DAVID

The image of Kati's red hair falling over her bare shoulders is now forever stuck in my mind. They say God works in mysterious ways but this morning wasn't exactly what I had in mind when I prayed that Kati would notice me and one day be my girlfriend. Running into her in the washroom, with her sweater off-

"Hey David!" Gordy's loud voice pulls me out of my thoughts. "You're getting some bad publicity buddy." Loud as he is, it's still hard to hear him over the commotion in the hallway. It's lunchtime and the older kids are literally jumping off the walls and lockers. I move out of the way of a guy doing a cartwheel before his shoe hits me in the face.

I don't like this new school. It was so much better being the oldest in grade school, now we're at the bottom again, the youngest in the school and invisible.

"Yeah, it's about Kati..." Jay says, trying to be secretive but accomplishing the exact opposite, as usual. I grab my lunch from my locker and slam it shut. Gordy and Jay are my best friends, but sometimes they can be so annoying. They both know that I've had a crush on Kati for forever. We talk about everything. But this time I don't feel like talking about it.

"Hey," Gordy says, pointing to the shirt I'm wearing. "Isn't that the shirt I puked on last year and couldn't find?"

"No." I turn away, but there's no hiding it. He stashed the shirt in my locker months ago and I found it.

"So it is true!"

"What's true?" I frown.

"Where's your shirt?" Gordy asks me.

"My shirt?" I guess there's no hiding the truth now. "Kati's wearing it."

"What?" Gordy and Jay yell at the same time. This is the biggest girl thing that has happened to any of us, and yet I don't feel like getting excited about it. It's actually kind of embarrassing. I could have handled the situation better than I did. I ran out of there and left Kati behind. And now rumors are going to start up too.

I start walking and Gordy and Jay follow after me with their superhero lunch boxes in hand. Everyone else in this school eats at the cafeteria and buys their food, except for us. Our moms still pack our lunch. Whenever I ask my mom for lunch money my dad just yells at me to get a job.

We step into the lunch room and all heads turn to me. I stop.

"I think we should eat lunch somewhere else," I say to the guys. They don't argue but follow me as I head to the gym to have our lunch under the bleachers, where I finally tell Gordy and Jay everything that happened.

"How do these things happen to you?" Gordy says when I'm done, his mouth full of food. "What did you say she was wearing when you walked in there?"

I give him a threatening look.

Gordy puts his hands up in surrender. "Never mind."

"I don't get it," Jay says. "What happened to the sweater again? And why are we hiding out?"

"Because," Gordy sighs. "David has no chance of keeping a low profile now and we definitely don't need the attention of anyone on the football team today." Gordy fishes around in his lunch kit for more food. "I'd beat him up if I weren't his friend." He smacks me on the back. "Just joking."

I glare at him. There's no way he could beat me up. He might weigh more than me, but I'm in better shape than he is, and I'm way faster.

"But you have to admit," Gordy continues, "things are looking pretty bad for you right now. Getting caught in the washroom with Kati. You're never going to live this one down."

"Thanks, Gordy," I say, wishing he would shut up for once.

"Are we still getting together tonight to see the meteor shower?" Gordy says, changing the subject, finally.

"What about Solar Trek?" Jay asks.

"We'll just have to record it. Can you record it David?" Gordy asks me.

"I could record it!" Jay puts up his hand and Gordy smacks it down.

"Last time you recorded Solar Trek we got an hour of Tonya's Creative Cooking!"

Jay pouts and I roll my eyes. "I'll record it."

KATI

"Mindy, am I fat?"

Mindy gives me a questioning look as she sets down her tray of food and has a seat at our lunch table. I'm sink down a bit in my seat. I'm still wearing David's shirt and it fits a little tight in the chest. He's a small guy, but a boy's shirt should always fit bigger on a girl. I sink down farther in my seat, glancing around our table. There seem to be a lot more girls than usual sitting with us today.

"I haven't seen you all day!" Mindy says, ignoring my question. "Oh my gosh, look at your arms!" There's nothing Mindy loves more than gossip. The other girls at the table eat quietly, listening to our conversation but pretending not to. So that's why our table is so full today.

"Well," I say quietly. "It's a long story." I don't know how to start. Everything I say be twisted around into more gossip. So I have to set the record straight right here and now, before the gossip gets too ridiculous. I open my mouth to begin but two boys from the football team walking by interrupt me.

"Nice shirt God's girl," one says. My cheeks heat up. Why can't I just disappear?

"What would Jesus think?" another guy says. My stomach tightens in a knot. The other girls at the table giggle at all the attention. They don't even care how horrible this is making me feel. Everyone thinks I've done terrible things, with David!

Suddenly the whispering and giggling and stares are just too much. I spring up from my seat and run out of the lunchroom.