Chapter 5.
Rocky opened the door and slammed it shut behind him pressing his back against it, panting from the run. "What happened to you?" Colt asked, sitting up on the couch thinking his brother was in some kind of fight and couldn't exactly win.
Rocky looked at him strangely thinking he was alone but Colt looked at him with questioning eyes and stood up to walk over to him, but Rocky shrank away from him and ran upstairs with Colt calling behind him. "Rocky, what's the matter?! Hey?!" But all Rocky heard was Maria's voice telling him to come back to her.
"Class, today we're going to start with our presentations that we made last week. Who's ready to show theirs first?" The teacher looked around the room then her eyes landed on the short brown haired girl. "Maria? How about you?" The girl looked as though she were in another place and the teacher snapped her fingers to get her attention, but remembered what she was doing and walked over tapping the girl on the shoulder.
"You're presentation?" She said to her again and she nodded silently- sadly. 'I won't let Rocky leave me like this....I have to get him back, we-re supposed to be together he loves me.'
"My presentation is on....the Samurai, they were really skilled warriors and they fought with the way of the Bushido which means in English, way of the Samurai." Maria continued on with her presentation and the class looked on enthusiastically and her mind was too busy to be else where, which was a good thing especially because Rocky just walked by the class room door with some papers he had to bring to another teacher in the art room.
He glanced in and noticed her, his blood ran cold and his breath became sharp, he ran past as quickly as he could bumping into Emily on his way. "Whoa!" She said keeping her balance and helped him up. "Rocky what's the-...?" She began but he cut her off by kissing her quickly on the lips.
"What was that for?" She asked not really minding. "I'm sorry for yesterday, you're not mad at me are you?" He asked her looking over his back not noticing that she bent over to pick up the papers and placed them in his hands. "No I'm not mad, I was more worried....Colt aside you came in looking positively spooked. What happened?" She asked him looking into his eyes.
He avoided them by looking at the papers in his arms, and sighed. "I uh...I have to bring these papers to the art teacher....I'll-....I'll see you after school, okay?" He turned to leave but she held his shoulder and turned him around.
"Wait. You-...you said that before to Colt and then you never showed up until way late, so...is this gonna be a repeat of yesterday?" She waited for her answer and he lowered his eyes from her, then looked up with a smile. "No. I promise you that I'll walk home with you, we could even take the bus if you want, any way we get there I'll be with you. I mean it."
She searched his face to see if he were telling the truth but there wasn't an ounce of lie there so she shrugged and let him go to his art class. 'I don't know what it is, but something tells me this has to do with that Maria girl.
And I'm gonna find out what her story is one way or another.' Emily thought continuing her trip to the girls room.
Rocky hated lying to Emily, but he had to; he couldn't tell her that he was at Maria's house she'd have a heart attack! She said not to be around her and she had every right to be that way.
'What is with her?' Rocky wondered, opening the door that led outside to the art building. 'Why does she like me so much? I've never even seen her until that afternoon after the sports banquette......something she said- maybe I know her from before and I just don't remember because it was so long ago. What did she say to me?'
He wracked his brains for a moment but the conversation wouldn't come to him. He ground his teeth angrily as he stood there in the middle of the path that led to the building. 'Why can't I remember?!' "Rocky?" It was Eleanor she was walking up the path he and she took art together, they were the best artist in the class maybe even the school.
"Oh, hi Elle." He said snapping out of his trance as she approached him. "What's the matter you look upset?" Rocky shook his head to disagree although it was an obvious lie. "Well, I wanted to say that I'm sorry for yesterday, you were right, I shouldn't have talked about that girl like that. I heard that she was in a special class and well....it's rude of me anyways."
"It's okay, really, but you say she's in a special class? What kind?" He wasn't sure he wanted to know that answer but he asked it and it looked as if Eleanor was gonna answer. "I think that she's a-..."
"Get to class, children." A teacher said coming up to them. "I'm on my way to the bathroom, Mr. Fletch." The girl said holding up her bathroom pass. "I'm dropping these papers off." Rocky said in his own defense.
"Well move it along this is not a chat room." He said pushing their backs in the direction they should be going in. They walked the rest of the way on their own. Rocky was a little annoyed that he couldn't hear about her problem- her....special class. 'Or maybe I'm relieved?' He wondered to himself opening the art door and slipping over to the teachers desk dropping them off. "Thank you Sam." He said and the girls in the class giggled when they saw him in there and they tried to move their hair into a quick style they thought made them look best and said in sync, "Hi Sam."
