Silver Lining This

We Didn't Make It

Chapter five:

--August 18, 2012

"WAKE UP, EMMA!!" My mom yells from downstairs.

"I am up!!" I yell back at her.

When I'm obviously not even out of bed yet. I usually wake up earlier than this but right now it's like 6:30 when I realize that it's the last day for tryouts. I rolled out of bed and hopped into the shower.

I got dressed and ran down the stairs. It's 7:10, when I go to get my breakfast and since I'm running out of time, I just get a power bar and a yogurt. That's usually my breakfast anyway.

My mom is on her phone again, so I wave bye and I'm out the door. I hate sticking around in my house these days. Since I found out about my disorder, I've been avoiding the things that I used to do all the time.

But when I got to school, I see that the buses are gone and Rachel isn't in the line. Then I saw that her twin sister, Amanda, is in the line talking to her best friend Riley. I walked up to Amanda and asked her where Rachel is, and she said that Rachel is inside catching up on some work for one of her classes.

"What class?" I ask.

"Science." Amanda replies.

So I walked into the school and ascended up the stairs to Rachel's Science class. I find her sitting in one of the desks, with her nose practically buried in that Science book. I laugh to myself, then I steel myself and take a few steps before I see Rachel look up at me. She has a huge smile on her face when she recognizes me. I can't help but laugh some more. I don't understand why I like this girl so much but I feel that I know no matter what, I could trust her and that she may become a big part of my life. I know that I was cursed with seeing the bad in people but for some reason, all I can see in Rachel is pure goodness. Which makes me happy that I finally found a person who I can actually consider a friend. That realization shocks me because I am prone to not making friends.

"Hey Emma! What are you doing here?" She asks with much enthusiasm.

"Well I'm here to see you, of course!" I answer with even more enthusiasm.

"Awesome! I'm almost done. I can't wait to find out if I made the team! Can you?" Rachel asks as she is puting her book in her bag.

"Nope! I hope I make the team because I've never really played a sport for school. I've only played soccer and that was for my mom when she coached."

"That's cool that you're mom was a soccer coach. I played Volleyball last year for the school."

"Oh. So you are most likely going to be on the team then. You have a better chance than I do."

"What would be even better is if we both make it!"

"I totally agree!"

Rachel and I continue our conversation down the hall before the final bell rings telling us to go to our classes.

I hate school!! I want to just leave these classes. I want to go to the gym and get my Volleyball stuff on and find out if Rachel and I made the team or not.

Finally, the end of 6th hour and I am tired, but I have just enough energy to do our final stretches and practices. Before I knew it, practice was over and all of the girls were sitting on the floor, listening to the coach talk. Then at last, she says that a list of names of the people who made the team is on the back wall.

Rachel and I are the first ones to see the list, but I wanted to cry when I saw that Rachel's big, happy smile turned into a big, sad frown. I discovered that neither of us made the team and I felt so bad for Rachel. I didn't care about me at that point, I just wanted Rachel to have made the team. She was so quiet when we were getting dressed, I just wanted to give her a big hug.