Free Quince Clash by Malín Alegría Page B

indifferent. “We told them it was a secret. They won’t mention anything to Mom and Dad, I know it.”
    â€œMija.” Grandma Trini grabbed Fabi’s hand. “You saw the show. They want drama. That’s how TV works. We just gave them what they wanted. They get their show. We get our quinceañera. Everyone is happy.”
    â€œBut what happens when I don’t die?” Fabi demanded. “Huh? Tell me that! What happens when they find out that it was all a lie?” She looked at her sister’s and grandmother’s blank faces. Fabi couldn’t do this. She stood up. The letter stared up at her from the table. She felt sick just looking at it. Fabi crumbled the letter in her hands and stormed out of the restaurant.
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    Fabi waited until she’d walked down two blocks to let out a scream. She didn’t care what people in the street thought. Right now, she was so upset at her sister and Grandma Trini that she wanted to rip out someone’s hair. Her whole family had a knack for stirring up trouble. Fabi had to get away.
    She turned onto one of the residential roads. Small houses with colorful wildflowers lined the block; bright sunflowers and tall bluebonnets adorned the metal gates. She breathed in the perfume of all the flowers, and a tear jerked from her eye. This had to be the worst nightmare of her entire life. Fabi watched a squirrel run up the trunk of a Mexican olive tree. She wished she could scurry up after it and hide forever in the trees. Her feet kept moving. How could she go back? How could she face Grace Cooper and everyone at school? What would she tell Daniel ?
    Fabi stormed into the park at the end of the street. Kids were playing in the playground. A group of men had gathered in the field to play baseball. Fabi found a bench that overlooked the field and sat down. She couldn’t believe how low her grandmother and sister could go! Tears flowed freely down her cheeks. She thought about all the kids on TV commercials with shaved heads who were really dying. It wasn’t something to joke about. Fabi covered her face with her hands. What was she going to do?
    Just then a baseball came toward her. She picked it up. One of the guys who’d been playing came over to retrieve it.
    â€œFabi,” he said, surprised.
    She wiped her nose and looked up at Daniel.
    â€œAre you all right?” he asked.
    The concern on his face made her crumble. She couldn’t hold back as tears sprang from her eyes. Daniel gently took the ball from her and passed it off to his friends, who continued the game without him. Then Daniel put his arms around her. Fabi was too frazzled by all the events to object and surrendered into the embrace.
    When he released her, they sat down on the bench. Fabi didn’t know what to say. She felt like an idiot, breaking down in front of Daniel like that.
    â€œHey,” Daniel finally said, nudging her shoulder. “My mom always says that talking about your problems makes you feel better.”
    Fabi nodded, looking down at the crumpled paper still in her hand. She was just going to tell Daniel about the letter. But she found herself telling him everything. She started at the beginning, with her original plan to go to NYC with Georgia Rae. But when Alexis broke cur-few a few weeks before, their dad had held Fabi responsible and forbade her to go anywhere. Then there was Melodee and the bet. Finally, she revealed the truth about Quince Dreams and how her sister and grandmother lied to get her on the show. When Fabi finished, she actually felt a lot better. He was right. It did feel better to tell someone.
    Daniel stared out at the field, soaking in all the information. He didn’t say a word. His silence made Fabi nervous. Did he think she was a creep? “Wow,” he finally said. “So you lied to get on that show, huh?”
    Fabi nodded. “Do you think I’m an evil person?”
    â€œYou? No way. I