again.
Down the hall, I could see Trevor and his friends standing around in a circle. I heard the guard telling them to get out of the hallway and saw Trevor give the guard a mean look.
“You can get out of my hallway or you can leave,” the guard said.
“Let’s go play some pinball,” one of the boys said, and the others followed him down the hall to the game room. “C’mon, lefty,” he said, looking at Trevor. “Let’s see what you got with that one good hand.” Trevor smiled and his face looked almost normal—soft and happy.
Isn’t that kid in your class? Sean asked.
I nodded.
How come you didn’t go hang with him then?
I watched Trevor move down the hall with his friends. I don’t like him.
Beggars can’t be choosy, Sean said, smiling and tapping my head again.
I know, I said. That’s why I’m stuck with you!
And as we walked out into the snow, I lifted my head up to catch flakes on my tongue, feeling them melting in my mouth and, somehow, warming me.
11
Late in the afternoon, I was sitting with Sean on the couch, eating pretzels and cheese. We weren’t allowed to eat sugar when the weather was real bad because Mama said it made us too crazy with all the running around and jumping up and down we did. But Sean had picked up a Hershey bar on the way home and we’d split it and stuffed it into our mouths before we got on the elevator. I felt like I’d bounce off the ceiling and ricochet all over the apartment if the snow didn’t stop.
The weather guy had said this was a record—that it hadn’t snowed this much since way back in the fifties. I’d turned on the radio and the Jackson 5 were singing “ABC.” I was in love with Michael Jackson. He was one of the cutest boys on the planet as far as I knew. I got off the couch and started dancing to the song. Mama had gotten me a rainbow peasant skirt for Christmas and when I twirled in it, the colors seemed to spread light all over the room. Sean shook his head watching me. He signed, One of these days, I’m gonna teach you some rhythm. When the music was loud enough, Sean could feel the rhythm through the vibration. When he danced, you wouldn’t even know he was deaf. But he was too busy stuffing pretzels in his mouth and making fun of me to get up off the couch and move around.
The music was so loud, I didn’t even hear Grandma come in until she was standing right near me, telling me to turn it down. Sean jumped off the couch and hugged her. I nearly jumped into her arms.
“If you all don’t get off me and let me get my coat off, somebody’s gonna feel my Bible,” Grandma said. “I heard that music down the street!” But she was smiling as she turned the radio off.
Is it still real cold out? Sean signed. It was freezing earlier.
“He said, is it cold—”
“I know a little something,” Grandma said, cutting me off. She nodded at Sean. She always said she was too old to learn another language by the time Sean came along, but most times, when I tried to translate, she already knew what Sean was signing. And she had a way of signing back that only her and Sean understood most of the times—a kind of secret language that just about burned me up.
She bent down to kiss me and I took her face in my hands and kissed her nose. She laughed and pushed me away the way she always did. She only had two wrinkles—one running straight across her forehead and one small one just at the top of her nose between her eyes. She didn’t have any gray hair like other grandmothers but Mama said it was hidden underneath years and years of blue-black hair dye. I liked the color, though—the way the blue kind of caught you by surprise. I took her hand and pulled her over to the couch. Sean had the other hand.
“Now what’s all this fuss about this new one coming?” She was talking to both of us but looking at Sean.
“I’m with you,” I said. “Doesn’t make the least bit of sense.”
“What doesn’t make sense is both of you pulling
Down the hall, I could see Trevor and his friends standing around in a circle. I heard the guard telling them to get out of the hallway and saw Trevor give the guard a mean look.
“You can get out of my hallway or you can leave,” the guard said.
“Let’s go play some pinball,” one of the boys said, and the others followed him down the hall to the game room. “C’mon, lefty,” he said, looking at Trevor. “Let’s see what you got with that one good hand.” Trevor smiled and his face looked almost normal—soft and happy.
Isn’t that kid in your class? Sean asked.
I nodded.
How come you didn’t go hang with him then?
I watched Trevor move down the hall with his friends. I don’t like him.
Beggars can’t be choosy, Sean said, smiling and tapping my head again.
I know, I said. That’s why I’m stuck with you!
And as we walked out into the snow, I lifted my head up to catch flakes on my tongue, feeling them melting in my mouth and, somehow, warming me.
11
Late in the afternoon, I was sitting with Sean on the couch, eating pretzels and cheese. We weren’t allowed to eat sugar when the weather was real bad because Mama said it made us too crazy with all the running around and jumping up and down we did. But Sean had picked up a Hershey bar on the way home and we’d split it and stuffed it into our mouths before we got on the elevator. I felt like I’d bounce off the ceiling and ricochet all over the apartment if the snow didn’t stop.
The weather guy had said this was a record—that it hadn’t snowed this much since way back in the fifties. I’d turned on the radio and the Jackson 5 were singing “ABC.” I was in love with Michael Jackson. He was one of the cutest boys on the planet as far as I knew. I got off the couch and started dancing to the song. Mama had gotten me a rainbow peasant skirt for Christmas and when I twirled in it, the colors seemed to spread light all over the room. Sean shook his head watching me. He signed, One of these days, I’m gonna teach you some rhythm. When the music was loud enough, Sean could feel the rhythm through the vibration. When he danced, you wouldn’t even know he was deaf. But he was too busy stuffing pretzels in his mouth and making fun of me to get up off the couch and move around.
The music was so loud, I didn’t even hear Grandma come in until she was standing right near me, telling me to turn it down. Sean jumped off the couch and hugged her. I nearly jumped into her arms.
“If you all don’t get off me and let me get my coat off, somebody’s gonna feel my Bible,” Grandma said. “I heard that music down the street!” But she was smiling as she turned the radio off.
Is it still real cold out? Sean signed. It was freezing earlier.
“He said, is it cold—”
“I know a little something,” Grandma said, cutting me off. She nodded at Sean. She always said she was too old to learn another language by the time Sean came along, but most times, when I tried to translate, she already knew what Sean was signing. And she had a way of signing back that only her and Sean understood most of the times—a kind of secret language that just about burned me up.
She bent down to kiss me and I took her face in my hands and kissed her nose. She laughed and pushed me away the way she always did. She only had two wrinkles—one running straight across her forehead and one small one just at the top of her nose between her eyes. She didn’t have any gray hair like other grandmothers but Mama said it was hidden underneath years and years of blue-black hair dye. I liked the color, though—the way the blue kind of caught you by surprise. I took her hand and pulled her over to the couch. Sean had the other hand.
“Now what’s all this fuss about this new one coming?” She was talking to both of us but looking at Sean.
“I’m with you,” I said. “Doesn’t make the least bit of sense.”
“What doesn’t make sense is both of you pulling
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