But Boys Have Cooties

I bit at my thumb nail as I waited for Jack to come home.
Last night we had a really big fight, and I spent all morning trying to get a hold of him.
Finally doing so about fifteen minutes ago.
When I got into this relationship, I knew that from our past, things were going to be hard.
I’m way to thick headed for him to handle, and he’s too much of a party boy for me to cope with.
But I love him so much, and I know that he loves me.

A smile forms at my lips as I think back to when I first saw him.
When I was only five years old.
We had been at the park…

“Kelly,” my mom sighed “I know that we just moved here, but why don’t you try and make friends with someone, there are plenty of kids here,”
I quickly shoved my face in her pants before looking around, finding no one that appeared the least bit interesting to me.
“Look honey, there’s a boy playing in the sandbox,” my mom’s voice said, as she tried grabbing my little hand in her own and leading me towards it.
“but mom!” I called out “Boys have cooties! I don’t want to play with him, I’ll get infected!”
Being the youngest in the family, I normally always got what I wanted.
“Kelly!” my mother scolded, a sad look upon her face as she looked past me and to where the boy was once seated.
But now he was no where in sight.
“Boys don’t have cooties!” My mother’s voice sounded, as she looked down at me with a stern look. “Now, I want for you to go find him, and say that you’re sorry,”
I pouted and crossed my arms “But then I’ll catch his cooties,” I whined, clinging back onto her leg.
“Kelly!” she yelled, pulling me off of her, “You better go apologize right now,” she hissed, slightly pushing me towards the benches.
My blue eyes looked and saw the little boy by his mother, tears running down his face.
The other women looked over at me and then back down at her son.
“I don’t wanna!”
“Too bad,” my mother said, picking me up off the ground and walking the few feet over to the boy.
His mother pursed her lips together as she looked down at me, and the little boy just scooted closer to his mom.

I couldn’t help but to think how shy this boy is, how unlike me he was acting.
I thought from that point, I would never be friends with him, that I would never be able to stand him, that I would forever hate him.
My mom kept nudging me, and telling me that I must tell him that I’m sorry.
But sorry for what?
I was only saying the truth, boys have cooties, and who would want to catch them on her first day in town.
Not this girl. No way.
“I’m sorry,” my mother sighed, her face almost pleading with his mother, “She doesn’t normally act this way,”
“It’s fine,” the other lady sighed, pushing some of her brown hair from her face, and hugging her son close “We should be leaving anyway,”
She stood up from the bench and called her daughter over, before leaving the park completely.
The little boy looked back at me, with sad eyes, but I just glared and stuck out my tongue.
“Kelly!” my mom yelled, gently pulling on my arm “I can’t believe you!”

My mind raced as I heard him slam his car door closed, instantly cursing himself out for doing so.
I groaned, knowing that he was hung over, and probably didn’t want to talk things out right away.
My eyes focused on the closed bedroom door, as I hoped for the best.

“Kelly, you have to get up for school,” my father said, slightly shaking me.
“I don’t wanna go,” my voice whined, pulling my pink flower blanket back over my head.
“Too bad, you don’t want to miss your first day of kindergarten do you?” he asked, and I could clearly hear him opening my dresser drawers.
“I don’t wanna go to school here,” I whined, pushing my head underneath my pillow.
“Kelly, get up,” he boomed, pulling the covers off of my head “Right now, get dressed,”
He placed the clothes on my bed and left the room, trusting that I would do as he said.
Slowly, I pushed my little body out of the bed and pulled of my jammies, quickly replacing them with the jean shorts and pink sparkly top that he had laid out for me.
“Kelly, let me brush your hair,” my mom said, standing behind my chair in the kitchen.
I nodded my head and continued to shove the cereal in my mouth, letting my mother brush through my long dark brown hair.

“Hello Class,” the young teacher said from the front of the room, “Welcome to kindergarten. I am your teacher, Ms. James, and I’ll be your teacher for this year,”
My eyes stayed locked on my shoes as I listened to her intently.
The door opened and caught her off guard, “Oh, uh, hello,” she smiled.
I looked up to see the boy from the park, the one with cooties.
My mouth hung open as I watched him walk in slowly, handing her a note.
His hands were immediately placed back onto the straps of his backpack as his face looked worried.
Ms. James just smiled at him “Why don’t you go and sit by Kelly?”
“no!” I yelled as I jumped up from my seat “He can’t sit by me!”
My little hands gripped the side of the table and I jumped up and down quite frantically.
“Kelly, what’s wrong?” my teacher asked, her brown eyes lined with worry as she pushed some of her blonde hair from her face “Why can’t Jack sit by you?”
“Because he has cooties!” I screamed, pointing my finger at him “He’s a Cootie Monster and I don’t want to catch them!”
Ms. James’ eyes went wide “Kelly! Cooties aren’t real!”
But, I ignored her and crossed my arms “He can’t sit by me,”
My eyes scanned over to Jack, who had tears in his eyes as he looked at me.
I just stuck my tongue back out at him and stomped my foot, thinking that it would end the discussion.
Instead, Ms. James sent me down to the office.

The door handle started to move and I stood up from my spot on the couch.
I bit my lip as the front door swung open, and flinched as it hit the wall.
Quickly I looked back towards the closed bedroom door, hoping that he didn’t disturb the boy…

My head hung low as I walked into the almost empty classroom.
The big principal man, Mr. Hoffman, said that I had to go say sorry to Jack, otherwise he was going to call my mom.
And I don’t want him to call my mom.
Ms. James left the classroom and I shuffled my feet on the floor.
“I don’t have cooties,” Jack whispered, keeping his gaze down on the desk that we would soon be sharing.
“Mhm,” I muttered, keeping my own eyes down on my hands that were clasped tight together.
I didn’t dare look up at him, my mind was racing a million miles per minute, and I really didn’t want to apologize.
“Well?” he asked, standing up from the table.
“I’msorry,” I muttered, pursing my lips together and glaring at the floor instead of him.
“sorry for what?” he asked, now standing in front of me.
“Sorry for sticking my tongue out at you,” I whispered.
“And?”
“and for not letting you sit with me,”
“And?”
“And for saying that you have cooties,”
I finally looked up at him, and he had a big smile on his face.
“Thanks Kelly,”
“No problem Cootie Boy,” I smiled, throwing my arm around him, and walking outside the classroom and out to recess.
Even though I didn’t get recess that day, it was worth walking out with him.

Jack appeared in the living room in front of me, hands on his hips, eyes glaring at me angrily.
“I don’t want to talk about this now,” he said, taking his left hand from his hip and rubbing his forehead “I have a killer hangover,”
“I figured you would,” I muttered, crossing my own arms in front of me. “How do you think this is going to effect him?”
Jack rolled his eyes, before letting them glance at the closed bedroom door “I don’t know, he’s too young to know what’s going on,”
“That’s not what matters Jack,”
He sighed again before cringing at the sound of his son crying.
“I’ll go get him,” he sighed, walking over to the closed bedroom door. “I’m sorry Kelly,” he said before entering in.
Minutes later he emerged out of the room, holding onto our two year told son, hugging him to his chest.
“Daddy’s not going to party anymore,” he whispered, eyes looking at me “I promise,”
“Oh, Cootie Boy,” I mumbled, causing him to smile “Come here,”