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Episode 21: Juliana's Wonderful Life
It's Christmastime in Hannah's world, but her best friend Juliana isn't feeling the Christmas spirit. Still suffering from her painful breakup with Justin, she's feeling pretty worthless. But a strange, unexpected visit from a new friend shows Juliana a whole new life. --The Author
It was a cold, snowy December afternoon. Juliana stood at the railing of an old bridge, looking down at the waters of the small river below. The bridge was no longer used by traffic, but it remained open for pedestrians to use, allowing anyone to cross between the two sides of the park that surrounded the river. The lightly falling snow lay as a thin layer atop everything in the park, yet Juliana paid it no mind. Christmas was just a few days away, but Juliana felt no Christmas spirit. Instead, dark thoughts churned in her mind, like the water in the river below her.
Several months had past since the end of Juliana's relationship with Justin, but she still felt the pain of all that had happened between them just as freshly as if it had been yesterday. She had hoped that the ache in her heart would fade through the months, but if anything, it had gotten worse.
It wasn't that she missed her relationship with Justin. She had liked him a lot, but relationships come and go; there's no avoiding that. No, it was the feelings of being unwanted and worthless that seemed to hang over her everywhere she went. First it had been Justin's attachment to Lauren rather than to her, that had fed those destructive emotions. But now everything seemed to fan the flames of self-loathing that filled her heart. And strangely, the person that made Juliana feel the worst was Hannah.
It seemed to Juliana that Hannah was everything she wasn't; and that frustrated Juliana to no end. Make no mistake: Juliana loved Hannah like no one else in the world. But Hannah's seemingly perfect personality, her natural popularity, and her stunning beauty left Juliana feeling like there was no way she could measure up. These weren't new feelings; Juliana had always struggled with feeling inferior to her best friend. But they had flared up again in the aftermath of her disastrous relationship with Justin.
At school, Hannah's popularity and her own lack thereof were most noticeable. Juliana was an extremely good student - her grades were far better than Hannah's - but in high school, who do grades really matter to, besides teachers and nerds? Being lumped together with the 'nerds' made her feel like even more of an outcast. Her teachers loved Juliana's work and appreciated how she was always willing to help other students who struggled, but many of them didn't understand her fragile personality. When it was time to pick partners for a project, or teams for a game, Juliana always seemed to be left for last. It didn't matter how hard she tried; no one seemed to notice her efforts.
At home, Juliana began to feel almost jealous of how well her dad and Hannah got along. Ever since Mr. Davis and Juliana had taken Hannah in, he had been as kind to her as if she were his own daughter; and Hannah loved and appreciated him for that. Juliana was glad that she and her dad had been able to help Hannah out, but she still felt like Hannah was somehow stealing her dad's heart away from her.
On top of that, practically every evening, Chris would come to visit or Hannah would go see him. Juliana had never been able to keep up a relationship as strong and happy as theirs.
Juliana didn't go to church with Hannah and the Beloits that often, but when she did, she felt just as out of place there. One particular week, as Christmas approached, even the sermon had left Juliana feeling bad.
The preacher spoke about the gifts of the wise men and the shepherds, who came to honor the baby Jesus at his birth. He made the point that all of us, whether our station is high or low, have something we can bring as a gift of love to our Lord. At first, the message made Juliana feel better about herself. "I don't have to do much; even a little gift is worthwhile," she thought. But the more she thought about it, the harder it was for her to think of anything - however small - that she was doing to make a difference in anyone's life. She felt like if she were to disappear from the world altogether, no one would even notice.
Hannah knew her friend was struggling, but she didn't know what she could do to comfort her. Juliana was ashamed to admit that she was jealous of Hannah, and everything Hannah said seemed to only make Juliana more upset.
And then, the hiccups started.
It was the Monday of finals week, just before Christmas break, when they first began. Juliana woke up early that morning, and promptly got the hiccups. She and Hannah shared a room, so Hannah groggily looked over from her own bed at Juliana. "Are you ok?" she asked.
