Danny, Dakota, and the Wishing Well

ii. the noise

i wrote this at 1 in the morning so pls excuse any mistakes. photo is old cover x (unedited)

-

November 23rd, 1954. Day after the fight.

The back of Dakota's collar stuck to her neck as she listened to her mother's lecture.

"You know better than this, Dakota! Getting into a fight for some negro? I'm disappointed in you," her mother, April, trailed off and collapsed on the living room sofa, exhausted from the two-minute speech she had given to her daughter.

Dakota did not move an inch from the chair she was sitting in. Her cheeks were red and her eyes were bright with tears. She hadn't meant to get suspended. Dakota was only sticking up for a friend.

Yesterday, when her mother had to come pick her up from school, April was furious at her only child and told her that she would be getting a lecture as soon as they got home. Instead of this, April decided to pull out one of her closest friends, Vodka.

Now, as Dakota sat quivering in the leather love seat, April smoked a cigarette and drank even more. Ever since her father had left, April was not the same kind and loving mother she once was.

The television blared some ad about cleaning supplies and the room was tense with regrets. Bugs swarmed outside, the children played, and the heat was still unbearable. Some days were cool and people could tell that Christmas was just around the corner.

Dakota dared to take a risky glance at her mother and saw that she was fully asleep. Delighted with this discovery, Dakota peeled her sticky legs off of the warm leather and ran out onto the porch.

Since she didn't have school, she decided to casually sneak down to malt shop with a quarter in hand. A big vanilla milkshake always cured Dakota's sadness.

Skipping down the sidewalk happily, Dakota didn't even notice the young girl striding towards her until it was too late. She was abruptly stopped and squinted up at the taller Mary Ann who was giving her the dirtiest look imaginable.

"Why, hello there Miss Dakota! Shouldn't you be at home?"

Dakota frowned at the girl. Her black eye was still swollen but was also healing nicely.

"I could ask you the same, Mary," she pretended not be afraid of her classmate and said this as casually as possible.

"Well, since you gave me this shiner yesterday, my mother and father allowed me to stay home from school for a couple days," Mary Ann smirked as if this somehow made her better than Dakota.

"I'm awfully sorry about your eye, but you shouldn't have been mean to Danny," Dakota defended her new friend and Mary rolled her eyes.

"Why are you friends with him, Hartman? You know he doesn't belong with our kind..."

"That doesn't even make sense! He is a boy and a child just like us!" Dakota practically shouted in her face, "and you are acting like a baby right now, too."

Mary Ann frowned disapprovingly, "I never liked you anyway, Dakota Hartman. One day, when we're older, I'll make sure that Danny will never love you again."

At a loss of words, Dakota watched the girl in a pretty flowered dress saunter away as if she owned the small town. Dakota then did something very childish. She spit on the ground, cursed Mary's name, and ran away into the desert towards home. Some tears slipped down her cheeks.

-

November 24th, 1954.

The day was crisp and bleak as Dakota looked outside of the classroom's window. She was practically bouncing out of her seat so that she could see Danny again. Her one-day suspension was over and she was eager to return to recess.