Ingredients – Fluff, cheese, cutesiness and a hint of salt.

Result – This story.

You've been warned. =)

C r a z y A b o u t W i s h e s

“We all get at least one good wish a year. Over the candles on our birthday. Some of us throw in more. On eyelashes, fountains, lucky stars, and every now and then, one of those wishes comes true…”

Meredith Grey from Grey’s Anatomy

“Rita,” my mother shouted from the stairs. “Get down here and say hello to your new neighbours!”

I sighed.

The summer holidays had just begun. I was taking a well earned break by doing what any normal teenager would do. Yes, I was reading.

Okay, so I guess it was what abnormal teenagers do.

Or maybe ones with minds that didn’t want to get wasted the second school let out. Maybe I was part of the small group of teenagers who had some sort of self preservation.

My best friend Lucia was on holiday with her family in Rome. The beautiful city of Rome was at her feet and I was stuck at home.

It was too sunny and the beaches were fricking polluted like hell.

Jealous? You ask.

Hell yes.

“Rita!” my mother called out again. I dropped my feet down from my table and set my book down.

“Finally!” my mum said to me. She was smiling but I could tell I was going to get an earful as soon as they left.

I always disappointed my mother. I was rather…odd. Sometimes I do the weirdest things and other times I just talk. Then there are other times when I rarely say anything.

Lucia insists that I was dropped on the head as a child thus making it my mother’s fault I am the way I am.

Though, Lucia says it’s a good thing. She insists that I’ll meet some guy that’s just like me. He’ll sweep me off my feet, she says all the time.

I very much doubted that anything could sweep me off my feet.

Unless, of course, I was standing on a rug and said guy pulled the rug out from under my feet, then yeah, he was definitely sweeping me off my feet.

I noticed my mum look at my attire.

So I was wearing a pair of old PJ shorts, a baggy t-shirt of my brothers and mismatched socks, was that a crime?

I looked at the family that was seated on the sofa.

“This is Mrs Havens,” my mum smiled pointing at the mother. I smiled.

The mother reminded me of the sun. She was dressed in a yellow dress and had a warm smile on her face. She was all bright yellow and warm. Like the sun.

“Mr Havens,” my mum continued.

The father looked like he was from the military. All scary and big but when he smiled his dimples showed and wrinkles formed around his eyes. Looks can be deceiving people.

“Their niece Savannah.”

Savannah looked like she was from a sixties movie. She had on a shirt that was way to big for her which she wore as a dress and flip flops. Her hair had streaks of the rainbow in it. She looked like she was twenty or so.

“And their son Freddie,” my mother finished.

I noticed that their son looked about my age – eighteen. He was wearing all black - black jeans, black top, black beanie and black shoes.

I wondered how he was still alive.

It was fricking roasting out there. Besides, everyone knows black absorbs heat!

He probably failed in chemistry.

Or physics.

Science in general.

“Hi,” I said to them pasting on the warmest smile I could muster. I was trying to act normal. “I’m-”

My mother decided I was too brainless to speak for myself and cut in. I guessed that she probably thought I was going to blurt out some insane nonsense.

I didn’t blame her.

I would’ve probably told the family about their son being burned alive at the rate he was going…or wearing.

“This is my daughter Rita.”

“It’s so lovely to meet you Rita. Your mother has been so gracious to let us have some refreshments while our things are being brought in. Our water isn’t even working,” Mrs Havens said. Her voice sounded like her appearance – sunny.

“Oh that’s my mother. Gracious. That’s probably why her name’s Grace,” I added thoughtfully.

“Oh! Wit!” Mrs Havens laughed not getting my sarcasm. “Our Freddie’s witty too.”

“Why don’t we leave the kids to talk?” Mr Havens suggested. The three adults left us and wandered off to the garden. Freddie followed them.

“How old are you?” Savannah asked breaking the silence.

“Eighteen,” I replied. “How old are you?”

“Twenty.”

I nodded.

“What were you doing that made your mother keep calling you?” she asked. I sat down on the arm of the sofa opposite them.

