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anything Zach
looked terrified at her agreement.  He squeaked, “Really?  That’s great.  I’ll
see you then.  I’ll wait for you outside the gym in between the two doors after
your game next week.”
    She said, “Sounds
great!” Jade’s teammates were long gone, having bustled into the locker room
without waiting. 
    She chanced a
single look back before fleeing inside.  Zach was walking away, his vivid blue
shirt crisp and new.  He dressed up for her. Jade slid through the door.  A
random thought occurred to her. Maybe it was a prank.  Maybe he was going to
stand her up while laughing with his buddy out of sight.  Just like Tom Peters
did in seventh grade.
    Maybe he lost a
bet.
    Jade had a hard
time believing that Zach really wanted to date her. Maybe it wasn’t a
date…maybe.  Maybe it was.  Jade pulled her kneepads down and leaned on the
counter, looking at herself in the mirror.
    The girls were all
changing in the locker room, removing shorts and pulling on jeans.  Jade could
stare into the mirror all she wanted and the view would never change.  When she
looked into the mirror, Jade saw ugly—too big a nose, too strong a jaw, brown
hair that didn’t match her mothers or her sisters for that matter. 
    She grabbed a
bench and quickly untied her sneakers, yanking them off.  Some of the girls
were already dressed.  It wouldn’t do to keep the bus waiting.  Scrambling to
catch up, Jade was grateful for the girls who had to take one last minute to
tease their hair in the mirror.  Even though she normally watched them with one
part jealous and two parts impatience, today she was glad.  She pulled on her
t-shirt and then rushed to get her street shoes on.
    Jade felt a little
awe as she picked up her bag.
    She had a date.

 
    Chapter 4
     
    ~~ Jade ~~
     
    When Jade walked
through the door, the house was quiet in a weird way.  Everyone was on edge. At
least the house smelled warm and inviting with the scent of garlic and
spaghetti sauce in the air.  Jade’s stomach growled.
    Aunt Bertha
suggested dinner in front of the television which was so out of character that
Claire said, “The television?  Are you sick?”
    Aunt Bertha
laughed, but Jade thought she looked a little panicked when she said, “I think
we could use a change of pace.”
    She was hiding
something.  Something huge.  Aunt Bertha didn’t want a family discussion
because she was afraid of giving something away.  Jade said, “What is it? Did
you hear something about Mom?”
    Mindy was playing
with an hourglass, moving sand up and down, up and down.  It was a game that
fascinated her for hours.  She looked up sharply.  Jade bit her lip.  She
should have known better than to say anything in front of Mindy.  Mostly she
forgot Mom, but when she remembered and wanted her, Mindy would cry for hours.
    Aunt Bertha leaned
against one of the kitchen room chairs, “No, of course not. I would tell you.”
    “Okay,” Jade
thought about asking what Mindy would do for dinner.  She imagined the carpet
covered in spaghetti sauce, but one look at Bertha’s pale face and the way her
hand shook as she clutched her cane and Jade decided against it.
    “How’d the game
go?” Claire asked. 
    “We won,”  No
thanks to me. Jade thought.
    “Cool.”
    Jade knew she had
to tell her sisters about Zach, the sooner the better.  She expected merciless
teasing to follow when she said, “I have a date next week after volleyball.” 
She meant it to sound casual, but Jade winced at the excitement in her own
voice.
    “You have to
cancel,” Raven said.  Her normally straight shiny hair was stringy and
unkempt.  Jade wondered if her sister even showered that morning when she woke
up.
    “It’s with Zach.”
Jade said as if that would explain why she really really couldn’t
cancel.
    “We have a family
outing planned,” Raven crossed her arms and set her jaw in that way she got
when she decided to be intractably stubborn.  Jade felt