Hate Every Beautiful Day
Chapter 2
By: Makena
Second hour English was always a drag, and Benji couldn't wait for school to end. He got a hall pass from his teacher and opened his locker up. From the back he extracted a Mountain Dew bottle he had replaced with vodka.
Unscrewing the cap, Benji took a long, quenching drink. He sighed, somewhat satisfied and began to take another sip when some one tapped him on the shoulder. 'Fuck,' he thought, sure he had been caught by one of the teachers.
He spun around, trying to swallow the mouthful of vodka he had already taken. Instead of a teacher stood a girl his age, wearing a denim skirt with a black hoodie, fishnet tights and large, black boots that went all the way to just below her knees. In one hand she was clutching a pink slip of paper, and held onto the strap of her back pack with the other. She had long blond hair, most of it spilling over her shoulders while half of it was pulled back in two sticks with two strands hanging down in her face. Her eyes were blue and her face was flawless. She wore no make up, except for a little lip gloss which was actually chap stick and some black eye liner.
"Oh, sorry," she said. "Could you just tell me where Mrs. Berg's room is? I'm new here and I can't find her class." Benji capped his Mountain Dew bottle and pointed down the hall in the right direction. "Oh! I WAS going the right way. Well, thanks... I'll see you around, I guess."
Benji nodded and watched her until she turned into one of the class rooms. He shrugged and sighed - all he could think about was how close he had come to having some one find out about his alcohol.
***
Joel watched as the new girl came into his Health and Lifelong Skills class and was surprised when she took the empty seat next to him.
"Makeena?" the teacher asked. "Mekeena? Is that how you say it?"
"Uh, it's pronounced Makena."
"Oh... I'm sorry. Makena - that's pretty. Where are you from?"
"Michigan," the new girl replied.
"Right now we're reading. Do you have a book with you?" Makena nodded and dug out a copy of "The Hobbit" by JRR Tolkien. "Excellent. You can read that until class is over."
Makena shrugged and began to read when she noticed Joel beside her, reading into his own book. Silently, she dug out a piece of lined notebook paper and a pen from her back pack and scribbled her note to him.
Is this class always this fun?
Joel read it and laughed silently.
NO he wrote. Makena nodded.
Great. What are you reading?
It's called Alcoholism... it's about alcoholism.
Why?
Joel sighed and wrote out his response.
My brother drinks. He's 17. I just wanted to know a little about it.
Oh. I'm sorry - I hope he gets better.
"Okay, I'll give you the last 5 minuets to talk amongst yourselves," Mrs. Berg said. "Jordan? Could you come here and help me with this computer?" A boy, who was tall, skinny and slightly awkward looking stood up and walked towards Mrs. Berg and her computer.
"Is your brother... do you two look a little alike?" Makena asked, putting her pen and notebook away in her back pack again. Joel laughed and slipped their note into his book.
"Yeah," he said. "We're twins."
"I saw him in the hall," Makena went on. "He was drinking something from a Mountain Dew bottle. It looked sort of like water, but I think maybe it was vodka."
Joel's face fell. "Oh. Thanks for telling me."
Makena nodded and smiled slightly.
-----
Benji stood in line for lunch and tried to remember the information he had been given. 'Football practice is at... three? No... 3:30. That's what it was.' He took out a blue pen from his pocket - something he had borrowed from his teacher and forgot to return - and wrote the information down on the palm of his hand.
Football field: 3:30 : Aaron...
"Hi."
Benji looked up and turned around for the source of the voice. It was the girl he had given directions to in the hallway.
"Um... hi..." he said, frowning slightly.
He wasn't a popular kid. The only people who talked to him were Joel, sometimes the junior kid Paul, and a couple of other random people that were just acquaintances and not actually friends. It was obvious she was new... had it not been obvious enough already.
"I saw you in the hall this morning... and then I had your brother in my class." Benji nodded slightly. "So... what's up?" Benji shook his head.
"My name is Makena, by the way."
"Benji," he said, moving up a little.
"Benji? Why not Ben? Or Benjamin? Can I call you Benj or Benj-a-hole?"
Benji frowned. "I guess..." he said.
"So, what's good?" she asked.
"Depends on how much you have."
"How much do you have?"
Benji sighed and pocketed the pen he had been playing with. "I get free lunch," he told her.
"Really?" Makena asked. "Why?"
Benji frowned. "I'm poor," he said bluntly. "Can you please leave me alone now?"
Makena frowned slightly. "Sorry," she said. "I was just trying to make friends with you since you seemed just SOO popular, but maybe I'll just go now."
Benji sighed and watched her stalk off towards the library. He could see Joel sitting inside, reading his Alcoholism book and copying some things down in his notebook.
"I need a drink," he told himself with a sigh.
He stepped out of the lunch line and walked down the senior hall towards his locker. He spun the combination lock on his locker. 36, 26, 6. He kicked the locker when it stuck at the bottom and reached towards the back for the Mountain Dew bottle. It was gone. Benji searched his locker franticly for his lost alcohol.
"Joel," he spat, slamming his locker shut and running off towards the library. Joel was still there, reading his book on alcoholism and copying notes down. Makena was in there with him, talking to him about random things.
"Where is it?" Benji demanded, walking across the library to his brother. Joel looked up from his book and frowned slightly.
"What?" Joel asked.
"You know what I'm talking about you dumb fuck," Benji said. "Where the fuck is my Mountain Dew bottle?"
Joel sighed and put his book down, not bothering to mark the page he had been on. "I dumped it," he responded truthfully.
"What?! You're dead..." Benji tackled Joel out of his chair and they began to fight, drawing a crowd around them. Benji threw a punch while Joel tried to throw his brother off.
"Get off me, you fucking drunk ass!" Joel yelled. "You're no better than dad, and I know how highly you think of him!"
"Fuck you, Joel!" Benji yelled. He raised his fist, ready to throw another punch at Joel when some one caught his fist and dragged him to his feet. Benji turned around to see his English teacher, pulling Benji away from his brother.
"Benji! What were you doing?" Mr. Lantz asked him. "I thought you knew better than that! What's all this about?"
"Joel stole something of mine," Benji said.
"What did you take from your brother, Joel?" Mr. Lantz asked. Joel opened his mouth to respond with the truth when Makena cut him short.
"Actually, Mr. Lantz, they were fighting over me," she lied. Mr. Lantz looked over at Makena, his face twisted into a surprised look.
"Over you?" he asked.
"Yes sir," Makena said, nodding her head. Mr. Lantz shook his head and dropped Benji's fist.
"I know she's the new girl, but you don't have to fight over her," he said. "With your brother, even. It's just not worth it." Makena frowned slightly.
"I'm not going to report you, but you have to find a way to work it out other than a fist fight. Got it?" Benji shot a glare at Joel, who nodded and glared back.
"Good." He paused and turned towards Makena. "Keep your eye on these two."
She nodded and smiled at Benji as Mr. Lantz left, shaking his head. "You're welcome," she said.