May and Ted

I really like third grade. I can’t wait to tell May how neat my class is. I wait by our corner after school because my class has different recess and lunchtimes than hers. She finally comes out, and she’s smiling. She’s in a good mood! I run up to her, but she is talking to someone else. I don’t think she sees me because she keeps walking. I follow her and just start talking because it’s me and she says we’re best friends. We’re going to play together this afternoon.

I call after her to get her attention. “Guess what?” I puff out when I catch up. The girls she’s with look back at me, but May doesn’t. “Mr. Reid got us a special tiny classroom with a couch and sciencey stuff, and we get to go to the library whenever we want!” I’m talking super fast, but that’s because the other girls are there, and that makes me nervous.

May stops and turns to look back at me. She squishes her eyebrows together. “Who are you?” she says.

I think she’s being funny at first, so I smile a little and say, “Ted,” and keep walking with them.

But she turns and shouts, “Get the fuck away from us!”

I stop, and she stomps away with the other girls, who are giggling. I get my throat lump and take deep breaths to make it go away. Mom told me that can help a lot.

Inside the house at home, I stop breathing so deep, and my lump isn’t there anymore. I have lots of stuff I want to do for school tomorrow. Mr. Reid says we don’t have to call it homework; we can call it preparation. He says that’s what he calls it when he gets stuff done at home for the next day.

I like May a lot. But I think school’s easier.