36-Brad

Finals were imminent, but all day Brad had found it damn near impossible to concentrate. When his teachers talked he saw their mouths moving, but he couldn’t hear any words coming out. Whatever they would say seemed so insignificant and so irrelevant. He had other things to think about, and most of them involved long blonde hair, a pretty smile, a kind voice, a nicely abbreviated shirt…for Brad that list could go on and on.

There was much more, though. His mind was like a series of gears, relentlessly crunching and turning, uncontrollably producing snippets of the next love notes that he yearned to write, the words delicately chosen, and the sides of mix tapes he wanted to compile, the song selections shrewd and highly scrutinized. It was frightening how he could not turn this machine off. It kept churning voraciously.

But, those were panic moves, he knew. He’d been down that path too many times. He couldn’t go down it again. He had to rise above it.

He was going to call her, just like she’d asked him to do. That was the move. It was direct, it was straightforward. That’s what he needed to be. He was going to call her, and he was going to do it that night. Not right after school, when she might be busy with her activities, but instead after dinner, say 7:30 or 8, right in that sweet spot of the night where she might be idle and looking to chat. A chat that could be a couple minutes…or an hour. Brad felt a rush of excitement sweep through him. Not only was he going to call her—he was going to ask her out. That weekend—if she was around. It would be a date. There would be no ambiguity, no mistaking it, no Jennifer Young along for the ride—it would be him and her, just the two of them, out together. Likely she’d want to go—likely she’d say yes. She’d told him to call her. Another rush of giddiness swept through him at the mere thought of it.

He couldn’t wait until that evening to call her up. He wondered how he’d pass the time until then.

Strangely, it actually helped to focus on his studies. It cooled the machine. It kept him level-headed. It passed the time. He even decided to stay after school, so he could study. In a way, he was atoning for his wild weekend—focusing on scholastics actually helped lighten his burden. It curbed the lingering trippiness.

Señora was hosting the review after school, and Spanish was his weakness—so his path was clear. School let out, and while most kids made their standard hasty exits, Brad slowly marched upstairs toward Señora Peña’s class. It was actually a good day to stay after though, as Brad heard thunder rumbling outside, and while walking past the second floor windows he saw it was starting to rain. It was just a trickle, but it looked like the skies could open up at any moment.

Señora’s room was chaotic, at a level far beyond what she normally tolerated. Mixed together in the room were students from various classes, seated randomly, some of them standing around in a lawless fashion. Brad scooted past those lingering by the front entrance and took a seat within. He noticed one of those loitering by the door was his nemesis, Lance Gill, and he stood there with a few other guys, all of them wearing shit-eating grins as they talked to some of the girls seated within. Nikki Felton stood in between, seemingly moderating the conversation. Brad couldn’t help himself from listening in. There was some kind of drama happening, it was clear.

“How do you know he’s even down there?” Sarah Pratt asked. She sat next to Katherine Lisi, who remained seated, focused on her workbook, projecting a cold disinterest in the conversation.

“Because I just saw him!” Nikki said. “Through the windows right down the hall. He’s standing by my car. He’s waiting for you, Katherine, I’m sure of it.”

She just shrugged meekly, and barely looked away from her workbook.

“Who is?” Lance asked. “Who’s waiting?”

“Joe,” Nikki answered.

“Joe who?” Lance asked.

“Pedro,” Sarah said, sharply. “Pedro is waiting.”

“Oh, Pedro’s out there? Waiting for you, Juanita?” Lance looked surprised. “What are you waitin’ for, then? You gotta get out there! Don’t leave my man hangin’!”

Sarah sent him a burning gaze, while Katherine gave a light head shake, still barely looking away from her studies.

“Aw, that’s cold. Why you gonna do like that to Pedro?” Lance asked, perplexed.

“You don’t know what Pedro did,” Sarah snapped.

“What did he do?” Lance asked.

“It’s none of your business,” Sarah answered.

“So, you’re just gonna let him sit out there all day? That’s cold, yo,” Lance declared.

“It’s starting to rain, also,” Nikki said. She gazed at Katherine with sad eyes, her face conflicted.

“Poor Pedro,” Lance said, shaking his head. “Whatever he did, it couldn’t have been that bad.”

It was quiet for a moment, and everyone looked at Katherine—but she was unflappable, refusing to acknowledge any of them.

“Are you just going to let him sit in the rain, Katherine?” Nikki asked.

“Yeah, does he need to be soaked to a certain degree, before she’ll go see him?” Lance asked, laughing. “To increase the drama?”

Laughter rippled through room, and even Sarah cracked a smile. But she dropped it fast enough.

“You guys leave her alone. It’s none of your business.” Sarah put an arm to Katherine’s shoulder, comforting her.

“Who the hell is Joe Pedro?” Brad asked to the guy sitting next to him, and in response he shrugged vehemently.

“That’s enough,” Señora said, rising suddenly from the table where she’d been conversing with a group of students. She glared at the group by the door.

“Leave, or sit down,” she told them. “No in between.”

Señora had spoken in English, which she almost never did. Thus, everyone knew it was quite serious.

Nikki, along with Lance and those other guys who’d been loitering by the door, departed immediately, while others took their seats. Señora shut the door behind them, and quiet fell over the class. Then she listed several workbook exercises on the board that the students were to practice, as the review for the final exam began. Señora stood by to answer questions.

Silence fell over the class as they started working, but still Brad had just barely started on the exercises when the door flew open with clear urgency. Señora gaped at the brazen entrance in disbelief—Nikki stood in the doorframe, huffing like she’d just been jogging down the hall.

