Vidalia in Paris by Sasha Watson

Author:Sasha Watson
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Penguin Young Readers Group
Published: 2010-03-01T00:00:00+00:00

When Vidalia came outside after art history the next day, the girls had gathered around a table in the courtyard.

“So where are you off to this weekend?” Vidalia asked.

“Staying here,” said Becky. “Last weekend sort of did me in. Maybe I’ll try to do like you and absorb a little of the local culture. Do you want to go out Saturday night?”

“I can’t,” Vidalia said. “I’m going away, actually.”

She had called Julien the night before to tell him she could go down south after all. He’d been happy, and Vidalia was looking forward to the weekend with him and Margie.

“Again? You are such a hypocrite,” whined Becky. “Where to?”

“My friend Julien, the guy from the bookstore, asked me to go to the country,” she said. “To his parents’ house.”

“Wow, meeting the family,” she said. “What does Marco think of this?”

“Julien and I are just friends,” Vidalia said. “A bunch of people are going. Besides, Marco’s away this week, doing some work stuff.”

“What does he do, anyway?” asked Becky. “He doesn’t look that old.”

“He’s nineteen,” Vidalia said. “He dropped out of college to work in the art business. He’s trying to start a gallery.” Vidalia hardly noticed that she was repeating Marco’s lie even though she knew the truth now.

“Huh,” said Becky, looking at her for a long moment. “Well, Heather, do you want to go out on Saturday?”

Heather shrugged, her shoulders deeply tanned under her white tank top. She must have been lying out, Vidalia thought. She herself had never tanned. Her hair might be dark, but her skin was pale as milk.

“Sure,” Heather said. “What do you want to do?”

“I don’t know, go dancing?” said Becky. She looked across the courtyard at Kenji, who was sitting alone. “Kenji will come!” she said brightly.

“You haven’t spoken to him since Brittany, have you?” asked Heather, giving Becky a skeptical look.

“Well, no, but . . .” Becky paused and then turned firmly to Heather. “You’re right. It’s time to make up for my sins.”

She stood up and walked over to him.

Vidalia watched Becky position herself in front of Kenji, her hand on her hip, a sorrowful expression on her face. He looked up at her, squinting and suspicious.

“She’ll probably get him back, too,” Vidalia said. Becky amazed her with a totally unabashed determination to go after what she wanted. She waited for a reaction from Heather. They hadn’t talked since their moment at Versailles on Monday, but Becky’s behavior seemed like a safe subject.

Heather didn’t answer, though. Vidalia turned to her and saw that she’d leaned her head in her arms on the table in front of her.

“What’s up, Heather?” she asked. “Are you okay?”

Heather looked up at her, a blank expression on her face.

“I’m just . . . I don’t know,” she said, shaking her head. Tears came into her eyes. “I guess I’m not having such a great time here.”

“Why not?” Vidalia asked, surprised. “Don’t you like your family?” She remembered the happy-looking young couple who’d picked her up at the airport.

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