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
“But not Florence though,” Ming says. “We’ve been texting on WhatsApp. You know she lives in a house all by herself? Yesterday she invited me over there and she actually cooked dinner for us.”
“Wow! So you asked her out?” I ask.
“She asked me out,” Ming informs me. “Last week. I wanted to tell you, but you were going through all that stuff with Heather.”
I stare into the phone. “I’m here for you. You know that, right?” I ask. It’s important to me that Ming understands no matter what kind of shit I’m going through, I always want to hear her happy news. “So? How was it?”
“It was great! She’s different from the other parachutes.”
I nod, thinking about the term. Lately, I’ve been thinking it doesn’t apply just to foreign students. Heather and her friends are kind of parachutes too. They all have trust funds and safety nets protecting them if they fall. All I have is me. And if things don’t work out for me, I’d free fall.
“By the way, today, when Kevin came into my room without knocking to give me a package from my parents, I asked him to please knock next time.”
“Good for you!” I say to Ming. It’s so great to hear she’s standing up to Underwear Kevin. I ask her what was in the package, and she says just some Chinese medicine.
She asks me about debate. I tell her about Mr. Connelly’s offer to coach me.
“That’s amazing!”
“Yeah, but don’t you think it’s weird? Being coached on the side by my own coach?” I ask.
“Happens all the time in China,” she assures me. “But never for free. That part is bizarre.” We both think about that for a second.
“He must really believe in you,” she concludes.
I get off the phone with Ming and go to the kitchen to return a glass when I step on something hard in the hallway. I hear a crunch under my feet. I lift my foot and see a hardened contact lens on the bottom of my feet.
Ugh!
Did Claire seriously take her contacts out and just flick them on the floor? I feel like banging on her door—what the hell! But then I think about my mom and how much the $2,000 a month means to her, and I swallow. I kneel to the ground, pick up the hardened contact off the floor, and put it in the trash.
The next day, after my morning-period classes, I duck out early to find Mr. Connelly in his classroom. I have a free period and thought this might be a good time to do our extra training.
“That is, if you’re serious,” I say to him.
“Of course I’m serious,” he says with a smile. As luck would have it, he’s also free until lunch.