Dreamland Social Club(83)

“I just mean, did you see all those suits last night?” She turned to Jane and said, “No offense.”

Jane said, “You were there? I didn’t see you.”

“People rarely see me when I don’t want to be seen,” she said, then turned back to the group. “All those suits are going to be there on parade day, probably in some ridiculously swank viewing trailer they park in front of Nathan’s or something, and the whole thing, putting on a show for them, just makes me feel sort of dirty.”

“Seriously,” Jane said to Babette, “don’t be like this.” She really didn’t want it to be canceled, especially not now that she had the mermaid costume figured out.

“I’m not being like anything.” Babette threw her hands up. “There’s just no point.”

“Of course there is,” Jane said, and felt a certain power in being able to speak with at least a tiny bit of authority to Babette for once. “There’s even more of a point.”

She looked over at Leo, who seemed to be egging her on with his eyes. She said, “It’s a mermaid funeral on Coney Island just as all these old businesses are getting shut down.”

Rita smacked her gum. “So it’s like this metaphor, you mean?”

“Exactly,” Jane said. “That was the whole seed of the idea!”

“I don’t know,” Venus said. “It seems like it’s the wrong message to be sending. Almost like we support what’s going on.”

“Yeah, like we’re glorifying it or something,” Babette said.

Jane shook her head. “But if it’s this awesome and really sad and beautiful thing, people will get it. They’ll feel it. That it’s about mourning the past.”

Leo’s silence, by this point, felt conspicuous. All faces had turned to his, and Babette said, “I know you’re mad at Jane because of what she said about the rats, but this is something different and you should share some thoughts.”

“I think she has a really good point,” he said, smiling at Jane. “And it was true, by the way. About my dad not paying his rent and not dealing with the rodent situation.”

“Really?” Venus said. “Sucks.”

“Yeah,” he said. “Sucks. But, well, we have to do something, right? We can’t just not do the parade.”

“All right, then,” Babette said. “If everyone agrees.”

Marcus walked into the room then and all heads turned. “Sorry, I just saw the fliers,” he said, and Babette shot Rita a look.

“Don’t look at me,” Rita said. “I didn’t invite him.”

Then eyes went to Jane and she said, “It wasn’t me.”

Babette started banging on her desk and they all joined in. “Gooble gobble, Gooble gobble. We accept her. We accept her.”

“Her?” Marcus said.

“Don’t worry about it,” H.T. said, and Marcus took a seat next to Rita, who promptly leaned over and kissed him on the mouth.

Babette looked for a moment like she’d been struck by a stun gun, but then she said, “Welcome, Marcus.”

“Thanks,” he said. “So what is this club anyway?”

Babette rolled her eyes. “Rita can explain, but in the spirit of the club, I’m just going to say that I’m sorry I’ve been a jerk. It’s cool. I’m happy for you. There. I said it.”

“Really?” Rita said.

“Really,” Babette said, then she looked at Minnie and cleared her throat dramatically, and Minnie stood up. “Fine,” she said. “Jane, it was me who filled your locker with condoms. I’m sorry. I was hurt.” She looked sheepishly at Legs, then back at Jane to say, “And I took it out on you.”

“What about the doll in the noose?” Jane dared.

“No,” Minnie said. “That was the Claveracks.”

“Okay,” Jane said. “Well, apology accepted.”

Babette said, “Venus, anything you want to say?”

“No,” Venus said. “I’m cool.”

“Fine,” Babette said. “Adjourned!”





“I’m proud of you,” Jane said to Babette when they were alone.

Babette huffed. “Don’t get me wrong. I’m jealous and all.” Her eyes pooled up. “I mean, who is ever going to like me?”

Jane squeezed her shoulder. “Somebody will!”

Babette blew her breath out through circular lips, pushing tears away. “I mean, look at me, Jane!” She almost laughed.

Jane laughed, too, and said, “I’m looking!”





There was a van parked in Preemie’s driveway when Jane got home that day, its back doors open to face the porch. Four huge men wearing thick gloves were trying to coax the Claverack horse off the porch.

Jane’s father saw her and waved. “They called and wanted to come right over. I thought it’d be okay.”

“Yeah,” Jane said. “Of course.”

She climbed the steps and stood next to her dad and watched as the horse disappeared into the van amidst a grunted chorus of “Easy”s and “Hold it”s and “Okay now”s. She’d boxed up the rest of the stuff—except for the demon, which she’d just covered in protective paper—and saw that it had all already been moved to the porch. Once the horse was done, the men took the demon, then slid the boxes into the van and soon they were gone.