Miss.” Minyung stepped forward. “She isn’t feeling well.”
“Yeah,” Kirsty agreed, one hand on her hip. “She’s got personal problems.”
“Yeah,” some other girls joined in.
“You can’t make her run.”
“She’s having family issues.”
“Yeah, Miss! It’s not fair.”
“Fine, fine.” Mrs. Parker held up her clipboard. “No one has to do laps today. Okay? But I want you all on the volleyball court in thirty seconds. Ready? Thirty, twenty-nine—” The teacher blew her whistle and the girls scrambled toward the court.
“Thanks,” Ramona said as Kirsty came up to run beside her.
“No worries.” Kirsty held her tongue over her braces as she smiled. “I mean, you didn’t, like, go through horrible abuse to have a cow like Parker force you to do something you don’t want to.”
“Totally.”
The volleyball courts came into view and Ramona realized that, for the first time ever, she was going to be picked first for someone’s team.
—
At lunchtime, a few of the girls kept watch behind the gym while Ramona crouched beneath the windows and called Adil on her mobile.
“Hey,” he said. He’d picked up after one ring. “I was just thinking about you.”
“Oh really?” she said, as quietly as she could. “Do tell?”
“I don’t know.” He sounded embarrassed, and Ramona could picture him kicking at something on the ground, a small, almost undetectable smile on his lips. “I guess I was just thinking about how nice it was to, like, hold hands with you at the movies the other night. I mean, I know my fingers were all greasy from the popcorn, but you were terribly gracious about not complaining and, you know, letting me have my way with your fingers in the dark on the armrest for a few minutes.”
“Well,” she said, “maybe I did complain about it. Just not to you. Maybe I complained about it to my friends.”
“Yeah, you see I thought of that, but I’ve got it covered. I asked my sources and they told me you were appalled by the shoes I was wearing and the fact that I had to ask you to lend me fifty cents for my ticket. But none of them said anything about popcorn or butter or hand-holding at all.”
“And these sources of yours. How do you know they’re not working for me?”
He laughed. “Oh no, I’ve checked them out thoroughly. Rorschach tests, lie detectors. They’re very reliable sources.”
“Hmm, I see.”
“Ramona. Ramona!” Minyung had come around the edge of the building and was whispering to her. “Come on.”
“Shit,” Ramona said, moving toward Minyung with her head tilted down and out of view of any sport teachers. “I have to go. But wanna see me later?”
“Sure,” Adil said. “Should I meet you there?”
“No. I’ll come to you. Gottagobye.” She flipped her phone shut, dropped it into the pocket of her blazer, and followed Minyung around the corner. But what she saw there was not what she had expected; what she saw was not a teacher coming to bust girls using mobile phones on school grounds, but a group of six or seven girls with Kirsty at its center, and in Kirsty’s hands a cupcake covered in pink icing with a fat red candle sticking out the top.
“We just wanted you to know we’re thinking about you,” Kirsty said.
“Yeah,” said Amber, her curls nodding in concurrence. The bell rang for the end of lunch but none of the girls moved.
“And we know it’s not your birthday or anything,” said Kirsty, “but we thought you might want to make a wish. For the start of a new life without anything weird or, you know, gross in it.”
“Thank you so much.” Ramona smiled. She felt like she’d won an award and her speech was being televised. “Um, I don’t even know what I’d wish for. With such good friends like you guys.”
“Aww,” Hayley said, “we love you, too.”
All the girls stood in a circle around Kirsty, who raised the candle to Ramona’s face and said, “Yeah!” when she blew it out. She handed
“Yeah,” Kirsty agreed, one hand on her hip. “She’s got personal problems.”
“Yeah,” some other girls joined in.
“You can’t make her run.”
“She’s having family issues.”
“Yeah, Miss! It’s not fair.”
“Fine, fine.” Mrs. Parker held up her clipboard. “No one has to do laps today. Okay? But I want you all on the volleyball court in thirty seconds. Ready? Thirty, twenty-nine—” The teacher blew her whistle and the girls scrambled toward the court.
“Thanks,” Ramona said as Kirsty came up to run beside her.
“No worries.” Kirsty held her tongue over her braces as she smiled. “I mean, you didn’t, like, go through horrible abuse to have a cow like Parker force you to do something you don’t want to.”
“Totally.”
The volleyball courts came into view and Ramona realized that, for the first time ever, she was going to be picked first for someone’s team.
—
At lunchtime, a few of the girls kept watch behind the gym while Ramona crouched beneath the windows and called Adil on her mobile.
“Hey,” he said. He’d picked up after one ring. “I was just thinking about you.”
“Oh really?” she said, as quietly as she could. “Do tell?”
“I don’t know.” He sounded embarrassed, and Ramona could picture him kicking at something on the ground, a small, almost undetectable smile on his lips. “I guess I was just thinking about how nice it was to, like, hold hands with you at the movies the other night. I mean, I know my fingers were all greasy from the popcorn, but you were terribly gracious about not complaining and, you know, letting me have my way with your fingers in the dark on the armrest for a few minutes.”
“Well,” she said, “maybe I did complain about it. Just not to you. Maybe I complained about it to my friends.”
“Yeah, you see I thought of that, but I’ve got it covered. I asked my sources and they told me you were appalled by the shoes I was wearing and the fact that I had to ask you to lend me fifty cents for my ticket. But none of them said anything about popcorn or butter or hand-holding at all.”
“And these sources of yours. How do you know they’re not working for me?”
He laughed. “Oh no, I’ve checked them out thoroughly. Rorschach tests, lie detectors. They’re very reliable sources.”
“Hmm, I see.”
“Ramona. Ramona!” Minyung had come around the edge of the building and was whispering to her. “Come on.”
“Shit,” Ramona said, moving toward Minyung with her head tilted down and out of view of any sport teachers. “I have to go. But wanna see me later?”
“Sure,” Adil said. “Should I meet you there?”
“No. I’ll come to you. Gottagobye.” She flipped her phone shut, dropped it into the pocket of her blazer, and followed Minyung around the corner. But what she saw there was not what she had expected; what she saw was not a teacher coming to bust girls using mobile phones on school grounds, but a group of six or seven girls with Kirsty at its center, and in Kirsty’s hands a cupcake covered in pink icing with a fat red candle sticking out the top.
“We just wanted you to know we’re thinking about you,” Kirsty said.
“Yeah,” said Amber, her curls nodding in concurrence. The bell rang for the end of lunch but none of the girls moved.
“And we know it’s not your birthday or anything,” said Kirsty, “but we thought you might want to make a wish. For the start of a new life without anything weird or, you know, gross in it.”
“Thank you so much.” Ramona smiled. She felt like she’d won an award and her speech was being televised. “Um, I don’t even know what I’d wish for. With such good friends like you guys.”
“Aww,” Hayley said, “we love you, too.”
All the girls stood in a circle around Kirsty, who raised the candle to Ramona’s face and said, “Yeah!” when she blew it out. She handed
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