Actually, No

The next day at school, I told the girls. There were about a dozen of us in our crew, but only five had ended up at this high school: Claudia, Sousou, Carine, Vitali—who'd kept her distance since what happened—and me. "You want to come work with me at McDonald's?" Sousou asked. "No thanks. Not over there. There's always a fight." "Now you're a princess too?" "Your cousins pick you up after your shift. I'm not crossing the whole city to get home. I already do it for school, and it kills me." "Babysit, like me," Carine said. "I don't like kids. My little brother already gets on my nerves. Claudia, is your store still hiring?" "I quit a month ago. You never listen when I talk." "Sorry. So what do you live on?" "I have parents, don't I?" Claudia's dad was missing in action. Her mom had beaten cancer and worked part-time at the front desk of a bank. No way that covered Claudia's lifestyle. But when she talked about her parents, nobody asked more questions. "Who's coming with me to drop off résumés tonight?" Carine had to pick up the kids. Sousou was seeing her man. Vitali pretended to look at her phone. Claudia said she'd come, but not late. We skipped last period and tried the two malls near my place. It was early January, and nobody was hiring. Come back before summer. We'll call you. Some wouldn't even take my résumé because I was a minor. "Damn, I can't be broke like this. I'd do anything for a thousand a month. Even nine hundred. Eight hundred." "Anything?" "Yes. Anything." "I have something that can make you a thousand dollars in one weekend. But it's a secret. Swear on your mother's life." "I don't swear on my mother's life for nothing." "A thousand dollars isn't nothing." "Okay. I swear on my mother's life." "Remember over Thanksgiving break, when I went down south?" "Yes, lucky you, you came back with so many new clothes. Oh—that's it? You buy clothes down there and resell them? Who pays a thousand dollars for that?" "What are you talking about? I bring back Mary Jane." "Who's Mary Jane?" "Not Mary Jane. Marijuana. Drugs." I screamed. "Are you serious?" "Stop yelling." She looked around to see if anyone had heard. "You sell drugs?" "I don't sell drugs. I bring them back up here." "And your mom doesn't say anything?" "She doesn't know, and she never will. She thinks I made manager. The fridge is full, I paid off her debts, the late rent, the bills. At my house, when money talks, everybody shuts up."