The Schoolyard

Jenna looked over at the deserted courtyard and her eyes dropped. It had been this way since the beginning of last term. She didn’t know what had come over them. Or her. She packed up her lunch, uneaten, and walked slowly to the locker room. Doubtless she will see the fleeting shadows of fleeing people in the windows and when she will enter the room, doubtless it will be empty �" soulless. A few locker doors were still swinging out, creaking slowly as if to say, ‘Help, help.’ But Jenna walked past it all, not noticing anything but the shiny blackness of her shoes. She thought she saw the blueness of eyes peering around the corner. But it was impossible, she reminded herself, she hadn’t even seen them out of class since last term. Even the teachers tended to avoid her.

 

She sighed resignedly. It was Friday. She just needed to get through the last couple of hours. Then she’ll be home, among the people she knows and loves. She stared at the clock One hour fifty minutes, one hour forty-nine minutes, one hour forty-eight minutes…It droned on in her head, endlessly, ruthlessly and she sat there, her head in her hands, tuning out as to only hear the monotonous tone in her head counting down one hour thirty four minutes, one hour thirty three minutes. She could see the teacher’s mouth moving slowing, his full concentration on some blank space of wall behind her. One hour twenty seven, one hour twenty six. She tried to concentrate on the list of problems before her but they seemed to grow blurry and fuzzy. She glanced around the classroom. Everyone seemed to be sturdily ignoring her. The teacher, who was going around helping the struggling students never seemed to pass her table. One hour eleven, one hour ten. She found herself tapping in rhythm to the ticking of the clock.

 

She wanted to scream. She wanted to ask what was so wrong about her that they would ignore her for so long. But she was afraid �" afraid that if she opened her mouth to scream, her secrets would all come out before she could stop them. And then it would really be time to run away.