Read Online From Bad to Cursed by Katie Alender - Free Book Online Page B

mid-grade scenarios, too. But where my sister was concerned, I’d gotten pretty used to the worst.
    Finally, after sitting through two hours of cartoons, I gave her a soft kick. “So…”
    She stood up. “I need to take a shower.” And then she trudged off down the hall to the bathroom.
    After her shower, she locked herself in her room for another hour. I finally gave up and took a shower myself, only to find her door wide open and bedroom deserted when I emerged.
    In the kitchen, Mom was shuffling through the mail. “Morning, hon,” she said.
    “It’s afternoon,” I said. “Where’s Kasey?”
    Mom glanced up at me. “Dad drove her to a friend’s house. The girl you used to hang out with—Lydia?”
    “Oh,” I said.
    “Didn’t she used to live in Riverbridge? In that big house with the little stream in the front yard?”
    “Yeah,” I said. All the yards in Riverbridge had bridges. Imagine that.
    “They live over west of Crawford now,” Mom said, making a sympathetic face. “It’s not a very good neighbor- hood. I’m surprised she’s still in the same school district.”
    Lydia’s parents had been serious go-getters. Her dad drove a sports car, and her mom owned a high-end salon, which made Lydia’s sloppy home hair-dye jobs all the more offensive. It was hard to imagine them in a dumpy house on the outskirts of town.
    I was about to turn and leave when Mom tossed an envelope to me. “Young Visionaries?” she asked. I took it back to the sofa, deliberately ignoring her curiosity.
    So this was it. My form rejection, with a request to come collect my portfolio. I slid my finger under the corner of the flap. All week, the contest had been bugging me—the thought of being ranked somewhere in the middle of that giant stack of entrants.
    CONGRATULATIONS ! was the first word I saw, and I felt the oddest combination of emotions—happiness and apprehension at the same time. Like my heart inflated and then ran away and hid under the bed.
    The letter went on to say that I’d survived the first cut and was now one of twelve semifinalists. At the bottom was a scrawl in a thick, black permanent marker: Your work stands up well against the competition.—FM
    And there was a note about an interview session being conducted the following week.
    “What is it?” Mom asked.
    “Nothing.” I shoved the letter back inside its envelope. At some point I’d be forced to tell my parents. But for that moment, I wanted it all to myself.
    Dad and I arranged the Chinese take-out containers on the counter while Mom got plates and silverware.
    “So…” I said. “I have some news.”
    In about four milliseconds, bustle turned to dead silence. Dad froze and looked up at me, and Mom came around the counter.
    Wow, that worked.
    “I’m not pregnant or anything,” I said, and Dad exhaled. “Seriously, Dad? You think that’s how I would tell you?”
    “What is it, honey?” Mom asked, setting down the plates.
    “That letter I got today,” I said. “It’s for this photography thing. Like a contest. With a scholarship.”
    Her eyes lit up. “You’re going to enter?”
    “No,” I said. “Well, yeah. I did enter…and I made the semifinals.”
    I couldn’t decipher their expressions. Mom looked pensive. Dad looked blank.
    “That’s the news,” I said, pulling out a bar stool and reaching for a fried wonton.
    I would have given my parents credit for having more self-control, but they immediately started carrying on, Mom hugging me and saying, “I’m so proud of you! I’m so proud of you!” and Dad cuffing me on the arm like an old college buddy.
    “All right, that’s enough,” I said, peeling away. “It’s not that big of a deal. There are twelve semifinalists.”
    “But Alexis, this is wonderful!” Mom said. “It is a big deal. Wait until Kasey hears!”
    I looked around. “What time is she coming home, anyway?”
    “Not until tomorrow,” Mom said. “She’s sleeping over. I guess they all are.