So the jumbled, addled girl in overall shorts and a Rolling Stones T-shirt ran to the blonde girl, and followed her into the girl's locker room.
"We have gym now, quick, put these on." Karyn handed some clothes to Athena. She moved so quickly, the younger girl could barely process anything. Mindlessly, she removed her overall shorts, her T-shirt, and held out the garments that had been offered to her: a heavy cotton T-shirt, light gray, with the "Lake Point High School" logo printed in navy on the left breast, and a pair of black running shorts.
High school clothes, Athena thought to herself. For some reason this was important to her, but she couldn't remember why. She did look up to the high school girls, and maybe dressing like them would make her feel closer to them. They were also plain, which seemed important, too. All the high school girls had to wear this uniform. She wouldn't be pressured into becoming one type of girl or another.
Where had that thought come from? How could clothes pressure you into something?
But Athena barely had a chance to process any of this, as Karyn, wearing her own gym clothes, pulled the T-shirt down over Athena's head, and practically forced her to put on the running shorts. A pair of sneakers later, and Athena felt much more grounded, much more clear-headed.
She looked in the mirror and what she saw was a regular high school-aged girl who was ready for gym class.
Which was a good thing, because just then Coach Felicia Barry blew her whistle and ordered everyone into the gym.
