Take Me To The Lakes

FIVE

MARJORIE

I've never wanted leave school more than I do today.

All I longed to hear were voices of the sweet Welton boys and smell their cologne mixed with the leather bound books in my father's office. Instead, I was being put to sleep by my trigonometry teacher's voice, explaining how to find the angle of a triangle I couldn't care less about.

After what seemed like a lifetime, the bell rings and I'm instantly revived. Standing from my desk, I smooth out my skirt and adjust my cardigan over my shoulders before gathering my things into my arms. Miss Chandler speaks up before we're all able to head out and a collective groan fills the room.

"Please finish problems thirteen through twenty for the homework so we can discuss them tomorrow. Come in with any questions you may have. Be sure to think if you have a ruler at home before leaving, you can always check one out with me." She speaks softly, but firm enough for all of us to respond with, 'Yes, Miss Chandler'. She smiles and shoos us away playfully. "Okay, okay. Have a good afternoon, ladies."

I half-grin before finally walking towards the door with all my assignments in hand and Neil Perry in my mind. I don't even realize I still have the smile on my face until I walk into the hall to find Betty. She has a mischievous look as she leans against a pod of lockers, her own books in hand. I shake my head and keep walking where I was originally going, knowing Betty is going to follow behind and ask me a million questions.

Betty was my first friend at Henley Hall when sixth grade started and we've been attached at the hip ever since. Leaving her to spend a year in London with my father was one of the more difficult parts of traveling the world, but seeing her in these halls again is filling my chest and bones with a warm feeling. Betty is like a walk in central park in the summer— her eyes are the greenest I've ever seen and she has the liveliness of the sun at noon. She is everything you need in one person and I find myself wondering how the first person I met at Henley ended up being the only one I ever needed.

A platonic soulmate.

I continue walking down the hall towards my locker and hear Betty's heels clicking as she tries to catch up. All the while, she's shouting about Neil.

"Marjorie Keating! Are you going to see him? You need to tell me more about yesterday!" She's trying to scream over the slamming of doors and excited voices prepping to go home for the day. I giggle and turn around when I get to my locker and start to do my combination. Betty leans against the pod on her shoulder, hugging her papers and books while trying to catch her breath.

"And this is why you're not on the track team." I joke and earn a slight huff from her.

"I'm too pretty to sweat, Marj. You know this." She swings her curled ponytail from side to side in my face with a smirk on her face. I grab it when it starts to come towards me and give it a light tug and she squeals. I laugh from my throat and bring my hand back up to do my locker combination. I open the door and set my books down on the lower shelf to grab the things I need.

"I'm probably going to head to see my father for a bit this afternoon. I'll see you...?" I questioned the last part to inquire what her plans were for the night and she rolls her eyes when I move the door to look at her. I raise a brow at her at tilt my head with a smile. "What?"

"We both know even if I tell you I'm free to hang out tonight, you'll be spending as much of the day as you can with those Welton boys anyway." She says, crossing her legs and leaning her whole back against the wall of lockers to people watch. Voices are booming and heels are clicking as all the girls are making their way out he front door of Henley. I shake my head to myself as I retrieve my coat and purse to leave for my walk to Welton. Grabbing my books, I hug them to my body once more before shutting my locker door.