I'm glad I took Ms. Martinez's advice and told my mom about the days I ditched. At first, Mom got real mad and yelled at me, but afterwards she said she was happy I told her the truth because she didn't want me to get kicked out of school. Then she lectured me about how I'll be the first one in the family to graduate from high school. When I mentioned to Mom that Ms. Martinez wanted me to meet with her once a week in her office, she nodded her head quietly and asked me how much it would cost. I told her that Ms. Martinez said not to worry about the money. Even tough Mom didn't say anything, I knew she was glad I had agreed to meet with Ms. Martinez.

Walking over to my Algebra class, I come up to a group of students who are standing by the girls' bathroom talking. I recognize the tall blonde girl who is in my History class. They start talking in hushed voices when they see me coming. The only one who says hello to me is the blonde girl, whose name I don't even remember. I mumble hello and hurry past hem, but not before I hear one of the guys tell her, "Watch out, Susan. Don't you know he's a faggot?" Embarrassed, I hurry away down the hallway and I don't slow down until I finally get to Algebra. During class, I'm glad that Mrs. Allen doesn't ask me to work a problem on the board, because I'm too upset to concentrate during the entire period.

By the time I get to Art class, I'm feeling pretty depressed and I look forward to losing myself in my artwork. Mrs. Grant is extra nice to me today. Before I even sit down, she calls me over and tells me I can start a new self-portrait.
As soon as I sit down, Maya points to her drawing of Frida Kahlo and asks, "How do you like the monkey?"

I star at Maya's drawing for a few seconds and then tell her, "The monkey's almost as hairy as Frida!"

Maya punches me in the arm and we both start to laugh.

The rest of the period goes by quickly as I busy myself with my new self-portrait. I draw different parts of my face as if they were fragments of a mirror, all broken up into small pieces. When Mrs. Grant walks by, she pauses to compliment my works, which makes me feel pretty good inside.

When the bell rings, I gather up my supplies and head out the door and down the crowded hallway. Maya is right behind me.

"Tommy, let's have lunch together," she says, coming up next to me. I'm about to tell her okay, when we run right smack into Tyrone, Rudy and Juanita, who are standing next to the water fountain.

Maya slows down to talk to them, and I can feel Rudy staring at me. As a I walk past them, I hear Rudy tell Maya, "What are you doing with the joto?" I want to turn around and slug Rudy, but instead I hurry away as fast as I can in the direction of the library. When I get there, I find a table way in the back where I can be alone. Then I lay my head down and close my eyes, wishing I could disappear off the face of the earth. All of a sudden, I feel someone tap me on the shoulder. I raise my head to find Maya standing next to me.

"Come on, Tommy. Let's go eat," she says.

"Why don't you eat with your friends?" I answer in an angry voice.

"With those jerks? Don't let them get to you, Tommy. They're just a bunch of idiots."

"That's easy for you to say, Maya. They all like you."

"That's what you think! Anyway, I don't care what other people say. Come on, Tommy, let's go eat. I'm starved," Maya insists, pulling at my sleeve until I finally get up and follow her out of the library.

After we stop at our lockers, we find a quiet spot behind the main quad where there aren't too many students hanging around.

"Here, I saved this for you," Maya says, handing me her Ding-Dong.

"No thanks," I answer, feeling dark and dreary like the gray clouds hanging over us.

"I'm sorry Rudy's such a creep," Maya says. "But Juanita's not that way. It's just that she's all hung up on Rudy, or else she'd e here eating with us. And Tyrone's acting like a jerk, too."

"It's not just them, Maya," I blurt out. "It's the whole damned school. They call me names behind my back. They act as if I've got AIDS."

"Don't listen to them, Tommy. They're all ignorant and they're not worth it."

"I don't know if I can take it, Maya," I say, lowering my head.

Maya reaches over and squeezes my hand. "Sure you can, Tommy. I'll be right here with you. Don't even forget that, okay? I'm your friend, and so is Kizer."

I stare into Maya's chocolate-colored eyes and I remember what Ms. Martinez said about Maya being one of my best friends. "Thanks, Maya," I whisper.

"Now, quite feeling sorry for yourself and eat," Maya orders. Somehow she manages to make me smile.