The War

The War

(A girl stands before the crowd, steps up and speaks.)

Girl:

I never thought I would be involved in the war. I’m just not the type. To be involved, you need to fit the tall, blonde and beautiful stereotype, and I’m not that. Though people have said I’m pretty enough to be considered a candidate, I lack one thing that’s crucial for any soldier on the battlefield: Brazen and untarnished self-confidence.

Think back to your experiences in high school. Ever remember a girl who always seemed to be the topic of conversation? Among girls and guys? Well, I happened to run into that girl at my school the other day hooking-up with another guy. I should have ignored it and walked on; it’s not like this glimpse of her intimate personal life was uncommon to see. But I looked up for some reason. Curiosity I guess. And it didn’t take long for me to realize that the boy she was kissing happened to be my best friend’s boyfriend.

What to do? What to do? That same instinct that made me look up kept me frozen in place, staring with a mixture of disgust and awe at the scene before me. Why didn’t I do anything? Why couldn’t I run away? At the very least I should be able to flee, to dash up the stairs and out the door into the cool autumn air where I could pretend like I never saw a thing. But my best friend’s smile kept me rooted in place, a mocking reminder of what I should do to stop them, but couldn’t.

When the two finally broke away, I had enough sense to make it look like I was fiddling with a locker combination in the hallway. But they knew. It was obvious that I had seen. That I could tell. And when she spun me around to face her and the now shame-faced boy staring at the ground, her words lashed me like an icy whip. “You tell anyone about this and I’ll make your life a living hell,” she said smilingly, a glower in her eyes. I tried to stare back defiantly, but couldn’t. Her voice laced with a candy-sweet coating upon the next words. “And I know you’ll make the right choice.”

I never thought I would be involved in the war. I never got in trouble and I hardly dated at all, so competition with Claire seemed like a non-existent threat. But now I’m somehow caught in a war inside myself, struggling with the desire to tell someone, and losing the battle that would grant me my voice.