Growing up Socially Awkward

Part 22

Keeley's meeting with the principal was not as horrible as she expected. The principal was a sweet older woman with mid-lengthed blonde hair and knick-knacks scattered around her office. A sound machine sat in the corner of the room, playing the sounds of calm running water and croaking frogs. The worse part of the whole meeting was when she told Keeley that she had called Keeley's mom to let her know about Keeley skipping gym class. She had a gut-wrenching feeling throughout the rest of the school day, imagining the lecture she was going to get from her mom for skipping a class. When the school day ended, Keeley did not want to leave the building, which never happened. As she walked with the rest of her classmates down the hall toward the front doors, her phone buzzed, and she checked it. A text from her mom sat on the screen. It read, "Im outside," and Keeley's stomach dropped. She was looking forward to at least having the peace of the walk home, but now she had no escape from the consequences of her actions.

She climbed into her mom's car quietly, averting her eyes from her mom. She buckled herself in, and they sat still in the car for a moment in the school's parking lot. Her mom's hands sat on the steering wheel, and she was staring straight forward. Keeley started bouncing her leg again. "Was this because of that friend, Ann?" her mom asked, no emotion in her voice. "What...?" Keeley said, confused. "No..why would it be-" Keeley started, but her mom cut her off. "I dont want you hanging out with her anymore." her mom said strictly. "Well-" Keeley tried to speak again, but her mom finally turned to look at her, and she stopped. "You are not allowed to hang out with her anymore!" her mom reassured. Keeley was surprised "it wasn't because of Ann!" she fought back. She never intentionally started an argument with her parents, and she saw no point in causing an issue when she could avoid it, but this time something felt different. Something about how her mom was accusing Ann upset Keeley in particular. "So you made that decision on your own? Doesn't seem likely," her mom argued back. "You're terrified of breaking the rules!" her mom protested. "I hate gym class. I didnt feel like being in there today. Ann isn't even in my gym class!" Keeley claimed boldly. "She's a bad influence! She's not like us!" her mom scolded. "Mom! You can't say that! That's racist!" Keeley yelled in shock at her mom's words, "That is not what I am talking about..." her mom grumbled. Keeley got more frustrated with her mom. "And what do you think you know about Ann!" she questioned angrily. Her mom sat quietly momentarily, searching her mind for the right words to explain. "She doesnt like men, Keeley," her mom said, hushed as if she was worried someone would hear her. Keeley's face shifted to disgust, not because of this new information about Ann but because of her mom's reaction. "I can't believe you, mom! So what? She's gay! That is not a bad word, and it's not a bad thing to be! You are so small-minded!" The words rolled out of Keeley's mouth. She knew she lived in a conservative town but had never seen her mom act like this. She unbuckled her seatbelt and shoved the passenger side door open to climb out in a furious rage. She ducked her head into the car. "Ann and I aren't even hanging out anymore! Maybe you would've noticed if you paid attention to me instead of worrying about who my friends are attracted to!" she slammed the car door shut and stomped away. As she did so, she thought back to what Ann said the other day 'Who I am.' that was what she meant. She thought Keeley had discovered she was gay and was scared of being seen around her. Keeley knew what she had to do. She had to go to Ann's house, clear things over, and apologize.