Do They Bother You? (Editing)

Epilogue

Friday- Graduation

It had been quite a feat convincing my mother and the doctor to let me go to Graduation. As it was, I was in a wheelchair, and LJ was glued to my side per my mother's orders. Not that he would have been anywhere else.

Luckily, when they put us in alphabetical order, J and I were right next to each other. And they'd rigged the stage with a ramp so that it would be easy to get me up there.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, may I have your attention please?" The crowd hushed as Principal Herrington spoke into the microphone. "Before our valedictorian gives his speech, I'd like to say a few words."

Everyone took their seats, eyes trained on the principal as he began to talk.

"These kids have had quite a year," he began, gesturing out in front of him to where we were sitting in our blue and gold graduation gowns. "Some of them more than others, sure, but it's been an eventful year. Our Varsity Football team made it to state championships, with the help of these young men sitting here. Our Varsity Boys Soccer, as well."

I smiled at LJ, who squeezed my hand.

"But sports aren't everything, and believe it or not, neither are grades," he continued. "These kids have earned more than just varsity jackets and good grades. They've earned valuable life experience, and grown as people. At the beginning of this year, these kids walked in as just that: kids. But today, sitting before me, I see adults.

"Sure, they had a few immature moments along the way-" his gaze leveled on LJ and I, then floated to Kam and Ash and Finn. I knew he was remembering the blue cat incident. "But overall, they've managed to be entirely well behaved this entire year. And I have been very, very lucky to spend a year with them.

"Now, the class Valedictorian, Asher Sinclair, will say a few words to his fellow classmates."

The crowd cheered as Asher stood up and approached the stage, notecards clutched tightly in his hand. I hadn't even known he was valedictorian until this afternoon, when he'd showed up with the notecards and gold band around the neck of his graduation gown.

Asher waited for the crowd to quiet down before speaking into the microphone. "We made it."

That was all he needed to say to send every student into an uproar. Many stood up and cheered, wolf-whistles echoing in the stadium.

"Okay, okay!" Asher chuckled into the microphone, a grin on his face. Everyone took their seats again. "Yeah, we made it. But I'm kinda about to rain on your parade, so sit tight a second."

He played with the notecards for a moment, debating, before he set them down. "We're about to enter a new chapter in our lives," he said. "And maybe some of you know, without a doubt in your mind, that you're ready. But I'm sure there's a good number of you who still have no idea what you're gonna do in three months, when we're all supposed to be going off to college."

His eyes swept over the crowd. "It's okay not to be sure where you're going next. It doesn't matter what your parents, or your councilor, or what anyone else says. You've only barely become an adult- you've got some wiggle room to make a decision.

"And when you do make a decision, make sure it's the right one. The last thing any of us want is to suddenly wake up and be forty, in some dead-end cubicle job with no chance of retirement and four kids you have to put through college. You want some excitement before you settle down, sure, but don't let it stop there."

He glanced down at the notecards again. "You are as fearless now as you are ever going to be," he said, his voice strong and unwavering. "Don't let yourself be scared into following the mainstream. If you want to travel the world, travel the world. If you want to go to college, go to college. Cross a couple of things off your bucket list- I know I will be.

"And before any of you make those decisions, I want you to remember who you are, and where you came from. Your experiences make up who you are, and connect you to the world around you. They help guide you to where you're going, even if it seems like it might not be a good thing at the time.

"And if you ever need a partner in crime, call up your friends from high school," he chuckled, looking right at Kam, and Finn, and LJ, and me. "I know I will be. Thank you, Class of 2014. I couldn't have asked for a better group of people."

Cheers, louder than anything I had ever heard, echoed in the stadium. It was like a roar, deafening you even as it filled your senses.

Later, after the diplomas and awards were handed out and everyone had spread out around the field, LJ wheeled me over to where Kam, Finn and Asher were standing, with Ash's parents.

"You must be Lena!" Asher's mom said warmly, coming forward to grasp my hand. She was dressed in a tailored skirt-suit, delicate pearls around her neck and her caramel-colored hair done up in a dignified bun. She looked a bit like what I imagined a company president would look like, without the cold detachment.

"It's so nice to meet you," she said, clasping both my hands in hers. Her eyes, dark like Ash's, sparkled as she looked at me. "We've heard so much about you."

"All good things, I hope," I said, blushing slightly at her warm welcome.

"My Ash would never say a bad thing about a young lady, so the fact that he talks about you at all is amazing! The only one that has you beat is Ms. Kambri, here. He mentions her so often you would think-"

"Mom!" Asher's face had gotten so red he somewhat resembled a tomato. "I can't believe you!"

"What? I just assumed..."

Kam looked like she'd gotten mildly red as well. She stuttered something about going to find her parents before moving away.

"Well," Mrs. Sinclair said, hands on her hips. "My goodness. Were you this awkward with James, Lena, darling? Before you two got involved?"

LJ laughed. "I'm afraid so," he said, putting his hand on my shoulder. "We were hopeless."

Mrs. Sinclair huffed. "Teenagers," she muttered, before striding over to talk with Finn's mother.

I put my hand on top of J's, squeezing gently. We stood in the middle of a crowd on a football field, surrounded by blue and gold, watching our friends and family talk and laugh and hug.

And for the first time in a long time, I was fully, completely, happy.