TMI Read Online Free Page B

shoulders. Yeah, yeah, it was devious. A little competition might be just what Meg needed to make her appreciate the things she took for granted, things that were right under the nose that was always buried in a textbook or smeared with paint.
    Besides—and now Bailey smiled—if Meg was all wrapped up in her own love life, maybe she’d finally butt the hell out of hers.
    Her mind made up, Bailey considered various ways she could get Chase Gallagher to pay her some attention. She and Meg looked nothing alike. Meg was athletic and brunette, while Bailey was blond and soft, so changing her appearance wouldn’t help. And she couldn’t produce a decent painting if it came in a Crayola package, so art was out. Bailey’s mind discarded various ideas until she remembered Chase’s brothers. She could help them with something, obviously not homework because Meg helped Bailey with hers. But maybe…wait! She smacked her forehead. She wouldn’t need his brothers. Chase was a game geek just like she was. Plus, he was also into computer programming. Maybe she could convince him to help her build her video game.
    She grabbed her phone to text him, even though it was against school rules, and he probably had his on vibrate anyway, but she didn’t want to waste another moment. Bailey was totally committed to getting this game built, even though Meg thought it was dumb. She hated video games, though she frequently bounced ideas off her and even sketched some characters. But Bailey always felt like Meg would rather be doing a hundred other things instead of game design.
    Bailey deleted her half-typed text message. Maybe she should just forget the stupid video game. It’s not like it was going to be her career or anything. Wait. Why couldn’t game design be her career? With her eyes rolling, she scolded herself for thinking like Meg. Okay, so she didn’t know anything about computers or programming or graphics, but she could learn. She was smart.
    Sort of.
    When Meg forced her to be.
    Bailey locked herself in a graffiti-marked stall that reeked of old cigarettes, sat on one of the toilets, and put her head in her hands. She didn’t know—that was the entire problem! She didn’t know what she wanted to do, what she wanted to be. Hell, she wasn’t even sure of who she was. Just some kid without a dad. The result of another teenage pregnancy. Thankfully, her mother had Gran and Gramps. Bailey wasn’t all that sure Nicole would have even kept her if her grandparents hadn’t been there. Some days, she wished she had just one answer—just one—instead of nothing but big hairy question marks. She tried. Oh, people could say whatever they wanted, but nobody could say Bailey Grant did not try. She’d tried gymnastics for a while…and horseback riding. She’d even tried to like football (and still wasn’t completely sure why anyone actually did).
    But none of it made her happy.
    And now she had the video game. Meg was always yelling at her for not sticking with things, so this time, she would. She would learn how to create a video game. There had to be something on Google, an app she could buy. Chase would know.
    Maybe she wouldn’t tell Meg she was working with Chase—if he even said yes.
    She tapped out a new message to Chase asking if he’d meet her later and clicked Send. With a happy smile, she looked down at her jeans, which were still stained and now very wet, and decided she’d had enough school for the day.
    â€œHi, Gran. Can you pick me up? I had a little accident.”
    It took Bailey five full minutes to assure Gran she wasn’t hurt, sick, or in the principal’s office. But Gran was on her way. She zipped her bag, left the stall, gave her hair a flip in front of the mirror, and spun around at the sound of a slow clap.
    â€œOh, you’re good. I thought you’d have to pull out the fake tears.”
    Caitlyn.