"Well, look who decided to show up. I was certain that we'd have to perform a search party to find you," a petite girl says to Judith. She has a brown sugar complexion and jet black hair styled to match Twiggy's. She's leaning her left hip to their wooden table with her arms folded across her chest. "Who's this?"
"Hi to you too, Kacey. This is Mary Hendricks," she introduces her to the spacious room of her ethnic club mates, throwing her left arm over the newcomer's shoulder. "Mary, this is Kacey, William, Anthony, and – well, La'Shawna is running late."
"She's powdering her nose," Kacey informs them. She watches Anthony and William approach her with welcoming grins.
"It's nice to meet you." The tall and lighter-toned member, Anthony, extends his right hand toward her. She glances at his short mess of curls, and then she places her right hand in his. "Everyone calls me Big A."
"Stop showing off. No one calls you that." He rolls his eyes at Kacey.
Mary glances at Judith, who's shaking her head as if to inform her that Anthony's lying, and she smiles. When they shake hands, he returns to his place at the table and continues examining a striped lavender strip of wrapping paper with measuring tape.
"Hey." William extends his left hand, and when she places hers in his palm, he carries her knuckles to his pouty lips. She swoons at the kiss he lays on her hand, and his smile grows.
"Hey," she forces herself to say through the butterflies in her stomach. They return their arms to their sides.
"Okay, well, as I said, you'll love it here." Judy pats her back then walks around the right end of the table to help Anthony.
The door creaks open with a statuesque woman stepping in. Her feathered, raven-colored hair falls to her waist like a waterfall that complements her midnight complexion. She forms a confused expression when she notices the new girl with William.
"Hello?" Mary turns her head to look over her shoulder, and Judith lifts her chin to see as well.
"Hi," she greets their president before the words can exit Judy's parted lips. She turns her body to face her, having to crane her head back to stare upward at her more so than with Anthony or William. "I just got here. My name's Mary Hendricks. I saw the signs posted in the courtyard about needing new members, so here I am."
"Oh." She blows out a heavy breath that relaxes her tensed shoulders. William strolls toward the end of the table between Kacey and Judy. "It's nice to meet you. My name's La'Shawna and if you have any questions about us or what we're working on, just ask me; I'm the president."
"Judy actually told me on the way in, but I definitely will," she says. La'Shawna walks towards the end across from William, and Mary fills the gap next to Judith.
"Okay, so for the new girl, what're we currently working on," she asks her group. Kacey resumes taping wrapping paper over a small, square-shaped box with William's help.
"Well, three weeks ago, we went to the children's hospital not far from here and found out that over ten kids will be there for their birthdays," Judy informs her without looking away from the ruler in her hands. "So, here we are, wrapping presents for them."
"That's really nice," Mary says. She looks at the box across from her that Kacey's working on, then at La'Shawna. "Where'd you get the gifts from?"
"They were donated," Kacey chimes in before her president can respond. "My Dad owns a store up the road, and he donates different things to us whenever we need them."
"Here." Judith sets the measuring stick on the wrapping paper. Then she gently guides Mary into her place. "Each side has to be a foot long for the next gift. No longer, no shorter."
"So I just measure it to make sure that it is?" Judy nods her head. "Got it."
"I'll be back in a moment." She squats and lifts her navy blue backpack over her shoulder. She left it behind when she went home. Judith exits the room, Mary curiously watching her until she's out of her line of sight.
"Jude!" She flinches at the sudden sound of her name, tightening her grip on the strap sitting on her left shoulder. She scans the hall of students searching for the person who called her, then sighs annoyedly when she sees David approaching from her right. "How're you? I couldn't find you yesterday after our talk?"
"I had to stay late to help Christie Adams in the Drama department," she lies. Her stomach twists, and her eyes refuse to meet his. He's modeling a beige turtleneck, blue jeans, and black suede shoes.
"I never took you as a thespian," he says, walking alongside her. "Doubt thou the stars are fire; Doubt that the sun doth move; Doubt truth to be a liar; But never doubt I love."
"Who's that," Judith asks, and David's smile falls from his face. They stop walking when they reach the ladies' restroom, and she turns to stand in front of him.
"Anyway, can I expect to see you for lunch," he asks. Judith anxiously glances at the divider across from the bathroom's arch. "I'm craving meatloaf or a nice, juicy steak."
Her stomach churns at the thought of food, roaring as if she hadn't eaten in ages. She grips her flesh over her blouse in a futile attempt to silence the sound, and he narrows his eyes at her trembling hands.
"I'll see you in thirty minutes," she tells him, and David nods his head with uncertainty. He looks at her as if he wants to question her odd behavior, but he doesn't allow his mouth to utter a word about it.
"Alright, um," he mumbles, then scratches the back of his neck in thought. "Just — find me in Mr. O'Connell's class."
Judith quickly shakes her head, and when she attempts to rush into the restroom, David takes her left wrist in his left hand then he draws her closer to his body.
