FACADE

06|Sixteen

PAECYN

This is the last topic I can go over. If me nuh know it by now, I won't know it in five minutes. That's just how my brain works.

CSEC has made me nervous, very nervous. It's to the point where I don't even want to do anything for my sixteenth birthday tomorrow.

*What?*

Yeah. For the last three birthdays, Kyan and I have been to random all inclusive hotels under I don't even know who fah name. She usually tells Ms.Kyra I'm joining her at whatever Easter church camp and we somehow end up at a hotel nearby.

*And me wah go again*

Nope.

School has been different for me, much different than life outside of school. At school I'm the girl with the lunch bag...

The girl with the plaits...

The girl with the wedge shoe...

The girl with the top scores...

Paecyn Gray, the girl that's only seen at prize giving, when somebody needs a punchline to their joke, to copy from my paper or to join me for a group project.

I like it like that though. The cleaner the image at school, the more I get away with outside of school.

'Cause all my parents can see are the grades and accolades.

*Them nah pay real attention*

I'm dragged from my thoughts by somebody asking for a pencil.

"Gray me know you have extra number two, throw one," it's Neem.

I wanna say, 'CAPE ah next month and yuh duh have a pencil fi the marathons' but I don't. I don't open my mouth if I don't need to these days.

Him a do CAPE and me just a do CSEC, so him outa my league anyways- pencil or not.

*Paecyn please*

I hand him the pencil. He takes it and I watch his face turn from blank, to confused. And if dat no awkward enough, now him a try move my hair.

I swat his hand away.

"Gray you still have in your earrings," he whispers, "all... three?" his face becomes even more confused.

R*ssclawt.

I was rushing that much?

I usually take them out and make sure my hair is always, alwaysssss covering my earlobe.

"Tell di man dem you sneaking enuh," he laughs out, "Yahv sharpener?"

"Yuh wah too much now," I roll my eyes, my hands now reaching up to my left ears- with the lunch bag swinging from my wrist.

He notices my struggle and starts on the right ear.

We manage to get them out in less than a minute.