Speak Up Chapter 20
The voting results came out that same day.
With seventy-eight percent of the vote, I was elected the new student council president.
When I walked down from the stage, Wade was waiting for me by the aisle.
He rolled up the poster and stuffed it into my hands.
“Here. Keep it.”
I looked down at those crooked, wobbly words.
“Wade.”
“Yeah?”
“Thank you.”
He froze for a second, then smiled again.
“What for? I should be thanking you. If you hadn’t taught me how to solve problems, I’d still be screwing around at the bottom of the class.”
I shook my head.
“That’s not what I’m thanking you for.”
“I’m thanking you for… helping me realize that speaking up is worth it.”
His smile softened.
He reached out and gently ruffled my hair, his touch light.
“Then talk a little more from now on.”
“Don’t keep everything bottled up.”
The day final grades were posted, Wade’s name appeared at ninety-third in our class.
He took a picture of his report card and sent it to his mother.
She replied with a long voice message, crying almost from beginning to end.
After he listened to it, he wiped at his eyes, then turned to me and smiled.
“Bianca, want to walk home together? My mom made a new kind of pizza today and said I have to bring you over to try it.”
“Okay.”
I smiled and walked out of the school gates with him.