One Foot In The Grave - Part Six

I could tell just by the grin on Conor’s face when he walked into our room that, in one way or another, he had beaten Tegan in the little, silent game they were playing. Somehow, he had gotten under her skin. Whether or not he had caused her to blow up was a complete mystery, but not one that I really cared to know. The fact of the matter was that he had gotten what he wanted. He had gotten her emotions to shift at least a little bit.1

It wasn’t long after he had gotten back that the bell for dinner rang and we both rose up, walking into the cafeteria and gathering our food. He couldn’t get that smug grin on his face. I almost wanted to ask him what he had done to wind her up, but realized that he probably wouldn’t tell me anyway. I’d figured that much about him in the week or so that I’d been there. 2

To be honest, I don’t really know who I was rooting for more, Conor or Tegan. On some level, I suppose I wanted them both to gain the upper hand. Neither had done anything against me, and, even though we were in juvy, they’d at least acknowledged me as a human being. I was a neutral party, and that was that. 3

Something was off when we walked inside though; Maegan wasn’t in the cafeteria. It was weird. Everyone seemed very used to the idea of Maegan dining alone for one reason or the other, but never Tegan. Luckily, word travels fast, and I was told by some other kid that Maegan had trashed the room and was put in isolation. Conor and I exchanged glances that said the exact same thing: Maegan had lied, and Tegan had let her. Tegan had completely trashed the room, and, to save her friend from being shoved into isolation again, Maegan had taken the blame for what happened and was put in isolation for it.4

She sat alone at her table, munching away. I saw Conor steal a glance over at her and sat down in my seat once I’d gotten my tray. Neither Conor nor I had eaten much. The thought of processed ham and melted American cheese on a hamburger bun just didn’t seem that appealing.5

I pinched the bridge of my nose and slumped back in my chair. Glancing over at Conor, I sighed, “So you got under her skin, huh?”6

He bared his teeth in a grin and took a drink of his juice. “I paced her; the whole fucking session. You should have seen it, Jake it was hysterical. She almost flipped once.”7

I nodded, almost laughing at the image of Tegan losing it again. yeah, I liked her and everything, but she was so small that the whole thought of her going ape shit like that was both frightening and humorous at the same time. “I just, I dunno, I mean… what do you get out of it all?”8

“How do you mean?”9

“Well, you piss her off and you both get in trouble. So I’m just kind of curious as to what you get out of the whole thing.”10

Conor let out a small sigh, sitting forward so that his elbows were resting on the table. “I really do not like her. I’m sure she’s a nice person and all, but it’s kind of obvious that she’s not telling us something, right?”11

“Well, yeah, why else would she tweak like that?”12

“Exactly.” He sighed quietly, voice hushed and almost urgent. “And I’m thinking it’s gotta be a pretty huge thing. ‘Else she would have just come out with it by now.”13

“Yeah, but maybe not.” I pointed out. “Maybe she’s just nuts, you know? Maybe… I dunno, she heard voices telling her to do it and doesn’t want anyone to know?”14

He shook his head skeptically, “We would’ve been able to tell. You don’t just hear voices. There’s always something else going along with it.”15

The bell rang an hour later, but instead of going to the lounge, I just went into my room and went to bed.16

--------17

The shriek of the morning bell made me jump and sent me sprawling out onto the floor of the room with a groan. I heard a chuckle from across the room and rose to my feet. My body was exhausted, still not used to the new schedule. I was used to the being up for days on end, smoking meth, not eating, and then crashing, sleeping for four days and eating like a fat guy with mad weed munchies. Not waking up at five in the morning and staying cooped up in some building until eight when I had to go to bed.18

Lifting up my comforter and pillows, I adjusted my sheet, laying the blanket across the mattress and putting my pillows down the way they had taught me. After having a guard rip my bedding off and toss it onto the floor over and over until I finally got the placement in my head well enough that, if it hadn’t been occupied, I could do it in my sleep.19

I broke a nice sweat while we exercised, running laps around the gym, doing sit ups, and then running more laps. My shirt was drenched with sweat by the time the hour was over and I welcomed the cold water with open arms. I was way out of shape. It bugged me. A lot. Breakfast actually involved something for once; cinnamon rolls. I ate heartily, not realizing how hungry I was until the morsel touched my tongue.20

Conor and I were silent, neither of us up for conversation so early in the morning. It was nauseating seeing some of the inmates up and as cheery as they were at six o’clock in the fucking morning. It’s not normal. 21

During morning classes, I rested my head in my hand and allowed myself to doze off. I’d adopted Conor’s ability to just blend in and become invisible; for the most part at least. He left me alone unless our teacher started looking my way or something, then, he would nudge me just enough to wake me up and make me look alert. It was this kind of monotony that I hated. Three hours of just sitting around and doing nothing but listening to some guy talk and talk and talk about things that a fifteen year old would know.22

When group came around, we all sat in our designated seats and I saw that Maegan was back in our presence. Deanna chattered on about something that none of us paid attention to. I watched Tegan lean back in her chair until her butt was nearly sliding off, her head hanging off the back of it. Slowly, her eyes fluttered closed and her breathing evened out. I wondered how long it would take our group leader to figure out that she’d fallen asleep, but then looked over at Conor to see a grin on his face. 23

Surely he wasn’t going to try something. I mean, especially so soon after her last explosion. He would at least wait until her hand was better or something…24

Right?25