We said goodbye in the U-Haul parking lot the tactophobe and I. I didn't think he really cared about kissing me goodbye, but we'd taken that turn and it seemed required. Perhaps he'd finally kissed me in first place to prove something. I didn't know if he thought we ought to wait for each other …
A Girl Worth a Billboard
"I rented a billboard to ask her to marry me," he said. We were sitting on his couch. It was our third date. "Really?" I said, not wanting it to be true. He looked matter-of-fact, as if he'd just said he'd run out of ice. "She said no." Well, obviously, I thought, though I did …
Showing Off On Stage (or I must be mental)
"You are the third princess," the teacher said. We were putting on the 2nd grade play and the princess would be played by three of us. I got to be the princess chased by the witch, rescued by the prince, and reunited with her father. I loved the part until I found out I had …
Boys with Razors
"He's tried to kill himself," Kelly said. "Did you know that?" She was talking about R. who liked poetry and jokes about death and who she was dating. Until she started dating another R. who liked football and jokes about his classmates. But I didn't know this news about the first R. I also didn't …
Boys with Sheep
Our teacher told us show-and-tell would be outside that day, and so into the parking lot traipsed, a weaving, skipping, and lollygagging pack of Catholic third graders. A pale blue truck pulled up and in the bed were sheep. Sheep! Paul, the tallest, skinniest boy in our class, strutted over, set his foot on the …
What did I do wrong?
"I don't want you to talk to me. I don't want you to look at me. I don't even want you to think about me. Got it?" R. said to me. He stood at my desk, not caring that the entire class could hear. He'd just gotten back from the principal's office. It was Monday …
Do bad guys apologize?
"You always reading," the boy said. "You ever have any fun?" My Terry Brooks novel was next to the keyboard. We were in computer class. Knowing what he was going to say next, I kept my eyes on the screen. I was getting better at pretending he wasn't there. He scooted his chair an inch …
Girls like unicorns, don’t they?
"I got you a present," S. said. I stopped digging for books in my locker and looked at him. "What?" We were in the tenth grade and he sat behind me in algebra. He'd drawn a button in the corner of his desk. We joked that if we pushed it, we'd start a nuclear war. …
Exhausted and Dreaming
Sharing is exhausting. Sending your child to kindergarten is exhausting. Starting another semester teaching is exhausting. Working on art for a show is exhausting. Rewriting a story is exhausting. I'm tired. For tonight--goodnight and sweet dreams.
Princess Gets Away with Stealing
"Well, isn't this a surprise," my step-mother said. "You're not even supposed to be here." My friend, K., and I were standing on the porch with our trick-or-treat bags in front of us. I'd told a lot of lies to get to my own door on Halloween. I still thought of it as my house …
Marta Bacon 