Pink & Green is the New Black (20 page)

“Well, I'm glad you're not mad,” I say.

“So you never liked Travis?” she asks, changing the topic slightly.

“I mean, I wanted to give him a chance.” I flip over onto my back. “And then I might have liked him for a day. He really tries, and it's sweet. But coming from him, it also weirds me out.”

Sunny never tells me romantic stuff about Evan. I know they've kissed, and that's it. She never goes into detail about it. She's private, and I don't push her.

“Maybe he's changed since he first moved here,” Sunny says. “Or maybe you have.”

“Maybe.”

Grandma knocks on my door. “Lucy, it's nearly eleven. Off the phone.”

“Okay,” I yell through the door.

“I gotta go in a sec,” I whisper. “Anyway, I need to break up with him. Is that mean, since the dance is so soon?”

“Is being nice your main concern? Or is being honest your main concern?”

I wait for a second to reply. “That's a good question.”

“And it looks like people are going to have dates for the dance. So do you want to go without a date?” Sunny asks.

“You're asking such hard questions!” I laugh, but really I want to cry. I don't know how things became so complicated and scary.

“Just think about it,” she says. “That's all. Anyway, I gotta go too.”

“Bye, Sun. See you tomorrow.”

I lie awake most of the night. I don't want to be with Travis. I don't want to go to the dance with him. But I also feel like it's cruel to leave him without a date. But maybe he'd find someone else. I toss and turn all night long. As the minutes tick by, I get more and more nervous.

Lucy's tip for surviving eighth grade:

Don't dwell on the negative. Figure out a way to fix it.

I'm still sitting at my
kitchen table eating my Honey Nut Cheerios with cut-up banana when my phone buzzes.

It's a text from Erica:

Need to talk to you. Go to second floor bathroom as soon as you get to school.

A part of me thinks maybe she's turning a corner and things are looking up. I only slept for an hour last night, but I feel energized. Things are going to work out. I know it. Sometimes positive thinking is enough to turn everything around. I just need to remember that.

Dad picks me up and drives me to school, and I'm grateful for the time with him. Ten minutes here and ten minutes there
are worth so much more than a weeklong visit a few times a year.

We don't even talk much, but he always finds just the right music for a morning drive. Today it's this new Bob Dylan album. And when we do talk, it's quiet and relaxed. He's one of those people who makes me feel calmer just by being around him.

I walk into school and go straight to the second-floor bathroom. I didn't have a chance to text Sunny, and I wonder if Erica sent her the same text.

Or maybe Erica wants it to be a private meeting.

My heart is pounding. I don't want to see Travis on the way there. I can't see him until I know exactly what I plan to say.

Erica's in the bathroom, sitting on the sink counter. Her eyes are red and her skin is blotchy. Tears dot her cheeks.

“Hi,” I say, softly. “Are you okay?”

“Do I look okay, Lucy?” She sneers. “Come on. Wake up.”

“Sorry,” I mumble. “What's wrong?”

“Elias broke up with me. He needs to focus on his work. That's what his mom said, or so he claims.”

“His work?”

“Yeah, like schoolwork. I think he's doing really bad in school.” She rolls her eyes. “His mom is a crazy person. Like, seriously. He wasn't allowed to watch TV until he was, like, ten.”

“Oh.” I look down at my boots. They're covered in mud, and I hadn't even realized it. I must be really out of it. I have no idea what his TV allowance has to do with Elias breaking up with her. Maybe it's just easier for Erica to blame his crazy mom.

“Anyway,” she says, “I'll do what you want. No dates. If I can't have a date, then no one can have a date.”

“Really?” I perk up but try to hide my happiness. It's for a bad reason, but I'm getting my way, and everyone will benefit from Erica's misery. It's kind of perfect, when you think about it.

“Yeah. I'm not going to be the loser without a date,” she reminds me. “Zoe's fine with it. She can still do whatever she wants with Gavin, obviously. But I will make sure that no one comes with a date if I don't have one.”

It's weird that Zoe's not here. I haven't seen them apart in months. I wonder if Zoe knows about Erica's change of heart yet, or if Erica is telling me first. Maybe she's just saying Zoe is fine with it, but Zoe doesn't even know yet. I wouldn't put it past Erica.

“I'm sorry about Elias,” I say. I'm tempted to reach over and give Erica a hug, but I don't think we're there yet. She's still Erica Crane, even if she does sit at our lunch table. And she's never apologized for all the mean things she's said. I think Evan's right about her: she'll probably never be nice.

“Don't tell anyone,” she says. “I'm just gonna say you didn't want dates and the executive committee decided.”

“Okay.”

“I don't need everyone to know he broke up with me.” She starts sniffling again. “And if I find out you told anyone, I will completely ruin your life.”

Well, I believe
that
. “Your secret is safe with me.”

We hear the bell ring and it's time for first period. I silently thank God for making Elias break up with Erica, even though I feel a little bit bad that she's had her heart broken. I know people have free will and everything, but the timing of this is just too perfect. I don't really have to worry about breaking up with Travis now. No dates means no dates for anyone. Perfect. It's divine intervention.

“Where were you this morning?” Sunny asks me as soon as I walk into first period.

“Long story,” I whisper.

