Destiny was giving out snacks. Today it was cheese sticks.
She tried not to look at anyone.
She knew what everybody thought.
They thought that Destiny Washington wasn’t an excellent thinker.
She wasn’t a thinker at all!
After snack, Gina said, “Come on. Let’s go look at the bus.”
Lots of grown-ups were there. Destiny’s mother, Mitchell’s father. Mr. Oakley. And Jake, of course.
Yolanda was inside Bus Thirteen. She hadn’t stopped for a snack.
She was painting the windows.
She’d drawn a picture of Beebe and Sumiko. They were jumping rope.
There was another one of Mitchell and Charlie playing ball with Ramón.
There was one of Peter Petway. He was working on the Zigzag News—Read All About It.
There was a picture of Ms. Katz with her glasses. She was holding a gray cat.
Below, Yolanda had written LOVELY! in hot-pink letters.
It was Ms. Katz’s favorite word.
Destiny stepped around to see the front of the bus.
A picture took up the whole window.
Angel said, “It’s the best one.”
Gina gave Destiny a poke. “It’s you,” she said. “And Yolanda.”
Destiny swallowed. It really was the best painting.
Yolanda was on one side.
Destiny was on the other.
They were leaning toward each other.
And in the middle—
Destiny had to smile.
There was a flying chocolate pudding with a whipped cream hat.
And now, Yolanda was outside. She was writing something else under the picture.
“Don’t look yet,” she called out to Destiny.
Destiny turned around. She looked at the Zigzag School.
She looked at the sky and two small birds flying by.
She looked at the flag. It was blowing in the wind.
She wondered what Yolanda was writing.
Then Gina whispered something to Angel.
“What?” Destiny asked.
“Good thing I can read lips.” Beebe leaned forward. She was watching Gina and Angel talk. “Yes, it’s true about Destiny,” she said.
“Turn around now!” Yolanda called.
Destiny turned.
Destiny’s mom was leaning over Yolanda’s shoulder. She was smiling.
Destiny could see the letters under Yolanda’s picture.
Every letter was different.
One was purple.
One was orange.
One was green.
They were rainbow colors.
Destiny liked rainbows again.
She wasn’t such a hot reader. But she could read these words.
They said:
Destiny Washington really tries.
She’s going to get a super
Yolanda stopped. “I can’t make this rhyme.”
Destiny thought about it.
She made a million mistakes.
She wasn’t such a great reader.
But it was true. She really did try.
Destiny could see that Yolanda was still thinking of a rhyme.
Destiny thought, too.
But there was only one word she could think of.