Helen Gets an A!

HELEN

“It’s nothing!”

I pulled away from Emma and tried to cover up the mark with my shirt.

“Dude! That’s not nothing!” Emma said and tried to have another look.

“Okay!” I shouted, ducking Emma’s hands. “You’re right, it’s not nothing. But I don’t want to talk about it here.”

“Something did happen to you in the woods, didn’t it?”

Emma raised an eyebrow like she was some investigator in a murder mystery.

“Yes, but nothing bad.”

I could tell I was blushing a little. I just hoped the bar was dark enough that Emma couldn’t see.

“I need all of the details.”

Emma grabbed my arm and started leading me toward the exit.

“Let’s get some beers and go back to the room. You need to tell me ~everything~.”

Worry seized my gut as we made our way back through the mess of students and abandoned solo cups.

~What is Emma going to think if I tell her the truth?~

~How much can I get away with hiding from her?~

Before I realized what she was doing, she had grabbed my collar one more time and pulled it aside to look at the scar. I tried to pull away.

“Seriously, Helen, it looks like you were mauled by a bear.”

***

Emma cracked open a beer and dropped onto my bed.

“Okay, tell me everything,” Emma said, putting her feet up.

“Shhh,” I hushed. “And get your filthy shoes off my sheets.”

The dorms were quiet when we got back. It was late and everyone was asleep.

“Sorry,” Emma kicked off her boots and got comfy. “Will you tell me now?”

I looked around nervously. I didn’t know what to say.

“I don’t know…” I trailed off.

“Helen, come on. We tell each other everything.” She sat forward, looking at me with real care in her eyes. “What’s going on?”

“I…met someone.”

“~What~?!”

Emma jumped up on the bed, her arms above her head.

“Calm down, you maniac.” I pulled her down, and she grabbed me around the waist. We both tumbled back onto the pillows.

“I ~really~ like him.” As the words came out of my mouth, I knew they were true.

“I’m so happy for you.” Emma nestled herself in closer to me, the way we used to when we were kids.

“So how did you get that scar? Was it a sex injury?”

I couldn’t say anything. She’d basically guessed the truth. Or as close as I was going to let her get to the truth.

I clamped my mouth shut but couldn’t help grinning.

“NO!” Emma sat up and looked me in the face. “It ~WAS~ a sex injury!?”

Smiling, I nodded. Emma sat back down with her back against the wall.

“Wow, the woods really ~are~ dangerous.”

We both laughed at that.

“But wait…you said the only people going to the wedding were family. Like your mom and her new husband and the guy’s son. Who else was there?”

My heart started pounding. This was the moment I’d been terrified of.

“Unless…you hooked up with your stepbrother.”

Emma started giggling at her own joke.

“Imagine that!?” she managed to get out through her chortles.

Only this time I didn’t laugh. It only took her a second to notice.

“Wait,” her face turned serious. “Dude, is the guy you met…your ~stepbrother~?”

My head felt light. My heart kept thumping inside my chest. I couldn’t speak.

~What is she going to think?~

“No way!” Emma stood up. “You hooked up with your stepbrother?!”

“Shhh! You’ll wake everybody up.” I looked at her, pleading.

“Dude, that’s fucked up. I know you thought he was hot, but it’s one thing to perve on him chopping wood. It’s quite another to ~touch~ his wood!”

That was it. I couldn’t stay silent any longer.

“You don’t understand. It’s not like how it sounds. It just sort of happened. It just felt ~right~.”

“But it ~isn’t~.”

Emma’s words hit me like a slap across the face.

She’d never spoken to me like that. All I could do was look at her in shock.

We were best friends.

We were supposed to support each other no matter what.

I’d been terrified that she would react that way. Now my nightmare was coming true.

“You’re not one to judge!” I snapped back. “Sam is just one guy. How many guys did you fuck over spring break?”

“Excuse me?!” Emma was staring at me like she wanted me dead.

I pressed my back against the wall. I couldn’t move.

“You heard me,” I muttered.

“I don’t know what shit happened to you out in the woods, but the Helen I know would never speak to me like that.”

She grabbed her boots and her jacket and headed for the door.

“I’ll find somewhere else to sleep tonight. I don’t want to be anywhere near you right now.”

I watched as she marched out of the room, slamming the door behind her.

Emma and I had fought before, but she’d never just left like that.

I grabbed a pillow and squeezed it for comfort.

~Is she going to come back?~

That night, I couldn’t sleep. I kept tossing and turning, replaying my fight with Emma over and over again in my mind.

