Read Online The Cupcake Queen by Heather Hepler - Free Book Online Page B

start crying or screaming or something.
    “Let’s go where we can talk,” Tally says. Instead of going to the front lawn like most everyone else, Tally leads me to the wall outside of the library.
    “Tell me,” Tally says. I just shake my head. “Charity?” she asks, and I nod. She sighs and looks away.
    “I hate it here,” I say. Tally looks down at her sandwich. “I just want to be away from here, from all of—” I pause and look at my hands. What I’m saying must hurt Tally’s feelings some, but I can’t stop. “I just want to go home,” I say, and this last bit makes me start crying again because I realize I don’t really have one anymore. Tally hands me a paper towel from her lunch bag and I blow my nose hard. When I do, it makes a honking sound. “I’m a mess,” I say.
    “A little.”
    “A lot.” I blow my nose again, making sure there’s no honk this time. “It just stinks, you know?”
    Tally looks past me for a moment. “I know,” she says, and something about the way she says it makes it seem like she does. She reaches into her lunch sack and pulls out a Ziploc of gummy cherries and hands it to me. “They’ll make you feel better,” she says. I bite the stem off of one. “Better?” she asks.
    “A little. Thanks.”
    Tally smiles her lopsided smile. “I told Blake about your mom being on the wall at the bank. Remember how he says he knows everything about this place?”
    I just nod, chewing the rest of the gummy.
    “Well, his mom told him something about your mom. Turns out she beat Charity’s mom for the title of Hog Queen not just that one year, but all four years they were in high school.”
    I keep chewing the gummy until it doesn’t taste like much of anything anymore.
    “What I’m trying to tell you is that it’s not just what happened at Charity’s party.”
    “Great.” Thanks for the heads-up, Mom.
    Tally crumples her lunch bag and lobs it into the trash can. “So what’s the big deal about being Hog Queen?” I ask.
    Tally shrugs. “The appeal is lost on me. I mean, getting the sash and the crown and getting to ride on the float shaped like a hog’s head is awesome for sure.”
    “You’re joking.” I’m trying to picture my mother in her long dress with a sash around her and a sparkling tiara on her head, waving from a float towed behind an old farm truck.
    “Wait, it’s better than that. You also get to keep the genuine crystal bust of a hog in your house.”
    “I didn’t even know a hog had a bust,” I say.
    Tally giggles. “You also get a year’s supply of bacon and sausage and other pork products from Franklin Farms.”
    “So does Charity think she’s going to be Hog Queen?” I ask.
    “I’m sure,” Tally says. “If only for the pork products.” She kicks her heels against the wall we are sitting on. “What do you know about pigs?” she asks.
    “Nothing,” I say. By now I’m used to Tally’s odd questions.
    The bell rings. “You okay?” Tally asks.
    I shrug. “I guess. Do I look awful?”
    She tilts her head at me. “Not awful,” she says, smiling. “Your eyes are just a little red.” She stands up and picks up her books. “You ready, or do you need to sit for a while? I can be late.”
    I shake my head and stand up. I try to hand the rest of the gummies back to Tally, but she says, “Keep ’em. They match your eyes.”
    “Awesome,” I say. “Red eyes are so attractive.” Tally elbows me, making me laugh. We head back into the school and toward our lockers. As we walk down the hall, my shoes squish with damp gesso. One of the Lindseys is talking and laughing with Charlotte near my locker.
    “Forget about them,” Tally says.
    My cheeks are burning and my eyes are glued to the floor as I walk past. If I keep my head down, my hair will cover my face.
    “Hey, watch where you’re going,” a voice says. I look up to see Charity standing in front of me. I mean, right in front of me. If I hadn’t stopped when I did, I