remotely dangerous He’d wear a seat belt to ride his bicycle if he ever rode a bicycle which he doesn’t because he says bikes aren’t safe But it doesn’t matter anyway because Mom’s answer to both of us is the same No cell phones I know Mom’s not saying it to be mean It’s just paying for cell phone service each month is expensive Ever since Dad died we’ve had to be extra careful about money Instead of our tenth birthday party being at a cool place like the nail spa or the water park it had to be at home And we didn’t get cell phones as our birthday presents even though we both asked for them I’m not saying that birthday parties and cell phones are the reason I wish Dad were still here I wish he were still here because he was the greatest dad in the world He snuck notes into my backpack to give me an extra boost Quinn you will ROCK the track meet today or Don’t worry Quinn You’ll get them next time He made pizza from scratch He knew how to 2
juggle He gave the squeeziest hugs And when he came home from work at the end of the day everything just felt cozier I’m just saying that when something as unfair as your dad dying in a car accident happens it seems like more unfair things keep piling up on top of it Not having a cell phone is the icing on an unfair cake Or whatever the opposite of icing and cake are The worms on top of a pile of mud The cavities in a mouth of gingivitis It’s all bad and it makes me miss my dad even more But back to Madeline and her cell phone Like I said she comes over every morning and over cornflakes we use her phone to FaceTime with Bella Bella used to go to school with us Last year her parents decided to move and they stuck her in boarding school That’s another unfair thing The only difference is this one doesn’t have anything to do with missing my dad Madeline Bella and I have the timing 3
down to a science Madeline gets to my house at exactly 7 25 By 7 27 we’re at the table with our cereal and we have the cell phone propped up against the box so we can both see Bella We talk for thirteen minutes During which time my brother is usually telling us it’s not safe to talk so much when we’re eating because we might start to choke But we don’t pay any attention to him At exactly 7 40 Madeline and I say good-bye to Bella rinse our bowls and head out the door As long as we run to school another thing Zack doesn’t think we should do walking is safer we get to our homeroom thirty seconds before the bell rings Today is Tuesday and it starts like every other day Better than any other day because Zack happens to be over at Old Man Max’s We’re supposed to call him Uncle Max but he’s not really our uncle He’s just a random old dude who Mom’s family has known forever Calling him uncle would be like telling a lie and Mom 4
is pretty obsessed with honesty being the best policy So why is Uncle Max the exception The doorbell rings at 7 25 a m like clockwork I’m already in the front hall and I swing the door open Hi Madeline Mom says as we walk into the kitchen Hi Mrs Cooley Madeline replies She pulls her phone from her pocket Hang on girls Mom says Isn’t the big fractions test today Yes I say Unfortunately Madeline adds So maybe you should skip the call to Bella today Mom says Your brother went to Uncle Max’s this morning You can just call him Max I cut in I know we’re not actually related thank goodness Be nice Quinn Mom warns I’m not being mean I say I’m being truthful After all isn’t honesty the best policy Uncle Max has been in our lives for a long 5