A couple more powerful hiccups clarified that Juliana had them for real. "Oh crap, I've got *HUCK* hiccups," she complained. "Just what I *hic-ulk* needed."
Hannah laughed. "Yesterday it was me waking up with the hiccups; now it's you!"
Juliana was not so amused. "I can't have hiccups; *hulk* we have exams today. Come *huck* on, help me cure th-*hic* them."
To Juliana's surprise, drinking a cup of water upside down completely cured her, and she arrived at school without another hiccup.
That didn't last long. Just a few minutes into her first period, as she moved to question number two on her English exam, the hiccups returned with a vengeance.
A few giggles echoed around the otherwise-quiet classroom. "Shhh," the teacher chided.
There was no shushing Juliana's hiccups, though. They came out sharply every four or five seconds, no matter what she did to try to stifle them. Embarrassed as she was, Juliana was able to keep most of her concentration on the exam, but the other students were not so dedicated. There was someone giggling after practically every hiccup. One guy in the back faked an exaggerated hiccup of his own every now and then. Juliana's face grew so red she could feel it burning; yet her hiccups continued unabated.
Finally, she couldn't take it any more. She went to the teacher's desk and pleaded to be allowed to take the test somewhere else. "Can I just *HUCK* take to the next room? *hic-ulk* Or Mrs. Lister's office! *hulk* anywhere?"
The teacher, a substitute who was just there to give the exam, was unsympathetic. "I can't help it that you have the hiccups. You can get some water if you want, though."
Even though it hardly ever worked, Juliana went out to the hall and drank from the water fountain. She even tried hanging her head upside-down and swallowing in that position, but it didn't help. Giggles and laughs filled the classroom again when she returned, hiccupping just as loudly as before.
Juliana completed the test quickly, and practically dashed out of the room as soon as she was done. The rest of the day was more of the same. Going to study hall was out of the question; and she had the hiccups through every exam, much to the consternation of her teachers and even some of her fellow students. After a history exam, one of the more popular girls in her class addressed her as they walked out the classroom door. "Thanks for serenading us with your stupid hiccups, Juliana. Way to sound like an idiot."
Even some of her friends got pretty exasperated with her as she interrupted exam after exam with her unstoppable hiccups. "Dude, seriously, lose the hiccups already, Juliana," one guy commented aloud in the middle of their last class of the day.
Walking home with Hannah, Juliana was practically in tears. "My *HUCK* hiccups are always terrible, but *hic-ulk* with all the exams, I think *hulk* today was the worst ever!" she complained. "I feel so *huck* stupid."
Hannah sympathized. "I know how you feel; that's happened to me more than once."
"No you *HIC-cup* don't," Juliana shot back. "Everyone likes you! *hulk* Everyone knows you're gonna have *HUCK* the hiccups, and thinks it's *huck* adorable. It's like, 'Aww, Hannah's g-*hulk* got the hiccups again; *hulk* she's so cute.' With *hic* me it's 'Shut up and *huck* stop those stupid, annoying hic-*ulk* hiccups already.' It *huck* sucks!"
Hannah frowned. "Do you really think people think that way about you and me?"
"Of course *huck* I do, cause it's true! *hic-cup* Why do you have to be so fr-*huck* freakin' charming while I'm such a *HULK* loser?"
Hannah didn't know what to say. "I'm sorry Jules, you're not a loser, and you know I love you."
Juliana calmed down a bit. "I love you too. *HUCK* I'm sorry, I just hate my *hulk* life so much sometimes."
"I know the hiccups can suck, but that's no reason to hate your life," Hannah said.
Juliana sighed. "It's not just *huck* the hiccups. It's not just today. It-*hic-ulk* it's everything. I feel so *huck* useless. You're sweet, you're *hic* popular, you have an amazing *hulk* boyfriend, you have a million fr-*HUCK* friends. And me? No one even *hic* knows I'm here, unless I'm annoy-*hic*-ing them."
