Melinda’s Story
Thursday afternoon, I joined the lunch table in time to hear a heated discussion between Sarah and Larry about which type of cookie was superior: chocolate chip or peanut butter. I pointed to them and was about to offer my opinion, but I caught Walter’s eye. He shook his head quietly.
With a shrug, I took a bite of my turkey sandwich and sent him an expectant look. Instead, he changed the subject.
“Where’ve you been?”
“Physics lab ran a little late, then I wanted to ask Mr. Wilson about the test we took last week. He handed them back at the end of the lab and I was confused why he marked something wrong. Turns out, he was wrong and I actually ended up with a ninety-three.”
Walter took a large bite of his hamburger. “Das fin-fas-fic.”
An exasperated voice sighed behind me. “Walter, Walter, Walter. Will you ever learn to stop talking with food in your mouth?”
I smiled at Pat as he plopped himself in the empty chair between me and Walter.
“Nope.” Walter shook his head as he shoved more food in his mouth.
I rolled my eyes in Pat’s direction. “How’s your first week back going?”
He shrugged. “Not bad. The time change is killing me. It’s been nearly a week and the jet lag just won’t completely go away. When I was in Hawaii, I was literally up at six every morning. I’m struggling to get out of bed by eight. And, I’m lucky I don’t have a first period class. Well, most mornings. I have a stupid biology lab tomorrow. Tell me, who scheduled that? Who wants to be dissecting a frog right after breakfast?”
I giggled. “Is that what you’re doing? Dissecting a frog?”
“No idea. Probably not. We’ve been studying the cell, so I think the lab has more to do with looking under a microscope. I was just trying to make a point.”
Walter swallowed hard. “Point made.”
Out of the corner of my eye, I had seen Sarah and Larry end their ridiculous argument as soon as Pat sat down. Both of them were staring in our direction. Finally, Sarah pointed at Pat.
“Y . . . You . . . You’re Patrick McGregor.”
Pat winked at me before reaching across the table to extend a hand towards my roommate. “Pat Evans. Nice to meetcha.”
Larry, meanwhile, was looking back and forth between Walter and Pat. Was he able to see the minute similarities in their facial features that I had discovered this weekend? It was actually pretty obvious they were brothers if you knew what to look for.
Sarah recovered her voice. “So, you’re not Patrick McGregor?”
Walter sighed. “You want the long version or the short version?”
Larry pointed to Pat. “Whichever one explains why he’s sitting here.”
I tried not to giggle as Pat winced, placing his hand on his chest. “Ouch. See, this is all your fault.” He poked his brother in the shoulder. “You go around pretending to be this famous actor, then we—”
Walter punched his shoulder. “This is my brother, Pat.” He pointed across the table. “That’s Larry. He lives across the hall from me and is usually really nice, although right now you’ll have to excuse him for forgetting his manners. Sarah is Larry’s girlfriend and Melinda’s roommate.” Walter pointed to Pat. “Pat has been in Hawaii filming a movie.”
Sarah looked between the boys with wide eyes. “Wait. You’re brothers?”
When Walter simply nodded, Sarah turned to me. “How come you’re not fazed by this?”
Pat flashed his famous smile, swinging his arm around my shoulders. “Oh, we go way back.”
Walter and Larry had both put their arms around me like this. But, for some reason, it felt strange when Pat did it. Probably because he was a fifth-former. I grabbed one of his fingers between two of my own and gently removed it.
“Walter told me a while ago. I met Pat and Meghan when they brought Walter back from Long Weekend.”
Sarah’s eyes grew even wider. “Meghan. Meghan McGregor is your sister.”
When Walter nodded, Larry shook his head slowly. “Does Ava know about your family tree, bro? Cuz, I could see her going absolutely crazy excited knowing she’s with a celebrity. Well, once removed.”
Pat burst out laughing. “Oh, I love that. Once removed. I’m going to have to use that one. Hi! I’m Pat, and I’m a rock star, once removed.”
