New Girl on the Block

Chapter Six: Benjamin

I walk onto the practice field with my helmet loosely hanging from my fingertips in my hand. I see Jeremy standing in front of Coach. He seems to be yelling at him. I look away, not wanting to draw more attention to the situation. Our captain, Tarver, instructs us to start running the 5 laps we're supposed to run everyday. 

    We all start running while Coach continues hammering Jeremy. Eventually Coach's voice grows so loud we can practically hear every word perfectly. "IF YOU WANT BACK ON THIS TEAM, YOU'LL LEARN SOME MANNERS, BOY!!!" Coach screams as Tarver waves his arm in a circle above him, signaling us to run another lap after we've finished our fifth. Tarver's at least two laps ahead of us, so he's definitely running the same or more laps than the rest of us. I wouldn't doubt it if Coach told him to keep us running until he's done ripping Jeremy a new one. 

    After another ten minutes and three extra laps, Tarver finally lets us stop running. We all wobble to the sideline to chug as much water as possible. Coach sighs as Jeremy walks in the direction of the school. Coach looks at us all  then glances at his watch. The cold wind doesn't even feel chilly right now. I throw back more water as Coach begins to talk. 

    "Y'all look like crap. That'll be all for today's practice, go home." Coach's way of saying: I don't have the energy or mental capacity to do my job today. We all gratefully nod and head back to the school. 

. . .

    I walk into the two-story, modern town house I've lived in since I was seven. "Mom!" I call into the house. I hear dishes clanging around in the kitchen, so I follow the sound. Mom moves around in the kitchen, dancing to the music playing from the small speaker on the counter as she works. I smile and say, "Hey, Mom!" Shocked, she spins around, her blue apron twirling in the air. "Hey, baby!" She coos then turns back to the counter. 

    "What're you making?" I ask, leaning over Mom's shoulder to look at the concoction she's making. She shows me away with her hand, causing me to walk away. I go upstairs to my room and take a quick shower. I hear the front door open and close, so I jog downstairs and into the dining room. Mom's setting the table, and Dad taps my shoulder as he walks past me.

    "Ben, grab some cups, please," Mom says, so I go to the cupboard and take three glasses out. I set then on the glass table and sit down. After we say grace, the chit chat I've been dreading begins. 

    "How was your day, Ben?" Mom asks, and I clear my throat before answering. "Uhm..." I can't avoid this. I know the principal and Coach have already called both my parents. "It was...interesting that's for sure," I say and begin eating, desperately trying to avoid talking about the day entirely. "Let's not act like we don't know what's going on. How's the girl, she okay?" Dad asks, followed by a, "Frank!" From Mom.

    "Yes, Helena's okay," I say, and Mom and Dad both look at me with a bit of surprise. "That's a lovely name. How did you come to know it?" Mom asks, "secretly" trying to find out if I like Helena. "We have first period together," I say, then shovel in more food. Dad stops this by pulling away my plate and my cup. I swallow the small amount of food I managed to shovel in along with my hope for avoidance of the topic entirely. 

    "Oh?" Mom says, interesting rising in her. "Yes..." I say, not quite sure how to respond. "Don't be stupid. Don't get her pregnant," Dad says with no emotion in his voice.

    "Frank!" Mom scolds again, and Dad just shrugs like he doesn't know what he did wrong. "I'm not going to get her pregnant, Dad," I say, dropping my head. Dad nods and slides my plate back to me. I start eating again, and Mom and Dad start chatting like our entire previous conversation never happened. 

    When I wake in the morning, I get ready quietly and head to school in the same manner. I take the bus alone since Jeremy isn't here. When I get to Geometry, I glance over at Helena to see her rubbing her marked shoulders. Red imprints from Jeremy's hands are embedded into Helena's skin. Her cheek is still red, and her eyes are glossy and droopy. She glances over at me, and my eyes flick away. 

    "Class, complete this worksheet by the end of class. You may work in groups of two to three or alone," Mrs. Voong says as she passes out a piece of paper to each of us. I look around the room for a partner since my usual...buddy is out at the moment. My eyes land on Helena. She's begun to work alone, seeing that the two desks behind and in front of her are empty. I take a deep breath and walk over to her.

    "Hey," I say, and she looks up. "Wanna work together?" I ask, hoping she'll say yes. I feel like I still need to apologize to her even though it wasn't my fault she was hurt. She ponders on my proposal for a moment then says, "Sure, why not." I sigh and sit down in the seat in front of her. 

    "I've done one through three," she says, turning her paper around to face me. "Oh, cool...you want me to check it or..." I say awkwardly, my eyes shifting around the room. "Oh...yeah, you can, but usually people just want to copy my work," Helena says, curling her knees up to her chest and wrapping her arms around her legs. 

    I quietly look over the work she's done as she looks out the window and occasionally drinks water from her pink, half-gallon water bottle. "It's good," I say, turning her paper back around to her. She starts working on the next problem without another word. I decide not to question her ways and begin doing the problem as well. 

    She wait for me to finish then says, "What'd you get?" I look up slowly as I finish writing the answer. "X equals 75, you?" I tell her, and Helena smiles softly. "Same," she says, then does the next problem. We work like this for the rest of class, and when we get opposite answers, we work through it together. I think this is the most productive class I've ever had...ever!

    After we've finished the assignment, Helena immediately packs her things and pulls out a book. I slowly pack away my things. Maybe I should get to know her. She seems nice, and besides that girl she's been hanging out with, it doesn't seem like she has any friends here. "So...you like to read?" I ask, trying to sound as little awkward as possible. 

    "Yes," she says simply, only glancing up for a second and then back down into her book. "Ah, that's nice. What're you reading?" I say in a poor attempt to continue the conversation. "Shatter Me by Tahera Mafi," she says, this time not looking up at all. I start saying something else, but she cuts me off before I can get the words out.

    "You don't have to be friends with me out of pity," she says, her tone cold. I'm taken aback for a moment, but then I say, "I'm not trying to be friends with you out of pity." She looks up from her book. When her cheeks begin to burn pink, I smile slightly. "Oh..sorry," Helena says, boring her face back into her book. 

    The bell rings, and Helena stands with her things as if the bell is releasing her from some horrible experience. She half-way to the door when I finally get my things and make my way to her. She glances back to me, rushing out the door. "Wait!" I call after her.