FORTY-ONE

“HOW COME YOU GOT TO be the purple crayon?” Gemma asks me when we’re eating breakfast. She decided to dress up as a bowl of popcorn. Of course. “Was it because of that book Harold and the Purple Crayon?”

I laugh. “Um, I don’t know. I just said I’d be purple? And no one else wanted it.”

“What color is Kaylan?”

“Green. She loves green. I think it has to do with the Irish thing,” I explain.

“Do Jews have a color?” she asks me. Seriously, how is she so chatty this early in the morning? I don’t get it.

“Um, blue or white, I guess. For Israel.” I pour some Cheerios into my bowl. “You have a lot of questions, Gem.”

“So?” She glares at me.

I finish chewing. “Just saying.”

When Kaylan and I walk into school in our costumes on Halloween, the whole world feels like it’s lit up. I don’t think anyone is ever too old for Halloween—the excitement, the candy, the chance to dress up and be someone or something else. It’s pure magic and a nice break from the stress of all my other days.

The only slightly wiggly thing on my mind is that my bat mitzvah is in four days. Our deadline is in four days. I think I’ve lost track of how much we still have to accomplish, but I don’t want to bring it up now.

We find the rest of the girls at our lockers.

“Picture time!” Cami squeals. She hands the phone to Mrs. Divar, the hallway monitor. “Thanks so much.”

“After this picture, the phone goes away, Cameron.” Mrs. Divar looks at us through the bottom of her glasses. “Doesn’t matter that it’s Halloween. Rules are rules.”

Such a shame that she can’t get into the holiday spirit.

We all stand together, arms over one another’s shoulders, and a content, satisfied feeling washes over me. Yeah, these girls aren’t perfect. Yeah, they’re not my soul mate Camp Silver friends. But they’re not the worst, either. I mean, they put a lot of thought and effort into the Halloween costumes. They picked something that could include everyone.

I think they can grow on me. They already kinda have.

“Attention, students, first period is canceled today. Please make your way to the auditorium for the social action assembly. Thank you.”

I turn to look at Kaylan. “It’s a B day. No math!”

“Hallelujah!” she sings.

“I’m talking to Isabela at Jay’s party tonight. Okay? Don’t argue with me.” I put my backpack in my locker since we don’t need it for the assembly. “Like you suggested.”

Kaylan nods. “Sounds good, but can we discuss this later? I don’t want to ruin my happy Halloween, no-math-today good mood!”

“Of course.” I link my arm through hers, and we walk to assembly together. “Let’s write the note to Mr. G after lunch, okay?”

The rest of the day flies by because everyone (except for Mrs. Divar, apparently) is in a happy mood. Even my super-strict honors block teachers let us watch movies and hang out. In library class, we don’t have to do any database or catalog exercises—we get to sit and listen to a group of teachers do a spooky reading of Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Raven.”

All in all, it’s a great day, and at five o’clock on the dot, the Crayons get to Jay Yeung’s party.

“Guys, we are going to be the cutest people at this party,” June says as we walk in.

“No doubt about it,” I reply.

“He has this every year?” Kira asks as we walk up the long path to his front door. “We didn’t go last Halloween.”

“No, this is his first year doing it,” Cami explains. “They moved to Brookside last year, but they built this house from the ground up and it’s so huge and the backyard is pretty much a golf course, so his parents said he could have a Halloween party and invite the whole grade.”

“Wow,” Amirah says, adjusting her orange crayon outfit.

“How do you know all of this, Cam?” M.W. asks. “Like, for real? You’re like a Brookside encyclopedia.”

“Um, yeah I am.” She holds out her hand for everyone to high-five her. She’s too much, as always, but tonight it’s not bothering me the way it usually does.

We go inside, and Jay’s mom (at least I think she’s Jay’s mom) is dressed in a witch costume. We all take a red drink off of the platter she’s holding.

“Um, there are eyeballs in here!” Kaylan yelps. “OMG.”

We go through the kitchen to the backyard, and it’s set up like a crazy-spooky haunted house. Skeletons everywhere. Dangling heads. Spiderwebs. Some sound system that makes the creepiest sounds—like people screaming and doors creaking and ominous cat sounds.

“This is intense,” I whisper to Kaylan.

