C A T C H 22 |BWWM|

Ch. 6 • Curtain Climbers

Jackson, MS. October 1943
Monday, 5:15 pm

Deen

Pushing open the doors of the school's entrance, I made my way down the stairs and into the chilly breeze. The school was mostly abandoned except for the students that stayed after school for chorus—the same reason I was still here. The Jazz Choir was, in fact, one of my favorite things to do through the weekday. The kids were kind and not total ditz like the rest of the school's population.

"Hey, Deen." I stopped my trot on the stairs and turned to a guy named Bobby. He was alright, sometimes an actor in our class. "We're all going to that diner on the strip. The one near the drugstore. You wanna' come?"

"Uh, yeah, sure. Let me just ring my parents real quick when I get there," I responded.

"Okay. Meet ya' there." I nodded and walked to my car. Getting inside and starting the engine, I made my way to the restaurant, tunes playing softly from my radio.

Parking on the strip, I got out and headed towards the pay-phone that was on the side of the building. The phone started to ring once I had dialed the house phone number.

"Hello?"

"Hey ma, it's me, Deen."

"Oh okay, hey sweetie. Anything wrong? Aren't you done with chorus?" Ma asked.

"Yeah, Yeah. Some friends and I are going to a diner to grab a bite to eat. That cool?"

"Yeah sure. It isn't those girls right?"

I huffed loudly. "Never mind. I'll be home soon. Bye, mama."

"Deen–"

I hung up the phone quickly and left the pay-phone. Walking past the glass window of the diner, I glanced inside to see if my classmates were inside. As I panned through the glass, my eyes caught a family sitting right by the window and shortly after I saw Paislee.

Paislee and I's friendship—or what it is— was complicated, to say the least. I secretly drive her to school sometimes, she lets me compliment her, and I'm pretty sure I can make her smile every second that we're together. Except for the fact that everything we do is secretive. That's just how she and I work.

Opening the door to the dinner, I saw my friends sitting in one huge booth. The diner wasn't necessarily segregated, but the whites stood to one side and the coloreds did the same. This time the only booth that could fit all of us was on the right side. The side where less of the non-colored customers sat.

"My friends are there. Thanks," I said to the waitress upfront. I walked my way over to the booth and slapped Bobby on his head. "Hey y'all."

"Hey, Deen!" Scooting inside the booth I smiled at all my new friends. I had a view of Paislee as she sat with her family, I guessed. Her parents talked and laughed as they sat with their backs to me. Paislee and what I'm guessing were her sisters—who were twins—sat on the inside of her.

Looking over to her booth our eyes connected. Her eyes widened just a tad as she continued to stare at me. Giving her a smile, she dipped her head bashfully. Her smile made me blush entirely too hard but I just couldn't help it. Glancing at her again, I saw her head quickly avert to her parents' eyes as they turned their heads around to my side, but fortunately, I was able to play it off. I didn't need them scouting me off.

After a few minutes, I decided to cast an eyeball her way again. This time she was chewing on her red-striped straw as she sipped her vanilla milkshake. She played with her little sisters while they giggled up a fit. She only glanced at me for a second before completely stopping to tickle her sister. The small looks and this cat-and-mouse game wasn't what either of us wanted.