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 let’s be honest, who are these new-money people in Gatsby?” Emma asks. “They’re people who come and drink his wine, eat his food. They don’t even bother with an invitation; they just show up. And when he dies, no one even comes to the funeral. That’s why they’re not worthy of respect, they’re fundamentally self-absorbed, hollow people whose only care in the world is consuming material goods.” Emma turns to me and adds, “Just like the crazy-rich Asians at our school.”
Hot blood heats my face. I look to the teacher, and when she doesn’t say anything, I wait in suspense for my own voice to emerge, but the rage chokes my throat.
“That bitch!” Jess exclaims at lunch when I tell her what Emma said. She gets up from her seat and zeroes her eyes in on Emma. I pull her back down.
“And the teacher just sat there?” Nancy asks.
I nod.
Florence shakes her head. “Unbelievable,” she says, texting on her phone. Whoever she’s texting is not texting her back, and Florence frowns in frustration at her phone.
Jess shoots death stares at Emma sitting at the ABC table. “She’s going down!”
Florence looks up from her phone and reaches for her boba tea. “Why do they always have to distance themselves from us?” she asks, chewing her boba. “Don’t they realize that when white people look at us, we all the same? We all yellow to them?”
Nancy looks to me. “She’s just trying to intimidate you, Claire,” she says. “But it won’t work. We’re tougher than iron.”
Florence nods, chewing on her boba while I look down at the green WeChat app on my phone. At times like these, I miss Teddy. I miss his little Chinese messages throughout the day comforting and reassuring me. I glance over at Jess and sigh. How did she get over her boyfriend so quickly? I know it was only physical, and the guy was scamming her parents, but she still slept with him. Does sleeping with someone make it easier or harder to get over them? I wonder.
Thirty
Dani
On the Friday before the tournament, I change into my black debate dress and run down the hallway to meet my teammates and Mr. Connelly to go to the airport. We’re flying to Seattle for a tournament, our last one before Snider.
As I’m walking down the hallway, I see Claire standing by Emma Lau’s locker. I’ve never cleaned Emma’s house because her mother insists on cleaning it herself, but once she called up Rosa and asked if she could book us to help her cook for a Bible study party. When Emma opens her locker, rice comes gushing out onto the floor.
Emma screams at the thousands and thousands of little white grains.