The bell rang, and Mr. Roslyn walked into the room, shutting the door behind him. As it shut with a loud crack, he strolled toward his desk and picked up a stack of stapled papers. He gave a few to each person who sat in the front row, telling them to pass the quizzes back.
He coughed, and then said, “Okay, class, as I hinted yesterday, here’s a quiz about Hatchet. Please close your books, take out a pencil, and we’ll start when everyone has the quiz.” Mr. Roslyn crossed his arms and waited for everyone to prepare for the quiz. Grace watched as he looked around the room. She squeezed her eyes shut, trying desperately to calm herself, and opened them as Mr. Roslyn said, “All right. Now that you’re all ready, let’s begin.”
As she scanned the test, Grace thought she knew the answers to some of the questions for sure, and she was pretty confident about some of the others, but she wasn’t positive about any of them. It’s okay, Grace thought. I can do this.
She answered the first couple of questions easily, but then got stuck on an essay question about something that had happened at the beginning of the book. Tapping her pencil against her thigh nervously, Grace tried to remember the answer. After a few minutes of thinking, she gave up, hoping to have time to come back to the question after finishing the rest of the test.
By the time the bell rang, signaling the beginning of lunch, Grace reluctantly brought her quiz to Mr. Roslyn’s desk, convinced she’d failed it entirely.
Instead of eating in the cafeteria, like she normally would, Grace took her lunch to a quiet corner of the school-yard so that she could read alone. After the trauma of her pop quiz, she wanted some time to herself. She pulled out her lunch bag and arranged the sandwich, chips, apple, and cranberry juice around her for easy access, and then reached into her backpack for her copy of The Pinballs.
As she munched on her lunch, Grace tried to read a few pages of her book. She liked the characters in the story right away, but she was having a hard time paying attention to the plot of the book. After realizing she was reading the same paragraph over and over for almost ten minutes, she shut the book in frustration and simply finished her lunch, staring off into the trees that circled the school.
When she’d eaten everything her mom had packed that morning, Grace shoved the wrappers and apple core back into the lunch bag and walked back into the school toward the cafeteria, where she knew she’d find her friends.
But as she passed Mr. Roslyn’s classroom, she stopped in her tracks. Through the small rectangular window set into the wooden door, she could see Mr. Roslyn working at his desk, grading papers while he ate a sandwich.
Grace tentatively walked closer to the door and raised her hand to knock. When she rapped gently at the door, she saw Mr. Roslyn look up. When he saw her, he smiled and motioned for her to come in.
Grace pushed the door open and walked in.
“How can I help you, Miss Matthews?” Mr. Roslyn said, putting down his red pen and pushing the stack of ungraded papers away from him. He shoved his chair back a bit and crossed his arms over his chest.
“Hi, Mr. Roslyn,” Grace said. “Um . . . do you have a few minutes to talk?”
Mr. Roslyn uncrossed his arms and gestured to the closest desk. “Of course. Have a seat!”
Grace sat down, placing her backpack carefully next to her feet. “I wanted to talk to you about reading,” she said.
Mr. Roslyn smiled warmly. “One of my favorite things,” he said. “But I know not everyone feels that way,” he added, leaning back in his chair. “One of the things I’ve learned as a teacher is that if you really work hard, and really put your mind to it, you’ll be able to do anything. Grace, I can already tell you’re a fine student, especially when you really put your mind to something. I talked to your parents a few days ago, and they told me you’ve been studying a lot this year, and that’s great. Just keep working at it, and you’ll be fine.”
“That isn’t what’s wrong,” Grace said quietly.
“Is it that you don’t like reading?” Mr. Roslyn prompted.
“No! I like to read!” Grace protested. “I just . . . I’ve been having some trouble.”
Mr. Roslyn frowned. “What’s the trouble?” he asked.
“Well,” Grace began, looking down at her hands, “I have trouble concentrating. I don’t mind reading, but it’s hard to get into it.” She looked up at her teacher. “Do you ever have a hard time concentrating?” she asked.
“Absolutely, Grace,” he replied with a smile. “In fact, when I was your age I had a terrible time reading.”
