Sheila added. âThere are too few of us.â
âYou guys donât hang with any of them?â I asked.
All three shook their heads.
âI mean,â Sheila said, âI speak to some and some of them are cool and everything. But I know Iâm not going to make any of those tight friends you grow old with like Iâve made with Charli and Marie.â
âBut you donât even give it a chance,â I said.
âWe gave it a chance, Maizon. Weâve all been here since we were twelve. Iâll be seventeen next May.â
I looked at Sheila, but said nothing.
Charli used her knife and fork to cut into her pork chop, then took a bite before she spoke. âThe first friend I made here was Elizabethâsheâs not here anymore. But me and her were this tight,â Charli said, holding up her hand and crossing her middle finger over her index. âWe did everything together. Then we went away for summer vacation and I called her. And I swear, the girl acted like she had never heard of me.â Charli pressed her hand against the side of her face, and tucked the corner of her lip in, trying to hide her dejection. âIt was so messed up. And she wasnât the only one. Lots of girls here are like that.â
Sheila touched Charliâs shoulder, then looked at me. âWhen I was in school in Cherryville, people did it to me all the time. Theyâd be all chummy with me in class. But the minute school was over, it was like âsee ya.â When I heard that Blue Hill was predominantly white, I didnât even want to come here.â
âMe either,â Charli said.
âBut,â Sheila continued, âitâs not like there are all-black boarding schools anywhere yet. So whatâs left to do? We come here, find a few black people to hang with, and protect ourselves.â
Marie nodded. âItâs not even a choice, Maizon. We want to protect you because weâve seen what could happen to sisters here. It hurts. But you have to make a choice.â
âWhat kind of choice?â I asked, narrowing my eyes. I felt like I was being told what to doâand as Iâve been told a hundred times, I donât take well to authority.
âPauli made a choice,â Marie said too casually, picking up her roll.
âWell, Iâm not Pauli,â I said loudly. Some girls turned toward our table. Some giggled.
âDonât embarrass us, Maizon!â Sheila hissed. âWhatâs wrong with you, anyway? Weâre just saying we want to protect you.â
âI donât need your protection!â I whispered loudly. âI make my own decisions!â
Charli, Marie, and Sheila exchanged looks. Then Marie nodded slightly. This conversation was the end of something. But I wasnât sure what that was.
We ate the rest of our meal in silence.
16
T hree weeks later, I got another letter from Margaret. Dear Maizon,
I just want to keep you posted on whatâs going on here. You still havenât written me. I was thinking maybe you just forgot to. Now Iâm thinking you forgot all about me. Thatâs okay. Ms. Dell says youâre probably real busy, Maizon, with Blue Hill being such a hard school and all. If youâre real busy, donât worry about writing. Best friends donât have to write each other all the time, right? Your grandmother said she got a postcard from you. That was nice that you sent her one. Postcards are nice. I really like them. Liâl Jay is all over the place now. Mama says she canât keep him in one place. Sometimes I take him off her hands. Since Daddy died, Mama doesnât have so much patience anymore. Ms. Dell . and Hattie and me, we all sit around and talk about you. Did you know that Hattie wrote poetry too? She keeps her poems inside her head. I think maybe youâre making a lot of new friends. I hope you donât get a new best friend, Maizon, because Iâm not gonna. I