by Denise Vega
Why is it that when u find out someone might like u, u start paying more attn 2 them?
Mr. F doesn’t think we should be prepared for what-ifs. Why not? Isn’t it good 2 be prepared? I don’t get that @ all.
Is Kara really jealous of me? Her “Hi, Erin” did seem kind of fake.
HOT— —METER
#1 Mark Sacks—the hair, the butt in shorts—need I say more?
#2 Mr. PerkinsOther cute guys will go here as I spot them…
THINGS THAT MAKE ME WONDER
Why do I wish I’d let Reede finish telling me about her Erin Makeover?
Why did I try dark eyeliner & more eyeshadow when I got home from school?
Why did I scrub it off the minute Mom called me down 2 help w/ dinner?
Why am I looking @ myself in practically every reflective surface I pass 2 c what Reede meant by “really cute”?
I’m starting 2 wonder if this athlete could really be hot. Is that ok?
CHAPTER 7
LOST AND FOUND
WHEN ROSIE AND I WALKED into the computer lab for our computers and technology elective the next day, Reede was talking to our teacher, Ms. Moreno.
“My dad’s a pretty big dude in the Internet world,” Reede was saying. “I might be able to get the class some free software and stuff.”
“That would be very nice,” Ms. Moreno said. “Maybe he’d like to speak to the class, too?”
Reede shifted. “He travels a lot but I can ask him.”
As I passed by, Reede smiled at me and I smiled back. But I felt a little twinge. I was the web expert here. Couldn’t Reede just stay in her popular zone and let me be here?
When the bell rang, we all settled down. “Before we get started with class,” Ms. Moreno said, “I wanted to mention the Intranet/Internet after-school club.” She explained how we were going to work on both the MBMS Intranet and the website. “There are only twenty-five spots available for the club. Those of you who were in it last year will have priority. If there are more people who want to join than there are spots, I’ll use a lottery system.”
She smiled at Reede. “I hope you’ll consider joining us. We could use someone with your experience.” I frowned. What experience? For all we knew, she didn’t know a plug-in from a light socket. What about my experience? What about all the great stuff I did last year? I knew more than anyone about web design, even most of the eighth graders. What about that?
“Erin was one of the leaders in the club last year,” Ms. Moreno said, as if reading my mind. “If you want to know everything there is to know about it, ask her.”
“And everything there is to know about Erin herself,” Serena said, laughing. “Whether you want to or not.”
A few people chuckled and I laughed, too, before giving Serena a look. I didn’t really want Reede to know about the YOHE.
“Can we have video clips on the website?” Steve asked.
“We’ll see,” Ms. Moreno said. “We’ll need to concentrate on getting the basic structure and pages up first.” She walked around to the side of her desk. “I’ll have sign-up sheets for the club posted outside the lab next Wednesday. Now, let’s talk about what we’re planning to cover in this elective.”
Even though Reede was honing in a little on my turf, I couldn’t help feeling a ripple of excitement as I thought about I-Club and everything I wanted to do this year.
“The website’s gonna rock,” Tyler said to me after class. “See you at the Y on Saturday.”
I smiled. Yes, the website would definitely rock. And Tyler had definitely improved his basketball skills since last year. Saturday would be a fun time.
That night I was doing the dishes. As I rinsed a pot, Chris dropped something on the counter next to me.
“I think this is yours,” he said.
I looked down. It was my PEK (Period Emergency Kit)! My mom had given it to me in fifth grade. It was a small black cosmetic bag with three appliqués she had stitched on it—a basketball, a soccer ball, and a cute little computer mouse. Inside were two sizes of pads, two tampons, a tiny notebook and pencil in case I wanted to “record the event for posterity,” and an IOU for chocolate.
“What does chocolate have to do with having your period?” I had asked her.
“Nothing,” she had said. “And everything. Just something to enjoy when you take this step in your life.”
“I found it when I was cleaning out my car,” Chris said, bringing me back to the kitchen.
“Since when do you clean your car?” I asked suspiciously.
He laughed. “Since Bethany said she won’t ride in the ‘trashmobile’ anymore.”
“Thanks.” Stuffing the bag into the top of my shorts, I turned back to the sink. Chris started putting things back into the refrigerator.
