Too Much Drama Read online

  June eyed the rolls of toilet paper. “Whatever you’re doing, I want to go,” she said. She looked excited.

  May crossed her arms across her chest. “I wouldn’t have gotten to do something like this when I was her age.”

  “Beauty of being the youngest,” said June like it was already decided she was coming along, which I guess it was. I was pretty sure Mom and Dad wouldn’t approve of me teaching my little sisters how to roll a house, but they’d be happy I was taking them both for ice cream.

  So we all left for Krystal’s house. When we got there, Billy and I showed Sophie, May, and June how to throw the rolls up high over the branches of trees so that the toilet paper would hang down on both sides. Sophie tried throwing a roll up into a tree a few times but gave up because she wasn’t very good at it. Neither was June. May, on the other hand, was great.

  “You’re a natural!” said Billy.

  Even though I know May was scared out of her mind, it was easy to see she was as proud of her rolling skills as she is her soccer skills.

  Normally when we roll a house, Billy and I wear all black and don’t say a word. But since the whole point was that we wanted Krystal to hear us, we were laughing and talking as we rolled.

  “What if Krystal’s parents come outside and we get in trouble?” asked May.

  “When Krystal hears the commotion, trust me, she’ll be the first one out of her house,” I said. I knew there was a chance that might not happen, but fortunately, it did.

  Krystal came outside a few minutes after we started. “I see you!” she said.

  May started to panic. “C’mon!” she said. “Let’s go!”

  But I motioned for May to follow Billy and me. Sophie and June came too. We walked, with May in tow, right up to where Krystal was standing on her front porch. Billy was the self-appointed spokesperson. “Was there a problem on the soccer field today?” he asked, looping an arm around May.

  Krystal looked slightly horrified, like she might vomit. “I don’t know what you’re talking about it.” But clearly, she knew exactly what Billy was talking about.

  Billy gave Krystal his best fake politician smile (which is very good). “I heard there was a problem,” he said gesturing to May. “And I want to make sure there won’t be anymore. Understand?”

  Krystal nodded.

  “Great!” said Billy. Then he handed Krystal a half-used roll of toilet paper, and we left. As May, June, Sophie, Billy, and I walked to the Cold Shack for ice cream, we were all in good moods.

  “You sounded like a mobster,” said Sophie.

  We were all laughing as Sophie imitated the way he’d talked to Krystal. When we got home, May came into my room and thanked me. I was happy having done something to help my sister. I think Billy and Sophie were too. I can’t help but think that it’s really sad and pretty stupid that what started with a backpack full of toilet paper and a desire to help May led to all the problems with Brynn.

  10:32 p.m.

  Thinking about Brynn

  I didn’t know what would happen at school today, after my “breakup” with Brynn yesterday. The good news is that not much did.

  I saw Brynn, dressed in black, looking morose, but she didn’t look at me. In fact, she looked everywhere but at me. I was worried all day that it would be awkward when we got to dance practice. I guess I should be grateful to Ms. Baumann, who by chance put us in different groups.

  I don’t know why, but I keep thinking about the play kitchen Brynn had in her room when she was little. I can still picture it perfectly. It was light pink and yellow, and it had an oven, stove, refrigerator, and cabinet all built in. I thought it was beautiful.

  When we were in kindergarten and first grade, we’d make pretend tea parties with all the little dishes and plastic foods. As we got older, we’d play restaurant and make up menus and elaborate dishes. We named our restaurant Choco-Cherry. I never liked the name, but Brynn said we were at her house, so she got to pick it.

  Brynn also got to decide which dishes and foods we would use and what we would put on the menus we made. I remember telling her one day that I wanted to decide what we would serve, and she told me that’s not how the game was played. I went along with what she wanted, and we kept playing.

  I’m sure I thought it was no big deal then, but Brynn was always the one in charge. This sounds very high school English class, but I think it’s a metaphor for the demise of our friendship. It worked as long as I played by Brynn’s rules.

  I guess it has just taken me a very long time to come to that realization.

