XOXO, Rachel Finch

two

Turns out I wasn't being pranked on live television. I was actually moving to Ohio, leaving all of my friends and my perfect junior year behind. Not even Dr.Phil could help me out with this one.

Packing wasn't that hard, since I had both Piper and Jamila helping me fill the boxes with elements from my room. When I first told them the news, they laughed. Then Piper laughed so hard she started crying and then Jamila started crying and then so did I. The next day they came over to help me pack.

"This is cute," Piper says, holding a turquoise top that still had the tag on it. My aunt gave it to me as a birthday present, and up to this day I hope she believed my performance when I said I loved it.

"It's yours," I tell her, and she shakes her head.

"No, it's not."

"Piper, it still has the tag on it. You can have it." I would much rather have her wear it than let it collect dust inside of my closet.

Plus, Piper Michell would somehow be able to wear a dish rag and look stunning. As a petite, strawberry blonde girl with pale skin and more freckles than you could possibly count, my best friend took her fashion credit to the next level. Jamila was the opposite of Piper in every way, and with me as the balance between them, we all got along.

"Are you sure? Why don't you want it?" Piper asks, becoming self-conscious in her choice.

I was not about to explain to her that it was because I thought that shirt would make me look like Oscar the Grouch's mother, so I settled for a different approach. "It doesn't fit me anymore."

Piper, ever the emotional, begins to get teary-eyed as she clutches the shirt like it was her only lifeline.

"Nope! No. Piper, we said no crying!" Jamila scorns, walking to the other side of the room to grab a stack of books and probably hide her tears as well.

"God, we're a mess," I deduct, and turn the music up through my phone.

"So, are you going to be getting your old room?" Piper asks, putting her new shirt in the duffel bag she brought for our sleepover and grabbing more clothes to fold.

"No, Ellie's room was way bigger than mine was. I'm taking hers."

Turns out the reason my parents never sold our old house was so they could eventually move back into it. When I heard that there would be an open house for our current one, I realized that this move would be for good.

"Oh! You'll be able to see Ellie every day now!" Piper exclaims. She was making a list of the positives for me moving to Ohio. It was a very small list.

"And you'll get to see Nick and Erika and all your other besties," Jamila jokes, pretending as if that would be a positive.

"It's Noah, Jay," Piper corrects.

"Oh, and you'll get to see the town that worships you." Jamila ignores Piper.

I groan and pretend to cry into the dress that I was folding. How could I forget my favorite town?

"You know what Ellie said? She told me that when she was shopping last week, the cashier recognized her as the sister of the 'girl who tried to kill half her forth grade class'. Last week!"

"But you didn't try to kill them!" Piper huffs, as if the town gossip was a complete injustice, and I laugh.

"Yeah, but apparently my sixth grade threats to Noah were too real at times. Anyways, Ellie told me that the Noah's parents got divorced like a year or two ago? But now he lives with his dad in California, so I won't have to deal with any rumors stating that I came back to town to finish my job and end his life."