“What do you keep in there, a lock of Cute Boy’s hair?” He thought he was so funny. Not only had the entire school read my totally secret private blog but it had also made the rounds of the high school, courtesy of Serena, who’d given a copy to her older sister.
“Very funny,” I said, turning to place a plate in the dishwasher. Chris snatched the PEK from my waist. “Hey!” I said. “Give that back!”
He held it above his head. “Must be something pretty special in here.” He grinned and shook it in front of my face before holding it up high again.
I paused in mid-reach. “Yeah,” I said, dropping my hands. “It is special. In fact, it’s perfectly fine if you open it up and look inside.” I smiled.
He eyed me suspiciously. “So all of a sudden it’s okay for me to look?” He held the bag at eye level and frowned. Then the light dawned. “Yikes.” He tossed the bag toward me and wiped his hands on his pants.
“It’s not contaminated, you dork.” I unzipped the bag and held out a tampon. “See, it’s wrapped in hermetically sealed plastic. But even if it wasn’t, it’s just a bunch of cotton.” I held it out to him. “You afraid of a little cotton?”
He stepped around the island so the counter separated us.
I grinned. “Catch!” I tossed the tampon at him. He jumped back as if it was on fire.
I busted out laughing.
“What’s the joke?” My dad stood in the doorway, eyebrows raised.
“Look out, Dad,” I said, taking a protective stance. “Dangerous tampon inches away.”
“Oh, for heaven’s sake.” Dad leaned over and picked it up, holding it out to me. “Now, Erin, you know you aren’t supposed to scare your brother with feminine hygiene products.”
“Sorry,” I said, wiping off the tampon before tucking it back in the bag. “It won’t happen again.”
Chris shook his head. “This is the kind of thing that keeps brothers from chauffeuring their sisters to the mall or the library,” he said before lumbering down the hall.
Dad looked at me, eyebrows raised. “Does this mean…?”
I shook my head. “Not yet. Just making sure I’m prepared.”
“Good. Well, I’m sure I’ll find out when it happens.”
“You’ll be the sixth, seventh, or eighth one to know,” I said.
He smiled. “At least I’m in the top ten.” Squeezing my shoulder, he continued on his way.
Friday, August 22
THINGS THAT MAKE ME WONDER
Why haven’t I had my period yet? I know my mom was 14 when she started but maybe something’s wrong w/ me.
Now that I’ve got the PEK back, I feel like IT may come anytime. I know that makes no sense but that’s how I feel.
HOT— —METER
#1 Mark Sacks—the hair, the butt in shorts—need I say more?
#2 Mr. PerkinsOther cute guys will go here as I spot them…
JOURNEY OF THE PEK
9:00 a.m. PEK in gym bag—I might have IT while I’m @ the Y w/ Mark & Tyler tomorrow.
9:01 a.m. Out of bag—might fall out & they would c it.
9:05 a.m. In bag—IT could happen & I want 2 be prepared.
9:06 a.m. Out of bag�
�I’ll just bring money.
9:07 a.m. In bag—what if they only have tampons, no pads? I don’t think I could put a tampon in, even tho Mom explained it… freaks me out. & what if the machine is broken?
9:08 a.m. Out of bag—knowing it’s in there will distract me & I’ll miss my shots.
9:09 a.m. In bag, zipped in a secret inside pocket that I forgot about… stupid not 2 bring it. I’m sure Reede has had hers & she wouldn’t think twice about tossing supplies in2 her bag, not caring who saw them.
Geez. When did something like going 2 the Y 2 shoot hoops become so complicated?
CHAPTER 8
FOULING OUT
THE NEXT MORNING I SHOWED up at the Y with Rosie. Tyler and Mark were already there, shooting baskets. We warmed up a little with Around the World, then played a few games of two-on-two—first boys against girls, then Tyler and me against Mark and Rosie, and finally we switched again, with Mark and me against Tyler and Rosie.
Mark and I won the first game pretty easily. We took a break after that so Rosie and I could get some water. As I started back on the court, Mark froze in mid-shot.
“Hey,” he said. “What are you doing here?”
Kara stood at the door with Cindy, one of her friends. “Tyler invited us.”
