Free Ruby Reinvented by Ronni Arno Page A

be for the observation deck?” Connor asks Summer.
    â€œThat’d be awesome.” Her eyes are as big as the telescope.
    â€œI’m putting together plans to build an observation deck off the science room,” Connor explains. “Summer’s dad is helping me.”
    â€œThat’s really cool,” I say. Before I can say anything else, Summer’s mom waves us over.
    â€œYou guys ready?” she asks.
    â€œYep!” I’m the first one back on the sidewalk.
    We’re about a block past the newsstand when the back of my neck sprouts sprinklers. What happens if someone from Midcoast goes to that newsstand and looks inside Celebrity Scuttlebutt ? What happens if I’m in there? I’ve got to get rid of those magazines. And I’ve got to get rid of them now—before it’s too late.
    â€œUh-oh.” I stop walking. Everyone else stops too. “I think I dropped some money out of my pocket. Must have been while we were at the newsstand.”
    â€œThat’s okay, Bea,” Veronica says. “We can go back and look. It’s only a block—”
    â€œNo, I’ll go.” I turn around and break into a light jog. “I’ll be right back.”
    â€œWe’ll come with you.” Summer starts running to catch me.
    â€œNo, really, I’ll be right back.” And I run faster than I’ve ever run before.
    Every few seconds I glance behind me to be sure nobody’s following. They’re not. Not yet anyway.
    There’s a huge stack of Celebrity Scuttlebutt magazines, and I quickly realize I can’t hide them all. I run up to the cashier, breathless.
    â€œHow many of those do you have?” I point to the stack.
    â€œWhatever’s there,” he says.
    I peek my head down the block to be sure nobody’s coming. “I’ll take all of them.”
    â€œAll of them? I don’t even know how many are there. It will take me a minute to count them.”
    â€œI don’t have a minute. How many do you think there are?”
    The cashier walks over to the stack and starts counting. “Probably about seventy-five. Maybe one hundred.”
    â€œAnd how much are they?” I pull my wallet out of my purse.
    â€œThree dollars each.”
    I try to do the math in my head. I’m figuring one hundred magazines because I want to make sure I get all of them, and anyway, one hundred is way easier to multiply by three than seventy-five.
    I pull out my credit card and shove it into the cashier’s hand “Just put three hundred dollars on there.”
    Another peek down the street, and I see that Summer and Connor are walking this way.

Chapter
 12 
    T HE CASHIER LOOKS at me through squinty eyes and hands me my receipt. “Can you carry all of those?”
    â€œI don’t need to,” I say. “Can you just take them all, and throw them away?”
    â€œYou want me to throw them away?”
    â€œYes.” I nod so hard my head hurts. Connor and Summer are getting closer.
    He shrugs. “Okay, you bought ’em.”
    â€œThank you.” I turn to go, and I bump into Connor so hard that I almost knock him down.
    â€œDid you find your money?” he asks.
    â€œYep.” I tap my purse. “All fine now.”
    I smile at Summer and Connor and hope there’s not sweat dripping off my nose.
    We catch up with Summer’s parents, and they walk us back to the dorms. By the time we get there, my heart rate is almost back to normal. Summer’s folks give us all hugs, and her mom reminds Holly and Summer to text or call every night.
    â€œWe always do,” Holly says.
    â€œSo do you talk to your parents every night?” I ask Summer when we’re back in our room.
    â€œYeah, either that or text. It was the only way Mom would let us board here. We live so close that Holly was a day student for a while. I wasn’t old enough to come here yet, so I went to our