Jason and his friends are over by the snack table, so we walk over there to say hi. There’s a spread of the usual stuff, like pizza and pigs in a blanket and mini egg rolls. But then there are also creepy Halloween snacks. Rolled bread in the shape of severed fingers with almonds as the nail and jelly on the edges. A cheese dip made to look like a giant eyeball with a green olive in the middle. A Jell-O mold in the shape of a brain. And then a big bowl of spaghetti that really and truly looks like worms to me.

Part of me wonders if they hired some kind of party planner and caterer for this. Would anyone really do that for a kids’ Halloween party? And then I wonder—should I have Jay plan my new bat mitzvah?

“Everyone having fun?” Jay comes over to us, taking out his fangs and interrupting my train of thought. “Sorry, didn’t want to spit on y’all.”

“This party is sick,” Jason says.

“Yeah, such an awesome party, Jay.”

He gives us all two thumbs-ups, and we take plates of food and go to sit near the very large half-decapitated coffin man by the swimming pool.

I’m in the middle of some of my eyeball cheese dip when I see Isabela Gomez-Wright coming in with a few of her friends.

“Be right back, guys.” I get up from the table and walk over to her. A few minutes later, Kaylan comes to join us.

Good. We need to do this together.

“Isabela, can we talk to you about something?” I ask her, after I gush about her amazing Where’s Waldo costume.

“What? Why? Is my costume messed up or something?”

“Oh no. Nothing like that. It’s okay,” I reassure her.

We go to sit on the hammock, and I say, “Listen, I don’t want to make this long because we’re at a party obviously, and we’re here to have fun, but . . .”

Kaylan jumps in, “Mr. Gavinder never calls on you. Or any GIRLS.” She yells the last part. “And we want to change that. And, um, help you shine.”

Isabela laughs. “Wait, what? This is weird, guys.”

“No, for real,” I say. “We’re going to write him an anonymous note. But we wanted you to know about it. We want you to be noticed for your efforts. And your brilliance. You’re amazing at math, Isabela.”

She shifts to the edge of the hammock. “Thank you. I mean, it has been bothering me. Math is, like, my thing. And he never notices me. At all.”

“Exactly!” I yell, grateful that this party is so noisy that no one can hear me. “That’s not right! Are you okay with us writing the anonymous note? Do you want to write it?”

Isabela laughs for a second. “Um, you can write it, I guess.”

“Okay. It’s seriously messed up,” Kaylan says, shaking her head. “We want to help.”

“Thank you, guys. This is really nice.”

One of her friends calls over to her. “Isabela, come check this out!”

“I gotta run.” She smiles.

Kaylan and I discuss the note for a few seconds, and I write down a few things on my phone.

“I’ll write it when I get home tonight. I mean, type it, so he can’t recognize my handwriting or anything, okay?” I ask Kaylan.

“Sounds great. My heart is pounding right now. Is yours? I feel like we’re really going to make some actual, like, real change.”

“I know! Me too!” I laugh. “About the heart pounding and the change.”

We go back to the Crayons, and we keep snacking and hanging out. My insides feel foamy like the soap Mom buys for the downstairs bathroom. Helping people is definitely one of my passions.

There was literally no way to narrow it down to just one.

I found a few passions. And I’m pursuing all of them.

I make a mental note to check that off the list and JHH when I get home.

After trick-or-treating, I get home, text a quick selfie of my Crayon costume to the camp girls, and then I get into pajamas and crawl into bed.

Alice: ari u look so good!

Ari: thank u! How was every1’s Halloween? Fab times here. 4 real

Alice: so fab here 2. My friends & I dressed as fairy-tale peeps. I was little red riding hood

Hana: amaze. Every1 came to my house and we handed out candy for the little kids. Fun!

Zoe: did bldg trick-or-treating, town houses, stores, etc. Halloween in NYC is BONKERS

Ari: love u guys so so so so much

When I can’t fall asleep, I group text the Crayons about what a fab Halloween I had and then I write out Kaylan’s birthday card.

Kaylan never complains about her birthday being the day after Halloween. It’s a funny day to have for a birthday because there’s, like, no buildup to it. Everyone is pumped for Halloween and then bam—birthday time.

I think the fact that mine is the day after hers makes it better—like we’re in this weird birthday zone together.

It makes it easier and also more celebratory.