Chapter 5: The Queen of the Season

Things were remarkably easy with Alex. Within 10 minutes of getting into our first class she had put a notebook between us and we took turns writing commentary on the idiocy around us. We ended up in most of the same classes, so that too was a plus. She seemed to have an instantaneous grasp of my more inane sense of humor and was able to hit my non-sense with a blast of her own.

Towards the end of English, I noticed a Black-haired girl dressing down another student she was addressing as ‘Summer.’ The black-haired girl was entirely too thin. You could count rooms from across the room, not that I’d been much better off even a year or two ago.

She shouted, “No, no, no, no. You don’t get to have it that day. I’ve got plans. Pick another day.”

I intervened despite feeling Alex’s arm pulling at mine, “Hey, Darling. You don’t have to be a bitch about it. If you ask her nicely she might rearrange her schedule for you, more flies with honey and all.”

And then she turned her rage upon me. I was poor since my clothes didn’t quite fit. A cancer patient due to the buzzcut. I’d gotten loose from the middle school since I was younger than she was. I couldn’t help laughing, but she stopped when she got to my eye. When she took notice she turned and left the room without another word.

From there it was a quick trip to the third floor for Biology. The notebook came out and the first thing Alex wrote was “You need to be careful.”

“Never have been before.”

“That was Beth.”

“The black-haired girl?”

“Yes! She and Maria are girls you should avoid.”

“Seemed just like a standard preppy girl to me.”

“She’s a sophomore and head cheerleader. She and her boyfriend are like the most popular kids in school.”

“Okay? She doesn’t want my attention she can be nicer to people.”

After that it slipped into more nonsense. The next class was US history followed by Algebra II. At lunch we broke. She headed for the cafeteria and I decided to have a wander. It didn’t take long till I got annoyed by the passing comments and stares about my eye, that I was wearing long-sleeves in August, and the usual new kid crap.

When I entered the Gym, I met the twins. Scott and Daniel Falls. They weren’t actually twins. Daniel was a year older than Scott, but they were in the same grade and looked enough like each other and me that they could pass as twins. They were both about six foot, blonde, and athletic.

The one I would come to know as Daniel shouted, “Yo, Cyclops pass the ball.”

Sure, enough a basketball rolled up to my feet. I picked it up and sailed it at his head full blast. He caught it, but smirked. The other called out, “You’re on our team.”

Thus, I played basketball. Surprisingly, Daniel didn’t take things seriously and Scott seemed to mellow him out.

After lunch Chemistry, Spanish (this one without Alex), and finally civics. I was ascending the stairs at the end of my first day. Mindy had said she would pick me up on the senior street which most feasibly accessible from the 3rd floor, when I ran into the bitchy girl again. She was way too slender, the count ribs from across the room sort of slender. Her black hair was worn long. Her eyes matched her hair perfectly. I had several classes with her and hadn’t spoken to her. My only knowledge was brought about by overhearing a few snide remarks she’d made to people passing by or whispering with her friends. As I passed her on the stair, she wilted. It was all I could do to turn and catch her before she hit the ground. “You all right, Darling.”

“Fine, don’t touch me.” I could have let you hit the ground.

She tried to stand up and I caught her again just before the stairs did. “What the hell are you doing?” Is she trying to hurt herself? Wait, way too thin, fainting spells, legs giving out on her, she’s well under weight. She has Anorexia nervosa, Brilliant, a bleeder with an eating disorder.

“Shut the hell up, lady. I’m not going to let somebody fall out if I can avoid it.” This time I picked her up and carried her back to the vending machines where my day had started. I laid her on a bench.