He waved to them trying to smile but he couldn't find it, so he left it at that and walked away. 'Those girls like me, but they don't act on it why only does Maria?' He wondered to himself as he strolled back to his own class.
The bell rang letting all the class's out so they could go to their next one and Rocky had to hurry to avoid running into Maria. He ran up the hall until he saw Colt and he stopped him by grabbing his arm and guiding him into the boys room.
"Hey what's the big idea, the interval only last for three minutes maybe two, what's the matter with you? Oh! Is it about yesterday cause-..." Rocky slapped his hand over Colt's mouth and placed a finger in front of his mouth to tell him to be quiet. "I have to talk to you, wait." He pulled away from him and looked under the bathroom stalls to make sure they were alone. "You know Rocky for a guy your hands smell really good." He said cheerfully to avoid the seriousness he could tell would be in the conversation.
"Thank you, listen I went to Maria's house yesterday."
"What?! Is that why you floored it into the house then bolted upstairs?" Colt asked with interest thinking. 'Oh boy, goodie-goodie Rocky getting in trouble knowing Emily said he didn't want him around her, this is great.' "Pay attention." Rocky said snapping him back to reality. "Listen don't tell Emily okay? Please? I didn't mean to- in fact I don't even know how it happened! All I know is that we were talking during lunch by the tree and it gets fuzzy from there then I remember talking to you."
Colt nodded finishing his thought for him.
"Yeah, you said you were going to be with Emily. But you weren't and she flipped out when she found out that you weren't there." He said turning to the door. "I really can't stay though, I get into enough trouble on my own I don't need you helping me and thank
God my class is right up the hall, have fun in art Rock' see ya."
He watched his brother leave the bathroom and enter the hall and as the door swung open Rockys eyes moved through the crowd and saw another pair looking back at him. His mouth parted to mouth something but he closed it and ran to pull the door shut so the eyes wouldn't stare at him anymore.
'How am I gonna get out of the bathroom, it's like this girl is everywhere, well at least it's the last class. I'll be home where I'm safe from her.' He thought then another thought occurred to him. 'Why am I so frightened of her? What happened to big cosmic Rocky?' He huffed out his answer. "Itty bitty Maria is scary." He walked to the bathroom door and opened it seeing that he was alone. He sighed with relief and started down the hall to the art room.
* * *
When art class was over and the final bell to go home rang Rocky waited by the seventh grade lockers for Emily. He had completely forgotten that he had soccer practice today and he had to ask her to wait for him on the bleachers. "Bye Rock'." Colt said walking by with a group of his friends and Rocky waved at him watching him leave thinking. 'Look at him, so care free so innocent....Why do I have all the problems?' As he talked to himself someone was approaching slowly and reaching out a hand to grab his shoulder.
'How do you get rid of bad people? How do I even know she's bad it could have all been in my head the other day that-...' "Rocky?" He jumped clear out of his skin spinning around to see-...! "Emily." He sighed out throwing his arms around her and she hugged him back smiling sweetly. "If this is the treatment I get I'll be a little late leaving everyday." She said breaking the hug and looking at him with love.
"Thanks for waiting." She followed up and started for the door but Rocky grabbed her hand. "We have to go to the gym, I forgot I have a soccer practice today will you watch I mean if you don't have anything to do after school?"
"Rocky my only activity is you. Now come, on I'd love to watch you practice." They went out the side door of the building and Maria stood in the place where they had just left seconds ago and she stared angrily after them. 'Emily.' She thought to herself walking outside quietly and seeing that they went in the other direction left an opening for her to go to the bleachers and take a place high above everyone unnoticed and unseen.
"Thanks coach." Rocky said getting a pat on the shoulder from the man. "I'll see you in a minute Em' okay?" Rocky said leaving her to go into the locker room and put on his uniform with the rest of the team. Emily walked over to the bleachers and sat down somewhere in the middle for a better view of the field. 'I love watching him do this. He's so angelic with his movements hm hm there's nothing Rocky about him at all.' She smiled watching him come out to the field.
