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This is a work of fiction. Any people, places or locations within are purely fiction and the product of the author's imagination, or their names are used to add realism and/or for satirical purposes. Their use does not constitute any type of endorsement or agreement, in part or in whole, with any belief or message, expressed, implied or otherwise inferred by the author and the story/story line, nor do they imply any endorsement of the story or author.

This story contains scenes of EXTREME VIOLENCE, mature subject matter and deals with alternative lifestyles. If you are not comfortable with these concepts and materials, STOP reading NOW. If you are under the age of seniority and consent where you live, or if these types of materials are illegal for you to read, possess or download, you must STOP reading NOW and you may NOT download this story. If you are very religious, this work will probably anger you. Do not read it. Do not download it. Hello, nice to see you, GO AWAY. You'll be more comfortable at http://www.disney.com please go there instead of here.

 

Midnight Downloads
by Wendy-J
Wendy-J@KimEM.net
© 1999-2004 Wendy-J All Rights Reserved.
Unauthorized distribution or archival prohibited.

 

Part-16
Wednesday Morning September 9^th

Jan got up at her usual Five Thirty, made coffee, and then stared out the window at the sunrise. It promised to be a beautiful day.

"I hope Tina and Sam have a good day," Jan thought while taking in the beautiful morning. "This is going to be so hard for them. I know Linda has it all arranged, but… Will they be able to be who they want to be in the new school, or will it be another year of nightmare and torment for them? I hope it's a good year with a good start."

Jan went up the back stairs at six o'clock to wake the girls. "At least they don't have to share a bathroom," she thought as she giggled. Sam's room was the first bedroom she came to, so Jan decided to begin her morning wake-up ritual there. Looking at the bruises on the child's face made her heart go out to Sam.

"Such a hard life for one so young and sensitive," she mused softly. Sam stirred at the sound of her voice. Jan sat on the edge of the bed and gently brushed Sam's hair out of her eyes.

"Come on, Sweetie, time to get up," she said softly as she kissed Sam's ear.

"Oh, Aunt Jan, it's you," she smiled. "For a second, I thought you were my mother."

"Does she wake you up like this?"

"No, she usually calls me from the hall. She only comes in my room like this after…" She let the sentence hang, allowing Jan to draw her own conclusions. But you could see her spirits drop at the thought.

"Well, that won't happen ever again, Sweetie; not here. Come on, rise and shine. You start a new school year today, remember?"

"Please, don't remind me."

"Oh, come now, it's not that bad. Besides, Tina will help you with your studies if you need it. Let's go, up and at 'em."

"Thanks, Aunt Jan. Um... Aunt Jan?"

"Hmmm?"

"Do I have to worry about getting into the shower first, or saving hot water?"

"No, Honey, I had an extra large water heater put in. You can go down and eat first if you want."

"Thanks. I'll see you downstairs."

As Jan left the room, she thought, "That was easy, now if I can manage get Sleeping Beauty up inside of a half an hour..."

She went into Tina's room and received the shock of her life. Tina was out of bed and in the shower already! "Well, I'll be…"

Back downstairs, Sam was making herself some oatmeal and sipping her coffee while she hummed to herself.

"That's a pretty tune, what is it?" Jan asked from right beside her.

Sam jumped. "Oh! Aunt Jan, I didn't even hear you come down the stairs! Didn't you try to get Tina up?"

"She was already in the shower when I got there!"

"I hope she's not sick," Sam chuckled, and then she looked worried.

"What's wrong, Honey?"

"Well, I just heard the heater kick in; hell didn't freeze over, did it?"

They both were laughing when Tina shuffled into the room. "Wha's so funny?" she mumbled as she made her way to the coffeepot.

"Well, apparently, some things never change," giggled Sam.

"We thought hell must have frozen over because you were already in the shower when I went in to wake you."

"Very funny. So, what's for breakfast?"

"Your maid awaits your request, your highness," Jan mocked.

"Sorry."

"Tina, are you feeling well?" Sam asked. "You never eat in the morning."

"I'm so nervous about school that my stomach is doing flips. I figured some food might help settle it down."

