him.”
“That’s great—no, that’s really good. It’s a great feeling, right? You feel good, no?”
“I feel great. I can’t believe I am going to say this out loud, but this was the best punishment in the whole wide universe. I love earth, and I’m so glad we’re here, together.”
“Yeah, me too.”
I thought of my greater need for selflessness and I thought of Daddy telling me I needed to shape up and I thought of Apollo’s sad eyes and I thought of Polly’s radiant smile and even though I thought of Tim’s flirtatiousness with that horrible girl from science, I said, “So why don’t you give him the love poem?”
“Oh no! I wrote it for me, not him, not really. I mean, I have these feelings, I mean, I get all tingly and I would love to share that with him, these new feelings and thoughts and, well, no, I couldn’t.”
“Why not? He obviously adores you. And why shouldn’t he? You’re truly the most stunning and fascinating girl at school. A veritable goddess!” I said, and I meant it. Well, I meant the part about her being stunning and fascinating and a real-life goddess.
“Nooo,” she said slyly, coyly, quietly. But I could see her mind was at work. I couldn’t help but egg her on. She giggled those rippling little happy giggles thatcome uncontrollably from the throat and then leaned over and gave me the tightest hug. She was so happy.
“You have to give it to him. How can you hide your feelings? How can you play such high school games? Just trust in your judgment. I do,” I said.
“Maybe, yes, maybe,” she said with the sweetest smile yet.
Then she lay back and closed her eyes.
She was going to sleep in my tub?!
This setup was fine for sister bonding, but c’mon, it was hard, cold, and not all that big.
“Yo, Pol, you really going to sleep in here?”
“I was thinking about it. Yeah,” she said, her eyes still closed, her mouth still frozen in midsmile.
“Um, okay. Good night,” I replied sullenly.
I must be more selfless, I must be more selfless, I must be more selfless, I chanted mentally till the ache in my back faded away into deep and restful slumber.
FOURTEEN
“Y ou know, Pocky really is harmless,” Claire said as she sat down next to me on the damp grass in the middle of the quad. It was lunchtime.
“I know, don’t even worry about it,” I said. “That stuff, those songs, they were pretty funny. I got a kick out of it.”
“Yeah, that Pocky, he’s a hoot.”
Eating with Claire was the best. She never brought the same thing twice. And she always had a blanket to set her food out on and real shiny silverware. She, too, made her own lunches, but while I stuck to basics like cheese and bread, Claire fashioned these marvels out of food. Last week she had made a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, but with cake for the bread. It was the size of a large dictionary. Today’s meal consisted of a sprinkle sandwich and pink popcorn. And of course the best part was, she always shared.
“So what did you get on Mr. Zeitland’s paper?” asked Claire.
“An A. It was pretty cool.”
“You, Thalia, are exceptionally talented in the world of science. Why is that?”
“What do you mean?”
“You’re good at it. You’re good at school. Is this school just so much easier than your old school orwhat?”
“Um, it’s just real different?” I said.
“Different how?”
“Well, for one thing, I never had to deal with the whole note-passing issue before I came to Georgia. Not to say we didn’t have our share of witchy girls or dopey boys, but, I dunno, I didn’t have to see them, like, every day.”
“Yeah, well, the witch quotient went up here exponentially when the Backroom Betties came along a couple of weeks ago.”
Something about what Claire had just said made my blood run cold. “What do you mean? They haven’t been here for, like, aeons? When did they come to this school?” I asked.
“Just like a week before you three got here. They fit in
“That’s great—no, that’s really good. It’s a great feeling, right? You feel good, no?”
“I feel great. I can’t believe I am going to say this out loud, but this was the best punishment in the whole wide universe. I love earth, and I’m so glad we’re here, together.”
“Yeah, me too.”
I thought of my greater need for selflessness and I thought of Daddy telling me I needed to shape up and I thought of Apollo’s sad eyes and I thought of Polly’s radiant smile and even though I thought of Tim’s flirtatiousness with that horrible girl from science, I said, “So why don’t you give him the love poem?”
“Oh no! I wrote it for me, not him, not really. I mean, I have these feelings, I mean, I get all tingly and I would love to share that with him, these new feelings and thoughts and, well, no, I couldn’t.”
“Why not? He obviously adores you. And why shouldn’t he? You’re truly the most stunning and fascinating girl at school. A veritable goddess!” I said, and I meant it. Well, I meant the part about her being stunning and fascinating and a real-life goddess.
“Nooo,” she said slyly, coyly, quietly. But I could see her mind was at work. I couldn’t help but egg her on. She giggled those rippling little happy giggles thatcome uncontrollably from the throat and then leaned over and gave me the tightest hug. She was so happy.
“You have to give it to him. How can you hide your feelings? How can you play such high school games? Just trust in your judgment. I do,” I said.
“Maybe, yes, maybe,” she said with the sweetest smile yet.
Then she lay back and closed her eyes.
She was going to sleep in my tub?!
This setup was fine for sister bonding, but c’mon, it was hard, cold, and not all that big.
“Yo, Pol, you really going to sleep in here?”
“I was thinking about it. Yeah,” she said, her eyes still closed, her mouth still frozen in midsmile.
“Um, okay. Good night,” I replied sullenly.
I must be more selfless, I must be more selfless, I must be more selfless, I chanted mentally till the ache in my back faded away into deep and restful slumber.
FOURTEEN
“Y ou know, Pocky really is harmless,” Claire said as she sat down next to me on the damp grass in the middle of the quad. It was lunchtime.
“I know, don’t even worry about it,” I said. “That stuff, those songs, they were pretty funny. I got a kick out of it.”
“Yeah, that Pocky, he’s a hoot.”
Eating with Claire was the best. She never brought the same thing twice. And she always had a blanket to set her food out on and real shiny silverware. She, too, made her own lunches, but while I stuck to basics like cheese and bread, Claire fashioned these marvels out of food. Last week she had made a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, but with cake for the bread. It was the size of a large dictionary. Today’s meal consisted of a sprinkle sandwich and pink popcorn. And of course the best part was, she always shared.
“So what did you get on Mr. Zeitland’s paper?” asked Claire.
“An A. It was pretty cool.”
“You, Thalia, are exceptionally talented in the world of science. Why is that?”
“What do you mean?”
“You’re good at it. You’re good at school. Is this school just so much easier than your old school orwhat?”
“Um, it’s just real different?” I said.
“Different how?”
“Well, for one thing, I never had to deal with the whole note-passing issue before I came to Georgia. Not to say we didn’t have our share of witchy girls or dopey boys, but, I dunno, I didn’t have to see them, like, every day.”
“Yeah, well, the witch quotient went up here exponentially when the Backroom Betties came along a couple of weeks ago.”
Something about what Claire had just said made my blood run cold. “What do you mean? They haven’t been here for, like, aeons? When did they come to this school?” I asked.
“Just like a week before you three got here. They fit in
Similar Books
