thinking. And
that the girl sitting behind him –
what’s her name, Kim, with the
giant breasts and the orange Esprit
bag – obviously had a crush on
him.
Park
That night, Park made a tape with
the Joy Division song on it, over
and over again.
He emptied all his handheld
video games and Josh’s remote-
control cars, and called his
grandma to tell her that all he
wanted for his birthday in
November was double-A batteries.
CHAPTER 14
Eleanor
‘I know she doesn’t think I’m
going to jump over that thing,’
DeNice said.
DeNice and the other girl, the
big girl, Beebi, talked to Eleanor
now in gym. (Because being
assaulted with maxi pads is a great
way to win friends and influence
people.) Today in class, their gym
teacher, Mrs Burt, had shown
them how to swing over a
thousand-year-old
gymnastics
horse. She said that next time
everybody had to try.
‘She has got another thing
coming,’ DeNice said after class,
in the locker room. ‘Do I look like
Mary Lou Retton?’
Beebi giggled. ‘Better tell her
you didn’t eat your Wheaties.’
Actually,
Eleanor
thought,
DeNice did kind of look like a
gymnast. With her little-girl bangs
and braids. She looked way too
young to be in high school, and
her clothes just made it worse.
Puffed-sleeve
shirts,
overalls,
matching ponytail balls … She
wore her gymsuit baggy, like a
romper.
Eleanor wasn’t scared of the
horse, but she didn’t want to have
to run down the mats with the
whole class watching her. She
didn’t want to run, period. It made
her breasts feel like they were
going to detach from her body.
‘I’m going to tell Mrs Burt that
my mom doesn’t want me to do
anything that might rupture my
hymen,’
Eleanor
said.
‘For
religious reasons.’
‘For real?’ Beebi asked.
‘No,’ Eleanor said, giggling.
‘Well. Actually …’
‘You’re nasty,’ DeNice said,
hitching up her overalls.
Eleanor put her T-shirt on
over her head then wriggled out of
her gymsuit, using the shirt as
cover.
‘Are you coming?’ DeNice
asked.
‘Well, I’m probably not going
to start skipping class now just
because of gymnastics,’ Eleanor
said, hopping to pull up her jeans.
‘No, are you coming to
lunch?’
‘Oh,’ Eleanor said, looking up.
They were waiting for her at the
end of the lockers. ‘Yeah.’
‘Then
hurry
up,
Miss
Jackson.’
She sat with DeNice and Beebi
at their usual table by the
windows. During passing period,
Eleanor saw Park walk by.
Park
‘Why can’t you get your driver’s
license by homecoming?’ Cal
asked.
Mr Stessman had them in
small groups. They were supposed
to be comparing Juliet to Ophelia.
‘Because I can’t bend time and
space,’ Park said. Eleanor was
sitting across the room by the
windows. She was paired up with
a guy named Eric, a basketball
player. He was talking, and
Eleanor was frowning at him.
‘If you had your car,’ Cal said,
‘we could ask Kim.’
‘You can ask Kim,’ Park said.
Eric was one of those tall guys
who always walked with his
shoulders about a foot behind his
hips. Constantly doing the limbo.
Like he was afraid to hit his head
on every door jamb.
‘She wants to go with a
group,’ Cal said. ‘Plus I think she
likes you.’
‘What? I don’t want to go to
homecoming with Kim. I don’t
even like her. I mean, you know
… You like her.’
‘I know. That’s why the plan
works. We all go to homecoming
together. She figures out you
don’t like her, she’s miserable,
and guess who’s standing right
there, asking her to slow dance?’
‘I don’t want to make Kim
miserable.’
‘It’s her or me, man.’
Eric said something else, and
Eleanor frowned again. Then she
looked over at Park – and stopped
frowning. Park smiled.
‘One minute,’ Mr Stessman
said.
