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enough.
    “I
even caught him creeping around and pushing her buttons when I hit the bathroom
yesterday.”
    “Two-timer!!!”
Catee spit it with such conviction that I couldn’t help but laugh, and I broke
the artificial seriousness of our moment.
    “So,
honestly,” I finally admitted. “I had a beef with the guy I was supposed to
locker-share with, and now I’m high school homeless.”
    “Well,
mister, you’re in luck, because space just became available at my place,” she
offered with a smile. “And you’re more than welcome to move in at your earliest
convenience.”
    “Thanks.
That’s decent of you, Catee.” As tempted as I was to take her up on the offer,
uncontrollable images of Justin, glaring down at me, spiraled through my head.
“But I’m looking at this other piece of property tomorrow. It’s in a real nice
neighborhood and all. Plus, its two levels, and it’s got a great school
nearby.”
    “From
what I’ve seen and heard, the school’s not so hot. Even the neighborhood’s
pretty questionable, if you ask me.”
    She
scored double points for her shared sentiment. Still, I couldn’t ignore the
Sword of Damocles that dangled over me. It was a lose-lose situation. If I took
her up on the offer, Justin would cave my skull in; if I didn’t, I’d wind-up
with a broken back before long.
    “I’ll
keep it in mind,” I answered with a grin.
    “The
offer’s on the table, Damian. You just let me know.”
    Silence
settled briefly over us before she took the initiative to part ways. “Well,
I’ve got to get going, but I’ll catch you in class tomorrow. Okay?”
    “Sounds
great. Can’t wait.”
    And
with that, she turned to go. But something in me wouldn’t let it end there.
    “Hey,
Catee!” Louder than expected, my voice bounced off the steely surface of the
hall’s locker-lined sides.
    “Yeah?”
she turned and asked.
    “Ummm
…… Thanks?” As much as I willed words to my lips, they evaded me. I found only
one. And even it came out sounding like an awkward question.
    “For
what?”
    “You
know. For everything … just … thanks. That’s all.”
    “It’s
my treat.” She replied with finality and filled the hall with her radiant
smile. “Try to have an upright afternoon, Damian.” And with that, the girl of
my dreams turned and disappeared.
    It
might’ve seemed insignificant, but Catee saved me that day. And in doing so,
she opened a door that invited me into her world.   And once inside, as reviling as things
might become, there’ll be no escaping without taking her with me.   I owe it to her—to return the
favor and to save her like she did for me that afternoon—when locker
partners and teenage rivalries were still consequential, and before loved ones turned
symbols for what we hate most today.  

September
4 th:

 
    “So,
tell me your High, and tell me your Low.”
    We
were sitting to dinner—my parents, Nicole, and me—and Mom addressed
the table with her predictable prompt.
    “Well,
since it’s brains before beauty, and since I’m currently leading in both
departments, I guess I’ll have to start,” my dad joked and laid down his fork
to seize first turn.
    “Oh,
God. Here we go,” I remarked.
    My
sister rolled her eyes, cut away at her pork chop, and said nothing in response
to his poking fun at us.
    Mom
laid down her fork and brought her elbows to the table. She rested her chin on
interlocked fingers and moved to attentive, listening mode.
    “I’ll
start with my Low, because I know that’s what Mom likes.” My dad gave her a
wink that brought a smile to her face. “So, my Low is that Mike’s going to be
out of the garage for a few days. One of the cars came down from the lift this
afternoon, and wouldn’t you know it, that goof was just standing there! The
thing parked itself right on his foot!”
    “That’s
awful!” Mom gasped. “Is he okay!?”
    “Yup.
Nothing major. Lucky kid. Broke a few toes, but aside from that, he’ll be