Pillars

Chapter 5: Dreamer (Lorin)

The first day Mr. Redding stopped me after English class I wasn't surprised. We were supposed to be doing peer workshops, but I had failed to produce a rough draft for my partner to critique. I'd been up all night, just not working on the essay. Something else was on my mind. A poem that just wouldn't go away, even though the poetry unit was over last quarter.

"Lorin, I'm concerned." He peered at me over his wire rimmed glasses. "You usually have such great work to share. What happened?" he asked. 

"Sorry," I said. I did not feel like elaborating.

"Well, do you have anything?"

"Not really."

"I saw you writing. May I take a look?" he asked gesturing toward the black notebook I hugged against my chest. 

Jonah Redding was one of those teachers who never aged. His argyle sweater vests somehow looked sexy with his skinny pants and loafers. And all the girls at Grayson's swooned when they caught a whiff of his Acqua Di Gio cologne as he brushed by them in the hallway.

I was certainly not immune to his charm, so without thinking I handed over the notebook. 

"This is really good. Are there others?" he said, turning the page to discover an entire book of poetry. This was my heart and soul he was purging through, and it made me feel vulnerable. With his thin hand cupping the spine of the book, Mr. Redding read and turned page after page with delicate strokes until he came to the end.

"I know it's not the assignment," I tried to explain.

"No. No. They are really good though." 

"Thanks," I said, a wave of warmth moving up through my face. No one had ever read my writings before. They were not meant for an audience, yet I was proud of his assessment. 

"I'll tell you what. I still need the persuasive essay by Monday. Come see me during study hall and I'll help you get started," he offered.

Every day for the rest of the week, I showed up in Mr. Redding's office with some sort of question or draft for him to look over. I don't know what it was, but when I was around Jonah I felt appreciated, and cared for. I felt like more than just another student. I know he was a little older than me, but  age didn't matter once you're an adult, and I would be 18 in less than a month.

That thought made me anxious and excited all at once. If only I were as sure as my little sister about what I wanted to do with my life. For as long as I could remember, Kelci had talked about being an actress. Honestly, what was so great about putting your every move under a microscope for everyone to critique? Oddly, it didn't seem to bother Kelci, though, who was normally awkward in social situations, but completely comfortable when put in the spot light. I couldn't figure it out, honestly. 

I had been assigned to take the cast photos for the school paper, so that afternoon I climbed up into the balcony of the auditorium to get some action shots of their dress rehearsal. 

"She's really good huh," Taylor whispered, slipping into the seat next to me.

I continued to snap away, adjusting the focus and checking the images on the tiny screen of the camera. It was not the first time I had seen Kelci skip around singing "We're Off to See the Wizard." As a child, Kelci always had one of those precocious personalities that amused grown-ups, saying things that were simultaneously funny and adorable. Like one night there was a big thunderstorm and Kelci was afraid of the lightening.