After (Parallel Series, Book 4) Read online

  About to protest, I opened my mouth, but at the look on Mom’s face, I quickly closed it. Yes, she supported me, but I was still making her life difficult. “Okay.”

  When Dad got home Mom immediately dragged him upstairs and I wished I could be a fly on the wall to hear that conversation. Instead, I stayed in the kitchen and put together a casserole that Mom had planned for that night.

  All through dinner I nervously glanced at Mom and Dad, wondering what they had talked about, but knew they were going to make me wait. Finally, after hurrying through doing the dishes, I walked over to Mom, who was sitting on the couch reading, and tapped her on the shoulder.

  She looked at me with a smile.

  I raised my eyebrows, as if to say, Well?

  “What is it, Morgan?” she asked, like she had no idea what was on my mind.

  I glanced at my brothers, who were immersed in a movie. “Did you talk to Dad?”

  She placed her favorite bookmark between the pages of her book, set the book on the coffee table, then turned to me. “Yes, I did. Are you done in the kitchen?”

  A feeling of intensity washed over me, and I nodded.

  “Good. Then let’s see if Dad is available to talk.” Mom stood, then walked to the computer where Dad was surfing the web. She set her hand on his shoulder. “Steve?”

  He looked up at her, then glanced at me. “Ready?”

  She nodded and I worried. They’d obviously discussed what had happened. I was the only one in the dark.

  “Let’s go up to our room,” he said, and the three of us trooped up the stairs and into the master bedroom.

  It seemed I’d been spending way too much time in here lately, time when I’d been the center of the conversation.

  “Have a seat, Morgan,” Dad said as he gestured to the foot of their bed.

  Perched on the edge of the large bed, I pressed my palms into the soft fabric of the comforter as I waited for their verdict.

  Dad stood directly in front of me, with Mom by his side.

  “Mom told me about her conversation with your principal,” Dad began. “I can’t say that I’m completely surprised about what happened. After all, you did tell us that you were organizing this protest.” His lips pressed together. “But, Morgan, you were just suspended earlier this week. And now Mr. Cunningham is talking about kicking you out of Fox Run to go to some other school.” He stared at me a moment. “I know you have some . . .” He tilted his head. “. . . extenuating circumstances. But that doesn’t mean you get to do whatever you want.”

  “I know that,” I said, but he held up his hand, and I pressed my lips together.

  “You may believe that your school is overstepping its bounds by forcing each student to be weighed.”

  I nodded vigorously.

  “And you may believe that Mr. Cunningham is being unreasonable by telling you that you have to either do the PSA with Holly Bennett or go to another school, but the fact is, he has the authority to make that decision.”

  “But that’s not right,” I said, not able to stay quiet any longer. “I shouldn’t get kicked out of school for standing by my beliefs.”

  “That may be true,” Dad said, “but it’s also true that Mr. Cunningham gave you a choice.” He stared at me. “It’s up to you now.”

  “So I have to either do the PSA with Holly . . .” I glanced at Mom as I knew she knew why I objected to that. “Or change schools?”

  “It looks that way,” he said. “Mom also told me about this opt-out thing and how you hadn’t known about it.”

  “Yeah. I think he didn’t want anyone to know.”

  “Well, I certainly don’t see anything wrong with letting your friends know about it.”

  “Believe me,” I said. “I’ll be letting them know.” At least that was one positive thing I could do.

  “Okay,” Dad said.

  The conversation obviously over, I stood, but then I remembered the SlenderBars. “Dad?”

  “Yes?”

  “Billy told me that Mr. Tasco is working on an ad campaign for something called SlenderBars. Do you know anything about that?”

  “Uh,” he said, then he glanced at Mom. “Yeah.”

  Mom stared at Dad, her forehead creased with puzzlement.

  “They’re a new client,” he said.

  “Do you know that these power bars have an appetite suppressant?” I asked.

  Dad nodded.

