"Truth or Dare - Pfeffer, Susan Beth" - читать интересную книгу автора (Pfeffer Susan Beth)

"My grandmother lives there," Libby said. "We go every summer to see her. It's
really kind of pretty there. You can pick blueberries and there are lots of cows."
"Do they have pizza there?" Amy asked.
Libby laughed. "Lots," she said. "And plenty of hamburgers."
"Then it's probably about as good as Europe," Jessica said. "You don't have the Crown Jewels, but you do have good food."
"I went to Boston last summer," I said. Since Mr. Flynn hadn't gotten around to calling on me to read my composition, nobody knew about my trip to Boston. It sure wasn't Europe, but it was all I had, except a trip to Washington, D.C. three years ago.
"I've been to Boston," Amy said. "My brother went to college in Boston, and we all went there for his graduation."
"Really?" I asked. "My sister went to college there too. Maybe they went to the same school."
"Boston University," Amy said. "He graduated two years ago."
"Andrea went to Northeastern," I said. "And she graduated in June. We were all supposed to go to her graduation, but Dad had a big meeting, and I got sick, and my brother Paul . . . well, he was busy." I decided fast not to mention Paul's dancing. Some people thought it was weird for a boy to dance, so I'm usually pretty careful about whom I tell. "My mom got time off
from work though and she went with my other brother Mark. And then in the summer we all went to visit Andrea and her boyfriend, Harvey."
"My brother doesn't have a girl friend," Amy said. "Or if he does, he sure isn't telling us. He doesn't tell us a lot of stuff though, so maybe he's even married."
"I wish I had an older brother," Libby said.
"You can have mine," Amy said. "No one in my family would miss him."
"Amy's brother is actually pretty cute," Jessica said.
"You know who else is cute?" Michelle said. "Bobby Phillips."
"You think so?" I said. Bobby and I had been in school together since first grade and I never thought of him as cute. Of course I was only just starting to notice that boys were cute at all.
"Absolutely," Michelle said. "I love hair that color."
I thought hard to remember Bobby's hair color. It was brown, it seemed to me, not that different from Michelle's color. Maybe he just looked better to girls who came from Montgomery.
"All Michelle ever talks about is boys," Amy said.
"All you ever talk about is pizza," Michelle said.
Jessica laughed, so I laughed too. Libby just kept eating her sandwich. "Amy and Michelle are always fighting about something/' Jessica told me.
I knew this was an important moment. Jessica was telling me something so I'd understand her friends better. That must mean she likes me too, I thought.
"I love my mother, but she makes terrible sandwiches," Libby declared, taking one final bite. "All jelly and never enough peanut butter."
"Couldn't you make your own sandwiches?" I asked. "I always make my own."
"That's not how it works in my family," Libby said. "Mom does the cooking, and I do the dishes. That's because Mom hates doing the dishes."
"We take turns in my family," I said. "Except my brother Paul is always skipping his turn." Now that Mark was gone, there would be one less person doing the dishes, I realized. Another reason to miss Mark.
"How old is Paul?" Michelle asked.
"He's fourteen," I said.
"Uhm," Michelle said. "Is he cute?"
"I don't know," I said. "He's my brother."
"Maybe you could invite us over to meet him," Michelle said. "And we could see for ourselves. Fourteen is such a sexy age."
"Eighty is a sexy age as far as Michelle is concerned," Amy said.
This time we all laughed. "Sure I can bring you over," I said. "Paul's pretty busy, but there's bound to be sometime when he's around and you all can meet him."
"That would be fun," Jessica said. "We'll have to do that sometime, Katie."
"Cathy," I said, wondering if maybe I should change my name to Katie. It did have a nice sound to it.
"Cathy," Jessica said, and smiled right at me. She had the most beautiful smile I'd ever seen. I'll bet she never had a cavity a day in her life. "I'm sorry. I'm terrible at names."
"That's okay," I said. "You don't know me, that's all."
"Katie's a nice name too," Amy said. "But Cathy's nicer."
"More feminine," Michelle said.
"We all have pretty names," Amy said. "Except maybe Libby."
I was surprised by what Amy said. It seemed kind of mean to me.
"I like Libby," Libby said sharply. "Besides, my real name is Elizabeth, so I can change my nickname anytime I want. You're going to be Amy the rest of your life."
"I'd rather be Amy than Libby," Amy said.
"I'd rather be Melinda," Michelle said. "I think Melinda is the most beautiful name in the world."
"I think we'd better clear the table and get going," Jessica said. "That's what I think."
It was amazing. As soon as she said it, we all started clearing the table. Jessica had the most amazing leadership abilities, just the kind teachers were always talking about.
"I'll see you later," I said to her. "We still have social studies together."
"We do?" she asked. "That'll be nice."
"It sure will," I said, and then I felt really dumb. But Jessica had already wandered off with Amy and Michelle before I had a chance to explain just what I meant. Not that I was sure just what it was I did mean. But whatever I meant, I hadn't meant it to sound that dumb.