High School Years: 4 By Corbin "I refuse to join any club that would have me as a member." -Groucho Marx Pre-Story Introduction/Ranting/Venting/Observations... You smell that? That's smoke coming out of my ears...I'm brain fried this morning. I have no idea how my fingers are even typing....or where these words are even coming from...I'm rambling...drifting...I need some coffee...that bed is looking good again...I'm going to be late for work... *YAWN* Well, wasn't that an exciting introduction...if I think of something wonderful I'll come back and write something... 4 It was an awkward, unnerving couple of days that followed. Simply talking in the hall together was a test in anxiety and stress, more so for me as my friends typically consisted of outcasts and former-friends of Sharon's. Each warning me relentlessly that 'I' was going to be Sharon's next ex-friend and better to severe ties with the Cheerleading captain now, before finding out painfully later. Yet I never saw any of those warnings manifest in the way Sharon treated me. But with so many people telling me otherwise, to in essence 'watch my back', I couldn't help but keep my guard up at times...'just in case' I would tell myself. But not everyone was willing to let things slide, no matter how much time went by...I should have known...heck, maybe I did know that something was brewing between me and Taylor. Now I don't believe in being able to predict the future but I was doing a fine job of being able to mentally picture everything that was going to happen that afternoon, before it happened. I also suppose you might say that subconsciously I wanted this to happen. And now I have to use that word 'fate' again, because I knew that having Taylor and me in the same room together...alone, was a bad thing...like right now! Damn, and I was so close to the end of school year to... I had hoped that because our lockers were on opposite sides of the row, and about ten feet down from one another, that I could just change and get the hell out of there. So I quickly crossed my arms in front, gripping the bottom of my sweat soaked t-shirt and in one fluid motion peeled it from my body, leaving just my sports bra and running shorts still intact. Performing a slight weight shift onto my right leg, I raised my arms above my head and clasped my left wrist with my right hand before leaning far to the left and then to my right, stretching and pulling my sore, tight lat muscles. Dropping my arms I slowly rolled my head back and forth trying to work out some of the tension from a physically and mentally exhausting two weeks. Yeah I know, I'm dragging my feet now, but I have to stretch...and even though I need to get a move on and get home, I really didn't feel like rushing just for Taylor's sake. All the crap I have had to listen to, even my own teammates have been merciless with the questions and comments. At least most of them haven't stopped talking to me. A slight consolation to an overall miserable past few days, and sadly I knew they would never warm up to the idea of me hanging out with Sharon or vice versa. Ironically though, the first time Sharon invited me to attend a party at Rachel's house everyone seemed really nice, most likely because I was never one of their biggest critics. Ah...DAMN! I now catch Taylor glancing over at me and sense something bad is going to come out of her big mouth. Shit...must move faster...skip the showers...go straight home. Another uncomfortable feeling was creeping up on me, as mentioned earlier, Taylor was known for being openly gay and her eyeing me made me feel tad uncomfortable. From the corner of my left eye I caught her hands almost rip her shirt off, tossing it to the ground, now I'm back to picking up this hostile aura from her again...'Maybe she can't decide if she has the hots for me or wants to try and kick my ass?' Physically, there were some pretty major distinctions between our body types. I had that toned, almost muscular physique with almost no body fat while Taylor's own muscular, stocky build was wrapped in a layer of body fat, not allot, but enough to soften her look. I guess she enjoyed eating fast food too much to give it up in the pursuit of that 'ripped' look. Now, indirectly Taylor had been waging a war of words with various classmates against me and Sharon, saying crap like; 'How could she befriend that snotty, fucking, bitch!', 'They now hang around each other all the damn time and to make matters worse most of the girls on the Cheer squad now accepts her as an equal!', 'Pretty soon, she will start to act just like one of them!' I really had tried to keep to myself and mind my business, but Taylor was starting to make allot of annoying racket...slamming her locker closed and then open again, throwing her clothes down on the bench and floor. I was sure it was an attempt to pluck my nerves, and it was working. 