my writing blog

current project: 30 drabbles challenge

[wordsfromthearmchair]

Day of Silence

Today we are silent because no one can hear us.

  our screams and shouts that no, no man is going to straighten me out, that yes,  I’m pretty sure, that no, this is not a choice, that even though I’m 15 I can know my own mind. When did you figure out that you were straight?

  We start with a civil and smooth tongue but sharpen it against your roughly deaf ears until it can cut through anything, anything except your walls of fear and hate.

  Today we are silent so maybe, just maybe, one of your will hear the echoes of our cries as they bounce off the edges of society’s boxes.

  Maybe you will hear that this silence gives you a grim silhouette of a future, a future where we have all given up and nothing anyone can do can bring the dead back to life so you can hear what they have to say now that you’re ready to listen.

  Today we are silent so you can taste what the world would be like if hate won and everyone contorted themselves into an arbitrary box marked NORMAL and no one dared stand tall and scream

I refuse to break myself for your system, I refuse to act like someone I am not all day every day, I refuse to choose your comfort over my own.

  So today we are silent. Listen.

  This would work better if you were silent too, so every human being not exactly like you could hear their heartbeat if they hadn’t gone deaf from screams of faggot, because I am not and uptight bitch and hell yes it is my business if you call your friend a fag because even though I’m not part of your conversation that word kills people.

  Sticks and stones may break my bones but words… words reach inside minds and tell children- because that is what we all are, we are all children- that they are not human beings worthy of basic compassion and empathy.

  Today we are silent because we are not supposed to bring weapons to school.

  So maybe next time before you compress a spirit larger than you understand until it suffocates, you’ll realize that the world is empty without us, that we are your classmates and swim coaches and brothers and sisters and maybe you’ll actually treat us like human beings.

[wordsfromthearmchair]

30 Drabbles Challenge: Day Ten

Silver- Heather

“God damn it Heather, not again!” Eva said out her window. I’d just thrown a whole bunch of rocks at her window because it was two am and I was bored. It was a fair night, so she wouldn’t even have to bundle up that much to come out and hang. “The last time this happened I slept ‘til one!”

I smiled. “Sleep is good for you, Eva. But I’m bored and an insomniac so come play with me.”

Eva groaned. “Learn to sleep, boo. I’ve figured it out, even in this new house. You need to be able to sleep without me being with you right before you go to bed.”

I stared at her.

“Damn it. I’ll be down in five,” Eva said, and drew her curtains shut to change. I grinned. Heather 6, Eva 0.

Five minutes later Evangeline was downstairs. Her hair was haphazardly tied into a bun, and she had pulled on a sweatshirt and a pair of jeans.

I was always distracted by her beauty at the most random and inappropriate times.

“So what is it this time?” Eva asked, “Another pretty flower, or sunrise, or bike ride?”

I considered. “Well, there is a bike ride involved, but the end destination… you’ll be glad I took you. Promise.”

Eva smiled. “I’ll hold you to that.”

We raced over to my bike and clambered on. We’d gotten better at riding two-a-bike, but it was still a process getting ourselves into the correct position- me on the bike’s seat, Eva straddling the back wheel and clinging to my shoulders.

I steered us out of the main neighborhood and across the grassy fields ringing it. Once we got near the stretch of trees that passed for a forest, we got off. We were noticeably worse at getting off our two-a-bike, but at least Eva didn’t fall off this time.

We continued on foot on a narrow path until we reached the river. This stretch was wide but fairly shallow, with a strong current that discouraged wading. We weren’t here to wade, though.

Eva stepped towards the river with an “Ohh!”. The moon was high, full, and bright tonight, and it made the river gleam silver like it was made of moonlight. The current chopped up the water into a thousand facets, throwing the silver light all directions.

I smiled and stepped behind Eva. “Was this worth me pulling you out of bed?”

“Totally.”

[wordsfromthearmchair]

30 Drabbles Challenge: Day Nine

Move- Evangeline

“I still can’t believe I’m leaving this place behind,” I said as I started boxing up the contents of my shelves. “I mean, we’re only moving across town, but still.”

