Look Both Ways: A Tale Told in Ten Blocks

“The floor of his locker was littered with empty snack bags that Jasmine had slid through the door vent between classes over the last two days. Trash…yes. But Jasmine and TJ called them ‘friendship flags.’ This litter of love. And because Jasmine had been gone for a while, they were basically notes that said I’ve missed you. In Cheeto dust.”

Jasmine and TJ describe their system of showing affection for one another by tossing empty snack bags in each other’s lockers. The friendship between Jasmine and TJ is one of support and mutual respect. Despite their young ages, both exhibit a true understanding of friendship and are unafraid to demonstrate how much they care about each other. 

“But Marston Street was lined with a little bit of everything, from small brick to fancy vinyl. From bay windows to Colonial style. From ramblers all on one level to three stories. A fence here and there, a gate there and here. Grass. Gravel. Blacktop. Pavement. Everything old enough to look lived in. To look tried on. Old enough to be warm and worn by a generation or two. Maybe even three.” 

Jasmine describes the street she and TJ live on and how old it is. Jasmine and TJ’s friendship is strong after six years of friendship and, like the street they live on, there is a familiarity and comfort that exudes between them. Both come from loving, warm families who reflect the neighborhood they live in. 

“But it dawned on her that he seemed freaked out dealing with the things that wouldn’t smash or smear. The things already invisible living all around him, and maybe even on him, and there was nothing he could do about it.” 

Jasmine notices TJ’s discomfort when talking about water bears, microscopic animals that are invisible to the human eye. Jasmine recognizes in TJ that he feels more in control when he can exert physical power over what he can see. The invisible scares TJ because he is unable to fight against it. This fear of the invisible permeates throughout the novel and throughout various characters.