Boarding School for Giants (G/T)

Part 16

In the dreary rain, the world was drained of color. The sky was gray, the sidewalk was gray, pools of rain reflected gray, and the trees were looming silhouettes in the foggy gloom. Fallen leaves turned into slippery brown mush beneath my feet. I trudged onward, feeling sicker and weaker with every leaden step. The fat drops of rain slapping my shirt made my back sting. I felt numb inside. I focused on the physical sensations, as miserable as they were, to block out my thoughts. I didn't want to think about my conversation with my mother; I just couldn't bear it right now. I zeroed in on my immediate situation, my immediate responsibility of getting to school, rather than stepping back and looking at the big picture. Really, that was the only thing I could do to keep myself from falling apart.

Abruptly, the rain stopped hitting me, even though the downpour hadn't ceased. A titanic, dark shadow fell over me. I froze in place and went rigid. A giant was standing over me. I gulped nervously. A sideways glance to my left revealed a gigantic black shoe I had seen many times before. I exhaled in relief, bringing my hand up to my chest. It was Mr. Henderson.

"Hey there," his deep voice boomed from far above my head. I turned around and looked up at the colossal man, making a strong effort to hide the hollowness in my eyes. "I was looking for you back at your dorm. I thought you might appreciate a lift to school, considering the weather." He came prepared with a gray raincoat and an umbrella.

"Absolutely! Thank you," I responded. I hoped he didn't notice how scratchy my voice sounded as I strained to raise it loud enough for him to hear me from his great height. He kneeled down, graciously offering me his hand, and I slowly lifted myself up and crawled to the center of his palm, so as not to antagonize my injuries. I was relieved to be able to sit down and rest after being on my feet for a while, because I was shaking and starting to feel dizzy. My body would take a while to recover from losing so much blood. The giant held his hand close to his chest, to keep me out of the rain. I leaned against the fabric of his suit, soaking in the warmth of his body heat.

"You're walking today? Where's your bike?" Mr. Henderson questioned innocently.

I tensed up. "Um... I didn't want to bike in the rain." It was a lame excuse, but he seemed to buy my lie. I didn't want to tell him about breaking into the principal's office, thinking he might get angry and scold me for my recklessness.

"I wanted to touch base with you and see how you've been doing," Mr. Henderson said, his words vibrating through his chest as he spoke. "How's school going?" I hesitated, not sure what to say. Should I tell him all my woes, about how my life was a total train wreck? About how my mom tried to kill me, and the principal mercilessly beat me? I wasn't in the habit of trusting the adults in my life, or spilling my guts to authority figures. As much as I trusted Mr. Henderson, and genuinely believed he had my best interests at heart, I still had a mental block holding me back from talking to him openly. This time around, as messed up as I felt inside, I wasn't sobbing my eyeballs out, at least not at the moment in front of him. I could hide my feelings and not burden him with my troubles.

"It's... been a mixed bag," I told him. Technically not a lie. "I made a friend."

"Oh, that's wonderful! I'm so happy to hear that!" He was so glad for me, with that pure kind soul of his, but I just wanted to hide under his jacket, bury myself in his chest, and cry. I forced down my violent emotions again. I didn't want to think or talk about my horrible day yesterday, I really didn't. The memory was just too painful.

"I did run into a problem with my homework assignments," I continued, as if such a comparatively trivial thing was the worst of my issues. "My assignments are too small for the teachers to read. I really could use access to a computer sized for a human, so I could print out or email my homework."