Zoe (Jon's 14-year old Goth sister) stirred awake. Even before she opened her eyes, she knew something was wrong. She heard ... giggling?
Her eyes flew open and she realized that she wasn't in her bedroom, even though that's where she fell asleep. She looked around, seeing that she was in a girl's bedroom, but one that belonged to a stranger (and a girly one at that). She was lying on the floor, on a sleeping bag. What the fuck was going on?
Behind her she heard giggling, the same giggling she thought she heard before. She turned and got a shock. It was Melissa Smith, one of the high school cheerleaders. Why the fuck was Zoe even in the same room as that bitch? And ... and (Zoe looked down at herself) why the hell was she wearing these clothes?
Zoe couldn't believe it. She was wearing a tight pink T-shirt and a pair of pink pajama bottoms with red hearts printed all over. It was all so ... girly. Yuck! What had happened to her clothes? And who dressed her in these? She must have really been out not to notice.
"Zoe? What's wrong?" Melissa asked.
Zoe felt disgusted. Was this some sort of prank? Get the Goth to dress like one of the girly cheerleader girls? Well, it wasn't funny. Not at all.
"Yeah, Zoe. Like, what's the matter?" another girl's voice asked. Zoe turned and saw another girl lying on a sleeping bag. It was Amber Levine, another cheerleader.
"What am I doing here? Whose idea was this?" Zoe demanded.
"What? You mean the slumber party? It was Melissa's idea, of course. I mean, this is her house," Amber said.
The bedroom door opened and another girl walked in. Zoe's eyes nearly bulged out of her head. It was Sabrina Johnson, another Goth that attended her school, although a little older than her. But now she wasn't Goth in the slightest. She looked just as girly as the other two girls in the room. Her hair was even bleach blond, instead of her usual dyed color, and her skin was radiantly tanned.
"Sabrina! What's going on here? Are you a victim of this prank too?" Zoe asked.
"Prank? What prank?" Sabrina asked, confused. "Melissa, do you know what she's talking about?"
"Not a clue," Melissa answered. "Maybe she had a weird dream and she's just confused. She did wake up suddenly."
"I didn't have a weird dream. You're supposed to be Goth," Zoe said, pointing at Sabrina.
Sabrina's face twisted in disgust. "A Goth? Yuck. Like, why would I want to be one of those freaks?"
Zoe's heart sank. What the fuck was wrong with Sabrina? Did she get brainwashed or something? And why did Amber and Melissa think that Zoe was their friend? She wouldn't be friends with those cheerleader bitches in a million years. What the fuck was going on?
"Listen, uh, Sarah," Jon said.
"Yeah, Jon?"
"I don't know what's going on, but I think ..." I think the stone might have something to do with this, he finished in his head. He didn't want Sarah to know about the wishing stone. "Something is definitely different here. I don't expect you to understand, but ..."
Sarah stopped and just looked at him. They were both standing just outside the police station. "You didn't do something stupid with that stone of yours, did you?"
"Wait, how do you know about the stone?" Jon asked.
"Uh, because you showed it to me?" she said, as if he should have already known. "What? You don't remember? Wow, you must have really blanked out last night more than usual."
"What? Are you saying I got drunk?"
"Too drunk, I'd say. Enough to get thrown in jail overnight."
"Sarah, I don't drink. I mean, yeah, I've had a beer before, but I don't get drunk."
"Then what do you call what happened to you last night?" she asked.
Jon shook his head. He did feel like he had a headache, but that didn't necessarily mean that he had a hangover. It could have been just a side effect of that careless wish he made. But how exactly was this "interesting" - having a romantic relationship with Sarah McMillan? Sure, he thought she was sexy, but he couldn't stand Sarah. He'd even go as far as to say that she was his biggest enemy. He'd hardly call this "interesting". But ... there was something different about Sarah. She seemed ... nicer? But perhaps that was only because he was supposed to be her boyfriend.
He didn't know what to think. The only way he would know exactly what was happening was to find the stone and make a wish to find out. But where was the stone? The last time he saw it, it was in his bedroom, but if this was a new reality ...
It could have been anywhere.
