“Briggs? What the hell are you doing in there? You’ve been in there for almost an hour,” Uncle Alejandro barked through the door, surprising me that he even noticed.
I didn't answer him. What was I supposed to say? I glanced around the bathroom hoping the floor would swallow me whole. I wasn't that lucky. I immediately pulled up my panties and slid down my skirt. Taking a deep breath, I opened the door, but my eyes remained down on the ceramic tiled floor.
“What the fuck?”
“I’m bleeding,” I murmured.
“Peladita, what part of look me in the eyes when I’m talking to you is so hard for you to fucking understand?”
I instantly looked up at him with annoyance written all over my face. Head cocked, nostrils flaring, lips pursed, with my hands in fists at my side.
“Is that all you care about? Fine! I'm looking you in the eyes and telling you I'm bleeding! Better?"
Maybe my period made me stupid?
“You watch your fucking tone with me, little girl,” he sneered, looking me up and down. “What did you do? Cut yourself?”
I scoffed. “No I didn’t cut myself! I’m twelve years old and a female! You’re a smart guy, put two-and-two together!”
He opened his mouth probably to yell at me, but quickly shut it when he realized what I was implying. He did it a few more times, looking at me speechless, which only added to my frustration.
“Are you just going to stand there and be all… you?” I asked, pointing at him. “Because the longer we stand here, the more the blood keeps coming—”
He put his hand out in front of him, shushing me. “Enough.”
“Well… then help me. I don’t know what to do,” I pleaded with desperation in my tone.
“Why are you telling me this? Why don’t you tell your nanny? She’s a woman.”
I sighed. “She doesn’t like me.”
“And you think I do?”
His words didn’t faze me. The feeling was mutual.
“In this case, you’re the lesser evil.”
Without another word he pulled out his phone, turned around and started to walk away, completely ignoring my rant. I followed close behind, assuming I was supposed to. He made his way into his office, still not acknowledging me. I sat down in one of the chairs in front of his desk.
“Don’t get too comfortable,” he snapped.
“Si, se?or,” Esteban announced, walking into the office before I could give any thought to what he’d said to me.
Oh, God. Please, please, please, don’t let him do what I think he’s about to…
“La pelada se desarrolló,” Uncle crudely revealed, “The girl just got her period for the first time.” His phone rang. “She’s your job. You deal with it.” He nodded at Esteban, answered his phone, and left.
I sat there in shock, completely silent. Embarrassment couldn’t even begin to describe how I felt. I wanted the floor to cave in and swallow me whole. I stared at the doorway for I don’t know how long after he left. My face burned from humiliation and anger that he would do this to me. I finally glanced over at Esteban who was frozen in place, awkwardly rubbing the back of his neck for comfort.
He did the same thing my uncle did. He opened his mouth a few times to say something, but nothing ever came out.
“So… are you…” He narrowed his eyes at me, confused. “I mean… does it… what… fuck,” he stressed the last word and it was the first time I heard him cuss.
“I don’t know.”
He cocked his head to the side.
“I mean…” I shrugged. “I don’t know what to do.”
“Me and you both, kid.” He laughed nervously.
“Do you happen to have a wife or girlfriend, or someone I could maybe talk to?”
He shook his head no.
“No friend that’s a girl?” I added, stunned.
He shook his head no again.
The realization that Esteban and I might’ve had more in common than I thought was a bigger rude awakening than getting my period.
“Can you walk?” he asked, pulling me away from my thoughts.
“Yeah, I got my period, I’m not incapacitated.”
We both grinned.
“Come on, smart ass. I guess we could go to the pharmacy. We can’t be the only dummies that have ever walked in there with this problem.”
I went to the bathroom before we left to add more toilet paper to my panties. I felt like I was wearing a diaper the entire time, but to my surprise the pharmacist behind the counter was very understanding. She said her daughter was around my age and she went through the same thing with her a few days prior.
I breathed a sigh of relief.
She didn’t ask me any questions as we walked down the feminine aisle. She just stopped every few steps to show me all the different kinds of tampons and pads I could use. Explaining which ones she thought would be best for me. She even went as far as pulling out a pamphlet that demonstrated how to insert it. She told me that I needed to start seeing a gynecologist because I was becoming a woman and the doctor could further explain what would start happening to my body.