Mackenzie Blue (7 page)

“Do you play?” Chloe asked.

“No, but I'm a huge fan of Manchester United.”

“Did you ever see David Beckham when he played for them?” Zee asked Jasper. The only thing she knew about soccer was that David Beckham was the cutest player. Ever. In the history of the sport. But Zee was feeling left out. So maybe talking about sports would help her fit in.

“No, but I can't wait to go to a Galaxy game and watch him,” Jasper said.

“Me, too!” Chloe jumped in. “That's the most awesome part of living near Los Angeles.”

Zee could think of ten (maybe one hundred) other things that were more awesome about living near LA—like Beverly Hills boutiques, the downtown shopping district's sample sales, celebrity sightings, the rides on Santa Monica Pier, the beach, and constant sunshine. But she didn't want to highlight the fact that she had no interest in Chloe's and Jasper's favorite sport.

Mrs. Carmichael entered the room with a big tray of snacks. “Don't mind me,” she told them. “I just didn't want you to get hungry before the party.”

“Thank you, Mrs. Carmichael!” Jasper said.

“Oh, you're welcome, Jasper,” Zee's mom gushed, setting the tray on the table before she left the room.

“So spill. What's the scoop on the seventh-grade boys?” Chloe asked, plopping herself down on the couch so hard she bounced up and down. “Who's hot and who's not?”

“
Definitely
time for me to watch the telly,” Jasper said.

“Yeah, we've already got you figured out,” Chloe told him.

“Undoubtedly,” Jasper said, turning to face the TV.

“Is that how everyone talks in England?” Chloe asked. Zee sometimes wondered about that, too. With his books and clothes, Jasper wasn't like the other seventh-grade boys. And she had never had a friend who was so different from her. He was quiet, and she was talkative. He spoke like a professor, and she sounded like a student. He dressed to hide in a crowd. She stood out. But they were great friends.

“So how about the guys?” Chloe coaxed.

“They're okay,” Zee said, trying to sound casual. “Marcus is really cool.”

“What about his best friend, Landon?” Chloe asked. “He's cute.”

Zee's water shot out of her mouth like a Super Soaker.

“Nice!” Jasper said sarcastically, sounding
just like
a seventh grader.

“What was
that
about?” Chloe asked.

“Nothing,” Zee said quickly. “It just went down the wrong way.”

“Looks like it didn't go down at all,” Jasper said. “I'm glad I got out of the line of fire—mostly.” He wiped water droplets off his clothes.

“Landon's nice.” Zee tried to sound cool. Chloe was getting to be a good friend, but Zee wasn't ready to tell her about her crush on Landon. She hadn't even told Jasper yet.

Zee's brother looked in the room. “Adam!” she shouted enthusiastically, hoping to change the subject. She waved her hand in the air. “Come on in!”

With a suspicious look on his face, Adam took a step forward. “Looks like you've survived the first couple of weeks of seventh grade,” he said to the threesome. “I guess the eighth graders decided to go easy on you.”

“Ohmylanta!” Zee groaned. “Yes, your predictions that we'd get flushed down a toilet haven't come true.”

“Give it time,” he warned them. “The worst is probably still coming.”

“What do you mean?” Chloe asked.

“When I was an eighth grader, we took the seventh graders' clothes out of their gym lockers and put them in the courtyard.”

“Do Mom and Dad know?” Zee asked.

“No—just like they don't know you're the one who tried to play a piece of cheese in the DVD player.”

“Good point,” Zee said. “But I think that if the eighth graders had something planned, they would have done it by now.”

Adam pulled his car keys out of his pocket and headed out of the room. “Fine—don't believe me,” he called behind him. “But don't come crying to me when you need help. I'm outta here.” His voice trailed off as he disappeared from sight.

Chloe turned to Zee with wide eyes. “That's it!”

“
What's
it?” Zee asked.

“You kinda
were
tortured—by the note on the music room board,”

Chloe pointed out. “Maybe an eighth grader did it.”

“Maybe an eighth grader took your diary,” Jasper added.

Were Adam's stories about eighth-grade torture real? Zee had figured her brother was just messing with her. But Chloe and Jasper made a lot of sense.

Chloe sprang out of her seat. “I have to go to the bathroom,” she explained as she headed toward the stairs.

“You can use the one down here,” Zee told her.

