Read Online Alice Alone by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor - Free Book Online
Authors: Phyllis Reynolds Naylor
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molded onto my face as though set in concrete.
“Hey, Al! Great party!” Mark called.
Some of the girls turned then, Penny included.
“Yeah, we had a great time!” said Jill.
“Lester’s so funny! ” said Penny. “Was he wearing any of the shorts we gave him?” Karen asked.
I managed a laugh. “I don’t keep track of his underwear,” I said.
The sophomores, juniors, and seniors cast us curious glances, and Elizabeth giggled. Penny and Jill and Karen laughed, too. Then it was like we were all friends again, and Penny pulled me downon the seat next to her to see the little rosebud tattoo she got on her wrist, nonpermanent, of course, and Elizabeth squeezed in beside us.
“I’ve got this friend who has a tattoo on her butt,” said Karen. “Permanent! She’ll never get it off!”
“What kind is it?” Elizabeth wanted to know.
“Popeye! Can you imagine?”
“Can you imagine lying naked while a man tattoos you?” asked Elizabeth.
“Hey, that would be the best part!” said Penny, and we laughed some more. A senior in front of us glanced around with a bemused expression, and that set us off again.
“Hey, Alice, did you find the picture Karen took?” asked Jill.
I didn’t miss a beat. “Yeah, Patrick told me about it. The artificial kiss,” I said, and couldn’t believe how natural I sounded. How comfortable and confident and easy.
“We were just acting up,” Penny said. “I always get nutty around friends.”
How did I know I wouldn’t like this girl? I thought. How did I know she might not become one of my best friends? I felt one hundred percent better by the time we got to school. Two hundred percent better when Patrick came up behind me as we were getting off and slipped his hands around my waist, kissing me on the side of myneck. I nuzzled him in return. Everything was back to normal. I felt loved and secure.
The drama club met for the first time after school. Mostly we just sat around talking, the drama coach, Mr. Ellis, outlining his plans for the spring production, telling us some of the plays he was considering, as though we had a vote in the matter.
Pamela was the only person there I knew. She fit right in with that blue streak in her hair, because a lot of the kids wore black, with black makeup and purple lips and hair. But when one of the purple-lipped girls asked a question, she sounded intelligent. Even nice. Maybe my world was broadening, I thought. Maybe I could learn to get along with girls I was jealous of, and people who looked and dressed like they lived on another planet.
“Just so I can get some idea of what we have here to work with, how many of you are interested in acting, and how many are here for stage crew?” Mr. Ellis asked. “Let’s see a show of hands for actors.”
Most of the kids, Pamela included, wanted to act.
“When it’s time to do casting, we have to open it to the whole school, of course, so there are no guarantees,” Mr. Ellis said, “but I’ve found that the bulk of the major roles each year go to membersof the drama club. Now, how about stage crew— set design, costumes, props, lighting—that kind of thing. Everyone else here for that?”
The rest of us raised our hands. There was only one other girl besides myself, I discovered, who wanted to be part of the crew. She was short and squat, dressed in overalls. Her hair was light brown—modified punk—and she had huge blue eyes. We gave each other sympathetic smiles when we realized all the rest of the crew were guys.
“Anyone here for something other than acting or stage crew?” Mr. Ellis asked, smiling. “Simple curiosity, maybe?”
A guy sitting to one side, dressed completely in black and purple, raised his hand. “Director,” he joked, and we all laughed.
“Looks like we’ll be seeing a lot of each other,” the blue-eyed girl said when the session was over. “I’m Molly.”
“I’m Alice,” I said.
It felt good to be branching out—to feel myself stretch
“Hey, Al! Great party!” Mark called.
Some of the girls turned then, Penny included.
“Yeah, we had a great time!” said Jill.
“Lester’s so funny! ” said Penny. “Was he wearing any of the shorts we gave him?” Karen asked.
I managed a laugh. “I don’t keep track of his underwear,” I said.
The sophomores, juniors, and seniors cast us curious glances, and Elizabeth giggled. Penny and Jill and Karen laughed, too. Then it was like we were all friends again, and Penny pulled me downon the seat next to her to see the little rosebud tattoo she got on her wrist, nonpermanent, of course, and Elizabeth squeezed in beside us.
“I’ve got this friend who has a tattoo on her butt,” said Karen. “Permanent! She’ll never get it off!”
“What kind is it?” Elizabeth wanted to know.
“Popeye! Can you imagine?”
“Can you imagine lying naked while a man tattoos you?” asked Elizabeth.
“Hey, that would be the best part!” said Penny, and we laughed some more. A senior in front of us glanced around with a bemused expression, and that set us off again.
“Hey, Alice, did you find the picture Karen took?” asked Jill.
I didn’t miss a beat. “Yeah, Patrick told me about it. The artificial kiss,” I said, and couldn’t believe how natural I sounded. How comfortable and confident and easy.
“We were just acting up,” Penny said. “I always get nutty around friends.”
How did I know I wouldn’t like this girl? I thought. How did I know she might not become one of my best friends? I felt one hundred percent better by the time we got to school. Two hundred percent better when Patrick came up behind me as we were getting off and slipped his hands around my waist, kissing me on the side of myneck. I nuzzled him in return. Everything was back to normal. I felt loved and secure.
The drama club met for the first time after school. Mostly we just sat around talking, the drama coach, Mr. Ellis, outlining his plans for the spring production, telling us some of the plays he was considering, as though we had a vote in the matter.
Pamela was the only person there I knew. She fit right in with that blue streak in her hair, because a lot of the kids wore black, with black makeup and purple lips and hair. But when one of the purple-lipped girls asked a question, she sounded intelligent. Even nice. Maybe my world was broadening, I thought. Maybe I could learn to get along with girls I was jealous of, and people who looked and dressed like they lived on another planet.
“Just so I can get some idea of what we have here to work with, how many of you are interested in acting, and how many are here for stage crew?” Mr. Ellis asked. “Let’s see a show of hands for actors.”
Most of the kids, Pamela included, wanted to act.
“When it’s time to do casting, we have to open it to the whole school, of course, so there are no guarantees,” Mr. Ellis said, “but I’ve found that the bulk of the major roles each year go to membersof the drama club. Now, how about stage crew— set design, costumes, props, lighting—that kind of thing. Everyone else here for that?”
The rest of us raised our hands. There was only one other girl besides myself, I discovered, who wanted to be part of the crew. She was short and squat, dressed in overalls. Her hair was light brown—modified punk—and she had huge blue eyes. We gave each other sympathetic smiles when we realized all the rest of the crew were guys.
“Anyone here for something other than acting or stage crew?” Mr. Ellis asked, smiling. “Simple curiosity, maybe?”
A guy sitting to one side, dressed completely in black and purple, raised his hand. “Director,” he joked, and we all laughed.
“Looks like we’ll be seeing a lot of each other,” the blue-eyed girl said when the session was over. “I’m Molly.”
“I’m Alice,” I said.
It felt good to be branching out—to feel myself stretch
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