"But there are little things you do for people that mean a lot, even if they aren't always recognized."
"What do I do that's so *huck* wonderful? You know, the preacher at *hic* your church talked about that last *HUCK* week, how every gift is valuable or *hulk* whatever. The more I thought about *hic-ulk* that, the more I realized, I have no *HUCK* gifts! I'm not useful to *hic-cup* anyone, and no one cares about me. *hulk* Except you and Dad, but you kinda *hic* have to; you live with me!"
"Juliana, listen, people care about you!" Hannah began, but Juliana cut in.
"Who? If I *HUCK* disappeared today and was never seen *hulk* again, who would care? Name *hic-cup* one other person," she demanded.
"Well, um," Hannah paused.
"See, you can't *huck* think of anyone either," Juliana argued.
"Come on, give me a second!" Hannah said. "What about Mrs. Lister? You help her so much with everything, with helping tutor the younger kids and all."
Juliana thought for a minute. "Psh, *huck* she'd get by fine. Kendra *HUCK* is really smart, she helps *hic-ulk* her a lot. Plus, the kids' grades *HUCK* are still terrible even after I *hic* help tutor them!"
"Well, it could be someone you don't even know about."
Juliana was unconvinced. "I can't imagine who."
* * * * *
Juliana's miserable hiccups continued all night, despite her - and Hannah's - best efforts to stop them. She arrived at school the next morning exhausted, and still hiccupping as loud as ever. She hadn't even sat down in her first class of the day when the guy who had complained about her hiccups yesterday spoke up again. "For real, Juliana? Again with the hiccups?"
"Still," Juliana corrected him.
"This is gonna be a fun day; I can tell," he deadpanned.
A fun day it was not. Hours of seemingly endless embarrassment left Juliana literally crying through her last exam of the day. When they met up to go home, Hannah felt so bad to see her friend's tear-stained face. Yet there was nothing she could do. This time as they walked, Juliana didn't complain. She was sullen and quiet, her silence broken only by the hiccups.
* * * * *
Wednesday dawned cloudy and gray; it had snowed during the night, and there was a couple inches of snow and ice on the ground. Much to Juliana's relief, school was closed for a snow day. But although school was called off, Juliana's hiccups were still going on with no end in sight. At least they weren't embarrassing her today!
With her dad gone to work, and Hannah gone to the Beloits, Juliana was all alone. Hannah had tried several times to get Juliana to come along with her to the Beloits, but Juliana didn't want to go out or be seen by anyone. Plus, she was so tired: even with the hiccups, she dozed on and off through the morning. Early in the afternoon, she decided she had to get out; her thoughts were driving her mad, even more so than the hiccups. So, grabbing her coat and gloves, she ventured out into the winter wonderland.
She could hardly see anything through her tears, but her feet knew the way to her favorite place, on the bridge in the park.
So it was that Juliana stood at the edge of the old bridge, looking down into the frigid waters below. Snowflakes, falling gently from the clouds above, seemed to hesitate for a moment before being carried away by the churning flow. Juliana wished it could carry her away, too - away to a better life, a more meaningful life; away to a better place; away from her endless hiccups! She wouldn't even really care where it took her, so long as it was somewhere far from all she knew.
The sound of a sharp hiccup - from behind her, not one of her own - started Juliana from her musings. Without even a glance, she guessed, "Hannah?"
"Hey, looks like I'm not *hic* the only one with hiccups," the voice behind her laughed. The voice was sweet and musical, but it didn't really sound like Hannah.
Juliana finally turned, and found that the girl standing behind her wasn't Hannah at all. She was pretty short, with very light blonde hair that fell perfectly just below her shoulders. Her skin seemed to have a warm glow about it. She did have hiccups that sounded for all the world like Hannah's, but her face didn't resemble Hannah much at all. Yet Juliana felt like she knew the girl; she just couldn't figure out from where.
