Change Has Come – Chapter Twelve: She Is Perfect
Sunday was upon Bahia Bay and many of the high school children were hard at work finishing up their homework. Most had worked diligently all of Saturday and a few had been working hard since Friday. There was a collective feeling of relief among all the children that they were near the end. However, Lor was not one of those children. She had spent all of Saturday working on Tino and then pouting afterwards about how wrong things went. Now she was in a mad dash to accomplish all of the homework, and mad was definitely an understatement.
"Arrrrgh! Who assigns this much homework?! Are they trying to work us to death?! This is unreal!!" Lor yelled as she looked at all the work spread out in front of her.
Grumbling, she tried to start with English. Within minutes she went cross-eyed and nearly passed out.
Lying on the floor in a daze Lor thought, "This is not good. There is no way I'll get this all done like this. I need to think of something and I need to think of it fast. Let's see, dad is busy fixing what the boys broke, mom is nowhere to be found, my brothers know less than I do if that's possible, I can't face Tino again, I refuse to ask that traitor, Tish, for help, and Carver, well, it's Carver."
Lor shook her head at the dim prospects, but then it hit her.
"I know! I can copy Carver's answers. He was working with Tish so they must be right. What a good plan, and people think I'm not that smart."
She picked up the phone and got a hold of Carver.
"Carver, did you finish the homework?" Lor asked hurriedly.
"By some miracle, yeah, I got it finished," Carver responded.
"Great. Bring you and the homework over right away."
"What? Why should I do that?"
"Because I need to get my work done and the only way I can possibly get it all done in one day is to use your homework."
"So in other words you want to steal my answers?"
"It's not stealing, it's sharing. C'mon, Carver, do me this favor."
"After I worked so hard getting all these answers you want me to just let you have them after you threw the day away?"
"Fine, I'll admit it. I wasted the day when I should have done my work instead, but the point here is that I can glue you to the wall, and I can kill the rest of your shoes."
Carver was silent for a few moments.
"You drive a hard bargain, Lor, but since I know you aren't lying or joking I'll be right over."
Lor smiled satisfied with her keen negotiation skills.
"Well, that solves that problem. Now if only this whole mess with Tino and Tish were so easy to resolve, but I'll think about that later."
After twenty minutes or so had passed Carver showed up with his arms full of books and papers. As soon as Lor let him in, Carver darted right to her room and dropped all the material on her bed.
"Boy, am I glad to put that stuff down. I thought my arms were going to fall off it was so heavy."
"This looks painful, so it's probably best to get right into it."
"Hmm, talk about some more déjà vu," Carver remarked.
"Déjà vu? What are you talking about?"
"Well, yesterday I was working with Tish and she wanted to get right into it, and during that time you were out pursuing Tino. Now I'm working with you and you want to get right down to it, and Tish is out pursuing Tino."
Lor looked slightly miffed but beyond that nothing happened.
"Whatever. Forget about Tino and Tish for now. I'm just concerned with getting this work done as soon as possible."
Carver shrugged and grabbed the first book to start with the work.
Tish lightly powdered her face just enough so it made a difference but not enough that it was obvious to anyone who passed her on the street. She had decked herself out in a new blue shirt with one of her traditional purple skirts. Although the skirt was slightly shorter than Tish's usual length in a daring move to get Tino to see her as a woman. Not only that, but Tish's shirt was a tad loose around the neck so if she leaned it gave a bit of a show. Now Tish wasn't morally loose, but her drive to get Tino to see her as a girl before a friend made led her to make these clothing choices. She pulled her hair back into a ponytail and brushed it smooth. This new hairstyle was a bit of a departure from her usual looks, but personally Tish felt she looked stunning in it. As the coup de grace, Tish put a small hint of perfume on her neck to make sure she smelled nice. Once finished with her preparations, she took a long look in the mirror and studied herself from every angle.
"I'd say I look like the perfect picture of femininity. Maybe I should dress like this more often, I would probably get more attention."
Tish thought about that for a second.
"Wait a minute, what am I talking about? I wouldn't stoop to such superficial means. My beauty is both internal and external. This dressing up is solely part of a scientific strategy."
Satisfied with her appearance Tish reached into her top drawer and pulled out the second part of her strategy. It was a romantic poem that she had written in hopes of subtly letting Tino know how she felt and that she hoped would awaken Tino to how romantic she could be. Tish read the poem over and beamed with pride at her work. Tish gleefully twirled around in her room.
"Ahhh, what a wonderful world it is! To have such a beautiful day as today mark what will be a great hour of mine. I do believe nature is singing my fanfare today."
She looked at herself in the mirror again, blew herself a kiss, and was off for Tino's house. To Tish the walk to Tino's house felt like an army's march to victory. If there was one thing Tish wasn't lacking, it was confidence.
