The Urban Princesses: Pocahontas

Chapter 10

"What's six times twelve?"

"Um, twenty seven?"

I sighed. "Try again."

Thomas narrowed his eyes at his calculator. "Oh, seventy two."

I nodded, motioning for him to write the answer.

"Stupid dyslexia." He muttered.

"It's alright, you'll get it."

We were about to move onto the next problem when I glanced up at the clock, seeing that it was three.

"Hey do you think you can finish this by yourself?" I asked, standing from the floor.

He scrunched up his eyebrows. "Where are you going?"

"Out." I said nonchalantly, shrugging on a jacket. "I have something to go do." Or someone to go see. I had been waiting all day to hang out with Pocahontas. I don't know what it is with her that is making me leave my friends behind to hang out with her. All I knew is that I liked being around her.

"What do you have to do?" He sounded like the mother I never had.

"Stuff," I said, pulling on a shoe. "things." I smirked at him and went out the door before he could say anything else.

I walked down the sidewalk, breathing in the brisk afternoon. Boys were drinking soda and popping Mentos in their mouths on the steps of the motel, soda exploding over themselves they invited me over to try but I shook my head, watching as one of the boys started choking. Sometimes they could be really stupid and I can't help but feel bad. They didn't have anything better to do than sit around and waste time.

I run my fingers through my long hair as I come across the thick trees I usually went in to see her, climbing under a long branch.

It was all familiar to me now. The turns, the branches, the moss on the logs. Hanging out with Poca was one of the only things that has ever felt familiar to me after being a nomad for a good chunk of my life. Yet, all I could think of because of this was having to leave. I didn't want to. If I were younger, I probably could've enlisted in the nearest foster home or found a nice family to take me in, but since I'm eighteen I don't have those luxuries. I could probably buy a small apartment with my meager salary, and I had a great resume for a job, but I would never get to see her. She will be off at college in less than a year and it would be pointless to settle down in a place she seldom came back to. That's what makes this relationship so hard, knowing its going to end, but for right now it was happening and I couldn't think of such sad thoughts at a time like this.

After walking a few minutes, I hear a quiet crunching of leaves behind me and assuming it's Poca.

"You're not very good at being sneaky." I chuckled, turning around to find Thomas Instead of Pocahontas treading behind me.

The hair on the back of my neck stood up. "Thomas," I seethed. "what are you doing?"

"No, John, what are you doing?! Sneaking out in the forest like this! Is this where your drugs are? You've been coming home a little loopy lately-"

"No," I groaned, pressing my hands to my eyes. "I'm not doing anything illegal-"

"Then what are you doing that requires you to sneak out?"

"John?"

I turned around to find Pocahontas standing on the other side of me, giving me a questioning look.

Thomas glanced at her. "Are you spying for Ratcliffe?"

"You're spying on me?"

"No!" I said quickly, turning towards Poca again. "He doesn't know what he's talking about."