'Ohhh great!' I privately moaned when Janet suddenly came around the corner and opened up her locker, which was next to Taylor's, on her right. "Hey, that was a good practice game today, yeah?" Janet piped up and I was swept up with a moment of relief, thinking that Janet would be that needed distraction, a saving moment of grace. But FAT CHANCE! Taylor wasn't listening, "Yeah" I heard her mumble half-heartedly. I should have known, Taylor was always a little unstable and once her little mind capsized, her better judgment simply got drowned by the moment; "You know what Janet, too bad we didn't get to finish off Princess the other day." But I knew Janet to be a little more sensible and while she normally took Taylor's lead, I could tell she was backing down. Mostly I believe because of me, with nothing but my sports bra on I looked pretty mean and intimidating after a workout. "Uh...uh..." Janet stuttered, "Uh...yeah, I know what you mean" but Janet's voice was shaking, not giving Taylor the resounding support she was looking for. As for me? Well, I could feel the blood flowing at a furious pace into my arteries, my ears were doing that pounding thing as I prayed; 'Please god, make her shut up, please' I felt like I was being tested and my hands lowered to my side as I just stood paralyzed, looking straight ahead into that dark locker. It was as if the dark void was calling me...that darker side of myself...nice parallel. "You know, she looked really cute in her....." came the last straw out of Taylor's mouth. THAT'S IT! My mind snapped and I slammed my locker shut, causing both Taylor and Janet to jump with shock. Still, I just stood there, facing my locker as my palm lay flat against the now closed door. Still decked out in my shorts and bra, I slowly, purposively stepped over that bench, I didn't even see the bench as my legs seemed to move of their own accord. My left leg found it's footing...then my right as I now stood only feet away from my antagonists. With every move it seemed that my anguish intensified as blood continued to flood arteries. I didn't know if I was ready to cross 'this' line, a line I had never crossed before. But as I said before, it felt like I was stepping out of one 'skin' and into another, the old 'Corbin' was still standing back at the locker, calling me back and to ignore Taylor's taunts, 'Don't go!' my non-confrontational side cried out... ...but it was too late. I watched Taylor blink a couple of times with doubt as she stared at me, maybe a little surprised I was ready for this showdown. Indeed, I don't think she expected me to 'step up' so quickly and hesitated just long enough for me to speak; "Shut your mouth Taylor and take what you just said back" Well, not the most intimidating comment 'take it back' but I'm winging it here a little, I did lower my voice so as to conceal any nervousness. Wow, what a rush! My whole body felt alive, my chest was swelling...rising and falling like my very heart might explode, although I knew that wasn't likely it was just unlike any other level of energy I've been able to achieve. But let me reiterate...I do NOT like fighting...but I am good at it :) The walls and everything around me started to fade away, leaving just me and Taylor, I didn't even see little Janet anymore. "Why don't you just MAKE me!" Taylor slammed her locker shut and turned to square up her shoulders. 'Nice try' Is what I'm thinking, but I can tell she doesn't have it. Now why would I know that? I'm no mind reader but her eyes are darting all around while I just have this laser-like fixation on her face. She's trying hard, but there is a wave of doubt that keeps rippling up to the surface...all in the eyes and a few other nervous twitches in her body language. So now I take another step forward, "Why are you pushing me?" "Why are you hanging out with that bitch!" Taylor was almost yelling. 'Oh...let's ratchet it up to yelling now...that's always a good scare tactic' I think sarcastically to myself. Regardless, I could also tell that Taylor had backed herself into a corner with no way out...she couldn't loose face now. I suppose for a split second I thought about what the consequences might be, but I did *it* anyway as I suddenly reached out with my right hand, shoving Taylor's left shoulder...hard, causing the redhead to take a step back. Taylor had tensed when she saw the shove coming and resisted, but I had put allot of power behind it, a bit more then the redhead had expected, so Taylor had no choice but to take a step back and quickly regain her footing. Janet's eyes were almost popping out of her skull as she looked a little panicked, trying to decide whether to run and get a teacher or to just run for cover, "Uhmmm....guys!...please!" Janet tried to weakly intervene. "You just have to keep pushing it too far, don't you?" My face became a little flushed now, it felt as if my heart was sucking all the blood right out of my legs and making them feel weak. The other visible sign of my despair was the obvious shaking in my hands, but my voice was still even and I tilted my head slightly forward, adding a menacing look to my stare. Taylor reached over with her left hand and shoved back, hard, causing my torso to twist in response. But it didn't force me to take a step back (Just a little tit-for-tat observation). "What are you going to do? Nothing! So fuck you!" Taylor yelled and almost had tears coming out of her eyes as I guess her nerves were getting the best of her. But I just took another step forward until we