Walter answered Larry a little aggressively. I could hear the irritation in his voice. “No. No, Ava doesn’t know and no, I’m not ready for her to know.” He turned to Pat, and I could see fear in his eyes. “So, no popping in at the table when I’m with Ava. Actually, no popping in in general. I mean—”
Walter let out a frustrated grown and buried his head in his hands. I looked at Sarah and Larry. Larry pointed to the dishroom with his eyes. Sarah and I wordlessly began placing our dishes on our trays.
Larry grabbed his bag as he stood. “You know you can’t keep this a secret forever. But, you also know we won’t say anything.”
Sarah squeezed Walter’s shoulders in a small hug before picking up her tray and following Larry to the dishroom.
I walked around Pat to Walter’s other side, crouching beside him so I could peer up into his face, still buried in his hands. I put an arm on his shoulder.
“We’re your friends and we love you. We were your friends before we knew who you were. We don’t care that your parents are rich and famous. I know you love your family. I don’t understand why you want to hide them. No one who matters is going to treat you any differently. Frankly, I’d be more concerned about people finding out you watch NeoGenesis than that you have famous relatives.”
Walter sat up enough for me to give him a proper hug. I was glad to see him smiling, even if it was weakly. As I returned to my seat, Pat took the opportunity to tease his brother.
“It’s not so much that you watch NG. It’s the fact that you guys started a club for it. I can’t be seen with a third form weirdo. What’ll that do to my image?”
I saw Walter punch his brother halfheartedly as I grabbed my bag and tray. As I headed to the dishroom, I heard Walter ask, “So, what should I do?”
The following evening, I arrived at the dinner table in time to hear Dre voice the question that had been on my mind most of the week.
“I don’t get why we have study hours tonight when we don’t have any classes tomorrow.”
Jessi nodded. “And, why are we meeting in the auditorium, anyway?”
Andy shrugged. “I guess we have a form meeting.”
Most of the table looked at Walter, but it was Larry who voiced what we were all thinking. “Okay, Mr. Know-It-All.” A few of us snickered. I knew from his lighthearted tone that he wasn’t trying to insult his friend. I think a lot of us thought of Walter like that. “What is going on tomorrow and what’s up with tonight’s meeting?”
For once, Walter finished chewing before responding. I had a feeling this might have more to do with him formulating his answer than manners.
“Service Day is a day we go out into the community and do community service. Don’t ask, I have no idea what that means. I guess tonight is where they tell us what we’re going to be doing.”
“Community service?” Ava wrinkled her nose in disgust. “That doesn’t mean we have to like, go visit with old people, does it?”
“Visiting old people sounds like fun,” said Xandra.
We spent the rest of the meal discussing our ideas of what we might like to do—and not do—for community service before walking together towards the science center. Out of habit, we almost all sat in the same seats we usually did for our form meetings, although Ava made sure to sit beside Walter.
Sally and Mr. Birkenhead stood by the podium, waiting for the room to quiet before Sally tapped the mic.
“Good evening, and thank you all for quieting down so quickly. I’m sure you’re all curious about tomorrow’s Service Day, so we’ll go ahead and start. Each term, we will have a day where we volunteer and help out the Oakville community. Tomorrow, you will all be helping to clean up Veteran’s Memorial Park. At the end of tonight’s meeting, I will post the list of groups for tomorrow. We will be meeting in front of the dorms at nine, where each group will check in with their group leader. We will then walk over to the park together. There, your leader will explain your task. If your group finishes early, you may be asked to assist another group. We will finish by about noon, when we will walk back to campus together. You will all be required to check in with your leader one last time before you are dismissed.”
Mr. Birkenhead continued with some more rules before asking if there were any questions. Sally glanced around the room, pointing to someone a few rows in front of me. I couldn’t see who she was as she spoke in an accent I thought might have been Russian. “Vat are zee tasks ve might do?”
Mr. Birkenhead nodded. “Most groups will be raking leaves. One or two may be picking up litter. Some will be weeding and cleaning up the flower beds. Other questions?”
He pointed to someone on the opposite side of the room. I recognized my ex-boyfriend. “If it’s volunteering, does that mean it’s optional?”
I had thought the question somewhat rude and egotistical, much like the boy who asked it, but several other students lowered their hands. I guessed they had been wondering the same thing.
