Pink & Green is the New Black Read Free Page B

aren’t as scary as they would be alone.
    â€œI don’t even know what you see in him, honestly,” Sunny says as we finish our conversation outside the middle school faculty offices.
    â€œThat’s because he’s your brother,” I explain.
    â€œSo tell me what’s so great about him as a boyfriend. Tell me three things.”
    I hesitate for a second, wondering if this is something I can even put into words. And I especially don’t know if I can do it on the spot.
    â€œWell, he’s easy to talk to. I feel like he gets me. Like, sometimes he knows what I’m about to say before I even say it. And he’s funny; he always makes me laugh. And I never get bored of him. I’m always excited to see him.”
    â€œThat may have been more than three things.” Sunny squints. “I lost count. But good answers. Let’s continue this conversation later, when no one else is around.”
    I nod in agreement.
    The door to Mrs. Deleccio’s office is open a little, so we knock softly and walk in.
    â€œWelcome, ladies,” Mrs. Deleccio says. In all my time at Old Mill Middle School, I’ve never been in her office, and it feels special. She arranged some chairs in a circle and put out mini doughnuts and cups of water. This feels like the most official, grown-up Earth Club meeting we’ve ever had. Annabelle and Evan are already there. Our Greening the Cafeteria Committee is complete.
    â€œAny questions? Additions? Concerns?” Mrs. Deleccio asks. She’s wearing a wool sweater with embroidered pens,pencils, blackboards, and chalk on it. I’m pretty sure a student made it, since one sleeve is longer than the other and the collar droops. But she wears it anyway. That’s the kind of teacher she is.
    â€œWill they give us their decision tonight?” Evan asks.
    â€œMost likely,” Mrs. Deleccio says. “There are a few other proposals up before yours. One about the parking lot, another about temporary classrooms. Boring stuff.” She laughs. “And then you guys. You’re all going up together?”
    I nod. “We know the order. We decided that alphabetical by first name made sense. So Annabelle, Evan, me, Sunny.”
    â€œSounds great. I’ll be sitting there cheering you guys on, and available for any last-minute questions.”
    After the meeting, Annabelle goes to get help from her math teacher. She doesn’t really need help, but she does it anyway. Evan decides he’s going to shoot hoops with whoever is in the gym, so Sunny and I call her mom and decide to go back to her house for a little while before the meeting.
    â€œWhich dress do you want to borrow?” she asks.
    I think about it for a second. “Maybe that green sweater one you got on sale a few weeks ago. And can I borrow tights too?”
    â€œOf course.”
    As soon as I see Sunny’s mom’s car pulling into the schoolparking lot, my heart starts pounding. If Yamir is sitting in the front seat, I won’t know what to say. I wonder if he even realizes he’s been ignoring me. Sometimes boys are oblivious to that stuff. He could think that everything is perfectly fine, for all I know.
    But he’s not in the front seat. I don’t know if I’m relieved or disappointed. Sunny hops in front. I sit in back, staring out the window and telling myself that everything will be okay.
    I wonder if I cared about him this much when things were fine between us. Sometimes life is weird like that. You only obsess over something when it’s gone sour. Why don’t we ever get excited about the good things?
    â€œWhere’s Yamir?” Sunny asks, and I bet she’s doing that just for me. She doesn’t care where Yamir is. She probably wouldn’t even mind if he moved to India to live with their grandma.
    â€œSomething about studying with Anthony,” Mrs. Ramal says, sounding suspicious. “I guess we’ll find