Private (Private 1)

sible. There was no way I could give him up. Not now. Not when I He scoffed. “Yeah, right.”

finally found someone who understood.

“They have!” I lied. “The girls on my floor are much worse,

But I also knew that I couldn’t endure another scene like today.

trust me.”

Another tense lunch. Another smackdown with a tree trunk. I

“I can’t believe you’d choose them over me,” he joked, shaking

would just have to try to keep them separated. A girl had to make his head. “You disappoint me, Reed Brennan.”

certain sacrifices if she wanted to have it all.

“Come on!” I said, shoving him with my leg. “I think I can han-

“I’ll see you later?” I said.

dle all of you.”

“Most definitely,” he replied. Then he leaned down, kissed my

“If you say so,” he said with a blithe shrug. Then he looked me forehead, and was gone.

in the eye and grew serious. “I just don’t want to see you get hurt.”

I was touched, and I smiled. What exactly did he think was going to happen to me? “Thanks. But I’ll be fine.”

P R I V A T E

119

Mr. Barber sat down at his desk and jotted a few things in his

notebook. “Good day,” he said, reaching for his coffee. And on cue the bell rang.

I stood up, staring down at the page, doing the math quickly in C IS THE NEW F

my head. Thirty-seven of fifty questions right. That was a 74. I had gotten a 74 and received an F. What kind of psycho school was this?

How could the dean let Barber get away with this?

Missy scoffed as she walked by me. “Guess we’re not in PS 31

anymore, huh?”

On Monday morning at the end of class, Mr. Barber handed back

One day I was going to shove something up her nostril.

our quizzes from the previous Friday. He walked up and down the Seriously.

aisles, slapping the papers face down on each desk.

“Oooh, sorry,” Constance said, wincing as she fell into step with