"No. It makes sense. We've got an extra room."
Gee, thanks for the enthusiasm. "At least you won't have to come home to be with Celeste in the afternoons, since I'll be doing that. You'll get more work done, right?"
"That's true," he agreed. "I will. Just don't bother Celeste about Flat Finn, and everything will be fine."
"OK. Good. Well, goodnight."
"Goodnight, Julie."
She went to her room and shut the door. If Matt was cranky, it didn't seem to have anything to do with her. But there was still something bothering her. She yawned and opened her laptop. Maybe Finn could help.
Finn-Hey. Are you online? I need that advice sooner than I expected. Wondering if you can help me with Celeste. I think I did something wrong and upset her. We had a little girl time today which was great, and then... I don't know. I must have done something wrong, I can't think what. For a minute there, I thought she was going to cry. I feel terrible, and I'm worried she's mad at me. I hope she is all right with me being here, because your brother seems less than thrilled. I know there is something going on with Celeste and Matt won't talk about it. I'd like to help her out, but I'm at a loss.Oh, and you could have told me about the tricky front lock and the creaky step! I'm lucky I didn't wake your parents up at this hour!-Julie
Julie got into her pajamas and then took her laptop into bed. Two minutes ago, Finn had commented under Matt's post: Mom used to make us take baths together. Believe me, your "zero" is nothing to brag about. Julie laughed.
Yup, Finn was online. Her email dinged.
Julie-Celeste? Yeah. She's complicated. I'm sure you didn't do anything wrong. I can tell that you already care about her, and I'm glad. My parents consulted some highly respected shrink who thinks that Flat Finn is a creative response to nerves about starting a new school, missing me. Stuff like that. They were advised to just wait it out and support her. She freaks out if anyone hints Flat Finn might not be the most appropriate companion.My parents went through a ton of babysitters who were less tolerant of Flat Finn than you are, so you're obviously doing something right. She wants you there. In fact, I got an email from her tonight saying how great you were, that you did her hair up the other day, that you cooked dinner together, etc. She sounded really happy, so that makes me happy. (Oh, did she tell you that I sent her a few pictures?) Don't worry. It sounds like you're doing great. The best advice I can give you is to just let Celeste do her thing. Ignore Matt. He'll get over whatever problem he has.Fifth step from the bottom? Sorry. I should have warned you. Slipped my mind. And the lock? You got the knob turn/key jiggle maneuver down already? Impressive. That one took me years to perfect. What were you doing out so late? Were you sneaking home late from a hot date already? In Boston only a few days, and you've already snagged a man. Celeste said you're a romantic. Hope he took you to dinner and the opera before returning you home so late. J-Finn
Finn-Yes, incredibly hot date tonight. I've only been in town a few days, and I've already snagged a native Bostonian, whom I plan on totally corrupting with my college girl wiles. I refused both the four-star restaurant and the boring opera tickets, and just dragged him to a cheap motel. I came home with smeared lipstick, my hair a mess, and my shirt inside out. How's that for romance, baby!Or, I just went to a party on campus, chatted for a few hours, and came home alone. You decide.OK, I'll try not to screw things up with Celeste. But Flat Finn can't just be about missing you. It's not just the flat you that's... well, different about her. I'm really confused. I'm missing an enormous puzzle piece here. How long have you been gone? Can you call home so Celeste could at least talk to you? And when are you coming back, BTW? Now that I've taken over your room, you might have to fight me for it.I want to see pictures, too! My travel experience is limited to a selection of boring cities in Ohio, one excruciating weekend in Jacksonville to visit some senile fourth cousin of my mother's, and a trip to Yosemite one summer where I stepped on a wasp's nest and got bitten seven times.-Julie
Julie-Not sure when I'll be home. I'm really entrenched in all of this traveling business and have committed to volunteering for a number of different places. I'm going on a two-week scuba diving trip not far from here (just for fun), and then I'm off to coach kids' football in Ghana. I lost my phone in Palau and trying to replace it when moving around so much is a nightmare. I hop on computers at volunteer headquarters, etc. when I can, but phone service is usually sketchy where I am.Here are the pics I sent Celeste. (I do have one picture of a senile Ohio wasp, but I don't want to make you feel nostalgic.)I choose boring campus party.-Finn
Julie checked out the three pictures he'd attached to his message. Any non-brain-dead girl would be impressed. The two photos of him standing next to an elephant were great, but the best one was a shot of Finn sitting on a boulder looking out at a sunset. Fine, it was a little corny. She didn't care. Even though his face was shadowed, she could still see how handsome he was. The way his cheekbones caught the light, the hint of a smile on his face, his arm muscles peeking though his shirt.
Then she did what any girl would do: she Googled him. Eight-minutes of scrolling through search results and clicking on links got her nowhere, although she did learn that there was a Finn Watkins who played drums for a rather successful college band called Eggs Benedict, and that a Finneas Watkins from New Jersey had won a 2006 award for his classical ballet performance. None of the results produced any information about her Finn. Well, not her Finn, but... whatever. This was annoying. Not that Googling herself yielded any information either, but it would have been nice to find something.
She looked at the pictures again. Yes, indeed. Finn was cute. Super cute. And funny, smart, and charming. And he adored his sister. And did amazing volunteer work in between adventurous travels. And...
Julie stopped herself. This was silly. She couldn't possibly have a crush on someone she'd only exchanged a few messages with, right? Because that would be abnormal. Insane. Completely not based in reality. She was not that desperate. Besides, Boston was likely teeming with smart, adorable boys. Not that having a boyfriend was really a priority, but it wouldn't be awful.