Deal With It By: Audrey B. Holley

Chapter 12

It is 7:30p.m, and I lay here in my bed during a Thursday evening, drowning in memories, and discarded thoughts. My mom calls up the stairs that someone is here for me, and then a faint whisper of "She's up in her room."

A moment or so later, there's a muffled tap at my door. Without a response from me, the company enters.

"What are you doing here?" I ask, sitting upright.

"Keelie-" Benjie says. "I miss talking to you. With you ignoring me all week really irritates me. You should know by now I hate being snubbed. I dealt with my parents, I don't want to go through it with you."

"It's hard to be friends when there are feelings other than friendship." I retort along with crossing my arms over my chest.

His parents ignored him? I almost question, but then stop myself. He doesn't open up very much about his childhood, but I've heard snippets of rumors from people around school.

"OK," he starts pacing around in my room. "I don't really like that girl. I mean I thought I did until I lost something that was way more important to me," he gives a swift glance at my face, and then goes on. "Be patient with me OK? That's what love is. Love is patient, and kind."

He stops pacing. "Can we go back to the way things were? 'Cause I really miss that. I miss you." His shoulders sag a little, and then he looks at me for a long time.

When I don't respond, he says, "Why don't we hang out tomorrow after school? We could go to the movies or something."

When I don't budge, he adds with a grin, "We'll even ride the motorcycle."

That said, I finally give in and smile.

He knows me too well.

"Your motorcycle is pretty cool."

"Yeah, it is purty cool."

"I like the way you say pretty." I try my best to cover the emotions he tends to spring up.

* * * * *

My dreamless sleep is bothered by a violent shake on my shoulder. A voice urges me to unravel myself from the surrounding blanket. I am lurched into reality, for my brother hollers at me.

"Get up! Get up now!" He waves his hands at me like some crazy man.

I brush the heels of my palms over my eyes, but stop when I recall my mom saying something about how it isn't good to rub your eyes all that much.

"School starts in ten minutes! You're running late, which makes me late! And you know how I hate being late!" His brow furrows, and his red face reveals just how discontented he really is right now.

But I am too weary to care.

"Go on without me." I say after a yawn. "I'll drive my own car today."

He then stomps away while I trudge into the bathroom. Deciding that I won't be able to take a shower, I reach for my toothbrush, and after squirting paste on the bristle, I jam the brush into my mouth.

I stare at the mirror, swallowing the image of the girl into my mind, and picture her and the boy she loves together. I finish the process of cleansing my teeth, and then say straightforward into the glass, "But is this passion? Am I in love or am I just setting myself up for something I want to believe exists?"

I sigh, and then tackle the next task by ripping my green hairbrush through long locks of the lightly browned mop that grows at the top of my head. A minute or so later, I'm tugging a T-shirt on, and then push my specs up the bridge of my nose. I slide on a pair of regular old jeans.

Before I know it, I am already in the driver seat of my car tugging the safety belt across my body. Now I am headed off to school ten minutes delayed.

* * * * *

Just as I am running through the door of my first period English class, I step on my dangling shoelace, and plunge forward.

I ketch myself saying, "Wow!"

And now I look like a total klutz, an absolute disgrace to my typically elegant walking routine.

"Miss Hems, are you alright?" Mrs. Darthy asks.

"Uh..." I ease myself up off the floor. "Yeah, sorry I'm late." She motions to my seat.

"We were just discussing the next writing assignment. Surely, you can meet with someone after class who will explain it to you." I glance to Benjie, who gives me a thumbs up.

The following hour passes by in an orderly fashion, as well as the rest of the school day.

* * * * *

"I'll pick you up around 7 tonight, that OK with you? Or would you prefer a different time?" Benjie is bending over in order to gain a clearer view of me as I sit in my car, the window is down.

"Um..." I buckle the belt across my waste. "I'll just call you or send you a text when I'm ready, how's that?"

He squints his eyes from the cold breeze of winter passing through, and just when his hair sways out of his face, I notice another scar that cuts along the right side of his hair line. I swallow the odd lump that forms in my throat and manage a half smile.

Are the rumors true?

"That's fine." He grins and stands straight up. 

As I pull out of the school parking lot, I glimpse the image of him jogging to his motorcycle. I send an angel to shelter him on his way home.