~Maybe she’s right.~

~Maybe it is wrong.~

~Maybe I should just forget about Sam.~

Eventually I turned over and saw the half-finished painting across the room.

I got up and, to distract myself, started to paint again, losing myself in brushstroke after brushstroke.

Before I knew it, the sun was rising and the painting was finished.

***

I kept my eyes open for Emma as I made my way to the art room.

I hadn’t spoken to her since our fight last night and wanted to make amends.

The campus was full of people hanging out on the quad or moving between classes. But no sign of my best friend.

If that was what we still were.

Holding the painting under my arm, I scanned the crowd. Instead of spotting Emma, though, my eyes landed on Brittany.

She was standing with her cohorts outside our classroom, looking at me.

The second our eyes met, she whispered something to one of her trolls, then glanced back in my direction.

She always had something nasty to say about me. But considering the last time I’d seen her was when I presented my crappy bee painting, I was sure she’d stocked up on insults.

When the girls saw Professor Hammond approaching, they ducked inside the classroom. I gritted my teeth and headed for class.

The painting under my arm had barely had time to dry since I’d finished.

I’d managed to get a couple of hours of sleep but still wasn’t feeling my best.

Trying not to smudge it or smear paint all over my shirt, I placed the painting on an easel and took a seat.

“Ah, I see you’ve brought your revised vacation assignment,” Professor Hammond said.

Everybody in the class had found their stools. Quiet settled as all eyes turned to me.

“Could you bring your painting up so we can all see it?” He gestured for me to come to the front of the class.

My lack of sleep didn’t help my nerves as I picked up the picture and walked toward our professor.

~What if he hates this picture as much as the last one?~

~What if they all think it’s terrible?~

“Now this is ~quite~ the improvement,” Professor Hammond said as I set up the painting for the class to see. “Could you tell us a bit about your work?”

My mouth was suddenly dry, and I wondered why I was so nervous.

“My painting is based on a sketch I did when I visited Bear Creek.”

I saw a couple of girls in my class lean forward in their seats.

“Most people think Bear Creek is remote and…scary. And they’re kind of right…”

People were staring at me confusedly.

“In Bear Creek there are all kinds of wild animals.” My voice was coming back to me, and I suddenly felt more confident.

I knew my painting was good. It captured the true beauty of nature through my own eyes.

“Some of these animals have the potential to hurt or even kill you.”

I glanced at Professor Hammond, who looked back encouragingly.

“But when I came across this bear, down by the lake, I knew he wasn’t going to hurt me.”

“You actually got that close to the bear?” a boy in the back asked.

“Yeah,” I said, grinning. “I got as close as humanly possible.”

My mind started to drift back to Forest Lake. Back to Sam’s eyes as he gazed at me after we’d had sex.

“Bears are wild and strong, but they aren’t monsters. They are calm and peaceful. There is beauty in their power…and their stillness.”

The class was silent.

“Well, I think we can all say this was a great success. This piece is truly excellent, Helen.”

I blushed a little at Professor Hammond’s compliment.

“You really captured the strength and grace of this great creature.”

I caught a glimpse of Brittany glaring at me. As if my having done well at something was enough to make her furious.

“And I’m glad you managed to get your assignment done without getting eaten,” Professor Hammond said quietly in my ear.

~If only he knew!~

A few of my classmates started clapping for me. It felt silly and unnecessary but still brightened my mood.

“Why don’t you tell us who else you got up close and personal with at Bear Creek?”

Brittany’s voice cut through my little ovation, and the class went silent again. I looked at my nemesis and her expression was wicked—a devious smile splitting her face.

“What are you talking about?” I stammered.

“I heard what you did in the woods, Helen.” Brittany’s voice was acidic with spite. “Why don’t you tell Professor Hammond and the rest of us the truth?”

“Brittany, that’s enough!” Professor Hammond tried to interject, but Brittany was having too much fun.

“Why don’t you tell the class all about how you ~fucked~ your stepbrother?!”

Everything went silent. Time stood still. All I could hear was my heart beating and my quick, panicked breaths.

The class was looking around at Brittany. Some of them were shocked and others had already started laughing.

~This can’t be happening.~

~This isn’t happening!~

“You fucked your stepbrother and you liked it!”

It was my worst nightmare coming to life.

The class erupted into laughter. My face was on fire and tears were already falling onto my cheeks.

“Brother fucker!”

I couldn’t take it anymore. Even though running would be an admission of guilt, I had to get out of there.

As I sprinted from the classroom, I could hear their taunts and laughter echoing behind me.

“BROTHER FUCKER!”

~This can’t be happening!~

~My life is over!~