A Walk in Your Shoes

CHAPTER 12

It's not easy to admit, but there's been an emptiness in my chest. Flint hasn't been in school since Wednesday. I want to be angry, because our assignment is due today. If he's a no show I don't want to think about what that will do to our grade. Anger fades into a nagging ache in my gut that something is wrong. He left after I questioned him about his dad. It was hard to believe him when he said nothing was going on at home. I'm not sure when I went from despising him to worrying. Maybe. I'm not such a bad person after all.

I rub my eyes, they're heavy with sleep. I've spent the past few nights trying to figure out the perfect words without admitting that I actually care. I doubt anyone would even realize it. They know I'm good at pretending. There's a difference between writing words on paper and actually meaning them. Writing this paper was taxing. The thought of people finding out that I see Flint in a different light now is weighing down on me. I pulled some of the words from deep inside of me and saying it outloud frightens me.

It's been a long morning and as the bell rings signifying it's time for Creative Writing my nerves hike up a notch. My eyes are glued to the door as the students pile into the room. The interval between bells is three minutes, and it's the longest three minutes of my life.

My assignment sits face down on my desk. I read it over a hundred times last night. I was so wrapped up in it that Lucille had to bring dinner up for me. The final bell rings. I stop breathing when Flint's eyes meet mine. Something is off about his appearance, he's wearing a black baseball cap with the brim low almost covering his face. Underneath his eye looks swollen and concern washes over me. The thought of even caring about what happened to him overwhelms me. My mind lands on Connor, and what that sweet little boy has to endure, I hope he's not hurt too.

Flint passes by my desk and I want to say something, but nothing comes out. I grab at my throat and hold my feelings back.

"Alright folks, this assignment is worth a letter grade, I hope all of you put a lot of time and effort into this one. A little twist, if you are called up to read you will not be reading your own, you will have to read what your partner wrote."

Mr. Shepherd glances around the room with his eyes landing on me. My anxiety skyrockets so high that my leg bounces with such force I hit it on the bottom of the desk. Under my breath I curse. I can feel the glares of the other students and Mr. Shepherd because of my small outburst.

"Alright, here we go," he says, reaching into an old bag.

He's put everyone's name inside to make it fair.

"Rogers, your first."

The world tilts and my stomach rolls with nausea. Flint gently taps my shoulder. With a trembling breath I grab the paper in front of me and turn to give it to him. Our eyes meet and I attempt to figure out if he's okay. For a brief second he shuts his eyes then nods, like he's telling me it's fine. Our hands touch with a zap as I hand him the paper. I pull away fast and keep my hands in my lap, while I wait for him to start.

"Mr. Rogers," Mr. Shepherd says in a calming voice. "I'm going to have to ask you to remove the hat."

The whole room is silently watching the interaction between them, including myself. Flint's breathing is labored as he carefully removes it and places it into Mr. Shepherd's hands.

Mr. Shepherd leans against his desk. "Mr. Rogers, please come see me after class."

Wide eyed Flint stares back at him and nods, then returns his attention to the paper I've written.

He clears his throat, then starts to read.

"I've spent my whole life imagining things were one way, only to discover that not everything is black and white. There's a gray area too, one that I failed to see. This week we were asked to step into someone else's shoes. That someone for me was Flint Rogers. I'm supposed to write what I learned about it, but this assignment was much more than that.