"Being rational is the key here. I understand my emotions and I know how to utilize them correctly. My plan is near foolproof."
She walked with her head held high and with her confidence in her heart.
When Tish arrived at Tino's house, she strolled up to her door and as an extra boost muttered to herself, "There is nothing to fear but fear itself."
She knocked on the door and, it was promptly answered by Ms. Tonitini.
"Oh hello Tish, it's nice to see you."
"Hi, Ms. Tonitini. Is Tino here?"
"Yeah, he is in his room, but I can't say he is doing well."
"Oh what's the matter with him?"
"Well, he has a headache from multiple traumas to the head, and I think he fried his brain doing all that homework."
"Ehhh, that doesn't sound good. I think I'll check in on him."
"That sounds good maybe you can help him ease his mind."
Tish nodded and started up the stairs to Tino's room.
Ms. Tonitini watched her ascend the staircase and pondered to herself, "Tish certainly has dolled herself up. I can't believe I missed it. 'He' is never gonna let me live this down."
Tino's door was slightly ajar so Tish pushed it open slowly and poked her head around the door. She didn't see Tino anywhere until she followed a ray of sunlight onto his bed and saw his face poking out from the covers. His eyes were wide and bloodshot. He looked like a deer caught in headlights.
"Tino, are you okay?" Tish asked genuinely worried about her friend.
Tino shook a bit as he spoke, "All that work…… all those words…… it's coming for me."
Tish gave him a look and sat down on the edge of the bed.
"Can you hear me Tino? It's me, Tish. You know who I am, right?"
Tino looked over at her.
"Tish? I know someone with that name. Yes,…... Tish."
"Right, right! It's me Tish. Look, it'll be okay I'll help you out of this."
"Help, yes, help is good. I think I need help."
"Okay first thing is first you need get out from under those covers and sit up."
Tish pulled back the covers and grabbed Tino's arm and helped to prop him into a sitting position.
"Okay, now look at me, Tino. Just turn your head a little."
Ever so slowly Tino turned towards Tish his face and hair a wreck.
"All right, now I want you to take a deep breath and let all your worries flow out when you exhale."
Tino simply stared at her for a few moments and then did as told. Once he had exhaled his eyes returned to normal size.
"Can you understand me well now? Are you better?" Tish asked.
"Understand? I do that. I understand. Better am I," Tino replied still a bit out of it.
Tish shook Tino a bit hoping to shake out any cobwebs.
"Are you sure your better?"
"Yes," Tino answered quickly.
"Good, then I would like to show you this poem I wrote. I think it's good but I would like your opinion on it," Tish said smiling a bit.
She pulled out the paper and Tino's eyes went wide again.
"AHHHH! It's another paper! More work! More work! AHHHH!"
"No, no, no, it's not more work, it's a poem I wrote, It's okay, Tino. Everything is fine," Tish said for comfort.
Tino's eyes narrowed again and he felt himself calm down.
"Right, a poem. You just said that. A poem, right."
Tish handed the piece of paper to Tino and he gazed over it. The poem was written beautifully in calligraphy. It sprawled majestically over the page. When Tish went after something she put her full effort behind it.
"So what do you think?" Tish asked anxiously.
Tino looked over it some more.
"Could you read it to me? I can't read all the swirls and twirls of the writing."
Tish took the piece of paper from Tino and it shook in her trembling hands. Now she was nervous since she would have to speak the words that had elegantly guised her feelings. Tish cleared her throat, took a deep breath and began,
Shall I take my fluttering heart as a sign?
Truly, being with you 'tis nothing short of divine
And when the sun departs leaving darkening skies
Your smile provides the light for my eyes
With you, I can travel afar, live in every land
I will always be home, as long as you hold my hand
Thirsting, I yearn for your tight embrace
Hoping to feel you wipe all the tears from my face
More and More, I seek to learn the comfort of your arms
Elevating me above all of life's harms
I have heard your gentle voice showing me the way
Lone and adrift, I fell if parted even for one day
Oh, how my soul aches, I long to speak my heart
Very timid on this am I, and so we are apart
Enduring my heartache, praying for a sign
You hold such amazing power o'er this little heart of mine
Only now I hold this final plea in my hand
Unwilling to give up, I find myself asking you to understand
Tish finished and took a deep breath proud that she made it through the poem without incident.
"So what do you think about my poem?" Tish asked.
Tino was staring of into space and talked slowly.
"Those…… were some pretty words. Very, very pretty. It was like poetry."
"It was poetry, Tino! Are you in there?"
"I'm not in there. I'm right here," Tino replied seriously.
Tish was ready to rip her hair out in frustration.
