Little Things Read online

  I clear my throat, “Hi, I’m Duke and this is Rob. So, I’m assuming this is your first day?” She turns to us and we are stunned into silence. Her eyes are a piercing crystal blue; as blue as the sky on a clear, sunny day. The blue tint is fascinating and her long eyelashes add to their intensity. I stare deeply into them and wonder where this girl came from. She has the eyes of an angel.

  She smiles up at us, “Hi, I’m Raya, and yes, this is my first day. Can’t you tell from the awkward entrance?” she laughs.

  Rob reaches over me to shake her hand. “Welcome to Lehman High School, Raya. I hope you stick with us for a while.” He winks at her and combs his fingers through his blond hair. Ha, he’s already putting the moves on this girl and it hasn’t even been five minutes.

  “Thanks, Rob. I’m a senior, so this year is my last. I can’t wait to graduate.” Her smile is bright but then dims until the smile fades. She looks away toward the front of the classroom and I sense her body tense like something is bothering her.

  “Hey, are you okay?” I ask.

  She turns to me and her lips pull into a small smile “Yes, I’ll be fine.” I can’t help but not believe her, but what can I say, I don’t even know this girl.

  “Alright, time to start the lab. Pass out the instructions and be sure to read them carefully. The blue ink is difficult to get off of your clothes, so please, no inking anyone.” Mr. Cerillo hands out the pamphlets and I pass them to Raya and Rob. Rob reads his instructions aloud as Raya examines hers in silence. I read over mine carefully and begin to set up the lab. We each write our names on the top of the sheet and create a column to decipher whose prints are whose.

  Raya chooses to go first. “Here, let me help you with that,” Rob offers. He stands up to walk over to her and helps her ink all five of her fingers and plot them on her sheet.

  “This is pretty cool. It reminds me of CSI,” she says.

  “Ha! I love CSI. That’s why I chose Forensics as an elective.” I smile at her and she returns a smile.

  “Me, too,” she says. Rob inks and plots his fingerprints next and I complete mine last. We compare our prints with one another and notice that Rob has a few extra ridges on his ring finger.

  The bell rings and everyone starts to pack up and exit the class. “Class, please clean up the supplies before you leave!”

  Rob asks Raya what her next class is and she responds with Calculus. He looks over to me, “Duke has that class next. It was nice meeting you, Raya. I’ll see you around.” He grabs her hand, raises it to his mouth, and kisses it gently. As he exits, Raya laughs loudly.

  “What’s so funny?” I ask as I clean our table. She turns to me and helps me clean up the supplies. “Look at my hands. They are covered in blue ink and Rob kissed them. He left with ink on his face and I doubt anyone is going to tell him.” I look at her and we both burst into laughter.

  “Rob is going to be pissed when he finds out! Ha-Ha! I should text him but I won’t.” I think, That’s what he gets for hitting on her so soon.

  “He seems to be a sweet guy.” She continues to clean up and I walk over to the sink to wash my hands. Raya puts everything in the supply closet and helps Mr. Cerillo clean up the remaining tables. None of the students stayed behind to help clean; what a bunch of assholes. Raya walks up to wash her hands in the sink and I pass her a few paper towels.

  “Thank you. I had fun in class today. I think I’ll enjoy this class” she finishes drying her hands and hangs the towel. I walk back to our table and grab my stuff, passing her backpack to her. “Thanks, Duke” she smiles again. Her smile is infectious and bright. You can’t help but feel happy when she smiles at you.

  I place my hand by the small of her back and lead her to the East Wing. “Come on, let’s get to Calculus.” As we head outside, I hear my phone ringing and look down to see Melanie is calling so I answer.

  “Hi, sweetie, how are you feeling?”

  “Hi, babe, I’m feeling much better. I took a nap and my mom gave me some soup and crackers. I still feel like shit, but I’ll live.” She sounds much healthier and her breathing is not as shallow as it was earlier.

  “I’m glad you feel better, Melanie. I’ll come by later today, okay?” I look over to Raya who is watching me talk on the phone and she smiles.

  “Yes, that’s fine, Duke. I’ll see ya later. Call me right before you get here and I’ll leave the door open for you.”