“So what changed?” Grace asked.
Mr. Roslyn frowned thoughtfully. Grace noticed that when he seemed to be thinking, his cheeks turned a bit redder than normal—and they were pretty red to begin with. “Hmmm,” he said, still thinking. Then his eyes lit up.
“I know what it was!” he exclaimed. He reached into his desk drawer and pulled out a tattered book.
“Reading made you like reading?” Grace asked skeptically.
“No,” Mr. Roslyn said. “This book made me like reading.”
He displayed the book’s cover, and Grace gasped. “Peter Pan?” she shrieked. “Did you know I was in Peter Pan this summer in my camp play?”
Mr. Roslyn smiled widely, displaying rows of sparkling white teeth. “I did not! Who knew there was a thespian among us?”
“Yeah, I played Wendy!” Grace said happily. “So . . . is it your favorite book?”
“No. Not my favorite. But it was once, before I went to college. In college, I read a book called Ulysses. Well, in college I read a lot of books, but that one was my favorite ever since. I guess I have a lot of favorites.” Mr. Roslyn paused. “Grace, would you like to borrow my copy of Peter Pan?”
Grace drew in her breath. “I’d love to!” she exclaimed. “Thanks, Mr. Roslyn!”
“Not as homework, you understand,” he cautioned. “For fun.” He emphasized the word fun by pointing his pencil at Grace.
“Got it, Mr. Roslyn,” Grace said. Even though the thought of extra reading sounded anything but fun. She forced herself to look enthusiastic. At that moment, the bell rang, signaling the end of the lunch period.
“You hurry along to class. And let me know how you like the book,” Mr. Roslyn said. “And try to make a stab at The Pinballs, too . . . I think you’ll like it more than you think you will.”
Grace stood up and slung her backpack around her shoulders. “Thanks, Mr. Roslyn,” she said shyly, before heading to the door. Even if she didn’t do as well on the quiz as she would have liked, she knew that she’d tried her hardest and that her teacher was on her side.
Posted by: Grace
Subject: Reading
Hi, Lakeview girls! I’m so excited about our book club—I think it’s really going to help me in my English class. Plus, my English teacher gave me a copy of Peter Pan to read for fun. But I still have to read Pinballs for homework. So I think I’ve heard from everyone about being in the club, except Chelsea. Does anyone know if she’s been checking the blog? Chelsea, if you’re reading this, let me know if you want to join!
Have you guys ever felt really different from your friends? I have this new friend, Lara, in drama club. She’s super smart. She went to this really elite private school. But I really like her a lot, and I know she likes me, too. We hung out last weekend and I want to hang out with her again this weekend. But I feel like when she discovers the truth about me, that I’m not great in school, she won’t want to be my friend anymore. Does anyone have any advice?
Anyway, we start Pinballs on Monday . . . I plan to have the first chapter read by that day. Hope some of you will, too! I’ve got to get back to drama club—we’re on a break, and I just wanted to say hi!
Love,
Grace
Posted by: Sarah
Re: Reading
You’ll love Peter Pan (the book), Grace! It’s different from the play, but it’s still really magical and cool.
Love ya! Sarah
; Posted by: Jessie
Re: Reading
Hey, Grace, I have a friend like that, sort of. She’s really good at sports, and all of her friends are on the basketball team and stuff. We’re best friends because we live in the same neighborhood. We didn’t even go to elementary school together. But now that we’re in the same middle school, I was really worried that she wouldn’t want to be my friend anymore, since we do such different things. You’re really lucky to have a friend with the same interests, and I can’t imagine that Lara would change her mind about you just because of a couple of bad grades. After all, she likes YOU, right? Not your report card! :) Molly and I are still best friends, even though I’m not the best athlete ever. So I don’t think Lara will care. (And if she did, she wouldn’t be very cool anyway, right?)
KIT! Jess
Natalie > WEDNESDAY
When the bell rang at the end of the school day, Natalie was excited for her skating date with Kyle . . . but totally nervous, too. In fact, she’d been getting more and more jittery all day.
