Read Online Winner Takes All by Jenny Santana - Free Book Online Page A

afternoon doing, pretending to ask Mari for feedback and suggestions when really she already knew what needed to be said—she just needed the time to figure out how to say it best.
    “You know, this basketball thing, it’s really made me rethink Laz. I mean, this was a fun event that could bring a lot of people together. Don’t you think that’s the kind of idea you’d want from a grade rep?”
    Was Mari seriously betraying her like this? If Celia could overcome her crush for the sake of something bigger, why couldn’t Mari? She was so angry and walking so fast that they were almost back to her house now. Celia could already see Poochie waiting with his bark attack raring to go, and she felt like attacking, too.
    “You think Laz is so great?” Celia said. “That wasn’t even his idea! It was Raul’s. So you should just admit that Laz is a dud. He doesn’t have any ideas. He’s just a stupid guy.”
    “Oh, so when someone comes up with ideas for you, you’re stupid? Is that what you’re saying?” Mari came to a halt right in front of the neighbor’s yard. Poochie pounced over to them, shoved his muzzle though the chain-link fence, and started growling and snapping.
    “That’s what you think of me, too, then?” Mari demanded.
    “Well, I mean, it’s not like you’ve been a fountain of great ideas for the campaign so far,” Celia said without thinking.
    “Like you’d even listen to any of my ideas! You don’t listen to anyone!”
    “That is not true!” Celia protested, now more hurt than angry.
    “Oh, really?” Mari said. “If you listened to me, you’d be running for rep yourself instead of forcing me into this messed-up scheme of yours!”
    “Forcing you? Remember when you agreed to do this? Huh? And you didn’t seem to mind Laz wishing you luck on the campaign trail, right? You don’t seem to mind taking credit for my ideas around him. ”
    Mari stood there with her mouth hanging open. The only sound for miles seemed to be stupid Poochie, announcing their fight to the world with every bark.
    “That’s what you wanted me to do!” Mari yelled.
    “Yeah, but my ideas aren’t meant to help you flirt with the enemy. Or were you just acting like you liked him?”
    Poochie stared growling so fiercely now that Celia thought he’d somehow caught rabies in the last twenty minutes.
    “So that’s how you’re gonna be, then?” Mari asked. “You’re gonna be all weird and jealous because I’m doing what you told me to do ? Fine. We’ll see how you do without me on Monday, when it’s time for me to read your stupid speech and I’m not there. We’ll see how you explain yourself to Ms. Perdomo then. Or will she even get angry? Since you kiss up to her so much, she’ll probably let you off the hook.”
    Now Celia’s mouth was hanging open, but Mari’s flair for the dramatic gave her insult a perfect ending: She spun on her heel, her long black hair almost slapping Celia in the face as she turned away, and marched back toward her own house. Poochie followed her as she stomped past thefence, growling with so much might that he trembled. He snapped at her ankles, but unlike every other time Mari had had to cross Poochie’s path, Mari was so furious she barely noticed the runty dog trying to scare her off.
    Poochie stood at the corner of his yard and barked long after Mari walked away, and when he finally understood that she wasn’t coming back, he ran back to where Celia stood and started yapping at her.
    “Arf arf arf arf arf arf arf arf arf—”
    “SHUT UP!” Celia finally yelled. The dog squeaked and tucked his tail between his legs, scooting away from her as fast as he could. In the quiet that followed, she heard her voice and the last of Poochie’s barks echo off the concrete balconies of the apartment building across the street. As the dog ran into his owner’s house, the shock of the whole argument started to settle on her. At that moment, Poochie was a genius: Running home