were only a couple of feet apart now, but close enough. And then Janet did the smart thing by retreating back, although slowly at first because I think the unfolding scene was far more mesmerizing up close. After that, everything seemed to happen so quickly, too quickly, but it started as my right palm landed with a wet smack against Taylor's sweaty, tightening shoulder muscles. I tried to drive straight into that bitch, while my left hand wrapped itself around the back of her neck. I could literally feel the gritty, dirt of her neck under my gripping finger nails and I think the move caught Taylor totally off guard. There was no bullshit pushing- shoving-scuffle that normally precipitates a fight like this, I simply charged in and I got a little pleasure from this 'Holy fuck' expression on Taylor's face. I guess she suddenly realized that I was not bullshitting around and we were in a full blown fight now. Taylor had grunted upon the impact and braced herself, trying to lean into my oncoming attack. "You fucking stupid bitch" I hissed as my eyes narrowed and glistened with a little of my own emotion. (No I wasn't going to cry, but you know, emotions running high and all). I was surprised how sturdy Taylor felt and threw all my weight forward to try and knock her down, 'After that?' I wondered but really didn't have a clue. A part of me was also praying that I didn't get my ass kicked too badly, regardless, I was determined to take a stand and take the fight to her. A mutual grunt escaped from both of us as we pulled each other into a powerful coiling embrace. What followed was a flurry of activity, the best that I can describe; My arms tensing as she locked onto me and I her, the fight - if it could be called that, quickly went into a desperate 'grab of anything available' as we both struggled to throw the other off balance in a twisting and turning dance. I got a good hold under Taylor's arms at one point and literally slammed her right shoulder slam into the row of lockers. "Damn" Taylor cursed. I know she wasn't expecting me to be that strong and I'm sure no other girl had literally thrown her around like this. Not to mention I could hear her sneakers actually skidding back across the locker room tiles several inches. 'Yes!' I thought as I started to gain allot of ground. Spontaneously, it seemed like we both abandoned out clutching attempts and to wrapped our arms around one another, hands locking onto wrists as our torso's simply crushed against one another. I guess it was an impromptu bear-hug of sorts at this point and I'm also not sure what Taylor was trying to do, because she couldn't out squeeze me. I just kind of flexed my arms inward and could feel her shoulders giving way although I admit my tits were hurting a little as our chests crushed together, but no big deal, I wasn't planning on staying in this position very long. Or at least I was hoping not too, I felt an odd sense of control...even if I was flying blind a little bit. It was at this point, I think, Taylor thought she had her best chance of trying to keep me off balance, something she was failing at. I was just too strong and seemed to have better balance on my feet, but there was also something else going on, maybe on a subliminal level that made all of this feel awkward. My mind and body were having trouble blocking out the weird sensation of having another woman's chest press against mine, no doubt all of that was enhanced by the escalating struggle between us. I had felt my head move past Taylor's as our chins came to rest on one another's shoulder's and both of us threw everything into what suddenly became a contest of attrition, trying to push the other one back. My calves and thighs straightened, flexing as I utilized my longer legs, causing Taylor to let out a low, aggravated moan. In just a short period of time I could feel and hear Taylor gasping for air...but I also realized that my mouth was wide open, I was expending way too much energy, too fast. I suppose it was as if my own anxieties were sucking all the strength right out of my body. And then Taylor suddenly arched her back, trying to achieve some new angle for better balance I suppose, the side effect was forcing more contact between our chests and I felt the pressure on my breasts increase and I'm sure I must have involuntarily groaned with discomfort cause it damn well hurt! 'I'm going to fucking snap this bitch in two' was what my mind was now focusing on, I just wanted to keep moving forward and was elated to hear that sweet sound of painful gasps wrung from Taylor's throat as my arms seemed to tighten a fraction of an inch more. 