Nine, Ten: List 2

The very familiarity of his bad manners was a relief, because for a long time after the accident had happened, even Will’s best friends had acted differently around him.

They didn’t tease him, punch him in the arm, or give him dead legs in the dugout.

And that was a relief too, because it was as if he had been hearing, through their apologies and condolences and cards and flowers and food and tears, something else they weren’t saying.

Will shifted his reverie away from the table of girls.

Her mother had been wrong about one thing: Missing school orientation was not a minor thing.

Maybe if Aimee hadn’t been such a fashion guru, her mom would never have gotten that job and they would never have had to leave Chicago.

Or better yet, they’d still be in their old house. No new school, new teacher, new town, new kids. No impending divorce.

The police were allowed to do whatever they wanted—tease, taunt, humiliate, shove, prod, provoke.

The police were allowed to do whatever they wanted—tease, taunt, humiliate, shove, prod, provoke.

Sergio’s cousin Ralph had spouted tears that time when the cops grabbed him and ran their hands all over his legs, around his chest, up and down his arms, holding his head down so he couldn’t look up, so he couldn’t turn and see anything but the dark smothering of his own hoodie.

Sergio had absolutely no interest in this guy or why he had the day off, but the unsettling sense of his authority lingered, as well a kind of yearning for it at the same time.

The doors hissed closed and the train lurched forward.

The subway hummed along, rocking rhythmically, like the washers in the basement did.

Hummed so that girls in his apartment building sometimes put their babies up on top of the machines and let the vibrations lull them into sleep.

The train started to slow and then sped up again, then slowed again, and black steel girders covered with years of oil and dirt became dimly visible outside the windows.

Sergio deliberately made sure not to look toward where the fireman was sitting, or make eye contact with him.

She gave Naheed her own strawberry-shaped pincushion, and together they sat in front of the mirror, practicing, wrapping and unwrapping, pinning and unpinning, until they both were laughing, and until Naheed’s own hands could nimbly fold and wrap and pin all by themselves, and until she looked almost as beautiful as her mother.

She sat down alone, and eventually the collective caroling stopped. But when she got up to put away her tray, someone picked up the chant again, though not with quite the same zeal.

Naheed’s uncle was very observant, and he did not believe a wife should ever contradict her husband.

The two huge machines faced each other, with their tall metal booms stretched out at an angle, like two medieval horsemen with their long swords tipped forward. Or sentinels, keeping guard, waiting patiently and silently.

Will took a flying leap from the small hill of earth he was standing on and landed on Alex’s back. They both went down onto the loamy soil.

He sat right down on Alex’s chest and stayed there, ostensibly holding him captive, while Alex flailed his legs and arms around helplessly.

Aimee considered opting out by claiming low blood sugar from involuntary fasting, but she decided against starting out the year as the class hypochondriac.

Aimee considered opting out by claiming low blood sugar from involuntary fasting, but she decided against starting out the year as the class hypochondriac.

Of course, Aimee had no idea where to stand as the other kids started to separate themselves into two teams, meandering their way to one end of the grassy area or the other.

Sergio reflexively looked down at his own body.

Sergio paused, searching for the right word that would be accurate, not hysterical, something urgent and intelligent, to bring immediate help.

“Is he breathing?” the disembodied voice asked.

“Emergency personnel have been dispatched to your location. Can you remain at the scene?”

“Emergency personnel have been dispatched to your location. Can you remain at the scene?”

After the ambulance finally arrived, the paramedics came running down the stairs.

He felt his heart pumping, adrenaline rocking his body.

In his memory there were only vague, shadowy images that might not even be real.

All Eliza needed was one friend and she could probably have handled the teasing. Maybe even laughed it off. But alone, it was a tsunami.

Maybe everyone else would be talking about their bowling scores or asking Will if he liked their gifts. Or just raving about how much fun they’d had at his party.