Gretchen has been turned into a housefly, stuck inside the boys' locker room at her high school. She's spent the weekend freaking out, imagining herself to be a superhero, then freaking out some more.
Exceprted from Fly on the Wall, by E. Lockhart. In stores March 2006.
Monday morning, I feel a bit better. Sunlight is streaming through the frosted glass, making pretty squares on the tile floor, and I quickly realize that what woke me up is the sound of a door swinging shut. The clock reads 7:40, twenty minutes before school starts.
A senior I know only by sight, this guy called Hugh, is in the room. He's African-American, light skin, with short dreadlocks and a pair of super-size sunglasses always plastered on his face. I think he's in the sculpture program, and I know he used to go out with this girl Dawn.
Anyway, Hugh marches on in, bangs open a locker, tosses his leather bag on the floor, kicks off his sneakers and drops his pants.
He drops his pants!
How did I not think of this before?
I was so busy pretending to be a superhero,
and freaking the hell out about my situation,
and hoping that any minute I'd be turned back,
that I never considered the obvious:
a locker room is for naked guys.
And when the school week starts, they're going to all come in here and take off their clothes.
It's happening now!
Naked guys!
Oh my God!
Hugh throws his pants in the locker. He's wearing little white undies on the bottom, a yellow t-shirt on top, and argyle socks.
He takes off his shades and tucks them carefully in the bag, then pulls his shirt over his head. Then in nothing but his Calvins and socks, he pads over to the mini-lockers, unlocks his little drawer and pulls out some gym shorts and a pair of Nikes. He rummages in the leather bag for some sweat socks, a jock strap and a gray t-shirt, then pulls down his underwear entirely.
Naked, except for argyle socks.
