s cheeks were flushed, but she looked desperately hopeful. Ivy gave her a firm nod of support. ‘I always think that Penny looks just right.’
‘I do like your style,’ the closest goth-girl said to Penny.
‘Oh . . . me, too.’
‘And me.’
It’s working! Ivy thought . . .
. . . Until the goth-girls turned away from Penny to beam at Ivy.
‘You’re so perceptive, Ivy!’
‘You notice everything !’
‘Of course Ivy was the one who noticed that Penny wasn’t just a normal goth!’
At least that part’s true, Ivy thought glumly. But only in ways that these girls don’t realise!
The girls were all flocking back to her now. ‘How can we learn to see people the way you do, Ivy?’ another goth-girl sighed wistfully.
I can’t take this any more! Losing her cool completely, Ivy gave in to sarcasm. Waving her hands, she droned, ‘O . . . pen . . . your . . . eyes . . .’
But even blatant rudeness didn’t work.
‘You’re so right, Ivy.’
‘Of course she’s right!’
‘I will open my eyes and see people better. I swear it!’
‘If only there were glasses or contact lenses that helped us see true style,’ one of the girls mused. ‘If some scientist could invent that, they’d be a gazillionaire . . . and they’d deserve it!’
Another girl snorted. ‘But would they be able to come up with a de-pinking ray? Something to rid the world of all perkiness?’
Penny flushed, suddenly looking down at her hands, but the other girls were too busy laughing and cheering the idea on to notice.
‘Who wouldn’t buy a de-pinking ray?’
‘My sister wouldn’t,’ Ivy snapped.
An awkward silence fell over the group. As the other girls slid her frightened glances, Ivy realised she had gone too far. Her tone hadn’t just been dismissive – it had been downright scary.
She forced a laugh. ‘So, anyway –’
‘Ohh!’ One of the girls gasped, pointing. ‘Are you wearing joke vampire teeth?’
Oh, no. Busted! Ivy slammed her mouth shut . . . but it was too late. Everybody had already seen her fangs.
‘That is so cool!’
‘But Ivy, the teachers will have a fit if they notice them!’
‘That’s why Ivy’s so cool. She doesn’t care about authority!’
No, she’s just really, really behind on her dental work, Ivy thought grimly.
She couldn’t delay any longer. She had to get to the vampire dentist tonight .
Olivia giggled into her cell phone as she walked up Undertaker Hill that evening. The air was cool and scented with flowers, there was a comfortable hum of activity in the houses nearby . . . and she was talking to her favourite boy in the world, who’d just called unexpectedly.
‘You’ve finally managed a perfect Cockney accent!’ she said, on hearing his voice.
‘I know,’ Jackson said mournfully. ‘Too bad I’ll never need it again, now that we’re all finished filming the scenes with the British twins!’
Spotting Ivy’s house ahead, Olivia slowed her steps to prolong the phone call. ‘Where are you calling from, anyway?’
‘Um . . . somewhere?’ Jackson yawned. ‘Sorry. I’m on the road in one of Mr Harker’s cars, and I only just woke up. I can’t see any signs on the highway right now . . . so I’m not really sure where I am!’
‘Well, I’m glad you called me, wherever you are,’ Olivia murmured.