High School Bites

by Rachael Alcobia

  High School Bites

  By Rachael Alcobia

  For Jane,

  We miss you.

  And for Will,

  My biggest fan.

  One

  “Meg, you have five minutes to get up and get into the shower!” The sound of Jane’s shrill voice woke me out of a dream, though I couldn’t remember what the dream was about. I hated when that happened. This time the memory of last month’s doctor’s appointment only took a few seconds to come rushing back to me. The morning after the appointment I was fully dressed and halfway finished brushing my teeth before I remembered that Doctor Siegel had diagnosed me with Stage Four Stomach Cancer. Stage Four meaning that it was too late and that it had spread to my other organs. Sleepily dragging myself out of bed I headed to the bathroom but being in a county group home that housed six girls, I wasn’t surprised to find it locked. I went to the main room and found Jane, an older woman who was the staff on shift most weekdays.

  “Jane, someone’s in there so I’ll just shower at the pool again.” Jane gave me a look that meant she didn’t approve but wouldn’t object which was her signature look. Sighing, I tried to reassure her by telling her, “Hey, I already have cancer, chlorine can’t hurt me now." She was still mad at me for opting not to do the treatment. I just figured that all of that chemotherapy or surgery was only going to make me sicker in a different way. The group home could have legally chosen for me or fought my decision, but I would have gotten my way after I turned eighteen which was two weeks ago.

  Jane was the oldest of the staff, except maybe Jensen. Nobody knew how old Jensen was, but we all got the feeling that he was sweet on Jane. They would make an interesting couple, that’s for sure. Jane with her pale skin and almost white-blonde hair was a major contrast to Jensen’s chocolate colored skin and bald head. One time when Jensen worked overnight, a few of the other girls used lipstick to draw a face on the back of his head once he fell asleep. The two are my favorite staff at the home, and though Jensen wouldn’t be on shift today, I’d see him at school. Jensen’s other job was a security guard at Mountain Falls High School.

  Though most of California’s weather was mainly sunny, Mountain Falls was a small town on the side of a mountain, so the sun only hit it a few hours a day, leaving the air chilly. Upon returning to my room that I shared with a girl named Sarah, I pulled out my trusty black hooded sweatshirt and blue jeans from the closet. The other girls in the house ran in different circles of the school than she did, despite the fact that you actually had to have other people to even form a circle. I tended to keep to myself and preferred comic books to magazines and swimming rather than cheerleading. Sarah was alright to me, but there were often fights in the house between residents; I was only involved in a few of them.

  Santana and Olivia were roommates and hung out with the Hispanic crowds, whereas Sarah hung out with the kids that looked like they belonged in a Nirvana music video. Roommates Debbie and Kendra were cheerleaders and it was usually one of them getting in a fight with the other girls. Santana and Kendra have both gone a few rounds with me, and when each lost, they liked to throw taunts as we were separated by staff that I only won because of my weight advantage. I threw on my black Converse tennis shoes and after gathering my iPod, wallet and keys, slung my backpack over my shoulder and headed out of the house with the other five girls. After emptying out of the silver company van the other girls and I headed our separate ways. We only had fifteen minutes until the first bell would ring signaling us to head for our first class of the day. Unzipping my backpack to retrieve the banana that Jane had no doubt stuffed in there, I walked to a two-foot wall that bordered a large patch of fresh green grass directly in the middle of the school and sat down to eat my snack.

  Watching my fellow students walk leisurely around the grounds, I forced myself to hold together as I was assaulted by so many feelings it made my head spin and I couldn’t tell where one emotion ended or another began. This storm had been screwing with me every day since I got home from the doctor’s office. First would come fear and denial, and after refusing to feel sorry for myself, white hot anger reared its ugly head. It made my blood boil and I felt that heat rise to my face and fought my breathing for control. Tears of anger pooled in my eyes and I fought them as well. Closing my eyes, I attempted to reign myself in before anyone noticed. The only people to know that I was dying were the staff at the group home and Dr. Siegel, and I intended to keep it that way. Recognizing one of the strolling students, my anger faded away into a world of unexpected regret. Kodi Barrett. Most of the students stayed clear of him except for Simone and Stephen who always followed him around making them a strange triangle of power. Power? That was a strange thought, even for me. Though looking at him now, I felt power radiate off him like a commanding presence, so rare in someone our age. He must have acquired that trait from his father.