“You’re just in time to watch us cream them,” Tyler said. “Unless you want to play? You could be on my team.”
Kara hesitated, then looked at Cindy, who shook her head. “We’ll just watch.” They sat down next to our duffel bags.
“Hey, guys.” I waved to them as I took my position in front of Rosie to defend the basket. I suddenly felt nervous around the girl who might be jealous of me. Mark seemed uncomfortable, too. He missed an easy lay-up and later passed the ball to Rosie instead of me.
“In case you didn’t realize,” I said, punching him in the arm as he ran by, “Rosie’s on the other team.”
“Sorry,” he muttered, not returning the punch like he usually did.
When I made a sweet swish from the right side, he seemed to loosen up, giving me a high five, before positioning himself in front of Tyler.
The game ended fifteen minutes later, with Tyler and Rosie beating us by six.
“You should come more often,” Tyler said to Kara as the girls joined us on the court. “You’re good luck.”
Kara smiled but her eyes were on Mark. She started to put her arm around his waist.
“I’m all sweaty,” he said, pulling away.
“I don’t mind.” She held on, shifting so she stood between Mark and me. “Cindy and I were going to grab a sandwich at Subway. Want to come?”
“All of us?” Tyler asked.
Kara glanced at me, then back at Tyler. “Sure.”
“I only have a dollar,” I said.
“I’ll pay for you,” Mark said. Kara frowned but he didn’t seem to notice.
“I’ve got you,” Rosie said. “I did a bunch of babysitting last week so I’m loaded.”
“I’ll pay you back.” I walked over to pick up my duffel bag. I wanted to make sure Kara knew I wasn’t interested in Mark. See? I’m just hanging out with Rosie and Tyler. I won’t take Mark’s money and I don’t need to stand right next to him.
At Subway, there wasn’t a big enough booth for all of us so Rosie and I sat in one booth while Kara, Mark, Tyler, and Cindy sat in the one next to us. I even sat on the side farthest away from them. There was no way she could think I liked Mark after all that effort.
When we were finished, Kara, Cindy, and Rosie got picked up first. Kara squeezed Mark’s arm. “Call me,” she said. She glanced at me before hurrying to the car.
The rest of us sat on the brick wall outside the Y, waiting for our rides.
“So that was cool that Kara and Cindy came,” Tyler said.
“Yeah,” Mark said. But he didn’t sound like he thought it was very cool.
Tyler tossed a pinecone into the street. “Why haven’t you invited her before?”
“I have,” Mark said, picking up three pinecones. “Every time—except for today because she always says no and I decided to stop asking.” Mark tossed one cone toward the V in a nearby tree. It hit the trunk and dropped to the ground.
“I guess she changed her mind,” Tyler said.
We threw pinecones at the tree until our parents came to pick us up.
I made eight out of ten through the V.
Mark only made two.
Our whole family went over to Mr. and Mrs. F’s house for dinner that night and afterward we set up Family Cranium, a game Mrs. F had bought to play with the grandkids when they came to visit. It was me, Mr. F, and my mom against my dad, Mrs. F, and Chris. At one point Mr. F had to hum a song and my mom and I were supposed to guess it.
“Is that supposed to be a song we know?” I asked him. “It sounds like the garbage disposal.”
Everyone cracked up and Mr. F gave me a mock glare. “I was going for vacuum cleaner.”
That made us laugh all over again.
We ended up losing the game by just a few spaces on the board but we had a lot of fun.
“You all go out on the back patio and I’ll bring the dessert,” Mrs. F said, shooing us toward the door. My parents sat down with Chris at the table, but Mr. F wanted to show me his vegetable garden.
“Look at those tomatoes, Erin,” he said, pointing to a fat red one that seemed to groan under its own weight, nearly touching the ground. He proceeded to give me the entire tour before pulling a few choice tomatoes and green peppers off for us to take home. I lifted them up to my face and breathed in deeply, enjoying the rich dirt smell mixed with green pepper.
“How are things with Reede and the gang?” Mr. F asked, pinching off some dead leaves from the plants.
“Pretty good,” I said. “I guess Reede’s this big computer expert and Ms. Moreno thinks she’ll add a lot to the website.”
