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Excuse the mistakes

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“Now, something to note is the parallel between Satan and Adam and Eve. Both fall from paradise because of what? Knowledge. If all of you will turn to book four, we can examine a certain passage that outlines ignorance and knowledge.”

I thumbed through my copy of Paradise Lost, whose pages were covered with scribbled, barely legible notes until I reached the passage Mr. Whitman was directing us to. I scanned the passage as he began to lecture us, and despite knowing that I was looking at English, I had no idea what I was reading.

I think that when John Milton sat down to write Paradise Lost, he kept a thesaurus by his side, and he decided to jam every big word he knew into the text. At first glance, the poem is so pedantic it hurts. However, once you got beneath the string of SAT words that Milton uses, the essence of Paradise Lost is interesting and complex. It just took a hell of a lot of discussion and time to wade through the language.

I was having trouble doing just that because I wasn’t really focusing on the discussion. My mind was on the art competition. I was supposed to hear about my pieces and whether or not they had been chosen to be shown last week, but there had been a delay in the judging. So, a week later, I was anxious to find out, no matter if the outcome was a happy one or not.

Mr. Whitman started writing notes on the chalkboard, and as I forced myself to focus and scribble them down in my notebook, I snuck a glance at the clock above the door. Not only was I having trouble focusing because of the art contest, but also because of the close proximity of the weekend. School got out in less than fifteen minutes, and today was Friday, which meant I was fifteen minutes away from the weekend. It also meant I was getting closer to my date with Duke tonight.

Before that, however, Gretchen was coming over to my house so we could type up our PowerPoint we were using in our history project. Last period we confirmed that we were meeting afterschool in the parking lot, and she would follow me over to my house in our cars. Gretchen again assured me that she would be out of my house by five, which resulted in her unintentionally assuring me that my date would go on as planned.

Just as my hand started to cramp from how fast and how much I was writing, the bell rang. Everyone stopped writing and started scrambling to get their stuff and get out of the classroom as quickly as possible. The weekend had officially begun, and no one wanted to waste it.

“See you all on Monday,” Mr. Whitman called as the first students started to file out of the classroom, “Please have book five read for discussion!”

I slung my backpack onto one shoulder, and I said goodbye to Mr. Whitman as I walked into the hallway. I turned the corner and squeezed my way between people to get up the stairs, and I made my way to my locker. I twisted my combo into my lock, and two seconds after my locker swung open, it was immediately slammed shut.

“Hey bitch!”

Olive grinned at me and leaned against the row of lockers. I rolled my eyes and reopened my locker, making sure to hang the lock on the hook so that it blocked the door from being shut again.

“Hey O,” I replied, pulling the notebooks I wouldn’t need for the weekend out of my backpack. “What’s up?”

“Does something need to be up for me to find my best friend after school?” Olive asked, shaking her head. “I don’t think so.”

“Something needs to be up if you’re still at school five minutes after the last bell rang,” I replied, shutting my locker. I put on my backpack and started to walk down the hallway. Olive quickly fell into step with me, and she looped her arm in mine.

“Well, maybe I just—”

I cut Olive off with a pointed look, since we both knew what she was about to say was a load of crap, and she sighed. “Just say it,” I told her, nudging her with my elbow.

“Okay,” Olive said hesitantly, “I know I’m not supposed to ask but… Have you heard from the Marx Gallery yet about your stuff?”

The last half of the sentence came out in a quick stream of words, and it took me a moment to decode what Olive had just asked. However, when I did, I let out a deep breath and shook my head.

“Nope,” I replied, shrugging. “After they announced the delay, they never told us how long it would take, so I have no idea when I’ll find out. I hope it’s soon because I don’t think my grades can take distraction.”

“I’m sure you’ll find out soon,” Olive stated, and we walked down the stairs to the first floor. “I mean I know you got chosen, so you don’t really need to worry.” I laughed and give Olive a side hug.

“Thanks, O,” I said, and she grinned at me. We headed towards the back of the building where I was meeting Gretchen, and Olive cleared her throat.

“So,” she drawled, “What are you up to tonight?”

“I’m working on a group project with Gretchen Taylor,” I said, “And then after that, I am going on a date with Duke. Why?”

“Just curious,” Olive replied. “I’m trying to figure out what I’m doing tonight, since Lillian is on her school trip to New York City. I think I’m just going to have a Netflix night and watch Firefly.”

“If I already didn’t have plans, I would totally invite myself over,” I said, “You know how much I want to be Mal.”

