Confetti Girl by Diana Lopez
Author:Diana Lopez [LOPEZ, DIANA]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: JUV013000
ISBN: 9780316052528
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Published: 2009-05-31T16:00:00+00:00
I’ve looked up and down and in every direction
For a woman who’s worthy of my affection.
But the girls I meet seem so fake,
Like people who want to make my heart break.
Then I discovered your love for art
And I know you’re someone who’ll take care of my heart.
So this Silver Fox gets down and begs
For you, the queen of lovely confetti eggs.
Para el gato viejo, ratón tierno –
A tender mouse for an old cat
14
The Best-looking Egghead
Dad has always graded papers on the weekends, so Mom and I used to go to the mall or movies while he worked. Or we’d buy snow cones at Cole Park and watch the kids fly kites or skateboard. Now I just sit around the house on Saturdays, especially when Vanessa’s with her dad. I get so bored. This is what I’m thinking when the phone rings. Lucky for me, it’s Vanessa.
“Want to go to the beach?” she says.
“In November?”
“Sure, why not? We’re not going to sunbathe. We’re going to work on our science projects. My dad’s lending me his digital camera. Isn’t that great?”
“But there aren’t any whooping cranes at the beach.”
“Who cares? You can invite Luís and help him with his project while Carlos and I work on ours.”
“Okay,” I say. “Let me call you back. I’ve got to get permission from my dad.”
Something tells me a Saturday at the beach is a no-no when I’m failing English. On the other hand, I’ve been working extra hard to bring up my grade. Every night, I read Watership Down and summarize the chapters. I don’t know if Mrs. Huerta will accept these late quizzes, but it’s worth a try.
“Dad?” I ask. He’s in the living room, entering student scores on his laptop. “Can I go to the beach with Vanessa? Her dad’s taking us.”
“Sure,” he says.
“And with Luís too?”
He looks up from his screen. He knows I’ve been walking home with Luís, and they’ve even met a few times. They get along, but that doesn’t stop Dad from being overprotective. “You mean like a date?”
“If that’s what you call going to the beach to work on projects.”
He leans back in his chair. I can tell he wishes my mom were here so he wouldn’t have to make such a big decision by himself.
Instead of answering, he says, “Under one condition.”
“Sure. Whatever you want.”
“Give this to Luís.” He pulls out a business card from his wallet.
“What’s this? A speech therapist?”
“She works with me at the high school. The students love her.”
“But if I give this to Luís, he’ll think I’m making fun of him.”
“No he won’t.”
“Yes he will.”
He takes a deep breath. “Lina, I can tell he’s a really smart boy, so he deserves to speak well. There’s nothing shameful about stuttering. It’s a problem lots of people have, and it’s something he can fix. So tell him to call my friend. She works wonders.”
He gets back to his typing as if our conversation’s done.
“So can I invite him if I promise to mention the speech therapist?”
“Sure, sure,” he says.
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