'Where was Janet in all of this?' I think I even wondered at some point, she was still almost right behind us, watching, and I swear her eyes looked like they were ready to pop out. "Fuck" Taylor cursed aloud as she tried to regain her footing, and launched into a frantic effort to throw me off balance, again and again, but that was her undoing, that's when her footing totally gave out. I just pushed forward as Taylor began her stumble backwards, frantically clinging onto me with everything she had. Poor Janet however didn't move quickly enough and was dangerously close to getting caught under a tumbling mass of limbs. I felt a sudden slack in resistance, but I didn't stop, I kept wanting to drive Taylor back, 'thru the fucking wall, the floor...whatever...' I thought. Thank god for Janet, she cushioned our falling bodies...well good for us, bad for her. "Fuck! Ow bitch!...My hair!" I cried aloud as Taylor obvious was going for the hair pull technique at this point. "Stop your crying cunt!" Taylor yelled back. And then there were Janet's screams, as she tried to dodge a barrage of elbows and knees descending upon her. It was a massive crash of bodies that spilled out over the floor and somehow Janet managed to dislodge herself, kicking and pushing away, scurrying backward on all fours like a crab. Leaving just me and Taylor now as we reattached to one another, struggling for position. "Shit!...wait you guys....stop!" Janet yelled out. Maybe that was because I rolled Taylor over and that was bad news for Janet's friend. Taylor retaliated by throwing wild slaps to my arms and back, other then the odd sting, they seemed to land with little impact. From the bottom position Taylor didn't seem sure what to do next, her wiggles and movements were somewhat spastic and uncoordinated. Perhaps it was just a moment of desperation, maybe Taylor felt the fight wasn't going her way...or the way she wanted it too, and so in a moment of opportunity that freak...that weirdo, copped a feel on me! At least it felt that way as I was slowly gaining a better position on top of her. Two, three...four fingers were suddenly over the front of my bra...then my left breast...then going under my bra! Maybe she was trying to feel me up, or maybe she was about to get very nasty in this fight but I flipped out; "What the fuck!" I growled out loud, dumbfounded maybe just a tad. Whatever the case, Taylor's attempt at what she was attempting was short lived, my left hand quickly slapped her right away and I managed to wrap my fingers with hers to try and control her arm. She resisted me of course...and Taylor is pretty strong, evident in our little quick test of arm strength. "Feel up your buddy Janet, not me" I hissed, looking down with indignation at Taylor's bold move. "HEY!" Janet yelled defensively from the corner. "Come' on, I know Sharon can't be that satisfying" Taylor remarked, desperately making a psychological stab in the dark. "Shut your fucking mouth!" I growled and pinned Taylor's right arm over her head, well now, guess that answers which one of us is stronger. So now I was moving onto accomplishing my next task, inching up her body and planting my knees into this bitch's armpits. I then saw an opportunity and kept Taylor's arm pinned to the floor while trying to pull my left knee up to try and sit astride the girl's waist, but Taylor was a little quicker and wiggled her right leg free, coiling her leg around mine as our calf muscles and thighs gripped against one another...now this was getting interesting cause Taylor was proving to be tougher then I thought, trying to control my leg, and our little leg duel was on! I have to admit, we were both fatigued as our bodies struggled to overturn and control the other. We both had a pretty solid hook into one another's legs and in a series of slow motion twists and turns, we both fought to control other's leg and most likely win the balance at this point in the fight. From my upper back, down thru my glute's and into my legs, I used every muscle at my disposal and again I was caught off guard by this uneasy contact. I can only describe it as 'too close for comfort' as every pore felt alive with perspiration, and at one point I know our cheeks were now lightly touching. I felt an odd erotic, tingling sensation along my spine as I could feel the perspiration that had developed between our bellies. "OH Fuck!" Taylor gasped and that's when I knew I had her beat yet again, it was doubtful that she could have out muscled me, but I think she was hoping to outlast me, if that makes sense. "Who's crying now?" I sighed into Taylor's ear, not one to talk allot of trash, but it felt oddly satisfying to throw that jab in. That's when Taylor actually started using her brain and instantly gave up the fight, letting her whole body go limp. Well, my leg instantly snapped inward with enough force I lost my balance and we started to roll, 'That sneaky bitch, good one Taylor'. And she instantly bridged her body up and to her right, again another good move. Amazing how things can turn so quickly, the next I knew, I frantically trying to balance myself, but unable to keep the roll from going against me. Now I was in a very uncomfortable position, looking up as I felt parts of my bare back press into the cool tile floor, already damp from Taylor's own sweat. Frantic and fighting off near panic, I tried to shift my body and gain some better position, but it wasn't going well. 