  I’d only seen Jack Barrett once at school when Kodi had been called into the Principal’s office for fighting. Kendra had caused the fight and I’d secretly blistered at the fact that she’d gotten him into trouble last year. Our junior year Kendra had decided Kodi was too strange to date, but good looking enough to sneak around with behind the bleachers. When Kodi had barely acknowledged her advances, she had seethed with rage and gone to one of her old flames, Jason, to rough him up to salvage her pride. The football quarterback hadn’t stood a chance. A broken jaw and another bruised ego later, and the whole school began to leave Kodi alone. Kendra was beautiful with her blonde hair, blue-eyed combination that seemed to knock guys off their feet along with her slim and tanned body. I was the opposite with my hair so dark a brown that it looked black and eyes an odd caramel color that I just referred to as amber, and when it came to my pale body, I rocked a solid size fourteen, far from anyone’s dream girl. I tended not to judge others, but I was as shocked as the rest of the school when Kodi had turned her down.

  Looking at him now, I gave a humorless chuckle. I’d never felt uncomfortable toward him, or that inexplicable urge to avoid him or even avert my eyes like I’d overheard others saying. I had no doubt that my regret wouldn’t be so palpable had I felt those same urges. The fact was, when I looked at him all I felt was an unexplainable urge to reach out and touch him. I had yet to understand the attraction I felt for him. He wasn’t overly handsome in the traditional sense, his face having a rough edge to his features and there was a hardness there like he’d had his fair share of life thrown at him. His eyes were as green as the grass that covered the school grounds and his gaze was alert and penetrating like he was ready for anything, except when his hair fell into them. Kodi’s brown hair was short in the back but the front was a bit longer which he attempted to keep in order and usually ended up falling in front of his face. Gravity usually took its toll causing the hair to fall like a curtain in front of his eyes and I always got a kick watching him give a shake of his head attempting to knock them back into place. He did it now and my laugh caught in my throat as his head jerked in my direction. How on earth had he heard that? The intensity of his gaze as our eyes met caused heat of a different kind to flame in my face. Thankfully, my face was a bit pink from the cold anyway so I knew it wouldn’t be noticed. The look on his well-defined face made me think I was supposed to avert my eyes but all it did was make my blood heat further and a slight smile to curve my lips. The expression on his face turned to confusion and before I saw the inevitable sneer of disinterest or disgust that most attractive guys gave me, I turned toward my Algebra class, taught by Mr. Peters, a very flamboyant middle-aged man who just happened to be one of my favorite teachers. I waved to him and walked to the seats in the back of the class where I usually sat because I wasn’t a fan of attention. I set my stuff on top of the desk a
nd when I looked up, I saw a look of sympathy cross his face and my eyes narrowed in irritation. The group home had called the school. I sat down and prayed that it would be the only one I would get today, but as recent events have confirmed, my luck sucked. Unzipping my backpack, I bit back a curse as my heavy textbook slipped off the desk and clattered loudly to the floor. I leaned over to pick it up only to bump heads with someone already kneeling down to retrieve it. Biting back a curse and closing my eyes, I gingerly felt the forming bruise at the top of my forehead. There was a knock in front of me and I opened my eyes to find my book back on my desk and Kodi standing beside me rubbing the end of his right eyebrow.

  Wonderful. The closest I’ve ever been to him and I could’ve given him a concussion. “I’m so sorry. Thank you for picking up my book,” I said. He looked like he was about to say something but stopped short because before I even knew what I was doing I reached out and gently stroked his brow where the surrounding skin was turning pink. My fingers tingled with electricity as soon as my flesh met his, but the feeling was far from unpleasant. I sat frozen with shock at what I’d done as he turned his face into my hand and sniffed it. Eyes wide, I snatched my hand back to rest in my lap and felt my face heat with humiliation as I waited for cruel words. I risked a glance at him and found him watching me with something akin to wonder before quickly masking his features and giving a nod prior to walking to his desk which was just two seats away from my own.

