Snapstreak by Suzanne Weyn

Author:Suzanne Weyn
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

Lulu: Okay?

Vee: Idk. Head hurts.

The pain gets even worse as I stare at my phone.

“Maybe you should put that phone down for now,” Dad says. “Just relax.”

A million reasons why I have to be on the phone pop into my head but I don’t have the energy to argue. “Okay,” I say, setting my phone aside. Ms. Pate returns with the doctor. She says she’ll be going back to school now that Dad is there. She says she’ll call Dad later to see how I’m doing. Dad shakes her hand as she leaves and thanks her for all she’s done for me. I thank her, too.

“We want to watch you overnight,” the doctor reports after Ms. Pate has gone. “We’d like you to spend the night in the hospital for observation. Were going to run a few more tests.”

“Am I all right?” I ask. “The words on my cell phone got all shaky.”

“We’re pretty sure you have a concussion,” the doctor tells us. I’ve heard about concussions before but I’m not a hundred percent sure what it means.

“Is that like amnesia?” I ask.

Dad squints his eyes and looks at me strangely.

“You know,” I say, “like people get on TV.”

“No, it’s not amnesia. Your brain got rattled around in your skull when the ball hit you,” the doctor says. “Then when you fell backwards, your head got hit a second time.”

That explains why it hurts in both places. “I’ll be okay, though, right?” I ask.

“Yes, but you have to rest.”

That’s fine with me. All I want to do is sleep right now.

“You’re going to have to take some time off from school,” the doctor says. No problem there. It gives me more time to think of Snaps to send Gwynneth.

“We’re going to want you to rest your brain and your eyes,” the doctor adds.

“How do I do that?” I ask.

The doctor nods toward the phone I hold in my hands. “The first thing is no electronics for a while.”

“Wha . . . What?” I sputter.

“That’s right,” says the doctor. “No laptop, no tablet, and no phone. It’s too great a strain on your mind and your eyes. The key word here is rest. You need lots of sleep and relaxation.”

“I can’t do that,” I say. “I’m in a Snapstreak competition. My entire school is depending on me to keep the streak going. We have to win this free concert by BBD.”

“What’s BBD?” the doctor asks.

Is she kidding?! How could she not know BBD?! “Boys Being Dudes,” I tell her.

“Sorry that you’ll miss the dudes,” the doctor says. “The electronic screen is very hard on your eyes. Doing all that typing takes more focus than you might realize. I suggest that you even restrict your TV watching.”

What am I supposed to do? Stare at the walls all day? More important than that is my Snapstreak. Everyone is counting on me. Gwynneth is counting on me. “But the concert,” I say, my voice getting high and whiny.

“Your health is more important than some concert,” the doctor says.

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