Jon had finally managed to get some sleep, but it certainly wasn't restful. He was up before his alarm and getting ready, trying to figure out how to deal with this new problem... whatever it might be.
Sarah had made a wish, that was for sure. Karyn and his father both had identical manicures, which was weird. But it didn't make sense. Why would Sarah wish for that? And how did he notice? The rock was supposed to change reality for anybody who didn't hear the wish. Unless she wanted him to see it. That worried him. That meant there was probably more to come.
He went down the hall to the bathroom for his morning shower, only to find Zoe waiting outside, banging on the door.
"Hurry up, twerp!" she yelled. "I have to get ready for school too, you know."
"Just a minute!" Mikey yelled back from inside.
Zoe turned and saw Jon. "Oh, fucking great. Now there's a line!" She pounded on the door again. When she did, Jon got a good look at her hand. That same damn blue nail polish. It had been years since Jon had seen any color on her nails but black. And something else was different, though it was tough to make out in the dim light of the hallway.
Zoe was tan. Zoe had never been tan. She loved darkness, and avoided sunlight at all costs. Now her skin was a rich bronze color, like she was a regular at the tanning salon, or the beach.
"Mom! Mikey's hogging the bathroom again," Zoe yelled down the stairs. Again? Mikey never hogged the bathroom. In fact, it was still a struggle to get him to shower and brush his teeth sometimes.
The bathroom door opened and Mikey trudged out. "Fine, I'm done, chill out," he said. With the light from the bathroom, Jon saw it right away. Mikey was just as tan as Zoe was. And had the same manicure. But Jon noticed something else new. Mikey was barefoot, and Jon saw his toenails were also painted, but instead of blue they were hot pink. He suspected Zoe had the same pedicure, but she was wearing slippers. Mikey trudged to his room while Zoe went into the bathroom and slammed the door.
Well, Jon thought, Guess I'll eat breakfast first. So he headed downstairs to the kitchen, trying to figure out what Sarah was up to. Just giving everyone tans, manicures, and pedicures? That made no sense. Unless she made a wish for herself and screwed it up.
Jon's parents were in the kitchen, both of them were dressed for work. As Jon expected, they had changed in the same way his siblings had. Of course, he remembered his fathers manicure from the night before. His dad finished pouring coffee into his travel mug and looked at his watch.
"OMG, I'm soooo late," he kissed Jon's mom and headed out the door, "Bye son, have fun at school."
Jon sat there a moment, bewildered. Then he looked at his mom.
"Did Dad just say 'OMG'?"
His mom gave him a strange look. "I guess. Why?"
"Never mind," Jon said. He poured himself a bowl of cereal, and ate it quickly.
"I have to get to work too," his mom said. "Make sure you get to school on time." She kissed him on the cheek and headed out the door.
Jon finished his cereal and went back upstairs. Zoe was still in the bathroom.
"I don't have time for this," Jon grumbled as he ran to his room, threw on some fresh clothes and deodorant, grabbed his backpack and stormed down the stairs and out the front door. He had to find Sarah and get that rock back.