Heather was sprawled across my bed, head tilted so she could look at me and still be on her back. “You really should have prefaced ‘I’m moving’ with ‘only across town comma but’. Especially when you told me, because I swear you almost gave me a heart attack.”

Still packing, I replied, “It was adorable, boo. Besides, I’ll be even closer to your house- you won’t need to bike over, you can just walk.”

“So that’s good for me. But what about you, Evie?” Heather said.

Damn it, Heather, don’t, I thought. “What about me?”

Heather got up and walked across my room to put a hand on my shoulder. “Don’t play stupid with me, Eva. I know you better than that.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I replied, but even to myself I sounded fake.

“Fine, Eva,” Heather snapped, “I know you. I know you really, really well. You’ve been parroting the same phrases to me over and over and I know what that means. You’re not mad at your parents, you’re okay about the move and everything because you’ll still have school and your friends and me and things but you’re still sad that it’s ending. You’ve had that box here for fifteen minutes now and you haven’t put a single thing in it. You don’t really want to go, but you’re putting on a brave face and smiling for your parents, and that’s okay around them, if you have to, but don’t you dare pull that shit on me.”

For a second, we stood completely still, eyes locked on one another.

Then I felt my eyes well up with tears, and I tried to blink them away. When it was obvious that there were too many, I buried my face in my hands. Heather didn’t need to see me cry.

Instantly, she pulled me into a hug and settled to the ground, me in her lap. “This is good, Evie. You’re allowed to be sad. You’re supposed to be sad. Let it all out.”

I cried out all the good things I’d parroted to keep from breaking down, all the false smiles I’d given my parents to keep them from worrying, all the phone calls from Heather declined because I knew she’d do this.

Some time later- I wasn’t keeping track inside my cathartic bubble of tears- I managed to stop crying and sit up. Heather was looking at me with wide, scared eyes. “Preemtively,” Heather said, “I’m a total bitch and I don’t know what you’re going though and I should have been supportive and I’m sorry.”

I smiled faintly and sniffled. “No, you were exactly what I needed. A good slap in the face.”

Heather hadn’t let me go yet. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

“Yeah,” I replied, “I feel a lot better. Like, you made all the bullshit melt away.”

“Is that good?” Heather asked.

Poor soul. She’s still terrified. “Yeah. I think we should have a room funeral before I pack it all away.”

“What does a room funeral entail?” Heather asked, moving to sit on my bed.

I sat next to her. “Let me tell you a story about a girl named Evangeline who lived in this room. That mark on the wall was made when she threw a book at it because…”

[wordsfromthearmchair]

30 Drabbles Challenge: Day Eight

Companion- Heather (I’m so sorry, I had to.)

“I’m not going to like this show, boo,” Eva said as we curled up in my basement. My TV was getting itself started; my coffee table was covered in candy and popcorn; my couch was hidden under blankets and pillows.

I snuggled up next to her and hit play. “Silly Eva. You will love this show.”

Eva warned, “You know I don’t like sci-fi, right? I mean, you know me. I don’t do sci-fi. Or time-travel, really.”

“Silly, silly Eva. You will love this show,” I repeated.

She sighed. “So you said.”

A season of Doctor Who later (we came prepared), I was holding Eva in my arms as she screamed and sobbed at the TV. She had literally grabbed a handful of popcorn and thrown it at the screen.

“Why did you do this shit to me, Heather, why?” Eva shouted at me.

I held her tighter as her head fell to rest on my arms. I stroked her hair and said, “I know, baby. I know. I did this to myself a while ago, and the only way to relieve the pain is to pass it on.”

“So I’ll have to pass this on for it to stop hurting my soul?” Eva said in this adorably broken voice.

“I know, baby,” I replied, “I know.”

I felt Eva’s head shake against my arm. “But… Rose and the Doctor… and…”

I smiled and stroked her hair. “I know. Everybody ships them. Even after she has to stop traveling with the Doctor everybody ships her with him. None of the other companions are good enough.”

“There are other companions? What the hell is this shit?” Eva said. The anger in her voice amused me to no end. If only she knew…

“It’s okay, Evie. Do you want the Doctor to be alone? Because I want my baby to have a friend,” I explained.

