Chapter 16

All through the next day, Laurel couldn’t wait to see Matt. She told the girls not to come over after school - she had other plans. During lunch, she found Matt sitting with a couple other boys.

“Hi Matt!” She said with a cheerful wave.

“Hey Laurel,” Matt replied.

“I was thinking maybe you could come to my house after school,” she said. “We could, you know, do stuff,” she added with an impish shrug.

“Ah, no thanks,” Matt replied.

“No, I mean, do stuff,” Laurel said as if to correct a misconception.

“Thanks, but I think I’ll just play ball with the guys,” Matt answered.

“Well, I mean, we can do it tomorrow instead,” Laurel suggested.

“Look, Laurel, right now you’re kinda...,” Matt said cautiously, hoping she would take the hint before he had to finish.

“ ... Creeping up all in his business,” Ike finished for him.

“No!” Laurel protested. “I know you like me. You want to kiss me - I know you do! Don’t you remember your dream last night?” Her body was alive with anxiety, like a candle flame trying to escape its wick. Matt looked supremely uncomfortable.

“Girl, let me break it down for you,” Ike said. “You’re like three degrees of hot - which is good! But you’re also ten degrees of crazy. So what you need is a guy who is at least seven degrees of desperate, you feel me? Unfortunately for you, Matt here is only four.”

The other guys started laughing so Laurel ran away. She hid until after lunch was over and Mrs. Potter found her and insisted she return to class. All through her remaining classes, she kept hearing people whisper, “Ten degrees.” Tina Wells and her friends approached her after class and asked her, “Shameless much?”

Laurel went straight to bed when she got home from school and stayed there until James called her down for dinner. He tried to get Laurel to open up - it was obvious that she was upset - but she wouldn’t tell him why.

Late at night Laurel was wide awake, so she crept out to the greenhouse. She thumbed through her mother’s sex magic book, looking for some spell within her skill that could be used to curse Matt.