Part 1
Back in 1991, during my freshman year of high school, we had moved back to Tucson from Ft. Belvoir, Virginia. There I was: 100 lbs soaking wet, with lines shaved into sides of my head, wearing a black NY Giants starter bomber jacket, and listening to Public Enemy on my Walkman. Total dork with a side of freshness.
I was attending Palo Verde High School and one of my classes was in a lecture-style room. I can’t exactly remember what subject it was but I think it was social studies. The assigned desk I sat at was instantly recognizable to anyone that attended high school. Flat, smooth manila colored fake wood grain top with a hard, curved, graffitied seat and small enclosed space underneath to put your books and whatever else you hauled around just in case. I sat in it and daydreamed until it was time for the next class.
One day, I noticed someone had written a small ‘Hi’ at the top left corner. I hesitated at replying. I analyzed the handwriting, trying to figure out if it was from a guy or a girl. The H was wide enough to be recognized as a girl’s swoopy, bubbly type of handwriting but the ‘i’ was suspect. I shrugged and wrote ‘Hi’ under it and compared the two. “Hmph, it could go either way.”, I thought. Probably. I considered myself very clever for a 14-year-old. Go ahead and roll your eyes.
The next day, there was a response. ‘How are you?’ It was a girl’s handwriting. The "?" gave it away. Too curly to be a dude’s handwriting. I wrote ‘Good. How are you?’ in the coolest version of my handwriting: extra-slanted.
She responded the next day and the next day and the next. Small, brief messages every school day i.e. ‘This class is boring’ or ‘How was your weekend’. But then it developed into notes taped under the desk. Holy shit. I grabbed the first note and held it in my sweaty hand until class was over. There was no way I was gonna chance getting caught with it or let the kid sitting behind me read it. So I waited. when the coast was clear, I found out her name is Kristy. And so for about a month, we passed notes back and forth every day. I think I might have even drawn her a picture of something. It sounds like something I’d do. We chatted about high school things. She was a freshman too. We didn’t know the same people because I was new and didn’t know anyone. Every day I couldn’t wait to get the next note and every day it would be there. All was good in the world. Until I went to my Tia Cecilia’s house.
I used to love going to my Tio Henry's and Tia Cecilia’s house when I was a kid. They had a pool and they had a ton of snacks that they didn’t mind sharing with a horde of nieces and nephews. At this point, I hadn’t told anyone about Kristy and the note swapping. But like all good aunts, my Tia Cecilia asked how school was and if I had a girlfriend yet. I answered no but I told her about Kristy all in one breath. But I didn’t mention her name. Apparently, I couldn’t wait to get this off of my birdcage chest. She was surprised and laughed. And then she walked around her kitchen and thought to herself and finally said “You know what, Johnny? I think you have a cousin that goes to Palo Verde too! She might know this mystery girl. Her name is Kristy. She’s your Tia Baby’s daughter.” I started sweating and replied “Oh really? No kidding…” and sat down just as my mom entered the room. Tia Cecilia asked my mom if she knew about the note swapping, so I was inclined to tell the story again but did so with less enthusiasm. And then I told them her name was Kristy.
Monday comes around and I find my new note but I didn’t read it. I taped my note under the desk that asked if she has a Tia Cecilia Marmion too. The next day there was no note. I couldn’t believe it. The streak was broken. But the next day there was a new one. She said yes and we both couldn’t believe it. After a few notes passed, we decided to finally meet. Her lunch period was before mine so I had to hurry to catch her before she went to her next class. She was a mat maid (wrestling cheerleader) so it was easy to find her. We said hi and talked about Tia Cecilia for a couple of minutes until she had to go. And then I never heard from her again. We saw each other a few times in the hall and said hi but never actually talked again. I never see her again after freshman year. 14-year-olds are awkward.
Part 2
30 years later
Recently, I was in Tucson visiting family. One Saturday night I decided to head over to my cousin Lisa’s house since she was having a bbq. Everyone is drinking and having a good time. Kids are jumping in the pool and Tatas are watching sports. I haven’t seen any of my cousins in a while, so I start drinking and catching up with everyone. At one point, I’m just standing by myself trying to bear the heat. Lisa sees me and calls me over to sit down next to her. Her friends are standing around talking. My cousin Adrian’s wife, Tu, is standing next to me and we’re all just chatting. Lisa introduces me to a few of her friends and then launches into this story with a “Holy shit, listen to this!”
It's not my story to tell but it was pretty juicy and hilarious. It put everyone into WTF mode. I’m laughing. Her friends are laughing. Lisa is grossed out. And then we all take a shot of tequila. Holy shit.
When the laughing calms down, I turn to Lisa and say, “I have a story like that but it’s not as juicy.” Lisa and her friends immediately want to hear it so they all quiet down and gather around. I start into the sad tale of 14-year-old Johnny and Kristy. I tell them everything you read in Part 1 and they are hanging on every word. When I’m done, Lisa says, “Wow”, and I’m like “Yeah” and I turn towards Tu. And then Lisa wonders out loud, “I wonder where she is…” and I say, “Oh, I don’t know. She’s probably not even in Tucson anymore. Who knows?!”. And Lisa says, “No Johnny! She’s here! Right now! I’m trying to look for her!”. Lisa swings around in her seat and points and yells, “THERE SHE IS!!”. Behind Lisa is a woman standing in the shadows and completely unaware of what is happening while holding a water bottle full of vodka. Lisa is screaming. Her friends are screaming. Tu is screaming. I'm screaming. Lisa calls her over and she walks into the light and it’s fucking Kristy. She is confused and drunk as hell. I try to tell her about the notes and Tia Cecilia. It was a really quick, abridged version and it didn't help. She had no idea what I was talking about. Everyone is still laughing and Kristy goes back to doing whatever she was doing before I told the story. So, we drank more tequila.
Epilogue-
It turns out that Kristy isn’t my cousin. I told the story to some uncles and they confirmed that Kristy is so far removed from me in the family that she might as well be from a different country. What a world.
