In the morning before Benjamin picks me up—it's his turn to drive us to school—the twins come up to me with strange expressions on their faces. Uh-oh!
"So, you were being cyberbullied," states Casandra.
"Yep," I answer, getting my defenses up.
"That really stinks," blurts Carina.
My eyebrows shoot up. Had she really said that?
"If you need our help just tell us, big sister," offers Casandra.
My surprise is growing by the minute.
"Really?" I ask.
"We can bully you—we're your sisters," announces Carina, "but no one else better do it!"
"No! No one else better make fun of you," blurts Casandra.
I'm touched beyond words. When Benjamin picks me up, I find myself in a very good mood. Even though I'm a little apprehensive about what's going to happen today with Suzy's and Chantilly's covers blasted wide open, I still feel great. My sisters demonstrated they actually care for me, one of my best friends has returned, and my boyfriend has demonstrated he's with me through thick and thin. Along the way, I may be able to help with bully awareness at my school.
During World History, Suzy seems completely subdued. She barely makes a peep, trying to melt into the walls. Even the beige clothes she's wearing is nondescript and boring. It's as if she doesn't want to be noticed.
Lorena is the total opposite. She's chatty and smiley. She keeps telling me how thrilled she is to be my friend again. The feeling is mutual.
At lunch, I invite Lorena to sit with Benjamin, Peebo, and myself. Suzy sits with Chantilly. They’re left alone at their table. It's as if no one wants to be associated with them.
Suddenly, Benjamin pushes to his feet where he's sitting next to me. He strides over to Suzy's table. I take in a breath. I have absolutely no idea what he's going to do. There are no adults in the room, so the sky is the limit. Suzy looks at him with bewilderment while Chantilly's lips upturn in a hopeful gesture.
"So, you two were messing with my girlfriend," he retorts.
The ghost of a smile vanishes from Chantilly's lips. The whole cafeteria grows silent.
His eyes dart to the whole room. "Just so everyone in here knows—you mess with my girlfriend and you mess with me! I may not be a basketball player anymore, but I have a gym at my house that I use every day!"
"No one wants to get on your bad side, Benjamin," a boy's voice reverberates through the cafeteria.
"Good, because I'm tired of all of you in my business. How would you like it if someone was trying to tell you what to do or who to date?"
"We'd hate it," another boy announces.
"This summer I went to a very poor place in Mexico. I saw stuff that will haunt me for the rest of my life. There were teenagers my age and even younger trying to do what they could to help support their families—to do what we’re doing now—stuffing our faces. We take food for granted. We take our toys for granted. We take everything that makes us lucky for granted. After what I saw, it seems pretty ridiculous to me that we spend our time being mean to each other," he snickers, looking straight at Suzy and Chantilly, their eyes downcast. "We spend our time doing meaningless crap! Watching meaningless videos. Stuffing our stomachs. Finding ways to be superior to others. I don't know about you, but I'm off that idiotic game. If you have time to post vicious stuff about someone else over the internet, then you have too much time on your hands. You should use it to do something good," he retorts, glaring at Suzy and Chantilly. He steps over to me. When he doesn't sit down, I wonder what he's going to do. His head bends down and he smooches my mouth loudly. "Don't mess with my girl," he announces.
A light applause starts reverberating from the walls. Then it gets stronger and stronger until it gets deafening. I smile at my boyfriend. During all those lonely years of being in love with him, I hadn't even begun to imagine the extent of how great being with him would be.
Chapter 30
My parents, my Aunt Letty, and I meet with Principal Hernandez. She listens intently. Aunt Letty talks to her about the effects of cyberbullying at a school. Fear, self-esteem issues, frustration, desperation, thoughts of suicide. If students don't feel safe in their environments then it's much harder for them to learn. She tells the principal that unfortunately many schools don't take it seriously enough, thinking being bullied is a natural part of growing up.
"It's not!" Aunt Letty emphasizes.
