Read Online Pink & Green is the New Black by Lisa Greenwald - Free Book Online Page A

girls?” He asks. The ink from his pen has seeped through the pocket of his button-down shirt. He’s like the nerdy teacher on every TV show ever made.
    â€œNothing. Sorry for yelling, Mr. D.” I smile at him. “We’ll be quieter.”
    â€œThank you, Lucy.” He stays for a minute or two just to make sure everything’s actually fine, I guess. And then he walks away.
    â€œSorry I yelled,” I whisper. “I guess all I’m saying is that it’s cool to have a boyfriend and stuff. But you’ll have boyfriends soon enough, and it’s weird when people are jealous of you. Plus, it’s not like having a boyfriend is the be-all and end-all of the world.” I heard my mom use that expression once, but I’m not totally sure what it means.
    They look at me suspiciously, so I decide to drop the topic. Sunny pats my leg under the table. It’s good that she’s on my side,or at least knows what’s going on. But I wonder how long she’s going to let me keep up the charade that Yamir and I are a model couple.
    When I decided I needed to have the most perfect end to middle school, this was definitely not what I had in mind. But when I made that decision, I didn’t know that Yamir would disappear on me.
    â€œWe also heard about Travis,” Eve adds, clearly not interested in talking about anything other than boys. “The whole thing kind of reminds me of this book I read a few months ago—the girl had to choose between two cute boys, and it was so tragic. But anyway, I guess Travis doesn’t know that you’re going out with the cutest boy in Old Mill.”
    â€œEve!” Sunny’s the one yelling now. “Stop! My brother. Gross.”
    Eve makes eyes at me. “It’s true,” she mouths.
    I’ll never be able to tell Eve the truth. That things aren’t so great with Yamir and me. That there barely even is a Yamir and me.
    It would be like when your favorite actors break up, or in her case, two characters in a great romance novel. It would break her heart. Maybe as much as it would break mine.

Lucy’s tip for surviving eighth grade:
    Take deep breaths when you’re overwhelmed.
    Sunny waits for me after studio art, my last-period class. Sunny’s taking ceramics instead, so we always wait for each other in the art wing on art day.
    â€œReady for the meeting?” she asks.
    â€œNervous,” is all I can manage to say.
    We walk to the library together, and the closer we get, the more nervous I am. All these adults on the school board left work early for this meeting. I guess they think it’s really important.
    Mrs. Deleccio is already there with Clint’s dad and the other members of the school board. It looks like Mrs. Casale, the new librarian, has broken her “no eating in the library” rule, because there’s a plate of cookies on the table and a pitcher of cucumber-flavored water.
    â€œThis seems fancy, doesn’t it?” Sunny whispers to me.
    â€œYeah, Mrs. Deleccio usually buys the generic brand, but those look like they’re from One Girl Cookies, down by the water. It’s almost too fancy.”
    â€œI know.” Sunny clenches my hand. “Now I’m nervous.”
    â€œWelcome, girls. Come have a seat.” Mrs. Deleccio smiles, and I take that to mean good news is coming. I’m the kind of person who always reads into things, even when I probably shouldn’t. I convince myself of signs when they’re probably just coincidences.
    Evan and Annabelle arrive a few minutes later. We all find seats around the library table.
    â€œDig in, please,” Mrs. Deleccio insists, passing the plate of cookies around.
    â€œWe’re thrilled with all the work you’ve done,” Clint’s dad starts. “We all met and discussed it, and then we realized something.”
    Oh God. Did they realize that it costs too much to make the cafeteria