He stood for everything she was against and he wouldn't be caught dead befriending someone like her, but when the worst happens and they find themselves in a similar situation, only then will they realize they need each other to discover the anatomy...
I hid in my room all day Sunday, and if I went down to see Dad, I made sure I was wearing at least three layers of makeup to cover up the bruise. He wouldn't have noticed anyway-Sunday was a bad pain day. He lay in bed while Maria took on the task of making him some soup to eat and taking him to the bathroom when he needed it. I actually did some homework-just enough to get away with a passing grade-and tried not to think about what had happened yesterday.
I found myself checking to see if he'd called or texted more often than I had when we first met. It had been at one of Zealand's parties. Those smoky, dim lit, nostalgia-of-the-late-60s infused kickbacks that he loved to throw, and throw people out of. Jasper included.
Although Zealand flirted with the idea of using, he only ever smoked. So when Jasper came by, flaunting his stash, Zealand wasn't impressed. I was. He looked like a rock star as he walked through the smoke, his wavy hair falling into his big blue eyes. Eyes that fell on me and never looked away. That night, when Zealand kicked Jasper out, I left with him. We went back to his place: an apartment he shared with a couple of guys I'd seen at school when I was a freshman. I stayed there a week until Maria found me and dragged me back home with her tear streaked face and trembling hands. She was only thirteen, and when I saw how it affected her to have both her mother and older sister abandon her, I got my shit together and went back home.
I didn't see Jasper for a month after. He didn't call, or text, or drop by. He became a ghost and I became a zombie. Then, one night, as I sat on the roof of my house, a cig between my lips, I saw his car pull up. He didn't offer any explanation, and I didn't demand one. That's just the way it was with him, and I took what I could get.
So after Saturday, I figured he needed time to cool off. He'd come back, like he always did. There was no way he wouldn't.
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
On Monday, Maria forced me to get up and get dressed for school. We received a letter, she said. If I missed any more days, I'd have to go to court.
"That's bull, they can't do that," I said through a mouthful of toothpaste.
"Uh, it's called truancy, dodo bird, and yes they can." She paused looking at my still purple eye. I traced my eyes over her little sundress, noticing again how distinct we were. She was a marigold, tall and golden and pure.
"You can't let the school see you like that or they'll call CPS on dad."
"I'll just throw some makeup on. Don't worry Maria, Maria."
Her eyes lingered on mine for just a second before she sighed. "I always worry about you, S. Hurry, or we'll be late, okay?"
I layered on the foundation and put some purple eyeshadow on, making sure both eyes looked equally dark enough so as not to draw attention to the bruise.
We took my car to school and Maria left to find her friends, while I trudged up to the art's corridor, getting to the gallery just in time to see Icarus fly too close to the sun.
