Ken Karynik wore what he always did - scruffy, baggy clothes under a woollen sweater. His red hair, closely cropped at the back and sides, grew in wavy curls from the top of his head. He saw Jon waving to him and flashed her his usual lopsided grin in response before bounding over.
"Hey, Karyn," Jon greeted him as he approached.
He laughed. "How long are you going to keep calling me that, Jon?"
"Until you stop calling my Jon, Kaaarrryn," Jon replied, rolling the 'r' over her tongue.
"Not gonna happen Jon-babe," he smirked. "Get used to it. Good spring break?"
"It was... eventful," she said. Karyn noticed that Jon looked conflicted.
He sat beside his friend and put his arm around her shoulder. "Tell me what happened. Tell me everything."
Jon did. She told Karyn about the death of her grandfather, the strange circumstances surrounding it and how she found it tough to accept that he was gone. Then she tried to describe the weird gift he'd left to her. Eventually, after several attempts to explain the little artefact were met by Karyn's incredulous gaze, she just handed Karyn her grandpa's note to read for himself.
"You can't be serious," Karyn said. "If this note is real, your grandfather faked his own death or something. And he's left you a magic Inca stone which grants wishes. Wishes, Jon!"
"I believe it," Jon nodded. "All of it. I tried the stone out for myself, just little things like changing the colour of my clothes. It worked just like Grandpa said it would."
"Shit," Karyn replied. Then, "No freaking way..."
Jon nodded, "Yep."
"Can I see it?"
Jon carefully opened the little wooden box. A small, dark smooth stone lay on the box's velvet lining. For something so magical, it was deceptively plain-looking. Jon took the stone and handed it to her friend.
"Careful now," she warned.
"I'm not afraid," Karyn said as he held the stone at arm's length in mock fear. Jon wondered if he was taking her seriously, so she briskly talked Karyn through a quick demonstration of how the wishing worked. He took to it quickly, and turned the trunk of a nearby tree dark blue.
Amazed that it had worked, Karyn was keen to try more wishes. He asked Jon how he'd look with some brand new sneakers, but before she could reply they heard the echo of an all-too-familiar haughty laugh sound out across across the school yard.
It was Sarah.
