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“I’irl” She reaches out and squeezes lances out the ; it’s not quite so cold today, a surprising reprieve “Now,” she says, clapping her hands together “You want to go for a walk to the bakery, see if we can get a halfway decent cookie?”

Do what you can hat you have, I re the lid back on the granola bars and standing up Gram slips her hand into mine

Seventeen

The girls’ volleyball cha Wednesday, and weirdly people are actually talking about it A couple of underclassmen have even toldlack of support for the team

“I feel like we shouldhis turkey sandwich at our table near the back of the cafeteria The book club has been sitting together more lately—not every day, but a couple of tily wants nothing to do withon my Title IX editorial

“There are a bunch of supplies left over from the pep rally,” Lydia puts in She’s a class rep for student council and always has the line on extra balloons or poster board or chocolate chip cookies floating around “We could meet up after school”

I nod “I’ve got , as Lydia offers me one of her carrot sticks, “so I can drive some people over”

“No need,” Gray says “I got us a ride”

I turn to look at hi up behind me, and my skin prickles like it always does when I haven’t had tiht of him “What?”

He grins, all hth period”

It’s freezing outside when classes let out, the barren trees waving their branches at the far end of the parking lot and our breath visible in the chilly air I find Gray with the rest of the book club over by the picnic tables at the side of the building; he is hard at work on a sign that reads, GO BRIDGEWATER, his bottoht between his teeth as he concentrates

“What?” he asks when he looks up and catches

“Nothing,” I say with a shake of n”

“Shut up,” he says, blushing—blushing!—just the faintest bit “Not all of us can be fancy, clever writer types”

“I’h it’s not like I’m mad about it