"Come with me, *hic* your friends are waiting for you!" the girl said.
Juliana was confused. "What friends? *HUCK* And, um, do I know y-*hic-cup* you?"
"Of course *hic* you know me!" the girl assured her. Then she added, "Well, maybe. *hic* I know you, at least!"
"What's your name?" Juliana asked.
"I'm Clarissa," the other girl answered simply.
"Clarissa. *huck*" Juliana repeated. "And I suppose you're here to *HUCK* explain it all?"
Clarissa just laughed.
"How about you *hic-ULK* start by explaining these stupid hiccups!" Juliana suggested.
"I'm not here to explain *hic* anything," Clarissa admitted.
"Oh." Juliana was disappointed. "I was hoping you could ex-*hic-ulk* explain why my life sucks, while you were *huck* at it. But could you at least *hulk* explain how you know me?"
"I go to your school; I just *hic* don't take any of the same classes *hic* as you," Clarissa said. "But I've seen you around *hic* since we were kids, I guess."
"I see, sorry, *huck* I feel so bad; it seems like I sh-*hurk* should know you," Juliana apologized. "But what are you *HUCK* here for anyway?"
Clarissa looked a little annoyed. "I told you, your *hic* friends are waiting for you."
"I don't even *hic-cup* have any friends," Juliana moaned, her depressed thoughts flooding back with a fury. "No one would even *hic* notice if I disappeared and was n-*huck* never seen again. Maybe that would b-*huck* be better, actually."
"You think?" Clarissa asked.
"Mhm," Juliana nodded sadly.
A mischievous smile played around the corners of Clarissa's lips. "Why don't we *hic* find out?"
Juliana was confused. If her mysterious companion had been a man, she definitely would have already run away terrified. But this girl had an amazing way of making her feel at ease with whatever she suggested. "What do you mean?" Juliana asked.
Before Clarissa could answer, the clock tower on City Hall downtown began to strike the hour. "Just a second," Clarissa said. "I've g-*hic* got to cure these hiccups."
"How are you--"
Clarissa looked annoyed. "Shh! Count the bells."
Juliana silently counted as the bell rang out the time. She didn't feel like the supposed cure was working, though, since her own hiccups were still coming, faster even than the clock was chiming! She noticed Clarissa hadn't hiccupped in quite a while though, as the other girl gazed unflinchingly at the clock tower, with a look of pure joy on her face.
The clock seemed to ring forever; Juliana lost count after nine rings of the big bell. Finally, it fell silent. And although Juliana was still hiccupping like mad, Clarissa seemed to be cured. Still, she continued to stare at the bell tower with that joyous expression. She whispered something; it sounded like she said "Michaela," but Juliana wasn't sure.
"What *HUCK* did you say?" Juliana asked.
"Oh, um, sorry!" Clarissa seemed to snap out of her trance. "Michaela, she's a friend of mine. She, uh, works at the City Hall. She gets to ring the bells sometimes."
"Ohh..."
"But see, I told you counting the rings of the bell would cure me. It works every time. I think it's the concentration or something."
"It didn't *HUCK* cure me," Juliana complained.
Clarissa frowned. "It's ok," she assured. "We'll take care of that. By the way, that was seventeen rings, wasn't it?"
"I, uh, *HUCK* lost count, sorry," Juliana admitted.
"I think it was seventeen. That's awesome. Michaela must be so happy!"
Juliana was beginning to wonder if Clarissa was absolutely crazy. "What are you *hic-ulk* talking about? And clocks don't *HUCK* ring seventeen times; what the hell?"
They had been slowly walking in the direction of the clock tower, but Clarissa suddenly stopped. "Don't say that word," she commanded.
Juliana thought 'hell' it had been pretty mild compared to what she could have said, but then again, Mrs. Beloit always got onto her when she said it. So maybe Clarissa was strict about her language, too. "I'm sorry," she apologized.