She shrugged. “He’s so lonely, poor boy. Everybody lonely should have a friend.”

“I know. Harry has Ron and Hermione, the Doctor has Rose and later other awesome people, and I have you. What could be better?”

Eva lay quiet for a moment. “The Doctor and Rose are perfect.”

“Yep.”

“They should never ever be apart.”

“But shit happens.”

“I don’t want it to.”

“Sometimes it does, though, boo.” Her long silence told me she thought I was right.

Eva sniffled. “Well, everything sucks.”

“I know, baby, I know. This is just the beginning. You haven’t even hit the good part yet, just wait until midseason 2, oh my god…”                                                                            

She looked up at me with reddened eyes. “But… but… what the fuck, Heather? We’ve been here all day and… feels, and…”

I smiled at her. “Season two?”

Eva sat up and grabbed a bowl of cookie dough. “Season two.”

[wordsfromthearmchair]

30 Drabbles Challenge: Day Seven

Formal- Heather.

“God damn it, Eva, I feel stupid,” I said as I fussed with the dress she’d managed to talk me into. “Are you sure I can’t wear a suit or at least some pants instead?”

Eva laughed, drawing my eyes back to her.

Damn it.

Once I looked at her, I couldn’t look away. Her blonde curls were piled up on top of her head in a gravity-defying bun, with a few loose curls falling over one shoulder. She was wearing a one-shoulder, long dress in Mediterranean blue that contrasted with her pale skin beautifully. Best of all, I’d talked her out of a full coat of makeup, so her natural beauty shone through.

I honestly didn’t know how I’m going to stop staring at her.

She blushed under my gaze and looked back at her makeup compact. “You’re beautiful, Heather, and it’s time everybody saw it. If I have to shove it in their faces, then so be it. And part of that is wearing this dress, boo. And I promise I won’t use too much of this.” She held up the makeup. “Just a little.”

A short eternity of makeup brushes, double-sided tape, and hair curlers later, she was done. Eva stepped back and regarded me with her grey-blue eyes. To my surprise, she smiled a little and blushed. “You look… here’s a mirror, boo.”

She pulled a full-length mirror in front of me and stepped back.

Eva had talked me into a strapless purple dress with a tutu-like bottom. She’d spiked my hair up a bit more dramatically than I did on a daily basis, and she’d put dark makeup on around my eyes.

“Eva, I look beautiful but nothing like myself,” I said, turning in front of the mirror.

Eva stood on tiptoe to look at the mirror over my shoulder. “I disagree. You look beautiful and totally like yourself. This is how I see you, boo. Fierce and beautiful and proud.”

I turned to her. “Please tell me you’re not putting stilettos on me. Please.”

“Of course not!” she said with a laugh. “Those are for me. You can wear your combat boots.”

I grinned stupidly at her before looking back to the mirror. I still couldn’t see me, Heather, behind all the makeup and hair gel. Then, sneaking a quick glance back at Brooke, I tried to look at the mirror through her eyes.

Then I understood.

“You’re right,” I said to Brooke, who was rooting through her closet for something vitally important.

Without looking over, she said, “Usually. About what?”

“I do look like me, don’t I?” I asked.

She turned and smiled at me. “Like I said: fierce and beautiful and proud.”

[wordsfromthearmchair]

30 Drabbles Challenge: Day Six

Flame- Evangeline

Our school has an unofficial tradition of having a massive bonfire every winter. There’s a clearing in the woods nearby, and all the seniors would build a woodpile all day and at night everyone could come and roast things and generally have a good time. Heather and I went to it together- not together together, of course, but together as friends. She brought the hot dog fixings and I brought the smores.

For the first hour or so, we had a lovely time. We were laughing and Heather kept cracking these truly terrible filthy jokes because ‘my reaction was funny’.

Then Isaac saw us.

Isaac has a problem with Heather, probably because she upholds most of the lesbian stereotypes in the world. Her hair’s short, she likes plaid, she spends most of her time with a girly girl, she’s hit him.

