Sonia Glen - 4

“I didn’t know you were friends with her.” Helena finally looked up at me. She was staring at the river so intently before. The small and rapid rain drops disturbing the normally calm and still Pool Park River. Eye shadow ran down her small rosy cheeks. If she was crying the rain hid it well. I couldn’t help notice that her eyes were almost like two glistening emerald islands surrounded by a white ocean. Her eye shadow didn’t add in to that equation. It could maybe be an oil spill. “I wasn’t, well at least not anymore. She used to come over all the time when we were kids and play with my big sister. And the three of us would play together.” Violet Graves, Helena’s big sister. Or rather Vee Graves, at least that’s what everybody else called her. I could see her being one of the popular girls that were now sitting in her college dorm crying about how their dear old friend Sonia died. She would run onto facebook and set her status as “RIP Sonia, we will miss you!” Violet was a year older then I was, so she graduated last year. Unfortunately, the fact that I lived down the street from her didn’t stop her from doing one of the worst things anyone has ever done to me.

I spotted a puddle on the ground, not a normal puddle. The type of puddle that you could lose a whole outfit to if it got the best of you. My brand new white Nike’s and I maneuvered swiftly to the side and passed the puddle. These were the type of Nikes I expected the cool kids to wear so I begged my Mother to buy them for me. It was my first day as a freshman at Frasier High. Violet was standing at the bus stop, she was wearing a jean mini skirt and a very low cut black tank top. The fact I remember this after almost three years is beyond me. Her tan legs almost conquering my eyes, it took me a while to realize that she was actually shouting my name. “Jean!” I had the fortune to go to the same middle school as Violet, and live very close to her, so naturally we were somewhat of friends.
“Are you excited for freshmen year?” Her intense blue eyes stabbing my nerves with quick precision, “I’m not sure, should I be?” I said without making eye contact. She smiled and looked at me with the most sincere of smiles, I think if I listened close enough to her smile though it would have said, “Come Friday, you’re dead kid.”
That day she sat next to me on the bus. We talked, she even ate lunch with me. Being a member of the male race instantly my first thought was “This chick wants my dick.” Of course when I ended at that conclusion no other possibilities could have existed. She couldn’t have been just being nice or trying to get something from me or maybe even SETTING ME UP FOR THE WORST DAY OF MY LIFE!
“You’re going to get sick, lets at least go under the bridge.” Helena’s eyes shot down to her feet, her head nodded. My blue hooded sweatshirt was significantly dryer, due to me sitting under the bridge for a good hour. Without even thinking I threw it off me and put it over her. The rain was so cold I could feel the hairs on my arms shiver. She smelled nothing like Sonia, even though she was soaked she smelled more like shampoo, perfume, and lotion. She smelled, normal. My backpack was still leaning against the concrete wall; the half finished novel was still sitting where I left it, staring at me. Helena collapsed on the side of the wall, leaving me standing and looking down at her. All of a sudden it sounded like a car crash happened or a bird dry heaving after a long night of drinking. It was her, Helena was crying. She wasn’t just shedding tears; the human emotion of pain and sorrow was there. I could see it. I had no idea what to do, this was all new to me. Even when she was crying she was beautiful, I comforted her.

After four days of Violet being nice to me it was Friday, I decided to ask her out. I figured having a sophomore girl friend of Violet’s caliber would definitely boost my reputation and could even help me with my lack of friends. That day things seemed different, on the bus Violet didn’t sit next to me but in the seat in front me. She said “Hi.” And “See you later!” Nothing else. I shrugged it off and decided I would ask her out during lunch. After my fourth hour class was over I trotted down the old concrete stairs, and made my way to the cafeteria. About ten huge Senior’s and Junior’s were all sitting at the table where I normally met Violet. They all looked at me with huge grins expanding on their faces. I instantly figured out what day it was, and without much thought my legs began moving. Freshmen Friday, the infamous hazing of new students in an environment they’re already not comfortable in. Pure brilliance.
I started walking away at a fast pace, from the corner of my eye I saw them all get up and start walking after me. I turned around to see them all calmly and confidently strutting towards me. “Hey yo Trotsky! You can either run and make this hard on yourself or you can turn around and get this over with.” I always did procrastinate. I bolted out the giant double doors of the cafeteria, the ten of them revved up like sports cars in neutral and ripped after me. At this point you should know I wasn’t a very small guy, I would of been confused for a sophomore or a junior. I wasn’t a boney lengthy kid; I guess I was well off in those regards. But against ten guys that were all more athletic and bigger then me, I stood no chance. My new Nikes squealed as I turned corners in the empty halls of Frasier High. My one squeal was followed by twenty or so more squeals. They kept shouting things out to me, but I couldn’t hear them. My heart was throbbing too hard and my legs were shouting at the rest of me, “DON’T SLOW DOWN YOU FUCK! RUN FASTER GO, GO, GO, GO!” I was surprised I was doing this well against ten or so athletes. One of them was definitely Jeremy Onyx, the star quarterback that the local news station has had a hard on for, ever since he made Varsity as a freshman. All of a sudden a cold chill ran down my spine, Violet peaked her head outside one of the classrooms and signaled me to come inside. I was desperate.