Wickless

Crushes

     Monday was a mess and not because she came to school in a drench dress, but because the rain was pouring down like the weight of a hammer on a jail cell door. When she had got out the car that morning, she looked up at the campus and thought it was bigger than what she remembered. Now as she was in the hallway putting her books and backpack in her locker, she became surprised the school day wasn't canceled. 

       Boom! The thunder sounded and Dee Dee jumped. She shut her grey color locker and walked past the other students who were leaning on their lockers, and walked past the ones who refused to walk at all in the hallways. Just ahead of her were the two front doors that were the exit and entrance into the building. The glass windows shook each time the thunder roared and Dee Dee stopped twice before going any closer to them. For her, it was strange for the sky to be so dark, like the color of black and purple. The clouds were swollen and close together, the lightning shined when it flashed. 

       "What the-" she started to say but the bell rung. The students in the hall rushed off to their classes. Neither girl or boy were paying attention to the dark haired girl as she stood there, almost hypnotized by the sky. She was starting to think her grandmother was on to something. 

       Dee Dee spent the rest of the day going to and from classes. She had David in two classes and she had Laurie and Tonya in one class each. The classes were small because of the population of the town. Most of her classes had no more than fifteen or even ten students. And in one class in particular, she had Clara. 

       It was easy to pick Clara out in the crowd whether it be in the classroom, hallway, or lunch area. She often wore sporty type clothes due to her being on the volleyball and softball team. Often times she could be found carrying around her blue sports bag which also represented the school colors. And Clara was usually with a friend or three when she walked around the school, so having Clara sitting in two desks ahead of her sent caterpillars into her heart, where they crawled into their cocoons then hatched, and flew around sporadically. 

       Her hair was reddish brown, she had a few freckles on her cheeks and her lips were thin. There wasn't much Dee Dee knew about Clara's family except her grandmother was black. Her grandparent's story was a pretty big deal considering they fell in love, and got married during a time when interracial marriages were legal but still highly shunned. Regardless of the blood that ran through Clara's veins, she was beautiful in and out. 

       Dee Dee and the entire class was interrupted by the lights blinking on and off. They looked around at one another, and some of the students even giggled. The teacher was a bit annoyed, but he cleared his throat and continued to do the algebra problems on the board. There weren't any windows in the class room, just white brick walls. Rumor had it it was made that way so as to prevent texting during class. It worked. The students hardly got any reception; regardless, Dee Dee was still unsure of being in class. She wished she didn't have to attend that choir meeting after school. Getting home seemed it would be safer than staying at the school. Even through the thick brick walls, the sound of thunder and rain could still be heard. Dee Dee didn't like it; she didn't like it one bit. 

        The last class of the day was gym class. Luckily Dee Dee only had to take this for one semester. The next semester she would be in dance which would count as a P.E credit. When she went into the locker room, she saw Laurie sitting on one of the blue benches with the other girls. Dee Dee sat by her. Laughter automatically fell out of their mouths once they caught sight of one another. Hardly any words had to be said to express the exhaustion they both had on that first day of school. Before sharing any thoughts, they listened in on some of the other girls' conversations. 

       "Did you hear about Tonya and Jake?" asked one girl. "That's so embarrassing." 

       "Dude, Jake is such a douche, what the hell was she even thinking?" The girl's friend chimed in. 

       Dee Dee and Laurie exchanged looks. They knew all too well what had happened with Laurie and Jake. They changed positions on the bench to not be noticed by the chit chatting girls. The last thing they wanted to do was build a fire with already smoked kindling. 

       "I feel bad for Tonya though." Laurie said. 

       Dee Dee nodded her head. During lunch when the three of them sat and ate together, Tonya seemed upset about her crush. She's been having a crush on him since seventh grade. Now that she was in high school, Jake no longer seemed interested. Dee Dee shook her head and sighed. After class, she would send her friend a text to check in on her. 

       "Did you see Jason?" Dee Dee asked Laurie. Jason was a pretty huge sixteen year old. He was also already sprouting a mustache, and he was of course popular because he was on the football team. Colleges were already scouting him and had been since he was in middle school. Laurie had been having the biggest crush on him for a couple of years now, but Laurie shook her head, still, the blush on her cheeks said it all. 

        "Tonya says you have a class with Clara." Her voice was chipper. 

        Dee Dee smiled widely.  She flicked her hair and crossed her legs. "I do."

       "How do you even know if she's into girls?" Laurie asked. 

       "Well," Dee Dee started. "She is apart of the softball team." The two girls laughed at one another as if they just shared the best joke one could ever share between friends. They clasped each other's hands and lower their voice. Considering there were so many gossiping Glorias in the locker room, Dee Dee didn't want to risk anything. "No, but seriously, I don't know." Dee Dee just looked at her friend. 

       The lights suddenly went out and the girls in the locker room screamed then laughed. When the lights didn't come on soon enough and as the girls continued to remain in the dark, Dee Dee began to wonder where the coaches were. When the silence came and lasted, she became nervous. 

       "Doooorrooooothhhy..." a husky voice cried out to her.