"How about some tea and toast?" Jan asked. "It might be your pills doing it to you."

"Tea? At this hour? I will get sick. No, thank you, but the toast sounds good. Do we have any more of your sour dough bread?"

"What pills, Tina?" Sam asked.

"Oh, I thought you knew. Dr. Bennett has me on some sort of hormone pills."

"What hormone pills?"

"Um... these," she said, handing the bottle to Sam.

"That explains a lot," she said, looking at the label.

"What?" Tina asked.

"Your mood swings is what. These things are enough to make you feel and act pregnant."

"They're just like birth control pills, aren't they?"

"Well duh! Why else do you think they keep a woman from becoming pregnant?"

"You mean they make your body think you're pregnant?"

"Mine, yes. Yours just thinks it's going through puberty all the time. That's a pretty high dose. So I guess it's more or less the same thing, though."

All of a sudden, Tina ran into the powder room and was ill.

"Well, Dr. Bennett said she might experience morning sickness as her body adjusted to the new hormone levels," Jan remarked with a smirk.

"Great -- Tina with mood swings and morning sickness. As if she weren't enough of a pill in the morning as it is," Sam said miserably.

Jan just laughed. "You love her, don't you?" Sam just nodded her head. "Have you told her?"

"No."

"Why not?"

"I want her to experience being a girl without having me hold her back from experiencing all of it. That means dates and all."

The toilet flushed and Tina came out a minute later, looking pale and rather shook up. "Mom, I don't feel so good," she said meekly.

"I know, Honey, come here."

Tina went to her mother's side.

Jan put the back of her hand on her forehead and said, "You don't have a temperature, Honey. I think it's just morning sickness. Sit down and drink your coffee. I'll get your toast."

Sam giggled.

"What's so funny?"

"You really are getting a crash course in womanhood, aren't you?"

"Don't remind me. I really could have done without this part of it. Did you get this when you started taking the pill?"

"I'm not on it. It seems you've managed to experience something about being a woman I never have. That's why I was laughing."

"Oh, just ducky. So tell me, how did you know what the pills were if you've never taken them?"

"Oh, my Mom decided to put me on the pill when I had my first period. I just never started taking them," Sam said. "The dosage was about one tenth of the one you're on, though. Besides, it's one of the things they cover in Sex-ed."

"Cheer up, Honey," Jan said, handing Tina a plate of dry toast, "it goes away in about a half an hour. Here, eat your toast. It'll help settle your stomach."

Tina munched her toast and sipped her coffee as Sam and Jan exchanged amused glances. This really was going to be an interesting year.

Sam had a leisurely breakfast while she chided Tina about having morning sickness and having to get up so early to get ready for school. Janice just sat there and soaked it all in. This was exactly what she had desired all those years ago, two or more children in the house at the same time. She was saddened that they were so close to leaving home, but glad to be able to experience it, if for only a short while.

When Sam and Jan finally shooed Tina up to get ready for school, Janice turned to Sam and said, "Your mother will be coming here tonight. I'm not letting her back to that house until your father is stable enough to be trusted with her at home."

"Thanks, Aunt Jan, I can't tell you how relieved that makes me."

"You had a rough time of it yesterday, didn't you?" Sam just nodded her head. "You know, if you need to talk about it, I'm here for you."

"I know; I'm really okay with it for the time being. Tina was a big help yesterday. I do want to get into therapy, though. Aunt Jan, I don't want to be like him… that scares me more than anything else in the world. Could you help me find a good therapist, please?"

"I'll make some phone calls and find you someone as soon as I can. Brandy said she knows some really good domestic abuse specialists. I'll get some names and do a couple of preliminary interviews for you if you like."

"I'd like that very much. Thanks. Oh sh... shoot! Look at the time!"

"I heard that," Jan said with a smile. "Now get a move on."

**********************

Tina had managed to pick an outfit, get dressed in it and have her makeup done. She was finishing her hair when she heard the sounds of elephants on the back stairs.

She smiled and yelled over her shoulder, "If you want a ride to school you'd better get a move on, I'm leaving in fifteen minutes!" An incoherent scream was her only reply.

