Instead of Me

∆27∆

I received many dirty looks at school on Monday, even from people I'd never even talked to before. Apparently Katherine had been talking about the night of the dance, victimizing herself and creating details. Someone told me they heard that I had slept with four other girls that night, but then refused to have sex with Kat because she was black. I almost threw up after that one.

I sat in Journalism at the end of the day, clicking through the pictures that the freshman took at the dance, on the Mac in the back of the classroom. The photos weren't the greatest, but they weren't the worst either. This freshman had a lot to learn, but their was potential. I wrote down the code of each good photo on a legal pad next to me.

Heath strode up next to me and leaned against the table with his arms crossed. "I didn't think you were supposed to be on a screen," he said sternly with a raised eyebrow. Annie must've told him to check up on me.

Without looking over from the screen, I said, "I'm feeling a lot better. Annie is taking me to the doctor's today after school and I think they might clear me." I clicked the next button to see a picture of Mrs. Valentine cussing out Riley. I snickered and Heath smiled. "That was the best part of that stupid dance," I mumbled.

Heath agreed with me. "Hey, so I saw you and Kat in the hallway outside of the gym that night," he said, lowering his voice, glancing over his shoulder to make sure Katherine wasn't listening.

I held my pencil sideways between my teeth so that I could create a new folder for the good photos on the computer. "Mhmm."

He leaned in closer. "It seemed to me like you were getting along pretty well. What happened?"

"Haven't you heard the rumors?" I asked, the pencil still in my mouth. It took Heath a minute to understand what I said. He nodded and asked if they were true. "Some of them," I responded.

"Most of what I heard, and this came directly from her, is that you had problems. . . you know. . ." Heath shrugged his shoulders and cocked his head to the side. I stared at him curiously, no idea what he was trying to get across. He let out a sigh. "I mean it's nothing to be ashamed of, Finn. It happens to every guy sometimes." I squinted my eyes and shook my head, still not getting it. "It can be difficult sometimes to. . . uh. . . get it up," he finished quickly, slightly gesturing to his crotch with his eyes.

I let out a laugh, taking the pencil out of my mouth. "Is that what she's telling people?" I asked, partly humiliated and partly amused. "Are you kidding me?"

Heath seemed oddly relieved by my reaction. "She's been telling everyone that'll listen." He but his lower lip, avoiding my gaze.

I leaned back in the chair and swiveled it to face Heath completely, tapping the eraser of my pencil to my chin. "I cannot believe this," I muttered under my breath. "What the heck?" I glared towards Katherine, hoping she would look up and start an argument. I started to stand up, but Heath pushed me in he chest. "What are you doing?"

"If there's one thing I know, it's that you shouldn't start a fight when your emotions are high. Nothing good will come out of it."

I pinched the bridge of my nose. "Dude, I don't care that there are rumors about me. Those were going to happen inevitably. It's the fact that she spread the lies willingly. I don't even care that people are believing them. But she did not have the right to lie about literally everything that happened." The more I talked about it, the more furious I became, and then I understood what Heath meant. Defeated, I turned back to the computer screen.

Heath let out an exhale. "I'm sorry." He sounded genuine which sucked because he made it so hard to hate him. "I have most of my articles approved by Mr. Avery for the special edition about Anastasia. I just need some more photographs. Mostly of her in everyday life. Some with you, and maybe her parents, too."