  10:47 p.m.

  Text with Sophie

  Sophie: Can I wear the sweatshirt you left at Gaga’s?

  Me: Why would you want to?

  Sophie: I love it.

  Me: It looks like a dishrag.

  Sophie: I’m wearing it inside out.

  Me: Sounds worse than right-side out.

  Sophie: It’s super cute!

  Me: You can have it.

  Sophie: You’ll want it back.

  Me: It’s yours.

  Sophie: It has your name in it.

  Sophie: Literally. Camp name tag I think.

  Me:

  Sophie:

  I couldn’t help smiling as I put my phone away for the night. Sophie could easily be the kind of person who is intimidating—she’s beautiful and sophisticated, and she speaks fluent French. But then she does little things, like taking an old sweatshirt and turning it into something she thinks is cute and then wanting to give it back to me because she thinks I’ll like it. Stuff like that makes her easy to be friends with.

  I don’t want to name names, but not everyone belongs in that category.

  Something’s wrong. I didn’t get my way.

  —Glinda, Wicked

  Wednesday, December 3, 7:48 p.m.

  In my room

  Bad day at dance

  Brynn showed up to school this morning wearing all black, and dark sunglasses between classes, for the third day in a row. She was making a statement. I ignored it all day, but when we were in the bathroom in the gym changing for dance, she was actually making moaning sounds like she was in pain.

  I felt I had to ask. “Are you OK?”

  “Obviously not,” she said. Then she looked at me like it was physically painful to be in the same room with me. “You know you’re the last person I feel like talking to.” She paused, letting her words sink in. When she continued, her voice was lower like she wanted only me to hear what she was about to say.

  “I’m going to apologize to Billy for what happened. I don’t really think I did anything wrong, but I know he was upset.” She paused again. “I’m the kind of person who is willing to take responsibility when I do something that upsets someone else.”

  The implication was that I wasn’t. I didn’t even bother to defend myself.

  Brynn continued. “Billy just needed some time,” she said. “I’m sure we’re going to end up back together. I thought you should know.”

  It was my turn to say something, but what could I have said? Good luck. I hope it works out. Keep me posted. There was nothing I could say that she’d want to hear. I pressed my lips together in silence.

  Apparently, Brynn interpreted my silence as smugness.

  “You know, just because you went out with Billy first doesn’t mean you know him better than I do.” She scrunched her face up as she talked, which made her eyes seem smaller but wider than usual. She looked like a garden snake. “I guess you’ve forgotten that the reason he broke up with you is because you cheated on him.” She practically spat the words at me. Then she turned and walked out of the bathroom.

  And the award for most unlikeable former best friend goes to . . . Brynn Stephens.

  9:42 p.m.

  Text from Sophie

  Sophie: Do you have an elf hat?

  Me: Fresh out.

  Me: ???

  Sophie: It’s for the assembly.

  Me: Still fresh out.

  Soph
ie: I’ll have to make one.

  Me: Why don’t you ask Santa to bring you one?

  Sophie: No time. Need it tomorrow.

  Me: Wish I could help. Sorry!

  Me:

  Sophie: Gaga to the rescue. She has green felt.

  Sophie:

  Thursday, December 4, 1:17 p.m.

  Study Hall

  Brynn is in the WORST MOOD.

  I’ve been sitting here trying to figure out why. I thought maybe it had something to do with the assembly this morning.

  SGA put on a skit to remind people to bring in toys for the holiday toy drive. Billy was Santa, Marcy Franklin was Mrs. Claus, and the rest of the student government reps were elves. Nothing happened in the skit that should have upset Brynn. I could see why she’d be mad if Sophie had been Billy’s fictional wife, but that role went to Marcy, who is not only a senior but has also been dating Jeff Ingraham, another senior and SGA president, for the last two years.

  I don’t know why Brynn’s so upset, but she’s sitting two rows in front of me, and I can literally sense her bad mood from where I’m sitting. She keeps grabbing notebooks out of her backpack and shoving them back in. She actually grunted at one point, got up, and threw a mechanical pencil in the trash. I guess she pushed so hard she broke it.

