When the bell rings for lunch I go straight for my locker. I had to go down three hallways and a flight of stairs to get there from where I was. Usually it’s a long way but when you’re running like your life depended on it, it was a short trip. It seems pointless to be stressing over a dream. But if that dream came from Eric about a girl like Virginia, it’s something to stress over. When I reached my locker, I pulled out my phone and called Virginia. I was so busy being mad at my dad; I forgot to take my phone with me. She answered after two rings, “Hey, Emma. What’s up?”
“Eric is into you and he is going to change to be with you,” I tell her, slurring my words.
“I know, he told me that this morning,” she answers calmly somehow knowing what I said.
“Don’t you know what this means?!” I yell at her.
“Yea it means no more playboy Eric. Yay!” she says sarcastically.
“Yes, but what if he doesn’t?”
“If he doesn’t then he doesn’t. It’s as simple as that.” “Yes, but are you going to go out with him?”
“Maybe if he shows me that he can actually change. Don’t worry I won’t do anything stupid.”
“I know but I don’t want to see you get hurt.”
“I won’t, trust me. I appreciate your concern but I will be fine.”
“Ok, see you after lunch?” I say changing the subject.
“Where are you going to be?”
“Oh, I have to meet Lisa at the library to finish a project for Biology.”
“So I’m going to be alone at lunch?” she says disappointed.
“No, you will have Bridget,” I say. Bridget Allar is my third best friend and my sister. She isn’t my biological sister but that’s just how close we are. She is 16, has blonde hair with bright red streaks, brown eyes, lots of freckles on her very pale arms and face, and is really crazy. Not like a psycho crazy but a hyper crazy. She laughs at the tiniest things, from silence to you pointing directly at her waist. Maybe that last one is just with me but still.
“Yea, but she’s weird. I need a least one normal person there.”
“Maybe Eric will be there,” I say now teasing.
“Yea like he’s normal,”
“Who knows? Maybe being normal is his way of changing,”
“Maybe,” she says jokingly.
“There you go. Well, I got to go so see you later,”
“Ok, bye!” she hangs up. I disconnect and close my locker door. I text Lisa saying that I was on my way. As I was texting, I walk right into the wall, thinking that I was turning into the next hallway. That was the last thing I remembered before I blacked out.
+++
When I woke up I saw Marc, Lisa, Bridget, and surprisingly Eric but no Virginia. I move my hand to reach my phone on the table next to me. The familiar objects around me start to sink in. I was in the nurse’s office lying on one of the bed-benches. I was always a perfect health child but with that I have been in here many times before. I would always have something, like a stomach ache, a cramp or a headache. One time I even had a twisted ankle. I could just barely reach my phone. After many attempts and almost pushing it off twice, I finally got it. The four of them were in the corner, a little ways from me, talking. I text Lisa saying, Why is Erichere and where is Virginia?Almost immediately she texted back saying, Eric just showed up for some reason that I don’t know of and I texted her but she hasn’t responded back.She looked up at me. The other three saw her and looked at me too. I sat up and supported myself with my hands. When I did I gasped because of the pain that rushed suddenly to my head. I started to feel dizzy and my vision blurred. Marc was the first to react. He ran to my side and knelt next to me. He grabbed the ice pack that was on the table and handed it to me. I put it to my head and felt the release of pressure. He took my other hand and started rubbing it with his thumb, the way he does to calm me or make me feel secure. We were like that for a couple minutes just staring at each other while he rubbed my hand. I could have stayed like that forever but apparently it was too much for Eric.
“Ok, so are we going to get lunch or are we just going to stand here and stare at each other?”
I sigh at him then I said, “How long was I out?” Lisa, Bridget, and Marc look at me concerned while Eric just looks annoyed.
“Well? How long was I out?” I repeat more slowly like they didn’t understand my question.
“It’s been,” Lisa looks at her phone, “one hour and twenty-three minutes.”
“And you guys were here the whole time?” I ask finally really looking at them. Lisa was wearing a blue one strap shirt that came up right below her belly-button with a blue fringe skirt (it’s more of a party skirt) that moved, synchronized with every step. Her hair was up in a high messy bun, and she had silver stud earrings and blue hoops. She was wearing four blue bracelets on her right wrist alternating between dark and light blue and blue strap high heels. Bridget was wearing a purple turtleneck with sleeves that go to her elbows. The bottom of her shirt was folded over same with her sleeves either as some fashion statement or she just thought it was too long. She had dark blue skinny jeans with dark purple flats. Her hair was in a ponytail right above her forehead. She calls it the ‘sad unicorn’.
“Well Lisa came looking for you and found you in the hall then she texted Marc and I,” Bridget explains
“So how did Eric get here?” I ask motioning toward him. He looks up at the sound of his name. Everyone was staring at him waiting for him to explain himself, everyone except Lisa.
“I, um, was heading to class when I saw Lisa carry you in,” Eric says acting nervous. He was fidgeting with a shoe he got from the lost and found shelf next to him in the corner. He set it down after admiring it intensely and walked toward us and stood in between Lisa and Marc. “So, basically we all stayed here except I went to get a sandwich.”
“No, I-” Lisa started to say but stopped when Eric nudges her in the arm with his elbow. “You what?” I ask her looking at all of them separately. “-I went to get a sandwich too, with Eric.” She finishes looking down at her shoes. The whole situation felt wrong. There was something that they weren’t telling me, but what? And why were they not telling me? I think to myself looking at the two of them suspiciously. I see Eric whisper something into Lisa’s ear. She just nods and sighs not looking up from her shoes.
