Poison [1] First Encounter

The alarm rings, I get up get and get ready for school. I change into my school clothes and sit on my bed, but I'm still tired, so I figure, 'I can lay down. Just for a little bit.' I lay on my bed looking at the ceiling. My room is somewhere between being lit and being dark. The sun seems to refuse to rise any faster. My eyes feel heavy and I think to myself, 'I'll just close them and wait for the sun.' Closing my eyes, I take a deep breath, and open them again. I see sun fully lighting my room. I run out of my room just barely managing to grab my bag. As I run past the kitchen I see my mom. 'You're still here!' she says. I ignore her and quickly grab a piece of toast, tell my mother goodbye, and head towards the door.

That is my usual routine every morning. There are those very rare days in which I manage to get everything done and I get to walk to school. I walk past coffee houses and smell the delicious burning coca beans. I smell the tempting smells of many fast food places. I walk past small shops and see beautiful party dresses that I wish I had enough courage to wear. I notice the beautiful flowers and the small creatures beginning to gather food for the day. It is these days that I love the most.

Today wasn't one of those days. I'm not very much a morning person, as you can see. Everyday I sprint to school, which is a good two miles away, and arrive within ten minutes. Everyday I get there just in time to spend a few minutes with my friends and catch my breath before the bell rings and we all head to class. Today, however, was just a little different.

I ran down the stairs with my messenger bag tightly secured around my shoulder. I immediately headed towards the kitchen where I knew I could find some form of sustinance before school. My little sister, Nikky, was eating cereal on one of the chairs on the table. She would very cautiously take a small o-shaped apple jack and pile it on top of a small collection of ceral on one of her waffles. My mom was washing the dishes that she and my father had used earlier.

"You're still here?!" she said in what had become our ritual since we moved here two months ago. My mom already had a piece of toast out for me on a small plate. A lot of people said I looked like her, but I couldn't see it. Though I had my mom's eyes, I look much more like my father, I think. I quickly took it and told her good-bye and that I would see her after school. I headed towards the door. Once outside I sprinted off. I could see out of the corner of my eye my neighbor checking his watch then smiling at me.

"Late again, Eliana," he said. Mr. Jefferson, had told me a few weeks earlier, he had set his watch to my departures. I slowed to respond to my kind elderly neighbor.

"If I stay and chat I'll be even later," I said before sprinting off. Mr. Jefferson had skin like coffee and eyes like chocolate. His dark hair was almost completely gray. Ever since we moved here he has been nothing but kind to us.

As I ran everything around me seemed to be nothing but a blur. I didn't have time to notice the things I did when I walked to school. I sprinted past the fast food restaurants and past the small shops on the main street. I remembered to breathe through my nose to keep my lungs from hurting. All I heard during my sprint was people saying in annoyance, 'watch where you're going' or 'slow down' I once even got, 'You're going to kill us all!'

I looked at my watch and saw I was later than usual. It seems my chat with Mr. Jefferson had put me off longer than I thought, that or I had slept longer than I thought. I ran faster. Ahead of me I saw a stop light. On it was the blinking red hand that forced me to stop. I stopped and put my hands on my knees and breathed in deeply. I looked around. I was on one of the main streets. I was almost at school, but this was one of the main streets, it would take forever to change. I wondered, if I sprinted past the cars would I make it across safely? A car passed every so often, so I decided to take my chances.

I put a foot down on the black pavement. As soon as I did a car whizzed by. I could feel it's exhaust on my hair. A lady next to me gasped. She seemed to be in her late fifties. She had graying hair and wrinkles on her face. She looked old but her green eyes shone with brilliance.

"Be careful dear, it's dangerous to cross a red light," she stated the obvious with wide eyes. I didn't want to bother with telling her an explanation and that I already knew that crossing red lights was dangerous.

"Oh, right. I almost forgot," I said somewhat sarcastically. I waited with the rest of the people on the crosswalk for the light to turn to the little green guy. My father worked for this big company. He was offered the job of president of another division if we moved from Sacramento to Olympia. I was mad at first, when they told me. Eventually, I got used to it though. I had all my friends from Sacramento on my cellphone and my contact list in my e-mails. So contact with them wouldn't be so hard. Besides I could still visit during breaks.

Olympia isn't that bad at all. It's only a little bit colder. Within two months I already had a new batch of friends, but I still kept in touch with my old ones via web cam. Olympia is very beautiful. There is something about it that reminds me of older times. Everything is much greener than in Sacramento. After what seemed like hours the light finally changed. I ran ahead of the group of people on the crosswalk.

