All the Other Days. Jack Hartley

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СКАЧАТЬ for Mrs Walker to get me to come in. There’s posters all over the walls about bullying and substance abuse. But nothing about how I feel inside my head. It makes me wonder if I really am very different from everyone? My thought gets interrupted as I see the door open. It makes me anxious. It’s like there’s a whole hive of bees buzzing about in my chest and it won’t stop.

      ‘Hey Judd, please come in,’ she says with her soft voice.

      She’s quite a tall lady with thick red wavy hair and big piercing blue eyes that stand out against her pale white skin. She must be in her mid-thirties, but she’s still quite attractive. I go in and take a seat.

      ‘How have you been since I last saw you?’ she asks.

      ‘I’ve been a lot better I guess, well especially the last few days.’

      She looks happy to hear this. ‘That’s great to hear! Any reason why this change?’

      ‘Well, I’m not too sure. I think I might have made a new friend.’ I feel the anxiety start to slip away as I begin to speak.

      ‘That’s wonderful. How did you become friends?’ she asks.

      I pause for a second because I don’t know if I should tell her about the dreams and the drawing, but I know it’s all confidential so I don’t feel as weird for saying it.

      ‘Well, I was at the park and I saw this girl, who I swear I’d seen before — and I know this might sound silly. But then I finally met her when I went to the park, and I guess we just started talking.’

      She looks at me still smiling, then I know what she’s going to ask next.

      ‘Is this friendship or do you think there’s some feelings there?’

      I laugh. ‘Well, I’d be lying if I didn’t say she’s beautiful, ’cause she really is. I don’t know. No one’s ever really liked me, so I don’t know how I feel.’

      ‘Well, there can’t be anything wrong with spending time with her. I haven’t seen you smile like that before. I’d just like to pick up from where we left last week. How have things been at home?’

      I go quiet and the conversation stalls as I think of an answer. I don’t really like talking about home with people because it usually brings me down.

      ‘I guess maybe a little better. I haven’t really noticed. I’ve been busy drawing lots lately,’ I say, trying to deflect her attention away from what we have talked about in the past.

      ‘I guess no news is good news sometimes. Sounds to me like this has been a better week all round for you then, yeah?’

      ‘Yeah I guess it has,’ I say, just as the bell rings. ‘I just feel a little more free, like something good might happen.’

      ‘I’m glad to hear. I’ll let you get to class, but I’ll book you in for the same time next week?’

      ‘Yeah, that sounds good. Thank you.’ I walk out of the room and head towards the English department for last period.

      As I open the classroom door, I see Kate sitting at the back. But all the seats are taken around her so I sit in my usual seat in the middle of the classroom on the far left next to Arthur. Maybe she’s been in this class and I haven’t noticed her before because I wasn’t looking, but now that I’ve seen her face I can’t stop wanting to see her. The teacher picks up from where we left off last period and goes through the Romeo and Juliet play then says we are going to all take part as a class and perform the play. Mr Fisher is our English teacher, an older, balding guy with big black-framed glasses and thick grey stubble on his cheeks. He stops reading the play for a second and then introduces Kate to the classroom.

      ‘Sorry, I forgot to do this at the start of the period. Everyone, we have a new student who has switched to our class and that’s Kate. She’s moved here all the way from New York, so please make her feel welcome,’ he says.

      I feel kind of weird in my stomach when he introduces her, mainly because I don’t want any of the other guys to know her because they will want to be with her. I start to think about Charles Flattery, the most popular guy in my year, trying to grease onto her. He’s a jock on the school basketball team. The guy’s only seventeen and is already 6’6 and would be easily over 220 pounds. I start to worry that she will like him, like every other girl in this school does.

      Arthur looks over at me and whispers, ‘Dude, is that her?’

      ‘Yeah, it is,’ I whisper back.

      ‘If you don’t go for her, I will,’ he says jokingly.

      I look back up at the front of the classroom before we get told off for talking.

      ‘Before I assign anyone to any of the roles, would anyone like to volunteer for the two lead parts? Girls, does anyone want to be Juliet?’ Mr Fisher asks.

      I see Kate’s hand shoot up and no other girls put their hands up.

      ‘Okay, well I guess we’ve found our Juliet then. Thank you Kate. Boys, does anyone want to be Romeo?’

      I hate this sort of thing and usually try to avoid it all costs. I don’t know why throughout all of school we have to do plays as a class. Nothing good ever comes of it; everyone always ends up forgetting their lines when we perform it, and the audience laughs when it’s meant to be serious. Then I feel my arm starting to move up. Before I even think about it, my hand’s raised to the ceiling. My conscience has taken over me and forced me to volunteer, but at the back of my mind I want to. It would mean I’d get to talk to Kate more. I look around and see Charles’ hand is also up.

      ‘Okay, looks like we have some competition here for Romeo,’ Mr Fisher says.

      Why did he have to put his fucking hand up? Surely he has better things to spend his time on.

      ‘Alright, come on up, boys. Let’s hear what you’ve got,’ Mr Fisher says. ‘I’ll get you to read some lines, and we’ll let the class decide who it should be then, shall we?’

      I slowly get up out of my seat. I feel like I’m going to shit my pants I’m so nervous. Charles struts his way up to the front of the class with all the confidence in the world.

      ‘Okay, we’ll just do the first few lines from when Romeo enters the scene. I’ll be Benvolio. Charles, you can go first,’ Mr Fisher says.

      ‘Good-morrow, cousin.’

      Charles pauses for a second awkwardly trying to find his line following with his finger like a five year old. ‘Is the day so young?’

      ‘But new struck nine.’

      ‘Ay me! Sad hours seem long. Was that my father that went hence so fast?’ Charles’ voice crackles as the words comes out, and I hear people laughing in the background. I’d feel bad for him, but he’s so perfect at everything it’s kind of nice that he sucks at this.

      Mr Fisher deepens his voice. ‘It was. What sadness lengthens Romeo's hours?’

      ‘Not having that, which, having, makes them short.’

      ‘In love?’

      ‘Out,’ СКАЧАТЬ