The Keepers of Secrets

Nine | The Spitfire One

She often felt like a nobody and was reminded of that each time Melvin went on his tirade.

At the end of one particularly awful day in November, the day before Thanksgiving break, Melvin and his gang were crowded around her locker. Waiting for her.

Jean's skin crawled as she approached, trying to keep her head down and retrieve her things as quickly as possible.

"Excuse me," she said in a small voice, trying to move past them.

"Aw, look, boys, it's Ugly," Melvin said, earning snickers from his crew. "Hey, Ugly. You tryna get to yer locker?"

"I need my stuff, Melvin."

Melvin grinned. "Well, that's too bad, Ugly. I'm not movin'. You're gonna have to try and move me if ya really want yer stuff."

Jean glared at him for several seconds, thinking about all the ways she could smack that smile off of his face. Never mind that, though. She couldn't go around lashing out at kids like she did when she was little. She didn't want to upset Mrs. Mayberry like she had her mama.

She ended up pressing her lips together in anger and stalking off, chin to her chest.

The buses were lined up at the front of the school, her feet taking her towards bus #143 in rehearsed memory. A bright white Cadillac parked next to the buses stilled her in her spot, Jory leaning up against it with his hands tucked into the pockets of his jeans, a work coat pulled over his white t-shirt.

Clyde stood next to him, nearly eye-to-eye with his brother. He smiled when he saw Jean.

"Look, Jean. City Boy came to take us home!" he teased. Ever since Jory had moved off to college in the city, Clyde liked to get under his skin with the new nickname.

Jory pushed off of the car without a glance toward his brother, sending Jean an easy smile as he opened the passenger's door for her.

"Hey, Jory," Jean said with a blush she couldn't fight.

"Sally Jean," he acknowledged.

She frowned. "When are you gonna finally stop calling me that? It's just Jean now."

He rolled his eyes playfully. "Sorry, Sally Jean, old habits die hard," he quipped.

Jean shook her head and moved toward the car, but was stopped by Clyde's voice.

"Jean, where's your stuff?" he asked.

She froze, avoiding his gaze. "I, uh, left it in my locker."

"Oh, well go get it."

She shook her head, inching towards the open car door. "No, it's fine."

Jory shut the door slightly. "Nah, go ahead. We'll wait," he told her kindly.

Jean's eyes shifted back and forth between the two before she threw on a smile and turned around. "Alright. Um, don't leave without me, then."

"You kiddin'? Ma would kill us if we did that," Jory said back.

Jean grinned, a blush on her cheeks as she moved back towards the school. Her penny loafers were just meeting the concrete steps when she spotted Melvin and his friends exiting the building, the former's eyes instantly attaching themselves to Jean.