Isaac stalked over to where we’d sat on a blanket near the bonfire. “Isn’t this… cozy.”

“Walk away, Bible boy,” Heather said without looking up, “Just walk away.”

Look, I moved here from Boston, Massachusetts. I have no idea what to do in situations like this. I ducked my head and let my hair cover my face.

“What’s wrong, Evangeline? Ashamed to look me in the eyes ‘cause I know what you two do?” Isaac said, turning to me.

I bit my lip and said nothing. “Lay off her,” Heather snapped, “she’s not my girlfriend. Why do you even care, anyway?”

He shrugged. “I just want the both of you to be aware of the sins you’ve committed in the eyes of God. You’re burning in hell, both of you.”

Heather rolled her eyes. “I’m not sure if you’re actually here, or if this is just a time wormhole to every single other damn time you’ve talked to me. Unless you actually have something new to say, go away and leave us the hell alone.”

I still couldn’t look up.

“You’re right, Heather,” Isaac said, “I’ve warned you. However, I think your little friend needs some… reinforcement. You will burn in hell, like this!” With that, Isaac kicked me hard in the side.

I was crouched, so he unbalanced me, and I rolled all the way into the fire.

Heat started pressing against me, and licks of searing pain shot across my shoulders and my back. I vaguely felt Heather grab my shirt front and pull me out, rolling me until the flames were out.

Just before I passed out, I heard Heather shout, “You could have killed her, you son of a bitch!” and the sound of her fist hitting his face. Hard.

[wordsfromthearmchair]

30 Drabbles Challenge: Day Five

Haze- Heather

This was, hands down, the worst case of the flu I have ever had, ever. I was aching, freezing, roasting, dehydrated, feverish, you name it.

Worst of all was the medicine a terrified Evangeline kept shoving down my throat. It made the world go a little fuzzy, and add that to a dehydrated and feverish brain to get some crazy hallucinations. Plus, it made me trembly so I couldn’t even shove her away.

I was on my bed, under about a million comforters, and Eva was sitting next to me over all the blankets. The table near my bed had soup, Gatorade, and water.

Evie started talking to me, but I couldn’t open my eyes. “Heather. You’ve got to get better soon, okay? I used to know what to do with myself all day, but somehow I’ve forgotten since I met you. I miss you. I want to go back to what it was like with you, all Nerf wars and pillow forts and snowmen. So you have to get better, boo, you really do. You’ve already been sick for so long, and I miss you so, so much.”

She stayed quiet for a moment.

Uncomfortable, I rolled over so I was facing the wall, away from Eva. This just wouldn’t do for her, evidently, as she climbed over me and sat next to my torso, her back against the wall. She started to stroke my short hair away from my forehead.

This was about when I slipped into a half sleeping, half waking state. After I was well, I wasn’t actually one hundred percent sure anything had happened. However, this is what I remember.

Eva started to sing. She had this gorgeous high voice that she thought was too thin, but I thought was perfect. She sang my favorite songs, the ones that I would sit up and listen to for hours on end if I was well.

Her voice trailed off, and she kissed my forehead, continuing to smooth my hair off of it.

“Heather,” she said. “You need to get better, right now. Your mom is getting scared, and for the record, I am too. She says that if you’re not better by tomorrow we have to take you to the hospital because your brain’s dehydrating and things.

“I don’t want you to go to the hospital, Heather.” She picked up my hand with both of hers and held it to her chest. “I’m healthy, Heather. I’m fine. Take it. I’m strong, and you can borrow it if you want. My strength, I mean.”

She fell quiet again, holding my hand tightly. Her hands felt like they were made of fire.

“I should wake you up soon to make you eat something. But you almost look like you’re sleeping. I’ll let you rest for a bit.” She brought my hand up to her face, pressing it against her cheek and giving it a kiss. “Damn, you’re cold.”

She tucked my blankets more snugly around my body. Eva stroked my hair again before laying down next to me, as close as she could. I could feel her warmth even through my comforters. “Just… don’t die, okay Heather?” Eva said, a tremor in her voice.

