Mrs. Davis didn’t say a word on the drive home except for “It was lovely to meet you, Leia. I hope you have a nice year at school.” Like she didn’t expect me to be around much. Or at least around her son much.
I nodded at her and stared at Trip for a minute, then ran out the door and up the stairs to our apartment. I was fumbling for my keys but just couldn’t dig them out of my backpack. What had DiDi done? What would school be like on Monday with frizzy-headed Mace leading the crowds against me? And would Trip still stand by me?
The door across the hall flew open and Kenneth stuck his head out.“Uh—oh, hi, GiGi.”
“It’s Leia, Kenneth,” I said, still fumbling with my keys.
“Fine, Kenneth.”
“Would you, uh, say hi to DiDi and—and tell her if she ever, uh, needs help around the place, I’m, uh, pretty handy. They have me fixing the lights over at the library.”
I dropped my keys in frustration. Great. The one time Kenneth decided to loosen up and yak, it was now.
“Hold on, I got it!” I heard DiDi call from inside. Two clicks and a clunk and the door opened. “I swear, girl, where do you keep your keys? It sounded like you were unpacking from a week’s vacation out there. Come on in. You’re just in time. I’m working on ideas for the Gala menu. Hi, Kenneth. Bye, Kenneth.” She pulled me in and shut the door.
When I walked in, it didn’t look like DiDi had been working on the Gala at all. Mama’s Cookbook was nowhere in sight, and she had that darn cooking show on again. With the Mystery Basket. I don’t even know why DiDi watches it. Like she’s going to make anything that’s not written in stone in Mama’s Cookbook.
DiDi strolled back to the sofa and plopped down. “Oh, by the way. Your teacher, Mr. McSomethin’?”
“McGuire.”
“That’s the one. He called and left a message about a meeting after school next week.”
“Fine.”
Then I just stood there, ticking like a stopwatch that might explode if someone didn’t get me what I needed in the next ninety seconds. You better make that ten seconds.
“What? Oh yeah. How was your evening? Cute boy, that Trip,” she said. “Cute, cute, cute.” She was smiling and smiling, because there’s nothing good-looking people love better than other good-looking people.
When I didn’t answer, DiDi shrugged. “Fine, girl, don’t tell me if you don’t want. Do you want to sit a few minutes and talk about the Gala and—what?”
“What did you do?” I said through shut teeth.
“What did I do when?”
“What did you do to Mace’s hair?”
“Oh! Did she call you up and tell you? What do you think?”
I began to shout. “No, she did not call me up and tell me—why? Because I am the only millionaire in this town without a cell phone—not to mention she hates me! Geez, DiDi, don’t you ever listen to a word I say? How many Chinese girls do you think there are in this school who hate me? I told you about her! The only reason she went to Jean’s was to pick on you! And now you’ve gone and ruined her hair, and her mom is going to get you fired, and she is going to make my life miserable—all because of you! Why can’t you be a normal person and play tennis? Why do you have to be a hairdresser?”
My chest was heaving. I couldn’t breathe. I don’t think I’ve ever shouted at DiDi like that in my life.
“What in the world are you—”
“What—what in heck are you talking about? What about food?”
“Why don’t we ever get Chinese takeout? Why do we have to eat these same stupid meals every day of the week? Stupid fake food trying to be something it’s not! Why is it everything we eat is trying to be something else? Why can’t one thing in my life be real?”
“You wait one minute, Double G—”
“I WANT TO BE CALLED LEIA!”
There was a second of silence.
DiDi’s eyes narrowed and her voice went low. “You better listen here, Little Miss Whatever Your Pants Are. Don’t you ever talk to me in that tone of voice. I don’t know what you think, but I do have a normal job. And what do you mean I’m getting fired? That girl, Mace, loved what I did! As a matter of fact, we spent about an hour just talking about it, and it was all her idea and I thought it was brilliant. Maybe if you spent a little time getting to know her instead of worrying about her hating you, you’d feel different.”
“You—you spent an hour with—?”
“And on top of that, G, I cook a homemade meal for you three times a day, every day, seven days a week, all year long. Enough said. Just—just go brush your teeth and go to bed.” She sat back down with her arms crossed. “I don’t think I can stand to look at you anymore tonight.”
I ran into my room, tears blinding me.
What had just happened? DiDi wasn’t fired. Mace was happy. But Trip and I had heard that phone conversation, and it did not sound like anyone was happy. And what was all this about DiDi spending an hour talking to Mace about hair? DiDi listened to what Mace wanted? DiDi never had that kind of time for me—but she did for Mace? I wished I were back in Trip’s room, talking to him and looking into his Wish Pie eyes.
Trip! I yanked the KOB out of my pocket. Wait till you get home to read.
I opened it.
The Truth is I feel like I can be more myself with you than with anyone. T
I held the note close to me, then carefully folded it back up and put it under my pillow. Who needed DiDi? I decided not to brush my teeth and just throw myself into bed to teach her a lesson. How dare she yell at me? I had never had a cavity in my life! Why was she telling me to brush my teeth? Maybe I’d just skip it tonight and get my first cavity, and she’d have to pay for it out of that precious million dollars that I was not even allowed to have a look at.
But after lying there for a minute, I got up and brushed them anyway. We’d had a lot of popcorn and sticky stuff at Trip’s house. And it only takes one night of plaque buildup to cause damage to your tooth enamel.