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Authors: Belle Payton
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sparkle. She adjusted her stretchy pink headband, flipped her hair, and strutted, more confidently than she felt, over to the table.
âLook! I brought brownies.â She lifted the lid of the container she held to reveal the powdered-sugar-dusted brownies sheâd gotten up at dawn to make. It had been a good morning in their house. She and Ava hadnât been groundedâthey were let off with only a warningâand her dad had made blueberry pancakes. Ava hadnât brought up Alexâs meanness the night before. Deep down, Alex knew she had been a little harsh and that Ava was right about telling Coach. She was so worried about the Corey situation that she wasnât thinking straight. But she would make things right with Avaâjust like she was going to make things right with Corey.
âWhy the brownies?â Xander asked, reaching for one.
âI felt like baking,â Alex said lightly. She passed the box to Corey. He hesitated, then passed it to Emily without taking one. Alex bit her lip nervously.
âYou look so pretty,â Rosa said. âWhy are you all dressed up?â
âIâm not. I just thought Iâd go for a little panache.â Alex had paired her navy skirt with a kelly-green sweater that had a stiff white collar. She thought it made her eyes look super green.
âAnother fancy word!â Emily giggled.
Alex cringed. Hadnât she decided not to do the vocabulary thing in front of Corey?
âWhatâs it mean?â asked Rosa.
âââPanacheâ is French. It means extreme style,â Alex said.
âAlex canât help it, Emily. Donât you know? Sheâs way more sophisticated than any of us,â Corey said suddenly. Unlike Emilyâs teasing tone, Coreyâs words had an edge to them.
Alex laughed, but even to her own ears it sounded fake. âOh, please! I already told you. Iâm not so sophisticated.â She sat next to Emily and pulled out her lunch. âSo I was thinking. Thereâs a new mini golf place in Hyland. Thewebsite says itâs glow-in-the-dark. Should we all go?â
âWe could wear neon shirts,â Lindsey said, getting into the spirit.
âI rule at mini golf,â Kal bragged.
âWhat do you think?â Alex eagerly directed the question to Corey.
Corey sneered. âI think mini golf is too babyish for you.â
Now Alex was completely confused. Who did Corey suddenly think she was?
âI bet high school guys donât go mini golfing with their girlfriends,â Corey continued.
âWhat?â Then something clicked. âDo you mean Tommy? He and Cassie donât do anything sophisticated. They just go for ice cream and watch Netflix.â
âHey, Alex, did you know that a ton of middle school girls have a crush on your brother?â Rosa called from the other side of the table.
âReally?â Her brother was such a goof. But the other girls at the table agreed.
âItâs like a disease around here,â Corey muttered.
âYeah. Why do girls like older guys?â Kal asked.
âUh, because theyâre older, and they arenât so awkward and annoyingâtheyâre more mature.â Lindsey rolled her eyes with the obviousness of it.
âNews flash, Lindz. Johnny is only one grade ahead of us,â Emily reminded her.
Lindsay shrugged. âHeâs still better than a seventh grader.â
âWhatâs with all you girls?â Coreyâs voice trembled with exasperation.
âNot all of us,â Alex corrected.
âOh, yeah, right.â Corey shot her an angry look, then pulled out a folder of worksheets and buried his face in it.
Lindsey, Xander, and Kal continued the debate about girls liking older guys, but Alex couldnât get past the glare Corey had shot her way. She felt as if she had opened a book to a random page and was supposed to unravel the plot. Why was he angry with her?
A lump
âLook! I brought brownies.â She lifted the lid of the container she held to reveal the powdered-sugar-dusted brownies sheâd gotten up at dawn to make. It had been a good morning in their house. She and Ava hadnât been groundedâthey were let off with only a warningâand her dad had made blueberry pancakes. Ava hadnât brought up Alexâs meanness the night before. Deep down, Alex knew she had been a little harsh and that Ava was right about telling Coach. She was so worried about the Corey situation that she wasnât thinking straight. But she would make things right with Avaâjust like she was going to make things right with Corey.
âWhy the brownies?â Xander asked, reaching for one.
âI felt like baking,â Alex said lightly. She passed the box to Corey. He hesitated, then passed it to Emily without taking one. Alex bit her lip nervously.
âYou look so pretty,â Rosa said. âWhy are you all dressed up?â
âIâm not. I just thought Iâd go for a little panache.â Alex had paired her navy skirt with a kelly-green sweater that had a stiff white collar. She thought it made her eyes look super green.
âAnother fancy word!â Emily giggled.
Alex cringed. Hadnât she decided not to do the vocabulary thing in front of Corey?
âWhatâs it mean?â asked Rosa.
âââPanacheâ is French. It means extreme style,â Alex said.
âAlex canât help it, Emily. Donât you know? Sheâs way more sophisticated than any of us,â Corey said suddenly. Unlike Emilyâs teasing tone, Coreyâs words had an edge to them.
Alex laughed, but even to her own ears it sounded fake. âOh, please! I already told you. Iâm not so sophisticated.â She sat next to Emily and pulled out her lunch. âSo I was thinking. Thereâs a new mini golf place in Hyland. Thewebsite says itâs glow-in-the-dark. Should we all go?â
âWe could wear neon shirts,â Lindsey said, getting into the spirit.
âI rule at mini golf,â Kal bragged.
âWhat do you think?â Alex eagerly directed the question to Corey.
Corey sneered. âI think mini golf is too babyish for you.â
Now Alex was completely confused. Who did Corey suddenly think she was?
âI bet high school guys donât go mini golfing with their girlfriends,â Corey continued.
âWhat?â Then something clicked. âDo you mean Tommy? He and Cassie donât do anything sophisticated. They just go for ice cream and watch Netflix.â
âHey, Alex, did you know that a ton of middle school girls have a crush on your brother?â Rosa called from the other side of the table.
âReally?â Her brother was such a goof. But the other girls at the table agreed.
âItâs like a disease around here,â Corey muttered.
âYeah. Why do girls like older guys?â Kal asked.
âUh, because theyâre older, and they arenât so awkward and annoyingâtheyâre more mature.â Lindsey rolled her eyes with the obviousness of it.
âNews flash, Lindz. Johnny is only one grade ahead of us,â Emily reminded her.
Lindsay shrugged. âHeâs still better than a seventh grader.â
âWhatâs with all you girls?â Coreyâs voice trembled with exasperation.
âNot all of us,â Alex corrected.
âOh, yeah, right.â Corey shot her an angry look, then pulled out a folder of worksheets and buried his face in it.
Lindsey, Xander, and Kal continued the debate about girls liking older guys, but Alex couldnât get past the glare Corey had shot her way. She felt as if she had opened a book to a random page and was supposed to unravel the plot. Why was he angry with her?
A lump
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