Slow Dance in Purgatory

“Oops, sorry Maggie. I wasn’t going to say your name, but…oh well.” Derek smirked over at Maggie and made a little kissy face at her.

“Now Maggie won’t tell me who she was with. In fact, she told me to go to hell!” A couple kids clapped and whistled and a few booed. “So I want to offer $20 to who ever can tell me who our little Maggie spent the night with…. ‘cause I wanna give that SOB a high five!”

Maggie looked stricken, her face infused with color, her blue eyes bright with angry tears. She straightened, her spine as stiff as a board, and stood from the table, her untouched lunch tray clenched in her hands. She turned and headed toward the garbage without saying a word.

“Come on, Maggie! Don’t go! I’m proud of ya!” The loud-mouthed punk shouted after her. Shad slammed his tray down and stood to follow her.

“Hey, Shad! Your momma hasn’t been teaching Maggie some new tricks has she?” Derek howled with laughter, slapping the hands raised to him in high fives supporting his antics.

Shad froze in his tracks. Maggie looked as if she was going to be sick. Johnny was overcome with a pulsing, red fury. He swung his arms and sent lunch trays flying down tables, upending drinks and splashing food into laps. Kids cried out and scattered. Trays hit the floors, and food splattered over fleeing students. The table that Maggie’s persecutor was perched on began to shake as Johnny ordered it to quake and topple. Derek jumped just as the table tossed its human occupants and skidded across the floor, slamming into another empty table nearby. Johnny bumped a confused student, making sure the tray she was holding sloshed its contents over Derek’s head, sending spaghetti sauce spilling over his spiky hair and down into the collar of his shirt.

Johnny roared, and milk cartons exploded all over the room like bottle rockets and several kids screamed.

“Johnny... Johnny! That’s enough…stop!” Maggie stood next to him, her eyes wild, hectic spots of red high on her cheeks. She grabbed his arm, and Johnny realized he hadn’t kept himself hidden from her. He had lost his temper in a very messy way. Shad was standing just beyond her, and he was doubled over in laughter.

“What was that?! That was awesome!! I didn’t even see who started it! Food Fight! Food Fight! Food Fight!” Shad started pumping his fists and chanting, not seeing the principal bearing down on him. He ceased chanting abruptly when Ms. Bailey grabbed him by the shoulder and marched him out of the lunchroom.

Apparently, several students were taking the rap for Johnny’s display of temper, Derek included. There was some justice in the world, it seemed. Derek and several others were being led out of the room, heading in the same direction as poor Shad. Maggie overheard Derek protesting and watched as he was forcibly removed from the lunchroom.

“Nobody threw anything!” he cried. “It was like an earthquake hit the cafeteria. We weren’t having a food fight! I swear!”

Maggie looked back at Johnny, and her mouth twitched slightly. Johnny just shook his head; this wasn’t good. This was the second time he had caused mayhem in a very public way. He had to get control of himself. He looked down into Maggie’s big blue eyes and groaned. Her glasses had been splattered with sauce and she’d taken them off. She stared up at him with her heart in her eyes, love written all over her face. She was so unbelievably beautiful. He wasn’t going to get control any time soon. Here he was, back at square one. All that suffering, staying away from her, trying to protect her – all of it was for nothing now, and he didn’t think he had the strength to do it again.

“Can we just go somewhere, just for a little while?” Maggie held herself stiffly, her arms crossed in front of her, bracing herself for his refusal. But her eyes pleaded.

“Maggie….this won’t end well.” His voice was a tortured whisper.

“You can’t make me leave you again. I’ve missed you so much.” Her lips trembled, and his iron will shattered like a thousand pieces of glass.