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Chapter One

Do not teach your ood can come of it

–Ally’s Brutal Teen Truths

“What do youto Seattle to live with your Internet boyfriend? That’s insane” I glared at my mother over the half-empty pizza box “It’s all the way across the country”

I swear it will be a h ot to breathe for a h school in less than teeks and she wanted to move?

My mom tried to smile, but even she knew this was not the time “Calm down, Ally Let me explain”

I don’t know about you, but when people tell me to calm down, it makes me really, really want to smack them

“You aren’t co with me” She lifted her paper plate and stacked it on top ofshe’d cut out for New Year’s She’d cut out hoo

“What!” Even worse than uprootingwith Dad and Diane No way” Dread unfurled in my stomach

Mojo, my black and tan hound, caave Mom a curious look and slipped under the table to lie at my feet

Mom put on her “Let’s be reasonable” face “Now, Ally It’s just for four months That’s it It’s like summer vacation It will be over before you know it”

I hadn’t seen this co Not at all All those hours Moht it was harood for her “Mom, I’m sure you can find so”

She flinched but obviously decided to ignore ht I’d really like to give this relationship a chance, but long distance just isn’t practical I don’t want to uproot you without knowing for sure” She ran her hand through the fresh red highlights in her brown hair Her natural color hadn’t been good enough since the divorce

“Why can’t he just co with the known, no way could I handle the unknown “What’s so great about Seattle?”

“Donald’s worked hard to build his insurance business, Ally He can’t just leave it But there is alork for an experienced paralegal I’ve already got two job offers Besides, he’s got an aparte”

My stomach cra to me

Mos work out between Donald and me, I know you’d be happy there Seattle is supposed to be beautiful The Ereen trees and mountains They say it’s just spectacular”

“We have trees and mountains around here People move to North Carolina all the time for the spectacular,” I mimicked Mom’s emphasis on the word, “views”

“You could learn to ski”

“I can ski here In North Carolina” I crossed my arms “Where we live now”

“You’ll be right on the Pacific coast”

“We can drive to the Atlantic anytime ant” I accidentally applied tooer “Ow” No blood at least Wait a ht

“Ally, I know you’re upset,” she said, ignoringyou to stay with your dad for four months Let me see if this relationship is worth it”

I looked into the green eyes of the wo her cal in four months if you don’t like him?”

“Yes” Her shoulders relaxed a little “I just want to give it a chance”

“Okay So if your relationship with this guy is like a four on a scale of one to ten, you’ll come home?”

“Yes”

“What if it’s a six?”

“Probably” She shrugged “Ally, I really can’t give you any probabilities Love is not a science”

Love Barf! This was all Dad’s fault for leaving Moularly, coloring her hair, and leaving me

“You know I can’t stand Diane! I would never, ever make you live in the same house with her”

Moether for a ly calm voice, “It’s not exactly the same situation I won’t say she’s one of my favorite people, but four months with her will not kill you” She stood and took the dishes to the garbage can

I could think of a whole lot of things my mother had said about Diane And a lot of the So those tirades The reer one of those therapist-induced-apology-slash-lectures I’d heard too many times lately

Moressed fro somewhat like a normal person Unfortunately, her total ied to make my quality of life any better I mean, at least she cried on the couch in our house in Charlotte Not two thousand freakingher back to the crying stage, but right noas totally entitled to be obnoxious The woreat anyway

She walked back to the table and sat down “Ally, Seattle is supposed to be a really cool place for young people That’s where Starbucks and those grunge bands started The birthplace of Nirvana?”

Oh, coer was an addict who shot hiood reason todeficits” I stopped short of asking what Dr Phil would say Even my mother had limits

“I’m sorry to disrupt your life, but—”

And that’s when I tuned out, because that’s the beginning of the speech I’ve heard a hundred ti herself last I nodded and uh-huhed at all the right spots while I tried to wrap my mind around the chaos that had taken over my life

One,to Seattle

Which meant, two that I’d have to live with my dad

Who, three lived with the ho he’d married

Who, four had a daughter e as ridiculously beautiful

Which ly stepsister

On the bright side, h anyway, so this experience should serve well to botto idiot, it would finally be my turn for my needs to coot to make the choices

Moe She had finally stopped lecturing, and she had her hand on her throat like she does when she’s about to throw up She didn’t deal with stress very well, and she obviously felt b

ad about the whole thing But that hadn’t stopped her If I didn’t think fast, she’d be on a plane to Seattle, and I’d be living with the stepmonster

Unless… “Dad and Diane probably won’t wanthouse And Dad is gone sowith this”

Her hands flew to her hips and she harru, Ally I just told you that they’re looking forward to it Your father thinks it’s a great way for you to get to know Diane better”

Well, there goes that theory The anger finally bubbled over “Is there anyone who doesn’t know about this before I do?” I shouted “Have you talked to everyone but me?”

“Ally, I had toin teeks It couldn’t all wait until the last minute—”

“I don’t want to hear it,” I said, ju the kitchen

I ran up the stairs, waited forto follow me into my room, slammed my door, locked it, and plopped down onred And it was only partly because e With a little dread and fear thrown in Luckily for me, the tears washed some of it away Mojo juot him to settle down and lay down besidein the world I’d found him at the pound three years earlier, and we’d been inseparable ever since

After I’d soakedmake your nose run, anyway?), I rolled over onto my back and called Madison on my candy apple red cell phone

I folded the pillow in half, damp side down, and shoved it under my neck “You won’t believe this,” I said, and I told her as happening

“Oh my God,” Madison said when I finished

Her reaction confiret her to shut up Now she couldn’t think of anything to say There was a really, really long pause Then she said, “How could she do that to you?”

“I know!” I scratched behind Mojo’s ears and looked into his big, brown eyes Poor homeless mutt Poor abandoned me