Skinny by Ibi Kaslik

Author:Ibi Kaslik
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing Plc
Published: 2009-05-14T21:00:00+00:00

chapter 18

I have an appointment with my principal, Mr. Ford, a tiny nicotine-stained man. He gets annoyed with us for our slow responses in church and spends at least an hour a week holding special school assemblies to bawl us out for not saying "Lamb of God, have Mercy on us" quickly enough.

He also has rotten teeth and meets with every single one of us eighters in his office to talk about our "High School Career," to discuss whether we are taking the right classes, etc., etc. It's pretty much an excuse for him to talk about God with us, to ensure that we will be good little Christians at St. Josephine's High next year. Besides getting suspended, and besides math, which I'm failing, I have a pretty average record. I'm no nerd, like Giselle, but I do all right. But Ford has it in for me, for some reason.

"Hello, Holly, well, that's nice of you to wear your uniform, seeing as you've missed the last two weeks of school." For some reason, this makes me laugh so I put my hand over my mouth.

"Actually, sir, I started back a couple of days ago."

"Ah yes, Carl, Mr. Saleri, mentioned something about an incident in the schoolyard at lunch the other day."

I grin at him, remembering my promise to Saleri. I need to get through this meeting, Lamb of God, please. I promise to start fresh next year. No fighting, no screwing around, no jumping off stuff (oh God) even if it means being the most stellar nerd for most of next year.

Mr. Ford looks at me with his dinosaur eyes and says, "Mr. Saleri, it seems, worries about you and that's lucky for you, Holly."

"I know." I smile weakly, watching the seconds tick away on the wall clock next to the crucifix. Then I notice a small, cheap frame of a brown-haired woman and a little boy with their arms around each other. I pick up the picture and study it.

"This your kid, sir?"

Mr. Ford gives me an irritated look but then his eyes soften, "Yes, that's Henry"

"Very cute, sir. How old is he?"

"Four, four and a half actually."

"You must be very proud."

"Yes." I put the picture back on his desk after wiping the line of dust away from the bottom of the frame.

"Sorry, sir, didn't mean to mess with your stuff."

"That's all right, Holly Now, as I was saying, I think you've been punished sufficiently for that incident!' He gives me a smile. How strange it must be to be so close to God and still so far.

"Well, I'm glad about that, sir, really. I'm sorry about everything that went down and I know that . . ."

He closes my folder and opens his shit-eating grin even wider. He seems to enjoy the sight of me twisting in my chair, seems to think it's funny that Mr. Saleri worries. "Well, you're a smart girl, Holly . . . some would go as far to say a little too smart to be caught brawling in the parking lot and jumping off fences.

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