Is This Seat Taken
阿莉莎·伊特罕德 / Aliza Etkind
I look at spiders and butterflies. I watch caterpillars and moths. Sometimes I think I’m the only one who notices these things. But if it hadn’t been for a crowded cafeteria， I wouldn’t have ever noticed Valeri. After all， I wasn’t looking for new friends.
Valeri was a new student. She walked to class with her books huddled against her chest and her head down. She talked only when the teacher asked her a question. After a month at our school， she hadn’t made any friend. At recess， she sat on a bench and read. If you asked who she was， you’d get a response like this， “She’s in my PE class. I can’t remember her name.”
One day at lunch， I had nowhere to sit. Most tables were full， my friends scattered among them. But Valeri sat alone， book in hand. I walked over to her.
“May I sit here？” I asked.
“Sure，” she said.
The cafeteria was noisy， but silence hung between us. Valeri didn’t seem to mind， but it drove me crazy. I searched my mind for things to say.
“So，” I said， “is that a good book？” Valeri gave a small nod and went back to reading. “What’s it about？” I asked， after several more agonizing seconds of silence. She looked at me， her eyes sparkling.
“Well， it’s called Eragon， and it’s about a dragon！ This boy， Eragon， finds this dragon egg when he goes hunting one day. He thinks it’s a rock！ The egg hatches and Eragon hides the dragon from his cousin and uncle until it gets too big.”
“That sounds cool，” I said. I was about to ask another question， but the bell rang.
As I rushed out of the cafeteria， I called to Valeft， “See you later.”
“Yeah，” she said， “see you later.” She sounded doubtful.
A couple days later， I spotted Valeri looking for a place to sit at lunch.
“Valeri， over here.” I pointed to an empty chair.