'Just what I was afraid of' I tried not to worry as I struggled to throw off the redhead, but not having a clue as to what to do next, I simply focused on trying not to expend too much energy. "What was that you were saying? About me crying?" Taylor mocked, but if felt like more of a gasp as she spoke in between gulps of air, her body was also beginning the telltale sign of shaking due to exhaustion. I could feel the girl on top of me quickly spread her legs, trying to gain some balance and leaned forward. "Taylor" I suddenly said, but in a tone that caught the red head off guard and she turned her head to look at me. "Huh?" She grunted. What a sucker! She actually turned her head to look, maybe she thought I wanted to kiss her?...*YUCK* I don't think so! "You fucking talk too much!" My eyes narrowed and jaw flexed when I suddenly arched my stomach up with all my might while wrapping my arms about her back, pulling her in tight. Not at all knowledgable when it comes to wrestling, I had to rely on brute strength to push this fat-mouthed idiot off me. I got a strong enough hold that Taylor's head actually dropped some as she grunted an "Ohhh.....shit", presumably from the pressure I was applying against her back, forcing air from her already desperate lungs. Now I was twisting my body to the right with Taylor still in my embrace and just like that our positions were reversing again. I suppose she was panicking again based on the amount of frantic thrashing her legs are arms started to perform, she REALLY didn't want to be on the bottom again. I couldn't be sure, but the layers of perspiration coming off her skin and heavy panting made me suspect that Taylor was running out of steam. 'There!' I thought as I wiggled on top of her and pulled my arms from around her back, I had to work quickly to keep my balance. For a moment, I got a charge out of rolling around with her, I mean not at all in a sexual way, but in the fact that I seemed to be in control and that's when I guess my mouth wanted to step up and take part in the action as well; "You kept having to push it didn't you bitch!" I seethed, letting my own anger get the better of me. "Yeah I did, so take 'this' you fuck!" Taylor was quick with her own response and awkwardly swung her left hand around, but I saw it coming and turned my head away, the open palm caught me on the back of my head with a loud 'Pop', it may have been on the back of the head but it still hurt like hell. "You brought this on yourself! Hanging out with those fucking snot-nosed cunts!" Taylor shouted up at me. 'So you want to start hitting?' Was my only thought, but Taylor was already back into that mode as she started throwing more slaps and punches at my face...arms...torso. I have to admit, it was kind of a struggle to fend off the blows but still I managed to pin her arms down against the floor while moving my left knee out. I didn't know why I did it, but it seemed at this particular moment I wasn't even the same person, all I wanted to do was inflict the most pain. So I twisted my hips to the right, bringing my left knee back in towards the upper part of Taylor's ribs. Looking down I recall this gushing cry burst forth from her throat as Taylor's faced scrunched up in horrible pain. But I wasn't taking any chances and reached down wrapping my right hand around Taylor's exposed throat, my fingers dug and curled into her slippery, sweaty skin effectively pinning her head to the ground. "Are...are we done?" I spoke in-between gasps, it was unbearably hot now with droplets of sweat falling down off my face...'fuck it's like a sauna in here or something'. "Done? Does this answer your question?" Taylor's right hand came up with not so much amazing speed as much as it simply caught me totally off guard. My left arm was unable to come up in time to try and deflect the slap, which meant it connected fully upon my left cheek. I had never been slapped before and honestly it was like someone flashed a light bulb directly in my eyes followed by a few seconds of disorientation. Frantically I tried to blink away the tears and regain control of my senses and I wasn't sure how I did it, but I kept from getting rocked off of Taylor's bucking body. Had Taylor not been so exhausted, she just might have bucked me off, but she hadn't the strength to maintain the bridge long enough and her back collapsed back down to the floor. In any case, I wanted to hit her...I mean...I just lost it, not emotionally, but fight wise I wanted to really hurt the girl. My upper body twisted as my right arm pull back and chambered, and thus I launched the first punch of my entire life; Yes it was poorly aimed, but it landed with terrible impact. I suppose the sweat, combined with Taylor's thrashing caused it to glance off the girl's left cheek and plow into the left side of her defenseless nose. "Oh my god!" Those were the very next words I heard and they were coming from Janet. I looked down and saw a smear of red blood beginning to emerge from Taylor's nose, amazing what the sight of blood can do and not just the sight of it, but Taylor suddenly panicked as well. There was nothing exciting or erotic about any of this as I leaned back, scooting off her in my own horror at the turn of events. Taylor had moved to quickly cup her face while I slumped back, resting on her's knees until I gathered my wits about me and slowly backed further away, giving the wounded girl room to sit up. I watched, there was some trembling in her fingers as she touched and pinched her nose upon initial inspection. 