C.C. McKenna

Chapter two Embarrassing Moment

Phoebe entered the building and suddenly all voices started weakening until they were completely hushed; Hundreds of query unblinking eyes immediately fell upon her.

"Phoebe!" Karen spotted her best friend across the hall and swiftly ran to her.

"Karen?" Phoebe spoke unsurely, ceasing her measured walk immediately on the spot.

"Yeah, it's me sweetie; I'm so glad you've finally decided to come back" Karen happily approached and embraced her friend with so much love making Phoebe release a couple of joyful tears that easily trickled slowly under her black specs.

"What?! Don't say you're going frail on me now? She grabbed Phoebe's shoulders and held her at arms length. "Are you?"

"Don't be silly!" Phoebe slapped her arm playfully. "My eyes are a little bit weak, that's all" She lied; wiping her face with the back of her hand.

"I bet they are!" Karen smiled pulling Phoebe back against her chest, tighter this time.

"Hey!. .Need some breathing space in here!" Phoebe joked.

"Sorry" Karen finally released her friend and grabbed her arm to guide her to the cafeteria. "Have you had any lunch yet?

"I just had some coffee this morning with my sisters"

"Well, lets have something to eat then, I'm starved"

Every single student inside the cafeteria happily welcomed one of the most popular girls in campus. Phoebe was thrilled.

"Here you go" Karen smiled when she placed two hot spaghetti plates on the table and gently grabbed Phoebe's hand to help her locate it. "It's hot Phoebs, careful; I brought you a coke cause they were out of Root beer"

"Thanks Karen" Phoebe smiled, slightly lowering her head to ease her discomfiture. "Coke is fine"

Karen unconsciously stared at her friend and felt sorry for her; she didn't want to feel that way, but Phoebe's vulnerability was evident and it hurt so much to see her like that. "Don't mention it" She pulled out a chair and sadly sat in front of her.

"So...tell me, what's been going on in here lately" Phoebe asked trying to sound cheery.

"Well, most of it the same, except for... uhm, except for" Karen cleared her throat and sipped her coke; thinking about the best possible way to talk to her friend without hurting her feelings.

"Except for what?" Phoebe smiled to an empty space.

"Well, there's this new student....uhm..., she's from Great Britain" She took a sip from her soda. "And she's a freshman, and... and..."

"And what Karen?" Phoebe turned to her friend, looking a little too anxious. Stop going around the bushes, come on, spit it out!"

"Well" She coughed. "She has taken your place in the team." She finally spoke and cleared her throat again. She didn't wait for Phoebe's retort and naively tried to change the subject. "So how have you been feeling lately? She tasted her coke again.

"She has taken what?" Phoebe quickly got on her feet, unwillingly pushing the table away and flipping over the drinks and the hot plates.

Karen also sprung up but she wasn't able to hold the plates on their places. "Oops, did you burn yourself Phoebe?" She quickly grabbed her friend's hands and checked them for injuries.

Phoebe nervously shook her head. "No, I'm ok I guess." She answered quietly. "I'm sorry" She whispered almost to herself; her face suddenly blushed as she tried to fix the mess she knew she'd done.

"Wait, let me do it; and don't worry" Karen placed Phoebe's hands between hers. "Coach Roberts said that it was just going to be momentarily; that you were going to have your place back as soon as you were back in the team"

"Sure, she did; but that may never happen" Phoebe slowly returned to her seat. Her words filled with sorrow.

"Come on Phoebe, you'll get your sight back" Karen whispered, trying to get rid of the staring eyes drawn on them by Phoebe's sudden burst out.

