11/21/00

Disclaimers: I don't own anything related to GW/Endless Waltz.....etc......etc...... I don't own Becca, Tiana or my special guest character.... Femsedates are of my own creation and should not be taken without a prescription from me! Hehe....
Warnings: There really are none...I say the "D" word a couple of times...hehe.... oh and the "B" word....*snicker*

The thin layers are peeled: Part 1

by Dead Blush

I grab a Femsedate and swallow it down with some iced water. People tell me that I was lucky to be a late bloomer, but frankly, no amount of time can prepare you for menstruation. I smirk as I think of the pill I just swallowed. The box proclaims: 'Femsedate- to control bloating, cramps, and the inner bitch.' Nowadays, there is not one company that cares about their advertising; as long as money is made, you can get away with anything.

My watch tells me that it's 7:15...time to head out to school. I pull a lock of hair from each side of my head back with two white barrettes before leaving my room and heading downstairs. Une is standing at the bottom of the steps holding her car keys. She raises her eyebrows at me.

"What?" I ask.

"Marameia, isn't that skirt a little too short?" she asks me.

Before I can reply, she sighs and says, "Nevermind. We'll be late if we don't head out now."

I slowly descend the steps. I wince a little in pain. That's what you get for trying to rule the world...a dysfunctional body. Well, hey, pain is better than a wheelchair. I firmly believe that. Ouch...okay, maybe not firmly.

"Need the chair today?" Une asks me with concern showing on her face.

I shake my head no. I am not going to be vulnerable on a Monday...no way in hell.

My eyes scan the school courtyard until I spot Lily and Tiana sitting on a bench under a Magnolia tree. They see me looking at them and they rush over to where I am in a dignified manner. I think it's a dignified manner. I don't exactly know.

Tiana looks at me and says, "Want me to carry your books, Mara-chan?"

I laugh and say, "No, I'm fine...really."

Lily shrugs and says to Tiana, "Don't worry, she's practically mastered life without the chair."

I smile my Colgate smile and begin my journey to my locker with Lily and Tiana following.

"Guess what?!" Lily all but screams in my ear as I get my Geometry notebook out of my locker.

"What?" I ask.

"They've finally found a new P.E. teacher to replace Mr. Larson, and this guy is absolutely gorgeous! Maybe, with our luck, he's a pedophile!" Lily says a bit too enthusiastically.

"Then we'd have to get another replacement, silly!" Tiana points out.

"Yeah...that's why Mr. Larson was fired...remember?" I add, slowly saying each word in hopes that something might trigger in Lily's head.

Lily just giggles and plays with her hair. I roll my eyes and start walking to class. I stop dead in my tracks as I hear someone whistling at me. I whip my body around and wince when my spine spasms. A tall boy with acne leans against a locker undressing me with his eyes. I immediately give him the finger and hiss at him. He still stares at my legs. Maybe I shouldn't have worn this skirt today. Wait! I should be able to wear whatever I want without having to feel so dirty. Gad, I hate Mondays.

Ow. Ow. Ow. Ow. Ow. Ow. Damn Femsedate was supposed to last longer than this. I go sit down in the bottom row of the gym bleachers and wait to catch a glimpse of the new teacher. I sit here, feeling sorry for all the other girls that have to dress out and do P.E. stuff. How do they manage to do exercises and lift weights when they have their "Auntie Flos"? Thank my Left Foot or God or Jesus or Allah or Buddha or Hare Krishna or the Big Whoever that I have this handicap...okay, that's just the cramps talking, not Marameia Barton.

A bunch of girls stop and stare as the new P.E. teacher enters the gym. I can't see much of him, but I can tell that he's well built. Not bad. I guess I should go inform him on my condition. I slowly stand up and walk over to where he is. His back is facing me, so I tap him on the shoulder. He turns around to face me, and I nearly scream. I'm sure my face has drained of all color, but I truly can't help this. His face is tangled in confusion, but the confusion disappears as he smiles and says,

"Hello, Marameia."

"Hi...?"

"Mr. Yuy."

"Hi, Mr. Yuy."

"You're hair looks much better grown out to your shoulders. It's a great color, too. Don't ever dye it."

"Yeah, thanks."

"So, are you in physical therapy?"

"Yeah... it sucks, a lot, but hey.... I wouldn't be walking if it wasn't for physical therapy so I guess I should be thankful. Right?"

"Right. Well, class is going to be starting in just a minute. You can go sit on the bleachers or something for now. Later on I'll figure some stuff for you to do," Heero... I mean... Mr. Yuy says as he puts the whistle up to his lips.

He blows the whistle, signaling the start of class. I slowly walk back to the bleachers feeling dazed and confused.

It's interesting how amazing guys look when they're playing basketball. With most sports, you see too much uniform and not enough skin, but with basketball you've got sweaty guys in shorts and tank tops. What could be better? Glam rock stars, sure.... but still, basketball has to be my favorite sport. I think I just giggled aloud. Well, it doesn't matter; no one can hear me... I'm sort of by myself on the bleachers.

Mr. Yuy told me to observe the rest of the class playing basketball and report what I think and saw. Right now, the teams are co-ed. The scores are really close. The guys are really sweaty. Four girls are standing around socializing. This is completely boring. Oh, Gad, I want to play basketball.

Whoever said that you have to have P.E. to get your high school credits seriously needs to be kicked in the ass. The game just ended and now I must go report to Mr. Yuy what I observed about the class. Haha, class and ass rhyme.

"...they just stood there and socialized! I mean, if I had the option to play basketball, I would PLAY!...."

"Hn."

"....not to mention, there are about three ball hogs on the team..."

"True."

"....they have the worst game strategies ever! I mean, the offense is horrible! I could totally change that if I were capable of doing so."

