Zoey did a little twirl. “I’m a librarian, duh! Dressed in theme.”
Gia cut in. “The Library Council and Texas Educators Association got a heck of a lot of people to show up. We’re standing between the ACLU and the Cowboys for Intellectual Freedom. Only in Texas.”
Muriel clasped her hands. “It’s so exciting! I feel edgy like my daughter.”
“There you are!” Lee elbowed her way through a crowd of men dressed like the Founding Fathers. “Reporting for duty.”
My heart soared.Lee was here.That meant everything was going to be okay. “You came.”
“Of course I came. This is your big day. Quinn, Muriel, Gia, nice to see you all again.” Lee shook each of their hands with practiced polish, then looked around, eyebrows raised. “I’m glad so many people showed up for this. It’s impressive. Now, let’s talk speech lineup. I have lots of thoughts about this banning bullshit, so I’m going to need a little more time on the docket, just FYI.”
It was happening exactly like I’d hoped. I was finally doing something big enough, something important, and Lee was paying attention. A swell of pride lifted my shoulders. Suddenly, the circus of people didn’t seem so intimidating.
“Alexis,” Zoey said, snapping me out of it. “What are you thinking for the speeches? It’s almost time to walk to the stage.”
I looked around and found them all staring at me. Right. I was supposed to be in charge. I took a deep breath. “In that case.” I waved them forward. “Let’s walk and talk. I think we open with Quinn and the head of the Library Council. They can break the ice, then we’ll move to Gabby Bui, since this is her campaign, then the author. Did you know he has a PhD in sex education?”
“He’s so nice he’s basically the Mr. Rogers of sex ed.” Lee matched me step for step despite her heels.
“Then after the author, Lee, maybe you can talk about what people can do beyond the rally? Are you okay going fourth?”
“Who am I, Mariah Carey? I’ll go whenever you need me.”
I felt the sudden urge to stop in my tracks and hug her, but Lee had never been a hugger. I squeezed my fists instead.
“What about you?” Quinn popped up on my other side. “Aren’t you going to kick us off?”
“Yeah, Lex, you have to go first,” Zoey said. “You’re the face of Logan’s campaign.”
“Would be weird if you didn’t,” Lee agreed.
Ahead of us, the massive Texas State Capitol loomed in the distance, with its columns and glorious domed roof. A chill lifted the hairs on my arms. I’d stepped (fallen?) into the big leagues. Yet again, that persistent sense that I’d missed something nagged at me. But I was surrounded by a group of determined women, all of them looking at me like they expected big things, and I didn’t want to let them down. I pushed the nagging feeling aside.
“Okay.” I swallowed, eyes on the stage. “I’ll go first.”
“And that,” I said into the mic, “is why it’s so important to fight for students’ access to books. As a school librarian, I can tell you that kids have a lot of questions, especially about loaded topics like puberty. They deserve thoughtful, shame-free books likeSex Is Not a Dirty Wordto help them navigate.”
I paused, heart pounding, waiting for the clapping to die down. It was an awe-inspiring sight, all of these people stretched before me, filling the street. Awe-inspiring andterrifying. My flight instincts had been screaming at me to flee from the moment I stepped on stage, which was either five minutes or ten years ago.
“Which is why I’m proud to be here on behalf of the Logan Arthur campaign,” I concluded, speaking past the knot in my stomach. “So, without further ado, I’d like to introduce you to Gabby Bui, the librarian leading the charge against the book ban. She can tell you more about what she’s facing in her district.”
Gabby was already walking across the stage, so I waved goodbye to the audience and scurried off, squeezing Gabby’s arm as I passed her. Her whole face was shining with anticipation, proving some people really were born for the spotlight. I, on the other hand, melted with relief the minute I climbed off the stage steps.
“You’re a natural,” Lee gushed, slinging her arm over my shoulders. “Who knew you had it in you?”
I forced a smile. “Yep, that’s me. A natural.”
I went to flip my phone off silent and almost dropped it. I had twelve missed calls and a laundry list of texts. It was mostly Nora, whose messages turned increasingly frantic as I scrolled, fromWhat did I just see on my Google alerts about a book banning rally?toWhy am I seeing Twitter posts tagged with #LoganArthurSupportsFreeSpeech?and finally,Alexis Rosalie Stone (yes I know your middle name and a whole lot worse!) are you SPEAKING at this rally?!There were a few texts from Cary that were mostly long strings of gravestone and skull emojis, and finally, one from Logan. It just saidCall me.
My stomach dropped like a lead balloon. “Oh, no.” Suddenly I realized exactly what I’d forgotten to do.
Lee peeked over my shoulder. “What’s wrong?”
“On a scale of one to ten, how bad would it be if I forgot to tell the campaign I was doing this?”
The smile vanished from Lee’s face. “Doing what?” she asked carefully. “Your introduction? The Logan Arthur for Free Speech T-shirt cannon?”
“Uh...” I grimaced. “Kind of...”
