Doris Dayton stepped off the school bus, lost in thought. Senior year had finally arrived, and unlike her peers' enthusiasm concerning it, she wasn't particularly thrilled.
The languid feeling wasn't solely due to her boyfriend's crass behavior during the holidays, which had totally drained the joy out of her and left her frustrated. She simply didn't believe in getting ridiculously overexcited over the realization that it was her final year of high school.
It wasn't a big deal, and she failed to see why it was to others. Instead, she desired to quickly get the year over with and move on to the next phase of her life: college.
Over the holidays, she had made up her mind to call it quits with her boyfriend, Bob, once school resumed.
He had been insufferable to her during the break, and it was clear his feelings for her had faded.
The signs had always been there... missed calls, dry replies, canceled dates followed by lazy excuses.
Still, she'd ignored every red flag, clinging to the hope that love was enough. But it wasn't. And deep down, she knew it never had been.
The hallway was filled with chattering students excited about starting the new year.
Seeing most of the girls dressed outrageously in mini gowns and skirts with their heads held up high in pride made Doris feel a tad out of place in her casual jeans and tee. But then she remembered that being a senior wasn't that much of a big deal to her, and besides, she possessed something most of them were envious of... her hair.
Her hair, a cascade of long raven-dark tresses, was her signature feature, impossible to ignore, and she had chosen to leave it loose.
So, with an unconcerned shrug, she dismissed the worrisome thought.
As Doris entered her locker combination and pulled out the books she needed, a smooth, familiar voice sounded behind her.
"Hey, babe," Bob said cheerily, like nothing was wrong.
She slammed the locker shut and turned to face him.
Bobby Springsteen, her soon-to-be ex and dickhead of a boyfriend was grinning like a Cheshire cat.
With his pretty-boy looks and charming black eyes, he looked like boyfriend material. Too bad he was anything but.
He leaned in to kiss her, but Doris took a step back and frowned.
"Don't," She said flatly, holding up a hand. "Don't even think it."
"Baby, come on," he grasped her hand and caressed it, but she snatched it back in anger.
She yanked it away. "I said, don't."
"I'm sorry, okay? I know I haven't been on my best behavior lately. I should've texted, called... It's just, my dad's been swamped. I had to help at the shop, remember? I told you he got a lot of work to do lately. Those cars don't fix themselves."
She cast him a disbelieving glance, shook her head, and turned to walk away.
He came after her, rambling off more silly excuses in an attempt to get her to believe him.
"Doris, baby," he touched her shoulder lightly as he followed. "Hey, come on, babe."
"Stop. Just stop." She snapped, whirling around sharply to face him. "You have no excuse. If you wanted... if you truly cared about me, you would've texted back or even called! But you don't care about me. You never did."
Bob looked panicked. "Let me make it up to you," he said quickly, realizing he had no valid excuse and that all efforts to justify his behavior were failing. "Let me take you out today, hmm? Just let me show you I can be better."
He was speaking softly, in that way he knew swayed her.
He drew closer, tracing and caressing her cheek with a finger.
Doris felt her body begin to relax, no matter how much she tried to fight it.
Weeks and weeks of hating him, swearing to never have anything to do with him again, and building defensive walls over the holidays... all of it crumbled with a few soft words.
Like a fucking dilapidated shack, those walls crumbled.
This was what being hopelessly in love with someone felt like, and it sucked.
"I'll text you after school and come pick you up, okay? Let me make up for everything I did to my baby girl. I promise I'll be better this year."
"Where are we going?" she asked in a mutter.
He smirked. "That's a surprise, babe. Wear something a lil sexy for me, aight?"
An unexpected grin broke out on Doris's face. All the anger suddenly forgotten, she nodded shyly.
"That's my girl. Come here."
He tipped her chin up and kissed her.
Bobby was complicated. On some occasions, he was a real sweetheart. On others, he acted like a totally heartless jerk.
The siren wailed, and Doris was forced to break away from the kiss.
"Don't stand me up!" she warned as she headed in the direction of her class.
"I won't, babe," he said with a grin, then added, "I'm digging your new look, by the way."
Her "new look" was a dive into dark makeup and black nails, Gothic in style, stemming not from rebellion, but from the depths and darkness of a heart recently broken.
She blew him a kiss in response, feeling the butterflies she thought were long dead in her belly do their weird dance as she rounded the hallway toward Biology class.
Maybe he was ready to change. Maybe he was going to change.
Doris decided to put the breakup on hold, smiling childishly at the thought of going on a date with him.
*****
"I still can't believe you haven't broken up with him, Dee," Charlotte Cho, Doris's best friend, said to her during lunch break. She took a loud drag of her strawberry milkshake and threw Doris an angry glance. "Do you enjoy how he treats you?"
"No, Char. I'm giving him one last chance, just one. If he blows it, I'm done," Doris replied, biting into her burger.
"Whatever," Charlotte rolled her eyes and brushed the bangs from her face. "You've tolerated his bullshit for too long, girl."
"He's taking me out this afternoon," Doris added happily, stirring her chocolate shake.
"Oh yeah? Tell me about it," Charlotte said, still clearly pissed. "Until he stands you up again."
"Geez, you're such a killjoy. Ease up, will you?" Doris muttered with a half-laugh.
Charlotte exhaled and relaxed into her chair. "I care about you, okay? Bob's no good for you. How many times have you come crying to me because of him? I don't want a repeat of what happened with Ann. I just don't want that for you, Dee. You deserve someone better. Someone who'll cherish you."
"I know," Doris groaned, her voice softening. "I know you care. I promise if he messes up this time, it's over."
Charlotte smiled, her Asian eyes thinning into slits. "Good girl."
As Doris bit into her burger again, Drake Taylor, along with Tobey Johnson and Ryan Ross, the three most popular guys in Pearson High, sauntered into the cafeteria.
Taylor, with his killer looks that consisted of sandy brown hair and lethal blue eyes, was known for both his intelligence and good looks. He was the star of Pearson High, practically treated like royalty. Tobey and Ryan were only equally as popular because they were his best friends. Wherever he went, they followed. Three peas in a very popular pod..
"Looks like Drake got hotter over the holidays," Charlotte remarked, her eyes sweeping over him as he passed their table.
Doris followed her gaze. "Yeah... looks like he did."
Charlotte smirked.
"What?" Doris asked innocently.
"Nothing," Charlotte waved it off with a smirk. "Forget it. So, you decided to go all Goth on us, huh?"
Doris shrugged. "Just the makeup, not the lifestyle. I'm still a softie."
"Tell me something I don't know," Charlotte rolled her eyes. "I knew that the day you had a full-blown meltdown over that dress."
"Hey! You swore never to bring that up again."
Charlotte leaned in, daring. "You cried for twenty minutes, Doris Dayton. Twenty."
Doris giggled. "Enough."
"You look ten times hotter, by the way. I know you've been dying to hear me say it."
"Charlotte!" Doris laughed, swatting her playfully.
She wanted a fresh start this school year... something new, but not over the top. The dark kohl lining her lashes made her green eyes pop, while her deep red lipstick gave her lips a fuller, bolder edge.
The siren rang, cutting their conversation short.
"Come on, girlfriend," Charlotte said, rising from her seat. "Time for class."