From Braced : The door opens, and Jules is standing there holding my brace. "It was made just for you," she says, like that's a good thing. Only I'm looking right at it, so I know it's definitely not. The brace is so much bigger than the sample she showed me. It's huge and thick and bright white, with uneven layers of padding on the inside and ventilation holes scattered across the torso that make it look like a machine. I can tell right away that it isn't meant for just my back. On the right side, it goes all the way up to my armpit and dips far down below my underwear, covering part of my thigh. It's longer in the back than in the front, like it has a built-in tail. Fake plastic hips on both sides stick way out. I don't even have real hips yet. On the back, three Velcro straps as wide as my forearm rattle their metal clasps every time Jules moves. It's going to make me look wide and weird, like I swallowed a bathtub. Jules hands it to me. It's heavier than I expect, and I need both hands to hold it. It slips out of my fingers and crashes to the floor. "Rachel," Mom says. "You need to take care of your brace. It's important." "I didn't mean to drop it," I say. "I'm sorry." She shakes her head. "Why don't we give it a try?" Jules asks, picking the brace up off the floor. I bite down on my lip and do my best not to look directly at it. It's going to be fine. It has to be. Excerpted from Braced by Alyson Gerber All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.