Mrs. O'Rourke is at the front of the class, writing on the dry-erase board. I know she's going to turn around any second and glare at me for talking.

Sunny says through her teeth, “Tell me.”

“Later.”

Sunny's annoyed, but there's nothing I can do about it. Zoe is in this class, and she'll overhear me. Plus, Erica swore me to secrecy.

I mean, okay, I will probably tell Sunny, because that doesn't count—we don't keep secrets from each other. And she'll know not to tell anyone. The whole “I won't tell anyone” promise doesn't apply to best friends.

When class ends, Sunny and I walk out together. I need to find a private spot to tell her the big news. Obviously the second-floor bathroom won't work. I have a feeling Erica will be spending a lot of time there today.

“Come with me,” I tell Sunny. I lead her down the hall, past the science classrooms, through the library, past the cafeteria, and into the band room.

“What's going on?” she asks. “You're acting crazy. And we're going to be late for English.”

“Just
shh
.”

We walk into the big closet where all the instruments are stored. I know there's no band or orchestra class next period, so I think we're safe. At least for a few minutes.

“Elias broke up with Erica,” I tell her.

“What? Is that why you seem so happy?” Sunny raises her eyebrows. “I can't believe it. You're meaner than I thought.”

“Well, obviously I'm sad for her, but do you know what she said?”

Sunny shakes her head.

“She said we can't have dates at the Masquerade now. She can't be the loser without the date. So it's for the best. Now no one has to suffer.”

“Oh no.” Sunny holds her head. “I think this is a bigger mess than we realized.”

“What do you mean?”

She lets out a huge sigh.

“Okay, so I was telling my parents about the whole no-dates thing over dinner the other night, because you know how they're always saying we're growing up too fast and we should just focus on our studies and stuff?”

“Yeah.”

“So I thought they'd be excited that there's a chance we may all go as friends and just hang out, and it wouldn't be a big deal. I told them how you don't want anyone to feel bad. You know how they're obsessed with kindness?” She laughs a little. “But Yamir was there too, and he was pretty quiet, texting someone under the table, the way he normally does.” She pauses to roll her eyes. “But maybe he was listening? And he knew it was your idea. And I told them how Erica was basically vetoing it because of Elias.”

She stares at me. I'm finally getting the connection here. Or maybe I'm not. Maybe I'm jumping to conclusions because I want Yamir to be thinking about me. It seems like my brain always finds a way to do that.

“Do you think Elias even liked Erica?” I ask her.

“No idea. I mean, did they ever really hang out? It seems like Erica is all talk.”

“There's only one person who would know.” I pause. “I mean, one person we'd be able to get the information from.”

Sunny sighs. “I'll see what I can do.”

We leave the instrument closet and head to English.

Erica is brokenhearted, yet this is the happiest I've been in days. Either that makes me a totally evil person or it means I see the silver lining in all bad situations.

Or maybe it's both.

Lucy's tip for surviving eighth grade:

Be happy for other people's happiness.

“So? Anything?” I ask
Sunny over the phone.

“Nope. He was, like, ‘Why would I care about your dumb dance?' and then he walked away.”

I huff. “Well, that's rude.”

“Yeah. But in the end, who cares? We got what we wanted. Well, what you wanted.”

“How did the AGE girls seem at lunch?” I ask. I was finishing math homework at the time. But my mind was all over the place with this Elias thing and the whole Travis situation, so I wasn't sure I was getting anything right.

“They were thrilled. Like, beyond. They're all into their costumes again, and the makeup. And they feel like they can ask anyone to dance, since no one's going to be paired off. Honestly, Luce, you totally made their year.”

“Good. That's all I care about.” That's a little bit of a lie,
since I also care about Yamir. Hopelessly, pathetically, insanely care about Yamir. But Sunny knows that. I don't need to hit her over the head with it.

“Listen, I gotta go finish the science lab. But what about Travis?” Sunny asks.

“My life is kind of made, since there aren't any dates anyway. Do I even need to break up with him, or can I just let the whole thing evaporate?”

Sunny laughs. “Good use of science in this conversation! But I don't know. Maybe just end it, so you're not stressing about it anymore? Enough is enough.”

“I think you're right.”

“Oh! I totally forgot to tell you!” Sunny says, right before I'm about to hang up.

“What? What?”

“Okay, so remember how you were obsessed with those old medicine bottles in the basement of the pharmacy?” she asks. “So, Evan went to this crafts fair in the Berkshires last weekend when he was visiting his grandma, and he was telling me all about this cool thing where people, like, put questions in medicine bottles, and other people put in pieces of advice or something.”

“Huh?”

“Call Evan. He'll be able to explain it,” she says. “I think
it would be a cool addition to Eighth-Grade Masquerade.”

“Thanks, I'll ask Evan.”

I leave Evan a voice mail, but he doesn't call back. I really have no idea what Sunny's talking about, but I figure I'll find out soon enough.

I spend the rest of the night figuring out how to tell Travis. Obviously a text is too impersonal and mean. Maybe an e-mail? A phone call is probably better. Or I guess in person. Maybe I just need to tell him to meet me by my locker before first period, and we'll walk somewhere and I'll tell him. That's probably the simplest way to do it.