  “Mr. Tasco told Billy that they want to eventually get them into the schools,” I added.

  “What?” Mom said, her voice showing alarm. “Give them to our children?”

  Dad rubbed the back of his neck. “I don’t know that that will happen.”

  “Steve, don’t you remember what Morgan told us about those power bars she had to eat?”

  I knew Mom remembered the details because I’d so recently told her about my experience with Holly and how she’d waited until I was basically drugged from the power bars before she questioned me about the resistance groups.

  “Not really,” Dad said.

  “The power bars Billy and I ate—were required to eat—also had an appetite suppressant in them,” I said. “All the kids at school ate them, but the power bars in the F.A.T. center also had some sort of drug in them that made them addictive, and another drug that was supposed to make us compliant.”

  Dad looked surprised, like this was the first he’d heard of this. “The SlenderBars don’t have anything like that.”

  “That you know of,” I said, although I didn’t actually believe they had anything so nefarious as addictive drugs in them. But that wasn’t the point. The point was the direction we were headed with these bars. Especially if the goal was to have everyone eating them—even school children.

  I sank onto the bed as I mentally listed all of the changes in this world related to weight: the new junk food regulation, the weigh-ins at school, the PSA’s trying to change the way people thought about health, and now these SlenderBars. Could my world actually be headed down the same path that the alternate world had gone?

  “I think you’re overreacting,” Dad said.

  “Are you working on this ad campaign too?” Mom asked.

  “Yes. Richard and I are both on the SlenderBars team.”

  Not only had Dad known about the power bars, but he’d been actively working on the ad campaign?

  “Can you drop this client?” Mom asked.

  “No,” Dad said without hesitation. “They’re one of our biggest clients.”

  “Maybe you could get off the team,” I suggested.

  Dad looked at me like I had no clue. “Working on this campaign is important to my career, Morgan. I can’t just say I don’t want to do it.”

  “So you’d try to get people to buy these SlenderBars even if you knew they could end up in our schools?” I said. “Where your children would be eating them?”

  “It’s unfortunate that you don’t like what I’m doing,” he said. “But I have to support our family.”

  I could see that my words weren’t swaying him at all. “Fine. Can I go now?”

  “Yes, but you need to make a decision by Monday morning,” Dad said. “Do the PSA or change schools.”

  I hated my choices. “Fine.”

  Mom wrapped her arms around me, and I let myself be comforted by her warmth. Even though I was unhappy with Dad’s decision to work on the SlenderBars campaign, I still loved him and Mom, and I didn’t want to stay mad at him. After Mom released me, I gave him a hug as well.

  Chapter 36

  Billy

  “Come see what you think,” Tasco said after he’d been working in his office for an hour.

  After Morgan had left with her mom after school, Rochelle had dropped me off at home and I’d worked on homework until Tasco had gotten home. He’d been eager to work in his office so he’d ordered pizza again, which was fine with me. After dinner I’d cleaned the kitchen, then I’d gone back to my room, and that’s where he found me.

&n
bsp; “Yeah, sure,” I said as I followed him to his office.

  He slid into his desk chair and pointed to his monitor. “This is what Steve and I have come up with for the SlenderBars campaign so far.”

  “Wait,” I said. “Morgan’s dad is working on this too?”

  With a look of mild surprise, he said, “Well, yeah.”

  I wondered if Morgan knew about this, as surely she would have mentioned it to me. Pushing down this new concern, I focused on Tasco’s screen.

  “It’s still a work in progress,” he said, “But I wanted to get your take on it.” He turned to me with a smile. “Kids your age are the primary market.”

  His words chilled me. High school kids had been one of the main groups that ate the power bars in my world. All of sudden I didn’t want to see his ad campaign anymore.

  “What do you think?” he asked.

  “Yeah, it’s great,” I said, my voice lacking any enthusiasm.

  He frowned. “You could try a little harder to give me feedback, Billy. It’s the least you could do after all I’ve been doing for you.”

