The Real Me (3 page)

"I'm off, too," said Mom. "I've got a dentist appointment."

"Bye." As soon as my parents were out the door, I poured the rest of my "nutritional beverage" down the sink. I needed something solid. Just a piece of toast. To give it some flavor I spread a teaspoon of peanut butter on it. Well, maybe it was more like a tablespoon.

I checked the clock. Ten after seven! I needed at least ten minutes to make the half mile to Walt's house.

I crammed the last bite of toast into my mouth and chewed as I dashed back to my room to get dressed. Where were my shoes? And the toothpaste? I had to brush my teeth!

At seven twenty I raced out the kitchen door, not realizing I'd slammed it on my scarf. I almost choked as I started down the steps. I looked around. At least there were no witnesses.

I unlocked the door, rescued my scarf, relocked the door and hurried off. I had only nine and a half minutes to get to Walt's.

I set what for me was a brisk pace. I thought about running, but decided I'd look weird doing that in my heavy coat, carrying my book bag.

When I got to Walt's front door I checked my watch. I had made it with seventeen seconds to spare and my heart pounding only moderately. Maybe the extra walking would work out.

After one knock, Walt answered the door. With me standing on the landing and Walt poised up in the doorway we stood almost eye to eye. Then he came out, we started walking, and my eyes lined up with the top of his head.

"Right on time," said Walt. "Did you come up with any good ideas?"

At first I didn't know what Walt was talking about, since I was still congratulating myself on what I felt was a good time for the half mile I'd just walked.

"You know." Walt studied me impatiently. "For the prom."

"Oh. Yes. The prom." I cleared my throat. "I found a recipe for the punch. I searched the internet, but finally decided on one from my mother's old file box. Actually, it's a recipe recommended for bridal showers, but I think it will work. It's made with ginger ale and lime sherbet. It's supposed to turn out green and foamy."

"Sounds perfect!"

"I also made some cardboard patterns for shells and starfish for cutting out cookies. And I know Erwina has a sealing wax stamp that could pass for a doubloon. We can use it to make impressions on sugar cookies."

"That should work," Walt said. "I'm planning on having blue and green crepe paper draped across the ceiling for waves, and I want to put up a mural of exotic fish on all four walls, so we'll really feel as if we're actually underwater. I was thinking of a sunken treasure chest, too." Walt smiled, blushing clear to the tips of his ears showing through his sandy colored hair. He looked totally pleased with himself.

Just as we were walking past my house, Walt said, "You know, I really could have met you at your house."

I gulped. Walt might think it was strange if I kept insisting that I meet him at his house to walk to school together. I decided to confess. After all, Walt was a good friend.

"Walt, I've got to tell you something. I know you won't blab."

"I'd never break a confidence," Walt held up his hand as if he was swearing to tell the truth, the whole truth, etc.

"I know," I said. "Well … you see … Dr. Adam has put me on a diet and insisted that I get more exercise. Meeting you to discuss the prom gives me an extra mile to walk, and who'd guess the real reason? Is it okay if I come to your house and we walk to school every day for a while?" I let out a deep breath. It was a relief to admit to Walt that I was on a diet.

"Sure," Walt said. "Nothing wrong with having to go on a diet. Of course, I think you look fine just as you are."

"Thanks," I said, though I knew Walt was just being polite. "I'd feel better if no one else knows. I guess I'm self conscious. But I had to tell someone, and I know I can trust you."

"I'll wait for you after school and you can escort me home, too," he teased.

As we approached the corner of Grove and Shell Roads, I looked around hopefully. Kevin lived just a couple blocks from there. If only he'd join us!

A black Celica rounded the corner and pulled up along the side of the road. "You guys want a ride?"

It was Kevin.

Before I could open my mouth, Walt said, "No, thanks. We'd rather walk."

I bit my tongue. I had almost shouted
yes
! Why had I made such a big deal about my diet and walking plan, anyway?

"You sure?" Kevin smiled warmly. "I don't get the car that often."

"Y-yes," I spluttered. "Thanks for the offer."

"Okay." Kevin waved and drove off.

In the direction of Nicole's house, I noticed.

On the rest of the way to school Walt chattered on about the prom, while I berated myself for blowing an opportunity to ride with Kevin.

"Here we are." Walt held open the front door of the school for me.

"Mmm." I craned my neck to see if it was Kevin's car pulling into the parking lot. It was. Nicole was with him. They must have gone for a ride.

It could have been me arriving with Kevin, I thought. Of course, I conveniently pushed to the back of my mind the fact that I would have been in the back seat with Walt, getting a clear view of Nicole up front snuggling with Kevin. Naturally, that wasn't the way I pictured it. In my imagination, Kevin and I were cuddled close in the front seat and the back seat was empty.

Well, never mind. The extra walking made me feel pretty good. I bet I'd lost some weight already.

Next thing I knew, Walt gave his locker a sharp kick. "This door is stuck again."

Walt and I had lockers next to each other since we were freshmen. Almost everything in Waterside High was done alphabetically, so as Mason and Mattesky, we often found ourselves side by side.

Walt finally succeeded in opening his locker and hanging up his jacket. He struggled to get a book out of the book locker. Two book lockers were stacked over the coat lockers. Always assigning the top book lockers to the boys was another Waterside tradition. It didn't matter if a girl was six feet tall and a guy was five two. The decision had been made decades ago that boys should have the upper book lockers and that was that.

Walt jumped, blindly trying to fish out the book he wanted. I often worried about the possibility of an avalanche, but Walt was quick and always able to jump again in time to thrust any tumbling books back in place.

