Beauty and Bernice by Nancy Viau

Author:Nancy Viau
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: -
Publisher: Schiffer Publishing, Ltd.
Published: 2020-09-15T00:00:00+00:00

A Classic Failure Tale

Three days have gone by and Mom hasn’t bugged me anymore about Odelia. That night after dinner, she only asked me to collect twigs from the yard so she could add them to her latest craft project—stick figure angels. I’m grateful that Mom’s deepest thoughts involve inanimate objects.

My cell rings, and I pick it up. Roxanne’s on the other end. “We should hang out at Winnie’s. I want to see that boy you know. You were supposed to tell me when he shows up at the park so I could go there, and you never did.”

“I got busy,” I tell her.

“Maybe he’ll show up at Winnie’s today. Let’s go. Pick you up in five.”

“I have to work at Smile Academy till noon,” I tell Roxanne. “It’s volunteer work, so I’m out of extra icy money. And my mom just spent a ton on me at the mall, so I can’t ask her for more.”

“Let’s go anyway. My treat,” Roxanne says. “Meet me there after lunch.” She hangs up.

It bugs me that Roxanne hasn’t even given me a choice. I want a choice! I call her back and say, “I don’t want to go to Winnie’s. I need to practice tricks for the Lawrence County Skate-Off. I was planning to skate until dinner, and Wyatt and I are—”

“Excuse me,” Roxanne interrupts with a nasty tone. “I didn’t realize that you two had plans.”

“Give it a rest,” I tell her. “I told you. Nothing’s going on between us.” Roxanne has no idea how much nothing, nothing is.

“All right already,” Roxanne says, calming down. “Listen, my mom will find time to drill me on those lines for the commercial if I stick around my house. Can I come over before you leave for the park? I want you to watch me do a reverse French braid on my hair, and tell me if it turns out like in the picture. It won’t take long. It’ll be great!”

“Sure,” I say, without enthusiasm.

“And then maybe I can follow you to the park?”

“Whatever.”

We hang up. I get dressed for camp by tossing on my polka dot tank. I add the navy flats. They’re the cleanest shoes I’ve owned in forever, complete with clean starchy bows and shiny bronze stars. I peek at myself in my bedroom mirror, and the girl staring back at me is . . . well, she practically looks like a middle-schooler. I’m reminded of the fun time I had at the mall with Odelia. I hope she wears her new clothes today, too.

I arrive at camp at ten. Odelia’s already there, with her new outfit on! What possessed her to add a sparkly headband that’s as close to a tiara as you can get, I. Have. No. Idea.

The campers call out my name and when things settle down, Nellie pulls me over. “Nellie Frances O’Malley and Bernice are BFFs!”

I nod and sit with her. She picks up a fat pencil, then puts it down. She takes my face in her hands and stares at me, exactly like she did the first day we met.

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