By the time she had her hair done, Sam was standing in the door to Tina's room. "Hey sis! Ready to go?"

Tina looked over to the door as she stood up. "Yep, you goin' like that?"

"Yeah, what's wrong with it?" She was wearing black cargo pants, black Nike sneakers, a black oversized concert t-shirt, and a fatigue jacket. Her hair was still damp and slicked back.

"Nothing, I was just curious. So do I say 'he' or 'she' today?" Tina asked with a smile.

"Wouldn't you like to know? Hey, you look cute!" Tina was wearing hip hugging bell bottomed jeans, a white oversized sweater, and a pair of pink canvas sneakers.

"Thanks, who says boys don't notice? Got your books?"

"Books? What books? It's the first day."

"A loose-leaf notebook so that you can take notes on what materials you're going to need, a phone book for all the names and phone numbers of your girlfriends and a pen or two to write with. Those books."

"Oh, uh...I um..."

"Yeah, I thought so. Here, have a notebook and a couple of pens." She took the items off her dresser and handed them to Sam. Remember, you aren't carrying a purse anymore. Everything goes in your pockets, or you carry it in your hands. And what ever you do, DON'T CLUTCH YOUR BOOKS TO YOUR CHEST!"

"Yeah, uh... thanks."

"C'mon bro, I'm driving." Tina picked up her purse and her books and headed downstairs.

Sam followed her, watching appreciatively. Janice met them at the bottom of the stairs with lunch bags and five dollars for each of them. "I know, you're big kids now and don't want to carry your lunches; just indulge me, okay? I love you both. Be careful, make lots of friends and get smart."

"Thanks, Mom," Tina said as she gave her a kiss on the cheek.

"Thanks, Aunt Jan," Sam said as she reluctantly gave Jan a kiss on the cheek as well.

Tina grabbed her jacket from the hall closet near the door and went out to the car with Sam following close behind, still staring at that cute little...

**********************

They arrived at the school with plenty of time to spare. Both teens got out of the car to stares of appreciation. They made their way to the school office where they were given campus floor plans, a schedule of their classes and the usual emergency contact forms to be filled out in triplicate.

"So, where's your first class, Tina?"

"I don't know... um… looks like the main building, room 212. It's, um... Khuehle! Modern keyboard theories! Thank you, Linda!"

"Umm... Tina, I hate to burst your bubble, but I don't think they mean computer keyboards."

"Huh? But...oh! Well...that's okay; I always wanted to learn piano. Where's your first class?"

"Uh... I have a calculus class in room 114. Oh well...at least I get the hard stuff out of the way first."

"What time's your lunch, Sam? I have it at Eleven forty."

"The same! Hey, we'd better get to homeroom. I'll see you at lunch, okay?"

"Yeah."

The two left the school offices and headed off to their respective homerooms. Sam strode the halls with a nonchalance that belied her apprehension with being new in school and her unfamiliarity with the role that she'd set herself up to play. Did she really want to be so totally androgynous? Was it necessary to take it to the extreme she had planned on taking it?

"Let's just play it by ear and see what happens," she said to herself. "It's a new year, at a new school, and I've got a new attitude."

Tina headed down the hall, staring at the map in her hand, oblivious to the stares that followed her as she made her way through the milling throng of students. The girls who stared at her did so with contempt or petty jealousy. The guys just gawked. Several of the boys got elbows in the ribs or notebooks over their heads from their girlfriends for their trouble.

"Where the hell is room 314?" she thought. She went up to the third floor and started counting down the numbers. Where room 314 should have been was a dim flight of stairs going up. "There it is," she thought, "at the top of the stairs." She climbed the stairs and froze in the doorway to the classroom. The teacher, easily into his fifties, overweight and balding, was leaning back in his chair, his feet on the desk and a smile on his face. It was obvious he liked being there.

In the room, chaos reigned. Paper airplanes and balls sailed back and forth. People were yelling over each other to be heard. It was complete and utter chaos. Tina looked down at her roster and back up at the number on the door. She wanted to run. Before she had the opportunity to debate the issue, a strangely familiar and wonderfully mellow voice sounded in her ear.

"Hi, new here?"