"Have you …." Walt hopped. "Asked anyone …." Hop. "To be on our …." Hop. "Committee yet, Mattie?" Walt grabbed the proper book, closed his book locker, and landed unruffled. At times he seemed to have the ability to hang in mid air. If he were several inches taller, he probably would've been a great basketball player.

"Erwina's going to help. I'll round up a couple more people soon."

"Great. We can have a joint committee meeting in a few weeks and really get things coordinated."

"Good idea," I said. My stomach rumbled. The extra walking must have taken more out of me than I suspected.

"There's the bell," Walt said. "See you later."

I slid into my seat for my first class wondering how I was going to endure second year French on a growling stomach.

"Bonjour," said Mr. LeBlanch.

"Bonjour, Monsieur," we all recited.

My stomach gurgled. It was only eight o'clock. Even the thought of cafeteria food was appealing. I wondered how I'd survive until lunch.

By lunch time the rumbling in my stomach had subsided. But, for once, everything looked delicious. I perused the selections and planned my meal. Spaghetti, coleslaw, bread, green beans, milk, Jell O. I loaded my tray and staggered under its weight to the table where Erwina and I always sat.

Walt walked by, saw my tray, and shot me a reprimanding look. I pretended not to see him. I turned to Erwina as if we were in the middle of an important conversation. "So, how was P.E. today?"

"It was all right," Erwina said. "We started badminton."

"Oh." I planted a forkful of spaghetti into my mouth. I chewed slowly, savoring every morsel. My stomach almost leapt up to my throat to meet the food half way.

Walt walked by again. He scowled at me.

I buttered a piece of bread and took a huge bite. It was delicious.

Kevin and Nicole walked by. Nicole's tray was practically empty.

Suddenly the bread in my mouth felt dry and hard. I never should have taken so much food. Why did I have an urge to stuff myself?

I felt like one of those cartoon characters contemplating a bad deed. On one shoulder was a little devil telling her, "Go ahead. Eat. You deserve it."

But on her other shoulder was a little angel scolding her. "Mattie Mason, be good. Stick to your diet. Don't blow it."

It was going to be embarrassing to throw away the rest of my food. In a loud voice I said, "Hmm. I'm not as hungry as I thought I was."

"I'll take that second slice of bread and your Jell-O, if you don't want it," George Turner said as he folded himself onto the seat on the other side of Erwina.

"Help yourself." I'd pinch his head off if he made a big production out of all the food on my tray.

"Thanks," said George. "Um, are you going to eat your coleslaw?"

"You can have it."

"Thanks, Chunk."

I gave him a cold stare for calling me Chunk. I wondered if his head would hit the ceiling if I did pinch it off.

"Not finishing your spaghetti?" George asked.

"It's all yours." I dumped it onto his plate.

"Thanks!" George dug right in.

"Are you feeling okay?" Erwina asked. She wiped some spaghetti sauce off her chin with her napkin.

"Me? Sure. I, uh, thought I'd be having tumbling in P.E. next period, so I loaded up on food. But when you said badminton had started, I realized I wouldn't need so much."

"Oh." Erwina looked at me as if I had two noses.

 

"I have to see Ms. Bryan before class." I picked up my tray and edged away from the table before Erwina got any more suspicious. Kevin was standing by the garbage cans, scraping his and Nicole's dishes. I waited for him to finish. I glanced down at my tray. I wouldn't want Kevin to think I wasted food but, thanks to George, there wasn't a lot left. Only a couple of mutilated green beans.

Kevin placed his dishes in the dishpans and stacked the trays. I stepped forward to scrape my dishes.

"Hi, Mattie," Kevin said. "Sneaking up on me, eh?"

"Hi." I drank in Kevin's warm smile.

"You missed a great ride this morning."

"Oh?"

"I drove down to the town beach. The tide was high and the sun sparkled on the water. It was almost like summer, at least inside the car."

"It'll be nice when winter's over." I tried not to sound too enthusiastic. I didn't want to appear so desperate to talk to a boy that I would babble on and on the way some girls did.

"Kevin, what's the holdup?" Nicole draped herself on Kevin.

"I was just telling Mattie what a great ride she missed this morning."

"Oh? Really? Well." Nicole flashed me a token smile. Then to Kevin she said, "Let's go."

As Nicole dragged him away, Kevin looked over his shoulder and called to me, "So long."

"Bye," I said as he and Nicole disappeared around a corner.

The bell rang. I had two minutes to dash down two long corridors to P.E. As I raced along I thought about what Kevin had said. Something about summer.

If Craig spent the summer in Waterside again, maybe he and Nicole would take up where they left off last September. The Junior Prom was held after most colleges were out for the summer. Hmm. Summer ….

When I went to my locker after my last class, I discovered Walt waiting there for me.

"Ready to walk me home?" Walt leered. "I won't even ask you to carry my books."

"I wasn't really expecting you." I sniffed. I could go along with a joke. "But as long as you're here, I'll do you the honor." I gave him what I hoped was a wicked look, but secretly wished that Kevin would offer us a ride, so I could accept it--even if it meant twisting my ankle to have a legitimate excuse.

 

Chapter
Four

 

After an uneventful walk home, I went to my room and stretched out on my bed. Walt, having officially declared himself my watchdog, had made me walk briskly, arms swinging. He seemed to feel it was his duty to see to it that I exercise and lose weight and live to a ripe old age.

Unknowingly, I'm sure, Walt had made my heart beat faster when he filled me in on all the details of Waterside's tournament game. It was scheduled for a week from Friday. I circled the day in red on the Scenes-in-Paris calendar on the wall next to my bed. It was my daydreaming calendar as much anything. I loved imagining myself in
Paris
. The game would be in
Middletown
, in the gym at
Wesleyan
University
. Waterside was scheduled to play
Springfield
, the divisional number three rated team.