Toe to Toe (On Pointe Book 1) Penelope Freed (funny books to read .TXT) đ
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- Author: Penelope Freed
Book online «Toe to Toe (On Pointe Book 1) Penelope Freed (funny books to read .TXT) đ». Author Penelope Freed
Reheated dinner is just one of the perks of my glamorous ballerina lifestyle. So is not getting to start my homework until 9:30 p.m. Algebra questions, research for my US History essay, re-writing my Biology lab notes, reading a chapter in that English book that Iâve already forgotten the name of. Shoot, did I bring it home? Iâm heading back to look for it in my backpack when a folder on the table catches my eye, a post-it with my name stuck on the front. Abandoning the hunt for the book, I flip through the folder until the microwave pings. Momâs tiny cursive writing on the tab reads Summer Intensives. A quick flip through the folder tells me Mom has all the paperwork filled in and ready to send for the upcoming auditions. Relieved she took care of it, I put it aside and scroll through my phone while I eat, dreaming of the day I might join the ranks of a ballet company like the ones filling my Instagram feed.
Procrastinating starting my homework, I take the file to the living room and plop down next to my mom on the couch. âThanks,â I say, waving the file in my hand. âWhat are you watching?â I ask.
âOh, youâre welcome sweetie. Just catching up on Arrow.â I rest my head on her shoulder, stealing a moment to relax. âHow was class? Are you feeling ready for the auditions?â
âClass was good. Iâm less sore today so thatâs good. Foam rolling last night helped. I broke my pointe shoes in class today, I need to sew the ribbons on my new pair.â My phone buzzes and I glance at it.
Lisa: Guess who got into my room and stole all my highlighters?
Katy: At least your brother doesnât fart on you for fun.
Lisa: Thank god I only have 1.
Me: Thank god I only have none.
Seeing Katy and Lisa complaining about their siblings reminds me. âDid you talk to Mrs. H?â
âYes, I got everything sorted out for Lisa and Katy.â Mom pauses the tv, giving me her full attention. âYou and Olivia havenât had a sleepover in ages. What brought this on?â
I shrug. âHer dad and Martha are going out of town.â
âGood for them.â
âItâll be nice to see Olivia. All I see of her now are her dadâs Facebook posts. She looks just like her mom.â
âYou always say that.â
âItâs true. The two of you remind me so much of us when we were your age.â Mom looks wistfully at the photo of the four of us on the mantle. Olivia and I are just toddlers, fated to be best friends because our moms were best friends. At least until Oliviaâs mom died. Itâs been four years but there is still a hole in our lives where Oliviaâs mom used to be. While sheâs distracted by her thoughts I peek at my phone, but there arenât any new messages.
âI was surprised she said sheâd come to the auditionâballet isnât Oliviaâs âthingâ these days, you know? I donât think sheâs planning to go to a summer intensive at all. I heard her tell Ms. Parker she was going to stay here and have a âreal summer,â whatever that means.â Iâm pretty sure it means going to the beach with Tyler Stanley and getting a killer tan, but I donât think my mom wants to know that.
âWell, either way, it will be nice to have her and the other girls over. The house is so much quieter without her around. Do you have homework to do?â She kisses my head before I get up off the couch, her hand reaching for the remote.
âOf course,â I sigh. âIt never ends. I better get started,â I say, standing up. âNight Mom, love you.â
âGoodnight sweetheart, donât stay up too late,â my mom calls as I head upstairs to my room.
I check my group chat with Lisa and Katy before I pull out my math book, hoping for an excuse to put it off for five more minutes.
Katy: Seriously, pity me.
Katy: AlsoâŠ
A photo from Katy of the disgusting blister on her pinky toe that ripped open in class tonight pops up in the group chat. She doodled neon green slime oozing from the blister and dripping onto her biology textbook.
Me: Thatâs disgusting.
Sometimes I wonder how Katy even ended up in ballet. Her oldest brother Cole is a sophomore at UCLA on a basketball scholarship. Her twin brothers, Jack and Hunter, are juniors at our schoolâJack plays football and something-else-ball, and Hunter runs track. Theyâre one of those sporty families who watch football on Sundays and have burping contests after dinner. I know, I was there once.
I reply with a gif of a cat vomiting rainbows.
Lisa: Is that how you feel about Katyâs blister or Oliviaâs news?
Me: Both?
Katy: Both is valid. Iâm sorry she surprised you like that. You ok?
Me: Yes. No. I donât know. I mean, itâs only a first date, right? It could be nothing.
Iâm not okay, but Iâm hoping that if I keep pretending I am, eventually it will be true. And they havenât even gone out yet, maybe itâll be a disaster. Even though I donât want to, I text Olivia to ask her about the upcoming competition. She doesnât respond so I put on some music and pull out my Algebra book, out of excuses. Stupid ânormal high school experienceâ homework that my parents insist is good for me. I donât care about school, I just want to dance.
Chapter 2 Olivia
Allyson: Uniforms tomorrow?
Megan: Yes. I just checked with Coach
I catch up with the squad group chat as I eat my dinner. Thank god football is season over at least. Juggling Friday night games, pep rallies and practice with my dance schedule this fall had been ridiculous. I laugh to myself as I scroll through the conversation. It drifts from which uniforms weâre supposed to wear tomorrow (long sleeves, thank fuck) to a discussion of which basketball player is the hottest. Allyson
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