She turned a bit to her left and looked up into a brilliant pair of very familiar blue eyes.

"Umm... Tina, right?"

The shock was almost too much for her. Those eyes... that voice... her knees started to get weak. "Who is he?" her mind raced, looking for the answer. Her head swam with conflicting emotions.

He saw the flicker of recognition in her eyes as she searched her brain for his name. He placed his arm around her shoulders and started to lead her into the classroom.

"I'm B…"

SLAP!!!

The sound her hand made as it connected with the side of his face was explosive. The room fell silent in the instant it took the sound to stop reverberating throughout the room. The cliché, "You could have heard a pin drop." was true. You could.

"Brad, or should I say Bradley?" she finished for him. "You work over at the 'Super Mart.' You always work on Saturdays. Yes, I remember. But I do not remember ever giving you permission to lay a finger upon my person. I really don't know who you think you are, but I am definitely not your girl, your property, nor am I anyone you want to mess with. Is that understood BRAAAD?" She drew his name out, making it sound like an insult.

"Oh, and if I find that I've cracked a nail in my attempt to keep your meat hooks off my person, I suggest you find another planet to inhabit. This one will have become too small for the both of us! Is that understood?!?"

The words were delivered with a rapid, precise staccato that any rapper would have been proud to be able to replicate. Its quiet vehemence let you know she meant business and was not a lady to be trifled with. Her body language was strangely reminiscent of Felicia Rashad of the "Cosby Show."

The sting from her palm and finger tips shocked Tina. Had she really slapped him and told him off in front of the entire homeroom class? On her first day?

"Oh no. Please tell me I didn't do what I think I just did," she prayed silently.

Brad stood there in dumbfounded silence, the outline of a hand showed vividly in an angry red on the side of his face. The imprint was starting to swell. He reached up and gently ran his fingertips over the welt on his face. He just stood there, staring wide-eyed at this heavenly creature who had so soundly and finitely shut him down. Never had he seen such fire, such spark, such beauty. He was totally captivated.

The class just stood and stared open-mouthed at the new girl. Then a lone girl's voice was heard from the back of the room.

"Yeah! You go, girlfriend! Shut him daooown!"

And the raucous roar was back. Only this time it had a focus: Tina.

The teacher, finally on his feet, came to the door and said, "Welcome, I'm Mr. Mateo; you are?"

"Tina, Tina Wilson."

"Hello, Tina Wilson. I teach sculpture and pottery. I see you've already met Mr. Bradley Thorndike. We were about to get started here. Please, have a seat anywhere you're comfortable. Mr. Thorndike, I believe you now have an appointment with Ms Watson. I suggest you get there post haste."

Brad just stood there, staring at Tina. The look in his eye was not malevolent; it was, if anything, awe.

"Fantastic, she's absolutely fantastic." His mind raced on, looking for an excuse to stay in the room and view his "Goddess" for a moment more.

"Mr. Thorndike, I don't think you want me to say it again, do you? Or will I need to call security and have them escort you?"

"Yes, sir," he said slowly, "I just..."

"Left your jacket inside over the summer? Get moving!"

"Yes, sir," he said, then left after giving one more long gaze at Tina as she made her way to a seat in the back of the room.

"This is going to be a looong year," Tina thought morosely as she slowly made her way through the raucous crowd, searching desperately for a seat away from everyone.

All the students she passed seemed to be either congratulating her on her handling of Brad or telling her how great it was to finally see someone do something about the class lecher. The noise and attention were unbearable.

Among the empty desks scattered throughout the room she spied a seat in the back row by a pottery wheel. It was between two girls. They both beamed smiles in her direction and said nothing. One was of African descent, the other was somewhat exotic looking; not quite Caucasian, but not any race Tina could put her finger on, either. Tina opted for this seat. They seemed quiet and nice enough. She made her way through the throng of well-wishers and sat, putting her books on the desk.

Tina put her arms on the top of the desk, put her head in her hands and sighed, looking almost like an ostrich burying its head in the sand.

"Hey, girlfriend, Illigitimi non Carborundum."

"Huh?"

