Secrets of the Harts

12 November 2009
“Hon. Is it just me or is this major waste of time?” asked Dylan, lazily.

I rolled my eyes and continued on my essay, though I secretly agreed with him. Jane Something had requested that we make a list of things that made us angry. I think the assignment was optional though, because some of the kids were making spit balls.

And Jane Something was pretending that she did not notice by studying her book intently.

Just when I was making this observation, Dylan pulled my list away from me and started reading it aloud. “Loud noises. Arrogance. Unfairness.”

With each word, his eyebrows rose. Finally, he turned to me. “This can’t be it, right?”

I blinked at him.

“I mean, you’re a grade C. That must mean that you’ve got some pent-up anger in there, don’t you? All these things...they’re pretty general, don’t you think, hon?”

Smiling, I took my paper back from him and added another, this time something that was more specific.

Dylan Fuller.

14 November 2009
In addition to the class with Jane Something (for the life of me, I could not recall her real name), Dylan shared 3 other classes with me, namely Physical Ed, Bio and English. For each of these classes, he always chose the seats closest to me and annoyed me. In the case of Physical Ed, he kept a close eye on me.

I couldn’t shake him off. But I did manage to get him to stop calling me hon though, by stomping on his foot hard enough to sprain it.

“Hey.”

Lifting my gaze, I saw Luke Ouverson taking the seat opposite mine.

“What’re you reading?” He asked, gaze sliding to my book.

I had not spoken to him since we first met, which brought up unpleasant memories. So my reply was a little brusque. “What’s it to you?”

“Nothing really, I’m just trying to figure out what it is about you that intrigues Fuller so much.”

I studied him carefully now, this time not just for signs of Trouble.

Blond hair, blue eyes, lips too full for a boy’s and a typical footballer’s built. Luke looked like the unoriginal all-American boy, completely harmless and attractive if you liked the sort. But his personality was something else altogether, something entirely too similar to Dylan’s. Both were unflinchingly direct, upbeat and friendly.

However, Luke was more polite and less restless. Hence, he was less infuriating. Though on the whole, he was still annoying.

“I don’t know. If I knew, I would stop it immediately.”

Luke laughed. “Usually he attracts girls like bees to honey. You’re the first one not to like him.”

“Perhaps that’s why he finds me interesting then,” I said.

He was quiet for a moment before saying, in a serious tone, “No. I don’t think that’s it.”

I pursed my lips, not liking where this conversation seemed to be headed. “Whatever it is, why don’t you just ask him?” And stop bothering me, I added silently.

His gaze went to my book instead. “You never answered my question. What are you reading?”

“To Kill a Mockingbird."

I wasn't sure who was more surprised that I was actually speaking to him.

“Who do you like?” asked Luke, recovering faster than I did. When he saw the look I shot him, he continued, “You have to like a character.”

Again, I answered him, “Jem.”

I did not miss the look of incredulity on his face. “I would never have pegged you as a Jem lover.”

“He’s a good older brother. And what’s not to like about a boy who grows up and learns about moral courage being the ultimate weapon in a gentleman’s arsenal?”

“You sound like a lit handbook,” he pointed out, smiling. “I guess this isn’t the first time you’re reading it?”

“No. Like all good books, it gets better with each reading.”

“I do suppose grey areas of human nature are hard to understand when you’re a kid.” For some reason, his expression turned slightly ugly as he said that. Apparently, Luke was not all sunshine and joy.

“What grey areas?”

Now he simply looked confused. “Are we talking about the same book here?”

I shot him another nasty look. “Yes. Explain to me what you mean.”

“The book’s about prejudice, right? Well, prejudice existed in many forms in the book. There’s gender and race prejudice and they don’t just exist in bad people, they exist in the good ones too. The Cunninghams are definitely one of the best people in Maycomb but they, too, are prejudiced. For example, they tried to lynch Tom Robinson before the trial.”

I absorbed his speech silently and pointed out the flaw in his reasoning. “But in the end, they were on Atticus’s side, which meant that they were good all along. They just needed some guidance.”
“Are you implying that human nature has no grey areas?”
“Well, yes.” I shrugged. “It’s just that some people waver between good and evil before picking a side and sticking to it.”
“What about those with different circumstances, then? What happens when their situation forces them to behave badly?”
“But they always have a choice, thanks to our current legal system.”
“Your thinking’s far too simplistic.”

I smiled, which was a strange move. But it caused Luke to relax. “Let’s just agree to disagree. I don’t want to sit here and argue with you the whole day.”

“In any case, I have to go,” said Luke, standing up. “Bye then.”

I waved goodbye and glanced at my watch to see how much free time I had left. With a jolt, I realised that I had spent almost an hour just talking to Luke.

18 November 2009
“I heard that you like To Kill a Mockingbird,” whispered Dylan, in Bio.

I gave up on paying attention to Mr. Keller. “Yeah. So?”
“I’ve always had a thing for Ms. Maudie.”

Surprised, I stared at him, only to see that he was wearing a bemused smile. He tended to make outrageous statements to make me pay attention to him. Sadly though, I always fell for it.

“Don’t worry though. She’s got nothing on you, babe,” said Dylan, with a wink.

“Don’t call me babe.”