"Yeah" Phoebe barely spoke and nodded weakly. "But why am I not so sure about that"

A few tables away from them, Alexia, a young girl, with shoulder's length light brown hair and dark green eyes, was also having lunch, she was alone, like she had been every single day since she arrived at the University of San Francisco; completely unaware of Phoebe's presence and Karen's gaze. Her green eyes perfectly matched the sleeveless top she was wearing; dark blue jeans rightly fit her gorgeous shaped body beautifully. She finished her meal and carefully picked up a couple of used napkins, an empty can of Dr. Pepper and a couple of unopened saltine crackers; she placed them on top of her tray and walked slowly to the trashcan near Phoebe's table. Several eyes stared at her without any shame, and followed every single move she made. She was beautiful and gorgeous to the eyes of each and every guy in school. They all silently loved her, except for the girls, which by the way hated her for being so dashingly appealing.

Leslie Parker, the captain of the cheerleaders was sitting among friends; the kind of friends that normal people wouldn't even think about having. Leslie saw Alexia walking confidently but silently, the way she always did; She deliberately stretched out her foot to make Alexia fall heavily on top of Phoebe Halliwell; dropping the tray and all its belongings on top of the unsighted girl's head. Everybody in the cafeteria laughed loudly at the sloppy comical scene, watching amused the way Karen hastily got up and started cleaning her friend's clothing with her hand; while several French fries, dipped in hot mustard, slid slowly down Phoebe's hair.

"I am dreadfully sorry" the embarrassed girl quickly stood up from Phoebe's lap and started cleaning Phoebe as well. "It was not my intention to cause you any harm" She insisted.

"It's ok, I've got her" Karen swatted Alexia's hand and turned to Phoebe. "Are you ok sweetie?" Karen's concern was obvious. She carefully grabbed a French fry with two fingers and pulled it away from Phoebe's nose.

"Oh sshhhi.. I'm just great" She shook her head and slowly wiped her face.

"I am sorry; really I am, it was not my fault" Alexia's voice started trembling as she tried again to help Karen with the cleaning. The laughter in the cafeteria was now getting out of control, and the eyes of every single person in the room were aimed to the three stooges.

"I said I've got her" Karen's annoyance was now more evident than before.

"Enough you two! Just leave me alone, please" Phoebe tilted her face to locate the girl's voice. She had easily identified the girl's British accent and instantly knew who she was. "I've think you've done enough" She spoke aiming her black specs to an empty space between Karen and Alexia.

Alexia was taken aback by Phoebe's noticeable blindness and remained shortly astonished, speechless staring at her. "But I want to help" She insisted after recovering her speech, still staring at Phoebe's messed up clothes.

"I said leave me ALONE!!" Phoebe raised her voice, speaking through clamped teeth.

"Fine, I am sorry; I was just trying to help, and sorry again,...I did not know you were blind" Alexia grabbed her backpack from the floor and ran away in a hurry, trying not to listen to the loud laughter behind her.

"Excuse me? What's being blind got to do with all this?" Phoebe asked not too happy about Alexia's remark and eagerly waited for an answer. "So" She tapped her cane on the floor. "What if I'm blind?" She insisted.

"Uhm... Phoebe...she's gone sweetie" Karen whispered, holding back a smile.

"Oh, ok, all right; it's all right" Phoebe clumsily searched the table for a napkin and started wiping her face. "Who was she anyway?" She asked innocently, even though she knew very well who that girl was. "Do I know her?" She squinted when a drop of ketchup mixed with spicy mustard trickled down into her eye.

"That was Alexia, the girl I was telling you about; she's the new striker of our team" Karen wrinkled her nose when she saw Phoebe's eye slowly being invaded by a menacing drop of hot mustard.

"But she sounded like a kid, for God's sake!" Phoebe was surprised and uncomfortably trying to get rid of the stingy feeling in her eye.

"Only because she is" Karen giggled. "I guess she's 18 or 19 I'm not sure; she's a freshman" She leaned closer to Phoebe and grabbed another French fry from her shoulder. "Do you want to go to the rest room to freshen up?" she asked quietly.

"Uhm.. Yeah, that would be nice" Phoebe answered as her mind traveled along with Alexia; Her stingy eyes aiming to an empty spot in the room.

Tbc