  Forty minutes later and I was still trying to concentrate on Mr. Peters speaking very animatedly about quadratic equations, which was extremely difficult since no one sat in the empty desk between me and Kodi. I fought the urge to look at him for the rest of the class period and after what seemed like forever, the bell finally rang. My second class of the day was Agriculture and by far my favorite if you didn’t count lunch period, which most people didn’t. I always spent my third period here or at the pool because I had a free period. I was happy how my schedule worked out because I could just spend twice as long with Remy. Setting my backpack on the counter, I walked excitedly across the classroom to the adjacent doors that led to an outdoor enclosure. Before the school year began, students who chose Agriculture as their elective got to choose between spending the school year nurturing a plant for five dollars or raising a pig for two-hundred dollars. The group home would never have paid for the pig, so it took me the entire summer to save up for my pig. I got to meet my pot-bellied piglet a month ago and named him Remy. His little white hairs were so fine that he looked as pink as his flesh and I thought he was absolutely adorable. My housemates liked to call him names and made fun of me for spending all of my allowance on an animal that was just going to end up sold into a county fair and eaten. That wasn’t my plan for Remy but what my teacher didn’t know, wouldn’t hurt him. I wasn’t sure how exactly I was going to get out of that, but I’d cross that bridge when I got to it. I found Remy with the only other two pigs in the pen. Jellybean belonged to a sophomore named Sofia, and Spamlet belonged to a fellow senior, Raymond. Remy was with Jellybean, nudging her with his snout as they strutted across the straw covered ground. I sat in a corner and waited for Remy to trot over to me before pulling him into my lap and petting him until he gave me a few soft grunts. I let him go to play with his pen mates and took out a notebook and pencil from my backpack to track his activity. I had to keep record of his bathroom habits, his food and water intake, noises and his interactions. My day to clean the pen wasn’t until Tuesday, so it was a very easy day in class. I gave Jellybean and Spamlet a few pats as they walked as well. The bell rang signaling that it was time to go to my next class, so I stroked Remy behind the ears before grabbing my backpack and heading out.

  After sitting through Ms. Pollack’s History class watching Santana and Olivia paint each other’s nails, the lunch bell finally rang. I wanted to get to the gym locker room as soon as possible to have the most time I could get in the water. I stopped by a snack stand and bought a sandwich so that I could eat it on the way. The last person who’d had gym class last period vacated the locker room and I was glad to have the privacy while I changed into my swimsuit. I donned a one-piece because I knew my body was a far cry from bikini worthy. At a public place I would even had added a pair of shorts to the ensemble but Mountain Falls got pretty chilly and the pool was not heated due to the school’s mediocre budget so I usually had the pool to myself. Grabbing my towel, I headed out of the locker room and scanned the bleachers to confirm that I was indeed alone. I stepped into the water and sucked in a breath at the cold before waiting for my body to adjust. A few minutes later, I began with a slow and steady backstroke. Our school was too small for a swim team and I didn’t mind in the least. I wouldn’t join because I loved to swim and being forced to do it every day someone else’s way would most likely have taken the fun out of it, and I couldn’t bear that. The unfortunate thing about being a swimmer was that I didn’t have to focus much which left my brain open to think about things I didn’t want it to. Some positives about having less than a year to live crossed my mind. No more homework, no group home, I’d never have to deal with a boss I’d hate, and I’d never get my heart broken by a lover. For no reason that I could fathom, Kodi’s face flashed behind my closed eyes and I stood sputtering out of the waist deep water just in time to see the side door to the gym swing closed. Had someone been watching me? I shook my head at the stupid thought but couldn’t stop the goose bumps that had nothing to do with the cold from rising along my arms. Maybe someone got lost and had left immediately after realizing that it was a pool room. I glanced at the clock on the far wall and saw that there was just enough time to take a quick shower and get dressed before lunch period ended. My teachers for fourth period in the past three years I’d been at this school knew me so they’d never minded if I was a minute or two late to class but this was a new year and the teacher listed on my schedule for my next class was a name I didn’t recognize. Not wanting to take any chances, I got out of the pool and toweled off on my way back to the locker room. I entered my Chemistry class and saw that Kendra was on one side of the room, glaring across to the other side at Simone, who was glaring back with a look that promised harm. Simone had had it out for Kendra ever since her failed attempt to woo Kodi. To my knowledge Simone and he had never dated but she still held a possessive air about her whenever it came to him. Not feeling up to sitting between the glare-fest, I chose to sit in the front this time and looked around for the teacher, who I didn’t find. Just then, a tall blonde who appeared in her thirties with sharp eyes the color of pale emeralds and a pointed nose walked in with a large box and set it on the teacher’s desk. She cleared her throat before announcing, “Hello, class. Welcome to Chemistry. You can find your books on your desks. Please turn to page fifty-two.” I turned around in my seat at the sound of a gasp and saw that Simone’s mouth was agape and her eyes were open slightly wider than normal. Turning back to the teacher I saw her aim an amused smile at the girl. What was all that about? Mentally shrugging it off, I watched as this new teacher wrote her name on the board and had planned to read it when she got out of my line of sight, but whatever I read didn’t register as Kodi walked into the classroom. He stopped short when he saw the teacher and like Simone, his eyes widened. Did they know something I didn’t? The teacher raised a well-shaped eyebrow at him and said, “You’re late, Kodi.”

