Milo and Marcos at the End of the World by Kevin Christopher Snipes

Author:Kevin Christopher Snipes
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: HarperCollins
Published: 2022-03-12T00:00:00+00:00

26

¿Adivina quién viene a cenar?

When I get home from school, I remember Marcos’s warning about his dad calling my parents and do my best to prepare. But as the evening progresses, it seems that my fear (for once) is unwarranted. Mom makes pork chops and green beans for dinner. Dad complains about his new electrician. At no point are there any new questions about the events of Friday night or the nature of my friendship with Marcos.

I should feel relieved but, staring at my half-eaten pork chop, all I can feel is guilt. It’s my fault Marcos is grounded. Yes, the lie that Van and I concocted might have spared him from being outed to his parents, but it still managed to get him in hot water. Meanwhile my sterling reputation is as spotless as ever.

Then again . . . Maybe I can use that reputation to my advantage.

I mean, maybe if the Prices saw Marcos and me together—if they saw he wasn’t taking advantage of me to sneak around with Van and that our friendship was genuine—then maybe they might go easier on their son.

Even if they don’t initially buy the idea of us as friends, they’ll have to concede it would be in their best interest to let Marcos spend time with me. After all, if they think I’m a Good Presbyterian Boy—and other than being totally hot for their son, I am a Good Presbyterian Boy—then who else could be better suited to bring their wayward child back into the fold?

As far as the Prices know, I could be exactly what Marcos needs.

At lunch the next day I run my idea by Marcos. I’ll find some reason to come over to his house so his parents can observe us hanging out in a purely platonic, completely innocent manner that will prove to them that our friendship hasn’t been some giant ruse to cover Marcos’s amorous exploits. They’ll see they’ve misjudged their son, that he’s a decent kid, and—who knows?—maybe they’ll even restore his lunch privileges.

“That’s never going to work,” Marcos sighs when I finish laying out my plan.

“Why not?”

“Because.”

“Because why? Give me one good reason.”

“Because I’m grounded and there’s no way my parents will let me invite anyone over.”

Huh. That’s a pretty good reason.

An hour later, though, a solution to that particular problem comes our way courtesy of Ms. Snook and our World Lit class. Everyone is instructed to partner up and then given a random scene from a Shakespeare play that we’re asked to rewrite in contemporary dialogue and then perform at the end of the week.

I for one can barely contain my excitement. Not that I’m looking forward to acting in front of my peers. That’ll be hell. But as a legitimate excuse to spend time with Marcos, it’s perfect.

“Your parents will have to let me come over now,” I whisper. “It’s fate! And homework!”

And I’m right. After some initial hesitation, the Prices relent, and I’m benevolently granted permission to come over the following afternoon to work on our assignment.

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.