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Back Parachutes Save as PDF
Chapters (93)
  1. Cover
  2. Dedication
  3. One
  4. Two
  5. Three
  6. Four
  7. Five
  8. Six
  9. Seven
  10. Eight
  11. Nine
  12. Ten
  13. Eleven
  14. Twelve
  15. Thirteen
  16. Fourteen
  17. Fifteen
  18. Sixteen
  19. Seventeen
  20. Eighteen
  21. Nineteen
  22. Twenty
  23. Twenty-One
  24. Twenty-Two
  25. Twenty-Three
  26. Twenty-Four
  27. Twenty-Five
  28. Twenty-Six
  29. Twenty-Seven
  30. Twenty-Eight
  31. Twenty-Nine
  32. Thirty
  33. Thirty-One
  34. Thirty-Two
  35. Thirty-Three
  36. Thirty-Four
  37. Thirty-Five
  38. Thirty-Six
  39. Thirty-Seven
  40. Thirty-Eight
  41. Thirty-Nine
  42. Forty
  43. Forty-One
  44. Forty-Two
  45. Forty-Three
  46. Forty-Four
  47. Forty-Five
  48. Forty-Six
  49. Forty-Seven
  50. Forty-Eight
  51. Forty-Nine
  52. Fifty
  53. Fifty-One
  54. Fifty-Two
  55. Fifty-Three
  56. Fifty-Four
  57. Fifty-Five
  58. Fifty-Six
  59. Fifty-Seven
  60. Fifty-Eight
  61. Fifty-Nine
  62. Sixty
  63. Sixty-One
  64. Sixty-Two
  65. Sixty-Three
  66. Sixty-Four
  67. Sixty-Five
  68. Sixty-Six
  69. Sixty-Seven
  70. Sixty-Eight
  71. Sixty-Nine
  72. Seventy
  73. Seventy-One
  74. Seventy-Two
  75. Seventy-Three
  76. Seventy-Four
  77. Seventy-Five
  78. Seventy-Six
  79. Seventy-Seven
  80. Seventy-Eight
  81. Seventy-Nine
  82. Eighty
  83. Eighty-One
  84. Eighty-Two
  85. Eighty-Three
  86. Eighty-Four
  87. Eighty-Five
  88. Author’s Note
  89. Acknowledgments
  90. About the Author
  91. Books by Kelly Yang
  92. Back Ad
  93. About the Publisher

“Good! Keep kicking!” Zach says. He stands by the edge of the pool timing me. “Wow, you are on fire today!”

I claw my way to the edge, strokes powered by my burning rage as I play back Jay’s words. Don’t ever tell me what I can and cannot do. I open my mouth, gasping for air. The smell of chlorine fills my lungs.

Zach jumps into the pool. He’s in his red trunks. I notice he has only two pairs of swim trunks, unlike Jay’s eighty-five. It’s late afternoon, and it’s just the two of us in the pool.

“Nineteen seconds, not bad,” he says, grinning. He doesn’t notice my tears because of the water. Boys can be so oblivious.

He glances down and points to my wrist. “You’d go faster if you take off your bracelet.”

I shake my head. “I can’t,” I say.

My mouth starts to quiver. I turn away from him.

“What’s wrong?” Zach asks.

A sob builds. My body shakes uncontrollably as I yank on my bracelet. I wish I could take off this nightmare.

“Hey, whoa, it’s okay.” Zach puts his arms around me. Our bodies bob in the water as he tries to calm me down.

Our eyes meet, and I feel it. There’s a second. A second when I can pull away, say no. I used to sit at home in Shanghai thinking about this second and wondering why my dad could never pull himself away. But in that moment, I couldn’t either.

Zach kisses me.

His lips brush mine. It is not ravenous like Jay’s. It’s slow and soft, a stolen kiss, comforting in ways I could neither comprehend nor explain.

As soon as I open my eyes, though, the guilt unspools in my chest. What have I done?

“You and Dani . . . ,” I start to say.

“We’re just friends,” Zach quickly reminds me.

The warm water sloshes around us. He pulls me in toward him. Our foreheads touch. Warmth radiates toward my lips, sweet, delicious warmth. But this time, I pull away.

I push myself up out of the water and run toward the changing room.

I run all the way home and lie on my bed in my room, hugging my legs, chin wedged between my knees, staring at the wall I share with Dani. It was a mistake. A lapse in judgment. A moment of weakness. I’m never going to tell anyone, not even Jess.

My phone rings. It’s Jay calling for the eighteenth time. I ignore it, like I’ve ignored all his texts. Fifteen minutes later, I hear banging on the door. He’s here. Dani pokes her head in my room. “You want me to tell him to go away?” she asks. I nod.