More Ghost Train
The first bell rings and everybody starts shufflin off to class. I dig in my bag and pull out my schedule. "Freshman assembly," it says, "Gym." I don't know where the gym is exactly, so I let myself get pushed along by the crowd. I see a girl I know from middle school up ahead so I kinda follow the back of her head til I get to the gym. We hafta go out a big set of double doors into the heat and then go back through another setta doors and all cram into the gym. There ain't no chairs, just a few bleachers at the back but those are full up. Everyone kinda stops and sits down all together. The floors sticky and there's no air conditioning in the gym. I can feel the sweat gathering at the backa my neck so I gather up my hair in a ponytail holder. I accidentally smack a girl in the face tryin to get my hair all bundled up.
"Sorry," I say over my shoulder.
"Um, could you like, put it in a bun or something? Your hair is really big and it's getting in my face."
I turn around all the way to look at her but when I do, I hit someone else with my ponytail.
"Oh my god!" some other girl says. "Can't you straighten that or something?" The first girl laughs and then the second girl laughs and then they're all laughin, but real low.
"Sorry," I say again. "There's just no room."
"Uh, there's room for me," the first girl says, prissy as you can be. "Maybe you should get a hair cut. Oh wait, are you one of those Baptists? The kind who can't do that? I'm sorry."
I know they're makin funna me but I can't figure out how. They're using these sweet-as-sugar voices and I'm gettin mad but I don't know what to do about it. I hate when people do that. If they was just mean, I'd know what to do but all this nice-to-make-you-feel-bad crap eats me up.
"I'm not Baptist, maybe you are." That's the best I got right now and I know it ain't much.
"What?" The two girls start really laughing now and other people join in. "Okay. Whatever you say."
I don't say nothin else, just go real still and hope they leave me alone. I wish Robbie was here so I could do somethin to him. I can feel those girls lookin at the back of my neck and I wish I was invisible.
There's a podium with a microphone up at the front and a man wearing onea those short sleeve button up shirts goes up to it. He's got big sweat circles under his arms and this real shiny hair, like he uses conditioner on itnce. He gives us all a big smile like this is the best day of his whole life.
"Welcome!" he says so loud that the speakers squeal and we all cover our ears. "I'm Principal Kenney and I'm here to help you through this transitional phase of your education!"
A kinda sigh goes up from the whole audience, like whatever it was they were waitin for, this wasn't it.
"I'd like to go over the rules here, for your benefit and explain how things are gonna be a little different here than they were for you in middle school. This year, you're moving closer to adulthood so we expect you to act like adults. That means Respect. Respect for yourselves, your classmates, your teachers and me. Respect: that's the new motto of our school."
"Who is this guy?" someone whispers.
"He's the new principal. The last one died."
"I heard about that - it was a heart attack, right?"
"My mom works at the hospital - she says it was liver failure. He was a huge drunk."
"I heard he turned yella."
"I heard he useta come to school drunk all the time. My brother told me."
"Who's your brother?"
"Jonathan - "
"Settle down please!" The new principal looks at my section of the gym. "This isn't only about what I think respect is, it's about you as well. I'd like to hear what you think respect means."
The rooms goes totally dead silent. I can almost hear everybody's sweat tricklin down their backs. Nobody wants to hafta stand up and say what respect means. Principal Kenney keeps lookin at us - at all of us, somehow and I can tell he's gettin disappointed. I don't care though, there's no way in hell I'm standin up in fronta all these people. He's got another thing comin if he thinks we're all gonna jump up every time he -
"Yes?" He's looking right at me. I duck my head.
"Did you have your hand up?" I shake my head.
"You. The redhead. Don't be shy." He chuckles and I get so mad. Why's everyone gotta laugh today when they talk to me? "What does respect mean to you?"
I look up at him and see right into his eyes.
"Respect is - "
"Stand up. Please. Make sure we can all hear you."
I stand up. My legs make a ssshhttrrghhtt noise when they peel off the gym floor. Everybody's eyes are on me - those two girls earlier are grinnin like it's their birthday.
"Respect," I start again, real loud so Principal Kenney can hear. "Respect is leaving people alone when they don't have anything to say and didn't want to stand up and talk in the first place."
Everyone laughs. I can't tell if they're laughing at me or at what I said but it don't matter cause I can tell that Principal Kenney is pissed. I don't know whether to sit down or not but I don't want everyone starin at me so I sit. As soon as my butt gets stuck down to that gym floor again, Kenney figures out what to say back.
