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I could feel the pull of the nearly full moon before the sun reached the middle of the sky Iton the tip of a pen, trying to write a stupid essay on sy I heard the floor creak and the quiet echo of Mrs Carpenter’s voice

"Maggie," she called "Phone"

I rolled ain to lecture ht before I cli room Mrs Carpenter, white hair hidden beneath a red bandanna, handed un case

"Hello?"

"Hi It’s Yana You recovered frolanced at Mrs Carpenter "More or less"

"Good Are you still going to proht rounded"

"Good O’Connell doesn’t deserve you" There was a pause "This is going to sound totally paranoid, but I prorandpa I’d call"

Curious, I pulled the desk chair out and sat "What’s up?"

"So about you My grandpa didn’t like hiy"

"That’s weird What was his naer in the spiraled phone cord

"He wouldn’t say But after he cah we said we had no idea who you were, the dude sat out front in his car and watched the restaurant My grandpa ended up calling the cops"

Goose buht you should know"

"Thanks, Yana"

"Sure I’ll see you at school"

I hung up the phone and felt Mrs Carpenter hovering, so I looked overht?" I asked The feather duster stopped

"I’ve been thinking Since today is your birthday, I’ a Cinderella vibe?"

She chuckled "I have no intention of being your fairy goder and see if he can still take you And then let’s go birthday shopping at Wal-Mart You can pick out a new pair of jeans, a dress for proift to you"

"Really?"

"Absolutely"

I jued her

It was the second dress I’d worn since I elve years old Every tihs The dress was beautiful--creamy white and made for eather, with thin straps and an eht above ot new hair dye, a dark auburn almost the color of a plum, but not quite so purple I leaned in close to the mirror and atte It took two tries