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I shift my focus to Anna Her auburn hair dances around her face, and her skin is shiny with sweat And then I watch Kara andthis unco with pills, I decide to stew, to let their betrayal build until I can hear the blood rushing around oes off-court and rolls ry and I need to do so

It’s a sets closer Do so I stick my foot out Don’t do that

But it’s too late to take it back Kara’s foot slams into my ankle--it hurts--and she shrieks Everyone stops what they’re doing to watch her fly It’s one of those running falls that seems to last forever, too She stumbles onto the floor, and the sound she ht to ood way, and in the heavy pause before she starts wailing and everyone else starts buzzing…

I laugh

I clamp my hand over my mouth, and her audience becomes mine They’re torn about which one to look at--her or ers I clamp my other hand over ets to her feet, furious and red-faced, she’s a ainst her h

The rooet to her first She tries to draw Kara’s hands away from her mouth, and I remember Donnie, Donnie with his hands over his bloody nose and it’s great, and then the tears co down Kara’s face and she’s hurt Kara is hurt I hurt her

"What is it, Myers?" Nelson barks Kara jerks away, shaking her head A sob escapes her lips, and she walks away froet back here!"

Kara keeps her back to all of us, crying Anna ventures over,back and moves her hands fro past e and the books, and however hurt Kara is, it’s not enough I want her to hurt until there’s nothing there for Anna to coot to hurt her so

I just wish she’d turn around and show us all how much And then she does

"You did that on purpose!" It’s not obvious--whatever dae I caused I search her face and can’t find it "You tripped me! I saw you stick your foot out-- o--"

She covers her ain and cries Nelson blows her whistle in an attempt to reclaim control of the situation and forces Kara to remove her hand

"Mouth?" Nelson asks Kara nods Nelson tilts Kara’s head back and inspects her mouth I step forward for a better look So does everyone else

"Chipped tooth," Nelson mutters, and I finally see it

Chipped is an understate, and I wince in spite ofsorry for her as soon as the picture really registers, because she’s h Don’t laugh Don’t laugh

Laugh later

"Get to the office, call your parents, see if you can get to a dentist today," Nelson says "You’ll need it, Myers"

"Ms Nelson," Anna breaks in, "Regina tripped Kara She was laughing--"

Kara nods frantically "She did it on purpose--"

Her tooth interrupts her She closes her eyes, clamps her mouth shut, and rides it out I watch the iue bubble up under her lip as she runs it over the place her tooth isn’t anymore Nelson turns to me, face hard Her face is always hard

"Is this true, Afton?"

Everyone stares at ot in the way"

Josh’s head whips up Anna’s mouth drops open Kara looks ready to explode Nelson orders her to the nurse’s office and shouts us back to the game There’s rooo back to keeping score

Today, it’s Regina: 1, Kara: 0

"Donnie’s off the basketball team," Michael tells me at lunch

He said it was my call, so I irls’ rooain I was nervous crossing the roo uess

"Basketball was the only thing he loved doing sober," I say

"I overheard it in the changing roo to tell his parents he was cheating on the drug tests I thought of you when I heard it I thought you’d want to know"

"Thanks" I want it to feel good, but it doesn’t, because it’s smaller than what Donnie did to me So he can’t play basketball So what

The center table is coo with Kara to her e about Kara’s tooth, and no one is talking about how I like it in the dark It’s so perfect I wish I’d planned it

"They ets quiet--as quiet as it can get in the cafeteria--and it’s unnerving I don’t know Michael well enough to understand his quiet When Anna’s quiet, she’sof ways to bring everyone’s attention back to her When Jeanette gets quiet, she’s spacing, and when Marta’s quiet, she’s sad

"I know," he finally says "I got an invite in my e-mail"

"Did you join?"

"No It’s stupid They could’ve been rabs his tray and stands I stand

"Thanks…" I say aardly, gesturing to the table, "…for this’

He nods curtly and leaves withoutat my desk in my bedroom, where there’s a photo of the five of us