Free Too Good to Be True by Laurie Friedman Page A

I got there, Emily, Kate, and Vanessa were already there, and they were sitting on the opposite side of the gym talking to all the ninth-grade girls on the team. They were all huddled together like they were discussing something serious.
    My stomach was in knots. I didn’t know if I should go over to where they were, but I felt like it would seem weird if I didn’t. When I got to them, everyone stopped talking and looked at me.
    The gym was too quiet. Chloe broke the silence. “April, how could you?” she asked. “I told you Matt and I are a thing.” I didn’t know what to say. I looked at Emily. Who had she told my secret to? What had she said? She wouldn’t even look at me.
    Then everyone started talking like I wasn’t standing there. They were all saying all kinds of stuff, and not just what I told Emily, which was that I’d kissed Matt and wished I hadn’t.
    She’s secretly going out with Matt.
    They live next door to each other so it has been easy to keep it a secret.
    I’ve seen them talking in the gym all the time.
    I have a feeling it has been going on for a long time.
    Their words swirled around me. I just stood there. I didn’t know what else to do. Every time someone said something, they’d all look at me like I was supposed to defend myself or confirm if it was true or not.
    I couldn’t speak. My brain was incapable of forming words. I couldn’t believe what I was listening to. I don’t know how the story got so out of hand. I felt like I was going to throw up or cry or both. Ms. Baumann came in then, and we started practice.
    â€œApril, please try to keep up,” she said two different times.
    But I couldn’t. It was my worst rehearsal ever. And not just because I kept messing up. No one wanted to be near me. The girls in my dancing line kept scooting away from me, and when we did the partners part of the dance, Amy, whowas supposed to put her arm around my waist, wouldn’t even touch me. When practice was over, Emily left the gym right away with Vanessa and Kate. She didn’t wait for me. Not that I would have wanted her to.
    I can’t believe Emily told everyone. I thought I could trust her. I thought we were friends. She said my secrets were safe with her, but clearly, they weren’t.
    Brynn was right. She usually is. And now everyone on the dance team knows what happened, or what they think happened. I feel sick. Can my life get any worse? I doubt it.
8:46 P.M .
In my room
On my bed
Heartsick
    I thought wrong. Things got so much worse.
    I was so upset about everyone on the dance team being mad at me, I hadn’t even thought about how other people would react.
    Brynn just called me. She heard what happened, and she’s furious. Furious that I kissedMatt, furious that I told other people and didn’t tell her, and furious that I would do this to Billy.
    â€œI’m sure half of what you heard isn’t even true,” I said.
    â€œIf half was true, it’s bad enough,” Brynn said back.
    I started crying. It was bad enough that Brynn was mad. “What am I going to do if Billy finds out?” I asked her. Brynn was quiet for a minute. Then she said three of the scariest words I’ve ever heard.
    â€œHe already knows.”

Dogs never bite me. Just humans.
    â€”Marilyn Monroe
Tuesday, October 22, 9:07 P.M .
    Today was the first school day since third grade that I didn’t speak to Billy or Brynn. Neither of them was in the cafeteria at lunch. I actually never even saw Billy. When I saw Brynn in study hall, she looked down at the book on her desk like she was studying, and in math, we had a test, so I couldn’t talk to her.
    The same thing happened with the girls on the dance team.
    There are no words to describe how I feel.
Wednesday, October 23, 5:52 P.M .
Just home from dance practice
    I don’t want to be on the dance team anymore. I know I can’t quit, but I wish I could.