How We Wrote Us

four

The first Friday of my junior year finally came around after days of classes, making enemies, redoing introductions, and rehearsing lines for a play. Although it was the first week of school, it felt as if I completed a whole year's worth of work already. I was exhausted and ready for the weekend. However, I still had a whole day of classes left before I could enjoy some rest.

The idea of getting rest at home almost made me laugh. Since my parents filed for divorce, my dad was barely home. I wasn't complaining about his absence, but his being gone worried my mother so much that I couldn't relax as I watched her pace around the house. I knew this weekend would be the same as any other because my dad had a new girlfriend and would disappear for days spending time with her doing God knows what. Even though they were divorcing, my mother still loved his slimy ass, and I hated him for what he put her through in their marriage and outside of it. He broke her down to where I was almost her parent instead of having her as mine.

I forced these thoughts away and focused on the present. The first-period bell was about to ring any moment, and I sat in my seat nervously thinking about how I would be up on stage rehearsing my lines for the second time. Yesterday was the first day of rehearsal, and although it went very well, I hated the attention everyone suddenly gave me. Even Candace seemed to overcome her lunch outburst as she cheered me on while we practiced.

Owen—the guy with the green braces—sat next to me every morning, and I started to kind of enjoy our interactions. He was a little odd, but who wasn't? Between him and Candace, I barely got a word in, and I liked that. They made me feel present without having to contribute to the conversation, which I appreciated. I even started to convince myself that the drama club wouldn't actually be all seven levels of hell. In fact, I started to enjoy the first hour of the day. However, I knew it was too early to admit that to anyone. I also didn't want to jinx myself with the luck I had.

Even though Jacob and I started over, we hardly spoke to one another since the library. I knew he was busy, but I kind of missed him shadowing me. It took every ounce of pride I had to admit that to myself. I kind of wanted to be his friend, and I accepted that was all I wanted. I might've been attracted to him, but I wasn't going to allow it to go any further than friendship. I wasn't aware of his sexuality, but I was pretty sure he was straight after watching him and Candace interact. It also made sense why she was so defensive of him. If they were dating, of course, she wouldn't want me to say anything bad about her boyfriend. It also made sense why she would blame me for starting the feud between Jacob and me saying I egged him on. A complete lie, but at least I understood her a little better.

"Mrs. Frita and I were chatting earlier," Jacob began once the bell rang and Mrs. Frita took role. "And we decided that today we were going to give you all a break on rehearsing. Instead, we're going to focus on the props. We have a lot of props to paint and tape together, so let's start on those today and see how far we get. Besides, you all have your scripts and can practice your lines at home. Next week we'll continue rehearsing, and we'll also have our dress rehearsal even though the play isn't until December. Mrs. Frita's sister is going to help her sew the costumes, so we need to get everyone's measurements so they have enough time to get the material and outfits together. Sound good?" He asked even though we all knew it sounded good regardless if we thought so before he began handing out jobs to each of us.

"We have a lot of the cardboard out back in the recycling bin, so we'll have to cut it today. I'm hoping we can paint some of the props, but we'll work on them next week if we don't have enough time today. However, I need a few of you to retrieve the cardboard...hmm...Owen and Drake will get the cardboard, Candace and Milanie will get the paints from the art room..."

I zoned out as Jacob droned on giving all my classmates a job until I realized he was done with the list and never mentioned my name. "Hey!" I raised my hand as I shot out of my seat and walked toward the stage. "What am I going to do?" I asked as I glanced up at him as he stood on the stage and hovered about six feet over me.