"I'll see you later, ma'am" I said smiling, jogging sideways ready to take off sprinting again. The lady smiled at me. The adults here were very polite. I enjoyed living here because of them. The teenagers my age were another story.

I heard tires screech. I saw the old lady's eyes shift from kind to terrified. A silver Trans Am with tinted windows was speeding my direction. The screeching tires were from the driver pressing the brakes. I didn't move. I couldn't. I heard someone scream. It was like death, dressed in silver, was coming for me and the last thing I would smell was burning rubber. The screeching tires slowed. I was breathing hard but was confused if it was from the running, or the fear. The car slowed and halted to a stop, it only bumped my knee. Everyone on the crosswalk was still. The driver didn't come out of his car. I still couldn't move. This bastard almost killed me! And he didn't have the decency to say sorry!

I took raised my messenger bag, with all my books, over my head and slammed it down as hard as I could on the hood out of fear of my life. Then I raised it again and again, hitting it repeatedly, pounding away my fear. This seemed to bother the driver. He stepped out of his precious vehicle with a glare. I couldn't help but gawk at him.

He was one of the best looking guys I had ever seen. He was about a half a foot taller than me, and I could tell he did some form of exercise because he looked in shape. His cheek bones were V shaped with a round chin. His eyebrows were short and straight and his skin was slightly tanned. He didn't seem to notice my gawking, he was to distracted with the dent on his car's hood. Luckily I remembered I was mad at him and stopped gawking.

"What the hell!!" he said, his eyebrows furrowing together.

"What the hell? You almost ran this nice young lady over!" yelled the old woman who I had talked to earlier. Even though she was old, I could tell her spark hadn't left her with age.

"Maybe if she hadn't ran in the middle of the road!!" he screamed back at the old lady. I can't believe he's blaming me! If he hadn't been driving like an insane freak none of this would be happening!! And screaming at an old lady! For someone so handsome he didn't have any respect for his elders!

"The light was green! This is your fault for driving like a maniac!!" I yelled back at him slamming my bag on his car again.

"Hey!! You're going to pay for that," he said indicating to the dent.

"Like hell I am! If anything, you should be paying me!!" I said. That wasn't very smart.

"Paying you!!" He screamed, "For what!"

"For..." I thought a second. "Emotional stress!!" I said in retaliation. My emotion stress was now gone, with the dent on the hood of the car as proof. I saw his left eye twitch.

"Emotional stress!? What kind of shit is that!?" he said. Something in me flipped. I just realized he had a British accent.

"Watch your language young man!" the old lady scolded as though he were her grandchild. I looked around, the people were walking around us and cars were using the other lanes. Wasn't I supposed to be doing something? "Now tell me, for what reason were you driving so recklessly?" the old lady said calmly trying to solve the problem.

"I was trying to get to school on time but sin-" I didn't let him finish.

"SCHOOL!!" I screamed in realization of what I was supposed to be doing. I sprinted off across the crosswalk. How could I forget school? "I'll see you around ma'am" I screamed over my shoulder. I didn't doubt I would, everyone in this neighborhood shopped at the same grocery store. I hoped, though, that I would never come across that guy again.

As I reached the school I noticed it was empty with the exception of a few stragglers running to class like me. The first bell had already rang. Who knew how much time I had till the bell that signified the end of the passing period rang. I ran through the front doors into the building. I bolted down the hall and turned left. I climbed up the stairs to the right to the second floor and entered room 214. I paused at the door to catch my breath. I heard the bell ring. I was just on time. I saw my friend, Emily Willow, on the last row to the right. I was about to walk to my seat a few from her when I heard my teacher.

"You're late," I heard Mrs. Jenkins say from the back of the class on her desk. Mrs. Jenkins is in her mid thirties. She has blonde hair that probably used to be beautifully golden but now it's only a dull yellow. Her eyes always look tired probably from all those years of trying to teach high schoolers. Mrs. Jenkins looks like the type of person who used to be nice but is now bitter and mean. I can't imagine how her husband handles her. She walked to the front of the class to the board.

"But I'm here, I can't be late!?" I complained. I ran so fast to get here! How could she mark me tardy! Mrs. Jenkins stood up and began to walk to the front of the class to where I was. "I'm here on time. Rules say I'm supposed to be in the room when the bell rings!"

"Rules say you have to be in the room and in your seat by the time the bell rings. You're late, now sit down." She said in a definitive tone. I sighed with anger and walked to the back of the class. Mrs. Jenkins started writing something on the board.

"bitch," I whispered well out of hearing reach.

