Six

            I pulled my legs up underneath myself as I flipped through channels on the TV aimlessly. Maybe I was a little harsh on Ethan. But I wanted him to know that I didn’t like him, and I never would. I knew that he didn’t like me�"I mean, how could he?�"but I just didn’t want him getting any ideas.

            Eventually, I got bored of TV and decided to go to bed. I had to get up early for school the next morning, and that was already hard enough to do without staying up all hours of the night.

 

{   -   -   -   }

 

            I woke up with a start�"I’d been having a nightmare. I tried to remember what the dark dream had been about, but I couldn’t recall. Still, I couldn’t seem the shake the disturbing feeling clouding my mind.

            I looked at the glowing clock on my nightstand�"6:58am. There was no point in trying to go back to sleep, my alarm clock was set for seven.

            I threw the blankets back and pulled my legs out of bed, letting my toes touch the cool hardwood floor. I sat like that for a few minutes, on the edge of my bed, resting my head in my hands. I took a deep breath, wiping the nightmare-induced sweat from my forehead. I was dreading this day completely. Seeing Brent after what happened on Friday was beyond terrifying. I knew there was no point in getting all worked up over seeing him, because there was no way I would be able to avoid it. Even if we just passed in the hallway�"didn’t even glance at each other�"it was still going to be torture. And, knowing him, that wasn’t likely. I knew that he was going to make a big scene as soon as he saw me. He was the biggest drama queen I knew.

            I went across the hall and pounded on Ray’s door, yelling at him to wake up. I had to go through this routine practically every morning, since Ray rarely ever woke with his alarm.

            “I’m up, I’m up,” I heard him yell in a groggy voice.

            I went back into my room and started getting ready for school. Around eight, I went downstairs and ate a peach and a vanilla yogurt. I didn’t really have an appetite in the morning, and I wasn’t a big fan of cereal. I had to be in the mood to eat that.

            I sat down at my brother’s lap top and checked my emails, trying to waste time. I was usually ready at least half an hour before we left for school, so I always ended up waiting around for Ray.

            Twenty minutes later, he bounded down the stairs, his hair still damp from his morning shower. That was the thing with guys�"they always took their showers in the morning. I, on the other hand, liked taking my showers at night so I didn’t go out with wet hair.

            “You ready?” he asked, grabbing his side-shoulder bag and his jacket.

            I refrained from making my usual sarcastic remark about how I’d been ready for the past half hour, and just nodded. I grabbed my purse and coat as well, and followed Ray out into the garage.

            Ray always gave me a ride to school. I had to admit, I liked the way that everyone stared as we pulled into the school parking lot. It felt nice being noticed for once in my life.

Today was different, though. I knew as soon as we pulled into the parking lot and all eyes were on me. Except, it wasn’t in the same way they were usually staring�"focused on how nice the car was, envious of the people in it. Today, people were focused directly on me, and I knew right away that the rumors had already started. I was the bad guy. I was the one everyone was supposed to hate. It looked to me that they were playing their roles perfectly, glaring at me and whispering to their friends beside them. I sunk down into my seat and stared straight ahead, refusing to let myself think about what they were saying about me.

            Ray wasn’t looking at me, and I thought he hadn’t noticed the way everyone was giving me dirty looks, but he said, “Ignore them, Heidi. Brent may have made you out to be the bad guy, but the truth will come out. And then he’s going to be the one looking like a complete a*****e.”

            Easy for him to say. I was sure I was the talk of the school. Brent and I had been the “it” couple. I knew that people would be shocked to find out that we’d broken up, and they would be thirsty for answers�"whether they were true or not.

            Ray dropped me off at the front doors and I got out of the car, hurrying through the halls with my head down. I rushed to our usual spot�"Angela, Dallas’s and mine�"which was next to the “cold” water fountain, right outside the gym doors, and a few feet away from my locker. Before I could get to them, though, the one thing I was trying to completely avoid happened�"I ran into Brent, his friends fanned out on either side of him.

            I looked up at him defiantly, my arms wrapped tightly around my textbooks, and tried to step around him. He wouldn’t have it, though. He reached down and knocked my textbooks right out of my hands. They clattered to the floor, and I noticed people all around us stopped walking to watch what was sure to turn into something interesting.

            I just shook my head, trying to belittle Brent. I wouldn’t give him what he wanted. I wasn’t going to fight back, wouldn’t give him the satisfaction. “That’s real mature, Brent,” I said, leaning down to gather my books, one-by-one. “I thought even you were better than that.”

            He kicked the rest of my textbooks out of reach. “You’re pathetic, Heidi. Stand up.”

            I felt the anger bubble up inside me, and I stood up straight, letting my books fall back to the ground. “I’m pathetic, Brent? You walk up to me and knock my books out of my arms. And I’m the pathetic one?”

            There was a crowd gathering now, and I knew they were all expecting a fight to break out. But did they honestly think I was one for fighting? And that I would fight a guy? As if.

            I watched Brent as he looked around, and I knew he was melting under the peer pressure. He was going to give the crowd what they wanted.

