Stand Alone by P.D. Workman Read Free Book Online Page B

boring, and Justine’s mind began to wander. She glanced around the room, but all of the other students seemed intent on the teacher’s speech and the examples on the board. It was the same crap that they’d been learning already for two weeks, and Justine didn’t see why they needed to have yet another class on the same basic material. Justine was still tired and sort of foggy from her session with Dr. Morton that morning. She felt distant, mentally removed from where she was physically. She folded her arms on the top of the desk and closed her eyes, resting her chin on her arms. She could just listen to the lecture, she didn’t need to take any notes. She already understood what the teacher was going over again    …   and again    …   and again.

    The next thing she knew, someone was poking her in the back, and Justine tried to shake off the drowsiness and figure out what was going on. Students were exiting the room. Obviously, the class change bell had already rung. The teacher was walking purposefully toward her. Justine stretched, rolling her shoulders and yawning widely, not even trying to cover it up. Mr. Peters stopped in front of her desk.
    “Interrupting your nap time, are we, Miss Bywater?” he questioned sarcastically.
    “Sorry,” Justine said, smothering another yawn, “I was up most of the night, and at the doctor’s this morning. I had    …   a procedure    …   and I’m still kind of groggy. I guess I shouldn’t have come in, but I didn’t want to miss class.”
    It was close enough to the truth. Mr. Peters looked mollified.
    “Oh. Well, that’s understandable. Is everything okay, then?” he questioned tentatively, as if he wasn’t sure whether it was okay for him to be curious about what medical trauma she was going through.
    Justine nodded, and milked it for a little more sympathy.
    “Yeah    …   they say I will be, anyway. Just a few more treatments. Then hopefully    …” she trailed off.
    Mr. Peters nodded understandingly.
    “Well, you let me know if you need anything. Extra time for assignments, or extra tutoring, or anything like that.”
    “Okay. So far I’m keeping up okay. I was following today    …   until I nodded off.”
    “We’re all rooting for you, Miss Bywater,” he said sincerely, as if the entire staff had already been talking about her health issues and were all up on what was going on. It was funny how people were so much more understanding about physical health than mental health. If she’d told him she’d been at her therapist’s discussing psychological compulsions and weird dreams, he would have reacted a lot differently.
    Justine nodded.
    “Thanks. I’d better get to next period. I don’t want to miss anything else.”
    He helped her to gather her books together and escorted her to the door, looking as though he thought she might faint dead away at any moment, and needed someone to look after her.
    “All right then, good-bye,” he said.
    “See you tomorrow,” Justine agreed, and walked away.

    Justine managed to make it through her last period class without falling asleep again, but it was an effort. She doodled on the side of her notebook, drawing fractal-like patterns instead of taking notes. She still felt groggy and unreal. She managed to stay below the teacher’s radar and not get asked any questions. Then class was over, and she made her escape.
    “Hey Justine,” Mark, who had his locker next to hers, said as she dumped her school books and grabbed her board, leaving her backpack there. “I didn’t see you earlier. Where were you?”
    He was something of a cross between a drama geek and a goth. Lots of earrings and black clothing, black lipstick, but no eye shadow or white makeup. He was casual and friendly, never participating in any effort to mock or bully Justine, but not really a friend. Just an acquaintance. Someone she saw often but never got to know.
    “Just skipping,” Justine