Seven Days

Monday.

I slammed my locker door closed for the last time. It echoed down the hall. Or at least that's what it felt like, even though there were hundreds of seniors doing the exact same thing. Today was the last day of classes for seniors, all that was left was to turn in an English paper and that would be it. I let my hand rest on the chipped green paint, allowing the coolness to sink into my skin. This building was set to be demolished over the summer and replaced with a shiny new public pool.

I slipped my overstuffed backpack on my shoulder, careful to pull out the long blond curls that always seemed to get stuck in the strap. I dragged a full garbage bag full of old notes, tests which grades were better left forgotten and broken pencils to the garbage can in the middle of the hallway. I looked at the end of the hall and my best friend Sadie Kingston waved frantically. This was it, it was time to go.

At that moment Ben walked past me, his own stuffed backpack in tow. Beautiful, kind, beautiful Ben Harman. I had stared at the back of his head in math willing him to love me for four years. In a reckless moment of stupidity, I decided that Einstein may be right and it was time to try something else. My mom told me that college is when you're supposed to make all your stupid decisions, why not start 24 hours early.

"Hey Ben," I called. He turned, giving me a full view of his beautiful male model face with dark floppy hair, eyes like brown sugar, and a dusting of freckles across his cheeks.

"Oh, hey," Ben said seeming to be trying to remember something.

"Grace." I supplied, off to a great start.

"Right, yeah. Hey, Grace." Silence. When he spoke again I realized it had been my turn to stop. "It's crazy leaving the school for the last time."

I nodded. "Yeah really. Crazy." He nodded back.

Now the next part sounded like my voice, felt like it was coming from my vocal cords but was missing the part where my brain said it was ok to come out of my face. "So um, I just wanted to say."

"Yeah?" He said looking around for his friends.

"I've kind of liked you for a long time. I just wanted you to know."

"Um. Thanks." Ben said. His friend Danny walked by. "Yeah, I got to go. I'll see you at graduation..."

"Grace."

"Yeah, Grace."

Tuesday.

"You have to get out of bed." My mom said.

"I don't have to do anything, it's Tuesday, and I've graduated."

"It's noon and you have to get out of bed. You still have to turn in that English essay."

"I can't go to school."

"Why not?"

"The school burned down." the sound was muffled by my pillow.

"I highly doubt that. I would have seen it on the news." My mom flung the curtains open. "Now it's a lovely day. Put on some lipstick, turn in your paper, and then you can spend the next 50 years of your life working." She shut the door. I knew if I laid in bed any longer she would come back in and start the whole charade over again. So instead I rolled out of bed, put my hair in a messy bun, pulled on some yoga pants, grabbed the essay, and walked out the door.

When I got to school I understood why my mom mentioned lipstick. She has this superstition that if she leaves the house without wearing makeup she will run into someone she doesn't want to see her without makeup. Her boss, Mrs. McGhee from the PTA at my brother's school, someone. After leaving my English teacher's classroom I realized why my mom had that superstition.