It sure was a pretty ring. It had a simple thin band and an oval-shaped
piece of dark turquoise held in place by snaking silver strands. I didn't
have any jewelry and it had been a long time since anyone had given me
a present, except for the planet Venus.
I tried on the ring. It was way too big for my finger, but I could wrap
yarn around the band the way high school girls did when they wore their
boyfriend's rings. I was afraid, however, that if I took the ring, Billy
might start thinking that I had agreed to be his girlfriend. He'd tell all the
other kids, and if I said it wasn't true, he'd point to the ring. On the other
hand, I figured Mom would approve, since accepting it would make Billy
feel good about himself. I decided to compromise.
"I'll keep it," I said. "But I'm not going to wear it."
Billy's smile spread all across his face.
"But don't think this means we're boyfriend and girlfriend," I said. "And
don't think this means you can kiss me."
I didn't tell anyone about the ring, not even Brian. I kept it in my pants
pocket during the day, and at night I hid it in the bottom of the cardboard
box where I kept my clothes.
But Billy Deel had to go and shoot his mouth off about giving me the
ring. He started telling the other kids things like how, as soon as I was
old enough, me and him were going to get married. When I found out
what he was saying, I knew accepting the ring had been a big mistake. I
also knew I should return it. But I didn't. I meant to, and every morning
I'd put it in my pocket with the intention of giving it back, but I couldn't
bring myself to do it. That ring was too darn pretty.
A few weeks later, I was playing hide-and-seek along the tracks with
some of the neighborhood kids. I found the perfect hiding place, a small