Without words Nikki walked swiftly in the class toward Katherine and knelt by her table. She spoke softly, but in the classroom—suddenly quiet enough to hear a pin drop—everyone could hear her.

“Katherine, he’s still down there.”

“I know,” Katherine replied timidly, her face piqued.

Nikki smiled as she spoke. “Katherine, baby…he’s down there waiting for you. With flowers. Roses, even. He’s been holding them the whole time, in front of everyone. He’s standing in the rain…with flowers…waiting for you.”

Katherine’s breath went straight out of her, and she could find no words.

“Roses?” Sarah asked finally, herself in disbelief.

Nikki nodded. “White roses, it looks like. Just a few of them, too. A very special delivery for Katherine.”

Sarah gasped in disbelief. “God,” was all she could say.

“He’s not shy about it either. Seriously, he’s like the damn Statue of Liberty out there. In front of everyone.” She looked at Katherine. “He’s waiting for you, girl. He’s waiting for you.”

Sarah had wide eyes and her mouth was ajar, while Katherine’s face looked like she had simply forgotten how to talk. She actually tried to, but silence still prevailed as she clearly didn’t know what to say. So instead she looked over to Sarah, desperate for input.

“Go,” Sarah said, simply.

Katherine looked next to Nikki, who echoed Sarah’s sentiment. “Go,” she said.

Katherine stood up on her feet. Desperate, she looked over to Señora.

“Go,” Señora said, her tone firm.

That sealed it, and Brad watched Katherine walk swiftly around the table before rushing out of the room, her walk becoming a run, a clear glimmer of joy in her movement. In response, one guy in the classroom started clapping and cheering joyously, as the others laughed and then joined him.

After their cheers died down, Nikki moved to exit the classroom. “Sorry for the interruption,” she said to Señora in a meek voice.

Señora just smiled lightly and shut the door behind her. Giggles and whispers still whipped through the class, but Señora was quick to hush these.

“Silencio, por favor,” she said, and a reluctant silence fell over the class as they began to work once more.

But in the classroom, it felt strangely ominous as the heavy rain finally came during that silence, pelting the ceiling overhead, a deep drumming that caused some students to actually stop their work and look up in astonishment.

Brad was one of them, staring at the ceiling like it might fall in upon them. Then the intensity dulled, and, perhaps not at all a coincidence, Brad realized he had to go use the bathroom.

He slipped quietly out of class and walked down the hall toward the boy’s room. He was in and out quickly, but while walking back to class something caught his attention, and he froze in step. The hallway was a perfectly empty acoustic tunnel that amplified even the slightest noise. First he only heard his footfalls, but then there was something else too, like a muffled sniffle. Brad took a few steps back and peered down the stairwell to discover the source.

She sat on a step, near the landing between flights of stairs, as though she had tried but had not able to make it all the way up before the tears came. It was Katherine Lisi, of course, and she looked so tiny sitting there, her entire body compressed, hunched over, with her knees together, beneath her arms where her face was buried. She was wet too, Brad could see, as though she’d been caught outside during the downpour. Her body shook, and Brad didn’t know if this was related purely to her sobbing or if she shivered too, but either way, it was heartbreaking, and Brad felt crushed just at the sight of her.

They didn’t know each other real well, but being in the same grade they had shared plenty of classes together over the years, and in those classes they’d also been quite cordial to one another. Seeing her in this condition made him realize the appreciation he had for her, a fondness he’d unknowingly carried all along. Thus Brad didn’t hesitate in the slightest to walk lightly down the steps until he stood beside her, softly calling her name.

She reacted rapidly, trying to mask her condition, quickly wiping tears away.

“Hi, Brad,” she managed, but he saw her eyes welling up again. It was a hopeless attempt as she buried her face once more in her arms and Brad felt his heart breaking again for her.

He sat down beside her, put his hand gently on her back, and simply waited.

Her next attempt marked her recovery, as she gained composure rapidly, taking a few deep breaths in the process. She wiped her eyes with her shirt sleeves and then stood up. Peering sadly at Brad, she somehow looked both calm and rattled at the same time.

“Are you okay?” Brad asked, while standing next to her.

She nodded. Her hair was wet, with her bangs pressed to her forehead, and her eyes were red. Raindrops covered most of her shirt, and her shoulders were soaked.

“Whatever just happened to you…I’m really sorry, Katherine,” Brad said. “I’ve known you for a long time, and I know that you just…you totally don’t deserve it.”

She smiled, a brief anxious one. Then she hugged him. They stood together, on the landing between flights of stairs, their arms around one another.

“Is there something I can do? To help you?” he asked.

The hug ended, and she backed away.

“You already have,” she said finally, her eyes grateful.

Uplifted, he smiled at her, while in the background he heard the footsteps coming frantically down the hallway and growing louder. At the top of the steps Nikki and Sarah came to a screeching halt upon sight of them, and then both girls came charging downward, their footfalls echoing in the stairwell. The cavalry had arrived, it seemed, as both girls latched onto Katherine, their posture defensive, protective.

“We got it from here, Brad,” Nikki said, both her and Sarah instantly taking Katherine under their wing, already leading her downstairs.

Brad watched the three girls walking away for a moment. Katherine walked in the middle of their protective shell, but still, she turned back and looked at him.

Her eyes were still wet with tears, and a little red from crying, but they were very kind and sincere. Brad felt himself held fast by her deep gaze.

“Thanks, Brad,” she said. “You’re nice.”