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after-class discussion with Ms. Frary.
    She arrived to Math class two minutes early and placed her makeup homework on Mr. O'Bannon's desk.
    “Very good, Miss Atkins,” he said.
    “Sure, Mr. O'Bannon,” she sighed and slid into her desk.
    “Is everything okay at home?” he asked.
    Amber glanced around the room trying to figure out who he was talking about. When she found the room empty, she knew he was talking to her.
    “Of course, everything's fine at home,” she sighed.
    “Hi,' the guy who winked at her on Friday said as he walked by on the way to his desk.
    Amber nodded on at him unable to muster the energy involved in producing a verbal response.
    At lunch Amber sat with Tamara at their usual table and kept her eyes locked to the back of Joshua's Nelson's head.
    “Notice me!” she silently willed him, “Notice me!”
    “He's checking you out,” Tamara said, taking a long drink of her chocolate milk.
    “Maybe if he has eyes on the back of his head under that thick luscious hair of his,” Amber sighed, picking up a fry and dropping it again.
    “Not him,” Tamara sighed, “That guy over there.”
    “What guy?” Amber asked, still frowning.
    “The one at the table by the wall and he's cute too,” Tamara said.
    Amber waited a few seconds after Tamara finished speaking before she turned her head to look. It was the guy from Math. Great, what does he want? Most likely help with his homework. Amber laughed quietly as she turned back to Tamara.
    “What's so funny?” Tamara asked.
    “Nothing, really. It's nothing. He's just in my math class,” Amber said.
    “What's his name and stats?” Tamara asked.
    “DKDC,” Amber said.
    “Huh?” Tamara asked.
    “It's short for 'don't know, don't care,” Amber said.
    “You should though, Amber,” Tamara sighed, “He's cute and he's looking at you.”
    “You don't even know him!” Amber said.
    “You don't really know Joshua Nelson, either, do you?” Tamara asked.
    “Whatever,” Amber sighed and left the table, dumping her untouched lunch into the trash.
    By the time the last bell rang Amber regretted tossing her lunch away. Her stomach growled as she dropped her books off at her locker and headed outside to wait for her dad. Tamara was standing in their usual spot and Amber stood a few feet away. Close enough for an apology, but too far away for normal conversation. She wasn't about to let Tamara off the hook if she didn't apologize. What was it to Tamara who she liked or who liked her?
    Amber knew it was her bad mood brought on by the spell not working making her crabby. She wasn't ready to admit it out loud yet, though. Tamara would never let her live it down. For the rest of their lives she would tease and torment her over the fact she had actually tried to use a love spell to get Joshua Nelson's attention. She had also expected it to work. Amber wanted to bang her head into the pillar she was leaning against. Maybe a few hard knocks to the noggin would make her forget about the guy who had haunted her since fifth grade.
    Tuesday wasn't much better than Monday. The day blurred by and Amber's classes blurred together. At lunch she sat across from Tamara and ate silently. Amber longed to have the spell book back in her possession, but the librarian had refused to allow her to renew it.
    “Four days with the book is long enough,” the librarian had told her.
    “What if I need to try it again?” Amber asked before she could stop herself.
    “I assure you the spell worked,” the older woman promised.
    “How do you know that?” Amber asked, but the librarian disappeared into the staff section of the library where Amber wasn't allowed to follow her.
    “Are you still mad at me?” Tamara asked, startling Amber.
    Amber took a bite out of a chicken nugget, trying to slow her racing heart.
    “Act like she's not there. I don't hear you, Tam, I don't hear you,” Amber thought over and over.
    “I guess you are,” Tamara sighed.
    Amber ate a fry.
    “Damn