Freak

On my way home, I was able to pull myself together. It had been almost two years since my dad died, and even talking about him still would get upset me. My mom wanted me to see a therapist, but I refused. Not that there is anything wrong with going to therapy, I just didn’t want to talk to anyone about anything, let alone a stranger.

I pulled into my drive and Lady was running up and down the drive way barking with excitement. It was nice that she was always happy to see me. My mom never got home until about six, so I was home alone every day for a few hours. Sometimes I would cook supper for us. We had a lot of pizza and french fries. She didn’t mind though. I walked in the house and Lady followed.

“Hey Lady, did you miss me?” I walked over to fill her bowl with some water and food. I scavenged my kitchen cabinets for a snack. I didn’t know this, but at the alternative school, you have to bring you own lunch. So I was starving. I found a box of granola bars and I devoured one quickly. That’s when I smelt it.

I know I probably sound crazy, but I could almost swear that sometimes I could still smell my dad. Well, at least his Old Spice aftershave. I stood there for a moment afraid to move. I could feel a chill run down my spine. I wasn’t scared though. I took a big breath in and smelled the air as much as I could before the scent disappeared.

“I miss you,” I whispered. Lady looked at me like I was speaking to her. Too soon, the scent was gone. All that was left were the goose bumps on my arms.

Suddenly, the phone started ringing and I jumped. Lady barked like it scared her too. I never answer the phone. I wait for the answering machine to get it. My mom knows the drill; if she calls, she leaves a message and I will hurry up and answer or call her back.

“Hello, you reached the Correll Family. We can’t take your call right now, but please leave your name and number and we will get back to you as soon as possible,” the answering machine played.

“Honey, it’s me, pick…”

“Hey,” I answered the phone before she could finish her sentence. I could hear kids playing and crying in the background.

“Hi honey, how was school? Did you like it?”

“Yeah, I guess. I get to work on my own, so that’s pretty cool.” I'm sure you figured out that I wasn’t a very big people person.

“That’s cool baby. I’m just calling to let you know I’m picking up supper for us so you don’t need to cook anything. Unless you already started, then that’s fine.”

“No, I haven’t started anything,” I replied.

“Well, Autumn is here until six tonight, so I won’t be home until about 6:20.” Autumn was a little girl that went to Little Critters.

“That’s fine. I need to read anyways. Love you.”

“Love you too baby,” she said before she hung up.

Nobody from school was permitted to bring their school work home unless it was okay by the teacher. But I was allowed to bring To Kill a Mockingbird home. According to the folder Rob gave to me, I was supposed to read only three chapters a week. Simple. I could probably read that book in one day if I tried hard enough. I grabbed a can of sprite from the fridge and went to my bedroom to start reading. Lady was right behind me.

My bedroom was my favorite room in the house. I’m not exactly sure why. There wasn’t anything special about it. There walls were painted white, and my twin sized bed took up most of my room. I had a few shelves hanging on the wall. Some held my softball trophies from a few years ago, and others held a few pictures of old friends. Friends that I hadn’t talked to in years. I really need to change those pictures, I thought to myself. I wouldn’t know what to replace them with.

I flopped on my bed and covered up with my quilt that my Grandma Correll made me when I was younger. Lady followed my lead and curled up by my feet. I held the book in my hand and looked at the cover and flipped through the pages. The copy was worn and the pages felt brittle. I flipped to the first page and started to read.

 

The next thing I knew, my mom was waking me up. I had an hour extra to sleep in the morning, but I still wasn’t use to waking up that early. During the summer, I refused to get out of the bed before noon.  “Get up baby, I brought home supper.” I got of bed and stretched. Lady mimicked me. My mom was staring at me and Lady, “I swear that dog was meant for you,” she said smiling. I smiled back.

As we walked to the kitchen I asked, “What did you bring?”

“Chinese,” she replied. I loved Chinese. It was one of my favorite.

“Awesome, I’m starving. Did you know I was supposed to bring my lunch to school?” I asked fetching the plates and forks.

“No, I didn’t. I’m sorry, I should have found out. I will pick up some lunch meats from the store tomorrow.”

We sat down at the table to eat. I had my favorites piled on the plate; vegetable chow mien, general tso chicken and crab ragoons.

