The Way I Am

19. The One With the Beginning, Not the End

Sitting in the railing, Mara listened to Claire ask Brian, if he was going to write his paper. The princess suggested that he should write an essay with all our names included. Each of us doing an essay was such a waste, so it was smart to agree with Claire's idea. Brian was the smart one, and they all knew that the message was going to be well given to Vernon once he read the paper.

As Brian wrote, Claire grabbed Allison's hands and took her to a nearby room.

Mara observed that Bender was no longer with them. He had returned to his broom closet through the air- conduct. She took the opportunity to walk outside the library.

Trying not to get detected by the principal, she paced towards the closet, where Bender had to spend the last minutes of detention.

Opening the door, she saw the boy she was slowly falling in love with. He was everything her mother warned her about. He was a rebel, a criminal and at times a jerk, but nevertheless, he was the one she thought about the whole Saturday detention.

"Are you lost?" he smirked, looking at her.

"I am not lost. I am exactly where I am supposed to be," she replied, getting closer to him.

"Are you now?" he responded, smirking. She nodded her head.

"What you say about us, about me. Do you still believe that?" she questioned, staring at him. He nodded his head and placed his arms around her waist. He pushed her closer to him.

"You are the only girl I am considering to be my only girlfriend. Like I said, I like rebel girls," he explained, smiling. Mara laughed and nodded her head.

"What's going to happen on Monday?" she asked curiously, staring into his brown orbs.

"What about Monday?" he said, moving her back a bit.

"Today, tomorrow, and the days after those, you will be with me, and I will beat anyone to a pulp who says otherwise. That's the truth," he added, seriously.

He pushed her body against his once again and kissed her softly on the lips. Mara wrapped her arms around his neck and accepted him proudly. They shared something they both wanted for a while. When they were satisfied with each other's affectionate moment, Mara kissed him one more time and left.

She walked back to the library, where she saw Allison with a new look.

"Wow, you look gorgeous!" she told Allison who smiled shyly at her. It was evident that Andrew noticed too, because he kept staring at Allison as if he was admiring her beauty. Claire had done some of her magic.

Brian finished the paper and congratulated himself punching his own arm lightly. Together, they walked out of the library, meeting Bender in the hall.

As soon as he saw Mara, his smile grew, and he immediately interlocked his fingers with hers. Joined, the six students walked the halls of Shermer High School.

"Hey, Brian!" Carl expressed. Brian smiled and responded, "See ya, Carl!"

"See you next Saturday," John told Carl, smirking.

"You bet!" the maintenance worker replied.

Once they made it to the parking lot, Brian got in his dad's car, followed by Claire whose dad was also waiting in his own car. Allison and Andrew kissed, while Mara and Bender walked towards the football field, holding hands.

Bender stopped a moment to grab her from the waist and spun her around. He kissed her softly, and she gladly accepted. Soon, they continued to walk their path, knowing that it was the beginning, not the end.

Vernon stood quietly inside the library, reading the paper Brian had written.

Saturday, March 24, 1984. Shermer High School,

Shermer, Illinois. 60062

Dear Mr. Vernon:

We accept the fact that we had to sacrifice a whole Saturday in detention for whatever it was that we did wrong. But we think you're crazy to make us write this essay telling you who we think we are, why do you care? You see us as you want to see us...in the simplest terms and the most convenient definitions. You see us as a brain, an athlete, a basket case, a princess, a smart mouth and a criminal. Correct? That's the way we saw each other at seven o'clock this morning. We were brainwashed...