"Don't let the bastards get you down," she said with a smile. "They ain't nuthin', just a bunch 'a animals." It was the African American girl on her right.

"Yo, 's like rad' the way you shut him down, Girl. I mean..."

"Thanks, I think. I just…"

"Ain't no thang." Then the façade dropped. "Look, that creep's been hittin' on us girls since ninth grade, right? So, like, he makes everyone's skin crawl, right? So like, you're the first one to be so…straightforward about it. I mean…it was epic, truly epic. Way - to - go!"

"Great, I just shut down the master lecher of the school in front of a room full of strangers and all I wanted to do was have a nice, quiet, senior year. This - is - just - great."

The girls just stared at Tina, not believing their ears.

"That was you, after I slapped him, wasn't it?" Tina asked quietly, looking at the dark skinned girl.

"She gets an 'A' for intuition. Hi, I'm Leticia, and the quiet one here on your left is Rochelle. Kinda weird name for a Japanese American, but she's okay. Don't mind her none; she's just a mathematical genius and an electronics wizard. She don' say much, but when she does, I generally listen."

Tina swivelled in her seat to look at Rochelle. Rochelle just smiled and averted her eyes.

"Hi, Rochelle," then she turned back to Leticia, "Hi Leticia, I'm pleased to meet you; I'm Tina."

"Shit! Get the manners, Ro! Daaamn! Relax, Girl, I can see we gon' be good frien's."

The bell rang and Mr. Mateo finally started to bring order to the chaos around him.

"All right, people! Simmer down; you have all year to catch up on your friendships. Let's get down to business."

No-one paid any attention to him. So, he calmly picked up an unabridged dictionary, lifted it over his head and slammed it down on his desk and yelled, "HEY!"

The thunderclap of the book, combined with his shout, brought the startled students to a semblance of order.

"Thank you," he said politely, which earned him a titter of laughter from some of the girls in the room. Then he continued in a bored monotone reciting what had obviously become a well rehearsed welcome to school for the semester speech.

"Now, as most of you are aware, we have forms for you to take home. They include emergency contact information, medical advisory cards and the like. Everyone should have gotten a class schedule in the mail. If you did not, please raise your hand." Everyone just sat and stared at the balding, overweight teacher.

"Good. Most of you know everyone else. If you're new, pay attention; it's the easiest way I know to introduce you to everyone. As I read the roll, please raise your hand and say 'here,' 'present,' or something to otherwise acknowledge your physical presence in the room. Those of you on other mental planes, this includes you, too," Again, he was rewarded with the expected titter of laughter.

"Don't laugh, someone once used that excuse. Now…" he continued on with a bit more life as he started to read from the class roster, taking pains to try and pronounce the names correctly and spelling the name if he wasn't sure of its pronunciation.

"Why me?" Tina moaned. "What in the world did I ever do to deserve this?" She hadn't heard a word the teacher said. He'd called her name a third time before Lee elbowed her in the ribs to get her attention back into the room.

"I'm sorry to disturb you, Miss Wilson, but unfortunately you do have to come back to earth for classes. I'm sure Mr. Thorndike won't be here for the rest of the week to bother you. Would you please raise your hand and acknowledge your presence in the room when I call your name?"

Again the titter of laughter ran through the room. This time Mr. Mateo glared at the rest of the class.

"Yes, Sir. I'm sorry."

"No need to apologise, just respond. Tina Wilson?"

"Here, Sir," Tina said raising her hand and blushing furiously.

"Thank you, Tina. I'm sorry for the unseemly welcome to the school you received this morning. Please try to give us the benefit of the doubt. We aren't all neanderthals."

**********************

A few minutes before, Sam approached her homeroom class. The butterflies in her stomach just wouldn't settle down. Glancing at the map then back at her class schedule, she continued through the hall, the milling students seemingly ignoring her.

"At least that much hasn't changed," she thought as she walked.

"Room 201... there it is. 'Homeroom, room 202, Miss Buckler," she read off the sheet in her hand. "What a name. She sounds like a real winner."