"David, I have to go," she begins to say, but he presses his lips against hers as he shuts his eyes. His hands rise toward her jawline, his lips refusing to release hers. She doesn't move, and when he feels the awkwardness in their kiss, he leans away from her.
"I'll see you later, Jude," he softly tells her with a look of disappointment that breaks her heart. Judith stares at him as he departs from her, refusing to enter the bathroom until he's far from sight.
A powerful scent of flowers – feebly attempting to mask the faint stench of the roughly used toilets – greets her along with a cool breeze.
There are four off-white stalls, but only two are available, and two blondes are standing at the sink by the entrance, applying their lipstick and chuckling at the incoherent remarks that they're spewing at each other.
It's full.
Judith contemplates whether she should stay or return later, but she hears her name before deciding which option to choose.
"Judy," Mary calls for her from the other side of the arch. She walks toward the exit and creases her brows at her acquaintance.
"How'd you figure out that I was in here," she asks in a whisper.
"I didn't. La'Shawna said you'd be in here and for me to come and check on you," she explains with a questioning tone. "Is everything okay?"
"Yeah," she answers and sighs. "I was just leaving, but I'll meet you in there."
Mary eyes her for a second, unsure whether she should leave her alone. When she returns to the classroom, Judy steps into the bathroom again, but instead of surveying the crowded space, she makes her way to the last stall.
Judith closes and locks the door. She slides her book bag off her shoulder then rummages through the front pouch. Hastily, she withdraws a dark bottle of Ipecac, and when she lifts the lid, she ingests just enough to leave a sour taste in her mouth.
Judy returns the substance to its place in her bag, then quickly exits the bathroom. When she enters through the doors of her NDCS group, she notices that the wall adjacent to Anthony is supporting a pile of wrapped boxes.
"Starting tomorrow, we're," La'Shawna stops speaking when she notices the paleness in Judy's face. Kacey, picking away the dirt at the edges of her fingernails, also turned to gaze at Judith and the other three.
"You look like you saw a ghost," Kacey points out without thinking. Judith ignores her comment as she lumbers towards the table, the lingering taste of the syrup on her tongue.
"Are you okay," Mary asks in a low voice. Judith nods her head, breathing wheezily as if her lungs are stifled with grey smoke, and she drops her bag onto the floor by her feet.
"You're probably just hungry," Kacey says and grasps Judy's attention. Her eyes narrow, and her body is tense. She wants to yell at her, but the energy she would have to do so is slowly depleting.
"What're we doing now, La'Shawna," she asks without removing her gaze away from Kacey.
"We're just," she stops speaking for a moment, stunned by Judy's behavior. She turns her head to the right, refusing to glance at Mary, who's visibly worried. "I was telling them about the day that we'll need to take these to the hospital."
"Okay." She takes a deep breath, then surveys the eyes on her. "Did we establish when it should be?"
"Early Saturday morning," La'Shawna answers. "I know that it's tomorrow, but it'll be worth it when we see their smiling faces."
"Sounds good to me," Judith replies with a flat tone. They detect her insincerity but brush it off to avoid conflict.
"Okay, so, during that time, you'll need water since it'll be hotter than California during the summer, and cool clothes; by cool, I don't mean hip." Mary and Anthony chuckle at her statement, and Judith's attention slowly trails onto a snail two windows away from them.
She admires its carefree nature and ability to move at such a slow pace without those around it concerning themselves. To her, it's an ignored species that she wishes she could be similar to in that aspect.
***
"You know what I'm feeling," Mary asks Judith as they trudge through the manicured lawn on their way to the road. When she shrugs her shoulders, Mary answers, "A burger with the works from McDonald's. Their fries and shakes are so groovy. Have you been yet?"
"I sometimes go on my lunch breaks. I kind of just eat whatever I want and don't gain a pound." With her eyes ahead and her abdomen tensing at the sound of food, Judy squeezes the left strap in both hands, refusing to allow the weight of her bag to crush her arm. They reach the road with the campus stretching far on their left and a mass of trees covering the terrain to their right.
"You're my body image hero," Mary fawns over her. Her statement curls the corners of Judith's pouty lips into a smile. "Like, seriously. My sister Sandra can eat a cow, then a horse, and still look like a pinup girl, but the second I eat lettuce, I look like a fat lady in a freak show."
Her smile gradually falls from her face, and her mind wanders, causing Mary's voice to appear faint when it hits her ears.
She has flashbacks of a large brown woman in a floral dress, and she tenses up. Her heart is pounding in her chest, and vomit desperately wants to escape, the mugginess of the foggy atmosphere not helping relieve her nausea.
"And here we are," Mary announces half cheerfully. They're standing in front of a convenience store with a large sign on the roof that features the word eleven crossing through the numerical seven. Judith eyes the structure. Her skin is pale and clammy, but Mary doesn't notice. "They sell chili dogs and red Slurpees so bomb that you'd be lying if you said you weren't addicted. Come on. I can't wait to show you how I build my dog."