“I was reading.”

“What?”

“Roll of Thunder Hear Me Cry,” I replied. Savannah looked thoughtful. She suddenly broke out into a huge grin.

“I like you,” she said.

“I’m straight but I don’t judge. I’m open minded to anything.”

She shook her head and laughed, letting the colours in her hair to mix with each other.

“I meant that you seem cool. I’m straight too, with an open mind.”

“Oh, sorry,” I whispered blushing a little. “I say the first thing that comes to mind.”

“Don’t we all? It’s a good book.”

“I know, I’ve read it three times.”

“Freddie’s read it five times,” Savannah nodded proudly. “That’s why I like you. You have good book tastes. I’m dyslexic. Freddie reads to me when I visit. That’s my favourite book that he’s read.”

I didn’t know what to say about the dyslexic comment.

Should I say sorry?

“It’s okay to not know what to say,” Savannah said.

“I usually have a lot to say,” I told her frowning.

“You’ll get along well with Freddie. He’s kinda crazy at times. A bit quiet, but he warms up quickly.”

“That’s…nice.”

My mum and the rest of the Havens came back into the house. They said their goodbyes and left for the house next to us.

Savannah promised she would stop by tomorrow.

At least I have a new friend while Lucia’s gone.

“What are you doing?” a male voice, which didn’t belong to one of my brothers, asked me.

I jumped, causing more salt to fly over my shoulder.

I turned to see who surprised me. When I looked, I was more surprised than before.

“Freddie, right?” I asked. He nodded. “Who let you in?”

“Your mum.”

I frowned. I didn’t hear the bell ring.

“I knocked on the door,” he supplied, probably because he saw my frowning.

I nodded. We lapsed into silence.

“What were you doing before?” he asked me.

I have a weird obsession. It’s the weirdest thing about me. It’s one that involves me ‘making’ luck.

That’s right ­making luck.

“I make luck,” I said shrugging. Freddie was silent for a brief moment. Then he nodded as if understanding.

No one, except Lucia, understood.

“Savannah sent me. She had to fly back to her family. She only came to help us with our stuff. She said sorry and told me to give you this,” Freddie said holding out a piece of paper.

I took it.

“Rita, Sorry about having to leave so soon, here’s my email add, keep in touch,” I read off the paper. “Thanks."

So I guess I’m not going to have a friend around.

“So, your mum said you have brothers. Where are they?” he asked. I put down the salt shaker and sat down on the counter.

“They decided to stay at the dorms at University. They’re going to come over later,” I informed him.

“Cool,” he said nodding. Though, I doubted whether it was actually ‘cool’. “How many are there?”

“Two, twins actually. They’re twice the trouble, twice the mess and twice the smell. It’s actually quite refreshing,” I replied thoughtfully.

Freddie laughed.

It was kind of…breathtaking.

It was deep, rumbled and mysterious all at the same time.

“You have a breathtaking laugh,” I told him.

“I do?” he asked. I nodded. “Well, no one’s ever said that before.”

“I guess I’m the first then eh?” He nodded.

“Do you want to get some ice cream? I saw a cool ice cream place downtown on the trip here.”

“You must mean Creamy’s Delights.”

“Probably.”

“Sure,” I said shrugging.

Just because Savannah wasn’t here, or Lucia, didn’t mean I couldn’t make a friend out of Freddie.

“I met this guy,” I told Lucia over the phone. I could hear her grinning.

“Oh, pray tell who is he?”

“His family moved next door to mine. We have ice cream everyday and we talk about nonsense.”

“Ice cream and talking nonsense already? Wow, you’re making a big commitment here.”

“Is that sarcasm?” I asked her frowning.

“Maybe,” she replied. “I’ve been deprived of it since we got here.”

“Well, his name’s Freddie. He has this floppy black hair and bright blue eyes. He always wears black for some goddamn reason.”

“Isn’t it a little hot to wear black?” Lucia asked chewing on something. “It’s an apple by the way.”

She knew me too well.

