When I Was the Greatest by Jason Reynolds Page B

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    â€œWhat you lookin’ at anyway?” I asked, taking the attention off my funk. “Oh, let me guess, Tasha.”
    I put a whine in my voice when I said Tasha’s name. Needles laughed.
    Noodles stood on his tippy-toes and stretched his neck as if it would help him see clearer.
    â€œYeah, man,” he said with an attitude. “She down there talking to some wack dude.”
    â€œHow you know he wack? You don’t even know that guy,” Needles said.
    â€œPlus, that’s pretty much what people do after church. Stand around and talk to each other,” I said, half-slick and half trying to make him feel better.
    â€œYeah, but not like she talking to him,” Noodles insisted.
    Needles sucked his teeth and went back to his yarn.
    At first I wasn’t going to look, just because I thought it was all so silly. But I couldn’t resist. There Tasha was, standing in front of a man who I was ninety-nine percent sure was the preacher. The only reason I wasn’t a hundred percent sure is because he didn’t have on no gold or diamonds. Had he had on gold or diamonds, I would have been certain. He did have on the white collar, though.
    â€œMan, you buggin’,” I said to Noodles. “That dude’s the preacher!”
    I snickered to myself.
    â€œYeah, whatever. He just better not try nothing with my girl or I’m gonna have to Hulk up on him.”
    Now I had to choke back my laughter. I looked over at Needles, who was sitting behind Noodles. He smirked and rolled his eyes. Even he thought Noodles was acting silly.
    After Tasha finished talking to the preacher, she started coming our way. I won’t lie. Tasha was hot. On fire. She was grown-woman fine. Dark skin, long legs, big eyes, good teeth (she used to have braces), a mean walk, and a battery pack in her back full of attitude. But because of the rest of her, the attitude was easy to overlook most of the time. Plus, whenever she was dealing with Noodles, the smart mouth came in handy. She would fire right back and put him in his place likeit was nothing. Tasha was like a flame, pretty to look at, but if you got too close, she’d burn you up.
    â€œHey, boys,” she said, looking directly at Needles and me. “Oh, hey, Noodles,” she grunted, and rolled her eyes around the world. It was clear she didn’t count him as one of the “boys.”
    I said wassup.
    Needles started, “Hey, Ta—”
    â€œTasha,” Noodles cut him off, his voice already on ten. “Who was that you was talking to?”
    â€œOh, Lord,” she said under her breath. “What you talking about?”
    â€œThat lame clown I saw you talking to down there. Who he? Y’all got a thing?”
    Tasha smiled and put one hand on her hip.
    â€œDo we got a thing? Oh, we got a thing, all right.” I knew she was just teasing him, but Noodles bit like a pitbull on raw meat.
    â€œOh yeah? I knew you was cheating on me! Tell him next Sunday, church will be extended a few hours for his funeral,” Noodles barked.
    â€œCheat on you?” Tasha bugged out her eyes like she couldn’t believe what she was hearing. “Cheat on you? I can’t cheat on someone I ain’t with! Fool, you crazy!”
    She twisted her mouth and squinted her eyes, making one funny, mean face. “Plus, that was my pastor, dummy. I ain’t got nothing going on with him but trying to figure out how to get to heaven, which is what you need to be worried abouttoo. You so busy chasing me. Better chase Jesus. Probably got a better shot!” Ouch. I was impressed. She really laid it on him with that one. It’s not like he could say he didn’t need Jesus or that he didn’t want to go to heaven. Noodles is a bad dude, but he ain’t that bad.
    Noodles piped down. He knew he had been beaten again.
    â€œWhat y’all doing out here anyway?” Tasha asked.
    â€œNot much,” I said,