RAINSTORM

Ch. 13

Rachel walks into school half hoping she won't see Hector and half hoping she will.

When she arrives at her locker she sees him. Hector is at the back with his friends. A girl is also with them. Rachel knows her — Sabrina, the head cheerleader. Sabrina and Hector are talking. 

When Moira and Annie arrive, Rachel looks away from Hector, grabs her things and leaves the hallway with her friends. Rachel was going to tell them about the almost kiss she had with Hector, but decides against it. 

In the afternoon, Rachel thinks her intuition to not tell her friends was right after all when she catches sight of the table where Hector and his friends are at the cafeteria. The cheerleaders are also at the same table, with Sabrina sitting next to Hector, laughing about something. 

A feeling of betrayal seeps into Rachel, and of embarrassment. How could she think she was special to him? Rachel thinks. He's same as he has always been. But Rachel thought that somehow Hector was different with her. She feels foolish for thinking so. 

At the end of the school day, Rachel and Ricky Marvin meet at the computer lab, to finish their submission for the Rattler competition. 

"You okay?" Ricky says as Rachel reviews their final draft. 

"Yeah, why?" Rachel says. 

"It's just, you've been awfully quiet." 

"I'm good." 

Ricky watches her as she reads the document on screen. He's sure she's upset about something.

After Rachel is done with the review, she says, "It's good. You want to take a look at it again?"

Ricky shakes his head.

Rachel says, "Then let's send it." She copies the email id from Rattler's digital poster, and drafts a new email from her account with information on the submission and participants, and the attached PDF file.

She sends it. "Done," she says. Rachel logs off and stands up to leave when Ricky gently holds her wrist. "Want to have coffee? To celebrate our submission," he says.

Rachel looks around from the glass walled lab. There's no one outside. "I think the cafeteria is closed by now," she says.

Ricky stands up. "Not in that dump. Come on, I know where we can actually get a good coffee."

Rachel rides in Ricky's car. Ten minutes later they arrive at the Royal Blue Hotel.

"You won't get a better coffee than the one in the restaurant here," Ricky says.

While Rachel steps out of the car, she wonders if it's too fancy of a treat.

A valet takes the key from Ricky, and the two of them take the elevator to the top floor where the restaurant is.

"The place looks expensive," Rachel whispers in the lift. Even though she's sure Ricky is from a rich family like most of her schoolmates are, she's still not sure if they need to be in a luxurious restaurant just for a cup of coffee.

"It's okay, my family owns the place," Ricky says as a matter of fact.

At the top floor, Rachel quietly follows him out wondering if she should order something more as well then.

A waiter appears. "Mr. Marvin, where would you prefer to sit?" He asks Ricky.

"Somewhere next to the windows, Jim," Ricky says.

The waiter leads the two of them towards the side of the room where light is pouring in from the sky through the seamless windows. 

Rachel sees that most of the occupants are old white men in suits. In fact, the she and Ricky are the only ones around their age, and she's the only girl except for the old lady, in what could only be a designer dress, sitting at the front next to an old man. They look like they've been married for an eon.

After Ricky and Rachel are seated, the waiter takes their orders and leaves. Rachel looks at the world beneath her through the glass. It feels both disturbing, to be this far up the ground, and exciting.

Ricky keeps his eyes on Rachel, admiring the smile on her face. 

End of chapter