Paraplegic

by Troy Dearbourne

  Which reminds me! I haven't yet opened my letter from Stanford!

  As we pull into the garage, I turn to mother. "Where did you put my letter from Stanford?"

  "It's on the kitchen counter next to the coffee maker."

  I suddenly feel like a little kid waiting to open their present, eagerly rushing inside the house and directly to the kitchen. A little white envelope is laying next to the coffee maker, still sealed. There's a strong urge to rip it open right here and now, but I know Aurora would want to share this moment with me. I pull my phone from my back pocket.

  Me: Rora, meet me @ The Bluff in 20 mins!!

  The Bluff is this canyon on the 15th hole of the golf course. It's actually a part of the quarry, but Aurora and I had given it the name The Bluff when we were little. We felt it needed a cool name. Looking back on those years, I'm shocked mother even allowed us to play here at such a young age. It's like an eighty foot drop to a rocky impact. One wrong move and you're dead. Though, over the years rain has eroded away most of the larger boulders leaving a hedge of shrubs in its place. But still, not exactly a cushy landing.

  Aurora doesn't live far. Only a couple miles south of Emerald Fairways. There's a dirt road amidst the forest bordering this hole that has been leveled by all the golf carts that have driven on it. A zigzag formation through a maze of trees, which Aurora has committed the correct pathway to memory due to making the journey dozens of times in the past, you emerge on the other side in Aurora's neighborhood. Whenever either of us were in a crisis, or bored, or just simply wanted to talk, she would hop on her crimson colored Mongoose bicycle and make the quick journey over here.

  I hear the unmistakable sound of chain link clinking. The poor Mongoose isn't in quite the condition it once was when Aurora received it for her eighth birthday. She's actually long since outgrown it and looks way too big for it, but I guess her family's budget doesn't allow for a new one. So, she just raises the seat to its highest function and rides it with pride.

  She dismounts from the bike and leans it against the oak tree, panting softly from her hastened journey. "What's up, Bestie? I came as soon as I saw your text. Everything alright?"

  I wave the white envelope in the air. "The fate of my future is sealed away in this envelope. I figured you'd want to be here for this moment."

  She collapses next to me, getting comfortable on the concise grass of the golf course. "Well, of course I do, you silly little turnip!"

  Aurora has always given me the weirdest nicknames. But strangely enough, I rather liked them. I flip the envelope over and wrap my fingers around the sticky strip.

  "I'm gonna die of old age here. Open it already!"

  "What if . . . what if I didn't get in? What if I didn't get accepted?"

  She waves a dismissive hand at my face. "Please, you're the smartest girl I know. They'd be crazy not to accept you."

  "And if they didn't?"

  "Then I will personally march over to that school myself and grab whoever is in charge by the ear and make them apologize to you in person."

  I laugh hard. "I'd would pay big money to see that."

  "Oh? And to think I was willing to do it for free."

  The envelope tears awkwardly as I rip the sticky seal off. A single piece of paper is inside. I remove it and begin speed-reading it.

  "Well? What's it say? I'm having heart palpitations over here! Tell me!"

  I slowly lower the piece of paper. "I-I did it. I got in!"

  She lunges forward, throwing her arms around me. "Yaaaaaaaay! I knew you would get in! I just knew it." Both of us become silent, realizing the same unspoken truth. After a few moments, Aurora acknowledges it. "That means this is the last summer I get to spend with you."

  I nod slowly. "We knew this day would come eventually. Each of us would move on to college, then careers then . . . life." Her sad face is heartbreaking to see. I place my fingers beneath her chin and raise it. "We'll still see each other on holidays and occasional weekends."

  "Not likely. You're going to a school that's on the opposite side of the country. We'll never see each other ever again. Ever!" She turns away from me and looks out over The Bluff.

  I'm not sure how to comfort her, so I just lay my head against the soft turf and gaze up at the star filled sky. Aurora lies down next to me. "Remember in second grade that astronomy project we had to do for the science fair? We made a scale model of the planetary system with a bunch of fun facts to go with it, but the string suspending Jupiter snapped moments before the fair and we didn't have any string with us to fasten it back, so we ended up using dental floss?" She doesn't respond. I actually thought I would get a reaction from her. I continue. "I remember being so fearful the teacher would disqualify us because we didn't have a proper working scale model, but was so relieved when he told us he admired our quick thinking to remedy the issue. And hey, we still won second place."

