~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* Title: Coming of Age Author: Lisa Renee Coming of Age I kept looking at myself in the mirror, and it never got any better, no matter what angle I chose. What was I going to do? It was huge! All the scrubbing I’d done had only made it worse. There was no way to disguise it -- not this red, angry-looking spot that glared defiantly at me from its stolen territory. “I’m too old for pimples!” I flung myself upon my unmade bed and poked my teddy bear savagely in the nose. My face had been clear when I’d washed my face before bed. How could such an enormous pimple appear on my nose in only a matter of hours -- and why today? It was recitation day, my second one in Cutter Gap. I felt I’d matured by leaps and bounds since that first tumultuous school term, but having this blemish was like being thirteen again. What kind of school teacher stood in front of sixty-seven students --and their parents -- with a pimple on her nose? Another thought left a pit in my stomach. Dr. Ferrand -- he would be at the recitation. It was his first visit to our mission since I’d been hired, and I looked like an adolescent. Oh why did I have to present myself to Dr. Ferrand in such a fashion? Surely he would not like to see a girl so young and immature. And Neil . . . I would not leave my room until I looked twenty again. “Miz Christy! Breakfast’s ready!” I groaned and burrowed my face in my quilts as Ruby Mae barged into my room. “Lordy, Miz Christy! What’re you doin’ still in bed? Hit’s reci-tation day!” Maybe if I ignored Ruby Mae, she would go away. Maybe the same would be true for my pimple. However, Ruby Mae was never one to be ignored. The well-meaning teenager stepped closer to my bed, her voice rising up the scale. “Are you sick, Miz Christy? Doc MacNeill’s downstairs. I kin get him fer you -” “No!” I sat bolt upright. My already deflated spirits sunk even lower when I saw Ruby Mae’s wide eyes and open, silent mouth. The pimple must be more horrible than I thought. Ruby Mae was dumbstruck for only a moment. “Miz Christy -- you look jest like Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer!” Before I could stop myself, I burst into tears. Amazingly, Ruby Mae did not launch into one of her breathless apologies or explanations. She must have been very upset by my tears, because she, too, began to cry and ran from the room. I felt badly for upsetting her with my outburst, but why did she have to be so nosy and insensitive? I lay back down, sniffling and sobbing, and drew my knees up against my chest. I prayed that no one else would come up to see me, that I would be left alone with my blight. The sound of heavy footfalls on the stairs told me my wish would not be granted. Don’t let it be Neil, don’t let it be Neil, I pleaded inwardly. “What’s the matter with Ruby Mae?” It was Neil. I quickly turned my back to him. “And what’s the matter with you?” He stepped further into the room. I tried not to sniffle, but couldn’t stop myself. “Are you ill, Christy?” “No.” My voice came out a sob. “Sweetheart, you’re crying.” Neil came over to my bed and sat on the edge. “What’s the matter?” “Don’t look at me,” I said into my pillow. “Why wouldn’t I want to look at the prettiest girl in Tennessee?” I knew how he was looking at me, even though I wasn’t facing him. His hazel eyes were warm with that intense, yet gentle light he held just for me -- the expression that always left me weak-kneed and dizzy. Would he still look at me that way when he saw me with puffy, tear-stained eyes and an enormous pimple on my nose? I wiped my face on my pillowcase and turned to face him. “You see?” I whimpered. Neil took out his handkerchief. “I see my girl crying, and it makes me want to cry.” He touched the corner of the cloth to my eyes. I sniffled again. “Blow.” He covered my nose with the handkerchief. I obeyed. At least the unsightly blemish was out of sight. Perhaps he would just leave the handkerchief there. But no . . . When I had blown my nose and stopped sniffling, he folded it and shoved it back into his pocket. “Now,” he said, leaning back against the headboard and pulling me up beside him, “will you tell me what has you so upset?” “You’re so perceptive, Doctor,” I snapped. “Surely you know?” Neil’s brow creased, and I knew I’d spoken unjustly. He really did look bewildered. But that didn’t make me feel any better. “Can’t you see, Neil?” “See what?” “My nose!” I gestured wildly to it. The tears threatened to flow again. Neil didn’t reply. He inhaled deeply as he wrapped his arms around me and pulled me closer to him. “Do you know what I love about your nose, Christy?” He leaned down to look into my eyes. “The way you wrinkle it when you’re confused or smell something bad.” He chuckled softly. “It’s so cute.” “But not right now.” “Always.” He kissed the tip of my nose lightly. I managed a small smile and snuggled closer into the crook of his arm. He spoke again. “I think something else is bothering you, though.” His chin nudged my ear. “Tell me, love?” I sighed and told him my sad story. “I don’t look like an experienced teacher at all. I look like a teenager!” Neil silently stroked my arm for a moment, then said, “You only look like a teenager if you stay in this room crying about it.” I straightened up and stared at Neil. “Are you saying I’m immature?” Neil’s face was a study. I could tell from his wrinkled brow that he was choosing his words carefully. I felt my irritation rising. He did think I was immature. “I wouldn’t want a pimple on my nose, either.” I scowled at Neil. What a brutish, insensitive thing to say! “Of course you wouldn’t want a big red --” Neil pressed his fingers to my lips. “Christy, please. I know you want to impress Dr. Ferrand. And you will. A pimple on your nose -- why, a pimple the size of your nose -- won’t overshadow all you’ve accomplished with those children.” I relaxed a little. I could feel Neil’s chest rumble as he spoke. It had a hypnotic effect. “Pimples are associated with coming of age,” he continued. “Prove that you have. Stand at the front of that school and hold your head high. You’ve got fire in you, Christy. I know you -- you’d defy any blemish that would dare appear on your cute little nose.” Neil winked, and I had to laugh. “Thank you.” I kissed his cheek. Together we stood and started for the door. Before we left my room, however, I stopped and took a final look in the mirror. “You won’t beat me,” I said to the blemish. Neil threw back his head and laughed. “That’s my woman.” The end.