"What was that?" she said. I swear she has supersonic hearing and eyes behind her head!

"Nothing," I grumbled as I took my seat.

"Thats what I thought," she said returning to the board. I took out what I would need for my Chemistry class. As soon as I opened my book a note flew onto it. I didn't need to think to know who had given it to me.

What the hell was that all about, Eli? You're never this late. For a minute there, I thought you weren't going to come to school! Emily was the first friend I ever had here in Olympia. Her attitude is as fiery as her hair. She's short though. Shorter than me, but she can pack a punch. Emily is somewhat of a tomboy, running around with all the boys playing any kind of sport. When I first came here we hated each other. 'New Girl' she always called me as though I didn't have a name. Everything changed a week after my arrival when we each had detention. We plotted our escape together and been friends ever since.

Some jackass almost ran me over! And guess what Em, he didn't even apologize! I wrote. I noticed that I was pressing the pencil harder than I normally did. I folded it into a neat square and passed to my left to James Banks, who always passed our notes. I got his attention and mouthed 'to Emily'. He rolled his eyes and and took the note and passed it to her. I saw her eyes widen and scribble down furiously. She then folded it and passed it to James. James then passed it to me.

Ran you over!! Are you okay!? Is this jackass in prison!? I laughed. Mrs. Jenkins paused from her lesson and looked around the class to see who had laughed. When she couldn't find the source she returned to her lesson.

Yeah I'm fine. No the jackass isn't in prison but if he were he would be being raped as we speak. When I left the crime scene there was this nice old lady interrogating him. lol. I folded the paper and passed it to James. He ignored me. I couldn't blame him though, how would you feel with two months of this? He often did this when he didn't want to be our messenger boy. Emily and I had a plan for this. When Mrs. Jenkins wasn't looking I flung the paper to Emily's desk. It flew past Jame's face distracting him way more than it would have been to simply pass it. I heard James sigh in frustration. I laughed silently. After this I paid attention to class while Emily wrote on the note. After a short while the note came back.

Did he really look that good? she then wrote yes and no right under what she had written. Did he look hot enough to be raped in a prison? There was no point in denying it. If he went to this school he would have been raped by one of the girls here already. I circled the yes, folded it and passed it to James. Without even looking, he passed it without taking his eyes from the teacher. James was always devoted to learning. He wasn't a nerd or a geek. He just liked to learn. Or at least thats what I got from my two months of being here. The note quickly came back.

What did he look like? I wondered. How would I describe someone like him? I heard the classroom door open. This wasn't unusual. Some of the students still get lost. They haven't gotten used to their second semester classes, thats what Emily told me. I know from experience. A few times I walked into the wrong classroom. Without Emily, I don't know how I would have gotten by those two months. Regardless, I still stared at my note. How to describe him? A mix of Orlando Bloom and Chad Michael Murray? Heck, throw some Channing Tatum in there too!

"I've transfered here for the second semester," I heard. Wait, I knew that voice! I looked up and saw that guy! The guy that almost killed me! He handed slip to Mrs. Jenkins. I quickly scribbled down.

LIKE THAT!!! Then I drew a huge arrow pointing up. I quickly gave it to James, who in turn, passed it to Emily. I saw her eyes widen then look at the front then at the note. She then looked at me with a questioning glance. I nodded my head and her eyes opened wider and her mouth opened a bit.

"Alright mister.... Leon," Mrs. Jenkins paused, "Poison?" she said as if she mispronounced it.

"Yeah," Leon said simply. Mrs. Jenkins put a hand on her forehead and rubbed it.

"Take whatever seat is open and answer the questions on the board," she said rubbing her head. She then went back to her desk, with the questions already written on the board. She was probably thinking the same thing I was. What kind of name is Leon Poison!? He sat down two seats in front of me and three to my right. I was glad he was so far away.

I started writing my answers. Every time I looked up at the board I could see the jackass out of the corner of my eye. I looked up to see the third question. Then the bastard turned and smiled at me! Teeth and all! I scoffed and looked at Emily. She was staring at him with her mouth open and her head slightly tilted to the side. I ran my hands through my hair. This was going to be a long semester.

I crumpled a sheet and threw it at Emily. It bounced off her head and slipped her out of her trance. She smiled sheepishly and returned to the note. I rolled my eyes and went back to work. James passed me the note.

How can you stay mad at that?! I rolled my eyes while reading it. I was about to reply when Mrs. Jenkins came to the front again.

"Now that you've answered the ten questions. I'll pair you off so that you review your answers." She said. Mrs. Jenkins had a clipboard with everyone's name on it. Considering my luck I was going to be paired with that jackass Leon. I looked down at my sheet. I only had two and half answers done.