  Orion shows itself as a dark cloud passes through. Aurora once told me that Orion is her favorite constellation because it represents a strong personage. We were ten at the time, I think. The Ardenauxs were having critical financial problems at the time. Aurora said she wanted to be strong, just like Orion, but was scared that her family might not have enough money for rent. I can't remember all the details, but they ended up living with us for a month or so. Mother and father never mentioned why, but I know it had something to do with the Ardenauxs getting evicted from their home and needing a place to stay. I just looked at it like an extended slumber party with my best friend.

  Aurora exhales long and loudly. "I'm sorry, Bestie. It's inconsiderate of me to act this way. You just got accepted into an amazing school. I should be happy for you, not making you feel guilty for having received something you've earned."

  I wrap my hand around hers. "I'm gonna miss you."

  Her eyes start filling up with tears. As do mine. "I'm gonna miss you, too."

  "Look at us," I wipe my eyes, "we're falling apart here," and then force a smile.

  "Tomorrow's gonna be even worse."

  "Oooooh! Don't even mention that! I'm gonna need to wear waterproof mascara."

  "All waterworks."

  I laugh. "Oh, totally!"

  "Did you prepare a speech?"

  I shrug. "I'm better at making stuff up on the fly. You?"

  "Shaa! And it'll make you cry."

  "OK then. I'll make sure to pack a box of tissues."

  "The kind with added lotion?"

  "But of course."

  Aurora sits upright. "I should get back home. Mom wants to watch the season finale of Chopped and I said I would watch it with her."

  "Ah, yes, the show where people frantically run around a kitchen, while being timed, not to mention scrutinized by harsh judges, in attempt to cook broiled duck and cinnamon roasted almonds with only a jar of peanut butter and a stick in their arsenal, all in hopes of winning a measly $10,000 grand prize."

  She walks over to her bicycle. "Hey, could be worse. People have attempted lesser things for money. Remember Fear Factor?"

  I cringe. "Ooh, yeah. Don't remind me."

  She hops on her bicycle, still trying to mask her disappointment about me leaving for college in the Fall. "Chin up, Rora. We still have the entire summer to spend with each another.

  She looks over her shoulder before riding away. "This is gonna be the best summer ever!"

  Chapter 9

  The next day I wake up before my alarm goes off. Everyone else is still asleep. I can hear August's obnoxiously loud snoring from here. Unfortunately, his bedroom is right next to mine, and what's even more unfortunate is he wanted to position his bed up against the same wall as mine, so literally the only thing separating the two of us is six inches of lousy drywall. Indonesia is sounding better and better.

  Outside my window, I hear the oak tree's limbs rustle. I move to the edge of my bed and peer down to the ground – Aurora is climbing up the trunk. I slide the window open, "Need a little help there, Tarzan?"

 
She expertly grabs hold of one limb, pulling herself onto it, then repeating the process with the limb above her. "Nope. I need my upper-body workout for the day."

  The oak tree is this big old thing, probably somewhere around fifty years old, with strong limbs the size of streetlamps, all built upon a monstrous trunk. Each limb shrinks into small branches, which are clothed with a healthy green and cute little acorns this time of year. Aurora learned how to climb it when our third grade school teacher put the fear of fire into us – literally. It was the first time either of us had ever been in a fire drill, and our teacher explained the importance of being able to climb out of second story buildings should it ever combust into flames. Needless to say, climbing trees isn't my cup of tea; it's more Aurora's thing. But no matter how many pretty's I put before please, the teacher didn't allow me to be excused from the drill. I don't like admitting it, but that is one task I never did quite learn, so I had Aurora teach me using the oak tree. And even with her help, I never really got the hang of it. I have a nice battle wound on my left knee to prove it. Though, to be honest, as a child I thought burning buildings was going to be a much bigger problem than it really is.

