Bari softens and unclenches herself. “I did?”
I use air quotes: “‘You just don’t understand because you’re single.’”
Bari’s stone-cold demeanor shrivels away.
“Sometimes, we take friends for granted,” I say.
Bari leans against the wall and sinks down into a squat. She rests her chin on her knee, just like Calista. I exhale quietly.
“Call her,” I tell Bari. “She misses her friend.”
“She does? She told you?”
“Yes.” What’s one more lie?
“I didn’t even like Derek that much. He was so pompous and controlling,” Bari says.
He wasn’t that into you either, I want to say.
“He’s not like Jay,” she says.
“Jay who?” I ask. I pick up my lipstick and reapply. (Don’t give me that look. It fell unopened into the sink, and I wiped off the tube.)
“Wolpert. He’s so hot. But I don’t think he likes me like that.”
Jay Wolpert... I rummage through my memory for some intel.
“Isn’t Jay a huge Nets fan?” He sat behind me in bio class sophomore year. All he would talk about was basketball. It was like having your own personal ESPN. What little I know about sports, I eavesdropped from him.
“Yeah, he’s big into sports.”
“I think the NBA play-offs are coming up. You should just chat him up about that.”
“I don’t know. I can’t just bring it up randomly.”
“Guys love when girls talk about sports. It’s like their fashion.”
“I can’t just walk up to him and start talking about point guards.” Bari stands and checks out her hair in the mirror. Half is blond, the bottom half, brunette. Her head is a duplex. “I really need to get this fixed.”
At least she knows it.
“He and his friends watch games at that bar and grill place the Hydrant. They always talked about it because the bartenders don’t card.” A plan forms in my head. Details sketch themselves out without trying. It’s habit, like people who can’t stop singing along to the radio. “They’ll probably watch the play-offs there.”
“So maybe I could watch the play-offs there, too?” Her face lights up with excitement, and I can’t believe this was the girl who wanted to give me a swirlie a minute ago.
“No, no, no. That’s too obvious. You need to build up to that. You need to bond with Jay about basketball first, then get him to invite you to watch with him.” I gaze at both of us in the mirror, unsure what I’m getting into, but enjoying it.
“You think you can help me out?” Bari asks.
“For a hundred dollars via PayPal I can.”
She shoots me a nasty look.
“Okay. Maybe this one’s on the house.”
Acknowledgments
This may be the closest I get to an Oscars acceptance speech, so I better make it count!
Thank you to Becky Vinter for believing in The Break-Up Artist from day one and getting it into the right hands. And thank you to my fantastic editor Annie Stone, whose excitement over Becca & co. never wavered and who took this story from good to great. Not bad for a couple of newbies.
I am so grateful that my book landed with the awesome Harlequin TEEN team. This has been a dream experience. Thank you to Kathleen Oudit and her team for designing such a striking, unique cover. And the marketing and PR team of Lisa Wray, Amy Jones, Mary Sheldon and Melissa Anthony for spreading the word. Also thank you to the sales team, who worked hard to get The Break-Up Artist onto shelves.
I couldn’t have made it this far without the help and guidance of other writers. Thank you to my ragtag writer’s group of poets, essayists and graphic novelists for whipping this book into shape and always being honest: Jen Daniels, Eric Bjorlin, Sondra Morin, Matt Hieggelke, Jodie Aranas and Emily Johnson. Thank you to Brian Taylor for always believing in my writing, even when I didn’t; to Michelle Krys and the OneFour KidLit group for connecting me with a rich network of other authors; and to the YA Valentines for the long, long email chains filled with virtual chocolate and words of semiwisdom.
I have to thank my family for always being in my corner; and Miss Julia, who’s turned out to be my good-luck charm, oddly enough.
And finally, a special thank-you to Mike. You kept telling me I could do it, so I did it!
Questions for Discussion
Was Becca justified in her actions as the Break-Up Artist? She believed she was leveling the dating field at her school, but was she doing the right thing?
Do you think Huxley forgives Becca in the end? Does their reestablished friendship survive?
Out of Becca’s many relationships—with friends, with her sister, with Ezra, with her mother—which one do you think developed the most in the novel, and why? Which one was the most important to her growth?
What if Becca truly were in love with Ezra? Would she have been justified in continuing to date him, despite Ezra’s history with Val?
What is the author ultimately saying about the importance of trust in relationships? Does it differ in romantic relationships, friendships and family relationships?
Do you agree with Becca’s mother when she explains that true love is simply being with “a person you still want to look at every day”? What do you think the role of romantic gestures should be in a healthy romantic relationship?
At the end of the novel, Becca wants to expose Coach Latham for hiring Becca to break up Steve and Huxley, but Coach Latham convinces her that going to the press would hurt her more than it would hurt him. Do you agree with this assessment? Why or why not?
Could your school use a Break-Up Artist? Why or why not?
Do you think Val should have forgiven Becca for kissing Ezra? Would you forgive your friend if he or she did the same thing?