  The study hall monitor, Ms. Cunningham, asked if she was OK. Her response:

  “Great, just great.”

  Which means she’s anything but.

  9:52 p.m.

  Talked to Billy

  Now I know why Brynn was in such a foul mood, and for a change, it wasn’t because of anything I did. Billy told me that after the assembly, Brynn went up to him and asked if they could talk.

  He told me Brynn said she was really sorry about what happened and wanted to know if they could get back together.

  “What did you say?” I asked Billy.

  “I told her I couldn’t talk about it right then because I only had four minutes to change out of my Santa suit before my next class.”

  I knew there was nothing funny about the situation, but I couldn’t help smiling at the image of Brynn trying to have a serious conversation with Billy while he was wearing a red suit and fake beard.

  “What happened next?”

  “She told me we didn’t need to talk about it and that it was a simple yes or no. I told her it wasn’t that simple, and she got mad.” He paused. “I was standing there dressed like Santa, trying to get to my next class on time, and she was yelling at me about how I’m selfish and don’t care about her feelings. Everyone who walked by was looking at us like we were crazy.”

  It sounded like a scene from a bad movie. I would be laughing if I saw it on TV, but unfortunately, it really happened.

  “So what did you do?”

  “I told her we were done. Then I walked off, changed clothes, and went to class.”

  That explains Brynn’s bad mood.

  10:07 p.m.

  Considering things from another perspective

  I don’t want to keep thinking about Brynn, but I’m having a hard time not thinking about her. How do you just stop thinking about someone you’ve been best friends with since kindergarten? Even though I’ve had it with her, we’ve been friends so long, I feel like I should try to put myself in her shoes.

  She’s mad at me because she thinks the problems with Billy started when Sophie moved to town. She thinks Sophie likes Billy, and I didn’t do anything to stop it. But the truth is that even if Sophie does like him, what am I supposed to do? Tell her to feel differently? Refuse to be friends unless she changes her mind?

  Brynn knows it doesn’t work that way, so it’s kind of unfair that she’s mad at me because of how Sophie might (or might not) be feeling.

  For that matter, how does Sophie feel about Billy? And vice versa? When Sophie first moved here, Billy was really sweet about her being the new girl. He introduced her to a lot of people, especially during the Student Government campaign, which I have to admit was a little surprising since he was running against her.

  It was even more surprising that Sophie ran for SGA. In her old school in New York, she’d never done anything like that. I know how upset Brynn was when Sophie and Billy were elected as the ninth grade reps.

  But still, just because Billy was nice to the new girl or they do the same activity doesn’t mean they like each other. Honestly, I think a big part of Brynn’s issue is that Sophie is so pretty. Brynn is too. She has a body like a model. But there’s something special about Sophie. A lot of people would say it’s her long dark hair and pale skin. But I think what makes her so threatening to Brynn is that Sophie’s so interesting and different.

  So if I’m looking at this from Brynn’s perspective (which given how she’s acted lately, isn’t easy to do), I get why she’s worried. Billy broke up with her, and she thinks it’s because of Sophie. Still, that doesn’t give her license to act like a crazy-jealous person.

  OMG! I think I’m overlooking a critical point.

  Maybe Brynn isn’t acting.

  Sometimes the smallest things take up the most room in your heart.

  —Winnie-the-Pooh

  Friday, December 5, 7:57 p.m.

  Pondering important questions

  I keep wondering why Billy broke up with Brynn. I mean, I know why he said he broke up with her. But I wonder if there’s a little more to it. Does he like Sophie? And for that matter, does Sophie like Billy?

  I was asking myself those questions all afternoon, and with good reason.

  After school, Sophie and I went to watch May’s soccer game. Mom and Dad had told me earlier in the week that neither of them were going to be able to go, so I’d planned in advance for Sophie to come with me. I hadn’t told anyone else we were going, which is why I was surprised when Billy showed up.

