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that I care. And I don’t. Madison Baker is nothing to me. She’s just a little fly that’s buzzing around my head, totally inconsequential to me and my life. Well. If a fly had a crush on my ex-boyfriend and had beautiful hair and flawless makeup.
    The thought of a fly wearing makeup is ridiculous. I laugh out loud. I mean, can you imagine? Like, a fly with painted wings? Although, when you think about it, it’s not really any different than us painting our nails or dyeing our hair. Humans are just animals, after all. And in other cultures—
    â€œSomething funny, Miss Williams?” Mr. Jacobi asks.
    Oh. Right. I’m still in math.
    And Mr. Jacobi is still sitting at his desk.
    And I’m still sitting at my desk, which is ridiculous, since the bell rang a few minutes ago and everyone else is already gone.
    â€œOh, um, no,” I say, standing up quickly and gathering my books.
    â€œIs there a reason you’re still in my classroom?” Mr. Jacobi asks.
    Wow. Talk about making a student feel unwelcome and unwanted. Someone really ought to file a complaint about him.
    â€œYes, actually,” I say. I walk up to the front of the room. “I wanted to talk to you about the tutoring program.”
    â€œDon’t worry, Miss Williams,” he says. His head is completely down, and he’s focused on the papers he’s grading. He’s not even looking at me. “It’s elementary school math. You shouldn’t have any problems with it.”
    I do my best not to feel insulted. “Oh, it’s not that. I’m sure I’ll have no problem with the math. It’s just that, uh, I’m not going to be able to do the program.”
    This gets his attention. He sits up straight and takes off his glasses, regarding me across his desk. “And why is that, Miss Williams?”
    â€œWell,” I say slowly. “I have, um, a family situation going on.”
    â€œWhat kind of family situation?” he asks, sounding suspicious.
    â€œIt’s personal.” I’m hoping this will suffice, since obviously there is no family situation. I put what I hope is a serious look on my face and quickly rack my brain, trying to think of something I could use that wouldn’t technically be a lie. I could tell him about my dad’s high cholesterol. Although, that’s not really a pressing situation, and besides, I don’t want to tempt fate by exaggerating my dad’s health problems. I mean, that would so not be cool.
    Ooh, I could use the excuse of me getting a new stepmother. Of course, my dad and his girlfriend, Cindy, aren’tengaged, but they are in a pretty serious relationship. My dad gave her a promise ring so that she wouldn’t move to Virginia and everything. And besides, everyone knows teenagers have tons of problems when it comes to blended families. Especially me, since I obviously have abandonment issues due to my mother leaving me when I was young. Mr. Jacobi doesn’t know about that, but I wouldn’t mind telling him.
    Still, it’s always risky when you start talking about having a hard time at home, because teachers are usually quick to send you to the guidance counselor’s office. Honestly, has anyone ever really been helped by the guidance counselors? Mine is named Ms. Westlake, and I see her once a year to get scheduled for my classes.
    â€œThat’s fine, Miss Williams,” Mr. Jacobi says.
    â€œReally?” Wow. He’s not even going to make me explain myself ? Yay! Looks like my luck is turning around.
    â€œYes, really,” he says.
    â€œThank you for understanding, Mr. Jacobi,” I say seriously, and then start to head out of the classroom. I want to go running out into the hall in celebration, but I control myself. Someone dealing with a pressing personal issue would not be running in jubilation.
    â€œOh, Miss Williams?” Mr. Jacobi calls after me.
    I turn around.