The Ghost in Me Read Online Free
Author: Shaunda Kennedy Wenger
head. "Didn't you order one hundred?"
"Well, yeah, but one got away. Don't tell my mother."
Cass and Elise snicker and say they're telling, as I check Roz's watch. We only have a few minutes before class, and as usual, the eighth-grade hall is crammed with kids. There's no clear path to my locker.
"So, did you?" Roz tries again, hoisting her backpack on her shoulder, swiveling with me through the crowd to keep up.
"Did I what?" A few girls glance in my direction and laugh.
" Did you get detention ?" Roz pulls me into her, as I'm about to skirt away.
"Ye-ahhh," I gush, after regaining my balance. "I mean, no. I'll tell you what happened in a sec." Wriggling from her grip, I dodge through the oncoming traffic.
With a quick spin of the combination, my locker door opens. Grabbing my books and binder, I shove my coat inside. I'm about to make my way back, when I see I don't need to. Roz is beside me, standing with her arms crossed, along with Cass and Elise.
"Okay, okay, I didn't get detention. I got drama."
Roz pulls a face, takes a step back. "Drama? What do you mean, you got drama ?
Sick at the thought of it, I hesitate, scuff my heel on the floor.
Roz fans her hands. " Drama means what , exactly?"
Cass starts hopping, like we're playing a game. Even though she's bouncing like a bunny, her short, high-lighted hair, slick with gel and spray, doesn't move. "Oh! I know!" she says. "Do you mean drama, as in, wailing, crying, oh-how-could-you-do-this-sort-of-thing-drama?"
I take a quick breath. "Close. But no."
"Drama, as in you-should-be-ashamed-of-yourself-sort-of-drama?" Elise says, wagging her finger, squinting one eye through her gold-rimmed glasses.
"No. Worse. Drama, as in drama club, sort-of-drama."
Roz's face pushes up in confusion. She lets her hands go to her hips.
I let out a huff. "I didn't get detention, Roz. I got drama club . Slayer took away my study hall. Now I'm in drama club, for first period, for the rest of the trimester."
"Are you kidding me? What kind of punishment is that?"
"It's not a punishment. But for me, it may as well be. I don't want to do drama. Getting up in front of an audience isn't my thing."
"Why not?" Cass asks, with a giggle. "I mean, you tend to be very dramatic, like yesterday. Plus, I'm in drama. It's fun."
Elise throws her head back and laughs. "If I'd known being a delinquent was so easy, Myri, I'd have started walking on your side of the tracks a long time ago, joined forces with roaches, done all kinds of things."
"Yeah, right," I scoff. Elise loves causing trouble. Or at least, thinking up ways to make it. With her, it's the doing-part that never seems to get done.
"Besides," I continue, feeling a need to defend myself. "I wasn't being a delinquent. I was conducting a science experiment."
"Oh, yeah," Elise's eyes wrinkle up. "And you got sentenced for it?"
"No, I got drama, because I never signed up for ECSAs."
I get blank stares in reply.
"Extra-curricular student activities. I never signed up for an academic club at the beginning of the year."
"Oh, those!" Elise's voice fills with understanding and surprise. "You never did that? I thought everyone was supposed to sign up for a club. It's like a requirement, or something. They're kind of like classes."
"I know, but I thought I could get out of doing one if I signed up for study hall."
I don't tell them I knew Duey had signed up for study hall, too.
"So, what was the problem, then?" Roz asks.
"I needed parent-permission."
"Ahhh," Cass says. Elise joins her with a nod. "You didn't get it?"
I shake my head. "As of this morning, the consensus between my mother and the fine people who teach here is I can work on my grades--average as they are--at home."
Roz gives me a nudge. "Why didn't you tell Slayer to put you in art? I'm in art."
"I did, but it's full, which is the reason I didn't sign up to begin with. All the good clubs were taken by the time I got to them. All except debate and drama. Which are
"Well, yeah, but one got away. Don't tell my mother."
Cass and Elise snicker and say they're telling, as I check Roz's watch. We only have a few minutes before class, and as usual, the eighth-grade hall is crammed with kids. There's no clear path to my locker.
"So, did you?" Roz tries again, hoisting her backpack on her shoulder, swiveling with me through the crowd to keep up.
"Did I what?" A few girls glance in my direction and laugh.
" Did you get detention ?" Roz pulls me into her, as I'm about to skirt away.
"Ye-ahhh," I gush, after regaining my balance. "I mean, no. I'll tell you what happened in a sec." Wriggling from her grip, I dodge through the oncoming traffic.
With a quick spin of the combination, my locker door opens. Grabbing my books and binder, I shove my coat inside. I'm about to make my way back, when I see I don't need to. Roz is beside me, standing with her arms crossed, along with Cass and Elise.
"Okay, okay, I didn't get detention. I got drama."
Roz pulls a face, takes a step back. "Drama? What do you mean, you got drama ?
Sick at the thought of it, I hesitate, scuff my heel on the floor.
Roz fans her hands. " Drama means what , exactly?"
Cass starts hopping, like we're playing a game. Even though she's bouncing like a bunny, her short, high-lighted hair, slick with gel and spray, doesn't move. "Oh! I know!" she says. "Do you mean drama, as in, wailing, crying, oh-how-could-you-do-this-sort-of-thing-drama?"
I take a quick breath. "Close. But no."
"Drama, as in you-should-be-ashamed-of-yourself-sort-of-drama?" Elise says, wagging her finger, squinting one eye through her gold-rimmed glasses.
"No. Worse. Drama, as in drama club, sort-of-drama."
Roz's face pushes up in confusion. She lets her hands go to her hips.
I let out a huff. "I didn't get detention, Roz. I got drama club . Slayer took away my study hall. Now I'm in drama club, for first period, for the rest of the trimester."
"Are you kidding me? What kind of punishment is that?"
"It's not a punishment. But for me, it may as well be. I don't want to do drama. Getting up in front of an audience isn't my thing."
"Why not?" Cass asks, with a giggle. "I mean, you tend to be very dramatic, like yesterday. Plus, I'm in drama. It's fun."
Elise throws her head back and laughs. "If I'd known being a delinquent was so easy, Myri, I'd have started walking on your side of the tracks a long time ago, joined forces with roaches, done all kinds of things."
"Yeah, right," I scoff. Elise loves causing trouble. Or at least, thinking up ways to make it. With her, it's the doing-part that never seems to get done.
"Besides," I continue, feeling a need to defend myself. "I wasn't being a delinquent. I was conducting a science experiment."
"Oh, yeah," Elise's eyes wrinkle up. "And you got sentenced for it?"
"No, I got drama, because I never signed up for ECSAs."
I get blank stares in reply.
"Extra-curricular student activities. I never signed up for an academic club at the beginning of the year."
"Oh, those!" Elise's voice fills with understanding and surprise. "You never did that? I thought everyone was supposed to sign up for a club. It's like a requirement, or something. They're kind of like classes."
"I know, but I thought I could get out of doing one if I signed up for study hall."
I don't tell them I knew Duey had signed up for study hall, too.
"So, what was the problem, then?" Roz asks.
"I needed parent-permission."
"Ahhh," Cass says. Elise joins her with a nod. "You didn't get it?"
I shake my head. "As of this morning, the consensus between my mother and the fine people who teach here is I can work on my grades--average as they are--at home."
Roz gives me a nudge. "Why didn't you tell Slayer to put you in art? I'm in art."
"I did, but it's full, which is the reason I didn't sign up to begin with. All the good clubs were taken by the time I got to them. All except debate and drama. Which are
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