            He lifted his hand at me, and I was scared he was going to slap me, but I stood tall. I didn’t cower back, even though every muscle, nerve and instinct throughout my body was screaming at me to run away.

            Just as Brent’s hand swung towards me, a figure stepped in front of me and caught his wrist, grabbing it hard. I could see Brent’s face contort in pain.

            “What do you think you’re doing?” Ethan growled, twisting Brent’s wrist a little harder. His voice was so fierce, so menacing, I felt myself flinch at every word. He spoke very slowly, spitting each word in Brent’s face. “Were you going to hit a girl?”

            Brent stuttered for a moment, not sure how to answer, but he composed himself for the crowd and yanked his arm free of Ethan’s grasp. “What do you care?”

            “I suggest you walk away. Right now. Before I do something I’ll regret.”

            Ethan was a year older than Brent, and he had at least two feet on him. Brent was pretty tall, but Ethan was massively tall. Ethan was also a lot more built than Brent was, even though Brent played football. I assumed Ethan worked out often, now that I had a close-up view of his muscles.

            I was sure Brent was considering this, because he grudgingly turned and walked away, his friends close on his heels. I guess he wanted to keep what was left of his dignity.

            Ethan continued to stand protectively in front of me until Brent disappeared around the corner. The crowd began to part, everyone going back to their usual morning routines, mumbling disappointedly.

            Ethan leaned over�"still not looking at me�"and began picking up my books. He stood up and faced me, placing my books in my hands, but he wouldn’t meet my eyes.

            “Thanks, Ethan,” I said quietly. “I’m pretty sure he was getting ready to hit me.”

            “He was,” Ethan replied firmly. “I could see it in his eyes. What a coward. He would actually hit a girl, and�"and I can’t believe�"”

            “Ethan.” I could see his anger returning quickly, and I tried to calm him down. “He’s just like that.”

            He gave me a shocked look. “You’re defending him?” he asked, his voice rising in disbelief.

            “No! Of course not!” I answered quickly. “He just thinks he needs to prove he’s tough. Believe me, you are now officially number one on his hit list.”

            Ethan laughed. “Like I’m scared of that�"that…” he trailed off.

            “That what?”

            He pursed his lips in thought. “I can’t think of a word mean enough to describe him.”

            The sound of first bell drowned out my laughter.

            “I’m sorry I had to do that, though,” Ethan said.

            “Why? You were helping me.”

            He hesitated before he answered. “I don’t like fighting. I mean, I was obviously going to protect you�"even if things got physical between Brent and me. But I would regret it later. I just… I feel more safe being completely in control of myself.”

            I nodded, understanding. “Well, thank you. I appreciate it. I should get to class now.”

            “Me too,” Ethan replied, and this time, he was the first one to walk away.

            I realized then that I had misjudged Ethan completely. I thought I knew him. I thought I knew his “type”. But boy was I wrong. I was so far off the target, it was a wonder I had even compared him to Brent at all.

            On my way to homeroom, Dallas and Angela ran up to me, hounding me with questions.

            “Whoa, guys. Slow down! One at a time,” I said, putting my hands up in front of me. They took their places on either side of me and we headed to class.

            “Okay, what the hell happened Heidi?! We were waiting for you by the fountain and people were walking by, talking about a fight between you and Brent? Dallas and I were freaking out!” Angela’s words were rushed.

            I explained to them everything that happened as we took our seats in English.

 

{   -   -   -   }

 

            I had to wait until lunch before I got to see Dallas and Angela again. We sat down at our usual table, closest to the window. A few of our other friends sat with us every day, but they were barely involved in our conversations.

            Dallas leaned forward on the table, intently listening to me explain the story again. They wanted to make sure they had it right.

            “Wait, so what did this Ethan character say?” Dallas asked, his tone critical.

            “He told Brent to walk away, before he did something he would regret!” I exclaimed, frustrated that I had to repeat myself for a third time.

            “I don’t like him,” Dallas replied, sounding final.

            “Dallas! He was standing up for Heidi! You would’ve done the same thing if you were there. Except, you probably would’ve had much less self control and you would’ve lashed out at him,” Angela said.

            “Humph,” was all that came from Dallas in reply.

            I suppressed a laugh towards Dallas’s jealousy, knowing that Angela wasn’t finding the situation humorous. I had to remember that she was practically in love with Dallas�"if not that�"and I had to be more aware of her feelings.

            As I picked at my lunch, I was vaguely aware of the way Dallas and Angela acted around each other. Angela was clearly head-over-heels for Dallas, but he seemed oblivious to the fact. I thought to myself that, in his own way, he seemed to be infatuated with Angela too. Some of the little things he did made it seem like he cared about her a bit more strongly than a friend would. Like the way he gave his chocolate pudding to her everyday�"just because he knew she loved it�"but always opened it for her first, saving the chocolate-covered lid for himself. Or the way he would always subconsciously scoot in closer to Angela whenever they were deep in conversation, but he would never move away from her once they were done talking.

            I had a feeling that Dallas really liked Angela, but his feelings for me were too overpowering for him to realize it.