  Aurora reaches the top of the tree and hurdles herself over the railing of my balcony, rapping her knuckles against the pair of French doors. "It's open." She walks into my room, already wearing her graduation crimson and gold cap and gown. I shake my head and smile. "Ya know, there's this thing they invented, it's a called a front door."

  She pulls her cap low over her eyes. "I prefer the more covert approach."

  "What are you even doing here this early? The graduation ceremony isn't for another couple of hours."

  "I know, I know, but I couldn't wait to give you this." She reaches inside her gown and pulls out a picture frame. Inside the frame is a picture of the two of us; the one we took yesterday with her iPhone. The edging of the frame has words of BFFs, Love, Family, and, Sisters arranged in different places with fancy squiggly lines throughout. "I had mom print it last night."

  "Aw, I love it! Thanks, Rora." I place it on the nightstand next to my alarm clock. Pots and pans banging together downstairs grabs our attention. "Since you're here, why don't you stay for breakfast. You can ride to ceremony with us."

  "Sounds great! Wait. What's for breakfast?"

  I shrug. "I dunno. Cereal. Maybe waffles."

  "Whoa, whoa, whoa. That's a pretty big difference there. Cereal is basically those curly, little wooden shavings leftover from the pencil sharpener, while waffles," she pauses and looks up at the ceiling, inhaling deeply, "waffles are Heaven's way of letting us know it exists."

  "Haha! Waffles it is then."

  We walk downstairs to find mother awake, sipping coffee; staring out the kitchen window. Hearing us come in, she looks at us and smiles. "Good morning, McKenzie. And Aurora, how nice of you to drop by."

  "Mornin' Mrs. Barlow." She sits herself down at the breakfast table, grabbing a fork and knife as if she's ready to eat right away. "I was told there'd be waffles."

  Mother looks at me inquisitively. I smile sheepishly. "I may have told her you'd make waffles."

  She chuckles in amusement. "Alright you two. But only because it's a special day."

  I went ahead and fixed my self a small bowl of low-fat Greek yogurt with strawberries, while everyone else gorges themselves on fat, sugary waffles. After we finished eating, it's nearly time for the bus to pick August up for school. He had complained throughout the duration of breakfast how it was unfair that I got to, as he put it, "skip out on school for the rest of my life", while he had to remain in school. I directly informed him that I wasn't "skipping school", but rather graduating, which is a sure sign of physical maturity; something he won't learn for many, many years. The fact that he still pretends his French fries are jousting sticks is proof.

  Mother clears the table and washes the dishes; father helping with the drying. August, still griping about how he feels it's unfair that he'd be the only one attending school henceforth, shuffles out the front door to catch the school bus.

  Aurora, already wearing her graduation cap and gown, is all set to go, but seating for the ceremony isn't opening for another forty-five minutes, so she goes up stairs with me insisting that she flat iron my hair.

  I sit down in front of my makeup table and begin brushing the curls out of my hair. "Are your parents coming to the ceremony?"

  She heats up the flat iron. "Yes! And I'm so excited! It was touch-and-go because daddy wasn't sure if his work would give him time off, but they did. Both of them frequently tell me how terrible they feel about missing all my cheerleading performances and other school events, but I just tell them not to worry. Work is more important."

  "Must be hard not seeing them all that much."

  "It is."

  I thought she might say something thereafter, but she doesn't. Instead, she picks up the flat iron and begins to straighten my hair. The look on her face tells me she doesn't want to talk about it, so I decide to let the subject drift.

  After an approximate twenty minutes, Aurora had ridden my hair of its curls. We debate whether I should part it on the left side of my head or the right. I choose the left. She chooses right. She wins. She tells me it looks more elegant if my hair flows over my left shoulder because of the way my face is shaped. It doesn't really look any different to me which side it's parted, but it seems to make her happy, so I agree to it.

  She rests her chin on my shoulder, her head against mine, as we gaze into the mirror at each other's reflection. "There! You're perfect."

  I turn my head from side to side, examining every angle. "How will I ever get through life without you while I'm away at college?"

  "See, that's just it. With you and me, it's a forever kind of thing."