No. Evangeline is not allowed to cry. I tried to pull my eyes open, and partially succeeded. I saw Eva’s face fairly clearly. The rest of my room was a silvery glow, and Eva’s beautiful blonde hair glowed a sparkling gold.

Before I fell fully asleep, I thought, my guardian angel.

[wordsfromthearmchair]

30 Drabbles Challenge: Day Four

Snowflake- Evangeline

“Heather, do you think we should be outside? The weatherman says we should get a snowstorm soon,” I said even as Heather wandered farther and farther from home.

She turned back to look at me. “When did he say it should come again?”

I checked my watch. “An hour ago.”

“We’ll be fine for at least another two. Weathermen are always wrong,” Heather said.

I smiled at her and looked at the sky. Without Heather noticing, little snowflakes started falling from the sky just before I spoke up. Snowflakes gently landed on my face, crusting on my eyelashes and my hair.

When I looked back to Heather, she was gazing at me. She had snowflakes stuck to her short and spiky hair. I ran my hand through it without thinking.

To diffuse the awkwardness, Heather ruffled her hair. “Thanks. I don’t like the way snowflakes look on my hair. On you, however…” Instead of finishing her sentence, she picked up one of my curls, now encrusted with snowflakes. “They make you look sparkly, like a fairy princess.”

I looked at her doubtfully. “They sparkle, I’ll give you that. But if I’m a fairy princess then you are too.”

Heather laughed. “I am by no stretch of the imagination a fairy princess. But you don’t have to be one either. How about a snowflake yourself, my snowflake?”

“That’s a terrible nickname, Heather,” I said with a smile.

Heather cocked her head like a puppy. “What’s bad about it, snowflake? Each one’s unique. Delicate. Beautiful. I honestly don’t see the difference.”

I blushed bright crimson, I could just feel it. “Why do you always flirt?”

“I don’t know. I guess I just never found the flirting off-switch.” Heather bit her lip. “Do… do you want me to stop?”

I glanced down. “No. Um, you don’t have to.”

“’Cause you know I would, right?”

“Yeah, totally. But now… I can’t imagine a Heather without some level of flirting or sexual innuendo- you just wouldn’t be you, H,” I said. Heather winced.

Sighing, Heather said, “I promise, I will never use snowflake again if you don’t use H. Anyone too lazy to say two little syllables is someone I don’t want to hang out with.”

“Deal. It felt weird anyway,” I said.

“However,” Heather said in a tone that made me just a little bit afraid, “Evangeline is a mouthful. I like your name, but it takes way too long to say. So what should it be? Eva? Evie? Snowflake?”

I considered my options for a moment. “I like Eva. You’ve been using it for a while now anyway.”

Heather smiled. “I have too many things to say to you, Eva, and I can’t waste another second with another three syllables.”

I opened my mouth in mock indignation. “My name is a waste of time?”

She laughed. “No way… snowflake.”

“I thought you were done with that, H!” I replied.

“No, it’s just that we’ve been outside in a snowstorm for a bit too long, and you were so pale to begin with… you’re completely covered in snow, Eva. The name was warranted. Come on, let’s get you inside, you must be freezing.” Heather grabbed my hand and whisked me back towards home.

[wordsfromthearmchair]

30 Drabbles Challenge: Day Three

Restless- Heather

I couldn’t sleep. At about two am, I gave up and decided to bike somewhere. Maybe the physical exercise might tire me out enough for at least a few hours of sleep. I pulled on some jeans and a jacket- it was a crisp autumn night- and took off.

For a half hour, I wandered around my neighborhood. It was quiet and cold and lovely, but I got lonely after a little while. Hey, if I was going to be wide awake at 3 am, Eva could join me.

I biked to her house and, leaving my bike in her driveway, walked around to the back where Eva’s bedroom window was. She was on the second floor, but there was a nice sturdy tree nearby to climb. I brought a couple of rocks up the tree with me, and started chucking them at her window.

“Eva!” I said as loudly as I dared. “Evangeline! Wake up!”

I saw her sit up and turn her bedside lamp on before turning to the window. I waved enthusiastically. “Heather, what the hell are you doing?”