‘Crap,’ Cal said. ‘What have
we got … Ophelia was bonkers,
right? And Juliet was what,
that the girl sitting behind him –
what’s her name, Kim, with the
giant breasts and the orange Esprit
bag – obviously had a crush on
him.
Park
That night, Park made a tape with
the Joy Division song on it, over
and over again.
He emptied all his handheld
video games and Josh’s remote-
control cars, and called his
grandma to tell her that all he
wanted for his birthday in
November was double-A batteries.
CHAPTER 14
Eleanor
‘I know she doesn’t think I’m
going to jump over that thing,’
DeNice said.
DeNice and the other girl, the
big girl, Beebi, talked to Eleanor
now in gym. (Because being
assaulted with maxi pads is a great
way to win friends and influence
people.) Today in class, their gym
teacher, Mrs Burt, had shown
them how to swing over a
thousand-year-old
gymnastics
horse. She said that next time
everybody had to try.
‘She has got another thing
coming,’ DeNice said after class,
in the locker room. ‘Do I look like
Mary Lou Retton?’
Beebi giggled. ‘Better tell her
you didn’t eat your Wheaties.’
Actually,
Eleanor
thought,
DeNice did kind of look like a
gymnast. With her little-girl bangs
and braids. She looked way too
young to be in high school, and
her clothes just made it worse.
Puffed-sleeve
shirts,
overalls,
matching ponytail balls … She
wore her gymsuit baggy, like a
romper.
Eleanor wasn’t scared of the
horse, but she didn’t want to have
to run down the mats with the
whole class watching her. She
didn’t want to run, period. It made
her breasts feel like they were
going to detach from her body.
‘I’m going to tell Mrs Burt that
my mom doesn’t want me to do
anything that might rupture my
hymen,’
Eleanor
said.
‘For
religious reasons.’
‘For real?’ Beebi asked.
‘No,’ Eleanor said, giggling.
‘Well. Actually …’
‘You’re nasty,’ DeNice said,
hitching up her overalls.
Eleanor put her T-shirt on
over her head then wriggled out of
her gymsuit, using the shirt as
cover.
‘Are you coming?’ DeNice
asked.
‘Well, I’m probably not going
to start skipping class now just
because of gymnastics,’ Eleanor
said, hopping to pull up her jeans.
‘No, are you coming to
lunch?’
‘Oh,’ Eleanor said, looking up.
They were waiting for her at the
end of the lockers. ‘Yeah.’
‘Then
hurry
up,
Miss
Jackson.’
She sat with DeNice and Beebi
at their usual table by the
windows. During passing period,
Eleanor saw Park walk by.
Park
‘Why can’t you get your driver’s
license by homecoming?’ Cal
asked.
Mr Stessman had them in
small groups. They were supposed
to be comparing Juliet to Ophelia.
‘Because I can’t bend time and
space,’ Park said. Eleanor was
sitting across the room by the
windows. She was paired up with
a guy named Eric, a basketball
player. He was talking, and
Eleanor was frowning at him.
‘If you had your car,’ Cal said,
‘we could ask Kim.’
‘You can ask Kim,’ Park said.
Eric was one of those tall guys
who always walked with his
shoulders about a foot behind his
hips. Constantly doing the limbo.
Like he was afraid to hit his head
on every door jamb.
‘She wants to go with a
group,’ Cal said. ‘Plus I think she
likes you.’
‘What? I don’t want to go to
homecoming with Kim. I don’t
even like her. I mean, you know
… You like her.’
‘I know. That’s why the plan
works. We all go to homecoming
together. She figures out you
don’t like her, she’s miserable,
and guess who’s standing right
there, asking her to slow dance?’
‘I don’t want to make Kim
miserable.’
‘It’s her or me, man.’
Eric said something else, and
Eleanor frowned again. Then she
looked over at Park – and stopped
frowning. Park smiled.
‘One minute,’ Mr Stessman
said.
‘Crap,’ Cal said. ‘What have
we got … Ophelia was bonkers,
right? And Juliet was what,
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