Walking around the groups of students, she entered the classroom. Its quiet order and discipline was almost terrifying. No-one spoke above a hoarse whisper. Nowhere was there any evidence of the unbridled enthusiasm typical of high school students nearing graduation. It was more like a modern office than a classroom. There were computer terminals on every desk. The desks themselves were small computer tables and were twice the size of the standard school desk. They had adjustable keyboard trays and the chairs were fully adjustable with large casters to allow the student to move easily from the writing surface to the keyboard. The cabling for the computers ran down through the desk legs and into specially designed portals in the short, tight weave of the indoor-outdoor carpeting that covered the floor. The lighting was nowhere near as bright as she would have expected in a classroom.

A diminutive woman in an early 1960's style dress and makeup sat at the teacher's desk. Noticing Sam enter, she motioned the teen to approach her the desk.

Sam gulped, smiled a wan smile, and made her way to the desk.

"Good morning, am I to assume you're Sam Boone?" Her voice was high pitched, almost sounding like a falsetto. Her face was round and open, her eyes a sharp, clear blue. Miss Buckler's gaze seemed to be able to penetrate lead.

"Um...yes, Ma'am?"

"Dear, if you don't know who you are, I suggest you stop picking fights and let your cranium rest and heal. I am Miss Buckler." She said it as though there should be some significance attached to the name. "I teach English Literature, Theatre, Speech and Drama. You are in my third period Theatre class. Here is a list of the homeroom rules, the more important of which are:

"Before the bell, you may talk quietly and move among yourselves.

"After the bell, there is to be no talking and all students will take their assigned seats. Yours is the third one back, by the window.

"I will not tolerate tardiness. You will receive a one-hour detention for each unexcused tardy. Three tardies and you have a two-hour detention with me.

"Is this understood?"

"Yes, Ma'am."

"You will find that I am stern, but equitable. If you have a disagreement with something I've said, or a grievance with a punishment I have decided to levy, I expect you to bring it to my attention, in private, in a well thought out, concise manner. Do you think you can abide by that?"

"Yes Ma'am."

"Sam, rowdies are not tolerated in my classes. I don't generally pass judgement on an individual's appearance; however, from the look of your face, I felt compelled to say something. I have not judged you and found you lacking, I am just warning you that I will not tolerate disturbances in my classroom. I shall never comment on your appearance or attire. My preferences in a student's grooming are of an earlier age and considered somewhat Victorian by your peers. My only requirement is that your clothing be clean and well maintained. Ragged, or torn clothing shall not be tolerated. You have a clean slate here with me. Your actions, in my presence, shall determine my attitude toward you. Is that understood?"

"Yes, Ma'am."

"Very well; please take your seat. I hope you find your experience at Cliffside to be a richly rewarding and enjoyable one."

Sam smiled politely and said, "Thank you, Miss Buckler, so do I. It has been a pleasure making your acquaintance and I hope not to fail your trust in me."

Sam's response was not what Miss Muriel Buckler would have expected from the young tough in her presence. Indeed, it was a pleasant surprise. This individual would bear watching.

**********************

The rest of the morning passed uneventfully for the pair. Sam had to make up a reason for her black eyes and bruised face. She said she got in a fight over turf in her neighbourhood. Nothing too grandiose, just saying that she barely held her own... but that she apparently got the worst of it. Tina just melted into the woodwork after homeroom.

By the time lunch period arrived, Tina was hungry. She made a beeline for the cafeteria in the basement, snagged a Coke from a vending machine and, finding an empty table in the back in the corner by the door, opened her lunch bag and looked at what her mother packed for her. Two plain egg salad sandwiches, a small bag of chips, a tangerine and a couple of paper napkins. She smiled; Mom always packed a decent lunch. Nothing spectacular, but it was always tasty. Just as she was getting ready to take a bite of her first sandwich, Sam sat down beside her.

"What's for lunch?" Sam asked.

"Gallus domesticus ova salad sandwiches, thinly sliced and fried solanum tuberosum chips and finger balls," Tina joked, wiggling her finger at Sam. Tina had pierced the end of her tangerine with the talon of her right index finger, successfully spearing the fruit at its centre. The effect was to make the orange fruit appear as described, a finger ball.

