Free White is for Magic by Laurie Faria Stolarz Page B

that doesn't mean I'm willing to get caught out here after curfew.
    "Okay," I say, squeezing my sachet of courage. "Let's make a deal. How about you stop knocking and wait here to see if anyone comes. I'll go check out the area around the building. If we don't see anything, we'll leave." I pull a ( flashlight from my backpack.
    "Fine," Amber agrees.
    I move over to the side of the building and aim the flashlight over shrubbery, among trees scattered about the lawn, and toward the brick walkway that loops back to the main buildings.
    But it just looks vacant. So maybe Drea was right. Maybe this is just one huge prank. Maybe the anniversary of what happened last year is really bringing out the worst in people--maybe even bringing out the worst in my nightmares.
    I turn to move back toward the front of the building. That's when I notice two thick bands of light moving forward along the ground, like the beams of large flashlights. I peek around the side of the building and see Amber, obviously trying to explain herself to two campus police officers.
    "I think I left my sweater in there," I hear her say. "It's my favorite. A Stella McCartney original.
    I can't just let it sit in there. Someone will thief it for sure."
    'Are you out here alone?"
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    "Yup." She looks over her shoulder in my direction. 'All alone."
    Unfortunately, her bogus attempt at lying tips them off. One of the officers shines his light in my direction just moments before I'm able to duck my head.
    Great.
    Instead of succumbing to the humiliation of having him drag me out to the front of the building, I go willingly.
    "Sorry," I say to the bigger of the two. "My friend forgot her sweater inside, and I just came along so she wouldn't have to be out alone."
    "Then what were you doing at the side of the building?" he asks.
    A good question. "I was trying to peek into the side windows to see if I could see it."
    The younger officer, the one who looks like he just walked off the pages of an Abercrombie & Fitch catalog-- tanned face, broad chest, dark wavy hair that dangles over a set of the most deliciously chocolate-brown eyes--shines his mother-of-a-flashlight into the building, illuminating a face.
    Cory's face.
    "Computer dork!" Amber exclaims.
    He's wearing an apron, like he actually works here. He pulls a key ring from his pocket to unlock the door. "What's going on?" he asks, focusing a moment on the ghosts still liplinered on Amber's face. "I was just cleaning up out back."
    "Where's Mr. Gunther?" Mr. Abercrombie & Fitch asks. "Isn't he in charge of closing up the cafe?"
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    Mr. Gunther is Hillcrest's suspender-wearing, knuckle-cracking, way-too-much-cologne-wearing algebra teacher.
    "He wasn't feeling well tonight and had to leave early." Cory grimaces, like he just got Gunther in trouble.
    Officer Abercrombie jots the detail down in his notepad before focusing back on Cory. "Is anyone coming to close up for him?"
    "No," Cory says. "I mean, it's no big deal. All I have to do is shut off the lights and lock the door.
    Gunther knows I'm responsible."
    The officer nods, I think, mulling over whether or not to buy the story.
    "Brrr . . ." Amber folds her arms in front. "I could sure use an extra coat." She eyes Officer Abercrombie's jacket. "Or maybe we should all go inside and discuss this over hot cocoa. I know I've got time." She pouts her lips, supermodel-style, arches her eyebrows approvingly at his puffed-out chest, and then looks him in the eye. But that still fails to nab his attention, which prompts her next desperate attempt. She starts doing this ridiculous little dance to show just how cold she really is--feet tapping, head bobbing from side to side, arms flapping like chicken wings.
     
    "Did you happen to find a sweater in there while you were cleaning?" the officer, obviously completely immune to Amber's idea of seduction, asks Cory.
    Cory shakes his head and makes a face--cheeks sagging and mouth all droopy--as though he's completely baffled by