From A To Z

Chapter 3

Tuesday, May 4

The next morning the house still smelled of pizza. By the time I made it out of my room, my mom had already left for work.

My lunch box was on the counter, ready to be ferried away. I braced myself and peeled off the lid. The contents were a soggy lump, origins unknown. I took a whiff. Quinoa and grapes, something sweet - maybe honey - for dressing. A salad-dessert combo. Mom should take the idea to the Shark Tank. Save time on meal prep and cut the number of dirty dishes by half. I found the pizza leftovers in the fridge and threw a slice on top. Now it was a three-course meal.

By noon the news of Sienna's dramatic setback was official. She was holding her head high and spinning it as if it had been her decision. She chose to step down from the lead in order to focus on her grades. She was already looking at colleges and had to make her GPA levitate closer to 4.0...

I listened to her tell it quite convincingly over lunch. Victor and Cody were sold. Pity Mr. Dixon couldn't see her now; he would have been stumped by her talent.

Next to me, Victor was mutilating a burrito, not to scrutinize its contents but so he could inhale it faster. I had already finished the pizza and was hunting down the grapes which unlike the quinoa were edible. The blue of the sky outside was so intense I wanted to go lay on the grass and soak up the sun.

Finished with her story, Sienna was toying with her bracelet, looking bored.
"Want my brownie, Sienna?" asked Cody. His cowlick was cute and he could be funny on occasion but didn't stand a chance with her. The last guy she dated was a senior. Still Sienna didn't mind him trying.
"Thanks," she said and moved the dessert onto her tray. She unwrapped the brownie cautiously and took a bite.

"Oh, a guy in my English class got sent to the principal's office," she said, her teeth stained from the chocolate.
"That's a first," said Cody. It was common knowledge that Dixon got along with everyone; his students loved him. "What happened?"
Sienna was pleased to have the scoop.
"Dixon asked him to take off his hat and he gave him some lip."

"Who are you talking about?" I asked although I was pretty sure I already knew.
"Didn't catch his name but he's got these eyes..."
"Oh, you mean gingerbread man?" snickered Cody.
I kicked him under the table. My sneaker connected with his sheen and he yelped.
"Why did you do that for!?"
"Could you be any more insensitive?" I hissed.
"Why? What did I say?"
"Cody!" I slammed my palm on the table.
"I'm just saying what he looks like. It's not offensive or anything." He turned to Sienna for support but she was too busy finishing his brownie.
"Just cut it out, will ya?" I threw my fork down.

Cody rolled his eyes at me.
"Relax, it's just a joke."
"Not funny, man," said Victor under his breath. That did it.

"Sorry," said Cody with an exaggerated shrug and pretended to be distracted by his phone.
"Think I know who you're talking about, Sienna," said Victor. "Met him at basketball practice yesterday. He's from Seattle. Will be joining the team."
Cody opened his mouth but decided against it.
"Is he any good?" asked Sienna.
Victor shrugged, "Guess so."

I wondered if Victor knew that his dad had asked my mom out. If he didn't yet, he was bound to find out soon but I didn't want him to hear it from me. What if it was the Sheriff's first date since his wife passed? Would Victor hold that against me? He seemed to like my mom but that could change on a dime if he thought she was trying to take his mom's place. But I was getting ahead of myself. With a bit of luck, the whole dating thing would be over as quickly as it began.

"Oh, there he comes," said Victor and I turned around expecting to see his father materialize in the high school cafeteria but he was talking about Arlo. My hand shot up reflexively but before I could wave and embarrass myself, his green eyes flicked over my face and over to Sienna's without a hint of recognition. I twisted my arm in an awkward arch and pretended that I was stretching.