The Last Lap

Chapter Twelve

Sweat and iron filled my lungs as soon as I stepped into the room. I really hated that room but it was a perfect place to hide between classes because you could act like you were working out during your study hall and no one would say anything. A class was in there but I was already wearing my workout clothes so I blended in.

A familiar face greeted me with a smile and whispered, "Hey, don't be skippin' in here." He booped my nose. I smiled at him as I put down my stuff on a window ledge and picked up one of the ten pound weights.

"Shhh," I warned him with a childish grin, hiding behind his tall frame, "I just needed some time off of my current class, Alex. I promise not to make it a habit. What are you up to?" I responded. The gym teacher looked at me and winked.

"I see Alex has found friendship with the notorious Ema. What are you doing here? Aren't you supposed to be in class?" She asked. She was small but looked strong, almost like a wrestler.

I shrugged, "Maybe. Maybe not. Please let me stay in here." She crossed her arms and shook her head, "Only because you did me that favor that one time."

As she walked away, Alex pulled me in closer to him by my shoulder, "What did you do for her that made her like you so much?" I laughed at the thought of the favor. It was so long ago but it felt so fresh in my mind every time I thought about it.

"Some kids were trying to steal condoms from her desk a couple years ago and I caught them, chased them down, and returned them to her," I started to do an overhead press lift. He chuckled along with me and shook his head.

My smile faded and turned into a tight line before he asked, "How are you?"

I sighed and told him, "I could be better."

"Oh? You need a hug?" He smiled and fluttered his eyelashes jokingly before saying, "a shoulder to cry on?" I rolled my eyes at him as I wrapped an arm around him, the dumbell hanging from my fingertips.

"No. I just need someone to listen to me."

He took me to the corner of the room, starting to workout with a bar in the corner. I watched him as he built more muscle, "I just had a really rough day. All the things I thought would work out for me haven't."

"Oh yeah? Like what?" He raised an eyebrow.

I shrugged, "Like the fact that that I thought all my friends supported me in what I was doing and that my plan to create a more diverse environment would work."

He paused in raising the bar, "Hey, I'm your friend." I waved my hands at him, "You are, definitely, I meant other people."

"What about Jia? Or your other friend, Jasmyn? They both care about you. Jia always talks about you with such pride and Jasmyn, even if she is quiet, she shows that she cares just by walking you occasionally to practice when she can and always listens," He says with a faraway look in his eye.

I thought about his observations and nodded, "Yeah but I don't know. I just need to focus on this current problem. You have connections with your teachers and students from your old school right?"

"Oh yeah, I do. Why?" He asked, setting up for an inclined bench press. I took off the other side of weights and helped him match them up before replying with, "Well, I need to figure a way to get this school more diverse. More.... Inclusive, I suppose. Here's the deal Alex; I hate seeing the same people every day. I hate not knowing what life could be like if we were more different from each other. Being different isn't always that bad, you know. It can help us with growth. It can make us better people."

He bit his bottom lip and slowly smirked at me before laying down. He matched his pinky finger with the rings and planted his feet on the ground. He took a deep breath and then lifted the bar to do a set of lifts. He wasn't at his max but it was impressive to see him lift almost 200 pounds of metal. He was strong.

He put the bar back and lifted himself, "Look Ema. I agree with you. Maybe you and I can skip a day of school and go experience what they go through. It's not much different in the terms of education but it is different in culture. Are you sure you can handle it?"

I gave him a confused look, "Handle what? School?"

He came close to my face and stared me dead in the eye, "Are you ready to face people that aren't afraid to die? That have witnessed their family members dying since they were able to walk? To stand in front of struggle face to face? To realize the amount of privilege you have?"

"I'll do whatever it takes to understand."

"Good. Tomorrow I'll call us both in sick and we can go visit."