"It's ok," Clarissa said, seeming to forgive her instantly. "But hey, we were going to make you disappear and see what happened, weren't we?"
"I think so?"
Clarissa was excited. "Let's do it!"
Now Juliana was a bit unsure. "Well, *hic* maybe I should say goodbye to *hic-ulk* Dad and Hannah first?"
"I thought you said no one would care?"
Juliana dismally looked down at the ground. "I guess you're *hulk* right."
All of the sudden, a cold wind gusted at them. The clouds blew quickly across the sky. Juliana clutched Clarissa's coat to keep from losing her balance. Then it was still again; the air was noticeably colder, but at least it was sunny now.
"What happened?" Juliana asked, terrified.
"Look at me," Clarissa instructed simply.
Juliana did, but Clarissa said and did nothing for several seconds. Finally she burst out laughing. "Cured your hiccups!"
"You -- what?"
"I'm just kidding," Clarissa explained. "But your hiccups are gone, cause you'll never be seen again! And with those crazy hiccups, someone was bound to at least hear you!"
Juliana giggled. "I guess you have a point there."
"It's true, though. You don't even exist any more."
Somehow this made total sense to Juliana. "And yet the world goes on," she mused.
"Let's go find your friends," Clarissa suggested.
"But... if I don't exist, then I don't have any friends," Juliana argued. "Not that I really did anyway."
Clarissa just laughed. "You're catching on! But come on, let's go!"
Faster than seemed humanly possible, the two covered the three miles from the bridge where they had met, back to Juliana's old neighborhood. Most of the houses looked the same, although something seemed different.
"This is your house, right?" Clarissa asked, stopping at Juliana's door.
"Yeah, but how did you know? You've never been here."
"Oh, I have," Clarissa said confidently. Then she knocked on the door.
"You don't have to knock, just go on in," Juliana said.
"You sure?"
Juliana was a little annoyed. "Heck yeah; it's my house, isn't it?" She opened the door and stepped inside. Clarissa followed behind her, seeming a little nervous.
Juliana nearly choked from the thick cloud of smoke that hung in the living room. The place was a shambles; far worse than it had looked even before her dad had started making things right. "Dad?"
A gruff voice shouted back from the hallway, "Who goes there?" Mr. Davis quickly appeared, looking haggard and pale, but quite angry. "Who are you kids? Get the f--- out of my house! He took a step toward them. "Get out or I'm getting my gun!"
Juliana was confused. "Dad! It's just me, and a new friend!"
"Dad? I'm no one's dad!" he growled. "You and your friend, out!" Just to prove he wasn't joking, he stepped back, into the kitchen, and brandished a handgun from one of the drawers.
"Ok, ok! We're going!" Juliana screamed. "Don't you remember me, though? I'm Juliana!"
Not even a flicker of recognition crossed Mr. Davis's face. "Juliana. Sounds like a Dutch princess. Now get out!" he shouted, and pointed the gun in their direction.
The two girls fled, slamming the door behind them.
Outside, Juliana was distraught. "What was that?" she gasped. "That was my dad, but -- but, he didn't know me! And he looked awful! I don't remember him looking that bad even before he started cleaning up his life. Why didn't he know me, Clarissa? What have you done?!"
Clarissa hugged her tightly. "Calm down, Jules," she whispered.
Juliana wasn't comforted. "This is crazy! What the hell just happened?"
Clarissa flinched.
Juliana just rolled her eyes. "Sorry. But seriously, what's going on here? Did he --? Are we --?" Slowly the truth began to dawn on her. A horrified look came to her face. "It's 'cause I don't exist any more? He never changed because I wasn't there?"
Clarissa said nothing.
"He looks worse than he ever did before; living all alone here," she whispered, still in shock. Then she burst out, "We've got to go back in! We have to help him!"
"He did have a gun," Clarissa reminded her. "And that's ok for me, but, you know..." she trailed off.