"Tino, I'm sorry to do this, but trust me when I say it's for your own good."
In one deft motion, Tish raised her hand and slapped Tino across the face.
"Ow! Oh, my aching head, and now my stinging face! Geez, Tish what did you do that for?!"
"Sorry, but it had to be done. You were slowly losing your mind from an overload of homework."
"Oh right, right. I remember it all now. Between my headache and the homework, I had a breakdown, and I was laid up in bed. And you read me a poem a minute or two ago, right?"
"Yes, I did. Do you remember it?"
"I couldn't recite it to ya, but I remember the general idea of it. It was a real sickeningly sweet romantic poem. Nothing I would ever care for, way too lovey-dovey, bleh! Give me action and excitement like Captain Dreadnaught any day."
Tish was ready to blow.
"Are you honestly putting mindless drivel like Captain Dreadnaught over the beauty of romance? Do you honestly think that Captain Dreadnaught is the be all and end all of literature?" Tish asked tensely.
Tino stared at her for a moment.
"Yeah, basically."
Tish leaned over and got inches from Tino's face.
"You, Tino Tonitini, have no respect for true culture! You're idea of- don't look away from me while I'm talking!"
"S-sorry, but it's your shirt. I can see right down it. I don't want to be vulgar, you know."
Tish blushed since she had made the conscious decision to wear the shirt. She stood up to remedy the problem.
"Anyway like I was saying, you have no respect for culture. Poems like these are the words of romance. Girls fawn over men who respect such beauty."
"That's odd, because I don't respect it and I have a girlfriend," Tino replied.
Internally, Tish was cursing Tino.
"Fine then, I don't care. Stay un-cultured; it's not my problem. I know in my heart I made the effort, and that's what counts."
"Okay, that sounds good to me," Tino commented.
Tish was blowing smoke out of her ears and she stomped to the door. She swung it open violently, and turned to Tino.
"Diablerie!" she shouted.
Tino was too busy sniffing the air to notice her shouting.
He looked at her and asked, "Are you wearing perfume?"
"No!" Tish yelled and she slammed the door.
Tino was left sitting on his bed wondering what had gotten Tish so worked up.
That night Tino and his mom sat around the dinner table with a meal of grasshoppers and honey. Needless to say, Tino decided to make himself a sandwich that night.
"You know, mom, I'm sure you could find an exterminator to take care of the bugs instead of you cooking them," Tino commented.
"I'll have you know bugs are very healthy. They have plenty of essential nutrients," Ms. Tonitini responded.
She picked up one of the grasshoppers and raised it to her mouth. Ms. Tonitini found herself having a hard time getting the bug in her mouth. Eventually, she closed her eyes and tossed it in. With much squirming, she chewed it and swallowed it.
"There *cough* that wasn't so bad *cough*."
Tino shook his head at how crazy his mom was.
"I can't believe you just ate one of those grasshoppers. I don't want any goodnight kisses from you now."
Ms. Tonitini simply rolled her eyes.
"So, what did Tish want today?"
"Oh nothing. All she did was read a poem, and after she read it she got mad with me. I'm not sure what her deal was."
"That certainly is odd. That doesn't really sound like her, does it?"
"No, not at all. Actually, everyone seems to be acting weird lately. Not so much Carver, but Tish and Lor have really been crazy the past week or so."
"Hmm, well, maybe they are still adjusting to high school life."
"I guess that could be it. I certainly hope they snap out of it soon though. They are starting to freak me out."
"I'm sure things will go back to normal soon. It isn't like any of you to stay different for too long."
"Yeah, that's true. And hopefully we'll stop getting such crazy amounts of homework. It's completely insane! That homework almost fried my brain to a crisp. We should boycott homework."
"I think homework can build character. It's good to know you are learning a lot at school."
"That's such a mom thing to say. Why can't you be supportive of my anti-homework stance?"
"Because then I would be violating the rules of motherhood. You should probably get some rest to make sure you are ready for school tomorrow after such a harrowing weekend."
"Yeah, I guess you're right. I'll be in my room."
Tino got up and left the table for his room. He sat down on his bed and sighed.
"Hey there. Well, this wasn't such a good weekend for me. Friday started off good, but take a look at the mark on my forehead. It all went down from there. I'm really hoping things get back to normal soon. Here's hoping to better times, later days.
End of Chapter Twelve
It must be a miracle, it took me under two weeks to update. I'm hoping to have this story all wrapped up before I go on summer break. That gives me 3 and a half weeks to write three more chapters. I think I will be able to pull it off. On another note I believe in giving credit where credit is due. Therefore, I must thank the kindly Lord Malachite for helping me with the poem. It was a dual effort, and I am thankful for his help. Okay, that's it for now. I hope to be back soon. Keep reading and reviewing.