M.A.S.H It Up

"Edie, how 'bout a game of M.A.S.H?" a girl dressed in an oversize sweatshirt, white leggings, and pink hi top Reebok shoes giggled as she elbowed her friend in the arm. Her bangs were teased up into a wave of tangled curls, and she smacked her bubble gum with ear splitting sass, "It'll be fun."

"No, thank you," Edie replied, dipping her nose further into her book and scrunching further down between the bleacher seats, her knees drawn up to her chest. The gymnasium cackled with energy as kids finished their lunches and filed up into the bleachers. The weather being too cold to go outside, not that Edie would have anyway. Ms. Mia the librarian let her read in one of the libraries cubicles for the duration of the recess period, a welcome respite from social interaction or lack thereof. Catching the other girl's eye, she added, "I'm fine."

"Are you sure about that?" the other girl smirked, giving Edie an exaggerated once over from the top of her frizzy perm to the tips of her much-loved canvass Keds. Her voice rose over the crowd of students sitting around them, "Because anyone who willingly had that done to their hair, must be crazy."

"Or have bad taste," the girl's friend added, laughing behind her hand. Her own hair was braided down her back, and a denim GUESS backpack was opened in her lap. Taking a brush from inside of the bag, she began to brush the end of her braid, "I'd offer to braid it for you, but I don't know what I'd find."

Edie scooted further away from the girls, and continued to read her book. A friend of her parents had offered to perm her hair free of charge, so Edie jumped at the chance to add body to her hair. Which was normally baby fine and hung like a curtain over her shoulders. Needless to say, it had turned into a nightmare. Not only that, but she had woken up the next morning with her chin a living volcano of breakouts. She didn't think it could be any worse, but then she had forgotten about Sarah and Megan. They were the epitome of 'worse', and picked on her almost daily at school.

"Aww, come on, Edie," Sarah said, shifting closer to where Edie huddled with her book. She pulled out a spiral notebook from her backpack, almost identical to the one her friend, Megan, had open in her lap and said. "I'll start it for you." Biting the end of her pen, she opened to the first clean page and pretending to be lost in thought, said, "Let's see... mansion, ape room, sewers, and haunted house."

"Aren't the last three supposed to be apartment, shack, and house?" Edie corrected, trying to ignore the group of kids who had crowded around them.

"What's next, Megan? Oh, husband! Who do you like, Edie? You spend a lot of time with Booger Kramer, we'll put him down as number one. Who's next? How 'bout Frankenstein's Monster, Principle Burn, and Uncle Fester."

Edie inched further away until she was pressed against the metal guard at the end of the bleachers, her cheeks burning. She did not spend time with Booger, he was the one who followed her around like a sick puppy. Asking her to be his girlfriend every few days. It wasn't her fault he wouldn't take 'no' for an answer. She hated this school and missed her old one. At least there, people had been nicer.

"Okay, everyone, we have it!" Sarah called out after a few moments of paper folding and rustling. She opened the folds and read: "Edie will marry Principle Burns, live in the sewers, drive a green Gremlin, have 3.5 kids, and..."

Edie stood up and pushed her way to the bottom of the bleachers, her book clutched in her hand. The laughter that followed her a hollow echo between her ears. Head down, she shouldered past a group of boys bantering loudly while tossing a basketball back and forth. One of the boys, a lanky classmate by the name of Eric, stood blocking the doors to the gym.

"Hi, Edie," he said, smiling down at her. "I was wondering if you'd like to hang out sometime."

Edie's cheeks deepened further to a bright cherry red, and she stared at him wondering if he was serious or not. He had a reputation for a being a cut up in class, and was always goofing around her desk in homeroom at the end of the day. She couldn't bring herself to say 'yes', but she couldn't say 'no', either. Opening her mouth, she was interrupted by a sing song voice above her head.

"Don't mind him, Edie," Sarah called over the metal railing of the bleachers. "He asks ALL the girls out."