  Kodi ducked his head almost like a small bow and muttered, “Sorry, Mother.” He looked at the whiteboard which I could see now read Mrs. Barrett and reiterated, “I mean Mrs. Barrett.” Many students in the class began to murmur to each other about Kodi’s obvious relation to this new teacher and I even heard a few grumbles that he’d probably pass the class for sure, whether he deserved to or not. Kodi ignored everyone and took the desk next to mine. I fought for control of my jumping heartbeat and couldn’t figure out why I had this reaction to him now more than ever. Mrs. Barrett cleared her throat at the class was silent once again.

  “Today we are going t
o do a simple chemistry experiment. You will not need your pens or pencils because we will be creating invisible ink. I’d like each of you to take out a blank piece of paper please.” Rustling sounded throughout the class as we did what she had asked, and I can’t deny that the prospect of learning how to make invisible ink on the first day of class was pretty cool. Thirty minutes later each desk had a flask of water that we’d mixed with baking soda and a small mobile light bulb connected to a battery pack. Next to these were long cotton swabs and the papers that she’d asked us to get out. The class was now sorted into pairs depending upon alphabetical order from the attendance sheet, which unfortunately put me with Simone. Mrs. Barrett addressed us again from the front of the room.

  “Alright, class. Everyone can pick up their cotton swabs and dip them into the solution, then use them like a pen or a paintbrush to write a message on the blank page in front of you. Any random, appropriate message will do. When you are finished, you are to switch papers with your partner, turn on the light bulb, hold the paper over the heat for a minute, and the invisible message should appear. You may begin.”

  I tried to think of what to write to Simone but I had the feeling that she’d scoff at anything I put on that paper because she didn’t really care what I had to say. I looked across at Kodi and felt my heartbeat pick up again. I hated my body’s reaction to him. Someone like Kodi would never be interested in someone like me, but I told myself that was a good thing because if I was with anyone, it would only mean an extra broken heart when my illness ran its course. My blood rushed as I imagined touching my lips to Kodi’s softly curved ones. What would it be like to kiss him? What would it be like to kiss any boy? I’d gone all throughout my previous three years of high school without finding someone that I wanted to kiss, but with Kodi, it was only too easy to imagine and that bothered me a little. Then I wondered what exactly his type of girl was. Never have I seen any guy turn Kendra down, until him. I’ve never even seen him kiss Simone, who surrounded him almost every time I’d seen him since toward the end of last year. Someone’s watch alarm went off, startling me out of my reverie and making me realize that everyone had already passed their papers to their partners, so I quickly dipped the long cotton swab into the solution and scribbled a quick song lyric before walking back to where Simone was impatiently glaring at me and tapping her foot against the desk leg. I ducked my head, fought a blush and grabbed her paper off of her desk before heading back to my own. Flicking on the light bulb, I gave it a minute or two to heat up before I held the paper over it. Slowly moving the paper back and forth, I made sure the whole sheet was well heated before placing it before me. My heart dropped to my stomach when I read “STAY AWAY FROM HIM”.