Miyu's Wish Read Free Page B

she droned on about expectations, grading systems, and the like. Only one person, a girl named Mary Beth, seemed alive at all, her arm almost always in the air. This soon made her the target of some unflattering comments, but I couldn’t help but admire her enthusiasm.
    As the class came to a close, my name was paged over the school intercom; my aunt had left something for me at the front desk. I excused myself and hurried to the office where I retrieved a paper bag with a pink bra folded inside. I gave a sigh of relief as I reentered the hallway.
    Second period had just ended, and a flood of rampaging students caught me like a tidal wave. They didn’t even seem to know I was there. I began hopping up and down, their faces bobbing and pushing around me as my eyes scanned for a bathroom. Then something shoved me, and I was no longer hopping,
but capsizing
, the floor rising to meet my face. I cried out, my droning voice slow and laborious as the cool tile smacked into my chest. The floor slid beneath me, my breasts feeling like beaten dough, and I yelped in pain.
    My head swam, and stars danced everywhere as I tried to reorient myself; someone was taking my arm and turning mearound. I swept away a curtain of hair as my vision slowly cleared, finding myself peering up into the face of some guy. His eyes were wide, and he seemed to groan at me.
    My bosoms stung, and I gazed down at my blouse, eyeing a tuft of white tissue jutting out over the neckline. The terrible sound of laughter resounded around me as I suddenly grasped what had happened.
    “Hey, are you OK?” the boy said, now bending down in front of me. “I’m sorry about that.”
    “Man, Thad, you really took her out,” another voice roared from somewhere.
    My mind froze—the laughter was mortifying and, for just a flash, I had a strange sense of déjà vu.
    It was all too much, like a nightmare made real. I felt like running away. I felt like slapping and clawing and berating the stupid jerk in front of me. With tears in my eyes, I got up. Holding my bag to my chest, I walked away with as much dignity as I could muster. I didn’t give anyone, even “Thad,” a second glance.
    “Ha, she snubbed you cold, bro,” someone said. But I didn’t care.
    I hurried to the gym, found the locker room, and began to cry and cry.

Chapter Five
    “S o now everyone is going to think I’m ‘that kind of girl,’” I sniffled, blotting my eyes with my hair.
    Tamara held my pink, frilly bra before her face as if it were a dangerous animal. “So that’s why you were stuffing your chest? Because you forgot to put on your bra? How does anyone forget to put on her bra?”
    Marlene stroked my back and gave me a tissue. “It won’t be as bad as you think,” she comforted, giving me a sort of hug. “It’ll be forgotten soon enough, and we’ll help you set the record straight anyway.” She glared at a bunch of girls watching from the other end of the locker room. They quickly scattered.
    At Marlene’s behest, I followed her and Tamara outside to the gym floor. The coach seemed to be waiting patiently for our arrival; once we were all lined up, he began roll call. I peeked at the other girls in line and wondered what they thought of me.
    After roll, those who had brought their gym clothes were allowed to play volleyball or basketball. The rest of us were given a day reprieve and allowed to watch from the bleachers. As we watched Tamara send a volleyball soaring over the net, Marlene and I chatted about various things, from our interests and hobbies to our hopes for the future. Two other girls, Candace and Janet, eventually joined us, and we had a nice time getting to know each other.
    “I just can’t wait until high school, when life
really
starts,” Marlene said enthusiastically.
    “I’ll be happy just to survive this year,” I said with a sigh.
    As I spoke, a stray basketball bounced up to me. I handed it back to the hapless guy running after it, who grinned with