2008 Woodie Awards
So um as I was saying - Oh, no you go ahead. No er - sorry…Go ahead.
Charissa Che
Issue date: 3/12/08 Section: Opinions & Editorials
There he was, his trademark spiky hair and vest over a t-shirt despite the 20 degree weather. He kept stealing furtive - almost reproachful - glances my way as I selected a pole to hold on to on the bus.
He was my best friend's brother's classmate's friend's boyfriend, presumably taking the bus to his high school that morning. He's always there at parties but we've never really spoken, mostly because there was no reason for us to speak, given our distant relationship.
Nonetheless, I resolved to make an attempt at conversation with him - he'd already seen me and me him, so it would just be awkward to pretend we'd never spotted each other, no?
"Hey Carl," I chirped with an air of false nonchalance.
He turned at the sound of his name. I saw his anticipatory smile fade as he realized where it came from.
"Hey…Cher…Ter…Theresa?"
"Charissa," I hastily said, trying to ignore the snickers coming from observers, most of them also high schoolers. "Going to school?"
"Yup." Carl shifted his feet a bit, looked at them, shifted them again, then looked back at me.
"Me too," I said. "Where do you go to school?" I already knew the answer, but at least this would get him to speak.
"Wagner," he replied curtly, now examining his fingernails."You went to Wagner too, didn't you?" His eyes looked filmy and dead as he asked this, as if he just wanted the whole thing to be over with. I almost pitied him, were it not for the fact that I was the one responsible for his proverbial root canal.
"Nah, I went to Port."
"Ah."
"Yeah…Hey, nice vest, but aren't you freezing?"
"No, not really," Carl muttered.
He spent the rest of his ride looking the opposite direction, occasionally finding a speck of dust on his vest or his wristwatch immensely interesting.When his stop finally arrived, I made a feeble attempt at saying goodbye which went unheeded in his haste to escape from me.
Dr. Chan eyed me wearily from beneath his spectacles. He just wanted to give me my prescriptions and be done with it. He'd had a long night.
He was my best friend's brother's classmate's friend's boyfriend, presumably taking the bus to his high school that morning. He's always there at parties but we've never really spoken, mostly because there was no reason for us to speak, given our distant relationship.
Nonetheless, I resolved to make an attempt at conversation with him - he'd already seen me and me him, so it would just be awkward to pretend we'd never spotted each other, no?
"Hey Carl," I chirped with an air of false nonchalance.
He turned at the sound of his name. I saw his anticipatory smile fade as he realized where it came from.
"Hey…Cher…Ter…Theresa?"
"Charissa," I hastily said, trying to ignore the snickers coming from observers, most of them also high schoolers. "Going to school?"
"Yup." Carl shifted his feet a bit, looked at them, shifted them again, then looked back at me.
"Me too," I said. "Where do you go to school?" I already knew the answer, but at least this would get him to speak.
"Wagner," he replied curtly, now examining his fingernails."You went to Wagner too, didn't you?" His eyes looked filmy and dead as he asked this, as if he just wanted the whole thing to be over with. I almost pitied him, were it not for the fact that I was the one responsible for his proverbial root canal.
"Nah, I went to Port."
"Ah."
"Yeah…Hey, nice vest, but aren't you freezing?"
"No, not really," Carl muttered.
He spent the rest of his ride looking the opposite direction, occasionally finding a speck of dust on his vest or his wristwatch immensely interesting.When his stop finally arrived, I made a feeble attempt at saying goodbye which went unheeded in his haste to escape from me.
Dr. Chan eyed me wearily from beneath his spectacles. He just wanted to give me my prescriptions and be done with it. He'd had a long night.
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