  “Okay, go back to bed and rest. See you soon, sweetie.” I end the call and see Raya is trying to hide a smile. We continue our walk to the East Wing and are approaching the entrance. When I grab the door to pull it open, Raya giggles. “What is it, Raya? Something funny?” She walks past me as I hold the door open for her and turns around to face me. “It’s nothing, just typical that you would have a girlfriend. I’m not surprised. You’re very sweet and very popular. I don’t see you having a string of girls glued to your dick, so I guess that’s a good thing.” She smiles and turns away, continuing the journey to Calculus.

  I just stand there stunned. What did she just say? Where did this girl come from? I jog to catch up to her and begin laughing, “Wow, you had me there for a second. I was not expecting that to come out of your mouth.” She looks at me out of the corner of her eye and sticks her tongue out.

  “What, I just say what’s on my mind. Yes, I can be shy at first, but I’m not scared of you or anything.”

  “Ha! Well, lucky me I guess.” As we climb the stairs to the second floor, I see Jose standing outside of the classroom talking to his buddies. Great, not this asshole again. As Raya and I approach the classroom, Jose spots us and I can see the look on his face as he notices Raya. His eyes open wide and his facial expression screams fresh meat and my blood begins to boil. I’m going to have to warn Raya about Jose. She seems like a sweet girl and I don’t want her to get hurt by this fucker. I walk past him and give him a look of disgust as I walk to my seat. Raya glances at Jose as she passes him and heads toward the teacher’s desk and introduces herself. Jose walks into class and sits at his desk, two rows away from me. I notice the only empty seat in class is right in front of Jose. Shit, Raya’s going to have to sit there. Fuck my life.

  Mrs. Robinson clears her throat and stands in the center of the class while pointing to Raya. “Class, please welcome Raya Winters. She is a transfer from New Haven High School and will be here for the remainder of the year.” She turns to Raya and points at the empty seat in front of Jose. “Raya, we only have one empty seat in front of Jose, so make yourself comfortable. If you have any questions, please see me after class.”

  Raya smiles at her and says, “Thank you, Mrs. Robinson.” She walks to her empty seat and smiles at me as she sits down. I give her a small wave and smile back. I notice Jose lean up close to her and he taps her shoulder and whispers into her ear. Raya turns around and gives him a dirty look and quickly turns back around to face the front. She’s got spunk, I like it. Jose slumps back into his chair but I know he’s not giving up so easily.

  “Alright, class, open up your textbooks to chapter three.” The class groans as Mrs. Robinson begins the lesson and starts writing equations on the chalkboard. I look over to Raya who is listening attentively and writing notes. Her long, brown hair covers her face as she writes but the natural brown waves bounce and shine in the light. I catch Jose running his pen through the ends of her hair and she must have felt it because she turns around and whispers to him. He immediately starts laughing out loud, causing a disruption, and Mrs. Robinson turns around, clearly upset.

  “Jose, what is so funny you have to disrupt the lesson?”

  “Mrs. Robinson, I apologize but Raya caught me off guard. It won’t happen again.” He smiles at the teacher and sits up straight in his seat, clearing his throat.

  Mrs. Robinson walks up to Raya, with a suspicious look. “Raya, anything you have to add? I will not tolerate a disruptive student, so if you’d rather visit the principle, I’m sure you can find
your way.” At this point, the whole class is staring at Raya and a look of stress and panic hits her face. “No, please, Mrs. Robinson. I apologize for the disruption. Please don’t alert the principal.” Her voice is full of fear and her breathing is scarce as she breaks out into a sweat. Her blue eyes stare into Mrs. Robinson as she pleads for forgiveness.

  Mrs. Robinson lets out a heavy sigh, “Very well, then. There will not be a second chance.” As she returns to her lesson she glances back at Raya with a puzzled look. Raya looks at me and sends a smile but her eyes are sad and she is fighting back tears. I shrug my shoulders and shake my head. What’s wrong? Why didn’t she just say Jose was bothering her? What’s so bad about the principal’s office? I try to get her to send me a hint—anything—but nothing. She just keeps her head down for the remainder of the class.

  When the bell rings and everyone gets ready to put away their belongings, I glance over at Raya, who is still silent. Something is bothering her and I can’t help her if she doesn’t tell me what’s wrong. Frankly, I’m getting annoyed and it’s starting to piss me off. Jose walks out of class and starts laughing and yelling in the halls. He’s probably already talking to his friends about her and how he’s going to trick her into his bed. As I’m thinking of all the vile things he’s saying, I snap the pencil that I’m holding in my hand. I’m about to lose it; I need to get out of here before I beat the shit out of that fucker. I get up and grab my backpack and walks toward Raya who is gathering her things. “Hey, you okay? Jose is a fucking prick, so stay away from him.” She looks up at me as tears stream down her face. She shakes her head and walks right out of class. “Hey, Raya, what’s wrong?!” I run outside of class to catch up to her and see her running down the stairs. “Just leave me alone, Duke!” she yells as she exits the building.

