The Friend Read Free

to cry. As much as her mother’s comments stung, it hurt more that her
mother made no attempt to follow her and smooth things over.
    Listening to the sound of the television continuing
to blare in the living room, Splendor hugged her precious Aggie and felt
humiliated. She lay on her bed and stared at the cracked ceiling. Gradually, her
embarrassment turned to anger at herself. How stupid could she be? Why did she
persist in looking to her mother for approval? When was she going to learn that
her mother was never going to praise her? Sometimes, Splendor really felt that
her mother’s only pleasure was running her own daughter down.
    Getting up off the bed, Splendor admired her
reflection in the little mirror over the dresser. She liked her new look. It didn’t matter what her mother thought. In the
past, her mother’s scorn and disparagement had made Splendor feel smaller. She
wasn’t going to give her mother that power anymore.
    She wasn’t going to be deterred, either. She was
going to carry on with her plan.
    Turning on her computer, Splendor googled Sunrise
Salutation Yoga Studio and looked at the class schedule. As she scanned the
website, she was excited to find that they had an introductory offer for
potential members. She could afford that.
    Maybe she would see Piper there.

    P iper
loved her yoga class. The instructor led them through a routine of simple and
more challenging sequences while sharing interesting information about anatomy
as well as meditation and relaxation techniques. Beginners were always
welcome.
    This morning, Piper noticed that there was someone
new in class. An overweight girl with a dark complexion and unruly blond hair
had laid down her mat at the far corner of the studio. Piper identified,
remembering when she had started practicing yoga. She had gravitated to the side
of the room as well, not wanting to call attention to herself. Now, Piper didn’t
care where she laid her mat. Most often she found herself right next to the
teacher at the front, in the only spot left, because she was the last one to
arrive—a minute or two before class began.
    The teacher asked the new student her name.
    “Splendor,” the young woman answered in a soft
voice.
    “I’m sorry,” said the instructor. “I didn’t hear
you.”
    “Splendor.” The voice was more forceful this
time.
    “Welcome to our class, Splendor. Today, just do as
much as feels comfortable. Don’t push yourself. Some of the people here have
been coming for a long time. Don’t worry if you aren’t able to keep up or do
everything at first. This isn’t a competition.”
    The instructor led the class through a series of
sun salutations, triangles, bends and lunges. She explained the muscles that
were being worked and gave tips for positions to try for sore backs and necks.
The teacher made a special effort to help the new student, encouraging her and
gently correcting her posture when necessary.
    At the end of the class, the students got into
corpse pose, lying flat on their backs with their hands out slightly from their
sides and their feet splayed apart. Piper loved this part of the class.
Meditation and relaxation.
    Piper closed her eyes and began to focus on her
breathing, in hopes that she would be able to clear her mind. It was always a
struggle for her, but Piper had gotten better at it than she once was. Still,
before Piper was able to let go and enter a meditative state, she found herself
thinking about the new student at the other side of the room.
    Splendor. Such a pretty name. She had never met
anyone with that name before. Now, Piper had come across it twice in the same
week. She wondered if the new girl in class could be the same one who had
friended her on Facebook. As Piper continued to inhale and exhale in even,
cleansing breaths, contemplations of Splendor evaporated from her mind.

    W earily rising from the rubber yoga mat, Splendor glanced over in time
to catch a glimpse of Piper as she slipped out of the