Free Out of Sight by Amanda Ashby

practicing invisible flying when her mom was at home. “Well, here I am.”
    â€œYes, but I’m still not sure why you’re down here. And who were you talking to?”
    â€œSee, it’s like she can just feel my presence,” Malik said as he puffed his chest forward and gave a coy little half wave. Despite the fact that Sophie’s mom couldn’t see him, Malik was convinced that they had a connection because they were friends on Facebook. Sophie was convinced he was delusional. “Oh, and I like what she’s done to her hair. It’s cute.”
    â€œOf course no one’s here with me,” Sophie said in a firm voice as she shot Malik a warning look.
    â€œReally?” Her mom looked around in confusion. “Because I was sure I heard you talking to someone.”
    Again Malik grinned, but Sophie ignored him as she searched her mind for a suitable excuse. She could hardly say that she had been practicing her carpet-flying skills, and since she didn’t own a cell phone she couldn’t say she had been talking on it, which meant there was only one thing to do.
    â€œI was...er...talking to a spider,” Sophie finally said, resisting the urge to shudder.
    â€œA spider?” Her mom raised an eyebrow in surprise. “But you hate spiders.”
    â€œYes, yes, I do,” Sophie reluctantly agreed. “But since I’m such a positive person, who prefers to be at one with the Universe, I’m trying to make myself get to know them. I mean, maybe I’ve been misjudging them all these years? Anyway, I think the spider and I have come to an understanding now.”
    â€œYou know, you really are the worst liar I’ve ever heard. You could’ve just said that you were singing a Neanderthal Joe song,” Malik said in a helpful voice that only she could hear. The fact that he had a good point didn’t improve her mood. “Anyway, as delightful as it is to watch you talk about spiders, I’ve got to go.” Without another word he snapped his fingers and disappeared from sight.
    â€œWell, I’m happy that you and the spider have cleared the air,” her mom said before catching sight of the David Bowie T-shirt, which was still in Sophie’s hand. Her mom’s eyes filled with concern. “When I agreed not to throw away your father’s things, I didn’t think it would encourage you to spend so much time moping down here. Should I be worried?”
    â€œOf course not,” Sophie quickly responded. When her djinn powers had first come through, Sophie hadn’t quite managed to make the most stellar start to sixth grade. That was one of the reasons why her mom had wanted to sell the house so that they could move to Montana. Not something that Sophie wanted to experience for a second time.
    â€œReally? Because I’m not convinced, so how about you tell me the real reason? And this time I don’t want to hear about any spiders.”
    Sophie chewed her lip for a moment and took a deep breath. “I’m, er, saying good-bye to an old part of my life and getting ready for a new chapter,” she improvised, using Malik’s words. Besides, it wasn’t really a lie; as soon as her dad was back it
would
be a whole new chapter. More importantly, it was obviously exactly what her mom wanted to hear, because the worry lines around her eyes instantly disappeared as Sophie put the T-shirt down.
    â€œOh, Sophie, I’m so pleased. And I know it’s been a tough few years, but I really feel like things are starting to get better.”
    â€œAbsolutely.” Sophie nodded in agreement. “S-so...did you want to ask me something?”
    â€œOh, right. Yes, I did. Max Rivers just called. He’s got Ryan staying with him for the week, and he wanted to know if you could babysit for him after school tomorrow for a couple of hours.”
    â€œWhat?” Sophie was immediately taken aback because not