  “Hey,” I said. “How’d you know May had a game?”

  “Sophie told me,” he said as he sat down beside her. He passed us the bag of peanuts he had. I took a handful, cracked one open and popped it in my mouth. Then I looked at Sophie.

  “I must have mentioned it at the SGA meeting this morning.” She shrugged like it was no big deal. But as she dug into the peanut bag, I noticed she blushed a little.

  An awkward silence settled between the three of us, and I felt like it was my job to fill it up. “I’m glad you came,” I said to Billy.

  He seemed relieved I’d said something, and turned his attention to the game. “Wow! May is really good,” he said as we all watched her dribble the ball down the length of the field.

  “It’s hard to believe we share the same DNA.”

  Billy laughed. “I didn’t say it!”

  But we both knew that’s what he was thinking. Other than dance, I’ve always been the last one picked to play on any team.

  As we watched the game and ate peanuts, we joked around about my lack of ball-handling skills and the fact that Krystal, who had seen us sitting in the stands, hadn’t given May so much as one dirty look today, even when May kicked her second goal of the game.

  But as Billy and I laughed and talked and ate, I noticed Sophie was staying quiet. When she finished munching, she brushed the stray shells from her lap and then tucked her hair behind her ears. She shook it loose, then tucked it back again like she couldn’t decide which way it looked better. It was weird because she’s almost never quiet, and she’s always confident about the way she looks.

  We all cheered when May’s team won the game. Then Billy said he had to go. When he told us bye, Sophie thanked him for the peanuts.

  “Sure,” said Billy.

  “Seriously, they were really good,” Sophie said. “I love peanuts.”

  Billy smiled at her. “Me too.”

  “Cool,” said Sophie, like it meant something that they both like peanuts. I wanted to raise my hand and say I like peanuts too, but I didn’t.

  While we were waiting for May to finish her postgame team meeting so we could walk her home, I brought up what happened. “You we
re kind of making a big deal about the peanut thing. It seemed like you were acting a little weird around Billy,” I said.

  “I was?” Sophie’s hands flew to her cheeks. She was blushing again.

  “No big deal.” It wasn’t, and I didn’t want her to be self-conscious. “I don’t know, I guess it made me wonder if you like Billy.” I bumped my shoulder lightly into hers and tried to keep my voice sing-songy. “I mean, do you?” Finally, the question was out.

  “Of course I like Billy,” said Sophie. “Everyone likes Billy.”

  I raised a brow at her. She knew what I meant, and that wasn’t it.

  I cleared my throat and tried again. “I guess what I’m asking is if you like him in a different way than everyone else?”

  Sophie laughed. “That’s impossible for me to answer. I don’t know how everyone else likes him.” It was the first thing Sophie had said all day that sounded like Sophie.

  She hadn’t answered my question, but the answer seemed pretty clear.

  11:03 p.m.

  I can’t sleep. I can’t stop thinking how weird it will be if Billy and Sophie end up together. First, I went out with him at the beginning of eighth grade. Brynn was next, this past summer. Then Sophie? Technically there’s nothing wrong with it, but it just has that weird, backwoods, all-in-the-family sort of feel. Plus, there’s no telling what Brynn will do if they start going out. She might implode. Or explode. Or go away to boarding school. I can’t be sure. Aside from my own experience, I have no idea what people do when their ex starts going out with someone else. Actually, I do. It happens all the time on TV, and it can get pretty ugly. OK. I’m getting way ahead of myself here. Sophie hasn’t even said she likes Billy. Oops, correction.

  Everyone likes Billy.

  Saturday, December 6, 10:30 p.m.

  In bed

  Mentally replaying my day

  Leo called last night and asked me if I wanted to go holiday shopping today. I hadn’t seen him since he came to watch me dance my solo the night of the dance show. But I love to shop for the holidays, so I told him I’d love to go. Plus, it seemed like a great use of my day, as opposed to thinking about the Brynn-Sophie-Billy triangle.