Switching Places and Character Flaws
Warning the first one is probably an R for language. There's a bit of swearing.
If you could trade lives with one person for a day, who would it be, and what would you do?
Bonnie jumped as the door to her dorm room opened abruptly and then quickly slammed shut. “Elena?” she asked, closing her Circuits textbook and peering around the side of the dresser at her roommate. “Everything okay?”
“Yeah, just great,” Elena answered, stalking into the room and flopping down on the bed across from Bonnie.
Bonnie just raised a brow at her roommate.
“I hate men. I do.”
“What did Roman do this time?” Bonnie asked, used to her roommate’s foul moods. Elena and her boyfriend fought all the time, although neither of them stayed mad for very long.
“Not Roman this time. It’s just all the other idiots we go to school with.”
“Why? What happened?” She pushed her books off to the side, having a feeling she wasn’t going to get anymore studying done before dinner.
“Kate and I had our first Physics lab today and I didn’t think our results looked right. So I walked over to the guys at the bench next to us, introduced myself, and asked if they were getting similar results. The first guy looked at me and without so much as a ‘hi’ how’re you doing,’ tells me that the reason our results don’t look right is because we’re girls.”
“Are you serious?”
“Yeah. ‘Hi. Nice to meet you, asshole. You’re probably right, you know estrogen is pretty caustic stuff. Sneaks around and causes all sorts of problems.’”
“And you have no idea who he was?”
“Kate said he’s some frat brother of a friend of hers. She seemed all embarrassed and said he was probably just kidding because he’s usually a pretty nice guy. But, you know, I don’t know him from Adam. How would I have any way of knowing that he was joking.”
“He probably wanted to ask you out and couldn’t think of a better line.”
“Moron,” Elena fumed. “I don’t know what I’m going to do next year when I get into the hardcore Mechanical Engineering classes and I won’t even have you and Kate around anymore.”
“You’ll be fine.”
“I think you should double major in ME,” Elena said.
Bonnie rolled her eyes and pulled her legs up to sit Indian style on her bed. “Yeah, right.”
“I’m serious. You were good in first semester Physics. Keep me company.”
“I’m going into computer science, why would I need anymore Mechanical Engineering courses?”
“Computers have moving parts.”
“Like what?” Bonnie laughed.
“Fans?” Elena said, grasping at straws.
“You’ll be fine. There are bound to be some non-jerks in your classes. You just have to find them.”
“I’m not holding my breath.”
Bonnie pulled at the cuffs of her bell bottoms. “You know, sometimes I’ve love to switch places with them.”
“What? You want to be a moron?”
Bonnie tipped her head back and laughed. “No. It would just be interesting to be a guy for a day. I think we’d appreciate the perks a lot more than they do?”
“Like what? Having external genitalia?”
“No. I mean things like walking around campus alone at night. Going into a lecture hall and being one of 100 instead of just one. Not feeling like you had to prove you have a right to be here. Not having to deal with sexist professors or lab morons That sort of thing. I just think they take a lot for granted. I think it would be interesting.”
“So just dress up as a guy.”
“It wouldn’t be the same.”
“Okay, so what guy do you want to switch places with?”
“No one in particular. Just me, but male.”
It was Elena’s turn to raise an eyebrow. “Something you want to tell me?”
“No.” Bonnie laughed, embarrassed. “Never mind. I know it’s dumb. It would just be interesting to see what it’s like on the other side of things for a change.”
“No, it’s not dumb. I know what you mean. There are probably things we take for granted too. I mean, the guy at the cafeteria register wouldn’t let us sneak out with nearly as much food if we were guys.”
“True.”
Elena sat down finally, and pulled open her book bag.
“So did you and Kate get the lab figured out? If not, you can borrow my notes for your lab report,” Bonnie offered, holding out her notebook.
Elena took the book ruefully. “Are you sure you don’t want to double major?”
---------
What is your worst character flaw?
“Happy new apartment,” Michael said, handing Bonnie a bouquet of flowers.
