Six Seconds

Three

Three.

The petrified scream arising in my lungs.

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It was a Friday.

April 27th to be specific.

The rain was pouring down when Vienna showed up at my house to pick me up for school. She rapidly honked on her horn as I rushed around inside, saying my rushed goodbyes to my mother and father as I burst out the door, umbrella in hand.

I stumbled over the lumps of wet grass in my yard as I made my way to the shiny silver Mercedes parked in front of my home. I opened the passenger side door, hopped in, and Vienna sped off. We weaved up and down roads as we made our way to The Ross School. She babbled on and on about the latest gossip, squealing and giggling after every statement she made. But, I hadn’t been listening to a single word. I just stared outside and marveled at the rain as it dripped onto the window.  

I loved the rain. I loved the way it fell. I loved the feeling of it running down my face. I loved counting the droplets on my bedroom window as they fell. I loved the tiny puddles they made by my feet. I loved everything about the rain. So, I spent my trip to school counting the tiny droplets on the blurred window.

When we arrived at school, Vienna and I went our separate ways. I rushed into homeroom and sat in my seat just as the late bell rang. I pulled my binder out of my book bag, slumped down in my seat, and let my mind wander. It was a wonder how I got A’s in all my classes.

The day passed slowly, minutes seemed like hours, and hours seemed like days. I had eased through all my tests in my main classes, and by lunch time, all I wanted to do was get out of that school. The loud chatter of the cafeteria made me cringe as I made my way to my table. I slid in next to Vienna and a friend of hers named Andrea. They babbled on and on through out the first half of lunch. They laughed way too loud and gossiped way too much about just about anybody. But, when the topic of the one and only Chase Bishop came up, they turned their attention to me.

“Kaleigh has a major crush on him.” Vienna stated in a matter of fact tone. I just gave her the death glare that signified I was in no mood to be teased at. It also signified that she knew that was an un-true statement. She seemed to nod her head in acknowledgement. Yet, she continued on.

“I mean, you guys were trapped in that closet or whatever for hours right? I mean something must have happened between you two. Right Andrea?” She said, giggling. Andrea nodded her head, agreeing with her dumb statement.

I hated the way Vienna acted around Andrea. Actually, I hated they way she acted around other people in general. Whenever she was around a semi-cute guy or a popular cheerleader -such as Andrea- she flipped a switch and became a totally different Vienna from the one I knew and loved. I had never really noticed it before, until then. I turned my head towards them and tried to hold down my temper.

“Nothing happened and you know this.” I said in the most leveled tone I could manage.

I didn’t know how much more of this I could take before I exploded. This kind of thing had been going on ever since I told Vienna about what happened at that party. Which now, I regretted immensely.

“Yeah, right. Whatever you say.” Andrea said, laughing. I watched as she turned to Vienna and she instantly started laughing to. At that very moment, I wanted to snap both their necks. For some reason, even though it was a Friday, and it was been raining, and I had all my tests completed. I was still in the shittiest mood. And I swear to it, I just had a gut feeling that that day, April 27th, was not going to be a good day. Not in the least.