The next time Karyn "woke up," she was surrounded by cheerleaders. Their expressions shifted as she regained her senses, but not dramatically so. It was detectable, but it was a shift from people who were effortlessly comfortable with her presence, to people who were deliberately putting in effort to make her presence feel comfortable. The cheerleaders wanted here there, either way. They just didn't seem to know as much about her now.
Karyn found an appropriate moment in the conversation to pause and look around. If she was back to herself, and at school, then that must mean that Jon was nearby. As her head swiveled, she caught sight of Sarah McMillan's unmistakable little white Miata pulling into the school parking lot. So Jon must be even closer than that, right? Maybe he was coming from the other direction? No, he wasn't there.
When Karyn turned her head back to the parking lot, however, the car had parked itself and someone was getting out of the passenger seat. Someone handsome. Someone well-dressed. Someone who was Jon Gibson!?
Karyn's heart fluttered within her tiny little tube top. It kept happening: the more she became Other Karyn, the more she was rewarded. She didn't know what had happened to Jon, but the boy she'd walked home with the night before had been dorky and the boy who stepped out of Sarah's car was downright hot.
"See someone you like?" Amber giggled in her ear, causing Karyn to blush. "Don't be embarrassed. You said you're dating him, right? Looks like you took him off the market right before his value went up. Smart girl, you."
Karyn let her smile fall into a more natural place. But something began nagging her in the back of the head. Something wasn't right. Jon had just gotten out of the passenger side of the car, but Karyn was facing the driver's side. So whoever was in the driver's seat was closer to Karyn. But that would mean--
Sarah McMillan stepped out of the driver's side of the white Miata and tousled her hair. She was very slightly, but unmistakably, physically closer to Karyn than Jon was. But yet Karyn was in control of herself. She wasn't Other Karyn. She was herself.
Was the curse finished? Had it run its course? Was Karyn free now? Somehow she didn't think it was that easy.
Karyn could see Jon and Sarah exchanging a few words, and then Sarah spotted the crowd of cheerleaders, spotted Karyn within it, and grabbed Jon's wrist to lead him towards them across the parking lot.
But Sarah took the lead. Jon was lagging behind. Sarah was always closer to Karyn, and the closer she got the more Karyn's unease grew. Until Sarah stopped abruptly on the grass just a few feet away from Karyn, Jon stumbling to find his balance behind her as he tried to straighten up his posture and straighten up his outfit.
"I upgraded your boyfriend," Sarah smiled at her best friend. "Do you like?"
