Shoelaces

Wronskian Methods

My phone is such a bitch. Waking me up at 6:00 A.M. on a Monday morning, with an unapologetically loud alarm that won't stop regardless of how many times I smack the screen. Such a bitch. I finally force my eyes open to look for the snooze button- well really, I tell myself I'm looking for the snooze button. In truth, I'm looking for a text from Santiago. Yet, once again, nothing. I pretend like it doesn't bother me. Like, why would it bother me? Bother me? As if. Ha! Funny!

I slug myself out of bed and make my way to the bathroom, luckily not occupied by my sister as she's getting back this evening. Yanking my toothbrush out from its holder, I squeeze a dollop of minty fresh Colgate onto the bristles, before covering it with water and aggressively shoving it into my mouth. If only this toothbrush was-

Anyway, after what seems like a long two-ish minutes, I spit the toothpaste foam into the sink and wash it down. I look at myself in the mirror. And, ew. My acne seems to be getting worse, which is utterly fantastic. My arms are too long for such a tiny chest, my whole body just disproportionate. I really look like this, huh?

I hop into the shower, quickly turning the knob to the hot side. Yes, I take morning showers. What about it? I take night showers too, okay. I'm not a freak. Well, maybe I'm a little bit of a freak for taking two showers a day, but at least I'm clean. The water feels good on my skin, warming my body from the cold air between my bed and the bathroom. Unfortunately, I must remove myself from the abyss- don't want to get pruny- and dry myself off with the towel strung over the bar. Luckily, the water fogged up the glass, so I don't have to see myself. I walk back into my room to pick my outfit. Okay, okay, what to wear? My school doesn't have a dress code, which is a blessing, so I just pick up a pair of joggers and a hoodie. Blue and black work together, right? I put on the clothes and lug myself back into the bathroom, to do my hair and finish up my morning routine, before heading downstairs. And boy, am I excited. It's time for coffee.

Coffee is such a beautiful liquid. Hot or cold. Creamy or black. So many options to choose. I open the cabinet to find the grounds, usually shoved behind the flour and sugar, but I can't find any.

We're out of coffee.

Shit, I forgot I finished it yesterday. So, now I have no coffee on a Monday morning.

Okay, that's it. The lord can take me now. My time on this Earth has ended, and I am done.

I almost collapse on the floor in a Telenovela style faint, yet I am able to control myself. I will not let my lack of coffee be the end of me, though it came close. And I commend it for that. Guess I'll stop to get some coffee beans after school. But that means I have to go to the grocery store. I guess I'll see where the day takes me.

I run to my desk to collect my belongings for school, haphazardly shoving them into my beaten backpack. My complete meltdown over my absence of coffee took longer than I thought, and now I'm running late. I head to the door, then suddenly my phone buzzes. A text! I yank the device from my pocket, but it turns out to just be a text from my mom saying she just got on her flight. What was I even expecting? He won't text me. I slam the door behind me as I leave.

---

I break my bike as I take the final turn into the parking lot of my high school. Lincoln High School. What a place. In order to avoid one of the teacher's yelling at me, I hop off my bike and start to walk it towards the bike lot. Whenever I do this, I feel like Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz. Hey, hear me out. So, firstly, I have to go down this one specific path- it's not golden bricks- but still- to get to the bike locks. Then, I always pass my favorite teacher, Mrs. Roberts, who is definitely Glinda. She's an art teacher, so wearing a large, poufy dress isn't too out of the ordinary for her. Maybe like once a week. Now, along this path, there are a bunch of different groups of kids who all stare at me. Introducing the Munchkins. So first, in the movie, there are those three girls with the wack hats who do ballet. Those girls are definitely the stoners. Then, in the show, there are those three tap-dancing, very creepy men. They are the jocks, no doubt. Lastly, there's that one munchkin in the movie who wears green and has a big watch. I think he's the mayor. I don't know, but he'd definitely be the speech and debate kids. And lastly, in the movie, Dorothy is all alone and is scared. Low and behold, there's me, Darrion, alone and scared. And I don't even have a dog.