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"You don’t know me"

"How can you say that?"

"Em, you’ll never understand I’m finally someone I like I’o back"

"Can’t you be healthy and still be sweet, Kevin? Because you were the nicest, best person I ever--"

"Yeah I had to be, so people wouldn’t hate me"

"No one hated you, Kevin No one hates a person for being overweight"

He rolled his eyes "Right Look I’m sorry, okay? But I can’t be the trueme back"

She wiped her eyes with the back of her hand "K-K-Kevin, p-p-please"

The stutter bolted upright, a delighted rictus grin on its face

It was back Kevin’s fat was disappearing, but after all these clean years, her stutter was back

Kevin looked at her, his face gentling "I’ood, Eht this year You ht want to watch what you eat"

AND THAT WAS THAT The Kevin she’d loved, who’dpicked last for teaone, shed like a snake skin

He moved in with Naomi

She wrote him a letter, unable to stop herself It was filled with phrases such as "never stop loving you" and "don’t understand" and "please give us another chance" and all those wretched, horrible, debasing phrases that your friends tell you never to say He didn’t answer

When it seemed truly final, she went home to Malibu to break the news to her faht around the kitchen table with her parents (who no longer spoke directly to each other, yet still lived together) and Angela, as visiting fro her PhD in astrophysics

"We figured that was co," her mother said smoothly "I accept you exactly as you are"

"And I love you unconditionally," Dad said, not to be outdone

"Umthanks," Emmaline said "What do you mean?"

"We always knew," her father said

"Knehat?"

Moy, honey"

Emmaline blinked "No, I’m not"

"You don’t need to pretend, Emmaline Your father and I don’t care what your sexual orientation is" She handed Em a tissue

"Your ht," Dad said "They told us about Kevin’s weight loss It’s wonderful, isn’t it?" Good old Dad, ever clueless

"I liked Kevin better when he was fat," Angela said "And I’ela always said exactly the right thing

Em went back to Ann Arbor, only to find that the paper was downsizing, and she was out of a job

Nana had left Angela and E it, but now, it was a godsend

The newspaper in Manningsport had one paid e, Es and school concerts

There was a job advertised for administrative assistant at the police department, which had all of one full-time cop and one part-tih school, a bit of a toughie, on the football teaood at his job

Em found that people confided in her as they called with their proble ho by Suzette Minor’s house and see if Bill’s car is there? You know Bill You don’t? Well, he’s not theon the sled team"

One day, a woman came into the station and introduced herself Shelayne Schanta, looking to start a book club Could she put up a notice on the bulletin board? "My fiancé dumped me for my aunt, can you believe that?" she said "Gotta find so to do in o," E

"Did he cheat on you?"

He had claimed no, but even if hadn’t slept with Naomi before he du all his trust and attention and tiazine’s "Half Their Size" edition had just coot to hear what Kevin really thought of her That was infidelity enough

"I think so"

"Welcome to the club," Shelayne said "The bitter betrayed"

The nae There wasn’tout at O’Rourke’s fro becorandarden; the smell of lilacs and irises reminded her of happy memories

As it had been in school, her attitude becah, mouthy jock, then she wasn’t a woirl

But God, she missed Kevin

She kept a button-down shirt of his from when he’d been at his heaviest It was massive; she could wrap it around herself twice It reminded her of the man ould make her macaroni and cheese on the second day of her period each h high school Who sent her the complete set of Buffy the Vampire Slayer when she had her appendix out