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“At least I don’t think he’s a complete dick anymore. I mean, he needs therapy, but I get where he’s coming from now. His drinking, how disco
“Welcome to the club. I’ll have to teach you the secret handshake.”
Kylie smiles. She’s twirling a long curl around her finger. “No wonder I’m such a social retard.”
“You’re not a social retard.” I may have thought that yesterday but not today.
“Do you think, when we have kids, we’ll mess things up as bad as our parents?” “Du
“We know each other a lot better now.”
“That is indisputable, Max Langston.”
“C’mon, let’s go back down. Will should be here soon.”
“Sounds like a plan.”
I jump up, grab Kylie by the hand, and pull her to her feet.
’m on the 5:25 bus to Buchwald and Center. I know I shouldn’t be. But once I had the idea, I couldn’t stop myself. I can meet Kylie at school and we’ll go home together.
I have two Luke Skywalkers, one Darth Bane, three Yodas, a Poggle the Lesser (which is very rare), and a Darth Vader with me. I forgot my Tavion Axmis. I will not forget Tavion Axmis next time. I should have brought four Luke Skywalkers, because I have lined them all up on the seat next to me and they look uneven. I move the Yodas to the front, but I don’t like it. I put one of the Luke Skywalkers in a fighting position.
“Excuse me.”
Someone is talking to me, but I’m not going to look up.
“Excuse me, may I sit here?”
I’m not looking up. Sometimes I like company, but not now.
“No,” I say. I’m not looking up. Are they gone?
I move one of my Yodas right next to Darth Vader. They are contiguous. I love that word. Contiguous. I think they’re gone.
We’re passing One America Plaza. The top of the building looks like a screwdriver. Every time I see it, I can’t believe how cool it is. I could stare at it all day. The tallest building in the world is Burj Khalifa in Dubai. It’s one hundred and sixty-three stories. Almost five times as high as One America Plaza. Burj Khalifa is also the tallest structure in the world. Which is different than a building. The KVLY-TV mast in Blanchard, North Dakota, is the second-tallest structure in the world, and the CN Tower in Toronto is the second-tallest freestanding structure.
I stare out the window and count buildings. I know Mom will be angry with me that I just walked out of the house, but I need to see Kylie. I’ve never done anything like this before. But Kylie’s never missed di
The bus pulls up to Buchwald and Center. It’s 6:17. Exactly fifty-two minutes. Excellent time, especially in rush hour. But the buses have special lanes. I walk the seven blocks to Freiburg. I know exactly how to get there. Mom and I used to take Kylie to school all the time. I count the cracks on the sidewalk as I go. Twenty-five cracks every block. One hundred and seventy-five cracks by the time I get to the main stairs of Freiburg.
The school is so big and bright, it looks like a castle. I walk up the main staircase. There’s no one around. I try the door.
It’s locked. All the doors are locked, chained shut. I knock on them, hard. Maybe Kylie’s locked inside. Will she even hear me?
A man with a mop opens one of the doors.
“Can I help you?”
“I’m looking for my sister. Kylie Flores.”
“Everyone’s gone home. It’s the last day of school.”
“She’s probably in the library. She likes to read.”
“No one’s in the library. I just finished cleaning the place.”
“She said she was staying late at school, so she must still be inside. Can I come in and see?”
“I’m sorry. School rules. No one’s allowed inside. Hope you find your sister.” The man with the mop shuts the door.
I’m alone. I’m not sure what to do or where to go.
’ve seriously never eaten this much before,” I tell Max.
“I am a beached whale.”
“I feel you, sister,” Max responds.
“You ‘feel me, sister’? Who are you, Snoop Dogg?”
“What? I’m too white to talk like that?”
“Uh, yeah. I’m too white to talk like that and I’m half Latina.”
“Kylie, there’s something you don’t know about me.”
“What’s that?”
“I’m only white on the outside. Underneath, I’ve got a dark, hip, urban rapper center. I’m like a vanilla Tootsie Pop.”
“You’re more like a Blow Pop. With a bright, chewy bubble gum center.”
“Okay, I’m pretty sure that’s offensive. I’m not crazy about the image.”
“Better than being a dumb jock.”
Max raises an eyebrow at me. I know he worries that he is a dumb jock, or that people only see that side of him.
“You’re not one, by the way,” I say. And I mean it. I feel bad for even introducing the subject. I don’t think he’s a dumb jock. Maybe a few hours ago, but not now.
Max and I are lying in a neon orange hammock, strung from two palm trees in Manuel’s backyard, having just finished what seemed like a fifteen-course meal. If I had to write this scene, I’m not sure I’d be able to do it and make it believable. The school loner and the school heartthrob are pressed together on a hammock, high above the harbor in Ensenada, swinging to the gentle sounds of salsa and cicadas. His foot rests on hers, her shoulder pushes into his.
It sounds so cheesy, even I don’t buy it. And it’s currently happening to me.
Somewhere between my second cup of sangria and a long session of singing Beatles songs with Manuel, Max, and a guy named Fresco, Max and I fell onto the hammock. And little by little, our limbs began to intertwine, as if by some will of their own. I’m still thinking about my dad, but less and less. A little girl named Felipa, dressed in a Spider-Man costume, crawled into the hammock with us. She curled up at our feet and fell asleep.
This is probably the closest, physically, I’ve ever been to a boy other than Jake or Will. So far, it’s all pretty i
“I’ve eaten Mexican food my whole life and never once had turkey mole. Are you sure it’s the national dish of Mexico?” Max asks a woman sitting on the grass nearby. They’ve been having an on-and-off conversation for the past few minutes. I’ve been listening in.
“I’m sure. I teach history in high school,” she tells Max.
“Well, then, I guess you’d know. I always assumed it was tacos or burritos,” Max says.
The woman laughs. There’s that easy rapport again. Hanging around Max, I think a little has rubbed off on me. I’ve been chatting it up with everyone here, as if that’s what I normally do.