Chloe kept moving in the same direction. “I already know where yours is,” she said. “I'll be right back.”

While Chloe was gone, Mr. Carmichael came into the room and announced that it was time to go. “Anyone who's not ready will have to stay here and cook me dinner.”

“I'll let Chloe know!” Zee volunteered. As she climbed the steps to the second floor hallway, she heard a door shut. She figured Chloe was on her way downstairs. But when Zee turned the corner into her room, Chloe was standing in the middle of it, looking confused and flustered, and the bathroom door wasn't shut.
That's weird,
Zee thought. “What are you doing?” she asked.

“Oh…just getting my stuff. Woo-hoo! Let's party!” Chloe said. The girls grabbed their swim bags—complete with suits and towels—ready to have fun.

“
C
annonball!” A blur raced down the diving board and bounced off the end.
Boing! Splash!
Zee was standing too close to the pool and now her bathing suit, a periwinkle-colored bikini with white embroidered flowers, was wet.

Jasper popped out from behind Zee, where he had ducked for cover. “My hero,” Zee said sarcastically.

“I'm not wearing a swimming costume,” Jasper said defensively.

“What's a swimming costume?” Chloe asked. She was wearing shorts over a one-piece with a bold red-and-blue tie-dye sunburst.

“It's a bathing suit,” Zee said.

Jasper smiled sheepishly. “I didn't expect to have to learn a new language when I moved here.”

The party was even better than Zee had imagined. Kids were swarming everywhere, eating burgers, playing video games on the biggest TV Zee had ever seen, and even shooting hoops on the Montgomerys' indoor basketball court.

Chloe grabbed Jasper's arm and pulled him away from the side of the pool. “Come on!” she said, wiggling her hips. “Loosen up.”

Zee, Chloe, and Jasper had been hanging out on the patio, listening to the band. Chloe hadn't stopped dancing since they'd gotten there.

Jasper moved his head up and down like a bobblehead doll. “I am
quite
loose.”

Zee tilted her head sideways to study him. “This
is
pretty loose for him,” she told Chloe.

Marcus came over to the three friends. “Are you having fun?” he asked, putting an arm around Zee and Chloe.

“Yes! This band is incredible!” Chloe told him.

“Where did you find them?” Zee asked.

“At UCLA,” Marcus shouted over the noise. “My mother teaches one of them.” He grabbed the girls' hands and pulled them to the center of the dance floor. As they danced, Zee looked around at all of the people she didn't know. Marcus
had four brothers and sisters, and they had invited their own friends. A few bodies collided into Zee, but she was having so much fun, she didn't care.

There was just one problem keeping the party from being perfect. Kathi. She had managed to hog Landon all to herself. She even got him to dance the slow dances with her. Jen hovered nearby, looking like an awkward dancing shadow. When the band finally took a break, Zee wondered how she was going to get Landon away from Kathi.

Marcus solved her problem. “I have an idea,” he announced.
“Everyone who is competing in
Teen Sing
should perform here.”

“Tonight?” Zee asked, a rush of terror zipping from her toes to her forehead. “My song isn't ready yet.”

“That's okay,” Marcus assured her. “You can sing whatever you want. It's just for fun.”

“I guess I could sing ‘Umbrella,'” Zee mumbled to herself.

“Rihanna?” Marcus said. “Cool. You can go first.”

First? Yikes! “Maybe you should let someone else go,” Zee blurted.

“But you said you'd sing it,” Jasper pointed out. True. But she had never performed it without shampoo in her hair and a showerhead in her hand.

Chloe gave Zee an encouraging tug on her arm. “Oh, I'm just dying to hear you. Please. For your friends?”

By now, Landon, Kathi, and Jen had joined the others. “Yeah,” Landon said with a friendly smile. “We're here for you.”

That was all the encouragement Zee needed. “Okay,” she said as she stepped up to the microphone. There was no band, no chorus, no one to back her up. Her legs trembled a little as she opened her mouth to sing.

At first, Zee sang a little quietly, then as she repeated
the words, a few kids joined in. She watched more and more kids sing along, and she smiled as she noticed Jasper actually begin stepping to the beat. Once nearly everyone had joined in, she moved on. And let loose.

