“The Stick”: magical realism, friendships // StayHomeWriMo Day 26

hey people!

How are you doing? I had a pretty good day- I lazed around a lot which was a nice difference from my weekdays and I watched some YouTube and had a Twilight watch party with my favorite girl, El- ily girl 😉 ❤

I’m liking this post a lot- it’s really sweet and magick-y and just a good representation of the magical realism genre (BECK! I finally did it!).

“Hey!” I said breathlessly, sliding into the seat next to my friend Esme. “Sorry I’m late, I…” I trailed off, thinking of an excuse. “I got sidetracked.”

Esme raised a perfectly made-up eyebrow at me, and I could tell she didn’t believe me. She tapped a manicured black nail on the wooden desk we sat at.

“Sure, Andie. Just like you got sidetracked yesterday too, woke up late the day before, and were in a traffic jam the day before that. Not to mention that all of last week you said that your cat was having dietary issues- whatever that means- yet when I confronted you about it you couldn’t tell me anything.”

I gulped. “I told you- the doctors weren’t specific! And I have a terrible memory, remember?”

Esme shook her head in frustration. “Shut up, Andie. I know there’s something going on that you won’t tell me. If you don’t want to tell me or if you don’t trust me, just tell it to my face. It’s better than dancing around it.”

Esme started to get up but she stopped when I sighed and put a hand over hers.

“No, wait! I’ll- I’ll tell you what’s going on.”

Esme sat down.

“I don’t know how to tell you this, honestly. You’re not going to believe me.” I stuck my tongue out at Esme when she rolled her eyes. “I don’t have time to explain now. Meet me after school at the park, okay?”

And that’s how I found myself standing here, waiting in the middle of a park after school on a chilly February afternoon, shivering with cold and anticipation.

“Andie!” Someone called, and I saw Esme jogging towards me, huddled in a huge oversized gray puffer jacket that she probably got from her sister. “Wait, I’m here. I’m here. Biology went late because of some idiot who thought it would be a good idea to prank the teacher with a whoopie cushion. What are we, kindergarteners?”

I tried to force a smile, but I was too jittery to be convincing.

“So it’s really that big of a deal, huh?” Esme murmured, seeing right through my guise. “I can’t believe you kept it from me for so long. Whatever it is, obviously.”

I groaned. “Esme, I swear it isn’t like that! I wanted to tell you- I really did- but I just couldn’t figure out a way to tell you. I mean, you’re the most practical, no-nonsense person I know.”

Esme grinned, her purple lips parting. “I’ll take that as a compliment. But seriously, I can’t be that bad- it’s not like you adopted a unicorn or anything, right?”

I bit my lip and looked away. Esme’s smile froze.

“What, you found a unicorn?”

I laughed a little, tugging my fleece jacket around me tighter and wishing that I’d worn something thicker to school. I was freezing.

“Well, no. Not a unicorn. But… it’s something else. I just don’t know how you’re going to react.” I admitted, chewing on a strand of my dark curly hair. It was a nervous habit.

Esme sighed and took my hands in hers. “Andie, come on. I’ve known you since we were seven. We’ve been friends for nearly ten years through your obsessive My Little Pony phase, when I came out to you, your first heartbreak, and when I first went goth. You’ve never acted this weird with a secret before.”

I took a deep breath. “You’re right. I’m just going to get it over with. It’s probably best if you stay back,” I added as Esme nodded at me, her hands still enveloping mine. She stepped back immediately. I smiled a little at the fact that she trusted me so much without even knowing what I was going to do.

I stared at a stick lying on the ground a few feet to the right of Esme. I memorized its shape and envisioned everything I could do with this little stick. Then I closed my eyes, clenching my hands into fists.

Even though my eyes were closed, I could sense the moment the stick was raised off of the ground.

So could Esme, apparently, because she gasped a little “oh!” before whirling around to watch the stick hover in the air. It gave a little twirl.

I opened my eyes, the stick now fully under my control. It danced over Esme’s head and did a series of figure-8s around us, making the wind pick up and whip around our hair.

I looked at my friend and she looked more excited than I’d seen in so long. Her short dark hair whirled around as Esme turned in circles, watching the stick, and her boyband tee had come a bit untucked from the black distressed jeans she wore. Even though she had a ‘goth girl’ facade on the outside, Esme was secretly the kindest person I knew, but only to people that she trusted.

I smiled and focused on letting the stick drift daintily onto the ground behind me.

“So,” I joked, “Still think I should adopt a unicorn?”

Esme grinned at me, her hair messy and wild but her eyes bright and excited. “Andie, you little-”

I laughed and cut her off, swinging an arm around her shoulder. She was a few inches shorter than me- much to her chagrin- so it was the perfect fit.

“I can’t believe what you just did-” Esme said. “How did you even do that?”

I shrugged. “To be honest, I don’t know. It came gradually over the past two weeks and it’s been getting stronger lately. That’s why I came late so much- I was practicing and I got carried away. My cat’s fine, by the way.”

Esme laughed. “Poor Citrus, that kitty must have been severely traumatized when you first magicked or whatever. Anyways, what about your dad?”

“I mean, you know my dad- he’s always working. He doesn’t have time to check in on me or whatever. It wasn’t hard to keep it from him.” I acted like it didn’t bother me, but it was a lie and Esme knew it. Thankfully, she didn’t press.

“Wow. That’s… crazy. I just- I just can’t believe that you have magic… And telekinesis of all things. That’s just amazing.”

I made a kissy face at her. “I’ve gone from regular Andie to Andie-the-cool-and-hot-superstar-magician-witch-girl! Date me, mundane human!”

Esme laughed and swatted me. “Sure, whatever. But seriously- that’s so cool. But how are you going to keep it a secret?”

I actually wasn’t sure. Something as big as this was going to be hard to keep secret.

“Oh, whatever,” I said, rolling my eyes. “That’s something to worry about later. Right now let’s go to a diner and party!” I exaggerated the last word, drawling it in a near-Southern accent.

We walked through the park and past the playground, just two highschool girls hanging out.

Except for the part where one of them had just discovered that she had magic.

I hope you enjoyed this post! I actually love magical realism- I mean, Harry Potter and the Riordanverse and KOTLC and so many great Middle Grade series from my childhood are in this genre so is it even a question?!

Also, thanks to Beck for inspiring this story with her magical realism request!

What are your favorite books in the magical realism genre? Do you enjoy reading friendships in stories? What was the best and worst part of this short story?