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Sydney. But I think that Devon and Yasmin, like me, were impressed that Lucy could be so strong and indifferent to Leonardo’s charms.
    â€œWow,” Devon said, “I never met any girl who wasn’t absolutely crazed over Leo.”
    â€œYou’re like this anti-Leo girl,” Yasmin said. She handed Lucy an invitation to a birthday party. I had seen the invitation in Yasmin’s pocket all afternoon, and I knew she had been deciding all day whether or not to give it to Lucy. Maybe being anti-Leo made Lucy more interesting and mysterious to Devon and Yasmin. “So come by this party or something.”
    Yasmin’s voice wasn’t exactly enthusiastic about inviting Lucy, but she had invited Lucy nonetheless. Lucy’s rosy face was pleased . . . and relieved. Like maybe she could see the light at the end of the social dungeon tunnel.
    I wondered if it was Angus’s fault that Lucy hadn’t fallen under the Leo spell. That boy was one big pain. All through the first half of the movie he kept trying to distract us. He kept standing in front of the TV, smooching his lips together and making fish gurgle sounds, then he would wave and sway his arms like he was an octopus. Angus must be some kind of fishetarian. He just loves fish. It’s the one food he won’t eat, and all he ever wants to do is look at books about fish. Whatever! But his fishy behavior was a bit much. Finally, after Lucy shouted at him to bugger off, Penny made him go upstairs with her, Jack, and Beatrice. I think Penny was just happy that Lucy was having friends over.
    â€œIs your brother always like that?” I asked Lucy later, after Devon and Yasmin had left.
    â€œYeah, he’s a huge, massive pain,” Lucy said. Then she added, “And he’s your brother too, you know.”
    That sounded too weird.
    â€œHe’s my step,” I said. “You’re my step. That’s all we’ll ever be. Steps.”
    I remembered I had promised myself I could be mean to Lucy again once Devon and Yasmin were gone. Maybe she thought because I took up for her with Devon and Yasmin that we would be tight, but she was wrong. I was only temporarily helping out. And seeing Jack come downstairs after the girls were gone, carrying Beatrice, with Angus hanging on to his leg and Penny and Lucy gazing at him adoringly, I reminded myself that the Steps were not my friends.
    Lucy looked like she was going to cry from what I had said. Instead she leaned over to whisper in my ear, so Jack and Penny would not hear her. “Sometimes I wish you weren’t even my step. I wouldn’t want you as my sister anymore. Your dad never warned us you’d be so stuck up.”
    Good, I thought. Now Lucy understood that I had no intention of being all cozy-cozy with her.
    â€œTakes one to know one,” I whispered back.
    Jack and Penny looked at us, and Lucy and I both flashed brilliant smiles back at them, like we were going to be the bestest friends in the world. Not.

Chapter 10
    Australia was the weirdest place. Rice Krispies were called Rice Bubbles, Popsicles were “icy pops,” people said “ta” instead of “thank you,” and everybody ended their sentences with “hey?” Like Angus would say, “I want an icy pop, hey? Ta.” That was their “English.” Another thing: Every time I went to the “milk bar” or the “veggie bar” (the vegetarian restaurant down the street), people imitated the way I talked. Like if I said, “I’ll have an order of nachos,” the waitress would repeat after me, in this exaggerated American voice, “Nah-chos.” The first time I asked for guacamole, the waitress said, “What?” about five times and Lucy sat giggling at the table going “Guacamole, guacamole,” in this ridiculous American accent Apparently in Australia there is no word guacamole. They call it avocado sauce, and of