“Healthy,” I said thoughtfully. “That’s what I said. He told me it’s not really that hot. He was use to it apparently.”

“How long have you been hanging out for?”

“Two weeks. He’s always around,” I said. “Like last week, we walked passed this fountain and I was making my weekly wish, do you know what he did?”

“What?” she asked, taking a bite out of her apple.

“He made a wish too.”

“Aw,” she cooed. “That’s so sweet!”

“Lucia, it wasn’t really a fountain. It was Mrs Roderick’s pond.”

“Aw, that’s even sweeter! He gets your craziness,” she cooed again.

“I don’t get it. Whenever I’m around him, it feels as though I’m about to have a heart attack. I mean, I wish on salt but I don’t exactly eat it. I even wish on him sometimes! What’s up with me feeling like this?” I asked her.

Lucia always knew why I was feeling a particular way.

I stood up and walked over to my mirror. I checked to see if there were any eyelashes that I could wish on.

There were none.

I blinked to try and get some to fall off.

None did.

“What did you wish for that concerned him?”

“I wished that he hangs out with me for the entire summer and sometimes I wish that I never lose him. I’ve wished that I never lose you for too long.”

There was a pause.

“Lucia, you there?” I asked tentatively. I wondered if I said something to offend her. “It’s just; I know I’ll never loose you that’s w-”

“I’m so glad I have you!” she gushed. “You’ll never loose me. Never!”

“Thanks,” I said, smiling slightly. “You’ll never loose me either.”

There was a slight sniff on the other line.

“Well,” Lucia sniffed, her nose sounded like it was blocked. “Rita you’ll work it out.”

“You’re not going to tell me?” I asked her shocked.

“No, for once. I’m not.”

“But…but…” I spluttered. “You’re my person. You’re my Meredith Grey!”

“Actually, you’re Mer and I’m Christina. So, I’m your Christina.”

“Why?” I asked forgetting the subject of the talk.

“You’re darker than I am. I mean, her nickname was ‘death’.”

“Fine,” I said. “You’re my person. You’re my Christina Yang!”

“Well, Christina has to go eat. Ta-ta darling,” Lucia laughed. I barely had a chance to say goodbye before she hung up.

Now it got confusing.

On the bright side, all my blinking got me an eyelash.

And I wished.

“Freddie,” I said. “Sitting on your bike and walking isn’t called ‘cycling’.”

Freddie was on his bike and I was walking next to him. We were on our way to a small lake people go to. The docking was redone a week ago so it was safer to walk on.

“I know that, but if I rode on my bike properly then how would I talk to you?” he asked.

“Well…” I trailed off.

“The whole point of the term ‘hanging out’ is two or more people actually talking to each other.”

“The term hanging out or hang out is a phrasal verb,” I told him, reciting something I read off the internet.

“I know.”

I wasn’t surprised that he knew that. Freddie had little weird facts to tell me just like I had weird little facts to tell him.

“I have an idea,” he grinned. “Get on the handlebars.”

I gave him a look.

“Seriously,” he sighed stopping. “Get up on here.”

I shrugged and heaved myself onto the bars.

“I’m heavy,” I told him.

“It’ll be fine. Trust me.”

“I do.”

That was how Freddie and I ended up cycling to the lake - me atop his bike, giggling like a schoolgirl, and him driving unsteadily along a wooded path.

It was quite a scene.

By the time we had finished jumping into the lake using the rope that a few of us had put up years ago, teasing each other about crocodiles, sitting on the dock with our feet dangling down, it was late and the stars were out as we walked back home.

I looked up and saw one shining brighter than the others.

Again, I wished.

“Why do you wish on everything?” Freddie asked me out of the blue.

He and I decided to camp out under the stars. I could tell my mum and brothers were watching us through the window that backed our garden.

My head was on his chest and his arm was around me. I was lying on my side, the earth comforting my hips.

I looked up into his blue eyes.

“I wish because…there are some things that are out of my control. For me, wishing gives me that little bit of pride in knowing that I’m fighting for what I can’t control.”

