Chapter One

1

Is there a dumber question in the universe than "How was school today?" It wouldn't be so bad if the person asking actually cared about the truth. But the only answer people really want to hear is "Fine." Especially if they're part of your family.

"So, Clementine, how was school today?" my mom asked my sister as she passed the mashed potatoes.

Life could be worse, I thought. I could have been born first. Then my name would be Clementine instead of Carrie. My fingers started tapping the table, the way they do every night, leaving the place where I sit pockmarked like the wood had a bad case of acne. From the corner of my eye, I noticed my mom staring down at her plate, trying hard to hide her irritation. Lately she'd given up biting her bottom lip or making remarks like "Are you sure you can't stop tapping, darling . . . at least until after dinner?" I so would prefer her just saying what's on her mind: "STOP MAKING THAT SOUND. . . . IT'S DRIVING ME CRAZY!" Not that I could stop, of course.

"It sucked," my sister mumbled, finally answering the question, her mouth full of broccoli. This month she was on a fighting-cancer kick. Her diet consisted mostly of green, smelly steamed vegetables. It was better than the month last year when she ate only white things . . . rice, vanilla ice cream, and white bread.

Clementine is a junior in high school, and she's the kind of person who never does anything she doesn't want to do. She ignores fashion magazines, insisting that popular kids all look the same. If you think clothes are important, she'll say, then they become the boss of you. Her favorite band