  There was no doubt that I appreciated all he’d been doing for me—taking me in, feeding me, making me feel at home. But I couldn’t lie about this. “Sorry,” I muttered. Then in a stronger voice. “I’m just not a big fan of power bars.”

  “Oh? Why not?”

  Clenching my jaw, I tried to think of a good response. “In my experience they cause more problems than they help.”

  He turned in his chair so that he fully faced me. “Really? Why?” He grinned. “Knowing this could be helpful to my campaign.”

  I didn’t want to do anything to help him with his stupid ad campaign. Not if it led to anyone actually buying SlenderBars.

  He must have sensed my reticence. “Come on, Billy. Tell me why you don’t like power bars.”

  As I gazed at him, I wondered if I could somehow sway him to not do this campaign at all. “Do you want the truth?”

  He nodded, obviously eager to get the opinion of his target market.

  “Okay. The power bars I’ve had—ones that also included an appetite suppressant—turned out to make people sick.”

  As I spoke, a crease formed between Tasco’s eyebrows, and it deepened as I continued my explanation.

  “In fact,” I went on, “if I could, I’d do anything to stop those power bars from even being on the market.”

  “Who do you think you are?” he said, anger clouding his eyes. “You’re just some teenage kid. What do you know about what should or shouldn’t be on the market?” His eyes narrowed. “What’s the name of the power bars you’re talking about? I’m not familiar with any other power bars that have an appetite suppressant.”

  That information surprised me. I’d just assumed that such a thing existed in this world too. Could SlenderBars be the first of its kind? That seemed even worse—it was too much like my own world. “I don’t remember what they’re called.”

  “I think you’re lying.” He shook his head. “Why would you lie about that? That doesn’t even make sense.”

  “I’m not lying.” The idea of lying was repellant to me. I’d done some things I wasn’t proud of, but I’d always tried to be truthful.

  “Sure you are.” He laughed, like he was relieved to have figured out my secret. “No other power bars like SlenderBars exist, so you have to be.” He faced his computer, turning his back to me. “SlenderBars are completely unique.”

  His phone rang, and he snatched it off it’s cradle. “Hello?” He paused. “Yeah, he’s right here.” He looked at me. “It’s Morgan.”

  I took the cordless phone from him, glad he wouldn’t be able to pick up his extension to listen in, then carried the phone to my room.

  “Hey,” I said.

  “Billy, I need to talk to you.” Urgency filled her voice.

  “What’s up?”

  “My dad is working on that SlenderBars ad with Tasco.”

  I sighed. “I know. I just found out from Tasco.”

  “I asked him not to do it, but he wouldn’t listen to me.”

  “Really? Even after everything we’ve told him?”

  “Yes.”

  I told her about my conversation with Tasco. “You called just in time,” I said. “It gave me an excuse to leave his office.”

  “I can’t believe he called you a liar.” She laughed. “Scratch that. I can totally believe he called you a liar. This is Richard Tasco we’re talking about. Not so different from the Tasco we knew after all, perhaps.”

  I didn’t want to believe that. I wanted to believe that depending on the circumstances people could be different, better.

  “So it looks like I might have to do another PSA with Holly.” Her voice was resigned.

  “What? Why?”

  “It’s punishment for getting everyone to refuse to be weighed. Cunningham said if I don’t I’ll have to go to another school.”

  “That’s not right.” Then I realized that even in this world people manipulated other people to get what they wanted.

  Chapter 37

  Morgan

  “So,” Dad said Sunday night. “What did you decide to do? Are you going to do the PSA?”

  I’d put off thinking about it, but from the start I’d known I’d have to do the PSA. Changing schools was no option. No way did I want to go to a school without Billy, or have to start over. “Yeah, I don’t think I really have a choice.”

  Dad nodded. “Okay, then. We’ll call your principal in the morning and let him know your decision.”

  “What about you?” I asked.

  “Me? What about me?”

  “Have you changed your mind about not working on the SlenderBars ad campaign?”