Principal Hernandez says she'll take immediate action. She meets with Lorena who tells her how everything happened. Then she meets with Suzy and Chantilly and their parents. It's decided by the principal and the parents that it's best that Suzy and Chantilly resign from the cheerleading squad since students are upset with the way Suzy was allegedly chosen for it.
Suzy and Chantilly are humiliated with having had to quit being cheerleaders and with their cyberbullying out in the open. Their parents decide it's best to pull them out of Tierra High and place them in private school. Suzy's mother wants to be certain that her daughter doesn't hang out with Chantilly anymore, so she makes sure it isn't the same private school.
Meanwhile, in our high school, much is happening. Police officers come to our classrooms and talk about cyberstalking and bullying. The principal holds a general meeting to inform us that there will be zero tolerance for cruel behavior. Special meetings are held with teachers and school employees to talk about identifying different types of bullying.
Students start walking up to me and thanking me for having started this open discussion and movement towards bully prevention. I hadn't been aware that this issue was affecting so many.
My Aunt Letty was right about the importance of doing something about this issue. Right as usual.
Chapter 31
Benjamin wants to speak to me in private. We agree to meet in my backyard. I'm a little worried at his solemn tone. Yesterday, I kind of had a fit. I know—it's stupid to still be upset over Chantilly, but she’s still texting and calling him. She's at another school, but she refuses to give up.
Benjamin had had to admit it to me when I accidentally saw one of her texts come in. He told me that he doesn't even read them but just erases them. He hadn't considered them important, so he hadn't told me about them.
I had a mini-hissy fit then. I told him that he had been upset with me with the cyberbullying thing because I hadn't been transparent, and he was doing the same to me. He apologized and told me that Chantilly had been calling him and begging to come back to his life.
"I don't know why she's embarrassing herself like that," he had sighed.
"I know why," I murmured. Benjamin is incredibly special and she's having a hard time letting go, but the smart thing for her to do is move on. I mean, she's the one who cheated on him in the first place.
As I sit in my backyard waiting for Benjamin, I wonder what he wants to tell me. He sounded very serious at school today. And quiet. When he steps over to me and sits down next to me on the bench of the picnic table, I feel better because he automatically smooches my mouth.
"So what's going on?" I ask him, my voice thick with curiosity.
He smiles. "I changed my cell number."
I return his smile. "Great!"
"I told Chantilly to stop calling me. I admit that I was feeling sorry for her and taking her calls, but I'm not going to do it anymore. I've also changed my email account."
"Thank you, Benjamin."
"There's also something else I want to talk to you about."
"What is it?" I question.
"Zuri, I feel we haven't had that much quality time together."
I eye him with bewilderment. "What do you mean?"
"We've been together a lot, but we seem to always be dealing with problems."
I nod. "True."
"We've either been dealing with our secret relationship—how our families would react to it and how our school would take it—and then the cyberbullyi
ng. Oh, and there's this thing with Chantilly still not accepting my break up with her. You and I have been dealing with a lot."
"Yeah, a lot," I sigh.
"How about we concentrate on us for a while."
I like the sound of that. "How do we do that?"
"Let's go out Friday night on a date with just the two of us and leaving all the crap behind. How about it, Zuri?"
I grin. "It sounds great," I murmur, looking deep into his hazel eyes. It would be Friday in just a few days, and we'll be able to have an awesome evening together without having to think about school the next day.
During lunch at school, Benjamin and I decide that on Friday we'll have dinner at a Mexican restaurant that we've never been to before and then go to Scenic Drive. It'll be a very romantic date. Scenic Drive overlooks El Paso and its Mexican twin city of Juarez. I haven't been there for ages and am looking forward to it.
Lorena and Peebo say our plans sound pretty special. They're getting along amazingly well. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if they start dating. That would be awesome because I adore both of them.
