Plastic Polly Read Free Page A

vending machine. He hands me a soda, and then offers one to Kelsey. “Here you go, Madame PlanMaster.”
    â€œIt’s dented.” Kelsey turns the can to show Derek.
    â€œOh, yeah,” Derek says, looking vaguely surprised. “I guess I dropped it.”
    â€œLook what I found.” Kristy holds up an American River flyer advertising Groove It Up. “They hung it up outside of Chip’s. Can you believe that?”
    Groove It Up is a big deal in Maple Oaks, and a lot of the local businesses get into it, supporting one school or another. Chip’s, the diner across the street from Winston, is always firmly on our side.
    â€œGive me that.” Melinda snatches the flyer, wads it up, and tosses it behind her. It lands in Alyssa’s tomato soup, sending red liquid splashing onto Alyssa’s face—which sends half the Court into hysterics.
    â€œShe looks better that way.” Melinda gasps, laughing so hard she can’t catch her breath.
    Everyone goes back to cheering for Winston. No one notices that Kelsey and I aren’t laughing. Alyssa, meanwhile, wipes the soup off with a napkin, revealing a face that’s still tomato-colored. Then she hastily gathers her things. After she’s cleared her tray, she starts for the staircase leading to Winston’s lower level—the Dungeon, as it’s known around campus.
    â€œI want to go talk to her,” I whisper to Kelsey.
    â€œAbsolutely not. She made her choice.”
    I turn and stare at Kelsey. “I wasn’t asking for your permission.”
    I stand up and start after Alyssa. Behind me I hear Kelsey say, “All right, Polly. Fine. Wait for me.”
    I’m at the edge of the staircase, and Alyssa is down the stairs—heading into the Dungeon—when I call down to her, “Alyssa!”
    This is the part I will always replay in my mind:
    1. Alyssa turns to stare up at us.
    2. Next to me I hear Kelsey pop open her soda, and icy liquid sprays my shoulder as the soda spurts everywhere. Then I hear a dull thud as Kelsey drops the can.
    3. Alyssa grins, but her look quickly turns to panic and she mouths the word No!
    4. I turn just in time to see Kelsey trip over the can and go toppling down the stairs, her screams tumbling after her.
    5. When Kelsey lands, Alyssa is at her side.
    6. Alyssa looks up at me. Then, like a mirror image, we each bring a hand to our neck.
    Both of us reaching for a heart necklace that isn’t there anymore.

Chapter 3

    True Confession: Besides Kelsey, I never show my report card to the girls at the Court. I don’t want them to know I get straight As.
    T HIS IS THE STORY OF HOW I BECAME POPULAR AND LOST a best friend, all in the same week:
    On our first day of seventh grade, Alyssa and I sat together at a side table in the cafeteria, trying to calm down Kelsey, who was livid that some eighth grader named Amanda had dared to call her Squirt in the hallway.
    â€œIt’s not a big deal,” Alyssa said. “And who cares what she says, anyway?”
    â€œ I care, Miss High-and-Mighty,” Kelsey snapped. “And so should both of you. Do you know what kinds of decisions are made in the first weeks of middle school?Where you sit, who you hang out with? It defines your entire existence.”
    â€œOkay, now you’re just being overdramatic,” Alyssa said.
    â€œDon’t talk to me about being dramatic, Miss I’m-Saving-My-Voice-for-Choir-Tryouts-Tomorrow.” Kelsey stared pointedly at the scarf Alyssa had tied around her neck.
    I kept quiet, but I actually agreed with Kelsey. Right then in the cafeteria most people (except for Amanda) seemed pretty nice—spread out like pieces of a living puzzle, trying to figure out where they fit. But eventually, I knew, everyone would find their matching pieces and connect together, making up Winston Academy’s student body. After that, if you tried to switch groups or sit at a