15. Jessica

BEFORE

It was Friday night, and they were on the couch in their pajamas. Miss Fairchild had gone to a community meeting in town, leaving them home alone (obviously she was too cheap to pay a babysitter). Before she left, she'd told them, "If anyone comes to the door, say I'm upstairs in bed with a headache." Alicia had been nervous about the prospect of having to lie, but Jessica reassured her that in her entire life, no one had ever come to the door unexpectedly when Miss Fairchild was out.

But now someone was knocking at the door. They all looked at each other in horror.

"You said it never happened!" Alicia cried.

"I said it had never happened before," Jessica said.

"What do we do?"

"How should I know?"

"Do we answer it?"

The questions kept coming. Jessica didn't have any answers. Neither did Alicia or Norah. Jessica was about to suggest that they turn off the lights and hide when Norah started striding toward the door.

"No!" Jessica and Alicia hissed, jogging after her. "Norah! Wait!"

But she was too quick. By the time they'd caught up with her she was already at the door. As she opened it, her two sisters pressed themselves against the wall, out of sight of the visitor.

"Yes?" Her tone was haughty, expectant.

Alicia stifled a giggle.

"Package for Holly Fairchild."

Norah reached for the package. "Thanks."

"I need a signature."

"Sure thing." Norah leaned against the doorframe. "Where?"

Her confidence was impressive, Jessica had to admit. As Alicia's shoulders shook with repressed mirth, Jessica found herself stifling her own giggles.

"Sorry, sweetie, you need to be over eighteen." A pause. "Is Holly home?"

"I'm Holly," Norah said, cool as a cucumber.

Alicia slid down the wall, biting her fist to stop from laughing.

"No you're not."

"How would you know?"

"Because I've met Holly several times down at the post office."

Jessica and Alicia exchanged glances, eyes wide and worried.

Norah rallied quickly. "Of course! I almost didn't recognize you. Good to see you again, Logan."

The guy's patience had run out. "Listen, kid, I know you're not Holly. You're wearing Polly Pocket pajamas." Logan sounded tired. "And Holly looks… different."

"I didn't want to bring this up, but you're wearing a bottle-green uniform. And, frankly, you look different too. How do I know you're actually Logan?"

Now Jessica was shaking with laugher as Alicia wiped away tears.

"Just give me my package, Logan, if that's really your name."

Logan had clearly had enough, because the next thing they knew, Norah was closing the door, package in hand.

"Logan was an imbecile," she said, and the three of them broke into fresh gales of stomach-aching laughter that lasted the rest of the night.