The rest of the weekend dragged by, in part because I was starting it out with a serious sleep deficit thanks to the sleepover that didn’t actually involve sleep, and in part because I was wondering when and if I was going to hear from Julian again. I knew better than to expect a phone call the next day (Molly had educated me in the dos and don’ts when it comes to going out and frequency of communication), but a quick text would have been nice. You know, a “Hey, thanks for last night,” or “Just thinking about you and wanted to say hi,” or maybe even a little “How is my Hungarian gypsy love goddess today?”
But instead of texting with Julian, I spent most of Saturday holed up in my room working on my extra-credit project for history class. Ms. Kendall had agreed to let me write a paper on Hungary’s move from communism to capitalism to boost my cultural studies grade, but I only had a week to get it done. Thankfully, my paper gave me the perfect excuse to duck out of my family’s regular volunteer obligation of cleaning up one of the beaches along Puget Sound, which, frankly, I just wasn’t up for. Small talk with Mom and Dad and other perfectly nice strangers for an entire afternoon? No thanks.
On Sunday the sun made a rare May appearance, and in honor of the glowing orb in the sky and because I was ready for a break from any and all things having to do with Hungary, I didn’t protest too loudly when my mom and dad recruited me to help prep the garden bed for the vegetables we’d be buying at the edible plant sale later that day. They didn’t have to twist my arm too hard—I actually liked gardening.
I had been working outside for a few hours and had nearly finished weeding and mixing the fresh compost into the garden when Henry shouted from inside the kitchen.
“Hey, Jan, who’s Julian?”
Adrenaline raced through my body. “Huh?”
“Somebody named Julian is calling your cell!”
I dropped the mini spade and sprinted for the house, leaving a trail of dirt in my wake. I ripped the phone out of his hands and ran for the bathroom, slamming the door behind me.
“Hallo?” I answered, doing my best to sound as if I hadn’t just competed in the two-hundred-meter dash.
“Janna? Hey, it’s Julian.”
“Hallo, Julian.” I willed my heartbeat to steady.
“Hey, listen, are you home?”
“Yes. I am at zee house of my host family.” I was surprised at how seamlessly I slipped into Hungarian mode.
“Well, I hope you don’t mind a visitor. I’m actually on your front porch. I went for a bike ride and was passing right by your neighborhood, so I thought I’d swing by and say hi. Is that okay?“
Shoot. Why had I given him my address when he’d asked where in Queen Anne I lived? I looked into the mirror. My hair was piled on top of my head in a too-high ponytail and I had dirt smeared all over my hands, arms, and face. To top it off, I was wearing a ratty U.S. Olympic Team T-shirt circa 2004. Could I possibly look more American?
“Hello? Are you still there?” Julian asked.
“Yes! I am here. Sorry. I be out in one minute, okay?”
“Cool!” Julian hung up.
I frantically flipped on the faucet, violently scrubbing the dirt from my skin as best I could. Unfortunately, simple soap and water was no match for the dark layer of mud beneath my fingernails. Oh, well. It was the best I could do. I quickly dried off my hands and face and yanked out the ponytail holder, leaning over to shake my hair with my fingertips before standing up and flipping it over. I turned back to the mirror for another look. Frizz city. But barring the unlikely appearance of a magical fairy godmother with a transformational wand, there was only so much that could be done. I tried to flatten out the crooked wisps shooting in every direction and with shaky hands pulled my hair back into a low, more sophisticated ponytail.
I grabbed my phone and instinctively dialed Molly’s number. She would tell me exactly how to get through this. Ring. She’d tell me to just be myself, only with a Hungarian accent and much cooler. Ring. Then she’d remind me that most guys aren’t very bright, so I should let Julian run the conversation and things would be fine. Ring.
“Hi, this is Molly! Leave a—” I hung up at the sound of her overly cheerful outgoing message. I was on my own.
I slowly opened up the bathroom door and peeked into the kitchen. While I knew my current physical state was disastrous, my biggest concern at the moment was actually the location of Henry. Like a shark smelling blood, Henry surely knew something was up. If I was going to pull this off, I had to keep the little brother at bay by throwing some chum into the water.
“Hey, Henry,” I said sweetly. “You should check out the new game I just downloaded on my iPod Touch. It’s on top of my desk in my room.”
Henry emerged from behind a potted ficus tree in the kitchen, eyeing me suspiciously.
“You want me to play with your iPod Touch?” He was clearly in a state of disbelief.
“Yeah, why not? I downloaded a game called Invader Raiders I think you’d love.”
“And why exactly are you letting me do this?”
“Why wouldn’t I? I know how much you like my iPod Touch, and I just figured that you’d wanna try this game. But it’s okay if you don’t want to …”
“No, no … I do! Excellent!” Henry bounded up the stairs.
Hook, line, and sinker. And now on to more pressing matters.
I slowly walked to the front of the house and looked back at the stairs one last time to make sure Henry was safely out of view before opening the front door. Julian was perched on the bottom step of my porch, and he turned around the minute I opened the door. His light eyes sparkled with genuine happiness when he saw me. That, coupled with the fact that he looked as gorgeous as ever, made my heart flutter.
