embarrassing stains that she could see.No sticky notes with weird messages attached.
The booing grew loud enough for her to hear, but not loud enough to attract the teachersâ attention. She recognized a few faces. Football players. Boys on Avaâs team.
They kept booing.
And it was definitely meant for her !
Alex bolted toward Lindsey and Emily. Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted Ava across the large room, but Lindsey and Emily were closer. All she wanted was to sit with her friends and figure out what was going on.
âHi.â Alex fought to keep the strain out of her voice. She squeezed onto the bench alongside Emily and Rosa Navarro. Breathing deeply, she forced her body to relax and pulled her sandwich from her bag. Everything would be okay now.
âHi,â Emily said, the single word noticeably frosty.
âTraitor,â muttered Xander, who sat across from her and next to Corey and Lindsey.
âExcuse me?â Alex asked.
âThat was really harsh, Alex, what you did.â Xander crossed his arms defiantly across his chest.
âWhat I did?â Alexâs eyes darted nervouslyabout the table, landing on Corey. Coreyâs usually warm, playful smile had turned icy.
âYou canceled the scoreboard,â Lindsey explained.
âThat wasnât me. That was the student council,â Alex defended herself.
âBut arenât you on the student council?â Xander asked.
âYeah, arenât you our president ?â Rosa added, emphasizing her title and the blame that suddenly came with it.
âYes, butââ She explained the drama clubâs plight and repeated her promise to buy the scoreboard next year. âThe team can still play this year without a new scoreboard. A touchdown is a touchdown even if you have to scratch the score in the dirt.â
âWhat?â Xander cried. âYou want us to do that ?â
Corey echoed his outrage.
Immediately Alex realized her mistake. âI didnât mean it like that. All Iâm saying is that the scoreboard you have still works, and whether itâs new or old, it doesnât affect how you play or if you play. Without sets and costumes, thereâd be no musical.â
âThat makes no sense,â Corey scoffed.
âGirls shouldnât be allowed to make decisions like this,â Xander added.
âItâs not a girl thing. I would have chosen the scoreboard,â Rosa insisted, tearing into a bag of chips. She offered some to Emily and Lindsey.
âIt wasnât just me!â Alex repeated. She chewed her sandwich slowly. The turkey felt dry against her throat.
For a moment, no one said anything. Then Lindsey began comparing flavors at a new frozen yogurt place. Everyone chimed in, but only Emily bothered to ask Alex her favorite.
Suddenly she wasnât hungry. âIâm going to toss this,â she announced, rewrapping her sandwich. She headed across the room toward the one person who would always be on her side.
âAve, I donât get it,â Alex said, as she plopped down next to her twin.
âGet what?â Kylie leaned forward. She sat across from Ava.
âIâm guessing the football players and the cheerleaders arenât skipping down the yellow brick road after your big announcement?â Ava said.
âMore like theyâre about to drop a house on me!â
âSorry,â Kylie said, shaking her head. âThatâs rough.â
âAnd those guysââAlex raised her chin in the direction of the boysââwere booing me! Can you believe it?â
âI told you so.â Ava sighed.
Alex tilted her head. âWhatâs that mean?â
âIt means I feel bad, Al, that theyâre being mean, but you made the wrong choice,â Ava said. âI warned you it would be a big deal.â
Hot tears pricked the corners of Alexâs eyes, but she blinked them back. It hurt that Ava
The booing grew loud enough for her to hear, but not loud enough to attract the teachersâ attention. She recognized a few faces. Football players. Boys on Avaâs team.
They kept booing.
And it was definitely meant for her !
Alex bolted toward Lindsey and Emily. Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted Ava across the large room, but Lindsey and Emily were closer. All she wanted was to sit with her friends and figure out what was going on.
âHi.â Alex fought to keep the strain out of her voice. She squeezed onto the bench alongside Emily and Rosa Navarro. Breathing deeply, she forced her body to relax and pulled her sandwich from her bag. Everything would be okay now.
âHi,â Emily said, the single word noticeably frosty.
âTraitor,â muttered Xander, who sat across from her and next to Corey and Lindsey.
âExcuse me?â Alex asked.
âThat was really harsh, Alex, what you did.â Xander crossed his arms defiantly across his chest.
âWhat I did?â Alexâs eyes darted nervouslyabout the table, landing on Corey. Coreyâs usually warm, playful smile had turned icy.
âYou canceled the scoreboard,â Lindsey explained.
âThat wasnât me. That was the student council,â Alex defended herself.
âBut arenât you on the student council?â Xander asked.
âYeah, arenât you our president ?â Rosa added, emphasizing her title and the blame that suddenly came with it.
âYes, butââ She explained the drama clubâs plight and repeated her promise to buy the scoreboard next year. âThe team can still play this year without a new scoreboard. A touchdown is a touchdown even if you have to scratch the score in the dirt.â
âWhat?â Xander cried. âYou want us to do that ?â
Corey echoed his outrage.
Immediately Alex realized her mistake. âI didnât mean it like that. All Iâm saying is that the scoreboard you have still works, and whether itâs new or old, it doesnât affect how you play or if you play. Without sets and costumes, thereâd be no musical.â
âThat makes no sense,â Corey scoffed.
âGirls shouldnât be allowed to make decisions like this,â Xander added.
âItâs not a girl thing. I would have chosen the scoreboard,â Rosa insisted, tearing into a bag of chips. She offered some to Emily and Lindsey.
âIt wasnât just me!â Alex repeated. She chewed her sandwich slowly. The turkey felt dry against her throat.
For a moment, no one said anything. Then Lindsey began comparing flavors at a new frozen yogurt place. Everyone chimed in, but only Emily bothered to ask Alex her favorite.
Suddenly she wasnât hungry. âIâm going to toss this,â she announced, rewrapping her sandwich. She headed across the room toward the one person who would always be on her side.
âAve, I donât get it,â Alex said, as she plopped down next to her twin.
âGet what?â Kylie leaned forward. She sat across from Ava.
âIâm guessing the football players and the cheerleaders arenât skipping down the yellow brick road after your big announcement?â Ava said.
âMore like theyâre about to drop a house on me!â
âSorry,â Kylie said, shaking her head. âThatâs rough.â
âAnd those guysââAlex raised her chin in the direction of the boysââwere booing me! Can you believe it?â
âI told you so.â Ava sighed.
Alex tilted her head. âWhatâs that mean?â
âIt means I feel bad, Al, that theyâre being mean, but you made the wrong choice,â Ava said. âI warned you it would be a big deal.â
Hot tears pricked the corners of Alexâs eyes, but she blinked them back. It hurt that Ava
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