"Has anyone ever told you what a gross sense of humour you have?"

"All the time. Since when did you start drinking Mountain Spew?"

"Since they're out of Choke."

"Oh."

"I've been hearing some interesting rumours all morning."

"Like what?"

"Who do you have for homeroom?"

"Mateo, why?"

"Is there anyone else new in your homeroom?"

"Yeah, some guy named Jon."

"No girls?"

"No! I told you, the only other new person in the class was some guy. Why? What's going on?"

"Well…rumour has it that some new, really hot, senior babe slapped the heart throb of the freshmen set upside the head and got him suspended. According to the guys in my music appreciation class, he's a real sleaze-ball senior named Bradley Thorndike. Any comments on this interesting series of events, 'New, Really Hot, Senior Babe?'"

Suddenly, Tina had no appetite at all. Her face went pale. "Already?" she squeaked.

"So it was you! Hey, Doll-face, depending on whom you're talking to, this guy is either super hot or lower than whale dung. Most of the girls in school are dying to get him to go out with them and all the guys hate him. If a girl turns him down, it's news. If a girl shuts him down, it's the lead story on CNN. You, My dear, are the lead story on both CNN and the news at five; the front page, above the fold, headline story in the early AND late editions; and the ONLY topic on the Front Lip!"

Tina looked like she was going to cry. "But he…"

"As I hear it, he's a real lecher. He dates a girl till he gets a piece, then he moves on. You done good, Kiddo."

"Yeah, 'I done good.' I made the front page, above the fold, for all the gossips in school. Now, the question is 'What makes her so special that she shuts him down so hard?'" Hell, Sam, he put his arm around me and was trying to parade me around like I was his property or something, so I slapped him."

"Uh huh, you just slapped him."

"Well..."

"Do the words 'I suggest you find another planet to inhabit' ring any bells?"

Tina started to cry.

"Hey Tina! Wha'sup? Whoa! Yo dude, what gives? Wha'chall doin' t' mah homey heah?"

"Hey! Chill! She's just upset about making the Front Lip of all the gossips on her first day. Hi, I'm Tina's friend, Sam."

"Leticia; sorry 'bout that. C'mon, girl, we goin' powder that pretty nose." With that, she grabbed Tina by the arm and all but dragged her into the girl's room across the cafeteria.

Sam just shook her head, pulled a sandwich out of her bag and began to eat it. After her second bite, she felt like she was being watched. She looked up to see a pretty girl standing there, tray in hand, staring openly at her.

"Leticia and Tina were here, weren't they?"

"Yeah, they went to, uh, powder their noses."

"Oh."

She continued to stand there and watch Sam eat. "You gonna sit down, or just stand there till moss starts to grow on you?" asked Sam.

"Um... Can I?"

Sam lost it. Between guffaws she said, "Sit down already. I'm..." she started to choke on the food that she was trying to swallow, "uh hem... I'm Sam. Who are you?"

"I'm Rochelle. Thanks for sharing the table."

"It's a free country. You're friends with Leticia and Tina?"

"I uh…guess."

"Tina I can believe, but Leticia? You two are like fire and ice. You couldn't get two more dissimilar personalities."

"Hey, she's okay," Rochelle said, coming to the defence of her friend. "She just does that to protect herself."

"From what?"

"Well, there aren't too many African Americans in the school, in case you haven't noticed. She puts on a really hard front to help insulate herself from the assholes. She's really nice when you get to know her."

"Sure. Hey, you in Tina's homeroom?"

"Yeah."

"So what happened in there?"

"Lee! You guys all right?" Ro shouted across the room. Leticia was leading Tina back to the table. Tina looked a little worse for the wear, having survived her first trip to a crowded girls' lavatory to have her makeup repaired.

"Yeah; the tiger lady here ain't nuthin' more 'n a pussy cat what got her tail got stepped on. Sorry for the attack, Sam."

"Hey, no prob. I was just asking Rochelle…"

"Call me Ro."

"All right; I was just asking…Ro what happened in homeroom. Tina can't or won't tell me about it."

