When Joan got to school, she was yelled at by Sarah McMillan, the head cheerleader, for being late. Joan tried to apologize, but Sarah refused to accept it. "I don't approve of lateness," Sarah said with a sneer, "I'm afraid I'm going to have to kick you off the squad."
It hurt, because it was over nothing, but it didn't bother Joan. For whatever reason, she never felt like she fit in with the rest of the cheerleaders. She always felt like she was too tomboyish to be a real cheerleader, and was only there because she was naturally good at gymnastics, and the school had no gymnastics team. Most of them were fairly nice - not an extremely bitchy stereotype - but she couldn't stand Sarah.
That afternoon, Joan explained the Wishing stone to Karyn as best she could. Karyn didn't believe it, however, so Joan demonstrated by wishing to turn a nearby fallen brach blue. there was a quick flash and Karen felt like she had an eyelash in her eye. When she finally blinked off that strange sensation, she realized she was looking at a completely blue piece of wood. Instead of amazement, Karyn's reaction was "Woah. Deja vu."
"Deja vu?" Joan was now the skeptical one, "Where would you have seen that before?"
"I don't know," said a stunned Karyn, "but maybe I dreamed that once. It just looks so familiar."
"Well check this out. I wish the branch were red." Nothing happened. "See? Wishes can't be undone. But if I said... I wish the branch was blue because it was covered in wet blue paint." There was another flash. Karyn touched her forefinger to the branch, and got a smudge of blue paint on it.
"That's totally unbelievable." Karyn was amazed.
"I think I've got it all figured out." Joan said, "If you wish that you looked different, but wanted to go back on it, you could just say that your hair was that colour because it was a wig, or your breasts were bigger because you put padding in your bra. Then you could take the wig off and take out the padding."
Karyn laughed, "Why would I wish for bigger breasts?"
"It was just a for-instance!" Joan laughed along. Neither of them had any particular desire for larger mammaries.
"So what are you going to wish for?" Karyn asked.
"I haven't decided yet," Joan said, looking at the stone. She hid it behind her, though, when five of her ex-cheerleading friends - Buffy, Roni, Regina and Jamie, walked by and waved. She liked those girls all right, but only felt comfortable talking about the wishing stone around her bestest friend. Once they were a safe distance away, talking to Sarah, Joan continued. "Every time I think of something, it sounds selfish."
"I know what I'd wish for," Karyn said, with an impish grin. "I'd wish for that special someone to realize their love for me."
"Tom Selleck?" joked Joan. Karyn laughed. Joan then asked, "who is it? Do I have any classes with him?"
"Um," Karyn said, "I'll tell you later. Listen, that thing doesn't affect people who are within earshot, right? Well call me over before you go wishing for everything."
"Will do," Joan giggled and gave a mock-salute as Karyn stood up to leave. Joan was about to leave, too, when she took a look at Sarah and all the boys, whom she was using for various purposes. "Karyn wait!" she yelled, and Karyn turned around and came back.
"What?"
"I know what I want to wish for, and you said you wanted to hear it..."
"Ok!" she nodded cheerfully, "but do it quick, I've gotta get home."
Joan held the stone in her hand and wished, "I wish... that Sarah wasn't the head cheerleader."
Karyn and Joan blinked. Everything seemed okay, but when they glanced back at Sarah...