“Oh, Michael. They’re beautiful.” She tried to smell them and ended up sniffling ridiculously. She hated having a cold.
“They smell great. Take my word for it,” Michael said.
Bonnie stepped back from the door to let him in. She was a little embarrassed that the place was still such a mess. She had meant to get more done last night, but then the fever had set in and she really hadn’t been feeling up to it. She glanced down at the flowers again, thinking that Michael could be very sweet when he wanted to be.
“Now if I could just find a vase. The only one I’ve unpacked, I’m using as a juice pitcher.”
She started pulling open the boxes on the living room floor to find something that would work while Michael searched the kitchen. But just looking at the boxes made her tired again. She wanted to go back to bed, but she doubted she’d be able to sleep. She couldn’t get the image of the woman being strangled out of her mind. Bonnie had watched her die, and no one was going to believe her because the story sounded ridiculous. Even Devon had tried to convince her that it had been a bad dream or the cold medicine she’d taken.
She heard Michael say ‘Ah-ha,” and then he stood up in front of the pass through. “This should fit right into your decorating scheme,” he said, proudly holding aloft an empty orange juice can. She looked over her shoulder and tried to smile, but she was pretty sure it wasn’t very convincing.
“How are you feeling, sweetheart?” Michael asked, concern lacing his voice.
“Physically, a little better. Emotional . . . I’m really glad you stopped by.” She threw a wad of paper back into the box in front of her.
Michael came around the wall to the kitchen and knelt next to her on the floor. “Are you alright? Devon told me.”
“And you think I’ve lost my mind, don’t you. That’s why you’re being so nice.” It came out filled with venom and anger.
“Ouch,” Michael said pulling away just a little bit.
Bonnie ducked her head, instantly feeling guilty. Why did she always do that? Why did she always lash out at the people who cared about her, the people who were trying to help? Sometimes she just wished she had a better hold on her own tongue.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean that. I just keep seeing the image of that girl . . .”
“That’s why I’m here,” he said, gently putting a hand on her shoulder.
He obviously forgave her, but she felt bad anyway.
He shouldn’t have to.
If you could trade lives with one person for a day, who would it be, and what would you do?
Bonnie jumped as the door to her dorm room opened abruptly and then quickly slammed shut. “Elena?” she asked, closing her Circuits textbook and peering around the side of the dresser at her roommate. “Everything okay?”
“Yeah, just great,” Elena answered, stalking into the room and flopping down on the bed across from Bonnie.
Bonnie just raised a brow at her roommate.
“I hate men. I do.”
“What did Roman do this time?” Bonnie asked, used to her roommate’s foul moods. Elena and her boyfriend fought all the time, although neither of them stayed mad for very long.
“Not Roman this time. It’s just all the other idiots we go to school with.”
“Why? What happened?” She pushed her books off to the side, having a feeling she wasn’t going to get anymore studying done before dinner.
“Kate and I had our first Physics lab today and I didn’t think our results looked right. So I walked over to the guys at the bench next to us, introduced myself, and asked if they were getting similar results. The first guy looked at me and without so much as a ‘hi’ how’re you doing,’ tells me that the reason our results don’t look right is because we’re girls.”
“Are you serious?”
“Yeah. ‘Hi. Nice to meet you, asshole. You’re probably right, you know estrogen is pretty caustic stuff. Sneaks around and causes all sorts of problems.’”
“And you have no idea who he was?”
“Kate said he’s some frat brother of a friend of hers. She seemed all embarrassed and said he was probably just kidding because he’s usually a pretty nice guy. But, you know, I don’t know him from Adam. How would I have any way of knowing that he was joking.”
“He probably wanted to ask you out and couldn’t think of a better line.”
“Moron,” Elena fumed. “I don’t know what I’m going to do next year when I get into the hardcore Mechanical Engineering classes and I won’t even have you and Kate around anymore.”
“You’ll be fine.”
“I think you should double major in ME,” Elena said.
Bonnie rolled her eyes and pulled her legs up to sit Indian style on her bed. “Yeah, right.”
