Total pages in book: 88
Estimated words: 83467 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 417(@200wpm)___ 334(@250wpm)___ 278(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 83467 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 417(@200wpm)___ 334(@250wpm)___ 278(@300wpm)
Genesis—Ten Years Old
June 1
The music could be heard from Kye’s backyard the moment I stepped outside. Smiling, I pulled my ponytail through my Atlanta Braves baseball cap that Dad had brought me home last week and ran across the freshly mowed grass of our lawn.
Today, Kye turned eleven years old.
I’d waved at him and shouted, “Happy birthday,” from my bedroom window this morning.
He had opened his bedroom window and told me that I’d better have him a good present when I showed up this afternoon for the party. Mom had tried to get me to wear a dress over my bathing suit and braid my hair. I had rolled my eyes at her and asked if she wanted the boys to make fun of me for months. If Kye and Bowie saw me in a dress, they’d laugh so hard that their sides would hurt.
The blue gift bag that I held grasped tightly in my hand swung back and forth, hitting my leg as I made my way into the backyard that I spent more time in than my own. The trampoline that Kye had gotten for Christmas two years ago had a sprinkler under it, and the bonfire was already going with long sticks beside it and a table that held s’mores supplies. There was a water-balloon station set up over where his swing set used to be, an area with a water gun obstacle course, and then the table with food and snacks.
Kye was shouting at Gary, a guy in his grade at school with bright red hair and freckles, to grab a water gun while he took off into the course with one in his hand. Just before he turned the corner, his blue eyes met mine, and he stopped. The big grin that had recently started making me feel funny in my stomach broke out over his tanned face.
“Wait up!” he called out to Bowie, who had already gone into the course. Then, he turned and headed toward me.
I set his gift down on the table with the other few gifts from the kids who had already arrived.
“You’re late!” he accused me as his eyes twinkled.
“Am not,” I argued. “The party starts at seven. It’s seven,” I replied.
He raised his eyebrows and cocked his head to one side. “Since when do you wait until the party starts?”
Since I’d had to argue with my mom about how I dressed. She’d said I looked like a boy. That was a common argument these days. She kept wanting me to dress feminine. Her words, not mine.
“Sorry,” I replied with a shrug. “Mom was making me do stuff,” I lied.
There was no way I was telling him about the dress and braids. He’d laugh at the mere thought of it.
He reached for the bag, his body dripping water all over the table.
“It’s not time to open presents yet!” I scolded him.
Kye didn’t care. He always did what he wanted, when he wanted.
“I’m not waiting to see what you got me,” he said with a crooked grin before reaching into the bag and pulling out the Florida Gators football jersey Dad had helped me order online.
He beamed at me, holding it up. “This is awesome!”
“HEY! I didn’t get one of those for my birthday!” Bowie accused me, frowning, when he reached us.
I laughed and took the bag from Kye. “There is something at the bottom, but you shouldn’t get it wet.”
Kye looked at me, then motioned at the bag. “Then, you show me.”
Feeling like the hero, I reached inside and pulled out the envelope that Dad had given me earlier this week. Kye studied it, his eyes going from the envelope to my face.
“A card?” Bowie asked, then rolled his eyes.
I opened the envelope, feeling like a rock star, then took the tickets from inside and held them up. “First Gators home game of the season. Dad’s taking us.”
Kye’s eyes went wide, and then he punched a fist into the air and shouted, “HOT DAMN!”
“WAIT! You got him tickets to see the Gators play?” Bowie looked devastated.
I fanned out the three tickets and looked at him pointedly. “I got all three of us tickets.”
The massive smile that broke across his face was priceless.
“Hey, Kye,” Maegan Washington said in a syrupy voice.
She was wearing a short blue jean miniskirt with a hot-pink bikini top as she leaned closer to Kye, batting her long lashes. Every guy at school thought Maegan was pretty.
Kye turned to look at her, and I could tell by the expression on his face that he liked her. Bowie nudged his arm and then gave the girl his own appreciative ogle.
She twirled a long lock of her blonde hair. “Happy birthday,” she said, looking at him as if he were a treat she wanted to eat.
My chest tightened as Kye turned his back completely to me and gave her his undivided attention. This had been happening more and more lately. I was no longer the only girl in Kye’s and Bowie’s lives. They had started noticing girls and talking about them. At first, I’d made fun of them, but it was starting to make me feel left out.