  He laughed. “Why would I do that?”

  “Dad.” My voice showed my unhappiness. “You know how I feel about it.”

  Placing his hands on my shoulders, he spoke in a soft voice. “Morgan, believe it or not it’s not all about you and what you want. Sometimes there are other things to consider.”

  “I know that. And for the record, this isn’t about me. It’s about our society getting so obsessed with weight that they’d be willing to eat these SlenderBars that have a drug in them.”

  Dad let go of my shoulders as he stood up straight. “A drug? What do you mean?”

  “The appetite suppressant. It’s some sort of drug, isn’t it?”

  “It’s all natural.”

  “It’s not natural to stop ourselves from being hungry, except through eating. Yes, we can choose healthy food, but that’s how we should stop our hunger. Not by eating some manufactured product that tricks our brain into thinking we’re not hungry.”

  He gazed at me, but didn’t respond.

  On Monday morning before I left for school Mom called Mr. Cunningham to let him know that I would do the PSA. After she hung up she turned to me and said, “The good news is, you can still go to Fox Run.”

  I hoisted my backpack onto my shoulders. “And the bad news?”

  “Mr. Cunningham said Holly will probably call this afternoon to discuss when you can get started.”

  Holding back the dramatic sigh I wanted to release, I shook my head. “Great.”

  When I got to school I noticed there were a lot of kids who stood in line at the office. Curious, I walked over to the line and asked what was going on.

  “Oh, hey, Morgan,” the boy standing nearest me said.

  I smiled, feeling like a minor celebrity.

  “We heard how you can opt out of their stupid monthly weigh-in, so we’re in line to get a copy of the form.”

  My smile grew. “That’s great.” Even as I stood there, the line grew. Several kids smiled at me, or said hello, and I felt proud that I had something to do with this. Then I remembered the PSA I would be doing, and my smile faltered.

  At lunch I sat with Billy and Rochelle.

  “A ton of kids are getting the opt-out form,” Rochelle said, her eyes shining.

  �
��Thanks to all of your hard work,” I said.

  A blush rose on her cheeks. “It’s not just me, Morgan. It was your idea.”

  I smiled and nodded, but inside I wondered what everyone would think when they saw the PSA that I’d be doing, and I worried what Holly would have me say.

  “Did you decide?” Billy asked, evidently reading my mind. “About doing the PSA?”

  “What PSA?” Rochelle asked as she picked up her sandwich.

  I told her about the principal’s ultimatum. “I don’t see that I have much of a choice.”

  “That totally sucks, Morgan,” she said.

  “I know.” I glanced at Billy. “When she tries to schedule it I’m going to see if I can put her off. You know, see if she’ll lose interest.”

  Billy chuckled softly. “You know that’s not going to work, don’t you?”

  “Why not?” My brow furrowed. I had no other ideas, so it had to work.

  “This is Holly we’re talking about,” he said with a knowing look.

  “What do you mean?” Rochelle asked.

  “Just that she’s not one to take no for an answer.” Billy directed his comment to Rochelle, then he turned to me with a knowing look.

  Flashing back to that day in Nick’s living room when Billy, Nick and I had watched the video I’d recorded when Holly had tortured me, I held back a grimace. Billy was right. Even though the Holly in this world hadn’t tortured me, her personality didn’t seem to be any different from the Holly who had.

  When Billy and I finished our last class we walked to detention together.

  “I wonder how many kids will be there,” I said.

  He shrugged. “It’s kind of ridiculous that they’re even making us do this.”

  I agreed wholeheartedly, but since Mom hadn’t challenged it, I didn’t see how I had a choice.

  We were meeting in one of the oversized rooms, and the classroom was nearly full.

  “Hey,” Rochelle said when we sat in chairs near hers.

  “No talking,” the teacher at the front of the room said. “You may work on homework, or read a book, but nothing else. Phones are to be put away at all times or I will confiscate them.”