She’d worn her favorite jeans and the red top she’d bought with Hannah, and she knew it was a pretty cute combo. So she wasn’t surprised that Kyle blushed when he walked up to her at her locker after school.
“Uh, hey, Nat,” he said. He had his rollerblades slung over one shoulder and his backpack over the other. “You ready?”
“Definitely!” Natalie said, trying to make her voice sound steadier than she felt. “Let me just grab my stuff, and I’ll be ready to go.”
“Awesome,” Kyle replied. They walked together through the hallway of the school toward the big entrance doors. Natalie couldn’t believe she was on her first real date. I will remember this date for the rest of my life, she thought.
Near the entrance, Natalie saw Hannah standing with a couple of other girls. She smiled at her friend, but Hannah just shot her back a strange look. There was no pretending that it was a mistake or something Nat had imagined—obviously Hannah was grouchy that Natalie was going on her date.
Kyle noticed the exchange, and leaned over to Natalie. “That’s weird,” he said. “Isn’t Hannah, like, your best friend?”
“Yeah,” Natalie said. Though these days, I’m not too sure. She pushed her hair back out of her eyes. “Let’s go!” she said, trying to sound more excited. This was her first date, after all, and she wasn’t going to let anything ruin it.
Not even losing her best friend.
As Kyle and Natalie walked toward Central Park, they talked about school and about their friends. Kyle told Natalie that over the summer he’d started hanging out with kids from his neighborhood instead of just friends from school. “That’s cool,” Nat said. “I made a lot of friends this summer.”
“Really? At camp?” Kyle asked, surprised.
Natalie laughed. “Why do you sound so shocked? I spent eight weeks living in a tiny cabin with a bunch of other girls. Obviously we’d be friends.”
Kyle blushed. “Well, right,” he said. “I guess I’m just surprised because, you know, um, I remember you weren’t too excited about camp when you first told me about it.”
“No, I wasn’t,” Natalie said. She smiled, remembering the first few days at camp, when she’d hated getting up early, hated being all sweaty, and hated being out in nature. But she’d grown to really love Camp Lakeview. “I mean, yeah, I missed New York. But . . . I don’t know. I guess eleven-year-old girls have more in common than you’d think, no matter where they’re from.”
“And eleven-year-old boys,” Kyle said quietly.
Natalie knew he was talking about Simon. Simon who had finally called her the other night and left a message—though they’d been playing phone tag and still hadn’t spoken. But what could she say to make Kyle feel better? She did like Simon—and she liked Kyle, too. Boys, she thought. Are they really worth it?
They reached the bottom of Central Park at 59th Street. Kyle shaded his eyes against the sun and looked for a bench where they could put their Rollerblades on. “Hey, over here,” he said.
“Do you want to get a Frappuccino first?” Natalie asked, looking longingly at a Starbucks across the avenue.
“Uh . . . not really,” Kyle said. “I don’t like coffee.” He started across the street toward the bench.
“Okay . . .” Natalie mumbled, surprised. Even if Kyle wasn’t into caffeine, wouldn’t it have been polite to take her anyway? Well, I’m new to this dating thing, she thought, deciding to be a good sport. She hoisted her backpack and followed Kyle across the street.
They sat on a stone bench and changed into their Rollerblades, shoving their shoes into their bags. Then they started skating slowly through the park, winding their way along the paths. Natalie loved Central Park, especially in the early autumn, when the grass was bright green, the sky was a brilliant blue, the trees were just beginning to change colors, and everyone in the park seemed to be in a great mood as they lounged on blankets, Rollerbladed or ran, pushed baby strollers, and played with dogs. It was Hannah and Natalie’s favorite place to come, any time of the year, but especially during the first month of school. For as long as Nat could remember, they’d made a point of coming to the park a few times a week. When they were young, they’d come with their mothers, but now, they’d go alone. And they’d always get a Frappuccino, or ice cream, or lemonade. It wasn’t that Natalie minded being there without Hannah, and with Kyle. She just wished that Hannah wasn’t mad at her.
