The Candy Smash by Jacqueline Davies Read Free Book Online Page A

and put a cork in it." She handed out math worksheets and said the first person to make a sound would miss lunch recess. Jessie thought that sounded pretty good. She'd rather stay inside where it was warm and work on her newspaper than go out on the playground and guard the survey box. So as soon as she finished the problems on the page, she got up to sharpen her pencil, but wandered over to Evan's desk. He was hunched over his math paper with a scowl on his face.
    "What do your hearts say?" Jessie whispered, pointing to the box that sat on the corner of his desk. The box was open and a couple of hearts had spilled out.
    "Nothing," he muttered. He grabbed the box and tried to scoop up the two stray hearts, but accidentally knocked one to the floor. Jessie stooped down to pick it up, and before she handed it back to Evan, she quickly read what it said.
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Chapter 9
Love Comes in All Shapes and Sizes
cliché (n) an overused expression that lacks power because it is so familiar; for example: "as bright as a penny" or "love comes in all shapes and sizes" or "one smart cookie"
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    After school, the guys wouldn't stop teasing Evan about being in love with Megan.
    "I am not in love with Megan Moriarty!" he shouted at them as he pedaled his bike away from the playground, furious and embarrassed. Suddenly he felt that there were so many things he was ashamed of. He was ashamed that he liked Megan. He was ashamed that he liked poetry.
    And he was ashamed that he was the only one in the class who got store-bought candy hearts when everyone else got special messages written just for them.
    When it had happened the first time on Monday, he hadn't thought much about it. Candy was candy. Who cared if his hearts just said FOR YOU ? But now it seemed as if whoever was giving out the candy was purposely pointing out that he was not very special. It made him feel the way he did when his grandmother forgot him but remembered everybody else.
    On the way home, he rode right by Megan, and he didn't even say hello. He rode fast, as if he didn't see her right there on the sidewalk looking at him, one hand raised and smiling.
    And why didn't Jessie know whether Megan had drawn the heart in the girls' bathroom? How hard was it to find that out?
    "Just ask her, for Pete's sake," he'd said to Jessie in the hallway after recess.
    But Jessie had waved the taped-up survey box in his face and said, "I'm a little busy, you know!"
    He decided to loop the long way home so that he could pedal out some of his frustration. More than anything else, he wished he had basketball practice that afternoon. But it was Thursday, so no practice. By the time he got home, Jessie was already there. They walked through the front door together and found Mrs. Treski in the kitchen, pouring hot water from the kettle into a mug.
    "Grab the mail, will you?" she said, so Evan doubled back and pulled a stack of letters and catalogs out of the mailbox by the front door.
    "I've got stuff to do," said Jessie, heading straight for the stairs. "No interruptions!"
    "Yeah, right," said Evan, dropping the letters on the kitchen counter.
    "What's that about?" asked Mrs. Treski, flipping through the mail.
    "Just some extra credit project she's doing," said Evan glumly.
    "Hmm. That's Jessie. Hey, look. Here's something for you." She held up a small square envelope with red lettering on it. Evan's heart did a 360 backflip. Had Megan sent him a valentine? Should he open it in front of his mother? Did he even want it?
    His mom held up another envelope that looked exactly the same. "And here's one for Jessie." She looked puzzled. "I wonder why..."
    Evan tore open the envelope, not sure what he hoped to find inside. It was a card with a picture of Snoopy hugging Woodstock, and the message inside read, "Love comes in all shapes and sizes."
    "It's from Grandma," he said.
    "I know. I could tell from the handwriting."
    "Look what she wrote," said Evan, holding out the card. "Dear Evan, I love you