"He did seem pretty angry. But we can't let him just rot alone like that! He's my dad!"
Clarissa was unmoved. "No he's not. You don't have a dad."
"I don't? I don't! Oh my God!"
Clarissa looked pained.
Juliana rolled her eyes again. "Sorry! But seriously, what are we going to do?"
"We're gonna go next door," Clarissa instructed.
Juliana was relieved. "That's a great idea! Maybe Hannah is there, since she obviously isn't living with Dad."
But the house next door was dark and empty. Siding hung haphazardly from the exterior walls, and the door, surrounded in cobwebs, was slightly ajar. It was clear no one had been inside in quite some time.
"Oh my..." Juliana caught herself before saying something to upset Clarissa again. "Where is Hannah? Is she ok?!" she worried.
Clarissa shrugged. "It's not like she'd know you anyway."
The terrifying tour continued, as the two girls visited other key places in Juliana's life, all so different than they should have been. The Beloits had moved away. Sergeant Benson, Ellie's father, was dead - killed by a teenage drunk driver. In one of the biggest changes, Juliana's school wasn't even open any more! Juliana's emotions had swung from shock to horror to understanding throughout the whole ordeal; but the school being closed was too much. Standing in front of the now vacant schoolyard, she finally spoke. "Ok Clarissa, I get it. My life is worthwhile after all. I never knew I made a difference to all those people! But the school? Seriously?"
Clarissa nodded knowingly. "I knew you wouldn't believe that. You know how you have always helped your classmates with their schoolwork? And helped tutor some of the little kids, too?"
"Yeah, but it never really helped much. Their grades still sucked."
Clarissa laughed. "Maybe so. But they sucked even worse without you. And the school was never very good to begin with, and with the test scores and all even lower --"
"They closed the place down?"
"Yep, the state did. Two years ago."
Juliana gasped. "I knew our school was bad; I had no idea it was that close to the edge! So what happened to the kids?"
"Oh, they're all at different schools around the area. They're ok, but many of their old friendships are lost."
"And Mrs. Lister?"
"She was out of work for a long while," Clarissa said. "But she's doing some temporary work at a library now."
Juliana and Clarissa stood silently for many minutes. Tears came to Juliana's eyes. She began to sob. She hid her face in the shoulder of Clarissa's thick white coat, crying helplessly. "I'm sorry; I'm sorry," she wailed over and over. "My dad's a wreck, my favorite teacher doesn't have a job, poor Ellie doesn't have a father; and it's all my fault!" she moaned. Finally, she looked into Clarissa's sympathetic eyes, a look of fear on her tear-stained face. "Where's Hannah? You have to take me to her. NOW!"
"I can't," Clarissa objected.
"Yes you can! You have to! You seem to know everything about everyone."
"I know, but--" Clarissa was clearly uncomfortable.
Juliana was adamant. "What's happened to her? We've got to find her! Take me to her!!"
"Are you sure?"
"Sure as hell! I have to know she's ok!"
Clarissa twitched, but she said nothing, and Juliana was too distraught to notice or apologize.
"Clarissa!" Juliana shouted. "NOW!"
Clarissa looked up at the sky and shook her head. She threw her hands up in apparent resignation. "Ok, we'll go see Hannah."
It was a long walk - they went all the way to the other side of town - yet they were both silent the entire way. Juliana was lost in her own thoughts, and Clarissa just watched her intently.
Evening had come by the time they arrived. They turned onto a small alley. It was a little dark, and a bit scary, but Clarissa confidently led Juliana by the hand, down the street.
"Does Hannah live in this dump?" Juliana whispered.
Then Juliana saw her. She was just a thin form, standing next to a door. That beautiful, long, blonde hair of hers was a little dirty and tangled. Her eyes were sunken and joyless. Despite the bitter cold, she was wearing a scandalously short skirt - her legs totally bare - and a shabby dark coat that looked like it had been through one too many winters. Juliana wouldn't have even recognized her, but her face was unmistakable. And she had the hiccups.
