that book, Ivy? It’s the one I found through that cult reading group I joined – it picks out books no one else has ever heard of. It would make a fantastic movie!’
‘No way,’ Ivy groaned. ‘I hated that book! Seriously, there’s a reason that one hasn’t hit the bestseller charts. No way would I pay good money for a cinema ticket for any film based on it. I have some taste.’
Olivia winced as she saw Holly’s smile drop into a slight scowl. Holly pointed at the Shadowtown T-shirt Ivy was wearing. ‘Oh yeah? Would you call that show high-quality storytelling?’
Uh-oh, Olivia thought. Everybody knew that Shadowtown was hilariously terrible, with its hundreds of amnesia storylines and secret vampire babies. But Ivy was an utterly devoted fan anyway.
Olivia watched the struggle on her twin’s face. ‘Well, it’s . . . I mean, I just . . . I don’t like following the crowd. Is that OK?’
‘Sure,’ Holly said, smoothly. ‘I’m just curious about what other people like reading. We obviously have very . . . different tastes.’ She tried to smile, but Olivia could see it was an effort.
Poor Holly, she thought. All she was doing was trying to have a conversation about films and books !
‘Yeah, pretty different,’ Ivy agreed. ‘Personally, I think Bare Throats at Sunset is so bad, the author should be arrested!’ She crossed her arms, as though challenging anyone to disagree with her.
Holly shrugged, turning the Frisbee over and over in her hands. ‘I don’t think many people would share your opinion,’ she said quietly. Olivia had to give her marks for standing up for herself. Ivy in angry-mode could be quite intimidating.
‘Oh, yeah? Well, let’s poll the group.’ Ivy swung around to face the others sitting on the blanket. Most of their friends were either looking at the ground or turned away. ‘Come on: book debate!’
It was the first time in Olivia’s life that she’d ever actually hoped for a sudden, freak thunderstorm – regardless of what it would do to her hair, or how badly it would ruin her dress. She tipped her head back to look desperately at the sky. Anything to interrupt this conversation!
What had got into Ivy? Not only was she already fighting with Olivia’s new friend, but they were fighting about vampires. Who knew how close to the truth they might wander?
‘Ah, I thought the book was . . . OK, I guess,’ said Sophia. Her fashionable sunglasses shielded her expression.
Brendan shrugged, sliding a nervous glance at Ivy. ‘It was . . . quite enjoyable. I suppose.’
Ivy growled. ‘Come on, Holly. What do you have to say?’
Holly had kept her head bowed, polishing the Frisbee with her T-shirt as the others talked. Now that she finally looked up, though, Olivia could see that her cheeks were flushed.
‘Sorry,’ she said. ‘I’ve got to go. There’s something I forgot to do at home.’
Olivia started to get up. ‘Are you sure? If you want any help –’
Holly said nothing. She just walked away quickly, waving a hand in farewell.
Olivia watched her leave, feeling her shoulders sag. This isn’t how the day was meant to be. She had to find a way to make Holly feel more a part of the group. But what could she do? She looked down at the picnic blanket, and the cakes that Holly had carefully arranged on a plate.
Well, she thought, Holly did seem really keen on my baking . . .
‘Hey, everyone.’ Olivia turned back and gave the rest of the group her best Hollywood smile, trying to block out the scowl on Ivy’s face as she watched Holly leave. Tomorrow, she thought. I’ll fix everything tomorrow. Olivia just had to set her plan in motion.
‘How about a baking party?’ she said.
She was pleased to see Ivy’s eyes light up immediately.
‘Great idea! I’ll make some of these macaroons – they’re yummy. So moreish.’ Ivy was looking pointedly at the macaroons and then at Brendan, back at the macaroons and straight into Brendan’s face again.
She may as well be waving a placard in the air saying, ‘Please start eating normally again, Brendan!’ Olivia thought.
He smiled and shook his head. ‘I don’t know, Ivy,’ he drawled. ‘They’re kinda difficult to bake, you know. Takes someone who really knows what they’re doing.’
Olivia held her breath and waited. She watched her sister’s cheeks as they went from pale to pink to red, her hands clenching and unclenching.
‘I’m sure I can try,’ Ivy said after a long pause, her voice all sweet and un-Ivy. Olivia was shocked. Ivy must really want to be nice to Brendan now that she’s back.
His shoulders were shaking with suppressed laughter, then he burst out into a fit of coughing and had to turn away. When he straightened back up, he looked from one twin to the other.
‘Sounds like a great idea!’ he announced. ‘When do we start?’
Chapter Two
An hour later, the twins were sitting in front of the computer in Ivy’s bedroom, surrounded by posters of Ivy’s favourite metal band, The Pall Bearers, and beautiful art prints of Transylvanian castles and clouds of bats.
Even the comfort of her favourite decorations didn’t make Ivy feel any happier about the task Olivia had set her: emailing Holly to invite her to the baking party. On the way home from the park, Olivia had persuaded Ivy that the invite should go from the two of them together.
‘It’ll smooth things over,’ she’d said. ‘You’d really like her if you gave her a chance. Who knows – you might even bond over cupcakes. Maybe you’ll teach her to like red and black icing!’ Eventually Ivy had agreed.
Of course I did, Ivy thought, and shook her head ruefully. When have I ever managed to resist Olivia ? From the outside, Olivia might look like the softer, gentler twin, but she had a core of solid steel, especially when it came to making others happy.
‘I hope it goes well,’ Olivia said now, nervously biting her lower lip. Sunlight streamed into the room past the dark-red curtains, making her pink minidress and strappy sandals look even more out of place against the black-painted walls and goth decor of Ivy’s room.
‘As long as Brendan eats, I’ll be happy,’ Ivy said. That was the important thing about this baking party, she reminded herself, even if it did mean having to hang out with Holly again: it would be the perfect opportunity to feed Brendan up after his illness. He hadn’t eaten a thing at the park – not even his own macaroons! She sighed as she watched Olivia type the email message from both of them. ‘Did you notice how he –’
Her words were cut off by the sound of Olivia’s phone buzzing to life. Ivy couldn’t help seeing the name on the display as the phone vibrated beside the keyboard. Her gaze flew to her sister’s
