Free What It Was Like by Peter Seth Page B

abandoned stone quarry that served as the local lovers’ lane. But for me, there was nothing to do but stay at my post in the middle of Inter Circle, reading my book by flashlight until midnight.
    I had brought some Hemingway stories with me, figuring that they would be easy to read and the print was big. But I just couldn’t concentrate. There I was, alone in the night, wrapped in a blanket on a hard bench, wasting time. Right then, Rachel was probably hanging out at the Snack Shak (as a C.I.T., she wasn’t allowed off campus), so some guys were probably talking to her, trying to get somewhere with her while I wasn’t around. Obviously, she knew how to handle guys; all pretty girls learn how to do that. But still, I didn’t like the thought of guys – Marcus, for instance – talking to her and looking at her, ogling her body and all. I know what guys think about when it comes to girls, and it’s not pretty.
    I heard a coyote howling – crying, actually – in the distance, and it sent a shiver through my shoulder blades. Surrounded by forest, there was life all around me in the dark, and I was really defenseless. I hadn’t seen any coyotes, but other people had. And there had been bears until a few years ago when they found a better way to secure all the kitchen garbage. But here, at night, with everything so dark and exposed to nature, all I had was my flashlight.
    Just then, something rustled and screeched in the woods, right in the bushes at the edge of the Circle: some animal, or something. I jumped about a mile off the bench, throwing off the blanket, the book, and the bag of Doritos, which went everywhere. I shined my flashlight into the bushes and yelled out –
    â€œWho goes there?”
    Instantly I felt silly for using such a movie-type cliché, but that’s what I said. My heart was pounding, remembering the warning during Counselor Orientation about the bears, knowing that I had Dorito-scented bear bait all over my hands. But I felt even sillier when I saw that it was Rachel peeking out from behind one of the thick bushes, with a big smile on her face.
    â€œHi!” she shout-whispered, waving at me. When she saw that I recognized her, she ducked back down behind the bushes. I don’t have to tell you that girls were strictly forbidden on Boys’ Campus, and at night, after “ Taps ,” it was an even worse infraction. In fact, it was just the kind of thing that I, as an O.D., was there to prevent . And, of course, I was absolutely, blindly thrilled to see her.
    Checking to make absolutely certain that no one was around, I fast-walked toward where she was hiding, keeping my flashlight beam on the ground in front of me.
    â€œWhat the hell are you doing here??” I whispered.
    â€œAren’t you glad to see me?” she said.
    â€œOf course, I am,” I said, trying to keep my voice down. “But you’ll get us both into trouble!”
    â€œSo?” she smiled, pulling me down behind the thick hedge. “We weren’t finished before. I didn’t get my kiss.”
    There was a little bit of light, thrown by a flood lamp on a big pole between Inter and Junior Circles, and I could just see Rachel’s face. She was dressed in all dark clothes, with the hood of a sweatshirt drawn tightly, framing her almost-perfect features.
    â€œYou’re right,” I whispered, surprised in two ways. Not only was she here to see me, but she had come for a kiss.
    â€œI’m really not usually this forward with boys,” she said.
    â€œThat’s OK,” I said, gently loosening and moving the hood of the sweatshirt back from her head, letting her long hair free. She might have been lying a little, but I didn’t care. “You can be any way you want to be.”
    That seemed to be the right thing to say because she closed her eyes dreamily and tilted her head back just so, and I moved in for that kiss. That perfect