“I’m serious. You were good in first semester Physics. Keep me company.”
“I’m going into computer science, why would I need anymore Mechanical Engineering courses?”
“Computers have moving parts.”
“Like what?” Bonnie laughed.
“Fans?” Elena said, grasping at straws.
“You’ll be fine. There are bound to be some non-jerks in your classes. You just have to find them.”
“I’m not holding my breath.”
Bonnie pulled at the cuffs of her bell bottoms. “You know, sometimes I’ve love to switch places with them.”
“What? You want to be a moron?”
Bonnie tipped her head back and laughed. “No. It would just be interesting to be a guy for a day. I think we’d appreciate the perks a lot more than they do?”
“Like what? Having external genitalia?”
“No. I mean things like walking around campus alone at night. Going into a lecture hall and being one of 100 instead of just one. Not feeling like you had to prove you have a right to be here. Not having to deal with sexist professors or lab morons That sort of thing. I just think they take a lot for granted. I think it would be interesting.”
“So just dress up as a guy.”
“It wouldn’t be the same.”
“Okay, so what guy do you want to switch places with?”
“No one in particular. Just me, but male.”
It was Elena’s turn to raise an eyebrow. “Something you want to tell me?”
“No.” Bonnie laughed, embarrassed. “Never mind. I know it’s dumb. It would just be interesting to see what it’s like on the other side of things for a change.”
“No, it’s not dumb. I know what you mean. There are probably things we take for granted too. I mean, the guy at the cafeteria register wouldn’t let us sneak out with nearly as much food if we were guys.”
“True.”
Elena sat down finally, and pulled open her book bag.
“So did you and Kate get the lab figured out? If not, you can borrow my notes for your lab report,” Bonnie offered, holding out her notebook.
Elena took the book ruefully. “Are you sure you don’t want to double major?”
---------
What is your worst character flaw?
“Happy new apartment,” Michael said, handing Bonnie a bouquet of flowers.
“Oh, Michael. They’re beautiful.” She tried to smell them and ended up sniffling ridiculously. She hated having a cold.
“They smell great. Take my word for it,” Michael said.
Bonnie stepped back from the door to let him in. She was a little embarrassed that the place was still such a mess. She had meant to get more done last night, but then the fever had set in and she really hadn’t been feeling up to it. She glanced down at the flowers again, thinking that Michael could be very sweet when he wanted to be.
“Now if I could just find a vase. The only one I’ve unpacked, I’m using as a juice pitcher.”
She started pulling open the boxes on the living room floor to find something that would work while Michael searched the kitchen. But just looking at the boxes made her tired again. She wanted to go back to bed, but she doubted she’d be able to sleep. She couldn’t get the image of the woman being strangled out of her mind. Bonnie had watched her die, and no one was going to believe her because the story sounded ridiculous. Even Devon had tried to convince her that it had been a bad dream or the cold medicine she’d taken.
She heard Michael say ‘Ah-ha,” and then he stood up in front of the pass through. “This should fit right into your decorating scheme,” he said, proudly holding aloft an empty orange juice can. She looked over her shoulder and tried to smile, but she was pretty sure it wasn’t very convincing.
“How are you feeling, sweetheart?” Michael asked, concern lacing his voice.
“Physically, a little better. Emotional . . . I’m really glad you stopped by.” She threw a wad of paper back into the box in front of her.
Michael came around the wall to the kitchen and knelt next to her on the floor. “Are you alright? Devon told me.”
“And you think I’ve lost my mind, don’t you. That’s why you’re being so nice.” It came out filled with venom and anger.
“Ouch,” Michael said pulling away just a little bit.
Bonnie ducked her head, instantly feeling guilty. Why did she always do that? Why did she always lash out at the people who cared about her, the people who were trying to help? Sometimes she just wished she had a better hold on her own tongue.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean that. I just keep seeing the image of that girl . . .”
“That’s why I’m here,” he said, gently putting a hand on her shoulder.
He obviously forgave her, but she felt bad anyway.
He shouldn’t have to.