Chapter One Provigal AFTER LUNCH "Grace! You have got to see the new guy." April bounded up to me in the junior hallway. Sometimes she reminded me of the cocker spaniel I used to own--she trembled in excitement over just about anything. "Hottest guy ever?" I almost dropped my backpack. Stupid combination locker. "No way. This guy is totally nasty. He got kicked out of his last two schools, and Brett Johnson says he's on parole." April grinned. "Besides, everybody knows Jude is the hottest guy ever." She jabbed me in the side. I did drop my back pack. My box of pastels dumped out at my feet. "J wouldn't know." I grumbled and squatted to pick up my shattered pastels. "Jude's my brother, remember?" April rolled her eyes. "He did ask about me at lunch, right?" "Yeah"--I picked through the chalk bits--"he said, 'How's April?' and I said, 'She's fine,' and then he gave me half of his turkey sandwich." I swear, if she had a disloyal bone in her body, I'd worry April was only my friend to get close to my brother--like half the other girls in this school. "Hurry up," she said, glancing over her shoulder. "You could help." I waved a broken pastel at her. "I just bought these on my way back from the cafe."