Sally smiled. “No, it is not option. However, it does count towards your mandatory community service hours required for graduation. Yes, Kayleigh?” She pointed towards the back row.
“What if it rains?”
I thought back to Monday. That had been more than enough rain for the week.
Sally smiled. “The forecast calls for cool weather and bright skies, at least until after lunch. Wear sweatshirts and jackets.” She pointed in my direction.
Ava responded in a slightly derisive tone. “Is there a dress code?”
Mr. Birkenhead shook his head. “It is the same as your weekend dining hall attire.” Good. I could wear my jeans. “However, you will be working outside, so please dress accordingly. And don’t forget comfortable shoes, since you will be doing a lot of walking.” He pointed to a boy I recognized. I didn’t know his name, but he was on the football team with Larry and Walter.
“Can we bring food?”
“No. Please eat beforehand. You may, however, bring a water bottle. It is recommended you do so. We don’t want anyone getting dehydrated.” He pointed to a girl in my math class.
“Are there restrooms?”
Sally smiled. “There are.” She paused a moment as she looked over the room. I didn’t see any more hands. She must not have either. “If there are no more questions, I will post the list on the bulletin board by the entrance. Now, please remain in your seats. We have a short video to present. When it has finished, you are dismissed. You will have free time until 10:30, when you must be in your dorms and lights out will be at 10:45. Mr. Birkenhead and I will be available after the video if you have additional questions.”
I watched Sally walk up the middle of the auditorium to a small booth in the back. A moment later, the lights dimmed and a movie began playing on the white wall in the front of the room.
The video was about half an hour long. It was a cross between a documentary and an infomercial. Except, instead of selling the latest gadget, all of the people were discussing the benefits of performing community service.
When it was over and the lights returned to normal, I watched everyone in the room surge to their feet to be the first out the door. I didn’t see the point in joining them. I stayed in my seat to wait for the line to die down. My friends did the same, although I saw Ava stand before quickly sitting back down.
Larry checked the time. “We’ve got a while before curfew. Who wants to hang out at the MAC? Grab a snack, watch some television?”
Walter shook his head. “I’ve got a club thing.”
Ava swiveled her chair towards him. “Oh! I want to come.” I saw Sarah and Larry raise their eyebrows at each other, but I didn’t say anything.
When the crowd thinned, we made our way to see our teams. Sarah and I were in the same group as our neighbors, Jade and Jessi, as well as the two girls who lived in singles across the hall—Paige and Christina. Larry, Andy, and Walter were also in their group, along with three boys I couldn’t remember seeing since orientation. As we headed back to the dorms, Walter told me two of them lived in the room next to Larry and Andy while the third was his neighbor.
As we approached Stanton, Walter was busy playing with his phone, so I tried to start a conversation with Ava.
“So, how long have you been an NGer?”
Ava sent me a disgusted look. “A what?”
“An NGer.”
“What’s that?”
“Fans of NeoGenesis.”
“I don’t get it.”
I tried not to roll my eyes. “NeoGenesis. The show we’re about to go watch.”
“I thought we were going to some sort of club meeting.”
“We are. The NG viewing club. Where we watch tonight’s episode of NeoGenesis.”
“Which is?”
“A space drama?”
Ava made a face like she had just stepped in dog poo, but she stopped asking questions. I let Walter lead her into the dorm to the faculty apartment. Walter gestured to Ava as we stepped over the baby gate.
“Ava wanted to join us tonight.”
Neither Mr. Peters nor Mr. Price looked surprised to see her. Mr. Peters sent her a warm smile. “Of course. Are you an NGer as well?”
Ava shrugged. “Not really. But, I don’t know much about it. I thought maybe if I joined you guys, it would make more sense.”
“Sounds logical to me.”
We took our seats as Mr. Peters called up the recorded episode. Ava sat beside Walter on the couch. As I sat in my regular seat, I pointed to the door.
“Hey, Mr. Peters? I have a completely random question. Why do you have a baby gate? I mean, I know the Prices have kids and Sally has a dog. But, you don’t have either.”
