total whiner, she changed the subject. Besides, if she talked about Will any longer she was liable to start crying again or get depressed enough to put herself in a chocolate coma. âSo, how was your day? Have any cute guys in your classes?â She waggled her eyebrows.
Alexia shrugged and stole back the Goldfish bag. âNot really.â
ExceptâKelly was pretty sure Alexia was lying. Her cheeks were bright redâshe always got red in the face when she was lying or avoiding something and her freckles seemed to change to this mossy green. Weird, right? But, as much as Kelly liked to dish about guys and crushes, she knew Alexia wasnât open with that kind of stuff. And prying it out of her would be über cruel.
ELEVEN
Rule 13: You must never sleep with The Ex .
Rule 17 : Do not keep in touch with The Exâs parents, sister, brother, or cousins or anyone related to The Exâs family.
âOh, Iâve been meaning to ask you,â Ravenâs mom began as she spread her special lasagna sauce in a glass baking dish, âdid you get into that precalculus class we were talking about?â
It had been a full week since Raven started her new classes. She was surprised her mother hadnât checked on her new schedule as soon as Raven got home from school on Monday. It was probably because Ms. Valenti was constantly working now that she owned Scrappe. The store was like a godsend to Raven. Scrapbooking kept her mother busy, which meant she spent less time nosing over Ravenâs shoulder.
âHoney?â Ms. Valenti said.
Raven gave the metal colander full of lasagna noodles a good shake over the sink. The water dripped out the bottom and slowed to a trickle. Maybe if she pretended to bebusy, her mother would stop bombarding her with so many questions.
âRaven, did you hear me?â
Well. It was worth a shot.
Raven set the colander back in the pot the noodles had cooked in and turned to her mother. âNo, I didnât. The class was already full,â she lied. She hadnât even asked for precalculus. Who in their right mind would take that crap? Sheâd struggled through the required geometry. She certainly wasnât going to make things harder by taking precalculus. Instead, sheâd asked for accounting as her last math credit. But she wasnât going to tell her mother that.
Ms. Valenti had dropped out of college her freshman year when her parents refused to pay her tuition. They refused to pay her tuition because she was pregnant with Raven and because Ravenâs dad was African American. The Valentis, a pure Italian family, had wanted their only daughter to marry a âgood Italian boy,â as they said. And when they found out she was pregnant and planning on marrying Ravenâs dad, they flipped out.
Ravenâs mom had dreams of becoming a pediatrician. And now, seventeen years later, it seemed like Ms. Valenti was either 1) punishing Raven for being one of the reasons sheâd had to quit school (like Raven got her pregnant!), or 2) was living vicariously through her daughter.
It was no secret that her mom wanted her to take all the hard classes so she could get an Ivy League university acceptance. Raven would have all the things her mother never did. It was almost like she wanted Raven to make up for her mistakes.
Raven could only imagine what her mother would say when she admitted she didnât want to attend an Ivy Leagueschool. Like sheâd get in, anyway. Actually, she wasnât really sure what she wanted to do after graduating, but going right back into school was certainly not high on her priority list. Kelly was constantly suggesting Raven try modeling, but she wasnât a huge fashionista like Kelly was. Clothes didnât get Raven excited.
She always thought taking a long road trip across the United States sounded like fun. Maybe with her friendsâor whoever her boyfriend was at the time. She wanted to see
Alexia shrugged and stole back the Goldfish bag. âNot really.â
ExceptâKelly was pretty sure Alexia was lying. Her cheeks were bright redâshe always got red in the face when she was lying or avoiding something and her freckles seemed to change to this mossy green. Weird, right? But, as much as Kelly liked to dish about guys and crushes, she knew Alexia wasnât open with that kind of stuff. And prying it out of her would be über cruel.
ELEVEN
Rule 13: You must never sleep with The Ex .
Rule 17 : Do not keep in touch with The Exâs parents, sister, brother, or cousins or anyone related to The Exâs family.
âOh, Iâve been meaning to ask you,â Ravenâs mom began as she spread her special lasagna sauce in a glass baking dish, âdid you get into that precalculus class we were talking about?â
It had been a full week since Raven started her new classes. She was surprised her mother hadnât checked on her new schedule as soon as Raven got home from school on Monday. It was probably because Ms. Valenti was constantly working now that she owned Scrappe. The store was like a godsend to Raven. Scrapbooking kept her mother busy, which meant she spent less time nosing over Ravenâs shoulder.
âHoney?â Ms. Valenti said.
Raven gave the metal colander full of lasagna noodles a good shake over the sink. The water dripped out the bottom and slowed to a trickle. Maybe if she pretended to bebusy, her mother would stop bombarding her with so many questions.
âRaven, did you hear me?â
Well. It was worth a shot.
Raven set the colander back in the pot the noodles had cooked in and turned to her mother. âNo, I didnât. The class was already full,â she lied. She hadnât even asked for precalculus. Who in their right mind would take that crap? Sheâd struggled through the required geometry. She certainly wasnât going to make things harder by taking precalculus. Instead, sheâd asked for accounting as her last math credit. But she wasnât going to tell her mother that.
Ms. Valenti had dropped out of college her freshman year when her parents refused to pay her tuition. They refused to pay her tuition because she was pregnant with Raven and because Ravenâs dad was African American. The Valentis, a pure Italian family, had wanted their only daughter to marry a âgood Italian boy,â as they said. And when they found out she was pregnant and planning on marrying Ravenâs dad, they flipped out.
Ravenâs mom had dreams of becoming a pediatrician. And now, seventeen years later, it seemed like Ms. Valenti was either 1) punishing Raven for being one of the reasons sheâd had to quit school (like Raven got her pregnant!), or 2) was living vicariously through her daughter.
It was no secret that her mom wanted her to take all the hard classes so she could get an Ivy League university acceptance. Raven would have all the things her mother never did. It was almost like she wanted Raven to make up for her mistakes.
Raven could only imagine what her mother would say when she admitted she didnât want to attend an Ivy Leagueschool. Like sheâd get in, anyway. Actually, she wasnât really sure what she wanted to do after graduating, but going right back into school was certainly not high on her priority list. Kelly was constantly suggesting Raven try modeling, but she wasnât a huge fashionista like Kelly was. Clothes didnât get Raven excited.
She always thought taking a long road trip across the United States sounded like fun. Maybe with her friendsâor whoever her boyfriend was at the time. She wanted to see
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