clipped from: www.newyorker.com Fourteen:
“Why does that kid have a black ‘X’ on the back of his right hand?”
“I bet it’s because he went to some kind of cool rock concert last night.”
“Wow. He must’ve stayed out pretty late if he didn’t have time to scrub it off.”
“Yeah, and that’s probably why his hair is so messy and dirty—because he cares more about rocking out than conforming to society.”
“Even though he isn’t popular in the traditional sense, I respect him from afar.”
Sixteen:
“Hey, look, it’s that kid Simon, who wrote that scathing poem for the literary magazine.”
“You mean the one about how people are phonies? Wow—I loved that poem!”
“Me, too. Reading it made me realize for the first time that everyone is a phony, including me.”
“The only person at this school who isn’t a phony is Simon.”
“Yeah. He sees right through us.” ♦