I shrugged, not that she could see it. “I’m bored, Evie. I couldn’t sleep. Come biking with me!”

Eva giggled. “At this time of night? My parents would kill me!”

“What they don’t know won’t hurt ‘em. Come on, just go out the back or hey, you could probably reach this handy little tree from your room,” I said.

Eva shook her head. “Gimme five minutes to pull on some proper clothes and I’ll come out the back.” When I didn’t move, she elaborated, “Stop peeping in my window. I’ll be down in a couple of minutes.”

She was, and we walked around to the front of her house where my bike was. “How is this gonna work?” she asked, “I’ve never seen two on a bike before.”

“Do you want to pedal or stand? I vote I pedal, you stand.” I sat on the bike and showed Eva how to stand on the pegs of the back wheel.

“I’m gonna fall off this thing,” Eva said with a little smile. “Promise you’ll take me to the emergency room when I start bleeding from the head?”

I got on the bike and grinned. “Hang on to me, Eva. I’m not going anywhere.” She wrapped her arms around my neck and we took off.

After a couple hours of biking through the neighborhood and nearby parks, the sky started to lighten. Eva noticed it first, saying, “Looks like this isn’t going to help you sleep any. It’s almost dawn.”

“Dawn?” I echoed, stopping the bike. “I know where we need to go. This is the best idea ever! Hang on!”

I took off, Eva’s arms still locked around my neck.

Soon we had reached our destination, a big grassy hill on the outskirts of our suburb. The sun was really starting to rise, so I ditched the bike at the bottom and Eva and I ran to the top. I spread out my jacket and we sat down to watch the sunrise.

We didn’t talk- there wasn’t really a need to. We watched the sun climb higher and higher over the little suburban houses, pushing the dark blue midnight sky back with streaks of pink.

Once day had officially broken, I figured it was time to go home, sad as it was. Eva had rested her head in my lap earlier so I glanced down to warn her that I was getting up.

I smiled as I pushed a bit of blonde hair out of Eva’s sleeping face. Our parents could wait awhile, I wouldn’t wake her for the world.

[wordsfromthearmchair]

30 Drabbles Challenge: Day Two

Accusation- Evangeline

I took a deep breath before knocking on Heather’s door for our after-school tutoring session. Heather wasn’t so good at chemistry, so I offered to help her out.

Soon enough, we were both sitting at her dining room table, a cup of tea in front of each of us and the rest of the table covered in paper and chemistry textbooks.

“So, to find the weight of an element, um, you use this equation. That,” I pointed at a variable in the equation, “means that,” I pointed at another figure on the page. “So you plug those in, multiply, and, um, Bob’s your uncle.” I think.

Heather winced. “I thought there was something to do with isotopes before the equation.”

Shit! The teacher did say something like that. “Um, yeah,” I said, scanning the reading for the pertinent information. “I’m sure that’s in here somewhere… um…”

Heather sighed and pointed at the page. “It’s right here. You have to multiply that by that, then factor that in to get a total of this, then you label it like this and voila!”

I looked at her work. “You were faking being bad at chemistry, weren’t you?” Heather blinked, startled, and started opening and closing her mouth like a fish. “You like me, don’t you? You like me!”

Heather slammed shut her textbook. “You were faking being good at it! Come on, Eva, the isotopes thing is half the problem. You like me too! You like me like me!”

I blushed bright crimson. Heather raked a hand through her short brown hair, messing it up in the back the way she did when she was anxious. I blushed, if possible, harder.

“Well,” Heather said, “seeing as the tutored is brilliant at chemistry and the tutor is terrible, we might have to stop doing this.”

I sighed and put my dignity in a drawer. “Maybe, um… maybe you could explain the atomic weight thing to me? I mean, it’s just plugging in but what do the variables even stand for anyway and I kinda don’t wanna fail I mean…” My eyes flicked to my hands, which were folded in my lap.

Heather grinned. “So the tutor has become the tutee.”

“I am almost positive that tutee is not a word,” I said.

“I am almost positive that you’re just trying to save face. You’re better at English than me, you know tutee,” Heather said.

