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EVEN THOUGH I MADE myself look like a fool in front of Taishi Nakamura, I'm still going to take his advice. Isaiah and Angelica need to meet each other outside of their regular FoodGo deliveries.
I'm probably breaking the rules, and I know my mom would kill me for this, but I lay the groundwork on my own—without Ben. First, I sneak a peek at Angelica's daily planner and notice she's participating in a Harry Potter look-alike contest at an upcoming fair. Then I warp to Isaiah's sister and manipulate social media to show her information about the fair, hoping she'll want to go. It's such a resounding success, she dusts off an old Harry Potter costume from six years ago.
Isaiah's sister is now a valuable ally. I convince her to contact Isaiah and ask him to go to the fair, which is probably the hardest part, because Isaiah is a bit of a homebody. Still, he's no match for his sister's begging. He agrees to go to the fair—in costume, even.
I feel a little bit guilty, because Ben should be a part of this. I kept him out of it because I knew he would disagree with me the entire time, and I didn't want to hear it.
“It's fine,” I whisper to myself as I watch Isaiah try on several pairs of glasses. I think he's looking for the perfect Potter pair. “It's okay. Ben will be there for the part that matters...”
Two days later, on the day of the fair, I pop into Ben's dorm room. It's useless to text him.
Ben almost drops the slice of pizza in his hand when he sees me appear. Calmly, he says, “You get a kick out of scaring the crap out of me, don't you?”
“I do.” Glancing at his roommate's empty bed, I ask, “Your friend's not here today?”
“Nah. Vineet's always off on some mission. He likes to stay busy,” Ben says. “Unlike me. You've been gone for, like, three days. I was starting to think you were gone for good.”
“Sorry to disappoint you, but... no. It's time to return to the Isaiah mission.”
As soon as Ben rises from bed, I warp us to the county fair, where the Harry Potter competition is about to take place. Ben's brow furrows when he sees the stage.
“O... kay. This doesn't look like Isaiah's living room,” he states the obvious.
“I... arranged a few things,” I admit. “Isaiah and Angelica are both going to be here today. I thought they needed to meet somewhere that wasn't Isaiah's living room.”
“You still think he should be with that really hot chick?” Ben asks.
“I do... because that's what Isaiah wants, and Isaiah's our charge.” I refuse to get into this argument with Ben again. If he starts acting up, I don't know what I'm going to do.
At first, I worry that it might be difficult for Angelica and Isaiah to spot each other in the crowd. There are about fifty Harry Potters, ten Ron Weasleys, twenty Hermione Grangers, six Severus Snapes, a few Dumbledores, and a bunch of other characters I'm not sure I recognize. The crowd is huge. Even so, Angelica finds Isaiah in the mess and stands next to his wheelchair. She didn't even need any coaxing from me.
“Hi,” Angelica greets him. “I didn't expect to see you here.”
“I didn't expect to see you here either.” Glancing at her blonde hair, he asks, “Who are you supposed to be?”
Tapping him with her wand, she exclaims, “Luna Lovegood, of course! You make a really handsome Harry Potter, by the way.”
“Thanks.” When Isaiah blushes, he blushes big time. Even his ears turn red. I don't care what Ben says—I think Isaiah and Angelica are adorable together.
Isaiah introduces Angelica to his sister, and the three of them engage in polite conversation for a few minutes. Banal chatter is fine, but at some point, Isaiah needs to make a move.
I shout at Isaiah, “Ask her out! Isaiah... you need to ask Angelica on a date! You might not get another opportunity!”
“Or...” Ben speaks up, “you could ask out that girl over there? She looks about your age. Or maybe you could ask her out?” He points at a freckled, red-haired Hermione. “There are a lot of girls here. You don't have to hit on Angelica because Kaylene says you have to.”
I am not going to let this little turd interfere with my plans, not when I've worked so hard to make this happen. “Ben... stop,” I growl. “This is an official warning.”
“What?” Ben throws up his hands in feigned innocence. “I just don't understand why we get control of his love life. I feel like we're taking away his free will.”
“We are not!” I object. “He is the one who wants to be with Angelica! How do you not understand that? I'm just giving him the support he needs to make it happen!”
Ben leans closer to our charge and says, “Hey, Isaiah... buddy. What do you think about that girl over there? She's pretty, right? Personally, I think she's a better match for you than Angelica. Why don't you ask her out?”
I don't know what girl he's referring to, and I'm not going to wait around to find out. For the first time in my afterlife career, I use my powers of banishment on Ben. I send him Home, far away from this mission. When he's gone, I feel like I can finally breathe.
“Isaiah, you should ask Angelica out,” I reiterate. “I think you two would look cute together. She looked so happy when she spotted you in the crowd. I think you should make it happen. Now. Today.”
Isaiah has to wait awhile, because it's time for the Luna Lovegoods to take the stage. There are only three of them, and Angelica wins by a landslide. She returns with a Harry Potter bobblehead, a certificate, and a huge smile on her face.
“Good job,” Isaiah says. “You were the prettiest Luna by far.”
“Aww! Thanks, that's so sweet!”
When Angelica leans down to kiss his cheek, I almost yelp with excitement. She likes him too, doesn't she? I could probably read her mind and find out for sure.
“Angelica...” When Isaiah says her name, he says it breathily, as if he's talking about a pleasant dream. “I should be honest. I really like you.”
“Cool. I like you too.”
Her response makes me flinch, because it sounds a bit dismissive to me.
“I mean I really like you. A lot,” Isaiah says. “I think you're the most beautiful girl I've ever laid eyes on.”
“Awww! That's really nice of you.”
Again, her response makes me nervous. It could be my imagination, but her tone is almost patronizing.
“Would you... like to go out with me sometime?” Isaiah asks—and no matter how this ends, I'm proud of him. I'm sure that took a ton of courage.
“Of course! I'd love to!” As I breathe a sigh of relief, Angelica whips out her phone to exchange contact information. “When are you free?”
“Every day,” replies a chuckling Isaiah. “My schedule's always open. I'm sure that makes me sound lame, but it's true.”
My smile couldn't get any bigger as I listen to them plan their date. A part of me wishes Ben was still here. I'd like to rub this little victory in his face.
After the Snapes, Rons and Hermiones have been chosen, it's time for the Harry Potters to pose for the crowd. Angelica takes control of Isaiah's wheelchair and pushes him up a ramp, to the center of the stage. Unfortunately, Isaiah doesn't win, but he gets third place. It's enough to get him a bobblehead and a slightly smaller certificate.
But if you ask me, he did win today. He won a date with the girl of his dreams.
And I can't wait to see them happy together.