Page 16 of The Secret to Belonging

you take the VHS tapes out of the brown rental cases

pop them in the rewind machine (be kind! rewind!)

Alison puts the rewound tapes back in their covers

returns them to the shelves behind the counter

you tell her she’s crazy

you tell her there’s no money for college so there’s

definitely no money to be an exchange student

you tell her you need to work next year if you want

to be able to move out after graduation

even City College costs money

Monday nights in the store are busy

people return videotapes checked out for the weekend

college kids bring back VCRs rented for Saturday parties

Alison hands a fraternity brother his deposit check

lugs a VCR to the storeroom

she comes back with a piece of paper

an application for a Rotary scholarship to study abroad

a scholarship would change everything

you could keep your earnings

figure out college later

skip a lot of calendar pages

move out a year earlier than planned

a scholarship would set you free

but spending senior year abroad?

is that even allowed?

you look up from the application

what about senior year?

Alison shrugs. what about it?

wouldn’t we be missing out? like, prom or whatever?

she laughs. seriously? prom? who are you?