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“I don’t know His face was in my head” I squint up at her “Why’d you pick Danny?”

She shrugs “Same reason”

She opens her large portfolio, and we both study her portrait It doesn’t look like Danny at all It looks ain

“That’s the face in your head?” Her cheeks flush, and she doesn’t have to answer me Drew and I know each other better than anybody in this town “See you tomorrow, Drew-poo”

“Don’t call me that, banana brains”

I give her a push, and she pokes“Good luck”

“You, too” She waves and marches slowly toward her house

I wonder if a drunk dad is better or worse than an absentee jerk Either way, I can’t put off the inevitable any longer

Dad’s stuck at the hospital and won’tkis with chopsticks as she recites the events of her day

Her neat beige dress stops at her knees, and a thin black belt is around her waist Her dark hair is smoothed back into a low bun at the nape of her neck, and her shoes are sensible black pumps A neat strand of pearls is at her neck, and her lips are a pale shade of pink My mother’s skin is flawless

She is the very model of a small-town church secretary

I’raphic tee, and ht at lo dad, htly rounder It’s clear I’m half-Korean, but I appreciate these little perks fro in common

We finish eating, and Ma goes to the bar separating the kitchen fro area “What is this?” She picks up the envelope I left behind

“Ms Hughes wants you to sign and return it”

Ma opens the letter and her dark eyes quickly scan the page “It says you’d leave school early? To draw pictures?” Her brow furrows “What about your science class? Your ”