The Weight of the World Read Online Free Page A

he asked.
    Diana
and Ryan headed off towards the snow cone stand, vanishing into the
swarm of bodies before Astin could see where they had gone. They
stepped into line, standing behind a large woman with two large
children. “Having a good summer?” Diana asked.
    “ I’m
working for my neighbor. He started a landscaping business and I’ve
been mowing lawns since school let out.”
    “ That’s
no way to spend summer vacation.”
    “ That’s
a good way to make some money,” he replied. “He’s paying ten
dollars an hour.”
    “ I
take that back, it’s an awesome way to spend summer vacation. You
could buy a car by fall.”
    “ I
don’t really need a car,” he said. “I live a mile from school
and all of my friends have cars.”
    “ Except
for me.”
    “ Except
for you. I can always borrow my Dad’s car to go out with you.”
Ryan focused on the flavor menu ahead. It was a large, painted
composite board with too many colors on it. He glanced at Diana only
for a moment to see if he could read a reaction on her face.
    “ I
never knew... what is Tiger’s Blood supposed to taste like?” she
asked with a small smile on her lips.
    “ Crap,”
he said. “It’s terrible. It’s only so popular because of the
name.”
    “ Blue
raspberry it is, then.”
    Ryan
ordered a pair of snow cones and paid for them. They walked away from
the stand. Ryan looked down at Diana. “So what would you think,”
he asked, “about going out with me sometime?”
    “ Are
you asking me out or just asking me to envision it?”
    “ I’m
asking you out.”
    Diana
looked back towards the spot where they had left the track team. She
could see Astin’s head above the crowd. He was straining to spot
his sister. She was a goddess, but she was also a teenager and she
didn’t want to miss out on growing up just because she could talk
to animals. Ryan was nice and polite, and they had a lot in common.
Astin was going to hate this. “I think that sounds... great.”
    “ Great,”
he replied with a broad smile.
    “ Astin’s
looking for me,” she said. She was the moon and Astin was the sun.
She knew he started to get a little cranky after dark. It was
probably time to take her unicorn and head home.
    “ I’ll
call you,” he said.
    “ Goodnight,
Ryan.”

    “ Freedom!”
Devon shouted as she flung open the driver’s side door of her
little red convertible. Adam stepped out of the passenger’s side,
considerably less excited about their excursion.
    “ So
this is the fair?” he asked.
    “ This
is an excuse for you to talk to someone besides my Mom... well really
it’s an excuse for both of us.” Devon hadn’t been out of the
house since the big blow-out last week between Frank and her father.
She wasn’t allowed to talk to Frank and he hadn’t so much as
texted her again.
    Devon
and Adam crossed the street from parking to the fair. She paid for
admission and their hands were stamped with bright red smileys.
“Alright. Food is priority one. I barely ate all day.” Normally
carnival food was not in Devon’s diet, but she had been sick all
morning and now she was ravenous for something greasy and unhealthy.
    Devon
and Adam crossed the fairgrounds through the sea of picnic tables at
the center. Jason Livingstone was sitting at an otherwise empty
picnic bench with three small children. The oldest was a girl with
brown pigtails and cotton candy stuck to her left cheek. The boys
were twins, still toddlers, and Jason was busy trying to wipe ketchup
from one of their noses.
    “ Dr.
Livingstone,” Devon said. “Can we sit here?”
    “ Beware
of flying french fries,” he said, glancing back at Devon. He had
been wearing a polite smile when he turned to see who had asked, but
the moment he realized who it was, the smile faded. “You and I
ought to talk,” he said. “I’ve had words with Celene.”
    Devon’s
constant flirty smile was gone. She nodded. “Okay.” She glanced
back at Adam and then remembered her manners.