Jesse
Thursday
Calvin and I ditched homeroom. No surprise there. We snuck out to the parking lot and over to lovely Will's car, which was parked next to perfect Henry's truck. Calvin grinned evilly while I sanded my hands.
"You take Henry's," I told Calvin and he tossed me a Ziploc bag.
I unzipped it. You'd never guess what was inside. One permanent brand.
Sharpies!
We'd bought three packs of the largest, thickest black Sharpie markers we could find.
Payback is a bitch and revenge is sweet.
Those eight words were the only I was thinking of as I doodled on Will's Ford and Calvin doodled on Henry's Dodge.
Doodled? Fuck that! Calvin was a freaking artist and was showing it off!
Dammit, Calvin, why do you have to make my prank look bad and yours look awesome? I thought and scowled enviously.
~
By chem., even Calvin looked ready to fall over, curl up, and take a nap. The bell rangand Miss Myacoff began the lesson. Almost as soon as she started, the door opened and shut, signaling someone was late.
"Uh, I'm new," I heard a deep voice say.
A newbie? A new target to beat up on to relieve some stress?
I glanced up curiously only to slip out of my seat in surprise. My eyes bugged out and jaw unhinged.
Holy shit! Jesse?!
I instantly recognized the brunette hair that covered the high schooler's forehead, ears, and the nape of his neck, the tan skin, and the dark brown eyes. The Native American Thunderbird tattoo on his bicep for his family he'd gotten at such a young age becuase his dad owned a tattoo shop and his mother's ancestry was the Lakota Tribe. My ex-boyfriend from seventh grade for crying out loud!
~
Long Time Ago
Everyone, including Jesse and Calvin stared at me, but my eyes were locked onto Jesse as I wondered if her even remembered me. I kind of doubted it.
I'm so different from junior high. Personality and looks, I thought. There's no way he could-
"Rachel?" asked Jesse.
Of course, he would. That's just my luck.
"You two know each other?" asked Miss Myacoff.
Neither Jesse nor I answered. It wasn't any of her bee's wax anyways. Jesse smiled, walked over to me, and knelt down. He'd walked past everyone without even looking at them. He walked by Calvin and for once, I was a little...angered by someone ignoring Calvin, but he was an outsider after all. I swallowed as Jesse smiled down at me like there was no one else except me and him in the room.
Jesse was the reason for my bad candy addiction. When ever we went over to one or the other's house, we only ate candy. Sure, we got sick. But it was worth it because we got sick together and stayed home from school together to watch movies-and maybe eat some more candy. After Jesse left, candy was my only good memory. Maybe not the most healthy thing to have a my only good memory, but it was the best-only because Jesse left.
More importantly, Jesse was the one and only boy I had really liked. He was the one person I could tell everything to. He was my outlet, my way of getting my anger out without having to hit or bully anyone because I could express myself in words. Then he moved away to Atlanta, Georgia, and neither of us had gotten our first phone by then sadly. I never heard or saw him since then until now.
Jesse reached into his back pocket and took out an IPhone 5. "Finally got a phone." He waved it back and forth in his hand for a long moment. During that same long moment, I had been speechless.
Everyone stared at me in complete bewilderment. No one had seen me speechless. Maybe a little surprised or taken back, but never this bad. Calvin raised an eyebrow. Will and Henry craned their neck to see over the desk for a better view.
I could only stare at Jesse. He took my breath away just like the first time we'd met in sixth grade. That year we had become such good friends that it wasn't a surprise he asked me out to the movies in seventh grade. Of course, I was no scardy-cat then and I went to the movies with him.
Damn, I hate you, I thought with a gulp, though not sure whether I was referring to myself or Jesse-but probably both-peeled my gaze from Jesse, and got to my feet.
I cleared my throat. I wasn't going to lose my rep over on old crush. I walked past Jesse, who looked a little stunned and hurt. For a long moment he stayed squatting until he stood straight up, spun around on his toes to face the front of the classroom, and asked Miss Myacoff where his seat was.
Normally my day would end with chem., but recently it seemed more like chem. was the beginning of my day.
~
It was the end of the day. I stood up and raced to my locker to avoid Jesse. I'd never packed up my backpack so fast. I slammed my locker door shut, but when I turned to leave, Jesse was in my way.
I gulped. "Uh-u-um, I have to go!"
I shoved past him. I didn't get very far. He grabbed my shoulder. I, in return and instinctive reaction, grabbed his hand. I jabbed my hip into Jesse's hip and bent over, squatted, and pulled his arm over my shoulder. Jesse flipped straight over my back. I straightened up as he lay on the ground.
"Hey, new guy!" shouted Calvin and Jesse looked up just in time for flour to dump onto his head.
I crossed my arms. My reputation stood firm as the tiny but fierce kind. Calvin the outsider had just gained some popularity.
~
Calvin and I sat at one of the park's picnic tables. We finished planning for tomorrow and after I ranted on about how weird it was that Will and Henry haven't tried to get their revenge on our petty pranks since our agreement-until Calvin reminded me I'd disconnected Will's shoulder. They were probably planning something big. Our pranks were slowly getting better and bigger, but the boys hadn't pranked us in reply.
"So, how do you know the new retard?" questioned Calvin, curiosity getting the better of him.
"I told you enough about me-more than I've fucking told anyone since him!" I blurted out, irritation getting the better if me, and I cursed myself. Calvin's expression told me he was cursing himself mentally just like I was. I knew the two words 'since him' were treading on Calvin's brain by his curious and confused expression.
If I don't tell Calvin, he could misunderstand, but if I do tell him...Ah, to hell with it.
"We dated in junior high," I admitted and Calvin's jaw dropped.
"Y-you had a boyfriend?" He asked, smothering a laugh, and I glared at him.
"Bullies aren't all born evil," I retorted, "Besides, that was a long time ago."
Calvin stopped laughing at me, and I scowled slightly as his eyes softened. "And not all outsiders are useless basket case's that deserve to die and no one would care if they did."
I snorted and rolled my eyes. It wasn't that I believed they deserved to die. It was that I believed no one would care if they did. I've looked up basket case in the dictionary and it read something like 'a person who is helpless and incapable'. In my biased view, that was the same as useless. Apparently it wasn't like that for Calvin.
"Fine, we'll both prove we're right. This Friday when I come to visit Carrie?" Calvin challenged.
"That's tomorrow," I pointed out.
"You scared?" Calvin smirked.
"Fine, tomorrow," I snapped.
"Now, about...what's his name?" Calvin said and I groaned, leaning back in my seat.
"Jesse," I grumbled.
"Isn't that a girl's name?" muttered Calvin.
"No, it's unisex and I'm pretty sure it was originally a boy's name, but I'm not sure," I stated.
"You just stuck up for him." Calvin's left eyebrow raised. "You. Stuck up. For a person. A freaking human being!"
My scowl deepened. "Look, Callie, don't-"
"Excuses, excuses, excuses." Calvin's smirk grew.
I clenched my fist as I thought, This fucking bastard!
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