Emako Blue by Brenda Woods

Author:Brenda Woods [Woods, Brenda]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Juvenile Fiction, Girls & Women, Lifestyles, City & Town Life, Social Issues, Violence, Fiction, General
ISBN: 9781101099964
Google: d_SP4FaV-eoC
Amazon: 0142404187
Publisher: Speak
Published: 2005-12-28T18:30:00+00:00

Eddie

Two days before Christmas I went to find a present for my baby sister, Hortensia. It was crowded and people bumped into one another like it was expected.

“Eddie!” someone yelled behind me.

I turned around and saw Monterey and Emako.

“What up, Monterey? Hey, Emako,” I said.

“Hey, Eddie,” they responded at the same time, smiling.

“It’s crowded, huh?” I said.

“It’s two days before Christmas, what you expect?” Emako said. “You here to buy us some presents, Eddie?”

I looked at Emako with a question in my eyes.

Monterey answered. “She’s just clownin’ with you, Eddie. You know she’s crazy.”

She spoke to me, I thought. Finally!

“I forgot,” I said, laughing.

Emako stared at my Arizona State sweatshirt. “You goin’ to Arizona State?” she asked.

“I dunno yet. I applied to ten schools.”

“Which ones?” Monterey asked as we made our way slowly through the crowd.

“All outta state. I gotta get away from here before . . .”

“Before what?” Monterey asked.

“Before I wind up just another cholo like my brother.”

“I understand,” Emako said.

“What’s wrong with L.A.?” Monterey asked us.

“Not much if you live where you live,” Emako replied.

“Oh . . . it’s like that,” Monterey said. “I ain’t rich.”

“But you ain’t poor and you don’t havta worry about going outside your house after dark,” Emako said.

“Or gettin’ nervous whenever a car slows down,” I added.

“Be quiet, Eddie. You don’t even know where I live.” Monterey sounded like she was getting mad.

Emako turned to Monterey. “One day when you start to grow up, you might see how it really is, but right now you’re blinded by your perfect little world.”

“My perfect little world?”

“That’s what I said,” Emako replied, and walked on ahead, leaving me behind with Monterey. She stopped in front of a store called Forever 21 and peered in the window.

“Why you gotta talk to me like that!” Monterey raised her voice.

“Don’t get all mad,” Emako said, and entered the store.

Monterey looked pissed, so I tried to change the subject. “I gotta find a present for my baby sister, but I don’t know what to get her.”

“I didn’t know you had a little sister. How old is she?” Monterey asked.

“She’s nine.”

“Get her a gift certificate. That’s what I got Emako, but don’t tell her,” Monterey said.

“I won’t.”

“One day she’s gonna be famous,” Monterey said.

“Who?” I asked.

“Emako. Somebody called her mother from Aurora Records,” Monterey whispered like it was a secret. “They were at the Christmas concert.”

“Cool,” I replied.

“But her mama told ’em that Emako was gonna havta finish high school b’fore she signs any contract. Don’t say nuthin’ becuz I promised not to tell anyone.”

“I promise.” I looked at Monterey. Her eyes and hair were almost black. Her skin was the color of caramel. Her lips were shiny pink. Suddenly, I decided to do it. “I could call you if I had your phone number,” I said.

She looked surprised. “Huh?”

“I said, I could call you if I had your phone number.”

“Okay,” she said, and smiled at me really big, showing her braces. She took a pen and some paper out of her purse, wrote it down with a smiley face, and handed it to me.

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.