In fact, Hannah being mad at her was enough to put Natalie in a bad mood. I can’t believe this, she thought. I’ve been looking forward to my first date for, like, my whole life. She decided to put on a happy face. “So, Kyle,” she said. “What did you do this summer?”
“Oh, you know, that acting school,” he said, turning to look at Nat.
“Right, duh,” Natalie replied. “Was it fun?”
“Yeah, it was really fun. I learned a lot.”
“Cool,” Nat said.
“So, you had a boyfriend this summer, huh?” Kyle asked quietly.
Natalie whipped her head to look at him. “What?”
“Simon, or whatever. The guy Hannah was talking about.”
“He wasn’t my boyfriend.”
“Oh. Okay. Do you still talk to him?” Natalie thought she heard a little jealousy in Kyle’s voice.
“I haven’t talked to him since camp,” she said honestly. But she felt slightly annoyed that she was being forced to defend herself.
“Oh, cool,” Kyle replied, looking visibly less nervous.
They skated in semi-silence for a half an hour or so. And for the first time in her life, Natalie found herself not able to think of anything to say. Quick, Nat, come up with something, she thought. Anything. TV, sports, school. . . . But she couldn’t think of a thing. She didn’t know what the problem was, whether it was Kyle talking about Simon, or feeling bad about Hannah. I guess this Hannah thing is bothering me more than I expected, she admitted to herself. Or maybe dating’s just harder than I expected! She remembered, though, that she and Simon had never had trouble coming up with things to talk about at camp. Could it be that Natalie and Simon just had more . . . chemistry? Whatever that meant, anyway.
She noticed that they had skated in several loops to end up near the opening to 79th Street. “Hey, Kyle?” Natalie said tentatively. “I think I should head home.”
Kyle looked taken aback. “Oh . . . okay,” he said. “Um . . . do you feel sick or something?”
She checked her watch—it was only four thirty. “I . . . uh . . . promised my mom I’d be home by five,” she lied, crossing her fingers behind her back. “And it’ll take me a little while to get there,” she added for good measure.
“Okay,” Kyle said. He looked at the ground. “Thanks for hanging out, Nat,” he said. “I had a really good time.”
“Me too!” Natalie said, forcing a smile.
I did have a good time, she thought, as she skated down 79th Street toward Broadway. But I just want to get home. She was
already looking forward to maybe ordering in some Thai food and relaxing on the couch in front of a good Hilary Duff DVD . . . and not thinking about friends or boys or about growing up. Just being Natalie. Wasn’t that perfectly okay?
To: Alyssa11
From: NatalieNYC
Subject: Boys, etc . . . .
hey, alyssa. so, today i went on a date with kyle (you remember, i talked about him at camp). it was okay. i mean, it was fun—we went rollerblading in central park. but he’s not as cool as simon was. he didn’t want to stop and get frappuccinos . . . and i don’t know. it just wasn’t what i expected. he’s a fun guy, but . . . he kept asking me about simon. and i just didn’t feel like explaining anything. we didn’t have that much to say to each other. sort of a letdown.
i guess part of the problem is my friend hannah. she’s been really weird since i got back from camp. saying things about me having boyfriends, and just acting generally un-hannah-like. and the other day, when i was going off on my date with kyle, hannah got really awkward about it. it really put me in a terrible mood.
i’m having a good time in middle school, but i feel like everything’s different. hannah’s different, or else she just thinks i am, and instead of just hanging out with someone, you have to be their girlfriend. it’s too much pressure. it makes me want to curl up in my room—with some fashion magazines, of course—and not come out till high school.
the thing is, hannah thinks i shouldn’t have a boyfriend, much less two boyfriends. but i don’t! i really like simon, and i like kyle—or, I did before today—but i’m not planning my wedding or anything. why can’t i hang out with both of them?
what should i do? should i call simon back? or should i just forget about boys altogether? and should i talk to hannah, or just let her get over it? AHHHH! i wish this was easier. who knew middle school would cause so many problems??
i’d better go—my mom just got home. i’m going to convince her to order in thai food.
TTYL Page 8