pocket stories

23

Don't let me near microwaves when I'm sick. No exceptions. This has become a rule known to many who had lunch with me freshman year.

    The musical rehearsals at the High School went until 7:00/7:30 at night, which is hell, especially if you're sick.  It wasn't much, just a minor cold, but it was the last thing I needed right then.

  Since I was sick, my mom packed me soup in a thermos for lunch. It was a metal thermos.

The soup was cold when I got to lunch, so I wanted to microwave it. The only microwave there was was one in the teacher's lounge.

I walked in and asked if I could use it, holding my thermos. They said yes and I went over and put in my thermos.

I was tired and wasn't really aware of what was happening.

I saw a spark.

I thought I imagined it.

Flames.

OH SHIT.

I pop open the microwave and look at my soup. The container isn't flaming, but the whole room smells like burnt plastic and there's smoke. I was lucky the fire alarms didn't go off.

The teacher's were mad, my mom was furious, my sister shunned me and my friends all laughed at me. I was made fun of in my remaining class and I just wanted to curl up and die.

I didn't eat lunch that day, I just kind of cried in the bathroom.

A few months later, a kid goes in to microwave something. He comes back and tells me, with a smug grin on his face, that there's still a burn mark on the bottom of the microwave yet.

So please, for everyone's safety, don't let me near microwaves when I'm sick.