'Wow' I thought, the tears were really streaming down her face now as she lay slumped against the wall, trying to recover and get her bearings. Janet was quick and handed a towel to her friend, watching that white fabric quickly spot red about a minute later got me a little quesy in the stomach. The strangest thing was the silence that ensued as we all sat and waited. It hadn't even registered with me that I had thrown the punch, or that Taylor's bleeding nose was my doing. Slowly I managed to stand until the back of my legs felt the bench and sat my shaking body down, 'better to sit down then faint' I thought, or worse 'throw up' as my stomach turned at this unexpected sight of blood, my head swooned for a few seconds but a few deep breaths seemed to help. "Jesus Corbin!" Taylor finally spoke up, her voice clearly trembling with emotion, with this look of bewilderment, like she couldn't believe that she was sitting on the floor holding a towel to her bleeding nose. She wouldn't look me in the eyes, maybe it was anger...or even embarrassment over what had just happened. I reached over with my left hand and subconsciously rubbed the fingers of my right, there was a slight stinging sensation that had started shooting up thru my hand, 'maybe it's just bruised' I hoped as I flexed my fingers. "Look Taylor, I...I think things got out of hand..." I sighed, but then I remembered what started our brawl and looked back over and waited until Taylor looked up at me; "Don't act so surprised! What the hell did you expect, smacking me upside the head like that!" I started in again and stood up on wobbly legs, my voice a little more threatening then before, and if felt good to vent. "And don't ever say anything about Sharon again, she's my friend." Wow! Just saying that aloud not only filled me with emotion, but pride as it felt like I was really standing up for something...it felt, well, empowering! I even think my composure became undone for a second as a tear spilled out and over my right cheek, "You got that?" I finally added, I guess wanting to make sure my point was clear, and mustered the hardest look I could. I watched Taylor pull the bloodstained towel from her nose and look at it, her left hand was still tenderly inspecting her nose, but then threw the towel down in disgust. "Yeah okay" she muttered, only breifily looking up at me. I wasn't sure what to say or do next and contemplated just turning about and leaving, but hesitated. 'I can't leave things like this', maybe deep down I wanted to try and salvage something out of this terrible turn of events. I wasn't a bully or a fighter and the better reserved part of my personality began to take control of my senses. "Come on, take It" I said in a somber yet encouraging tone and Taylor slowly looked up at me...cautiously, and I can understand that. But I extended my right hand down and I guess feeling I was sincere she took the offer to help her up. Janet followed our lead, also getting to her feet, yet still remained the quiet spectator. Taylor simply groaned and made a painful facial expression because I suspected her side hurt like hell. But perhaps nothing was more unsettling then the physical comparision after the fact. Taylor's bruised ribs were giving her a little trouble, with smears of blood around her upper lip and cheek. Yet looking at me you could hardly tell I was in a fight. "I'm sorry" Taylor mumbled, so caught off guard by her own admission of remorse that her voice cracked with emotion, and couldn't keep the tears from trekking down her cheeks as she took a huge breath of air to try and disguise a sob that had also slipped out. For my part, I just simply nodded in acknowledgment and slowly took a step back as my eyes traveled to look over at Janet who remained standing like some statue, her eyes wide with disbelief looking back at me. On my own unsteady pair of legs, I sighed "It's okay" and walked down the row of lockers grabbing my bag and shirt off the bench while my mind lingered in its own complete and utter daze. The late afternoon sun was hanging a little low as I emerged from the girl's gym room and took a deep breath of the cool afternoon air, while some humidity hung in the air it was noticeably better then the oppressive heat of the locker room I was leaving behind. The slight breeze chilled my body, as I approached my car, I watched people milling about outside, going about their daily business, 'So strange' that I should feel paranoid...out of body...as if I had done something terribly wrong and someone would come running up to my any second to scold and punish me for fighting, 'It goes against everything I've been taught, so why is there some feeling of liberation in what just happened'. I drove around for about twenty minutes, which was odd because my home was only ten minutes from school. Everything seemed to move in a little slower motion, as a strange calm and peace settled in over me as I fell into an almost Zen like state and then realized that I had the oddest desire to go see Sharon, and to confess everything that just happened, 'After all, she's your friend' and that really got to me as I felt the tide of emotions rise back up.