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Jennifer twisted the knobs and dials. Nothing. She opened the back of the radio. The wires were a jumble of color. She let out a low whistle. “Man. That is a mess. Still. I might be able to get it up and running. I’m pretty mechanical. I wonder where all this stuff came from.”
“What?” Sosie said, and Jen said it more slowly, letting Sosie read her lips. “That’s not all. Look.” Sosie showed Jennifer what appeared to be a military ration kit. Inside were chocolates, water, and protein bars. There was also a machete, two knives, and a wooden crate packed for shipment with the lid pried loose. Sosie removed the lid. Inside were moldy packing peanuts stuffed around several jars of Lady ’Stache Off.
“It’s so strange. What’s this stuff doing on this island?”
Jennifer ignored Sosie’s question and pointed instead to the ration kit. She made a puppy begging face, which made Sosie grin. Together, they sat on the weed-choked temple floor and shared a chocolate bar, which tasted better than anything Jen could remember. She’d never had a meal in silence before. At home, there was her little brother yakking it up, Jen and her mom arguing. At school, at juvie, at the pageant training center, someone was always instructing, advising, reprimanding, and Jen had learned her only defense was to talk, loudly and a lot, in order to keep the needling “helpful” words of others at bay. Now, there was just the food, the company, and the quiet.
She kind of liked it.
MISS TEEN DREAM FUN FACTS PAGE!
Please fill in the following information and return to Jessie Jane, Miss Teen Dream Pageant administrative assistant, before Monday. Remember, this is a chance for the judges and the audience to get to know YOU. So make it interesting and fun, but please be appropriate. And don’t forget to mention something you love about our sponsor, The Corporation!
Name: Shanti Singh
State: California
Age:17
Height: 5’ 3”
Weight: 128 lbs. A lot of it is muscle. 116 lbs
Hair: Black
Eyes: Brown
Best Feature: My hair. People say it is glossy. I use an old Indian treatment.
Fun Facts About Me:
I have studied botany, fencing, synchronized Tae Kwon Do, gymnastics, classical piano, cello, Bollywood dancing, and Indian cinema.
I can make popadam as my mother and grandmother taught me.
My favorite class is chemistry.
I hope to be the head of my own Fortune 500 company.
My platform is called First Generation Health. It helps kids in immigrant populations get the health care they need.
My proudest accomplishment was hearing my handler, Mrs. Mirabov, tell me that my evening gown walk only made her want to put out one eye. Trust me — that’s a compliment.
The thing that scares me most is failure.
12These words have been sanitized for your protection. An adjective and a noun, respectively.
13A part of the body. Not the knee or the nostril.
14A spectacular cursing display. Really, an absolute ten. And the dismount was spot-on.
15This is not cursing. This is delineating.
16This is also not cursing. This is … oh, all right. It totally is.
CHAPTER EIGHT
The river had carried Nicole, Shanti, Petra, and Tiara through the mountains and deposited them in a steaming spring surrounded by blackened rock that looked like burned-over cake batter.
