Rose Sees Red Read Online Free Page A

only person at this school worth drooling over,” Caitlin pronounced.
    At exactly the same time, Caitlin and Callisto each put one hand on her forehead and one hand on her heart, as though they were fainting.
    “What do you think, Rose? I bet you’re the kind of girl who thinks David Freddy is hot.”
    It was a fact that most girls who went to the High School of Performing Arts were either in the Elliot Waldman camp or the David Freddy camp. Some girls thought that DavidFreddy was the hottest thing since sliced bread. Personally, neither Elliot’s leather jacket nor David’s long hair did it for me.
    My idea of hot was a perfect extension. My idea of hot was a guy looking good in tights. My idea of hot was the way that Maurice Tibbets balanced without the pole on the subway, even though I didn’t like Maurice Tibbets like that.
    The first bell rang, so I didn’t have to answer Caitlin and Callisto. I just grabbed my bag and waved good-bye as I dashed into the building ahead of them.
    “See you in homeroom!” Caitlin called after me as she joined the other music kids rushing inside to tune their instruments.
    I raced upstairs to the dance department, peeled off my street clothes, and did a quick five-minute warm-up before Ms. Zina walked in with her limp and her cane and made us work up a sweat.
    In dance class no one spoke. Everyone was completely concentrated. There was only the music, the instructions from Ms. Zina, and the shapes our movements made.
    With the piano player tinkling away at the piano, and all of our feet making thumps and squeaks on the floor as we moved through the class, and the early morning sun streaming in through the windows, I felt as though I were in another world. Even though I always hung back a little, dance class was the only place that I felt good.
    All of my feelings went right into my body.
    I felt more like the real me when I danced—and that included the million little mistakes I made, which frustrated me. My arms felt floppy. My legs seemed weak. My extension was not high enough. My turn-out was terrible.
    Why do I have to suck so much? I thought.
    There were things that I could do to be better. I could show up early and warm up. I could ask questions about how I was supposed to make my body move like that. I could ask for help.
    But I didn’t.
    By the time homeroom came around, which was right before third period, I was exhausted. Telling myself I wasn’t good enough exhausted me.
    I threw my street clothes on quickly and headed for homeroom. There, I could have a moment to lay my head down on the desk and shut my eyes while the homeroom teacher, Ms. Lana, took attendance.
    “Here,” I mumbled when she called my name.
    “Hey, Rose,” Caitlin said, poking me back into the world. “You wanna come over to our house this Sunday for Halloween? Our parents are out of town.”
    “We could go egg a house or do shaving-cream bombs,” Callisto said.
    I am a girl who loses friends, I thought. I am a girl who can’t keep friends.
    I wanted to avoid disappointment.
    “It’ll be so great,” Callisto said.
    Despite the big sign on the bulletin board that said INSTRUMENTS MUST REMAIN IN CASES DURING ACADEMIC CLASS AND HOMEROOM , Caitlin had pulled out her guitar and was now strumming quietly.
    “No,” I said. “I’ve got to be home.”
    Callisto shrugged. “I told you so, Cait,” she said. “Well, how about pizza after school?”
    “Say yes. Say yes. Say yes,” Caitlin chimed in.
    I found myself thinking: When something is meant to be, it is just meant to be. You can put the brakes on as much as you want, but it will happen anyway.
    “Okay,” I said, looking down at my nail-bitten hands. “I can do pizza after school.”
    It was as simple as that. Once you say yes, after saying no for so long, it becomes a lot easier.
    Caitlin and Callisto high-fived.
    “Don’t flake on us,” they said as the bell rang and they split up down the hallway.
    There were some things that I