Chapter 14

Two weeks after our brush with a fiery death, we sit in Gabby’s apartment. The final scene of the original Man with the Silver Star flashes across her family’s flat-screen TV. John Willis’s character, US Marshal Cheswell, rides off into the sunset. The credits start to roll.

“That was decent,” Gabby says. “I mean, not Oscar material. But pretty good.”

“Way better than the other one,” I add. “At least there was a real plot.”

“Glad you enjoyed it,” says Gabby’s mom, Professor Torres. She’s visiting from California. After Gabby mailed her the film reel, Professor Torres got the print converted into a digital format. She’s writing an article about the movie and dealing with some complicated rights issues I can’t really follow. But her goal is to get it more widely distributed. She wants to set up some screenings for the public. Eventually, people might be able to buy their own copies.

For now, the four of us have gotten a private showing.

Professor Torres turns off the TV. “You’ve rescued a lost piece of film history,” she tells us. “Though I wish you’d managed to do it without trespassing.”

Nobody’s parents were thrilled about that part. But I’m making it up to my mom by keeping all my activities legal for the next year, at least.

“It was Alex’s idea,” adds Destiny.

“Wow, way to throw me under the bus! I see how it is.”

She sticks her tongue out at me, like we’re in second grade, and I laugh.

We thank Professor Torres for everything and get ready to head home for the night. Gabby walks us to the door. We’re all quiet until we get out on the front porch, out of her family’s earshot.

She clears her throat. “So. What do you think?”

“The soundtrack still annoyed me,” says Destiny.

Gabby rolls her eyes. “Not about the movie. About the curse. I mean—do you think it’s broken?”

We all chew on that for a minute.

Nothing especially bleak has happened in the past two weeks. Gabby’s computer ended up being okay, and she was able to finish her application. Destiny’s arm is healing nicely. And Tanner’s going to be fine. Besides, as long as he’s at the hospital for burn treatments, he isn’t able to torment anyone. We’ve heard a rumor that his family’s planning to live off base when they move to Florida. Which means he and Ahmed may not even be going to the same school.

And none of us got charged with arson or even with trespassing. That’s a definite win.

Some things won’t change, of course. My mom’s still going to deploy. My dad’s still going to be weirdly semi-around. Ahmed’s still going to move.

He’s the one who speaks up. “I think the curse knows we’ve done our best. That should count for something.”

It’s weird: they still surprise me. Each of them. In the past couple of months, I’ve really only scratched the surface of who they are. There’s probably a lot they don’t know about me too. And nobody can pretend we have much in common. But here we are. “Cursed” isn’t the word that comes to mind.

“I like that theory,” I say.

We stand in silence for another few seconds. Ahmed shifts the strap of his backpack. Destiny scratches at her cast. The charms on her bracelet chime softly. I put my hands in my pockets and look up at the sky. “Taps” will be playing soon.

“Well then,” says Ahmed. “See you guys tomorrow.”

“Hey,” I say, on impulse. “When you move, we’ll stay in touch, right?”

I want to believe it. So many times, I’ve said this to friends. So many times, they’ve agreed. But it’s hard. Even with texting, email, social media. Once you get to a new place, you use all your energy meeting new people. Becoming a new person. You don’t have time to keep track of the people you left behind.

But I say it anyway. And I mean it. And Ahmed says, “Yeah.” And Destiny says, “For sure.” Gabby adds, “Definitely.” And I can tell. This isn’t just for Ahmed. It’s a pact among the four of us.

And even if it doesn’t turn out the way we hope, this moment is enough. I’ll always have it to replay in my head. It’s that moment before the credits roll, when the stars of the movie have saved the day, and you can just take a breath and enjoy the company.