-Rylee-
I walk onto the bus and sit next to Emme, we have become quite the bus buddies you could say. I am wearing the new Drumline hoodies we got yesterday. As I walk by Jack and his crew, he shouts,
"Hey look, it's the drumming stick!" All of his friends laugh and say other jokes about drumming and... how I'm skinny. I ignore them as I walk past them.
"I wish they would leave everyone alone." Emme says as I sit down.
"Yeah." I say and sigh.
"Isn't Henry also their friend?" Emme asks.
"Oh, uh yeah he hangs out with them sometimes." I say. I wish Henry wasn't like them, and I've seen that he's not. But he still hangs out with them, just doesn't act like them... often.
"Two more days till winter break!" Emme says. "What are you doing?"
"Oh, nothing much, some family is coming for Christmas but that's it. What about you?"
"I'm thinking about going ice skating with my friend Kira, if you want to come I'm sure she would be fine with you coming. She goes to Westmoore but she's super sweet."
"That sounds like a lot of fun, can you let me know the details and I'll see."
"Yea, of course!" Emme says.
During lunch I walk past Mason's table, which Henry is sitting at. As I walk past I hear Mason snicker and whisper something to Jack, and he smiles. I quickly walk away and sit at my table next to Kiki.
"I love the hoodie! It's amazing, the fire is awesome!" She says. I pull up a picture from yesterday of Henry and I in the costumes.
"The costumes are even better and will look great with the makeup." I say. Kiki squeals as she looks at the photo.
"I love them! The show is going to be AH-MAY-ZING!" She says. I put my phone down on the table and eat my leftover pasta from last night. "So, you and Henry?" She asks, eyeing me.
"What?" I ask. My friend Lily looks at the photo. We are standing next to each other, our hands up in the air like we have superpowers. We look like total dorks.
"You two look adorable." Lily says. I almost choke on my food.
"What?" I ask again.
"I said you two look adorable, the way you two compete with each other in band is very amusing." Lily says and laughs.
"I have to agree, you two are fun to watch." Kiki agrees. I start to blush.
"We are just friends, very competitive friends. I mean, we compete and fight al the time in marching band Kiki." I say.
"True, but it's not as cute." She says and laughs.
During band I leave to refill my water bottle when the percussion has a lull in a song. I tap my foot to the beat of our last song as I refill.
"Hey Drumming stick, how's it going?" I hear Mason say.
"What do you want?" I say, not looking at him.
"We know Henry is in band." Jack says. I stop filling my bottle and turn around. "Oh, that got your attention."
"Thank you for pointing out an obvious fact." I say sarcastically.
"You have a soft spot for him, don't you?" Mason asks, a smirk on his face. I scoff.
"You don't know anything about me." I say. I try to walk around them, but Mason grabs my shoulder.
"You may think that he's some cool, nice guy that enjoys band, but he's not. Do us a favor, stay away from him. He doesn't think anything of you except that you are a stupid, skinny drummer." Mason says. Jack and mason laugh.
"Bye drummer boy." Jack says and they walk away, laughing.
I run to the bathroom and silently cry. I try to pull myself together, but I can't. I stay in the bathroom until two minutes before the bell rings, and quickly walk to Mr. G's office, he usually goes there at the end of class. I walk in and he turns around in his chair. His blinds are up in his office that looks into the band room, but I don't care.
"Rylee? What's wrong?" He asks and quickly stands up and closes the blinds. I close the door to his office and sit in a chair. I explain to him everything that Mason and Jack said, and how I escaped to the bathroom and cried.
"I thought Mason would eventually stop talking to me- "I start.
"Rylee, everything that he said wasn't true. But I have a feeling there is more that you aren't telling me." Mr. G says, a caring look on his face.
"What do you mean?" I ask him, confused.
"You said he called you a stupid, skinny, drummer?" He asks. I nod. "What did he mean by that?"
"Ever since... elementary school I guess, Mason would call me names for being too skinny." I say. A tear falls down my check as I think of those memories.
"Why did he call you names?"
"Because I was skinny, abnormally skinny you could say. My doctor always said I was healthy, and I ate food... for a while."
"A while?" He asks. I take a breath.
"I used to suffer from anorexia, in middle school and freshman year. I knew I was skinny, but I wasn't happy with how skinny I was, I guess. I wouldn't eat lunch, and I was never happy, then Mason would say something, and my mind would spiral. I went to counseling and therapy freshman year when I told Kiki, and she told my counselor and my parents." I tell him. Thinking back at that time makes me start to shake.
"Kiki was a great friend for doing that, and you are brave for sharing this. Something like anorexia isn't easy to overcome or talk about. My sister struggled with anorexia as well. I know that it takes time to completely heal from it, I think it took my sister four or five years to completely heal." He tells me.
"Yeah." I say. "Do you think what he said about Henry is true?"
"I don't really know him as well as I know you, but from what I can tell he has a good heart. I think Mason and Jack were messing with you, so don't think about what they said. They don't know how he acts around you, and from what I see, Henry cares about you, even if you don't see it all the time."
"But what if he acts differently around me then he does around them? How do I know who the real Henry is?"
"You will have to ask him, but I think you know. Maybe if you ask, he will see himself who the real Henry is. But do not worry about him, Henry is not your problem. You focus on yourself and be the best version of yourself." Mr. G. says and smiles.
"Thank you." I say.
That afternoon I sit in the back of the band room before practice. I am kind of hidden behind all of the boxes, a nice place to relax and hide from the world.
"Hey Rylee, are you back there?" Someone asks.
"Who's asking?" I say. Henry pops his head above the boxes.
"Oh hey, there you are. Mind if I sit with you?" He says quietly.
"Yeah, sure." I say. He grins and squeezes next to me in my tiny little box hideaway.
"What are you doing back here?"
"Getting some quiet time before practice." I say.
"Oh. If you don't mind me asking, where'd you go during band?" Henry asks, looking at me. I feel very vulnerable. Should I lie? Hide the truth? Does he even want to know the truth?
"I um... was talking to Mr. G." I say. Wait no you idiot, that's why you were late to history.
"Um... Mr. G was teaching." Henry says, confused. I take a deep breath and tell him part of what happened. Basically the part where Jack and Mason called me names, and that's about it. "Oh my, Rylee I'm so sorry Mason keeps calling you a drummer boy and nerd and other stuff."
"Its... I don't know I guess he's said it so much I'm used to it." I lie. What am I doing?
"I don't think you're a band nerd or a drummer boy or skinny, I think you are perfect just the way you are." He says and smiles. Not his flirty smirk, a real smile.
"Thank you." I say. He wraps an arm around me and whispers.
"I won't let him say that to you ever again."
"Thank you." I whisper back.
Somehow, I know that he means it.