13 Double Disaster - My Sister the Vampire by Sienna Mercer Page A

more!’
    Olivia let out a snort. ‘Me? “Popular”?’ She shook her head as she leaned to grab a fresh strawberry-banana smoothie from her mini-fridge. ‘Have you already
forgotten? All of my friends were goths or sci-fi nerds. Remember?’
    ‘Oh, yeah.’ Ivy’s shoulders slumped. ‘Now that you’re a big Hollywood star, I sometimes forget you weren’t always that way.’
    ‘Hmmph.’ Olivia rolled her eyes and took a long sip of the sweet, cold smoothie. ‘Speaking of my friends, though . . . how is Camilla?’
    ‘Oh.’ Ivy winced. ‘I don’t actually know. Sorry! She’s going to Willowton High, and it’s hard to get a word in when we’re riding the bus with Charlotte.
But I’ll catch up with her, I promise!’
    ‘Don’t worry,’ Olivia said, seeing her sister looking as gloomy as the black and dull-crimson hangings of her bedroom. ‘How are the others doing?’ Olivia asked,
trying to change the subject.
    Ivy let out a groan. ‘I think Sophia’s having some kind of breakdown!’ Olivia’s twin leaned forward, whispering: ‘She’s taken to wearing
gingham
.’
    ‘
No way.
’ Olivia almost dropped her smoothie.
    ‘It’s true.’ Ivy shook her head. ‘She’s also become permanently attached to her shades and she’s taken up skateboarding . . . or at least, she’s
tried.’ Ivy looked pained. ‘It hasn’t gone very well so far.’
    ‘But what’s going on?’ Olivia asked. ‘Sophia’s always been so fashion-conscious! I’ve never even seen her wear an
earring
that wasn’t
black.’
    Ivy picked up a bat-figurine from her desk and scowled down at it. ‘Well, she’s changed now, big-time.’
    Olivia stirred her smoothie with its straw, frowning. ‘Could she just be trying really hard to fit in at the new school?’
    ‘If that’s the case, it isn’t working.’ Ivy grimaced. ‘If anything, she’s drawing
bad
attention to herself from our school’s Queen Bee, Amelia. I
don’t think she can stand any goths acting ungothlike.’
    ‘Ouch.’ Olivia winced in sympathy. ‘I wish I could help.’
    ‘I wish you could, too.’ Ivy let out a sigh. ‘I guess I was hoping you’d be able to help me with everything – my popularity problem and Sophia’s weird
behaviour.’
    Olivia shrugged helplessly. ‘If you think of anything I
can
do from thousands of miles away . . .’
    ‘I don’t know. Maybe just scream some sense into everybody, long-distance?’ Ivy gave her a crooked grin. ‘Still, it’s really helped just talking to you about it.
But I’d better go now. I’ve got some last minute homework to cram in. There’s a
lot
more of that in high school!’
    ‘I’ll bet,’ Olivia said, returning the smile. ‘Good luck with it!’
    After Ivy clicked off, Olivia sat for a long moment gazing sightlessly at the computer screen. Her smoothie was still mostly full, but she set it down on the table and tuned her ears to the buzz
of activity outside her trailer. Movie-set activity – a world away from queen bees, popularity and homework . . .
    Ivy’s life was so different to Olivia’s. It was
normal.
With this glamorous Hollywood contract, Olivia had signed away all her chances for normal education and even normal
teenage drama. Maybe that should have been a relief, but it wasn’t. As much as she loved the excitement of the movie set, part of her wished she was just hanging out in Franklin Grove with
regular, normal vampires.
    Ha!
She couldn’t help smiling at herself as she picked up the smoothie and took a long, cold sip. Her life really had changed beyond recognition! Once upon a time, she would have
thought that the whole idea of vampires was
totally
weird and scary. But now . . .
    Her thoughts were cut off by a sudden shout outside her trailer. Choking on her mouthful of smoothie, she set down the cup and ran to her window.
    ‘No, no, no!’ A woman’s voice roared through the air as Olivia lifted the curtain at her window. ‘Try harder!’
    Olivia almost