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
“You okay, Mom?” I ask. I think of what Jess said about the mistress-dispelling agencies. “You know . . . there are these places, these agencies we can go to.”
I tell her about Jess’s dad, thinking it might help, but it pisses her off. “You talk to your friends about this?” she asks.
Her anger catches me off guard. I feel the strings of guilt, curling around my neck, even as I remind myself I’ve done nothing wrong. I’m allowed to have friends. And I’m allowed to talk to my friends about things!
“We do not air our dirty laundry in public!” my mom commands. “You understand? And I’m certainly not going to go to some agency.”
“Mom. It’s more common than you think. Half the country—”
“I don’t care about half the country. I care about this family. This is our own internal affair,” she emphasizes, staring into the camera. Her voice is so loud on Skype, I have to lower the volume.
“I just . . .” I swallow. “I want you to know all the options.”
My mom takes a long, sullen breath. Clearly, this conversation is not going the way either of us pictured.
I think about telling her about my English placement exam but decide against it. It’s not a sure thing that I’ll pass. Just like it’s not a sure thing that that tycoon kid Jay paying for my waters meant anything.
“How’s Nai Nai?” I ask instead.
My mom slumps back in her chair. “Good,” she says. “She wants to know if you can buy her fish-oil capsules and mail them to her.”
I’m confused. “Can’t she buy them in China?” I ask. I’m pretty sure my grandmother’s been eating fish-oil capsules every morning for years.
My mom rolls her eyes. “Of course she can. But she wants them from America.”
“Why?” I ask.
My mom looks at me like, Duh. “Because everything’s better from America!”
The girls come by later on Saturday night. Jess, Florence, and Nancy push open the door to my room. I look up from my SAT Verbal study guide. I don’t know what to study for my English placement exam, so I’ve just been studying that. The girls are all dressed up. Jess crawls onto my bed, grabs the SAT book, and tosses it aside.
“Hey!” I protest. “I was studying that for my English placement exam!”
She ignores me and says, “We’re going out.” She says that a bouncer she knows texted her and he’s gonna get us into a club. Florence and Nancy are already rummaging through my closet. Nancy holds up a silver-sequined plunge-neck Rachel Zoe dress from my closet.
“That’s hot.” Jess nods approvingly.