THE BELL RINGS.
Quinn and Kara are caught in the rushing river of bodies streaming into the halls. The air is ripe with the aroma of half-eaten lunches, woolly jackets, and sweaty sneakers. Lockers clang open and shut.
Quinn beams. Her green eyes twinkle. “Did you see that goal?”
“The ball grazed the side of my head!”
She pats Kara on the shoulder. “Great reflexes!”
“I don’t know why you insist on picking me first,” sighs Kara. “You could choose someone good like Tyler or Jackson.”
“I’ve told you a thousand times,” says Quinn. “You are good. You just need to stay focused on the game. Quit cloud-watching.”
“I wasn’t cloud-watching,” scoffs Kara. She raises her chin indignantly. “I was studying the atmosphere. I think it might snow tomorrow.”
Quinn rolls her eyes, though the idea of snow excites her. The slopes might open early this year. She can’t wait to hit the hills. Of course her parents have taken away her first month of skiing because of those two failed science tests.
She rips off her jacket. Her thumb zips over her lock and she opens the door. Her locker is pickled with junk. A math textbook, a crumpled piece of paper, and a banana fall out. She picks them up and shoves them back inside, using her jacket to keep more stuff from escaping. “What do we have this afternoon?”
Kara hangs her jacket on a hook. She checks herself in the pink-magnet-framed mirror on the inside of her locker door. She smooths her already impossibly smooth hair, then consults the timetable she’s attached below the mirror with three tulip-shaped magnets.
“Science. And then Spanish.” Her books are stacked in a neat pile on the top shelf. She withdraws two textbooks and her binder. “Our assignment’s due.”
The air catches in Quinn’s throat. She stares at Kara, her eyes saucer-wide.
“You did your Spanish assignment, right?” says Kara.
Quinn gulps. “I-I meant to … but…”
Kara’s shoulders drop. She tilts her head and exhales.
Quinn can feel the heat rising into her cheeks. Her mind races like a mouse in a maze. She yanks her binder out of her locker and rips out a blank piece of paper. “Quick!” she says. “Gimme yours.”
“What?” Kara takes a step back. “No way.”
“Come on,” pleads Quinn. “There’s no time. Give me your paper. I’ll change a few words. Señora Márquez will never know.”
Kara shakes her head. “Nuh-uh. I reminded you every day last week. I even told you I’d help. I’m not giving you my assignment. That’s not fair.”
Quinn can already picture Señora Márquez as she tells the teacher her assignment is not done. The woman’s face will sag with that drippy look of disappointment. She’ll shake her head slowly. Then walk away. Like Quinn is a lost cause.
Then Quinn sees her parents. Her mother, the dentist. Her father, the lawyer. They are not disappointed—they are angry. They don’t understand. Quinn must be brilliant. Just like they are. Just like Emma is. It’s genetic, right? The teachers have it all wrong. Quinn’s parents insist there is no learning disability. Quinn is just lazy. That’s all. She’s not trying hard enough. She should work harder. They’ve already taken away a whole month of skiing. Now they’ll take away the entire season. Quinn will have to spend Sundays with Aunt Deirdre and her stinky pet chinchillas, while the rest of the family hits the slopes.
A watery skin covers Quinn’s eyes. “Please,” she whispers.
Kara’s lips are sewn tight. She is frowning hard. Quinn can tell she doesn’t want to bail her out—not this time. But as they stare at each other Kara softens. She opens her binder and takes out her assignment.
The crowd is thinning. Most of the kids are in class. There’s no time to copy here. Quinn will take the paper to science class. She sits near the back anyway. No one will notice her copying. It will be okay.
Emma is skipping to her third-grade class. She stops in front of Quinn. “What are you guys doing?” she asks cheerfully.
Quinn snatches the paper from Kara. “Nothing.”
Kara glares at Quinn, then turns toward Emma. “Hey, Em.” She shuts her locker and heads toward science class.
Quinn tucks the assignment into her binder and hurries after Kara. She glances over her shoulder. She’s left Emma standing alone in the hallway.