“Everyone wants to Mal, Harper,” Olive stated seriously, “He’s a badass. I wouldn’t mind being Inara, though. She’s got a killer wardrobe.”

“Very true,” I replied, nodding. Olive and I came to the back door of the building that led to the parking lot. I saw Gretchen standing there, typing on her phone, and she looked up and waved as we approached.

“Hey Harper,” she said, grinning.

“Hey,” I replied, “I hope you weren’t waiting long.”

“Nah, I actually just got here,” Gretchen said, waving her hand dismissively. “Hey Olive.”

“Hi Gretchen,” Olive responded, and then she gestured towards the doors. “I’ve got to get going, but I’ll see you guys later,” she said, and then she pointed at me, “If you find out today, you better call me!”

“I will,” I promised, and Olive nodded in satisfaction and walked out of the building.

I turned to Gretchen and said, “So, ready to head to my house?”

“Yes ma’am,” she stated, smiling.

Together, we pushed out of the doors and stepped off the sidewalk onto the pavement of the parking lot. It only took me five steps to realize that my car was missing. I stopped in my tracks and frowned.

“What’s up?” Gretchen asked, and I pointed to the empty parking spot.

“That’s where I parked my car this morning,” I stated, and it took Gretchen a minute to realize what I meant.

“Did someone take it?” she gasped, immediately thinking of a car thief.

“Probably,” I replied, and I pulled out my phone. I opened up my texts with Duke and typed Did you take the car?. Within seconds, my phone pinged with yeah, thought you were getting a ride home with Gretchen. Do you need me to pick you up? I sighed and typed in a quick no, and then I slipped my phone back into my pocket.

“It looks like Duke took the car home,” I stated, putting my hands on my hips.

“You guys share a car?” Gretchen asked, and I nodded. “Wow,” she said, “I thought it was only a rumor that you guys lived in the same house.”

“Oh, well,” I said, shifting uncomfortable, “Yeah, it’s a weird situation. His parents are friends of my parents, and they’re out of the country so he was sent to live with us until they get back.”

“Yeah, that is kind of weird,” Gretchen said thoughtfully.

 “Can you give me a ride?” I asked, adding, “I’ll give you directions to my house.”

“Yeah that’s totally fine!” Gretchen replied, “I mean, we were going to the same place anyways, and this means I won’t lose you and get lost.”

“Awesome! Thank you,” I said, and Gretchen just shrugged.

I followed Gretchen a short way through the parking lot until we came to a navy blue Mini Cooper with a black top. “Here we are,” Gretchen announced, and I opened the passenger door after she unlocked the car.

I climbed into the car and buckled the seatbelt. Gretchen quickly situated herself next to me, and within moments, she had pulled out of her parking spot. AS we made our way out of the parking lot, I quickly rattled how to get to my house. The directions weren’t at all complicated, so Gretchen had no problem finding where I lived.

We pulled into my driveway, and Gretchen parked behind Duke and my Jeep. I ducked out of the car and slung my backpack, which had been resting on my lap, onto my shoulder. Then, I waited for Gretchen to get all her stuff together and to get out of the car.

I led Gretchen up the front path to our front door, and knowing Duke wouldn’t have locked it, I pushed in without bothering to get my key. I closed the door after Gretchen, and just as I gestured to our living room, I recognized the sound of muffled rock music. I glanced at Gretchen, and it was obvious that she noticed it too.

“Where’s that coming from?” she asked, frowning.

“The basement,” I replied simply, and Gretchen gave me an even more confused look. “That’s were Duke’s room is,” I clarified, “He doesn’t really understand the concept of headphones or volume control.”

“Oh okay,” Gretchen said, and she shrugged. “Well, it’s no big deal. I mean, it’s not distracting or anything.”

“Are you sure?” I asked, and I pointed towards the basement door, “I can tell him to turn it off or put headphones in.”

“Nah,” Gretchen replied, “Don’t bother him.”

“Alright,” I said, and then I nodded towards my living room. “We can work in there,” I stated, and I made a point not to mention my room as an option, since it currently looked like a tornado had touched down.

“Sounds good,” Gretchen responded. She walked into the room and crossed over to the couch, and Gretchen sat down and started to pull stuff out of her backpack.

I was about to join her when I felt my phone buzz in my pocket, and I frowned. I pulled it out and saw Ruby's name lit up on the screen, and I stopped breathing for a good five seconds. Ruby calling me wasn't a super rare occurrence, but with the tense wait for my competition results, this made my heart beat twice as fast.