"Oh my God, that's her," Juliana exclaimed. "She's..." Juliana let go of Clarissa's hand and ran toward the shivering girl at the door.
"Juliana, wait! No!"
It was no use. Juliana ran to Hannah and practically fell on her neck. "Oh my God, oh my God," she gasped over and over. "Hannah, are you ok? What are you doing here? I'm so sorry!"
Hannah gave her a quizzical look. "What the f--- is *hic* wrong with you, girl? *hic* Am I supposed to know *hic* you?"
"I'm Juliana, don't you know me?" Juliana pleaded desperately.
"Do you work here? *hic* I sure as hell hope n-*hic* not, for your sake!"
Juliana clung to Hannah. "I'm your best friend!"
Hannah pushed her away roughly. "I don't *hic* have any friends; just *hic* customers."
Juliana was undaunted. "I'm your friend; you know me! Come with me and Clarissa, we'll get you out of here!" she begged through her tears, grabbing Hannah by the arm, as if to drag her away.
With her free arm, Hannah slapped Juliana in the face. "Let go of me, you *hic* creep!"
Strangely, Hannah's slap didn't hurt at all - on the outside. But it seemed to completely drain the will out of Juliana. She sank to the ground, sobbing hopelessly.
Clarissa was next to her in an instant. "It's ok, Jules. You can't blame her; she doesn't know you!"
Juliana wasn't comforted. "Clarissa," she sobbed. "Can you get us out of here?"
"Sure, where do you want to go now?" Clarissa offered.
"No, no!" Juliana pleaded. "I mean out of this whole mess!"
"But you asked for this!"
"I know; I'm sorry. Take me back! I want to be me again!"
"Are you sure?" Clarissa asked.
"Oh, Clarissa, please! How did you do all this, anyway?"
Clarissa hugged her tightly. "I did it because I love you, Juliana. I'm your--"
Juliana didn't wait for the explanation. "I love you, too, Clarissa. But please, make it all right again!"
Clarissa shook her gently. Another powerful gust of wind rocked them both, and Juliana felt like she blacked out for a moment.
"Juliana; Juliana! Are you ok?"
Juliana looked up from where she still lay, huddled on the ground. Clarissa was nowhere to be seen, but Hannah was bent over her, a look of concern on her face.
"I'm fine, you didn't *HUCK* hit me hard," Juliana assured her. "Wait a minute..." Suddenly Juliana was confused. "You're not -- *hulk* I'm not --" she stammered. Finally she beamed, "You know me!" She jumped to her feet and threw her arms around her friend.
Hannah hugged Juliana back, but was a bit concerned. "Are you ok, Jules? What were you talking about? Of course I know you! And who the heck is Clarissa? You kept mumbling something about her."
Juliana just smiled and shook her head. "Sorry, I was *HUCK* confused for a minute there," she explained. "And Clarissa is, um, *huck* a friend of mine; I must *hulk* have been dreaming."
"I'm just glad you're ok," Hannah gushed. "I was so worried; I couldn't find you anywhere!"
"Thanks, Hannah." Juliana hugged her again. "You're the best *hic-ulk* friend ever. Let's go *hic* home."
Before Hannah could answer with her agreement, the clock tower on City Hall downtown began to strike the hour. "Just a second," Juliana said. "I've g-*hic* got to cure these hiccups."
"How are you--"
Juliana just smiled. "Shh! Count the bells."
Finally the clock stopped ringing, and Juliana's hiccups were indeed gone. She was beaming, a look of pure joy on her face. "Did you count them?" she asked Hannah.
"No, I lost count after like, nine," Hannah admitted. "Which is weird because it's only four o'clock."
"I think it was seventeen. That's awesome. Clarissa must be so happy."
Hannah gave Juliana an exasperated look. "Who is Clarissa?!"
"I'll tell you about her on the way home," Juliana laughed. It felt so good to be herself again.