Zee hit every note. The words flowed out. All eyes focused on her as she built up to her favorite part, her voice getting stronger and climbing louder.
“‘So go on and let the rain pour, I'll be all you need and more.'”
It was so much easier than she'd imagined.

When Zee finished, the crowd clapped and cheered. Shrill whistles pierced the other noise. She looked over the rest of the audience to Chloe and Jasper. Chloe was jumping up and down excitedly, and Jasper was nodding his head and smiling.

Zee left the stage. “Way to go!” one of Marcus's brothers said.

“That was great!” a Brookdale sophomore told her.

The compliments continued as she passed through the party. Finally Zee reached her friends, who were standing near the pool. Chloe threw her arms around her. “You are
so
going to win
Teen Sing
.”

Landon moved closer to Zee. “I knew you were good, but I didn't know how good,” he told her. “Maybe you can help me with
my
singing sometime.”
Whoosh!
A rush of heat
filled Zee, and she wondered if it were possible for a person to spontaneously combust.

“Sure,” Zee agreed, afraid if she said any more she'd embarrass herself.

“My turn,” Kathi said, pushing past. Before Zee knew it, she had lost her balance.
Ker-splash!
She landed backward in the pool.

Kathi bent over. “Oh, I'm such a klutz,” she told Zee, without bothering to offer a hand.

Jasper stepped in front of Kathi and reached toward Zee, soaked from her big splash. “I had no idea this would be such a dangerous party,” he said. Zee couldn't help laughing as water rolled down his face. Luckily neither could Jasper.

As Zee climbed out of the pool, Kathi took the stage. She sang like she was born to be there. Every note was perfect, and Kathi looked totally natural. Zee had competition!

After a few other kids took turns, Marcus turned to Chloe and Zee. “Hey, Chloe! You should go next,” he said. “Brookdale's never heard you sing before.”

“That's an awesome idea!” Zee exclaimed. “Go for it!”

“Really?” Chloe gulped and looked at her group of friends, who stared back expectantly. She looked sick.

As Chloe's face got paler, Zee regretted mentioning anything.

Then Kathi turned to Jen and fake-whispered, “She's probably scared.”

“I think she's going to spew,” Jen said.

Chloe's expression went from terrified to determined. “I'll do it!” she said boldly. But as Chloe stepped up to the microphone, her legs looked like noodles. Zee braced for disaster and closed her eyes.

“‘Ooh-ooh.'”
Chloe began singing so quietly her friends could barely tell which song she had chosen. But then all of a sudden—
poof!
—Chloe's nerves seemed to evaporate. She started clapping her hands together, then motioned for the rest of the party to join in.
“‘When you left, I lost a part of me,'”
Chloe dived into the chorus of the Mariah Carey classic “We Belong Together” as her friends kept the beat. And best of all, she looked like she was having an amazing time. She couldn't stand still. And neither could anyone else.

When Chloe finished singing the last note, Zee couldn't wait. She rushed up onto the stage. “You were so great! You should audition for
Teen Sing
,” she suggested—even though Zee knew that Chloe would be even more competition.

Chloe bit her lip. “Maybe,” she said weakly.

“Are you okay?” Zee asked. Had she said something wrong?

“I think I just need some water,” Chloe said, rushing away.

The band returned to the stage. “Awesome singing!” the lead singer told Zee.

“Thanks,” Zee said absentmindedly, her eyes on Chloe.

Zee moved through the maze of people, looking for Jasper. She stopped when her Sidekick beeped with a text message.

She didn't recognize the phone number. That was strange—the only people who knew about the missing diary were Ally, Jasper, Chloe, and her family.

“What's wrong?” Chloe asked, coming to Zee's side. She took a sip from the big red cup in her hand.

Zee showed Chloe the text message. “I don't know who it's from,” she said.

“Do you think it's a threat?” Chloe asked.

“What else could it be?” Zee wondered.

“It might just be a friendly question,” Chloe said sweetly, “from someone who's concerned.”

Zee had to admit, she hadn't thought of that. Still, the mysterious number just didn't make sense. “Maybe,” Zee said doubtfully.

 

10 Ways to Know Who Your Enemies Are

 

Zee held the pen over the blank page, then finally gave up and shut her diary. Who had sent her the mysterious text the night before? She had no suspects. No clue who could be torturing her. Maybe Chloe was right and it was an eighth grader. Or maybe Chloe was right and it was nobody.