Happenstance Read Free

if everything was okay at home. It had to be so frustrating to be in her
position. Gina had a bad temper, and she was a mean drunk, but DHS had been
called a few times before and they could never find a good enough reason to
save me. Mrs. Pyles always seemed to be in a mood the day after DHS made a
surprise visit to my home. It had occurred to me that she might be the one
reporting Gina, but I’d never asked. It didn’t matter, and no one should have
to answer for trying to protect someone.
    First period was Mrs. Merit’s Advanced Biology class, and I
shared it with Brady Beck. Four students sat at assigned seats around five
round tables with black counter tops, carved with initials and pluses or
hearts, the abbreviation “Sr.” followed by every year since 1973, and inappropriate
pictures.
    I sat in my seat at the middle table and watched other students
filter in. Brady and his friend Brendan ran in just before the bell rang,
sliding into their seats with shit-eating grins on their faces. They were both
at the corner table. Brady had traded spots with Andrew at the beginning of the
year so he could face me and mouth things like whore or skank .
Sometimes he said it out loud, but Mrs. Merit wasn’t one of the teachers that
minded if I was bullied.
    Once the shrill beeping of the bell ended, Mrs. Merit offered
them an annoyed smile, and began setting up for the lesson.
    Sara Glen sat across from me at our table. She was only chatty
with me when she wanted to tell me what rumor was spreading about me that day,
like when Brian Grand began a discussion in health class about how disgusting
it was that I wore the same dirty jeans every day.
    I had two pair that I’d found at the Second Hand, and they looked
nearly identical. Once I’d spilled something on them two days in a row, and
because of work, I didn’t have time to take them to the Laundromat. That was
when Brian noticed, and I couldn’t argue, because it was true.
    “Erin,” Sara whispered. She put her elbows on the table and
leaned in. “I heard you got fired from the Dairy Queen for spitting in Sonny’s
ice cream. People are saying you have AIDS and were trying to give it to her
out of spite.”
    “AIDS. That’s a new one,” I said, doodling in my notebook.
    “So it’s not true?”
    “No.”
    “Which part?”
    “All of it.”
    Sara seemed satisfied, so she returned her gaze to the teacher.
    “Spring break is the week after next, people,” Mrs. Merit said. “We
have a mid-term test. I’ll hand out the study guide a week from today. Look it
over.”
    Mrs. Merit’s study guides were the questions and answers, albeit
worded slightly different, of the test, in order. Even though it was supposed
to be an advanced class, studying consisted of memorization, so it didn’t
surprise me that Sara didn’t know AIDS couldn’t be transmitted through a little
bit of spit. A percentage of the girls in our class hadn’t even gotten to
graduation before getting pregnant, so basic biological knowledge didn’t seem
to be a priority among these students. Or maybe there just wasn’t enough to do besides
stand around and drink at bonfire parties at the Diversion Dam or have sex.
    Lunch came and went, then I had fifth period Health class—my
least favorite—with the Erins. I had third period Calculus with Alder, but she
didn’t speak to me without her cohorts around. Brady was in fifth period, too,
but he typically left me alone to pick on Annie Black, a sweet and incredibly
smart junior with cerebral palsy. He did an Annie impression every time she
passed him in the halls. Only a few people called him out on how disgusting he
was. He was born into one of the most affluent families in Blackwell, and his
parents were pillars of the community. His father had donated hundreds of
thousands of dollars to the school, and his mother was a rather rabid bitch and
shrieked to her good friend the superintendent whenever someone dared instruct
her son on rules or common