  Duke

  “Hi, baby, how was your day?” Melanie snuggles into the sofa next to me and rests her head on my shoulders. God, I missed her today and I’m happy she’s with me right now. I kiss the top of her hand and wrap her up in my arms. “I had one hell of a day today. I almost got into a fight with Jose.” She looks at me with shock in her eyes and gasps, “Oh my God, what happened?” I shake my head, run my fingers through my hair, and breathe a sigh.

  “It’s a long story. Are you sure you want to hear it?”

  “Yes, baby. Tell me. I can tell something is bothering you. What happened?” I can tell she’s worried about me and it wasn’t my intention to spring this on her, especially since she’s sick.

  “A new girl started today, Raya. She’s a transfer from New Haven and we met in Forensics class.” I immediately think back to Rob’s blue mess of a face and chuckle a little bit.

  “What’s so funny? I want to know.”

  “Nothing, I need to call Rob later. Ha-ha. Anyway, Raya also has Calculus with me, so we walked to class together and Mrs. Robinson told her to sit in front of Jose.” I look at Melanie who’s listening attentively and looking up at me. I give her a quick kiss on the lips and continue on. “I’m not sure what happened, but Jose was messing with her hair and she defended herself by saying something to him and he disrupted the class. Mrs. Robinson threatened to send Raya to the principal’s office and she completely panicked.”

  “What do you mean she panicked? It’s just the principal’s office. She wasn’t going to get expelled or anything.”

  “That’s what I’m thinking, but she had a full panic attack. There was so much fear in her eyes and she began to tremble. I’ve never seen anyone so scared before. For the remainder of the class, she kept her head down and stayed silent. When class was over and I asked her what was wrong, she ran away from me and told me to leave her alone.”

  Melanie gets up from the sofa and walks into the kitchen to grab a glass of water. I follow her and wrap my arm around her as she drinks from the glass. She turns around and looks at me, “Did she say why her family moved here from New Haven? I wonder why she’s so scared of getting into trouble. Do you think her parents are strict?” I pull her back into the living room and sit her on my lap. “She didn’t say anything about her family, and honestly, I have no idea. I mean, I guess her parents can be strict. Something was definitely bothering her.” Melanie snuggles into my chest and breathes in my scent and kisses my chest. “I don’t know, Duke. Once I get better, I’ll try to talk to her. Okay?”

  I flash her a bright smile and brush my finger along her cheek. “What would I do without you?” She gives me a quick kiss on the lips, “Yes, you are one lucky guy.”

  I chuckle and reach around her to grab the television remote. “Alright, what’s on your DVR right now?” I begin to flick through her recorded television shows and nothing piques my interest. I pause at one show and look at her as she laughs out loud. “Really, Melanie, Days of Our Lives? My mother watches this soap opera.”

  She grabs a sofa pillow and hits me with it. “Don’t start, Duke. It’s a good show! Besides, I want to know what happens with Sammy. She’s always up to something!”

  I snatch the pillow from her hands and raise it above her head so she can’t reach it even if she tried. “Ha-ha, I can’t believe you watch this. You and my mom can have daily chats and discuss the diabolical Stefano.”

  She laughs so hard that it causes her to cough terribly. Grabbing her, I pull her into my chest as she coughs out the sickness. “Come on, sweetie, let’s get you to bed. You need your rest.” She smiles at me and shakes her head in agreement. I kiss her forehead and gather her up into my arms and walk upstairs to her bedroom. Laying her down gently, I pull the covers over her to ensure she’s fully covered and warm.

  Her sleepy eyes look up at me, “Duke, stay with me, please.” How can I resist that?

  “Of course, sweetie. I’m here.” I lie down on top of the blanket and snuggle behind her as we spoon. Taking in a deep breath, I recognize the scent of her coconut shampoo and notice she’s already fallen asleep. As I close my eyes for a quick nap, Raya’s face and brilliant blue eyes flash before me as I drift away into slumber.

