So after Tanner tried to set me and Berry up for arson, we set to work rehearsing our sword-fighting scene, which was a little nerve-racking considering. And afterward Tanner came up to me with this, like, weirdly apologetic vibe and asked me if I could find him buttons for his cufflinks (we ended up using some from Lucy’s vice-principal drag).

Maybe Greenville just all had this pent-up creativity and they just needed to let it out? Like the game changer was when we got Tanner his hat. Suddenly every time I turned around, there he was in the hallway working on these one-handed flourishes with his feathered hat and no soccer jerse y! Like, I didn’t even know Tanner had regular shirts. He does!

With the leftover Bev money, Mr. Davidson ordered a proper flying apparatus. It was a complicated harness with industrial straps that was somehow supposed to fit under my tunic. The first time they strapped me in and three kids from the soccer team hoisted me up over the stage, Lucy nearly passed out.

“It’s not as dangerous as roller-skating,” I reasoned, dangling over her head while my stomach muscles strained to keep me from looking like a dead spider.

“Don’t tell me that,” Lucy grumbled as I spun and finally was lowered to the ground.

Gilly also didn’t think it looked safe.

“I’m just flying in and flying out,” I reasoned. “Plus the guys they’ll have the night of the show will be professional. . .hoisters.”

A couple of days before the dance, Millie asked me what was going on with Berry.

I didn’t say it, but I was looking for Berry, like a lot, in school. Every time I turned a corner, she was flying out of whatever room I was in. In every class she came in last and left first, spending most of her time with her face buried in a book. She also wasn’t replying to my texts. Even the really funny ones.

Whenever I talked to Millie about it, she got this weird look on her face. Like this little wrinkle in her forehead.

“Should I call her?”

“Do you want to?” Millie asked.

“Yeah. I mean, I miss her.” Every time something happened, I’d think about talking to Berry about it. Like when I was flying, I wanted to look down and see Berry waving at me with her fuzzy green hair.

I wanted to know she was okay.

I wanted to talk to her, but I didn’t know what I needed to say.

The night of the dance, I took out my tuxedo again and laid it out on the bed. Lucy peeked in just as I was putting together my shoes and accessories.

“The velvet tuxedo,” she said appreciatively. “It’s very you.”

“It is, isn’t it?”