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Chapter 4
The baking heatof the school's outdoor courtyard was only a prediction of the oncoming summer. The polarizing, damp, humidity had escalated so badly within past weeks, it had driven most of the usual courtyard inhabitants indoors. Even though there had been a sparse few summer showers the night before, the sun beat down on the remainder of the outside occupants, hot andangry.
"Come on," Erika urged. "Let's go inside, where there'sair-conditioning."
"It's too loud." I pushed her through the glass doors, out into the sweltering heat. She groaned as I led her over to a stone bench, half secluded behind a pillar and under a bit of shade. Erika grumbled a few half-hearted protests as she settled and pulled out her lunch, swinging her legs and enjoying the resulting breeze over herskin.
"I heard something in gym class," she said as I pulled out a half-sized portion of a deli ham and cheese sandwich from mybag.
"Uh huh." I flipped the page of Stephen Chbosky'sThe Perks of Being aWallflower.
"Are you even paying attention?" Erika's voice grewcloser.
"Uh huh." I marked off a section that I was considering using in my final senior English paper. Something hard hit my shoulder, jerking me forward and I dropped the book in a puddle of rainwater under thebench.
"Erika!" I reached for thebook.
"What? I'm sorry." I rolled my eyes and picked the book up, shaking out the now soggy pages. "You weren'tlistening."
"Listening to what?" When she didn't answer, I looked up and she was giving me her 'I told you so' look. "Okay, I wasn't listening. What were yousaying?"
"I said I heard something in gym classtoday."
"Surprise. Surprise," I replied. "I assume it had something to do with how many jumping jacks Coach Davis wanted you to do. Oh, wait, you have selective hearing so it must have been something more gossipworthy."
"No–well, yes–but that's not what I'm talking about." She leaned in close. "I heard that a certain someone caught the eye of one of the footballplayers."
"Congrats, Babe, I'm happy for you." I continued to shake out my book, hoping that it wouldn't take too long to dry. I was almost to the end and really needed to start on that paper if it was going to be finished by thedeadline.
"I'm talking aboutyou!"
In her excitement, Erika jabbed me again and the book fell right back into the puddle. I looked at her, but her expectant face was so enthusiastic, I didn't have the heart to be irritated. I sighed, picked the book back up, and placed it, pages up, on the bench next to me, scooting it as far away from Erika and the puddle aspossible.
"Well?" sheprompted.
"Well, what?" Iasked.
"Who is it? Did he ask you out? I can't believe you didn't tellme."
"I have absolutely no idea what you're talking about." I didn't even know any of the football players. "Besides, what would be the point in dating now? Everyone is going off to college in a fewmonths."
Erika frowned. "You could too, if you wanted. You're smartenough."
I laughed, smiling at her to defuse some of her solemnity. "I don't have the money. Besides, it's too late to be considered for the fall semester." I stood, and stretched my arms over my head just as the bell rang for our last class of theday.
“Well, it’s never too late to get a boyfriend,” she informed me with a tilt of her chin. “Having a boyfriend isgreat.”
“Speaking of,” I said, “you never told me about him – yourboyfriend.”
Erika’s eyes lit up. “Oh, Harlow. He’s so sweet. I was a little nervous when he started talking to me because he’s a few years older than me, but he is so nice. I’ve been misplacing some of my stuff – I can’t find that necklace my Mom gave me for my sweet sixteen and he offered to get me something even nicer. Isn’t that just the sweetest thing you’ve everheard?!”
It sounded odd to me for a new boyfriend to offer to buy her nice jewelry, but I didn’t say anything. “He sounds pretty cool,” Ireplied.
“He is,” she gushed on. “I can’t wait for you to meethim.”
"We should probably get to class," I suggested as the warning bell rang. Turning, I slung my bag over my shoulder and picked up Chbosky's book. "And don't listen to every rumor youhear."
Erika pouted as I waved goodbye, and disappeared into the masses of students collecting in the hallways. As the end of the school year drew nearer, more and more students skipped classes, fooled around in hallways, and gave off a general "I don't care" attitude. I managed to squeeze through to my classroom and take my seat well before the late bell rang. I leaned back, cracking my neck and set my drenched paperback to the side. The girl to my left scowled at the wet mark it left on my desk and scootedaway.
