The Encyclopedia of Me by Karen Rivers Page A

positively reinforcing the behavior.
    Anyway, I didn’t need to be told to go twice. I followed Lex out the door. “Whooo!” I yelled. I don’t know why I yelled that. I think I was just so glad to not be in the House of Haywire anymore.
    Lex glared at me. “Yeah,” he said sarcastically. “It’s a total celebration. I’m going to the beach. Are you coming or are you just going to be a freak?”
    â€œI’m not a freak,” I said. “I’m coming.”
    â€œWhatever,” he said.
    â€œWant to get ice cream?” I said.
    â€œNo,” he said. Then he totally stalked off without me.
    â€œFine,” I yelled after him. “Go!”
    Which is why I went for ice cream by myself.
    Which is why I saw Kai.
    Which is why what happened, happened.
    I am not prepared to write any more of this story right now. You are going to have to wait for the letter
I
, which I realize is probably going to be on the next page, but I am just not willing to write about what happened quite, quite yet.
    See also
Aaron-Martin, Sebastian (Seb); Autism; Ellery, Charlotte.
Heights
    Until I fell in love with the Tree of Unknown Species, I was totally and completely terrified of being high up. I was more afraid of heights than I am of elephants or even being murdered in my sleep by a mask-wearing criminal with claw gloves. 68
    Now I am not at all afraid. It went away, just like that. I can’t remember why I was scared before. It’s weird how that happens, how one day something can scare you so bad that your legs won’t hold you up, and then you try it. And then everything changes, and it turns out you are OK, after all.
    Mom says that I’m still afraid, I’m just pretending not to be, but I think that’s just because she might be a little bit jealous that I’m completely cured and she is not.
Hickey
    A hickey is a bruise that you get when your skin gets sucked very hard, either by a vacuum cleaner or by a mouth (your own or someone else’s). You can give yourself one by putting your forearm into your mouth and sucking really hard. Freddie Blue and I give ourselves hickeys sometimes in class if the class is very boring. Once she had fourteen hickeys on her arm. It looked like she’d been punched repeatedly by someone with a tiny fist, such as an elf.
    Apparently, boys like to give you hickeys on your neck, but honestly I don’t see how this could even happen, unless they are pretending to be vampires and you are pretending to like it.
Howl
    A really loud noise made by twin brothers during full moons, which they think is hilarious and usually causes at least one passerby to scream and run away.
    I don’t actually remember when this started — it seems like the boys have been doing this stupid howl for my whole life, probably because they have. Lex says it helps Seb to work out all his stuff, to stand on the front lawn and just howl like a banshee at the moon. Seb says that he does it because Lex is actually a werewolf and the only thing that keeps him from eating the entire family is this stupid and annoyingly loud ritual. When I was little, that scared me to death, but now I know they are just kidding around. They never miss a moon.
    I guess I don’t mind it. I’m used to it, looking out my window on moony nights and seeing them there, heads thrown back, howling like psychos. It’s actually sort of funny.
    See also
Aaron-Martin, Sasha Alexei (Lex); Aaron-­Martin, Sebastian (Seb).

Ice Cream Incident, The
    Ice cream is a frozen dessert enjoyed by everyone. Go ahead, show me someone who does not like ice cream. You can’t, can you? Because everyone likes it. Because it is delicious.
    This entry is not really about ice cream.
    It is about kissing.
    It is a long-ish story. Be prepared. Maybe get a snack and a cold drink! Find a comfy place to sit, like maybe a hammock.
    Yes, this is the story that began with
Haywire
. If you have