I grabbed my notebook and smacked her arm with it. “You like me!”

Heather grabbed her notebook and smacked me back. “No I don’t! I mean, I love you, but I don’t like you like you like that.”

I snorted. “You like me!”

Heather shook her head furiously and hit me with her notebook. This led to a good few minutes of the two of us running around her dining room, smacking each other with spiral-bound notebooks. It was mostly her chasing me and hitting me whenever she could reach, but let’s not quibble.

Eventually, we collapsed into chairs and Heather said, “Want me to tutor you in chemistry?”

I smiled and nodded. Heather pulled her chair up next to mine, but before she could start explaining the problem, I whispered, “You still like me.”

Now it was Heather’s turn to blush crimson.

[wordsfromthearmchair]

30 Drabbles Challenge: Day One

Beginning- Heather

The first time I saw Evangeline, it was like the world stood still for a moment. I was fussing around with things in my locker when I looked up and there she was.

She was standing in the middle of the school hallway, holding on to her books with white knuckles, looking around. She seemed confused, maybe lost. Her blonde hair curled delicately around her shoulders, leaving little over an inch to lay over her sky blue dress.

Then the world resumed, and the hustle and the bustle of the hallway knocked her around, and she was rushed down the hall and out of sight.

I probably would have stood there, spellbound, for a short eternity had my tormenters not arrived.

“Heather!” Isaac shouted as he slammed my locker shut. I barely got my hand away from it in time. “How was your summer? Relaxing? Did you molest any small children, or is that passé?”

He didn’t really merit a response, so I went back to dialing my locker’s combination like a good girl. I promised myself a long time ago that I wouldn’t punch him. Again. He grabbed my wrist and pinned me against the lockers. “You come back to school, day one, wearing that? Do you want to be talked to, or are you just stupid?”

I glanced down. Shit, I probably should have paid attention to what I pulled on. Today was not the best day to wear my “Legalize Gay” shirt. Isaac and his goons always got worse when I flaunted my ‘sinful ways’.

“Come on, Heather, you’ve got to talk to me sometime, this silent treatment hurts my feelings. I did a little bit of research this summer, and guess what? Your name comes from the word ‘heathen’, which really makes sense with your lifestyle. A word to the wise- don’t walk outside during a thunderstorm, you’ll probably get smited…” Isaac droned on and on.

I tune him out, usually, but it’s still not fun, being pinned against the lockers with your arm twisted at a funny angle and some homophobe Bible-banging on.

Isaac caught on pretty quick that I wasn’t actually listening. He pulled me back and shoved me against the lockers, hard. “Listen when I talk to you, filthy fa-“

“Hey,” a soft voice said from behind him. “Leave her alone.”

The owner of the voice stepped out from behind Isaac, and it was Evangeline, though I didn’t know her then. I just recognized her as the beautiful girl I saw earlier.

Isaac let go of me, thank God, and turned to her. “Are you like her then? Another filthy little fag running around? Is it a lesbian invasion?”

“So what if I am like her? It doesn’t make what you’re doing any less wrong. So back off unless you want me to go find a security officer or something,” she said. Even though her voice was quiet and high, it was forceful.

I was scared for her- she stood a good six inches shorter than Isaac, and he probably had at least a hundred pounds on her. I should’ve been, he punched her in the jaw pretty hard.

I swore under my breath and pulled her behind me. “Leave us alone. I’ll deck you again if I have to, and this time I’ll cuss out the principal until you get at least suspended.”

Isaac smirked. “I’m not afraid of you.” He shoved me into her into the lockers and strutted off.

I managed to stay standing, but the girl behind me had fallen to the ground. I offered her my hand, saying, “Sorry about him. Whenever he thinks I’m shoving my sinful lifestyle in his face he takes it upon himself to straighten me out. I’m Heather, by the way. I’m a sophomore here.”

She took my hand and got to her feet. “I’m Evangeline. I’m a sophomore too, but this is my first year here.”

“I’d be more than happy to show you around.”

We grinned at each other like idiots until the warning bell for first period rang, scaring us into our senses.