Read Online manicpixiedreamgirl by Tom Leveen - Free Book Online Page B

me as leading man. Even if I never wrote it down.
    “Thanks,” I said, and I meant it. “Maybe I will.”
    “There’s a meeting on Monday,” Sydney said. “You could come with me if you wanted. Just to meet … people …”
    Syd paused and scrutinized me. “This isn’t about Rebecca Webb, is it, Ty?”
    “What? No.”
    “Are you sure?”
    “Syd. Come on.”
    “You spent half of last year going on about her. And I’m not stupid.”
    “I didn’t say you were stupid!”
    “Then tell me. Tell me this newfound interest in Masque and Gavel has nothing to do with her.”
    My mom pulled up and waved at us through the window. She, like my sister, loved Syd. Which didn’t make it any easier to consider breaking up with her.
    I stood up. “I’m not even going to dignify that with a response,” I said, half joking, half scared to death that I was as transparent as Mom’s windshield.
    Sydney stood up too. “All right,” she said. “Forget I said anything. Think about it this weekend, maybe write some ideas down.”
    “Cool,” I said, and opened the passenger door for her.
    I did think about it all weekend. Even wrote a few pages of five or six different play ideas.
    All of them ended up centering around a guy who likes this girl.…
    I didn’t print out any of these ideas. And didn’t finish even a whole scene.
    Yet Monday after school, I went to my first drama club meeting.
    Becky Webb sat in the front row, farthest corner to my right. Like in the cafeteria, there was an empty chair to her side and behind her. As if she was shielded from the rest of the class. I saw a couple people give her nods as they stomped through the rows to find seats, and she’d look up and smile toothlessly. Most of these greeters were guys.
    So she did have friends here. But then why did she still look so isolated?

    “I don’t even know why she likes me,” I say.
    “Who? You mean Sydney or Becky?” Justin asks, rubbing his belly like it’s about to revolt again.
    “Syd. I already know Becky doesn’t like me. Not like that, anyway.”
    “You don’t know why Syd digs you?” Robby says. “I’ll tell you why. It’s because you’re swinging a poleax down there!”
    I stare at him. “Dude … 
what
?”
    “Hell yeah,” Robby goes. “I can tell just by looking at ya. There’s no cork in that bat. That’s a hundred percent American grade A steel, dude.”
    “… What?”
    “I think he’s saying you have a big dick,” Justin reports, and burps. He sighs happily afterward and sinks down on the bench. Belly crisis averted.
    “Yeah, I got the tweet, but why’s he saying it?”
    Justin shrugs. Robby laughs and punches my shoulder again. Ow. Again.
    “I’m messing with you, Ty,” he says. “Damn, I thought the booze would relax you.”
    “Yeah,” I say. “Me too.” I am about as close to sober as a guy can get despite the alcohol. Maybe Western Flower is a cheap champagne.
    “How do you know she doesn’t like you?” Justin asks. “Becky, I mean. Why’d she call you tonight if she didn’t have a thing for you?”
    “We’re friends,” I remind him. This isn’t news.
    Justin pulls on an extraordinarily doubtful look. Robby gets up and stands in front of me. “I don’t think friends do the kinda things she’s done,” he says. “I mean, talk about blue balls.”
    I try to glare up at him.
He
knows that
I
know exactly what he’s referring to.
    Robby ignores my glare and holds out his arms.
    “Just sayin’,” he goes. “It wasn’t cool of her.”
    Justin, on the other hand, I didn’t tell about the shower incident at Becky’s house. “Hold up,” Justin says. “What’d she do?”
    “You wanna tell him, or you want me to?” Robby asks.
    I wish my phone would ring again. Even if it’s Sydney.

    Sydney and I didn’t sit near Becky at the drama club meeting. We sat in the middle, surrounded by Syd’s drama friends. And when I say “drama friends,” I mean they were about the most