Chapters (93)
- Cover
- Dedication
- One
- Two
- Three
- Four
- Five
- Six
- Seven
- Eight
- Nine
- Ten
- Eleven
- Twelve
- Thirteen
- Fourteen
- Fifteen
- Sixteen
- Seventeen
- Eighteen
- Nineteen
- Twenty
- Twenty-One
- Twenty-Two
- Twenty-Three
- Twenty-Four
- Twenty-Five
- Twenty-Six
- Twenty-Seven
- Twenty-Eight
- Twenty-Nine
- Thirty
- Thirty-One
- Thirty-Two
- Thirty-Three
- Thirty-Four
- Thirty-Five
- Thirty-Six
- Thirty-Seven
- Thirty-Eight
- Thirty-Nine
- Forty
- Forty-One
- Forty-Two
- Forty-Three
- Forty-Four
- Forty-Five
- Forty-Six
- Forty-Seven
- Forty-Eight
- Forty-Nine
- Fifty
- Fifty-One
- Fifty-Two
- Fifty-Three
- Fifty-Four
- Fifty-Five
- Fifty-Six
- Fifty-Seven
- Fifty-Eight
- Fifty-Nine
- Sixty
- Sixty-One
- Sixty-Two
- Sixty-Three
- Sixty-Four
- Sixty-Five
- Sixty-Six
- Sixty-Seven
- Sixty-Eight
- Sixty-Nine
- Seventy
- Seventy-One
- Seventy-Two
- Seventy-Three
- Seventy-Four
- Seventy-Five
- Seventy-Six
- Seventy-Seven
- Seventy-Eight
- Seventy-Nine
- Eighty
- Eighty-One
- Eighty-Two
- Eighty-Three
- Eighty-Four
- Eighty-Five
- Author’s Note
- Acknowledgments
- About the Author
- Books by Kelly Yang
- Back Ad
- About the Publisher
As we work, Mrs. Lau vacuums and does the housework. She does the dining room first, then the living room, and the stairs, plugging and unplugging the vacuum as she goes. I’m impressed. I’ve never seen my mom vacuum, though she always claims she’s a good housekeeper because she hired a good housekeeper. I can’t believe my mom’s going to be here next week and she’s going to meet Jay. Emma asks me a question about theme. As we’re flipping through the text together, we hear a scream from upstairs.
Mrs. Lau comes charging down the stairs with a shoebox.
“What’s this?” she asks Emma, shoving a shoebox in her face. Mrs. Lau starts pulling out packets of condoms from the box.
Emma’s face immediately goes red. She looks like she’s going to pass out.
“Are you having sex?” her mom demands.
I look to Emma, then jump up and say, “No, I am.”
Mrs. Lau stares at me, her hands crushing the condom packets in her fists.
“Yeah, I just had a few extra, so I gave them to Emma. You know, just in case she ever wanted to”—Emma shakes her head alarmingly at me—“sell them.”
Mrs. Lau sits down. She puts a hand to her chest out of relief for her daughter and deep concern for me and my deeply troubled soul. “You, Claire, you need to stop,” she says to me. “Sex is like drug. Once you have it, you can’t stop. It’s just sex sex sex sex sex sex sex SEX SEX SEX!”
Her eyes bulge bigger and bigger with each “sex.” I turn to Emma, who’s got her hand over her mouth. We’re both trying so hard not to crack up.
“Seriously, Claire, you need to respect you self, respect you body!” Mrs. Lau says.
“I do,” I say, pointing to the shoebox full of condoms. “Hence the condoms.”
Mrs. Lau shakes her head at me and lets out a profound sigh. “This makes me so sad,” she finally says. She takes the shoebox and hands it to me. To her daughter, she adds, “I don’t want you studying with her anymore. You will xue huai.”
My forehead puckers at the Chinese phrase for “learn bad.” Later, when we’re standing outside her house, Emma thanks me.
“That was . . .” She covers her embarrassed face with her hands. “OMG, I don’t even have the words.”
We both burst out laughing as I hug the box of condoms. “I’m keeping these,” I say.
Emma chuckles. “Oh, please, they’re yours! I seriously thought my mom was going to kill me,” she says, shrinking at the thought. “Thanks again.” She lingers. “And I’m sorry about what I said in class.”
“Me too. About the rice,” I say.
My Uber ride pulls up.
“I’ll see you at school?” she asks.