"You okay?"

I jumped at the sound of Gretchen's voice, and I realized that I wasn't alone. I nodded and chuckled nervously. "I'm fine," I replied, "I just need to take this call. I'll be right back so make yourself at home!"

Without waiting for a response, I scurried from the room and pretty much sprinted upstairs. I hurried into my room and closed the door. If Ruby was about to tell me I had been rejected, I would prefer to have my hopes and dreams crushed in the privacy of my own room.

"Hey Ruby," I said, pressing the phone to my ear.

"Why do you sound like you've been running a marathon?" Ruby asked, bypassing a hello.

"What are you talking about?" I asked, and then I realized that I was panting. "Sorry," I muttered sheepishly, "I saw you calling and got excited and ran upstairs. We both know that's enough to make me winded."

"You and me both, sister," Ruby replied with a laugh. Then, there was an awkward silence as we both waited for the other to say something.

"So..." I drawled, breaking the silence, "what's up?"

"Oh, you know, the usual," Ruby replied casually, "sorting and paying bills, teaching and organizing classes, answering phone calls; very mundane."

"I see," I responded, slowly becoming disappointed. Maybe I was wrong. Maybe, Ruby was just calling to chat like she sometimes did.

"Hey, Ruby, I—"

"I got a very interesting call today," Ruby stated, cutting me off mid-sentence.

"You did?" I asked, the tense feeling returning to my chest.

"Sure did, Harper," Ruby replied, and I could tell she was grinning from the tone of her voice. "The Marx Gallery called."

"They did?" I squeaked, and I slapped my hand over my mouth in anticipation. This could either be amazing news, or extremely disappointing news. I was praying for the former.

"Yep," Ruby quipped, and she paused before saying, "one of your pieces was selected to be showcased!"

My hand successfully muffled my screams, and I started hopping around my room in excitement. One of my pieces was selected, out of god knows how many other applicants, to be shown in the Marx Gallery, which was a huge deal. My heart felt like it was going to burst from happiness, and I suddenly felt light and giggly.

“Which piece did they pick?” I asked, my voice higher-pitched due to the excitement.

“The one called Reader,” Ruby answered, and I grinned.

Reader was the piece I had done with Duke as my model, and it had been my favorite of the pieces that I had submitted. I couldn’t wait to let him know that it had been chosen. It was a special piece, not only because of how much I loved it, but that I had been creating it when Duke had asked me to be his girlfriend. It was cute and romantic in a sort of disgusting, mushy way.

“Marx told me that they sent a packet of information in the mail, so you should be getting that soon,” Ruby informed me, “But I thought I would just call and let you know!”

“Thank you so much,” I gushed, doing a little dance.

“There’s no need to thank me,” Ruby replied, “You did all this work yourself, so you should be thanking yourself. Be proud of yourself, Harper. You deserve this.”

“Thanks Ruby,” I said, and I got a warm feeling in my heart.

“No problem, Champ,” Ruby stated, “I’ll see you tomorrow at the studio!”

“See you tomorrow,” I echoed, “Bye!”

The line went dead as I hung up, and after a moment of silence, I squeaked and jumped up and down. My body was pumping with adrenaline and excitement, and I could barely contain myself. I felt happy, but also proud of myself.

Suddenly, I got the overwhelming desire to tell someone, so I hurried out of my room and hopped down the stairs. As I reached the first floor, a smile staining my lips, I heard the sound of muffled voices. Remembering that Duke was in his room, I stepped over to the basement door and pulling it open. The lights were off, which was a little odd, but I was too focused on telling Duke about my piece to think about it.

“Hey Duke!” I called as I padded down the stairs, “I have really amazing news! I found out about the—”

I choked on my words as I reached the bottom of the stairs.

Gretchen was sitting on Duke’s bed, shirtless, and Duke was standing a few feet away, only in his boxers. Both of them looked shocked to see me, and neither of them spoke. My smile had disappeared, and without a word, I turned around and walked back up the stairs.

“Wait, Harper! Wait!”

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Merry early Christmas! Here's a new chapter, and oooooooooh the drama! It's like a good ol' soap opera! What are everyone's thoughts?

I'm officially done with my first semester of college, and I actually made deans list for the term, which is really cool! I've been home since the 19th, and it's been wonderful to just lounge around with no homework. I also got a record player from my boyfriend for christmas, which was AMAZING! Then, today, my sister got her wisdom teeth out. So I've been taking care of her today, which was somewhat amusing and also a little gross.

Alright, four chapters left guys!

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