Mr. Yuy is smiling at me. It's not one of those teacher smiles because obviously he hasn't been a teacher long enough to gain one of the teacher-is-trying-to-understand-your-teenage-antics smiles. He looks like he's amused by something.

"What's so funny?" I ask as my eye begins to twitch.

"I'm sorry, you remind me of this little girl I once shot and killed a long time ago," he replies, straining to keep a straight face.

Oh, I get it now.

"You can't shoot people without bullets in your gun," I state matter-of-factly.

"What's your last name, Marameia?" he asks me.

"Barton," I reply in my best Hello-DUH(!) voice.

"Hn."

Oh, I get it now. He shot and killed Marameia Khushrenada. This guy is so weird... I'm going to ask Une-mom about him. Gotta make sure he's kosher.

Lunchtime is the purest way to escape the school day. It's the only time during school where I don't have to do serious thinking, and I can just sit and talk to my friends. Right now, I am sitting at the lunch table prodding what appears to be pizza, but the cheese is sort of throwing me off. I mean, if it's really pizza, then why is the cheese crusty? Uck. I should get a refund or something... nah, I'm too lazy.

Lily, Tiana and Becca stare at me. I stare back at them, which is very hard to do considering there are three of them, and Becca is sitting next to me.

I finally cry out in exasperation, "What gives?"

"How come you know Mr. Yuy already?" Tiana asks.

"I, err, he's a friend of Une's," I reply, looking down at my quote pizza unquote.

Becca speaks up, "Ah. Well, I saw him today when I was going to Home Ec. He was talking to Mrs. Schlafly in the hallway. They seemed to be arguing over something, but I think the argument or discussion or whatever was about a female's role in society. You know how Mrs. Schlafly is... she thinks little girls should be seen and not heard, and while they are being seen, they should appear lovely, and while they are not being heard, they should know how to cook. I think Mr. Yuy said something about the importance of girls in politics."

I think my eye twitched again.

Lily nods her head and says, "Hmm... so that'd be pretty cool if Mr. Yuy was all supportive of chicks."

I reply, "Hmm.... if I'm correct, the school is thinking of adding a new elective about politics and law. Maybe they were discussing that."

The girls nod their heads and continue eating their food. Ow...

"Anybody got a Femsedate?" I ask as pitifully as I can.

"I do!" Becca shouts. Half of lunchroom stares at us.

Oh, sweet Becca, always vocal.

The last bell of the day rings and I head out to my locker. I see Miss Kaze, the guidance counselor, walking towards me looking quite excited. I groan inwardly. Miss Kaze has been trying to get me into extracurricular activities since the first day I started high school. I think she thinks I'm wasting away or something...I dunno.

Miss Kaze smiles and says, "Marameia, I think I have something you might be interested in."

"Yesh?" I ask apprehensively.

"Well, as you know, the freshmen class elections are coming up and there are still some open slots. I'm sure you would love to sign up...right? Right? RIGHT?" she says rapidly.

Before I can say anything, she pushes a clipboard and a periwinkle crayon in my face. I don't know what to do, so I just sort of stare at the crayon.

"Crayon?" I ask as I raise an eyebrow at her.

Her mouth twitches a little and she says, "I have to use my crayons for something."

"Hm," I reply.

She stares at me and waves the clipboard in my face. I sigh and grab the crayon. Now the only problem is...what should I sign up for? I guess, secretary wouldn't be bad... I sign my name under Freshmen Class President....oops...well, it's too late to change it. Miss Kaze snatches the clipboard away and looks at it with delight. Damn...I demand a resign-up. Well, whatever...maybe Miss Kaze will stop bugging me now that I've finally decided to do something.

"Do we want a class president who knows nothing of true politics? NO! Do we want someone that will poorly represent us? NO! We are not just freshmen; we are the school's future! If majority of the votes go to a weak candidate, we will become victims. Sophomores, Juniors and Seniors will have power over us because of our weak leadership. We need protection, and I am willing to give that protection! If I've convinced you of anything, hopefully it's that from the moment of my victory until the end of the year, I will serve and protect our freshmen class!" I say as I recite my election speech to Une.

She chews thoughtfully on the tip of her glasses. She scratches her head and clears her throat.

"Well?" I ask trying not to sound too hopeful.

"A bit zealous, eh?" she asks, her lips twitching upwards.

"Am I exposing myself as an ex-political figure?" I ask her.

Une laughs and says, "No, Marameia, you're not. The last layer that protected your inner brat peeled away the minute you signed up to be in the class presidential elections. I think your born leadership qualities may help you win the election... so don't feel too bad about your zealousness."

"Is zealous the word of the day?"

"Sure," Une replies with a laugh.

Power is so addictive. The elections are in two weeks, and I already have a campaign team putting up posters. Still, posters will not amount to the importance of this speech. I keep on trying to revise this damn speech, but the word "victory" shows up in just about every version of the speech. Maybe I should just give up before I get in over my head. No, I'm not weak like that. Being the class president may be just what I need to get political blood out of my system. I really don't want to be a politician, but I'm afraid that it's my destiny.

I swallow my fourth Femsedate of the day. This ought to let me be able to get some sleep without these killer cramps. I crawl under the covers and turn off the lamp on my bedside table. I close my eyes and wait for sleep to overcome me. Hopefully, tonight I'll have that really cool reoccurring dream that takes place in 1969 at some concert with a bunch of illegal drugs and sexual activity. Man, that dream rocks...sort of like the way nachos sort of drip to the floor if you aren't looking for the panda bands of jambalaya. Hmm...the almost-asleep thoughts sure are funny...

The End

Dead Blush

Well? What did you think? *giggles*