“Did you know any of your classmates?” My mom asked between bites.

“No,” I answered with chewed up food in my mouth. My mom gave me a “that’s disgusting” look and laughed.

“I’m sure you like it that way,” she said giving me a wink.

She knew me so well. The fact that I knew nobody in my class was a great thing. First, it’s like starting fresh. I don’t have to worry about rumors spreading about how big of a freak I am. Second, I didn’t want to see people that would remind me how big of a freak I was.

I can’t really tell you why I don’t talk to anyone except for my mom. Maybe it’s because I can trust her. And whatever I say she won’t judge me for it, or what I don’t say for that matter. Never did she look at me with pity in her eyes after my father past. She didn’t try and say the right thing to make everything better. The truth was there was nothing anyone could say to make everything better.

Or maybe I'm just crazy.

When I stopped talking, people felt sorry for me, which is not what I wanted. After a while they all thought I was craving attention and I used my dad’s death to get it. I remember when my ex best friend Allison said that to me. I punched her in the face in the middle of class and got in a lot of trouble. After that, I was a psycho b***h. I didn’t want to talk to anyone after that.

After supper I offered to do the dishes. Mainly because we used paper plates, so I only had to clean two forks and my cereal bowl from that morning. My mom and I watched television for about an hour then we both decided to turn in for the night. My mom had to wake up a five every morning. I’m not sure how she did it. I only woke up at seven thirty and kept falling asleep on the couch. And she had to run after little kids all day. She was a strong woman.

It seemed like as soon as my head hit the pillow, I was out.

 

I woke up to the sound of rain hitting my window. I looked at my clock and it said 8:20. I had forgotten to set my alarm the night before. Luckily, I woke up before school started. I didn’t have time for a shower, so I had to deal with just washing my face. It took me almost ten minutes just scrubbing the black off my eyes, so I didn’t have enough time to put anymore back on. I would feel self-conscious all day, but I wouldn’t have had time to make a lunch. And there is no way I could skip lunch again.

Lucky for me, when I was making my lunch I noticed it stopped raining. With my lunch (peanut butter and jelly sandwich and a banana) and To Kill a Mockingbird in my hand, I ran out to my car. I nearly had to speed to make sure I would get into school on time. I wanted to get there early so I could get a backseat. But I had a feeling that all there goo goo eyed girls would be there to be closer to Rob.

I pulled in the parking area with only seconds to spare. I left my lunch in the car and just grabbed my Harper Lee novel. I noticed that I wasn’t the only one who was running a little late. The girl with short red hair was following me towards the building.

“I didn’t think I was going to make it,” she said breathlessly. I looked back and smiled at her.

I got in the building, and like I suspected, all the back seats were taken. They were all girls. I shook my head and went to the front row seat that was up against the wall. I sat sideways in the seat because I didn’t like the feeling of people behind me. It was a weird, I know.

That’s when I noticed Mrs. Gallishaw wasn’t at her desk, Rob was.

“Okay class, Mrs. Gallishaw will be late today. She has a meeting at the high school. So until then, I will be in charge.” I could hear the girls in the back whispering. “I’m going to take attendance, and when I call your name, you can retrieve your books from the table.” He looks around the room and then began. I was waiting for him to say my name, because I knew I was first. He looks at me, smiles, and then says my name, “Rayne Correll.” I smiled and went to get my books.

When we started working, it wasn’t twenty minutes when the girls from the back lined up at the desk. I’m sure they were asking simple questions. I even saw one girl smell him. I agree, he was breathtakingly gorgeous, but I wasn’t making my feelings obvious. It must have been hard being Rob Housen. I couldn’t help but laugh at the girl who smelled him. Everyone looked at me and I could feel the heat on my face. I tried to disguise my laugh with a cough, but it didn’t work.

“Everything okay Rayne?” Rob asked giving me a friendly smile. I’m sure Mrs. Gallishaw told him everything yesterday; about the tragic death of my father and how I haven’t spoken a word to anyone (besides my mother) since then. I could tell he was a little shocked. Without saying a word I shook my head.

Just before lunch came around, Mrs. Gallishaw was already back in class, and Rob took his place in the back. I’m not going to lie, I was a little disappointed about that. We had twenty minutes for lunch and most people would eat outside on these old, warped picnic tables. I went to my car to get my lunch, and I was heading back towards the building to eat inside.

