[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ] Actually, you didn t. Ponzu sauce has fish in it.
His face falls so quickly and completely that I crack up.
Aw, man! I m sorry, he says. Maybe I can bring her back. He twists around and starts to raise his
right hand.
Stop! I screech, reaching forward to grab his other arm. It s okay! The sight of ponzu sauce won t
make me faint. I promise!
All right, all right. Sorry, he says, facing forward again. Then he looks down at my hand on his wrist.
I quickly let go and pull my arms under the table. No big deal, I mutter, rubbing my palms on my itchy
skirt.
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He grins another one of his top-hat-and-tuxedo smiles and I realize I ve just given him some hope. I
should have let him freak out about the fish.
You know, he begins, leaning forward and resting his elbows on the table, it was nice to meet your
parents and see all those pictures.
For real?
Yeah. I want to know more about you.
Why? The word just sort of pushes past my lips. It s been darting around inside me ever since he
asked me out.Why me? I m doing everything I can to be ugly and weird. He should see me as the
world s most embarrassingly bad date, and yet here he is. HereI am.
His eyes blink wide. Uh& because I just do. I think you re& fascinating.
Why? I repeat.
I don t know. Because you re you. He shakes his head and lets out a meek little chuckle. That was
lame, huh? Some lawyer I am. What I mean is& I ve never met anyone like you.
Oh. Sothat s it. I m different. I m a case he wants to crack open. A debate he wants to win. An Eagle
Scout s wildest merit badge. As president of the Helping Hands and all-around brownnoser, he cannot
resist the chance to adopt a poor, unenlightened savage like me.
I ve been wanting to ask you out for a while, but& He trails off and shrugs.
But what? I ask, unable to help myself.
I thought you d say no. The grin returns, as if he suddenly remembers that Ididn t say no, and that I
really do want to be out with him.
Which I don t.
Look I lean forward and meet his gaze thanks for thinking of me and stuff, but this isn t going to
work out.
Oh really? Jack looks amused. He settles back in his chair, waiting for the punch line.
Really, I echo, peeved that he s taking this so lightly. Think about it. I m one of the most radical
people I ve met and I ve met a lot of people while you re like this Young Republican poster boy.
I see. You re sure about that, huh? He strokes his chin as he nods, humoring me and pissing me off
in the process.
Yes.I can t hang out with Republicans.
Why not?
Oooh!This isn t fair. He s not playing this right at all! He should be all blustery and offended. Instead he
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looks positively thrilled.
Because! My voice has risen to that shrill whiny-baby tone. Because I can t stand Republicans.
They re so narrow-minded and intolerant.
I m totally shocked by what happens next. Jack tilts back his head and howls with laughter.
What? What s so funny? I demand.
Sorry, he says between guffaws. It s just hilarious. You hating all Republicans because they re so
intolerant.
Hearing my words bounced back like that makes me realize how stupid I sounded.
I never said Ihated them, I mumble, all puny with shame. I just don t agree with them on lots of stuff.
Makes it hard to get along.
I know. Jack goes all serious again. Okay, fine. I ll be straight with you. I don t support any particular
political party, but I am a conservative at least fiscally.
Right. You people believe in slashing any program for the hungry and poor in the name of financial
responsibility. Blah, blah, blah.
That s not what I said. What s wrong with thinking our nation should have a balanced budget and live
within its means? A whole lot of debt isn t good for it.
It s just funny how you guys never want to cut back on things like corporate subsidies or the military.
It s always the things that are designed to help people that have to go.
The military helps people.
I let out a snort. Yeah? How?
Well, beyond the fact that it protects us, it also funds education for those who might not be able to
afford it.
Sure, with the minor condition that you put your life on the line! Really sweet of them.
It s how my dad got his college degree, he adds with a shrug. Probably the only way he would have
gotten out of the tiny town he grew up in.
But it s not right that the least powerful people in this country are the ones we put on the front lines!
He knew what he was getting into when he joined the army. And at least his government assistance
wasn t a handout. He worked for it.
I glower at him and pretend to be so put off by his argument that I can t even speak. But the truth is I
can t come up with anything else to say. That s one way I m not like my parents. They can debate an
issue calmly, for days if they have to. Me? I always lose my temper and then can t think straight.
Jack, on the other hand, is almost James Dean cool. He talks in his bossy know-it-all voice, but he
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doesn t bully. And he doesn t get all superheated when I challenge him on stuff. He s wrong about being
a bad lawyer. He s a good one like TV-crime-show good. The jerk.
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