“You don’t wish for money…wealth?” he asked. I shook my head and rested my head back down.

“Money and wealth don’t buy someone happiness. I wish for my friends and my family,” I said. I then added, “For you.”

I felt his heart beat faster.

“You’re amazing you know that?” he said.

I looked up at him, my eyes crinkled in happiness and my mouth wide, as I gave him the biggest smile I could muster.

There was a bond made that night.

I didn’t know what it was then, but it was made.

I knew because it wasn’t just the fact that his heart thumped at the thought of me wishing for him.

It was the fact that my own heart was thumping as I realised why I got Goosebumps when he smiled, or shivers when we hugged, or why my knees felt weak when he kissed me on my forehead goodnight.

It was because slowly and surely, I was falling in love.

“Would you rather…shave your grandmother, all of her, or lick sweat of a guy’s foot?” Freddie asked me.

We were sitting under an apple tree in his garden. There was a slight breeze which made it bearable to sit outside.

He and I were playing ‘would you rather…’ it was highly entertaining to listen to what sacrifices we would have to make if we wanted to live. Apparently we had to choose one or the other; it was a matter of life and death.

“Ew,” I said scrunching my nose in distaste. “Why is it you give me really disgusting ones?”

“Don’t blame me. Blame the fact that these mutants are currently holding you and your family hostage. They’re the ones you should be hating on,” he said tweaking my nose.

I slapped his hand away grinning and ignored the erratic beating of my heart.

“Well, I guess I would choose…shaving my gammie. At least that way I wouldn’t have to taste anything.”

“Interesting choice Rita,” he spoke while nodding knowingly. “You’re a family first kind of girl eh?”

“Blood is thicker than water,” I said as I tapped my water bottle with his. “My turn.” I paused as I thought of one. “Okay let’s keep it in the family then. Would you rather…make out with Savannah or…make out with your best friend?”

“Make out with my best friend,” he replied without hesitating. My eyebrow quirked.

“I would pick the opposite sex, regardless of who they were,” I told him. “It’s just what floats my boat.”

“But I did pick the opposite sex,” he told me, he looked a little confused. I cocked my head to the side.

“Who is your best friend?” I asked him equally confused.

“You.”

I didn’t wait for longer than a second after he said the word ‘you’ until I pulled his goddamn black shirt and brought his slightly chapped lips onto my equally own chapped lips.

I pulled away for a moment, just before things got heated.

“I’m crazy you know.”

“I know,” he said, his lips quirking at the tips.

“But lately, I’ve been feeling less crazy. I don’t speak out a lot, I talk normally for once and I know why I feel the way I do.”

“Do you feel crazy about me?”

“Yes,” I spoke boldly. Even though he didn’t comment on what I said, his blue eyes spoke wonders.

He gave me a peck on my nose and said, “You wanna know what I think?” I nodded. “I think that you relied on Lucia to tell you why you felt the way you do for so long, you forgot what it’s like for you to know your own feelings. You’ve finally had to figure it out on your own because she’s not here.”

I thought about this. It sounded right.

All the phone calls Lucia and I had lately were about me telling her how I felt. She had even told me that I needed her no more.

I told her that was crazy.

I needed someone to keep me in check with the wishing. I sometimes went overboard – a sixteen year old girl crashing a five year olds birthday party to wish on their candles was not good.

“So that’s why I’m becoming normal?” I asked Freddie after a moment’s silence.

“No.”

“Then?”

“You’re not becoming normal. Normal’s overrated. You’re just becoming aware.”

I gave it some more thought. Again, it sounded half right.

“I personally think it’s you,” I said nodding. “You’re the reason I’m still crazy.”

He looked at me an eyebrow raised. “Me?” he asked.

“Yeah,” I replied grinning. “I’m crazy ‘bout you.”

Disclaimer – I don’t own Grey’s Anatomy. Or Creamy’s Delights, I just made that up.

Explanation for this story – High on sugar and 3oh!3 (Which I don’t own). =)

Thanks for reading!

Hope

xoxo