“What do you think?”
I shrugged. “She was kind of bragging about stuff but I guess if she has good ideas, we should use them.”
Mr. F continued his plucking, his eyes on the dead leaves. “I think it’s good that you have an open mind about her, Erin.”
I smiled. “I don’t know how open it is, but I’m trying.” I kneeled next to him and picked a dead leaf off a tomato plant. “It’s kind of hard.”
Mr. F dropped another dead leaf on the pile between us, nodding. “Even with everything that happened last year, you were still the go-to girl for the Intranet Club. It’s hard to think that someone who’s just shown up, who hasn’t been around and worked hard to get there, might know more or do more than you.”
“Exactly,” I said, marveling once again at Mr. F’s ability to get it. I glanced over at my family, who was helping Mrs. F set out plates for dessert. “Mr. F?”
“Um hm?”
“Why do you think it’s easier to talk to some people than to other people?”
Mr. F leaned back, rubbing his nose with the back of his hand, pieces of dirt dropping from his fingers. “Well, now, that’s a good question. What do you think?”
“I think some people understand better than other people.”
Mr. F nodded. “Could be. Could also be that we don’t give people a chance.”
“What if they’ve used up all their chances?”
Mr. F looked at me, a slight smile on his face. “I sure hope there aren’t a limited amount of chances when it comes to people we love.”
“The whipped cream is melting, you two!” Mrs. F shouted from the patio. “Come and get it.”
“How about some strawberry shortcake?” Mr. F asked, groaning as he pushed himself up and onto his feet.
“As long as you’re not humming it,” I said.
“For you, I’ll remain silent.” Mr. F put his arm around my shoulder and squeezed. I wrapped my arm around his waist and squeezed back.
Saturday, August 23
RANDOM THOUGHTS
Not sure what’s up w/ Mark & Kara.
I fr
eaked over bringing the PEK 4 nothing—no period. Not even a hint of a cramp.
We had a lot of fun @ Mr. F’s house. Sometimes I wish he was my grandfather. My dad’s parents are both gone & my mom’s parents live in Idaho. I love them but we only see them sometimes @ Christmas or in the summer. They do a lot of traveling so I’ve never been close 2 them.
HOT— —METER
#1 Mark Sacks—the hair, the butt in shorts—need I say more?
#2 Mr. PerkinsOther cute guys will go here as I spot them…
COOL HAPPENIN’
Jilly’s having an “unparty” on Sept 6! Just some people hanging out… Bus Boy, me, a friend of BB’s named Blake, & Dylan & Lauren from J’s track last year. I remember Dylan was cute. I wonder what Blake looks like. Maybe I can add them 2 the Hot-o-Meter. I’m kinda nervous but more excited 2 c what happens. I don’t need RH 4 a makeover—I can do this myself (and consult w/ Jilly’s fashion queen sis, Becca).
CHAPTER 9
LIFE OF THE UNPARTY
WHEN I ARRIVED AT JILLY’S the Saturday of the unparty, she was vacuuming the carpet in the basement. She waved when she saw me, then did a double-take and turned off the vacuum.
“Wow, you look great!” she said. “I love that top. Where did you get it?”
“My dad gave it to me last year but I never wore it,” I said, looking down at the white button-down blouse with just a hint of lace down the front, the short sleeves tied up on either side. I had unbuttoned the top two buttons and added a string of fake pearls and matching earrings. I’d also worn more eyeliner, per Becca’s suggestion a few days ago. I wasn’t sure I had gotten to hot… but I thought I was pretty warm. “You don’t think it’s too girlie for me?”
Jilly shook her head. “It really flatters your shape. Blake’s going to go wild for you.”
I grinned. Maybe I’d go wild for him, too.
Bus Boy and Blake arrived first, just after five. Bus Boy made polite conversation with Jilly’s parents and then introduced Blake to all of us. He was definitely someone I could go wild for with his streaked blond hair, blue eyes, and an earring. He looked like a California surfer without the surf (I found out later he snowboarded—the mountain equivalent of surfing). He had a few zits on his chin but who didn’t? (Well, actually I didn’t at the moment, which was pretty sweet). Even with the zits, Blake was definitely Hot-o-Meter material.