  The ceremony is scheduled to take place outside on the football field, providing it doesn't rain. It's a little cloudy today, a few dark gray clouds are congregating a few miles south of the school. But the wind is blowing in that direction, so hopefully it holds out. If not, the school has arranged for the gym to be used for the ceremony. I really hope it doesn't rain, though. My hair will frizz out like crazy if it does. Humidity is the worst!

  As we pull into the parking lot, Aurora clutches her stomach. I glance at her worriedly. "You okay, Rora?"

  "We're really doing this. We're graduating."

  I nod, and cup my hand around the side of her face. "This is the day we transform from girls to women."

  We get out of the car, and mother straightway wants pictures. "You girls look so beautiful! Stand together now. Smile."

  She uses her Smartphone to take the picture, as if anyone carries an actual camera around these days. However, even after a year of having this phone, she still doesn't know how to use it properly. It's embarrassing how unadaptive she is when it comes to next gen technology. I'm constantly having to show her how to zoom in, snap the photo, and where to find it in the gallery.

  "Any day now, mother!" My cheeks are starting to hurt from holding this smile on my face.

  "Right! I'm sorry dears." She laughs nervously. "Old dog, new tricks. Now, smile!"

  "We are!" my words strained as I struggle to maintain this uber gorgeous smile. She finally takes the picture. That only stole five minutes of my life.

  I hear the unmistakable, entrancing sound of Xander's voice. My first expectations are to see him dismounting from that motorcycle of his, but instead I see him get out of a black SUV with his family. Oh! And he looks absolutely adorable in his cap and gown.

  Much to my dismay, mother wants a few more pictures, some with her and me, others with father and I. Every few seconds, I look over at Xander, hoping he hasn't left the parking lot yet. I try hurrying along the family's Kodak moment. Normally, I would be all over this sort of thing; the camera loves me after all, but not right now. I want to walk with Xander; I haven't yet asked him if he would like to come to the cookout. I hope he doesn't already have plans.

  Xander's mom loops he
r arm around him, his dad on the other side of him, and they walk toward the school. I don't want to lose him, so I just start heading in that direction myself, hoping mother, father, and Aurora will follow. To my surprise, they do.

  In front of the school, the bronze Hawk statue glimmers as the sun's rays slip through the clouded sky. Shortly into my freshmen year, two guys from the nerd herd were forced into a pair of Blue Jays cheer uniforms and strung up by the Hawks' talons. They remained up there, helplessly swaying back and forth for a good thirty to forty minutes before the principle ordered someone to get them down. But by then it didn't matter – the damage was done. And thanks to this twenty-first century age, where Smartphones and social media are used by all, those two nerds will never escape the daily jeers and jesting that haunts them.

  Xander slips through the school's entrance. I hurry to catch up with him, my fast motions cause the tassel on my cap to repeatedly smack me in the face. His dad holds the door open for me. "After you," he smiles as he motions me in – his smile looks almost exactly like Xander's! I guess I know where he got it from.

  It's kind of a surreal feeling knowing this will be the last time I ever set foot in these halls, not that I'll miss them, 'cause I wont. But it's still a weird feeling coming to the realization that the very place I've spent a most of my teenage life with will no longer matter.

  A quick zigzag through the school's hallways and we emerge at the rear of the school grounds. The clouds are starting to disperse now. The sun warms my cheeks.

  To my left is the running track, which, seemingly so, the only reason guys tryout for track and field is because they fail to make the football team. Seriously though, when was the last time a team was glorified for winning at track? Within the track is the soccer field. And to my right is the football field. When I decided I wanted to be a cheerleader, I originally tried out for the squad on the football team. At the time, the squad already had a cheer caption: Casey Anderson; I'll never forget her name for as long as I live. She was such a snot! She had the nerve to tell me I didn't have what it takes to be a dancer, then proceeded to give me false hope by saying they would let me know if I made the cut. They never called. Their loss, really. When I heard the Blue Jays were holding tryouts, I immediately pounced on the opportunity. They, of course, saw my unappreciated potential and I quickly found myself a spot on the squad. After the first couple of weeks, they agreed to elect me cheer captain. I'm not gonna lie, it took a little convincing, but they finally saw the superiority in my skills. And thereafter, I made Aurora co-captain.