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“Alakazam.”
“Come on.”
“Alakazam.”
He didn’t even see Jem do it, not really, and he was sitting right in front of him. One moment, Jem’s hand was still moving in that same low, lazy arc. The next, the cards began to turn, flipping face down one by one in a seamless ripple, until only one card lay face up.
The queen of spades.
“Bullshit,” Emery said.
Everyone burst out laughing. Auggie kept staring at the card and looking at Jem and glancing over his shoulder at Theo, who wore a broad, open grin and was shaking his head. That was how Auggie felt too, the head-shakingness of it. The wonder of it. Jem settled back again, a tiny grin on his face.
“How did you do it?” Emery asked.
“Magic.”
“There’s no such thing as magic.”
Shaw launched himself across the cards to wrap Jem in a hug. Jem laughed and rocked back and maybe only Auggie saw it, but Shaw whispered something, and Jem’s face softened as he hugged Shaw back.
“It was magic,” Shaw said. “It was real magic, and you saw it.”
“That was fucking awesome,” North declared.
Tean leaned forward to squeeze Jem’s arm.
“Very cool,” Theo said.
“I’m not letting you or Colt anywhere near my wallet,” John-Henry said, which made everyone laugh again.
“Do your trick,” North said, nudging Shaw with one foot.
“No,” Shaw said, “it’s no good—”
“Do it!”
“Do it,” Auggie said. “We’d love to see it.”
“It’s not as good as Jem’s,” Shaw said.
Jem gathered up the cards, did a quick—and flashy—shuffle, and handed them over. “Any magic is good.”
Shaw hunched over the cards, hiding them with his body. When he sat up again, he held them out toward Emery.
“No,” Emery said.
John-Henry sighed and pushed him forward.
With a glower, Emery took a card. While keeping it hidden from Shaw, he showed it around the room—the ace of hearts. Then, when Shaw was ready, he handed it back, and Shaw slid it into the deck.
“It’s not as good,” Shaw whispered, glancing at Jem.
“It’s magic,” Jem said with a grin.
Shaw brightened, and then he held out the deck and fanned it open. Only one card was face down. He proffered the cards again; Emery sighed and plucked the face-down one out of the deck. When he turned it over, it was the ace of hearts.
“This is bullshit,” Emery said.
