Rana Joon and the One and Only Now by Shideh Etaat

Author:Shideh Etaat
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Atheneum Books for Young Readers
Published: 2023-07-25T00:00:00+00:00

18.

The next day before third period, I run into Samantha, because her locker is right next to mine. On my better days I can pretend to be nice to Babak, but I find it impossibly hard when it comes to his girlfriend.

“Hey, Rana,” Samantha says. She’s wearing a crop top, and I can see her entire flat stomach. She’s too skinny, and her hair is cut in this awkward bob that makes it look more like a bowl, and it doesn’t surprise me at all that my brother and I have such different tastes in girls. He’s been a serial dater since the fourth grade, and I’ve never found a single one of his girlfriends attractive. And I always end up being the one consoling my brother when they break his heart, which they always do.

“Where’s the rest of your shirt?” I ask her.

“Good morning to you too, cranky-pants,” she says. She checks herself in a mirror she’s put up inside her locker. Her lips are small and pouty, and her eyes are a dull hazel color. “It’s very fashionable to show your belly button right now. But you wouldn’t know anything about that, would you?” she says just as my brother sneaks up behind her and wraps his arms around her.

She lets out a squeal. “Bobby Joon!”

“Samantha Joon,” he mumbles in her ear, and it’s all so disgusting, how she’s using this Farsi word for “dear” like she’s trying to impress him, but I’m also unable to look away, transfixed by how easy all this seems for them.

“I was just giving your sister some fashion advice,” she says.

Brianna Asher comes by and gives Samantha a hug because they’re good friends. They’re talking about prom and how Brianna found this gold backless dress and how Samantha still needs to find one.

“Let’s make an appointment to get our makeup done,” Samantha says, and Brianna agrees that’s a great idea.

“You going to prom, Rana?” Brianna asks me, noticing that I’m standing there. Samantha gives her a dirty look for being nice to me.

“Rana hates all that school-spirit shit,” Babak says.

“I’m thinking about it,” I say. Prom hasn’t really crossed my mind until now with all the other shit going on, but who knows—anything is possible.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.