Elevator

7:00 AM- The worst time of the day, when all teenagers are forced to groggily trudge off to an afternoon of lectures and work. I step out of my apartment quietly opening the door and attempting to tiptoe out, so as to not wake baby sister. I was almost home free when I heard a thunderous, CREEEEK, THUMP THUMP
“YEAH MOM, I’LL BE HOME BEFORE DARK”
It was Ashyln Moore.

I had known her as long as I can remember. The first time we met, she threw one of her playskool blocks strait at me; I had a bruise on my shoulder for weeks. Since then we hadn’t made much effort to enhance our friendship.

I heard a faint cry from behind the closed door, sighed, and made the decision to move on. I got to the elevator; Ashlyn had already pressed the down button. She was standing there in her leggings, jean mini skirt and pink Abercrombie shirt. I, in contrast, was wearing my ripped jeans and favorite baggy band tee. Something she wouldn’t be caught dead in. Ding the doors of the elevator slid apart, we stepped in.
Not a word was said. Ashlyn took the gum out of her mouth, popped a new piece in and stuck the old one behind the railing. 5…4…3… and then the elevator stopped, just stopped.
“Great” Ashlyn said with exasperation
I pressed the help button. “Hope they respond soon” no answer “at least this is better than going to school.”
“not really” Ashyln mumbled under her chewing

I just saw this in some lifetime movie last night, these two co-workers, Enemies, competitors; Got locked in a Janitors closet together. By the end of the movie they were giggling and sharing secrets because they found out they weren’t so different after all. I was pretty sure this would go the same way. I just had to find a way to spark conversation.
“Your gum smells good”
“yup”
“You must really like it; you have so much of it”
“Never run out” she said with a certain hint of pride in her voice. I thought I might be onto something
“Can I try a piece?”
She huffed as if I’d just asked her to tell me the meaning of the universe
“no. my gum’s not meant to be wasted. ” she said snobbishly in one of her infamous shrill tones.
I contained myself, resisting the urge to give her a good punch right on her petite little pointed up nose. I’d already done that once though, it didn’t work out to well for me. All she got was a bloody nose, and I got 2 weeks of detention.
I wasn’t willing to surrender this potential friendship I knew we had to have something to bond over.
“sooo, what’s your favorite color?” I asked desperately digging for a question
“What?”
“Mine is Blue, its calming, especially like… sky blue”
Ashlyn’s eyes rolled practically all the way to the back of her head. I had no clue what to ask. Music maybe? But noticing a Britney spears Button on her back pack. I re-evaluated the chances of a shared love of Hard core punk. Movies?
“I like documentaries” I announced as pleasantly as I could
“ew”

I was making no progress. She removed her third piece of gum and jammed it behind the railing, next to the other two. She shoved in another new piece.
Suddenly, a voice came onto the speaker in the Elevator.
“We found the problem; you should be out in 15 minutes”
“Thank god, this gum always makes me thirsty.”

I just then remembered the bottle of chilled water I keep in my backpack everyday. I unzipped the main pocket and reached in until I grasped the icy plastic bottle. I pulled it out and held it up proudly knowing I’d found the key.
“Finally you’re useful for something, gimmie a sip”

She reached for my bottle extending her long graceful fingers with pink nails to match her shirt. This was my chance to reconcile our differences for good. I would be the hero, the girl who single handedly saved her from dehydration. I mulled it over. Weighed my options carefully and…
“no, water’s not meant to be wasted”

And I sat there contentedly sipping my ice cold water pretending to ignore Ashlyn’s menacing glare and popping gum. I knew I would remember this moment for the rest of my life, stuck between the second and third floor finally feeling the true satisfaction of revenge.