"Dude, she was better 'n Felicia Rashad comin' down on the Cos for being stupid. I mean, she had her daooown!" then Leticia gave them a blow by blow, word for word, action by action, if not somewhat embellished, version of the morning. Sam just sat there with her mouth open, staring at Tina and Leticia in amazement.

"She didn't."

"She did, too, huh Ro?" The girl just nodded her head as she swallowed a bite of food.

"Well, I guess I can see why she made 'Front Lip' now," Sam said. "Look, Tina, relax. It'll be fine. You're pretty, you're smart and you just said that slime balls don't get anywhere with you."

"But…"

"Just finish your lunch and relax. You did fine. The girls that want to date Mr. Asshole are happy you're out of the running and the ones that he's pissed off are gonna line up to be your friend. You have arrived. Right, Ro?" The quiet girl just nodded her head and swallowed again. "See? Even Ro agrees. Relax."

Tina felt much better after she ate her lunch. And it was nice to have company, just to chat about the morning's events. Ro finally opened up a bit and proved that she had a bit more of a personality than a fly on a wall and was actually fun to talk to. Leticia finally dropped the militant front and revealed the refined personality that was under the surface. It really was a pleasant experience for Tina.

When they'd finished their lunches, the four teens left the cafeteria together to walk around the school grounds and relax before their afternoon classes. Near the end of the period, Leticia took Tina into the girls' room to "Fix their makeup."

While Tina and Leticia went to the girls' room, Sam and Ro chatted by the doors to the practice field. Sam leaned against the wall in a typical male slouch, while Ro stood facing her, her books clutched to her chest. They could watch the doors of the restrooms from there while they waited.

The practice field was the old football and baseball field just outside the school's main building. It was where the Phys-Ed classes were held. It became too small to use for games when they tore down the grandstands and built the new auditorium, so a new field was constructed several blocks away. The new sports field had six tennis courts, two baseball diamonds -- one with grandstands and one without -- a football field with grand stands, and a field large enough to play soccer or field hockey on when the main football field was in use.

"You aren't a guy," Ro said. It was a statement, not a question.

"Why do you say that?" Sam asked nonplussed.

"You listen, I mean really listen. You talk as if you know what it's like to have a guy hit on you, you understand the um…politics of girls and dating and you don't stuff your face when you eat. Besides, your nails are clean and neat, your hands small and delicate and you don't have an Adam's Apple."

Sam just shrugged it off. "Yeah, well…"

"Don't worry, I won't tell. Where'd you get the battle scars? Home?"

"Yeah, my father."

"That sucks."

"Yeah; I'm living at Tina's place now, though. Her Mom's really cool; she paid my tuition here and she's putting my Mom up while my Dad gets help."

"Way cool. So what's it like pretending to be a guy?"

"Actually, I'm not pretending to be anything. I'm just being me."

"But..." For as logical or illogical as it may have sounded the incongruity made her stop and think. "So like, you're gonna use the girls' room then?"

"I don't know, haven't had to yet. Right now, all the guys think I'm one of them, so… I don't know. I think maybe I'll use the boy's room, or maybe I'll use which ever one I'm dressed for, or maybe I'll use which ever's closest at the time."

Ro giggled. "I'd love to see you in a girls' room right now. I'd bet the girls have a fit."

"I think you're right," Sam chuckled. "Here they come. Damn, she's pretty."

"Who? Lee, or Tina?"

"Both, but I meant Tina."

"So you like her?"

"Yeah, I do."

Ro giggled. "Like it both ways or just…"

"I like Tina."

"Okay, nuff said."

"You gonna tell Leticia about me?" Sam asked.

"Not unless you want me to."

"Let her figure it out for herself. It'll be fun to see how long it takes," Sam grinned.

The four spent the rest of their lunch period chatting and walking.

When the bell rang signalling the end of the period, Tina said, "I'll meet you after school by the car, okay?"

"Sounds good to me. Have fun, 'Really Hot, New, Senior Babe.' Make 'em eat their hearts out."

Tina blushed as she and the other girls headed off to class.

"Curiouser and curiouser, Alice," Sam mumbled to herself as she walked to her next class. "Curiouser and curiouser."

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Continued in Part-17

  

  

  

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