Beauty and the Blonde

1

It was October 1966, and Hawkins High School was back in session as the leaves turned brown and the air became cooler. Joyce Byers sat with Jim Hopper in their usual spot behind the bleachers as they shared a quick cigarette. Their 5th period of lunch was ending, and all the students began to put their belongings together and step back into the hell that is school.

Karen Wheeler thoughtlessly held hands with Arnold, because at this point it was only her going through the motions. He was a great guy- charming, hot, kind, smart. But for some reason she didn't feel anything with him anymore. The novelty of their relationship had long worn off, and most of their time together didn't give her that feeling of real love.

When she looked at Joyce and Hopper having fun under the bleachers, she quietly said, "They make an odd couple, don't they?"

As her boyfriend overheard her, he replied, "well there's someone for everyone babe." He then leaned in and kissed her, and she kissed him back, though her amount of passion was the equivalent of a robot's. She then looked back at the two, and let out a sigh. Arnold was right. There's someone for everyone. But he wasn't her someone.
————————————————————————
7th period. English with Mr Duffer. Though all the classes were terrible, this one could be somewhat bearable at times. Joyce sat close to the front and didn't stare up from her notebook, as the pencil marked up the page. It wasn't a time to take notes, she was just scribbling in there to pass the time.

Karen was a row or two back and a couple seats over, and she couldn't help but continue to stare at Joyce. She didn't know if it was just her boredom talking, but the urge to look at Joyce was as strong as the urge to fall asleep in a boring class. But why did she feel the way she did?

Minutes later, the woman's daydream was over when she heard her name. "Karen, you'll be working with Joyce," Mr Duffer said as he continued to partner the students up.

Joyce turned around and gave Karen a smile as she stood up and came to sit with her partner. "Hey," the kind brunette said with a heartwarming smile.

For some reason it took a few seconds to find the words to say, even though her reply really only had to be one word. What are you doing, all you need to do is say hi. Then she finally replied, "Hey," then added, "So we're writing a poem together?"

Joyce gave a nod in response as she placed a blank sheet of paper on the desk. "How about we choose what to write about, then we each write a verse?", she suggested.

"Sounds good," Karen answered. "Maybe we could write about.. love," she added, as it's been on her mind all day. What was so different about talking to Joyce? We're friendly with each other, she's kind- what's the problem?

Karen volunteered to go first. It didn't take long to get the words flowing from her pen considering all she's been feeling lately.
Her smile made me feel like I was flying,
when she wasn't there I felt like I was falling.
All I needed was to see her face,
she made me happy and she kept me safe.

Joyce watched her partner write down her verse, and wasn't sure who she was writing about. "Why's it say her? I don't mean to be nosy, I'm just curious. Is there someone you're writing about?", she asked with the kindest look in her eyes- a quality she's always had.

Karen read her verse over again. Who am I writing about? Is this just a passing thought, or does it mean something? She couldn't tell herself it didn't mean something anymore. The poem was about Joyce. There was no question about it and she had to admit it to herself. When she saw her, her heart felt like it was soaring. Talking to her made everything better, and she knew she wanted to be with Joyce.

"No, it's not like that. I was just writing from the man's point of view about the woman he loves- that's all."