Doodle Hands: An Update

She cut and dyed her hair over winter break; her hair, once dusty-gold, is now auburny-red. It suits her.

I sit at a table with her in AP English now, along with a couple of friends, a couple of misfits, and the Loner, who you may remember from APUS last year. Doodle Hands is the same person. The same quiet person who will suddenly do something totally out-there insane and remind you just how crazy and weird and awesome she is. She still aces quizzes and tests without studying at all, or so she says. And she still sleeps through class, with her head rested on her fist, and the teachers are never the wiser.

Except for this year our AP English teacher spotted Doodle Hands’ BS-ing strategy pretty early in the game. It must’ve been the third day of class that the teacher said, “[Doodle Hands], I need to talk to you for a minute.”

All of us at the table joke with her about it as she gets up. “Oooh, you’re in troubleee!” She laughs it off and goes to talk to the teacher.

When she comes back and sits down, she still has the smile on her face, but it’s gone a little stale. Her voice is very light and matter-of-fact.

“She wants me to switch out of the class.”
“What?”
“She doesn't think I can’t handle the work. She gave me a zero on the essay. She could tell I didn’t read the book.”

A couple of our tablemates press her for more details, but Doodle Hands has suddenly gone silent. I think the hurt of it didn’t hit her until just now. It doesn’t show much on her face—It’s her silence that shows it more than anything. She keeps her eyes down, staring straight down at the desk, and won’t say a word.

“[Doodle Hands],” her friend says. He wants to console her, but she won’t look up. She won’t acknowledge any of us. Eventually he leaves her alone.

She crosses one leg over the other and folds her hands in her lap, looking straight down at them, her hair hanging down over her eyes. Her face turns pink around the edges. She is very, very still.

Just as she’s had a lot of practice sleeping in class without being noticed, I think she’s probably had a lot of practice crying in class without being noticed. She does it very well. Like a pro.