The Yo-Yo Prophet by Karen Krossing

Author:Karen Krossing
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: JUV013090
Publisher: Orca Book Publishers
Published: 2011-09-01T04:00:00+00:00

11

On the subway ride home, the walls of the tunnel flash by at dizzying speed. Gran and I share a bench. My hands twitch in my lap as if they’re still working tricks. Gran leans her head against the Plexiglas window. She’s tilted away from me, like a car with two flat tires on one side.

I know I should be worried about her, but I’m too excited. “So what’d you think of the Yo-Yo Prophet, Gran?” I can barely stay seated. I bet she thought I was awesome.

“I think you need to study for exams,” she says.

“But—”

“And you need to keep your yo-yos out of the school.” Gran coughs hard, holding her chest till she catches her breath. She purses her lips and shuts her eyes.

Then I realize how hard she’s been working to hold it together for me—trying to be strong because she thinks I messed up, even though I didn’t. It’s all because of Sasha. I grit my teeth, reaching into my pocket to finger a yo-yo.

The subway rattles across a track connection, rocking us in our seats. The car smells faintly of garbage and sweat. Across from us, a tough guy dressed in gangsta gear sits next to a businessman in a suit. They look as mismatched as Gran and me.

“I have no problem with you playing this Yo-Yo Prophet.” Gran’s eyes open. “And I don’t believe you’d harm a young girl on purpose. But you do need to be more careful. You need to keep those yo-yos under control.”

“That’s what I do best.” I can’t help but smile. “No worries, Gran.”

Gran studies me with her eyebrows raised before she leans her head against the window again and closes her eyes.

When we get home, we head straight upstairs, skipping the shop and the status report from Van. Gran falls into bed. In the living room, I notice that someone—probably Van—has started to pack Gran’s collection of plates. The walls are mostly bare, with round patches of unfaded paint to mark where each plate once hung. I guess we really are moving, even if we haven’t found a place yet.

I switch on the TV and flip to the local channel, wondering when Urban-TV News will come on. A boring talk show is playing, so I press Mute and stare at the screen. When I can’t sit still any longer, I pace the room, weaving among the half-filled packing boxes, thinking through what happened at school. Not my typical day— that’s for sure. First I get suspended, and then I’m a celebrity, a hero. The kind of guy that always gets the girl. As if.

Rozelle says it’s only the beginning.

My hands are jittery. I pull out my yo-yos and replay my favorite moves.

When there’s a knock at the door, I hurry to open it before the noise wakes Gran. Lucy and Franco, Gran’s workers from the shop, are outside. Lucy’s standing on the metal landing, her hands clutched together. Franco is one step behind her, shifting uncomfortably from foot to foot.

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