After we finish eating, Benjamin has to speak to one of his teachers. This leaves Lorena, Peebo, and I hanging out for the remainder of the lunch hour. We are seated outside on a concrete bench in front of a concrete picnic table.
"I'm glad to have this chance to talk to you, Zuria," Peebo says.
My eyebrows lift with curiosity. "Oh?"
"Yeah."
"But we talk all the time," I state.
"I want to say some stuff without Benjamin being here."
Both Lorena and I look at him in surprise.
"Don't worry," Peebo rushes, "It's nothing bad."
"Okay," I say, bubbling with curiosity at what he wants to tell me.
"Should I leave?" asks Lorena.
"No, of course not," states Peebo. "I want you here."
Lorena smiles at him. There's definitely some kind of vibe going on between them.
His dark eyes shift back to me. "Zuria, I've been wanting to tell you for a while that I really appreciate how happy you're making my good paisano."
I'm moved beyond words that he would thank me for such a thing.
"Benjamin used to be so miserable," Peebo continues.
"He was?" I ask.
"He didn't want to play basketball anymore, but he did it for his dad."
I nod. "I know."
"And about Chantilly," he groans, rolling his eyes. "The only reason he started going out with her was to see if he could get over you."
"Really?" I blurt. Benjamin had already told me this, but it's still great to hear it from someone else.
"It's totally true. I told him he was crazy for getting involved with her."
"You told Benjamin that?" questions Lorena, her full focus on Peebo.
"Of course I did. I could never stand her. She's such a snob."
"What did Benjamin say?" I ask.
"By the time he realized I was right, peer pressure wouldn't let him break up with her."
"Unfortunately, everyone wanted them together," mutters Lorena, a guilty tone to her voice.
"Zuria, he never loved her at all—not like he loves you. He actually did try to break up with her several times, but then she'd freak out, and he'd succumb to her and peer pressure. I guess that's why she keeps trying with him—it worked before. But before he didn't have you and he hadn't gone on his summer journey yet."
"That trip with his parents to help the poor in Mexico really turned him around," I state.
"Boy, did it ever," blurts Peebo.
"Thank you for telling me all this, Peebo," I say.
"Yes, Peebo, you're awesome," Lorena gushes. "Benjamin is lucky to have you as a friend.
"I'm lucky to have him as one," states Peebo with a grin.
Chapter 32
When Benjamin returns from talking to his teacher, Peebo asks to speak to Lorena alone. I'm really excited. I think he's going to ask her out! Imagine!—my best friend hooking up with Benjamin's best friend! It doesn't get any better than that.
"Think he's going to ask her out?' I ask Benjamin once we leave them by themselves.
Benjamin grins. "Yeah!"
When Benjamin and I go to Social Studies, Peebo is already there. He's all smiles. I get a text message from Lorena before the bell rings.
Peebo N I R going out tonite!!!
I'm so happy for my friend.
It's about nine o'clock at night when Lorena calls me. Her voice sounds very upset, and I try to calm her down.
"It was a horrible date!" she blurts. "Just horrible."
"Why?"
"I don't want to explain over the phone," she states, her voice shaky as if she's been sobbing.
"You want me to come over?"
"It's late right now, but would you call your Crazy Aunt Letty and ask her to meet with Peebo and me tomorrow? You and Benjamin should be there too—you know for moral support."
"Of course I'll call my Aunt Letty, and Benjamin and I will be there too."
"Thanks, you're a true friend."
After I hang up, I call my aunt. She says she'll be happy to meet with us. I text Lorena that everything's been set up. I call Benjamin. He had a similar phone call from Peebo and is also in the dark about what could've happened on their date.
The next day at school, Lorena and Peebo are very unlike themselves. They're withdrawn and a little spacey. They won't say a word about their date. I'm getting more and more worried. I just can't imagine what could've happened that left them like this.
When school is finally over, I ask Benjamin to drop me off at my aunt's house. Even though Lorena, Peebo, Benjamin and I are set to meet in an hour, I want to talk to her first.