Everyone started being paired up. "Willow and...." Mrs. Jenkins paused looking down her roster, "Banks," Emily was paired off with James. I laughed. Emily would probably make him do all the work. "Poison and...." here we go, I thought putting my head down. I just waiting for Mrs. Jenkins to look up at me and say 'Crowe'. Maybe if I stayed with my head down they would think I wasn't here. Shockingly, I heard Mrs. Jenkins say, "Greene".

Leon was paired with Jamie Greene, a beautiful, tall, intelligent, brunette girl, that wasn't me. I was surprised. Why wasn't I picked as his partner? I never had good luck? That was strange? Lucky, but strange? "Crowe and...." who else was left? I thought looking around the class. "Tsukino," I was paired with Amy. I really didn't know her well so this was going to be awkward.

We all moved next to our partners. Emily practically made James move to the back with her. I moved next to Amy. She sat at the very back. I knew others teased her because of her thick glasses. I always thought she had a pretty face. She was also very short. The others called her a midget for it. I looked over at Emily. Sure enough, Emily was sitting back in her chair while James scribbled away on her paper. I then looked over at Leon and Jamie.

Leon was staring at me. Even when I turned to look at him his contact didn't break. I was memorized by his silver eyes. Beside him Jamie kept chatting away with someone who wasn't paying attention to her. Beside me Amy sat quietly. I quickly turned to look at Amy. Her honey eyes seemed such a huge contrast to Leon's silver ones.

"I'm sorry. I didn't get to finish the lesson," I said sincerely. Amy has hugging her backpack. She looked as though she had been crying. Some of the others were probably teasing her. I wasn't lie to her with some over exaggerated excuse. If she asked. I would just tell her that I was passing notes.

"Thats okay. You can copy mine," she said not even looking at me. She had a very soft voice with a faint Asian accent. I felt bad for her. Was her self esteem so low she couldn't even look me in the eye?

"Oh. Thank You!" I smiled. She still didn't have a reaction.

"You're welcome," she said plainly hugging her backpack closer. I had her in all of my classes but two and I never talked to her. This made me feel guilty.

"Are you okay?" I asked. She turned with watery eyes.

"No," she said her voice breaking. Great, now she was going to make me cry. To me crying had the same effect as laughter. It was extremely contagious.

"Whats wrong?" I asked my eyes started to sting. I had to make her feel better or I was going to start crying too. She inhaled repeatedly.

"My, my brother, he, he," she said in strained voice. She need to get it out. I could feel my nose beginning to feel runny. "He killed himself!" she said in sob. I felt my lungs tighten. I quickly moved the backpack out of the way and hugged her. Even if I didn't know the poor girl I felt for her. Why did she even come to school?! Amy was crying on my shoulder, I felt silent tears escape my eyes. I pulled away. Amy put her hand under her glasses and wiped away tears.

"Amy! What are still doing here!? You back home and be with your family!" I said almost scolding her. No one paid any attention to the two crying girls in back of the class.

"But-"

"What's going on back there!" Mrs. Jenkins said. When Mrs. Jenkins saw our tears her face softened. By now the whole class was looking at us. I felt like a fool for crying for someone else. Nobody I ever knew did that.

"Mrs. Jenkins, I need to talk to you privately," Amy said in her soft voice. She seemed to have calmed her crying.

"Alright Amy, come with me outside," Mrs. Jenkins said in a kind voice. Amy stood up and walked up to her.

"Read a book!" she half-yelled to the class and walked out with Amy. Everyone ignored Mrs. Jenkins orders and started talking. I sat there silently. Years ago when I was little, my older sister had committed suicide. I found her in the tub. She looked as though she was sleeping. I went to nudge her but she didn't move. I called out to my parents. My mom came in and screamed. My father ushered my out so that I couldn't see anything anymore.

I had managed to get over her death, but at times like this, it suddenly came back to me. I looked around the classroom. Everyone was talking as if nothing happened. Sure they didn't hear Amy's revelation but shouldn't they at least ask me what was wrong with her? Only Emily looked a bit concerned for me. Doesn't anyone care about Amy? But who am I to talk. I didn't care about her either until a few seconds ago.

I looked at Leon again. I wondered if he cared. The insensitive, Jaime had her hand on his shoulder. This time he wasn't looking at me. He didn't care. He was looking at Jamie with a beautiful smile, engrossed in a conversation. I know I had no reason to, but at that moment, something deep inside me, felt jealous.