'It should have been you Rocky, not that nobody.' Maria thought drawing in a sketch book watching them take their positions, she scribbled quickly into it as she looked down smiling at Rocky and frowning angrily at that boy! That boy who took Rockys award that night who did he think he was?! 'I'll show you, you'll never play in this sport again.' She scribbled quicker hearing the whistle blow and she smiled down at the field as the guys started moving.
"Come on, Sam! Whoo!" Emily said standing up and clapping watching him and the star player fight for their goals- well, play fight because they were all on the same team. Maria looked down the bleachers and saw Emily. 'How could I have over looked that?'
She thought and tried to shrink further back into the shade to hide herself as she drew.
"Oof!" The boy said tripping to the ground, Rocky helped him up and asked if he were ok, and the boy nodded and they went back to the game. Maria laughed at the site of it and continued drawing, only as she turned the pages from the next drawing she'd just finished Emily's ears caught the noise and she turned looking up. 'Maria?!' The girl stared down at her as though she'd heard her say her name out loud.
A small smirk came across her face as she looked down at her and especially when she noticed that Emily stood and started coming up to her. "Well, well, well. Maria." Emily said getting up to the girl and crossing her arms to show it wasn't for pleasantries. "What do you think you're doing? I know you're here for a reason....Rocky; but what I don't understand is, why?" The strange girl giggled and flipped another page in her book and started drawing a picture hurriedly. "What's so funny?" Emily asked and the girl stood up pointing to the field.
Not really wanted to Emily turned around following her point. Rocky and the boy were bumping elbows trying to get the ball the rest of the team was nearly just standing and watching as the two boys fought for it, then the star player did something nobody expected- he bashed Rocky in the mouth with his elbow! "OW!" He held his mouth in pain feeling tears sting his eyes. "I have to go help him." Emily said but the girl grabbed her shoulder and turned her around to face her smiling.
"No, watch." She pointed again and Rocky was down on the field beating the boy into the ground! "Rocky stop!" Emily shouted but nobody heard her and Maria started laughing again.
"It's not funny!" Emily shouted at her glancing down at her sketch book seeing a picture of the boys fighting. "What the-....?" Came from her mouth, as she watched Maria flip the page and grin at her. "I drew this one of you."
Suddenly Emily felt herself falling backwards she spun her arms to keep her balance but she remained tilting backwards. "Ah! Help me!" She said grabbing the girls arm to help herself from falling but she didn't let her get a grip on it. "I'm gonna tell you this once so you'd better listen..." She said and Emily's eyes went wide with fear, what was happening to her mouth her voice? She was talking but her words were coming out quicker than her mouth could move as if she couldn't stay in sync with them.
"Rocky is mine. He likes me a lot more than he likes you, that's why he came to my house for drinks instead of joining you after school." She bragged saying then she closed her eyes tightly and Emily fell screaming on the way back. A few seconds before she fell. The coach put an arm around Rocky as they were going into the locker room clean up his mouth. The star player was running up beside him saying he was sorry to him. "I don't know what happened man it's like it wasn't me or something." Rocky waved it away and nodded showing he excepted his apology.
"Hey that girl is falling!" Someone said pointing up at the bleachers. They all turned their heads looking towards the bleachers seeing. "Emily?!" Rocky shouted in horror as they watched her tip back Maria was standing there with her eyes closed but when she noticed the crowd she reached out and grabbed her shouting to be heard. "Don't worry Emily, I've got you!" The whole team ran up to the bleachers to help the girl keep Emily from falling and when she was helped into a sitting position she started screaming and backed up into Rocky.
"Emily what's wrong?" He asked her wrapping his arms around her trying not to look at Maria. "Keep her away from me!" She screamed and Maria made a shocked face looking at all the boys faces they looked from her to Emily and then scratched there heads. "I- I was just trying to help I didn't do anythi-..."
She was cut off from Rocky hugging her all of a sudden. Emily's mouth dropped at the site of it. "Thank you for saving her, I don't know what would happen if she'd have fallen." He moved away from her and helped Emily to her feet. "Come on Em', looks like I'm gonna have to keep a closer eye on you." He said play fully and helped her down from the bleachers.
'As long as it gets him away from her, I can play the baby.' Emily thought looking back at the girl and she stared at her wickedly sneering. Emily just stuck her tongue out and continued down the bleachers with her boyfriend. 'Not for long.' Maria thought humming and picking up her things to leave.