  It’s been three weeks since the incident in Calculus and Raya is avoiding me. She talks to Rob and me during Forensics but I can tell she’s completely closed off. She doesn’t talk about her life at home and doesn’t start up conversations unless she has to. Melanie had no luck with getting through to Raya, either. She’s invited her to hang out after school and they even share a class together. Even though Melanie got shot down a few times, I am grateful for her even trying.

  Halloween is fast approaching and I know Melanie will want to dress up together. Great, another couple’s costume. I hate those things. I don’t understand the point of them. Austin’s party is tomorrow and I don’t want to go because I’m not a fan of big crowds. I’d rather just grab a few beers and hang out with the guys. Maybe I can convince Melanie to just stay home with me.

  Thank god it’s Friday; I can’t wait for the weekend. It’s been one hell of a week. Jose has been a huge dick ever since Raya showed up. He does it just to piss me off and Raya lets him get away with it. One of these days, I’m going to lose my shit and he’s going to suffer the consequences.

  As I walk to the corner bodega to grab my bacon, egg, and cheese on a roll, I pop in the ear buds and select the 90s R&B playlist. I love old school R&B—Boys II Men, Keith Sweat, Brian McKnight—you can’t get any better than that.

  “Hey, Javier, can I get the usual?” I walk up to the deli counter and pay for my breakfast roll and grab a Gatorade. Javier has owned this bodega for the past five years and they have the best breakfast sandwiches—so fresh, mouthwatering, and fuckin’ delicious.

  “Sure thing, Duke. When are you going to try something new? How about an everything bagel with ham and cheese?” Javier grabs a bagel, hinting toward me.

  “Come on, man, you know I can’t live without bacon.” We both laugh and he begins making my sandwich. Looking at my watch, I realize I’m running late. “Shit, Javier, I need that roll now. I’m going to be l
ate to class.”

  He gives me a puzzled glance. “Since when are you so worried about getting to class on time? What class is it?”

  “Forensics and I’ve got to get moving.” I walk outside and listen for the subway, hoping I don’t miss the train. Javier hollers for me and I run back inside to grab my breakfast and jet to the subway station. As I run through the toll booth, the train pulls up just in time and I run through the opening doors and grab a seat. Whew! That was close. I chuckle to myself, pull out my sandwich, and plug my ear buds back in.

  As I stroll into Forensics class, Rob is already there talking to Gina—his new conquest. I swear this guy never quits. Gina is cute, slender with light brown short hair. Her haircut is a pixie style and looks good on her. She’s wearing a short skirt and knee high tights. Damn, she must be freezing. Teen girls—they always think showing skin will get a guy’s attention. I give him a quick nod as I approach our table and take a seat. Mr. Cerillo strolls in and Raya is right behind him. Her hair is up in a high bun and she is wearing a pair of blue jeans and a light blue blouse with a hint of pink. I give her a quick smile as she sits next to me.

  “Hey, Duke. It’s freezing outside. I don’t understand why girls are still wearing skirts.” She grabs her books out of her book bag and places them on the table. Taking her hair out of her bun, she fans her fingers through it, then she ties her hair in a quick braid and lets it hang on the side. Turning to look at me, the look on her face is priceless. “Why are you staring at me? Something on my face?”

  “You just surprised me. You haven’t really talked much for the past few weeks. I’m happy to see you smile again.” I look deep into her crystal blue eyes and get lost in them. I didn’t realize how much her happiness means to me until I saw her smile again. I feel fuckin’ fantastic right now. We sit here looking at each other in a comfortable silence until Mr. Cerillo begins the class and Rob sits down next to me.

  “Okay, class, today we are going to learn how to estimate time of death by examining the body—signs of insects, color of the skin, smell, and temperature of the body. We are going to watch a quick video, so please no talking during the movie.” He gets up to press play on the TV remote and walks over to the wall to turn of the light switch and the classroom gets fairly dark. Jason, one of my lacrosse teammates, jokingly yells from the back of the class, “But I’m scared of the dark!” The whole class erupts into laughter, even Mr. Cerillo. Looking over at Raya, her laugh is loud—almost like a cackle. It’s different but cute. We all quiet down as the movie starts. Am I paying attention? Nope, not even close. Rob leans over to me and whispers, “I take it she’s feeling better?” I glance at him and nod my head and he smiles back. I can tell he cares about her, too, and I’m lucky to have such a great friend in him.