Mr. Peters smiled. “The last advisors had children. They left the gate behind. Everyone else uses them, so I figured I’d leave it up. It’s a handy way of being accessible to the students and having privacy at the same time.”
He didn’t wait for a response before beginning the show. Unfortunately, it wasn’t long before he was pausing it again.
Ava interrupted nearly every scene. Half of her questions didn’t even have anything to do with the story line. When Ava asked, “Why is he wearing that?” and wanted a real answer, I was ready to scream.
But, Mr. Peters had much more patience. He calmly paused the show for the umpteeth time and explained the different types of uniforms worn by various crew members on the space ship. For the first time in my life, I was glad to see the closing credits. It meant I was able to get away from Ava for the rest of the night.
Melinda’s Journal
Saturday, October 28
There are many things you can do with leaves. You can find ones that are just the right shape, cover them with a sheet of paper, and make an imprint of them using a crayon. I have a collection of these leaf rubbings in my room at my parents’ house.
I have a cousin who used to actually collect leaves. She would find ones that were special to her and place them in a bag. I found out later that her parents would throw away the bag after the first snowfall, but my cousin never knew.
Of course, the most common thing to do in the autumn is to create a big pile of leaves and jump in it. But, this is something I have never done.
Growing up, we just never really had enough leaves to make a leaf pile. I have never seen the appeal. Once or twice, I was visiting a friend whose father might have been raking, but even then, it never occurred to me to just jump into the leaves.
But now that I am older and more mature, I don’t think it would feel like autumn if I did not jump into a leaf pile.
Pat’s Story
Thursday afternoon, I walked into the dining hall to see Walter’s friend Melinda grabbing food in the servery. I smiled at her, but she didn’t seem to see me. I quickly grabbed a sandwich and followed her to Walter’s table in time to hear Walter talking with food in his mouth.
I shook my head as I walked up behind him. “Walter, Walter, Walter. Will you ever learn to stop talking with food in your mouth?”
I placed my tray at the empty seat between Walter and Melinda and sat down. I noticed the couple across the way stopped talking to look at me, but I instead turned to Melinda. Judging by her smile, she didn’t seem to mind my presence and I smiled in return.
Walter seemed comfortable as well, as he simply replied “Nope” and took another large bite of his sandwich.
Melinda’s chocolate eyes looked directly into mine. “How’s your first week back going?”
“Not bad. The time change is killing me. It’s been nearly a week and the jet lag just won’t completely go away. When I was in Hawaii, I was literally up at six every morning. I’m struggling to get out of bed by eight. And, I’m lucky I don’t have a first period class. Well, most mornings. I have a stupid biology lab tomorrow. Tell me, who scheduled that? Who wants to be dissecting a frog right after breakfast?”
What was it with this girl? There was something about those eyes that made it impossible for me to stop talking. But, I was pretty sure she hadn’t just been trying to make polite conversation. She seemed genuinely interested in what I had to say.
She giggled. “Is that what you’re doing? Dissecting a frog?”
“No idea. Probably not. We’ve been studying the cell, so I think the lab has more to do with looking under a microscope. I was just trying to make a point.”
“Point made.” Walter at least had the decency to swallow before speaking.
The girl across the table pointed to me. “Y…You…You’re Patrick McGregor!”
This is the type of reaction I expected from girls. I winked at Melinda, who giggled as I reached across the table. “Pat Evans. Nice to meetcha.”
The guy was looking between Walter and me as the girl shook my hand. She gave me a quizzical look. “So, you’re not Patrick McGregor?”
Walter sighed. “You want the long version or the short version?”
The guy pointed at me. “Whichever one explains why he’s sitting here.”
I knew he wasn’t trying to be mean, but that one kind of stung. I winced, placing a hand on my chest. “Ouch. See? This is all your fault.” I poked my brother for emphasis. “You go around pretending to be this famous actor, then we—”
Walter punched my shoulder. It stung enough that I had to rub it while Walter made the introductions. He pointed to each of us in turn. “This is my brother, Pat. That’s Larry. He lives across the hall from me and is usually really nice, although right now you’ll have to excuse him for forgetting his manners. Sarah is Larry’s girlfriend and Melinda’s roommate. Pat has been in Hawaii filming a movie.”
