When this story begins, it's a dark, stormy night. Nights like these are rare in the summer. I was returning home after a rather long stay with a fortune teller friend. My parents had gone on vacation, as she mentioned, so I can do whatever I want. For example, I can go wherever I want, eat whatever I want, and come home at the time I feel like it, without having to worry about another long conversation waiting for me at home about, "Do you know how worried I was about you?" Of course, everything within reason. I had a lot to think about, so I didn't go too fast. The fortune teller told me I could expect significant changes in my life:
"When night falls, and after night comes day, what you fear will come, but in a different form. It will bring something very unexpected. Something that will change your life forever."
That was the end of the prophecy. I paid the $5 fee and left.
I didn't know what this meant. But whatever the announcement was, I had to find out ahead of time, otherwise my curiosity would have consumed me. And I suppose that wouldn't have been a good move, as I wouldn't have been able to tell you the rest of the story, and besides, it was a bit foolish to tease the main character at the beginning of the book, right?
Walking through the deserted neighborhood of my town, I could calmly ponder the current situation. I was deeply intrigued by the fortune teller's words. I didn't even notice when I stood in front of the house door and started searching for my keys. A moment later, I entered a spacious room that served as a hall. From there, I briskly walked into the large living room, sat down in a comfortable armchair, grabbed the TV remote, and turned on that noisy box. I scanned the TV schedule with a critical eye and landed on a program that seemed interesting. Unfortunately, I got bored rather quickly, so I turned off the TV and went to the bathroom.
When I emerged, I was already washed up, so I went to bed.
When I woke up, it was still dark, so I decided to close my eyes for a moment. I opened them again shortly after 10 a.m. It was going to be another very boring day. Like every morning, I walked over to the large mirror hanging in the hallway and began to carefully examine my reflection. And (predictably) I saw the same face as yesterday, two days ago, and so on. I wanted something to finally change!
And, as if on cue, pimples started appearing on my previously smooth face! First one, and then six! I was so scared I almost jumped out of my skin! But to make matters worse, a huge wart popped out on the very tip of my pretty nose!
I immediately ran to the bathroom and began a desperate search for help in my mother's toiletries. After all, she, too, must get a pimple from time to time, and therefore also need something to combat them. My search took quite a while, as my mother has a very spacious and capacious makeup bag and two cabinets filled to the brim with various bottles and boxes. Unfortunately, rummaging through their vastness yielded no results. Had she taken everything with her when she left? But she only had three suitcases!
My patience ran out after an hour of searching. To make matters worse, the pimples began to itch terribly, and I could barely stop myself from scratching my face.
Suddenly, it dawned on me: This is definitely an allergy. Maybe I ate something or came into contact with an allergen? One thing is certain: I need to take calcium, and everything will return to normal.
Unfortunately, the calcium didn't help, and what happened next was terrifying. The pimples seemed to be mysteriously multiplying. Any longer and they'll start popping. I need to call the doctor, maybe it's some kind of illness, I thought.
The phone was constantly busy. I stood in front of the mirror, distraught. This was too much. I regretted ever wanting something to change about my appearance. Now I wished nothing would ever change. After about a minute, all the pimples and the wart began to disappear, thankfully. And within an hour, there was no trace of them. And that was my blessing!
I suspect I would have stood in front of that mirror, stunned, for a long time if it weren't for the ringing of my phone. I quickly ran to the phone. The voice of my best friend, Lucy Mc'Mill, was on the line. "
Hi Janet!" I heard by way of greeting. "Would you like to go to that new store with me today for a little shopping?"
"Hi Lucy. I'd love to go with you. Maybe I'll buy something too? I need to cheer myself up."
I knew what Lucy meant by "small purchases." She considers small purchases to be purchases of $50 or more, and large purchases to be around $100. She always had plenty of money for herself. I also knew that if I went with her, she'd buy me something too.
"Oh, that's wonderful!" I heard my friend's voice again. "Can Mille come too?" I was just talking to her on the other line. Of course, if you don't want her to come with us, that's fine.
"You know I don't like Mille. I'd prefer we went alone." I said that because I hated Mille with all my heart. We used to be friends when we were little, but Mille quickly turned out to be a bad friend: she told everyone she knew that she was friends with Lucy and mocked her. Lucy was, and still is, widely criticized for her appearance. She's small, very thin, and has red hair. But despite that, she's a great friend. I really like how warm and honest she is. And besides her, I don't know anyone else who has one green eye and one brown eye.
Mille always tried to influence others, impose her own way of thinking, and subjugate them. When Lucy and I refused to be manipulated, she tried to divide us by slandering and telling elaborate lies. After that incident, I began to hate Mille passionately.
Her sudden return of interest in us didn't bode well. It seemed very suspicious to me.
"I know you hate her. But I thought... that... you know. I thought maybe you'd forgiven her," Lucy blurted out in one breath. "Because... you know... this has been going on for so long... I hoped you'd gotten over it."
"Unfortunately, for her, I haven't. But let's change the subject. Okay?
" "Okay, you know, I saw her yesterday..." We talked for a long time. I don't even remember what we were talking about. In the meantime, Lucy called Mille on the other line and canceled her going to the store with us.
We agreed that I would pick Lucy up at 2:00 PM and then we would go straight to her house to do some shopping. Finally, after two hours of talking, Lucy hung up, and I was left alone. Since it was already after 1:00 PM, I just went for a quick bite to eat and started getting ready to leave. After twenty minutes, I was on my way. Lucy lived on the expensive side of town, so I had quite a walk to make. Along the way, I passed various small and large shops, schools, clinics, and several bus stops. When I finally arrived, it was ten minutes to 2 p.m.
Lucy was already waiting for me at the door. She lived in a medium-sized, two-story house with a large garden. The entire house was painted white, but the roof was made of red tiles.
"You're finally here!" she exclaimed as soon as she saw me. "I couldn't wait to see you! I'm coming down!" she called, and quickly ran down the few steps that separated her from me.
"Mom didn't want to let me go at first, but I managed to persuade her. I promised I'd buy her some pretty nail polish. Then she agreed. Mom absolutely loves different, colorful nail polishes. We have tons of them at home!" Lucy rambled on halfway. Somehow, I didn't blame her. She doesn't have many friends. Besides me, she's friends with Sandy, Saren, Zay, and Fenny. When she was with me, I let her talk as much as she wanted. And Lucy took advantage of these opportunities. She usually didn't stop talking for a moment.
After about fifteen minutes, we reached a large shopping center. It had six floors, each with a dozen or so shops. We were interested in the third floor, so we went straight to the elevator. There were six elevators in this mall. All of them were packed to capacity. I have no idea how those elevators were even working! Besides the elevators, there was a huge network of stairs leading to the upper floors: both escalators and stairs.
"There's no way we'll get to the elevators," I said.
"Looks like we'll have to walk," Lucy said resignedly
. "Oh my! I can't get there! I can't feel my legs anymore, let alone when we start climbing the stairs!" I cried painfully. "I wish this crowd would loosen up, even a little."
Suddenly, as if people had changed their minds and decided they didn't want to go to the upper floors after all, they began to disperse. They moved so quickly that an observer might have thought someone had thrown a measles bomb or something. The observer would probably have succumbed to herd instincts and followed the others.
After a few minutes, the entire area in front of the elevators was deserted. Only a few people remained, who, judging by their behavior, had no idea what to do with themselves.
"You know, Lucy? Lately, I have the feeling that whatever I wish for at any given moment comes true." This is the third time today! - I said to my slightly stunned friend - I really have no idea what's happening to me
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