Be a Good Girl, Sandy Jones

I sat in History with a “don’t-mess-with-me” attitude, hair bright red, cut short and choppy to show off the brand new tattoo of a mouse on the back of my neck. People around me, who had somehow managed to pull me into their group of “friends”, talked loudly, but I was easily able to drown them out.

I looked up just in time to catch Dani Worthington walk into the room. My upper lip curled into a sneer as I looked at her, blond hair, pink lips, perfect body. It wasn’t that I was jealous of her, but she was always mean, in the silent way. I’ve never liked her. Then I caught the look she was giving me, as if she was taking in my new look, breaking down every detail of clothing I had on and just thinking of how terrible it looked. Not like she looked any better, she always looked the same. Skirt or a flashy pair of jeans with a low cut top of some sort, her make-up simple, her hair always down and flowing behind her. She looked like Medusa.

My fingers twitched, the need for a cigarette soaring at my sudden flush of emotion. Who was she to judge me? I shoved both the need and the thought down as the bell rang, signaling the beginning of History class.

It passed in a blur, our teacher lecturing us about something that happened during the civil war, though I wasn’t quite paying attention. I was looking across the room, at the clock. Counting down the seconds and minutes of when the class would end and I would be released into the real world.

I jumped slightly when the bell rang and shot out of my seat. Dani happened to be sitting in a few seats behind me and was making her way up the aisle when I decided to get up, so not only did my shoulder shoot into her chin, but my bag knocked her books out of her hands. I smirked as she stared down at her books, as if expecting them to float back up to her hands.

“Well, aren’t you going to pick those up?” She asked, as if she actually expected me to. My smirk grew into a bemused grin.

“Um, no, I’m not. Don’t get in my way, Medusa,” I crowed back, and spun on the heel of my red Vans sneakers, and walked away from her. The teacher had left before anyone else, so he didn’t catch any of that.

“Don’t walk away from me! Look at me bitch!” She screamed and I almost did stop. Yeah, stop, turn around, walk right back and knock her the fuck out, that's exactly what I was going to do. But instead, my sudden anger was focused on one of her other....bodyguards. An attractive guy, probably on the football team and a part of the group Dani hung out with, a bunch of stuck up snobs.

“I think you owe her an apology,” he said, his voice deep and husky, probably trying to sound scary, when he just sounded like he smoked a lot.

“I don’t think so,” I said back, trying to sound nonchalant, it only came out annoyed and hurried.

“Turn around right now and-”

“You are not trying to boss me around! I’m going to go outside, light a cigarette and go home, no apology was mentioned in there, was there?” I hissed, my irritation level raising, it was worse because I hadn’t had a cigarette since this morning, nearly 6 hours ago, when I usually I usually had one on the hour.

He placed his hands on my shoulders and actually tried to force me back to Dani, who’s books were still on the floor.

I stomped on his foot and shoved my elbow into his nose, popping the already broken bone out of the socket. The “tough-boy” gave a girlish squeal and began to cry.

“I’ve got an idea. You go over and you help miss queen thing over there with her books and I go home with my pack of cigarettes and we both have a grand time,” I said, and walked from the room, lighter in hand already. I heard him start to swear, then i heard the picking up of books.

I put a death stick between my lips, just before I left the building and saw a teacher about to say something to me, but I was already outside.

The moment I got outside however, my mood got even worse. It was pouring buckets of rain, and the sweet release between my red lips was soaked already, and to make it worse, it snapped in half from the weight of the water. I narrowed my eyes at the broken piece of cigarette on the ground, then spat it’s remains out next to it. I walked to my car and got in, my hair already dripping wet. I watched the doors, watching Dani walk out and the Tough Guy walk out behind her, holding an umbrella over her head, not worrying about himself.

Talk about needy.

She walked out from beneath the umbrella and lifted her face to the pelting rain, letting it wash away her make-up and just soak her to the bone. My breath caught in my throat, just looking at her. She looked human, and it was absolutely stunning, no make-up, no snobbish air about her, just enjoying the cold rain on her face.

Then I remembered earlier, the moment instantly ruined, and my scowl returned. I lit a cigarette and start my car and drove right past her, spraying her with a dirt-filled puddle. To top it off, I opened my window and blew my smoke into her face.

“Oops, I guess I just keep not seeing you, huh? Is that a problem for you, Dani, someone not seeing you?” I asked her, one hand on the wheel, the other holding my nicotine-filled addiction. She scowled and walked around front of my car, banging a hang on the hood. I revved the engine and she scurried away, thinking I would actually run her over. I didn’t even care what happened to this car, it wasn’t mine.

I drove out of the school parking lot and instead of going home, I went to the park. I parked my car and walked out, walked around a bit, then sat on a bench, the rain still coming down hard. It was the only place I had to actually think.

I thought about the sudden attraction I had momentary had towards Dani, she was ugly. Make-up aged her, those clothes made her look like a complete skank, and her hair, it looked dull and like straw. She was ugly inside and out.

At least she didn’t act like a slut, she’s never dated anyone, that I know of, and it’s hard to miss the rumors when you’re the middle of them. In the rumor ladder, her and I were at the top, battling for first place. Not like I wanted any part in it.

“Sandy, what did I tell you about not coming straight home?” I heard and opened an eye, realizing it was no longer raining and my mother was standing in front of me, umbrella in hand, only shielding herself. I heaved a sigh.

“You said to come straight home from school because Rob needed the car for work.” I mumbled, instantly feeling inferior. I hugged my hood around my head, she didn’t know about my tattoo, she didn’t know a lot of stuff, she just didn’t notice. I almost smirked, I got away with so much shit because of her. I just needed to find the right people to do it with. Drugs, alcohol, parties, I was almost always stoned or drunk on the weekends, unless I had a huge assignment to do.

I rode home, my mom driving and chattering about nonsense, my mind somewhere else.

“So, do anything interesting in school today?”

“I shit out rainbows and rode a unicorn to my gym class,” I mumbled sarcastically, and I felt the quick sting of a slap across my face. My face burned as I stared back at my mother.

“Don’t use that tone of voice with me,” she growled, and got out of the car, signaling that we were home. Rob, her latest and longest lasting boyfriend walked from the house, dressed for work, walked from the house. He kissed his girlfriend, my mom, on the cheek on the way to the car. I got out of the car and tried to walk around him. He grasped my wrist, his middle finger stroking twisted scar there. I winced as he hugged me.

“Be good for your mother, Sandy,” he warned, and then let go of me and got into the car, and drove to work without a look back. I shuddered.

“Get inside Sandy, you’re going to catch a cold,” my mother warned as a fresh wave of the last summer rain began to fall. Instead of listening to her, I fell backwards on our lawn, laying in the already puddled grass and just let the rain fall around me.

She slammed the door and went inside to cook dinner or clean, what normal mothers did.

I snuck inside, to my room, to prepare for the next day of school.