Part 24 (1/2)
Mom leans into the room. ”I know that it's late and I should tell you both to get some sleep, but you haven't had dessert and there's definitely leftover tiramisu downstairs.”
”Yes!” Sadie jumps to her feet. ”Lisa, tell us the truth. Did you guys plan a dinner just so Jules and I would have to hang out tonight?”
”My lips are sealed,” Mom says, which sounds a lot like yes to me. ”Anyway, it worked, didn't it?”
”No one could keep me and Jules apart for long,” Sadie says. ”Come on, Jules. Tiramisu!”
I follow her out of my room, but Mom grabs me by my shoulders as I walk by her. ”What?”
”See? Everything's going to be fine.”
”There's a lot that's still not fine,” I say. ”But thank you. If that's what you're looking for.”
”That's exactly what I was looking for.”
I hug her before joining Sadie downstairs in the kitchen.
Tuesday is easier, even though I'm still suspended from my duties on the Crest. Sitting back and listening as everyone else pitches ideas, I feel as if I'm seeing what I couldn't before. If most of what we're doing is just to retain readers.h.i.+p and compete with TALON, it's hard feeling like there's much effort left to put out the best news and information in the school. We added a lunchtime poll and a guest column-which always needs to be heavily, heavily edited-but I can't pretend those were really journalistic game changers.
The news does still matter, though, and I think it matters to the whole school even if they don't realize it. As a new idea descends upon me, I don't feel nervous and I don't worry if it's the right thing to do. I know it's the right thing to do.
I think about staying after our after-school meeting-it's clearly understood by the entire staff that our after-after-school meetings are a thing of the past-but I'm not sure big ideas are allowed during my suspension. And there's so much to get lined up; I can probably work faster and better without involving Mr. Wheeler.
I smile at that thought. Already I feel a lot like my old self again.
CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO.
On Thursday morning I slip away from Sadie and Em while they're discussing potential Friday-night plans. Natalie's standing at her open locker, so I know I have at least a couple of seconds before she can run away.
”Hi,” I say.
”What?” she asks without turning around. I can tell from her tone that she's well aware it's me.
”Do you have a moment?” I look down at my phone and double-check the time. ”We have twelve minutes before the bell rings.”
”Fine, Julia, I have a moment.”
”Can we go somewhere we can talk?”
She sighs but slams her locker door. ”Come on.”
We start walking down the hallway together. I expect everyone to gape at us as we pa.s.s them, but it's possible our rivalry isn't as well known among the whole school as it is within our teams, even after the article.
We end up in the supply room. Considering that all the most recent times I've been in here were to make out with Alex, it seems an overly romantic spot for business negotiations.
”First I should say-regardless of how this goes-you'll be happy to know that... after the Chaos 4 All article, I think the Crest is going to calm down a little. I'm sure you'll be relieved to have less compet.i.tion-”
”What are you talking about?” Natalie looks genuinely confused. ”I never wanted less compet.i.tion from you. I get more done because you're around, and I figured you felt the same. Would Batman even be Batman if the Joker wasn't running around s.c.r.e.w.i.n.g things up?”
”I'm not really familiar with the Batman canon,” I say. ”So... I don't know. Is that an accurate metaphor?”
”Not exactly, but you understand what I mean. I wasn't trying to ruin the paper for you, or for anyone else. We couldn't both be editor, and I a.s.sumed Mr. Wheeler would give the job to you-”
”Because you knew I would have pushed my way into the position no matter what?”
Natalie doesn't look as horrified at having her own words used again her as I would. If I had her poker face, I might actually be as capable of running the world as people tease me about.
”I was incredibly annoyed at you when I said that. You were trying to spy on us, and you did it in the most insultingly obvious way possible. It was offensive. No, that's not why I thought it was a given that Mr. Wheeler would pick you.”
”Is it because we're neighbors?”
”You're neighbors?... Are you serious? You must have amazing stories.”
I laugh. ”Maybe not amazing, but, yeah, stories. My moms invite him over for dinner all the time. It's the worst.”
”I had no idea, and that's-oh G.o.d. No, it's just that you're the one who can recite the history of the Crest off the top of your head, or explain to a freshman overall editorial voice and tone. You were a born editor. So I went off and made something else. That's all.”
”It felt like you wanted to end us,” I say.
”Looking back, I probably should have just talked to you about it,” she says. ”But we're not friends. I a.s.sumed that you were busy with your own things. And I didn't want to end you. TALON isn't why print media is on its way out.”
”I still think the Crest is important,” I say.
”Julia, I know,” she says. ”Everyone knows.”
”My name is Jules,” I say.
”Oh,” she says. ”I thought that was for your friends. I was trying to be respectful.”
”Anyway, my point is that I think what we each do is important,” I say. It hurts my soul somewhere deep down to compliment TALON to Natalie's face, but I can't deny that it's true. ”Would you agree?”
Natalie shrugs. ”Sure.”
”And we definitely each do things the other can't,” I say, even though that's also a little painful to say aloud.
”I miss the Crest sometimes,” Natalie says. ”I miss writing, at least.”
”Yeah, TALON can't do the long-form pieces we do,” I say. ”But the visuals are great. And you're good on camera.”
”Thanks,” she says. ”Initially, I actually thought...”
”What?” I ask. ”Oh. Are you having an idea right now? Because I had this idea last night.”
Natalie laughs. Today is literally the most I've seen her smile in all the years we've gone to school together. ”Yes, Julia-Jules. We're having the same idea.”
We manage to get Mr. Wheeler and Ms. Baugher, TALON's faculty advisor, to meet with us after school that day. We each skip ASB to do so, but we decide that it's worth it. Natalie and I had spent lunch in the library, working on our pitch, but we didn't even get through our first bullet-point list when they agreed and said they'd figure out the details on how the combined teams would meet moving forward.