The girl across the table spoke in a quiet, starstruck tone. “Wait. You’re brothers?” When Walter nodded, the girl turned to Melinda. “How come you’re not fazed by this?”
I put my arm around Melinda, drawing her in slightly. “Oh, we go way back.”
When Melinda picked up my hand and gently removed it from her shoulder, I felt something radiate through me. It was the strangest sensation. A warmth, like being wrapped in a blanket. It shot through my body, unsettling my stomach.
It was scary and amazing at the same time. I wanted more of that feeling, but I had no idea what had happened.
I took a bite of my sandwich. I must have low blood sugar or something.
I hadn’t been paying attention to the conversation. I tuned back in as Larry was addressing Walter.
“Does Ava know about your family tree, bro? Cuz, I could see her going absolutely crazy excited knowing she’s with a celebrity. Well, once removed.”
I laughed uproariously. “Oh, I love that. Once removed. I’m going to have to use that one! Hi! I’m Pat, and I’m a rock star, once removed.”
Walter looked absolutely panic-stricken. “No. No, Ava doesn’t know and no, I’m not ready for her to know.” He turned to Pat, and I could see fear in his eyes. “So, no popping in at the table when I’m with Ava. Actually, no popping in in general. I mean—” Walter growled, obviously frustrated, and buried his head in his hands.
I watched his friends exchange looks and bus their trays. Larry spoke first as he stood to leave. His tone was not unkind, which in my mind was more than Walter deserved. “You know you can’t keep this a secret forever. But, you also know we won’t say anything.”
Sarah came around and squeezed Walter into a shoulder hug before following her boyfriend to the dishroom. Melinda came around to crouch beside Walter. She put an arm around his shoulders and peered under his hands. Her words were soft and comforting and I knew how blessed Walter was to have a friend like her.
“We’re your friends and we love you. We were your friends before we knew who you were. We don’t care that your parents are rich and famous. I know you love your family. I don’t understand why you want to hide them. No one who matters is going to treat you any differently. Frankly, I’d be more concerned about people finding out you watch NeoGenesis than that you have famous relatives.”
Walter returned Melinda’s hug and she even got him to smile before she began bussing her tray. I turned to Walter.
It’s not so much that you watch NG. It’s the fact that you guys started a club for it. I can’t be seen with a third form weirdo. What’ll that do to my image?”
Walter punched me half-heartedly as his friend left. “So, what should I do?”
I sighed. “I don’t know. I was never in your position. Everyone already knew who I was before I ever stepped on campus.”
“I just don’t want to be treated differently.”
“Yeah, I get that. I do know how that feels. Can we go running together tomorrow? Maybe we can figure something out there.”
Walter nodded. “Yeah. I like our runs.”
Friday night, first study hours was cancelled so we could have a form meeting in the main theater to discuss Saturday’s mandatory service day. Unlike our third and fourth form years, we would not be raking leaves at the park, but at the homes of various senior citizens around town. We were given our assigned teams and instructions on how to behave. We then had to meet with our team leader, who would be dropping us off and checking in with us. Overall, the meeting was very boring and I found myself not paying much attention. I knew everyone in my team, of course, but was not really friends with any of them. I had a feeling I was not going to enjoy myself very much.
After the meeting, Frank invited me to a game of pool at the MAC. I was about to decline when my phone started playing the theme song to NeoGenesis. Frank raised his eyebrows at me.
“What’s that?”
I glanced at the screen. “Walter’s texting me. I was going to join his little club tonight, but his girlfriend is going. He doesn’t want me there. I guess we’re playing pool.”
Frank just shook his head as we headed towards the MAC. “You should go anyway. Just to annoy him.”
I laughed. “Yeah, probably. But, I’ll give him this tonight. He’ll just owe me big time later.”
“Hey. Isn’t there a dance tomorrow night? There’s usually one after Service Day.”
I wiggled my eyebrows. “I see where you’re going. Okay. I’ll bug him there. With all his little friends, not just the girlfriend.”
“Sick.” Frank and I exchanged fist bumps as we headed to commandeer a pool table.
Hartfield Chronicles 