Gilbert and Louis Rule the Universe: First Impressions (11 page)

On the mouth.

With tongue.

Now none of that would happen.
I am grounded and can’t even go to the stupid Christmas tree lighting.
And what am I going to tell him?
I can’t tell him I am grounded, that is so lame.

I go over to the computer.
I want to IM Gilbert but we are in a fight.
Maddy
is online.
I will tell her.

LeahLouis
:
u there?

Artgirl11:
hi

Artgirl11:
wuts
up?

LeahLouis
:
grades came

LeahLouis
:
im
grounded

Artgirl11:
$%#$%!!

LeahLouis
:
i
know

My mom called from the other room, “No instant messaging!”
Damn.

LeahLouis
:
got to go

Artgirl11:
so sorry

Artgirl11:
l8er

I stay in my room the rest of the day; I don’t even come down for dinner.
I fall asleep still crying.

Chapter 10

Tuesday, November 17

Today’s horoscope: Get your head in the game if you want to win.

“
Agh
!”
I slam the door as I get into Gilbert’s mom’s car the next morning.

“I got grounded,” I complain as I fasten my seatbelt.

“Really, that sucks.”
Gilbert says, but it doesn’t sound like she thinks it sucks, in fact, it kind of sounds like she thinks I deserved it.

Her mom seems far more interested.

“Why were you grounded, Leah?” She asks.

“They saw my mid-term grades and want me to do better.”
I tell her.

“Oh, well, I can understand that.
How did you do?” She asks.

“Mostly Bs and a few Cs.”

“You can do better than that.
You girls are so smart,” Gilbert’s mom says into the rearview mirror.

“I got all As and Bs,” I hear Gilbert mumble.

“I guess,” I say to Gilbert’s mom and slouch back into the car seat.

Parents are so lame.

When we get to school the girls are all waiting for us.
Maddy
, Riley
,
and Rowan are much more sympathetic about the whole grounding thing. Again, Gilbert runs off to class early.

“I can’t believe that you are grounded,” Rowan says.

“That is so messed up,”
Maddy
agrees.

“Are you so upset about your date with Winston?” Riley asks.

“Oh my God, totally.
I cried myself to sleep last night.
Don’t my eyes look puffy?”
They all go in for a closer look and agree that they do look a little puffy.

“We will do
surveillance
for you,”
Maddy
says.

“Yeah, we’ll see if he talks to any other girls or anything,”
Rowan adds.

“You guys are awesome, thanks,” I say as the first bell rings.
I feel slightly better as we all run off to class.

At the end of history class Mr. Jeffries calls me to stay back.
I stand there shifting my weight from one foot to the other while the rest of the kids empty out of class.
A few of the boys
snicker
at me as they walk by, assuming that I am in trouble.

As soon as everyone had left, Mr. Jeffries says, “Leah, Jimmy has requested to change partners.”

“Oh,” is all I can say.

“Is there anything you want to tell me?”
Mr. Jeffries asks.
Mr. Jeffries is always trying to talk to kids like he is on our level.
He always uses dated expressions like “I am down with that” and “that’s totally dope.”
Like he is so sure he understands what we are going through.
Please.

“No,”
I mumble, shake my head and keep my eyes on the floor.

“Well, I don’t normally do this, but he was pretty upset, so I partnered him up with Allison.
That means that Charles will be your partner.”

Charles is like the dumbest kid in class.
I mean, he doesn’t believe in global warming.
I am so screwed.

“Okay.
Thanks.”
I want to get out of there before I start to cry.
Life is totally sucking.

“Do you want to talk about it?” Mr. Jeffries asks.

See what I mean?

There is no way I am confiding my problems to my history teacher so I
eek
out a “No.”

“Alright,” he says but looks at me like he knows I am about to lose it.
Before he can say anything else I walk as quickly as I can out the door and bee-line it for the girls bathroom.
I make it into one of the stalls before the tears start to roll down my cheeks.
I start making those choking sobs, and quickly flush the toilet so no one can hear me.
I mean, I don’t know why I am so upset about changing partners.
Jimmy is so lame.
But somewhere inside hurt.
It is like nothing at all is going my way.

That evening at home, when my mom is in the shower, I find my phone (she always hides it in her bedside table drawer) and secretly text Winston to say that I can’t go to the Christmas tree lighting because my grandma is going to be in town.

I wait a few minutes and then hear a ding.

“
Bummer,” is all it says.

*   *  
*

The next week is the worst of my whole life.
Alex and I still have to carpool, but the most we say to one another is “Hi,” when I get in the car and “Bye” when we arrive at school.
Gilbert has been eating lunch these days outside with Dylan so at least I can sit in the cafeteria with the girls.
The five of us still hang out together between classes and at Nutrition, but when Gilbert and I are forced to be with each other we only talk to the other girls, never to one another.
When Gilbert and I are in the same place at the same time there is this weird tension in the air and it makes me kind of sick to my stomach.
The girls know something is up but haven’t said anything.
I am sure they talk about it among themselves, but they haven’t approached me, and I am not sure what to tell them.
Gilbert and I have never really been in a fight before.
Except that one time in fourth grade when her dog chewed my Barbie’s hand off, but my mom bought me a new one and then it was all better.
I play out all these conversations in my head where Gilbert and I confront one another and we yell all kinds of things, but then we end up hugging and forgiving one another.
But I can’t bring myself to say any of the things that I am feeling.
Like, I can’t believe she is ignoring me at such a
sucky
time.
I mean, how can she think that I was being snotty and stuck up?
I was just acting the way I always act.
She is the one ignoring our friendship.
She is the one who is spending all her time with her new boyfriend.
Argh
, it makes me mad just thinking about it.

Also, I didn’t I tell the girls about my text from Winston as he didn’t seem to express the same level of despair that I am feeling.
Nor did he ask me out again.
I know because I still check my phone every day.
Somehow that piece of information doesn’t seem worth sharing with everyone else.

My social life is non-existent.
My parents have decided to move the computer into the living room so that that can make sure I don't use IM or
Facebook
.
The only person I am allowed to hang out with is my mom.
She makes me go everywhere with her.
Apparently, now that I am a “
groundie
” they think leaving me home alone is some kind of risk.
Like I will be on the phone and
IMing
while smoking cigarettes and drinking alcoholic beverages.
I have to go to the grocery store, post office, hardware store… I have to take part in whatever errands my mom has.
It is so boring.
The night of the Christmas Tree Lighting I was so miserable that my mom finally gave in and let me watch TV.
She said I was getting on her nerves.

Back at school it is a short week before Thanksgiving.
Gilbert has already left for the East to celebrate the holiday with her grandparents.
To tell you the truth, it is kind of a relief.
When I get to school on Monday morning I corner the girls.

“How was it?” I demand.

“What?”
Riley asks. “Oh, the Christmas tree lighting?”

“Um, yeah!”
I say.
No duh.

“It was fine.
It was
kinda
cold out,”
Maddy
says.

Right, like I give a rat’s ass about the weather.
I am trying to remain cool.