Autumn Leaves and Teenage Dreams

4. Library Visit

The air has grown cold again. It nips at my exposed hands and legs as I walk to lunch. It's beginning to reach that time of year when sitting outside in the lunch yard becomes a death sentence for hypothermia. The girls like to get away with our ludicrous dress policy by wearing the closest thing to pants under their skirts, but leggings can only reach a certain thickness before the teachers start nagging at us to just wear the khaki pants instead. I have a few thin leggings, but they don't replace a warm, heated room and an actual pair of pants.

Hazel, in particular, is shivering this afternoon. She did not check the weather before school today, and so she wears only her skirt and some sneakers.

"Why don't you just keep a spare pair of leggings in your backpack?" Abigail suggests as Hazel sits there with her arms crossed, teeth chattering and body quivering.

"I don't have any good ones," Hazel complains.

"Could always wear the pants," I add, teasing her just a bit.

"Then I'll look like all the lesbians that sit in The Corner," Hazel says, eyeing the area of the lunchyard that is now exclusively known for holding every LGBTQ+ student at this school.

Juliet and Allison are laughing, but I grow quiet and place my sandwich away. I'm suddenly not very hungry anymore, and besides, I have a load of homework I need to get done. In my mind, the overly-stuffy library is suddenly equated to a cozy room in front of a fire. I'll take anything over this cold.

I start packing my things away, even if the bell isn't set to ring for another thirty minutes. My friends eye me up and down as I zip my black backpack closed.

"Going somewhere?" Allison asks.

"Library. I have a load of Calculus problems to do," I answer.

"Aw, c'mon, Callie! You're always running to the library during this time of the semester! Don't you want to stay here and keep me company?" Hazel begs, blinking her eyes such a ridiculous number of times that I'm sure it hurts.

"I have a lot of homework to do, and I'd rather not have to do it at home. I'm practically a tutor for my siblings these days. I don't get as much peace and quiet there," I explain as I stand up and swing the bag around my back.

"Good luck. See you later," Abigail says.

"Thanks. I'll sit with you guys the entire lunch period tomorrow. Promise," I say before turning around and walking around crowds of girls sitting around the courtyard. I quickly arrive to the library and manage to snag a small little table near the window.

This is my favorite table in the library. It's secluded from the main section of the library, far from the girls that claim they're going to study together and then end up chatting a little too loudly while our elderly librarian naps behind her desk.

At this spot, I get a clear view of the sky, tall trees, and the various flowers that are outside the window. It's a calming sight to witness when I'm stressing about a test and need a break. I simply lift my head, admire the beauty of outside, then find the motivation to look back down at my paper or laptop.

I'm working pretty well on my homework for ten minutes or so, until I start getting stumped on some word problems. I tap my pencil impatiently against my paper and stare up at the sky. It's getting cloudy again. I wonder if we're in for a rainstorm later, and of course, I didn't bring my umbrella to school today.

There are countless eraser shreds on my homework as I try to wrack my head around this problem. As I'm furiously staring at the ominous white sheet of paper, I fail to notice the red curls approaching until I see that same pale hand with light pink nail polish slowly touch down on the wooden table.