20
" How do you find a name?"
"In this case, on a shampoo bottle. It's one of the ingredients; Sodium Laureth Sulphate. He thought it was a beautiful word and sounded like a name."
"He's right."
"Mum didn't think so. He swears he told her at the time where it came from, and maybe he did, but she was too ill to remember. I was seven when she found out, and then she hit the roof. 'You named our daughter after a chemical!' That kind of thing."
"I still think it's a cool name," said Sam, and I could hear the smile in his voice. It was a soft voice, too. I liked it.
"And very beautiful," he added.
"Thank you," I said, feeling a little warm inside.
"And that's why I have such a boring name," said Benjamin.
"Oh, hey," said Sam. "That's a cool name, too."
"No, it's not," said Benjamin. "There are two Bens in my class. Mum said she was going to choose my name when I was born. Dad wasn't allowed. So I got a boring name. But that's why Stan's called Stan."
"Because you wanted him to have a boring name, too?"
"Stan's not a boring name. It's short for Stannous."
"Stannous?"
"Stannous Chloride," I said. "It's a chemical. It was on a tube of toothpaste."
Sam laughed.
"Mum hit the roof," said Benjamin, proudly. "
― Marcus Sedgwick , She Is Not Invisible