I smiled back. “Hey.” I sat down beside him on the steps, keeping my arms loosely crossed in a lame attempt to cover up my ridiculously patriotic T-shirt. I couldn’t believe he was actually here. At my house. To see me. He looked like he just walked out of a J. Crew catalog, with his short-sleeve shirt and loose cargo shorts. I especially appreciated the opportunity to check out his arms and legs, which, for a slender guy, were toned and muscular. It was all I could do not to gape at his awesome physique.
“I am mess,” I said, waving a hand in front of my hair. “I work in za garden today.”
“That’s cool. What are you growing?”
“Lettuce, tomatoes, and peas, I sink,” I answered quietly. It felt odd to be speaking in my Hungarian accent at home. Neighbors who’d known me since I was in diapers could walk by at any moment. Plus, there was my nosy brother to worry about. He would only be distracted with shiny electronic devices for so long.
“Nice. My mom’s a total urban farmer. She’s actually a locavore,” he said.
“Locavore?” I repeated. “What is zis?”
“It’s like someone who will only eat food that’s grown locally. I guess you could say she’s a little extreme.” He turned to me and smiled shyly. “So, did you have fun Friday night?”
“Veddy much fun.” I blushed, looking down at my lap. “And for you?”
“Yeah, definitely. In fact, I think that was the most fun I’ve had going out in a long time,” Julian said.
I was just about to respond when the sound of a long, low belch reverberated from the side of the house.
Julian laughed. “What was that?”
I pretended I hadn’t heard anything as my face turned red. I was running out of time. “Vat vas vat?”
Then we heard it again. This time it was louder. And closer.
“That.” Julian turned around just in time to see Henry fall out from behind a rhododendron.
“Well, hello there. You must be Julian!” Henry walked over with a mischievous smile and stretched out his hand for a firm handshake.
“That’s right. And you are—”
“Oh, me? I’m Henry, Janna’s—”
“Host brudder!” I blurted out in an anxious accent.
Henry looked at me in confusion. “Your what?”
I laughed nervously. “Well, you like brudder to me.” I turned to Julian. “Henry is son of my host family.”
I watched as Henry put two and two together. In a split second, his confusion shifted into unabashed delight, for he knew he had me. The windows of opportunity had just been flung wide open, and I could be certain Henry would take full advantage.
“Henry, come please.” I stood up and beckoned him into the foyer. “Please excuse, Julian. I be right back.”
With exaggerated grandiosity, Henry slowly shook Julian’s hand again, no doubt just to prolong my torture. “So nice to meet you, Julian. Come again anytime!”
“Uh … thanks.”
As Henry walked into the house, I smiled quickly back at Julian before closing the door and grabbing Henry by the shoulders, trying to assert control over a situation I knew could go south, and fast.
“What’s with the accent, sis?”
“Look. Just stay out of my business for once. I mean it. Can you please just do that?” If I sounded desperate, it was because I was. And Henry knew it.
“Of course I can. What are brudders for?” He paused. “But it’s gonna cost you.”
“Cost me what? What exactly is it that you want?”
“Hmmm. Let’s see here. It’s a big, big world, you know.” Henry pursed his lips and looked up at the ceiling as if it were the location of a giant toy store.
“Don’t push it, Henry. Just tell me what you want and then get out of here,” I said furiously.
“Well, let’s see … I have been wanting the Lego Star Wars Millennium Falcon collector’s edition for some time now,” he said.
“That’s 300 bucks!” I knew it well, especially since Henry had spent the past three birthdays lobbying for it. His earmarked Lego catalogs had become regular fixtures throughout the house.
“How about the Imperial Dropship?” I bargained.
“That’s chump change, sis. General Grievous’s Starfighter?” Henry countered.
“How much is that one?”
“Sixty-six dollars,” he said. “I’d say that’s a deal, considering you’re asking me to ignore the identity fraud operation you’re running out of our house.”
“Coming from a blackmailer, I’m sure you’ll find a way to get over it.” There goes a third of the money I’d saved for Europe. But, then again, I might not be going to Europe in the first place, and dealing with the issue at hand was definitely more important. “Fine! General Grievous’s Starfighter. Deal?”
“Deal.” We shook on it, and Henry disappeared upstairs gloating about his score.
When I stepped back outside, Julian was perched on his bike strapping on his helmet. My negotiation with Henry must have taken longer than I thought.
“I am so soddy,” I said. “Henry can be—”
“It’s no prob. I have to get going anyway. I just wanted to say hi. You go back to your gardening or whatever, and I’ll see you soon,” Julian said.
My face dropped at Julian’s abrupt departure. Had he overheard me bargaining with Henry? Was he turned off by my frumpy weekend look? Was he coming to his senses and realizing he was way out of my league?
Julian seemed to sense my insecurity. “Really, it’s okay. I have to pick up some things for my dad at the hardware store before they close. I’ll text you later. Hopefully we can see each other next weekend, okay?”
“I would like zis very much,” I said, relieved. I wasn’t ready for this guy to be out of my life just yet. “Sank you for visit.”
“No worries. See you later.” I watched as Julian biked away, a sense of excitement filling me just knowing this beautiful boy was in my life. Once he was out of sight, I put my head in my hands and let the stress escape my body. One possible disaster had been narrowly averted. But somehow I knew the next one was lurking right around the corner.