“Do you want to eat out here?” A muscular guy with blonde hair asked. I smiled, but shook my head no. I noticed when I answered with a head shake; people started whispering around the table. “Why not?” He asked. I hated when people would ask me more than yes or no questions. I shrugged and hurried in the building.

A few girls ate in the building like me. Only they were looking at the eye candy more than actually eating. I pulled out my sandwich from my brown paper bag and took a big bite. I didn’t realize how hungry I was until I took the first bite. Since I was in such a rush this morning, I didn’t have breakfast. Then I felt someone sit beside me. It was the blonde hair guy.

He wasn’t ugly. He was no Rob, but he was cute. His blonde hair was cut short and he had dark brown eyes. His nose was a little large but it wasn’t distracting or anything. But I couldn’t look past the muscles. It wasn’t just because they were so big. It was also because he had no problem showing them off. He was wearing a white cutoff shirt and khaki shorts. I couldn’t help but wonder if Rob could stop a fight between him or not.

“I’m Pete,” he said extending his arms. I looked around the room and saw that Mrs. Gallishaw and Rob both were staring at us. I took his hand and shook it.

I grabbed my book and opened it so that maybe he would walk away.

“You’re Rayne, the one who doesn’t talk.” I didn’t look at him or say anything. After a moment of silence he asked, “Why?” I didn’t say anything. If he thought I was the girl who didn't talk, why the hell was he asking so many questions?

“Pete, why don’t you go eat outside with your friends,” Mrs. Gallishaw suggested. She was officially my hero.

“Isn’t the point of school to make new friends?” He asked. I could tell he was talking to her but looking at me. Something about him was giving me the creeps.

“Pete!” It took me a minute to figure out who said his name. The voice was vigorous and almost scary. It was Rob. Pete didn’t move. When I heard Rob push himself out of his chair, I stood up too. I didn’t want to be the one who started the first fight, so I went to the bathroom.

In the bathroom I was cursing Pete’s name.  I only had two bites of my sandwich and I was starving. I pressed my ear against the door and was hoping that Pete would leave. I know he was just trying to say hi, but the way he was looking at me freaked me out. I could hear Rob telling him to go outside or he was going to drag him out. Pete laughed at that. Then I heard Rob tell Pete that if he didn’t listen, that Rob had Pete’s probation officer on speed dial. I knew there was something weird about that guy. A few seconds later I heard a tap on the door.

“He went outside Dear.” It was Mrs. Gallishaw. I turned on the water and washed my hands. I didn’t use the bathroom. I just didn’t want her think otherwise.

I walked out and went back to my seat. I noticed that the girls were gone and so was Rob. It was just me and Mrs. Gallishaw. “Sorry about that. If Pete bothers you again, let us know," she paused and then added, "Or you can have your mother tell us.” I wanted to ask why he was on probation, but I knew it was none of my business. I just nodded.  Minutes later, Rob walked back in. He grabbed a book he was reading from his desk and walked over to the seat where Pete was sitting.

“Just in case,” he said winking at me. I almost fainted. Not because of the wink, but because I could smell him. He smelled like Old Spice. I looked at him almost shocked. I could feel my eyes moistened. I tried to look away before the tear fell but he caught me. “Rayne, are you okay?” I shook my head yes, even though I could feel more tears falling. “Do you want me to move?” He asked confused. I nodded. I didn’t want to be rude, but I couldn’t think when all I could smell was my father’s after shave. He got up and walked away. I wasn't that hungry anymore.

Great, now the hottest guy in my class thinks I’m a freak.

Reviews

[LochnezzMonster]

Awe!!

okay, sooo, those girls are a bit agressive. RIGHT?! lol =)) that's more creepy than pete! lmao. If it's wierdo to sit in class and feel like it's wierd to have someone sit infront of you then call me wierd! because it just it....

I like Rob already, you accepting much like her mom. I really want Rob to take on pete, because that would be super funny but. too soon? probably. I like the teacher too. I was surprised when she was nice. because that isss an alternative school so you'd think she'd be all hard-a*s on you.

Rob wearing that aftershave is kinda of sad but cute at the same time >.< I like the last part actually. because maybe she can even open up to him about that.