"Thank you for that enlightening comment. Why don't you respect all of us by taking that bad attitude and meeting me in my office after the assembly?"
Everyone laughs again and this time I know it's at me. I sink down further and close my ears to whatever else he's sayin and to all the whispers I hear getting louder and louder around me.
"Sorry," I say over my shoulder.
"Um, could you like, put it in a bun or something? Your hair is really big and it's getting in my face."
I turn around all the way to look at her but when I do, I hit someone else with my ponytail.
"Oh my god!" some other girl says. "Can't you straighten that or something?" The first girl laughs and then the second girl laughs and then they're all laughin, but real low.
"Sorry," I say again. "There's just no room."
"Uh, there's room for me," the first girl says, prissy as you can be. "Maybe you should get a hair cut. Oh wait, are you one of those Baptists? The kind who can't do that? I'm sorry."
I know they're makin funna me but I can't figure out how. They're using these sweet-as-sugar voices and I'm gettin mad but I don't know what to do about it. I hate when people do that. If they was just mean, I'd know what to do but all this nice-to-make-you-feel-bad crap eats me up.
"I'm not Baptist, maybe you are." That's the best I got right now and I know it ain't much.
"What?" The two girls start really laughing now and other people join in. "Okay. Whatever you say."
I don't say nothin else, just go real still and hope they leave me alone. I wish Robbie was here so I could do somethin to him. I can feel those girls lookin at the back of my neck and I wish I was invisible.
There's a podium with a microphone up at the front and a man wearing onea those short sleeve button up shirts goes up to it. He's got big sweat circles under his arms and this real shiny hair, like he uses conditioner on itnce. He gives us all a big smile like this is the best day of his whole life.
"Welcome!" he says so loud that the speakers squeal and we all cover our ears. "I'm Principal Kenney and I'm here to help you through this transitional phase of your education!"
A kinda sigh goes up from the whole audience, like whatever it was they were waitin for, this wasn't it.
"I'd like to go over the rules here, for your benefit and explain how things are gonna be a little different here than they were for you in middle school. This year, you're moving closer to adulthood so we expect you to act like adults. That means Respect. Respect for yourselves, your classmates, your teachers and me. Respect: that's the new motto of our school."
"Who is this guy?" someone whispers.
"He's the new principal. The last one died."
"I heard about that - it was a heart attack, right?"
"My mom works at the hospital - she says it was liver failure. He was a huge drunk."
"I heard he turned yella."
"I heard he useta come to school drunk all the time. My brother told me."
"Who's your brother?"
"Jonathan - "
"Settle down please!" The new principal looks at my section of the gym. "This isn't only about what I think respect is, it's about you as well. I'd like to hear what you think respect means."
The rooms goes totally dead silent. I can almost hear everybody's sweat tricklin down their backs. Nobody wants to hafta stand up and say what respect means. Principal Kenney keeps lookin at us - at all of us, somehow and I can tell he's gettin disappointed. I don't care though, there's no way in hell I'm standin up in fronta all these people. He's got another thing comin if he thinks we're all gonna jump up every time he -
"Yes?" He's looking right at me. I duck my head.
"Did you have your hand up?" I shake my head.
"You. The redhead. Don't be shy." He chuckles and I get so mad. Why's everyone gotta laugh today when they talk to me? "What does respect mean to you?"
I look up at him and see right into his eyes.
"Respect is - "
"Stand up. Please. Make sure we can all hear you."
I stand up. My legs make a ssshhttrrghhtt noise when they peel off the gym floor. Everybody's eyes are on me - those two girls earlier are grinnin like it's their birthday.
"Respect," I start again, real loud so Principal Kenney can hear. "Respect is leaving people alone when they don't have anything to say and didn't want to stand up and talk in the first place."
Everyone laughs. I can't tell if they're laughing at me or at what I said but it don't matter cause I can tell that Principal Kenney is pissed. I don't know whether to sit down or not but I don't want everyone starin at me so I sit. As soon as my butt gets stuck down to that gym floor again, Kenney figures out what to say back.
"Thank you for that enlightening comment. Why don't you respect all of us by taking that bad attitude and meeting me in my office after the assembly?"
Everyone laughs again and this time I know it's at me. I sink down further and close my ears to whatever else he's sayin and to all the whispers I hear getting louder and louder around me.