held out a hand to Veronica. “What do the tickets say?”
“She lost them,” Megan said, her voice rising. “She lost all of them.”
Veronica flushed and gave Megan a betrayed look. Riley’s smirk started small and got big.
“What more can happen?” Megan felt tense, ready to snap. “Why can’t we get home? When’s this going to stop? What--”
Chase grabbed a tray and got in the lunch line. “I could eat.”
Megan turned to take his head off, but something in his eyes and his pragmatism calmed her. She breathed out and life returned to her body.
Familiar with the procedure, they dropped into the queue. The line smelled like pizza day with fried sides.
“Tapioca or Jell-o?” The lunch lady poked at the Jell-o mold with her serving prongs and the gelatin jiggled around embedded orange slices.
Riley couldn’t take his eyes off the motion. “That was us. I was that orange wedge.”
“Roots or hooves, kid?” the lunch lady asked Chase.
“Dude, take the tapioca,” Riley urged.
Chase pointed and the lunch lady slapped Jell-o on his tray. “Hooves it is.”
“Why’s she calling the gelatin hooves ?”
Riley jabbed a finger against the sneeze guard directly in front of the tapioca. “You really don’t want to know.” He received an enormous scoop to the tapioca.
Chase said, “You’re not a vegetarian, so it’s okay that you swam through a vat of hooves.”
“Gelatin’s made out of a hoof?” Megan said, “And it was in my hair?”
Veronica gestured toward the tapioca. “Vegetarians can swim through animal hooves. They just probably shouldn’t eat them. Unless, maybe they could if the hoof fell off naturally.”
Megan’s stomach turned. She skipped the desert section and moved ahead.
When Veronica caught up to her, Megan whispered, “You and Riley are cute together.” She examined the pizza station. Once slice of pepperoni and one slice of cheese remained.
Veronica’s gaze moved from the blue streaks in Riley’s black hair down to his tattoo. “My parents would never let me date him. Never.”
“Maybe.” Megan stepped up to the glass and assessed her two choices. “Which is best?” she asked a nearby student.
The tall skinny guy ignored her. He held up two fingers to the server, indicating he’d take the cheese and the pepperoni. The lunch lady shoved the wide metal spatula under one slice, and scooped up the second on top of it.
Ichabod held out his tray and he last two slices landed on his plate. Megan’s lips tightened and the server shoveled the remaining option on her plate.
Chapter 27
MEAL
P lop. The pale dense square of vegetarian lasagna landed in the entrée slot. A limp piece of broccoli tried to escape from under one of the pasta layers, but the noodle collapsed on the green stem, refusing to allow freedom. Megan knew how the broccoli felt.
She sighed and followed Veronica over to a lunch table. Food would help. She could make a plan on a full stomach.
A nearby student nodded at Veronica. She nodded back. The guy bared his fangs at her, raised his eyebrows and waved his index finger toward her, then back at himself, as if to ask, you and me? Veronica shook her head emphatically.
This whole thing was so weird.
Riley sank beside Veronica, his eyes not leaving the other guy’s face. Sensing defeat, the vampire moved on.
Chase’s mouth smirked and he slid in too, ignoring the table of jocks waving him over. He spooned up some of the gelatin. “Yum.”
“Really?” Megan asked. “You chose the Jell-o?”
A pale-skinned guy appeared at her elbow. “Join me for lunch.”
Megan swallowed and shook her head.
Veronica widened her eyes. “Check his teeth.”
The guy smiled, revealing normal teeth. Megan rose, closing in for a closer look, and was stopped by the tug of Chase’s hand.
He pulled her back down. “She’s with us.”
The move made her feel all glowy. She lowered back beside him and smiled.
Chase scooped another bite of the
“She lost them,” Megan said, her voice rising. “She lost all of them.”
Veronica flushed and gave Megan a betrayed look. Riley’s smirk started small and got big.
“What more can happen?” Megan felt tense, ready to snap. “Why can’t we get home? When’s this going to stop? What--”
Chase grabbed a tray and got in the lunch line. “I could eat.”
Megan turned to take his head off, but something in his eyes and his pragmatism calmed her. She breathed out and life returned to her body.
Familiar with the procedure, they dropped into the queue. The line smelled like pizza day with fried sides.
“Tapioca or Jell-o?” The lunch lady poked at the Jell-o mold with her serving prongs and the gelatin jiggled around embedded orange slices.
Riley couldn’t take his eyes off the motion. “That was us. I was that orange wedge.”
“Roots or hooves, kid?” the lunch lady asked Chase.
“Dude, take the tapioca,” Riley urged.
Chase pointed and the lunch lady slapped Jell-o on his tray. “Hooves it is.”
“Why’s she calling the gelatin hooves ?”
Riley jabbed a finger against the sneeze guard directly in front of the tapioca. “You really don’t want to know.” He received an enormous scoop to the tapioca.
Chase said, “You’re not a vegetarian, so it’s okay that you swam through a vat of hooves.”
“Gelatin’s made out of a hoof?” Megan said, “And it was in my hair?”
Veronica gestured toward the tapioca. “Vegetarians can swim through animal hooves. They just probably shouldn’t eat them. Unless, maybe they could if the hoof fell off naturally.”
Megan’s stomach turned. She skipped the desert section and moved ahead.
When Veronica caught up to her, Megan whispered, “You and Riley are cute together.” She examined the pizza station. Once slice of pepperoni and one slice of cheese remained.
Veronica’s gaze moved from the blue streaks in Riley’s black hair down to his tattoo. “My parents would never let me date him. Never.”
“Maybe.” Megan stepped up to the glass and assessed her two choices. “Which is best?” she asked a nearby student.
The tall skinny guy ignored her. He held up two fingers to the server, indicating he’d take the cheese and the pepperoni. The lunch lady shoved the wide metal spatula under one slice, and scooped up the second on top of it.
Ichabod held out his tray and he last two slices landed on his plate. Megan’s lips tightened and the server shoveled the remaining option on her plate.
Chapter 27
MEAL
P lop. The pale dense square of vegetarian lasagna landed in the entrée slot. A limp piece of broccoli tried to escape from under one of the pasta layers, but the noodle collapsed on the green stem, refusing to allow freedom. Megan knew how the broccoli felt.
She sighed and followed Veronica over to a lunch table. Food would help. She could make a plan on a full stomach.
A nearby student nodded at Veronica. She nodded back. The guy bared his fangs at her, raised his eyebrows and waved his index finger toward her, then back at himself, as if to ask, you and me? Veronica shook her head emphatically.
This whole thing was so weird.
Riley sank beside Veronica, his eyes not leaving the other guy’s face. Sensing defeat, the vampire moved on.
Chase’s mouth smirked and he slid in too, ignoring the table of jocks waving him over. He spooned up some of the gelatin. “Yum.”
“Really?” Megan asked. “You chose the Jell-o?”
A pale-skinned guy appeared at her elbow. “Join me for lunch.”
Megan swallowed and shook her head.
Veronica widened her eyes. “Check his teeth.”
The guy smiled, revealing normal teeth. Megan rose, closing in for a closer look, and was stopped by the tug of Chase’s hand.
He pulled her back down. “She’s with us.”
The move made her feel all glowy. She lowered back beside him and smiled.
Chase scooped another bite of the
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