THE NEXT DAY IN CLASS LIZZIE dragged her chair closest to the door exiting the classroom that beckoned with potential escape. It also gave her a decent view of the hills outside. Not much to see but the giant, white cement Y on the hillside. The foliage around it, faded from green to gray with tufts of white snow, held her interest more than these vapid baby-makers.
Saj had to stay home from daycare, and unfortunately, Rachael volunteered to babysit, giving Lizzie no excuse to miss happy, hungry hippo class.
The class sat in a circle on hard plastic chairs that were killer on the tailbone. It was like being back in high school. Many of the giggling gaggle of girls opposite Lizzie looked and acted like they still belonged in high school. The class was divided into two facing semi-circles; one of girls hoping to become pregnant and another of expectant mothers in varying stages of pregnancy.
The mothers to be were a mix of ages. One of them, an older woman that Lizzie had caught staring at her a few times, dragged her chair over to sit beside Lizzie.
When they were all seated, Mrs. Margent spoke, "Who wants to share first today?"
A hand shot up from the excitable wanna-be mothers across the way. "My dad said Jimmy and I can have a pre-honeymoon."
Lizzie almost choked on a laugh, and covered it with a cough. It's like I'm starring in my very own reality web-show.
Another hand, this time from the hippo/pre-hippo side. "Nate likes that my boobs are getting big." Lizzie wished her boobs would somehow shrink-the last thing she needed was bigger boobs. But she was pregnant. She already had a stock of bulky sweatshirts stashed in her closet in anticipation of the inevitable.
Lizzie stared back out the window as more comments were added to the mix, some less ridiculous.
"I felt the baby move this weekend."
"I can't wait until my baby's in my arms."
Lizzie wrote lyrics on her notebook. Or were they just poetry until she could set them to music? If and when she ever did.
Sitting in a circle, spilling all our guts
Never really sharing, never really caring
I see all their faces, but they don't see me
Never really baring souls, always ever staring
Smiling happy faces, holding hands and glancing
Saving selves for marriage
Lizzie scratched a single red line through the phrase. Unless that was ironic.
"Next," the teacher asked. "Betsy?"
"Pass," said the woman next to her.
"Elizabeth?"
Betsy hissed a whispered, "Lizzie?"
"Huh?" Lizzie glanced up from writing down makes my mind start swearing in her notebook.
Mrs. Margent arched her eyebrows. "Anything you'd like to share, Elizabeth?"
Everyone was watching Lizzie now. Someone tittered. Should she just pass, too? She glanced at Betsy beside her and had an idea. "I stopped puking, I think. Now Saj has got a snot-cold, so he's cough until he pukes. Oh, and his shit is really stinky and dark blackish green."
The classroom fell silent, and Lizzie delighted in their sudden discomfort. Some of the girls' faces were green tinged. Betsy's mouth twitched.
"Well." Mrs. Margent recovered. "Before I forget, Mr. Ray, our future Mayor, will be visiting us this afternoon."
YOU ARE READING
Straight Into Darkness - Deserted Lands #2
Science FictionIf you have not read ALL IS SILENCE, this book will have spoilers. This is an EXCERPT from my second published novel, approximately the first third. The original uploads [several drafts from new] are still there. If you only want to read the nearly...