"Something's really wrong with Peebo and Lorena," I blurt.
"We'll find out what's happening with them shortly," she states with certainty. "Is there something else you want to talk to me about?"
The woman can read my mind.
"I want to thank you for convincing me to go public with the cyberbullying."
She smiles at me. "I had no doubt that you'd do the right thing."
"Aunt Letty, you should see how things are at school now. The atmosphere is a lot better. And every day at least one student will come up to me and thank me."
"You see what a difference you can make when you do the right thing?"
"I used to think that only people like Cesar Chavez, Martin Luther King, or Gandhi could make a difference. Ordinary people can make a difference too!"
"Of course they can!" Aunt Letty states. "That's where greatness comes from—the ordinary becoming extraordinary!"
"People working together is quite an amazing thing. I mean, look at how many people got involved with the anti-bullying campaign including yourself, Aunt Letty."
"It only takes a spark," she asserts.
By the time Lorena and Peebo arrive, I've finished my own private conversation with my favorite aunt. Benjamin calls saying that he's going to be late, to start without him, but Peebo wants to wait for him. My aunt offers us appetizers while we wait. Mrs. Balderrama had brought chicken wings earlier. My aunt is tutoring her, so she can get her GED. The wings are very spicy and delicious, but I notice that Lorena and Peebo hardly touch them. Both are withdrawn and speak only short words. Whatever went wrong on their date must've been pretty awful.
Finally Peebo blurts, "Crazy Aunt Letty, you've been around the world, right?"
My aunt eyes him with curiosity. "Yes, right."
"You must've seen a lot of things."
"I did," she murmurs as if she's wondering what he's getting at.
"You must've seen people treat one another very badly."
"Unfortunately, yes," she sighs. "Peebo, why all these questions?"
"Why are people like that?" blurts Lorena.
"It's for a number of reasons," states my aunt, dissecting Lorena and Peebo with her eyes.<
br />
Benjamin arrives. He apologizes but his dad really needed him to deliver a brief. Peebo tells him not to worry about it and that we had waited for him to start the conversation.
"Let me start by saying that our date started off very well," Peebo informs us.
"Very well," agrees Lorena.
I stopped by her house and spoke to her parents a bit before we left for our date," he says. "They're really nice people. I told them how great their daughter was, and they told me they appreciated me saying it."
Lorena smiles. "Then Peebo and I left my house."
"Because it was a school night, we couldn't do a lot. We decided to have dinner somewhere. We went to a fancy steak restaurant."
"We heard the food there was really good," says Lorena.
"Everything was great at first. The gourmet food on the menu sounded delicious, and the service was great."
Lorena nods. "The chips and salsa we were given before our entrées were out of this world!"
"Then..." Peebo mumbles but can't quite finish.
"It was awful!" Lorena starts to cry, and I pat her back. I don't know how else to help her.
"What happened then?" my aunt asks gently.
Peebo stares at the ground as if he can't speak. Lorena's sobs prevent her from saying anything.
"Please tell us what happened," Benjamin murmurs.
I nod. "Yeah, you're with friends."
"You're in a safe zone," my aunt states firmly.
"There was an older couple next to our table," informs Peebo. "They kept staring at us. Glaring at us actually. I was about to tell the waiter to move us when the man said look at the...the..."
"What?" asks my aunt softly, her face horrified like she knows what comes next.
"He said, look at the n-word!" blurts Lorena.
"Yeah, he called me the n-word!" Peebo states furiously.
Chapter 33
I'm one hundred percent horrified and furious. So is Benjamin. My aunt pushes to her feet in a fit of pure anger.
"The wife of the man started telling me that how dare I, a white girl, go out with a n-word," Lorena snarls. "I snapped that I was of Mexican descent." People often confuse Lorena for being Caucasian because she has very light skin, hair, and eyes even though in our culture, there are all colors of the spectrum.
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