a day to remember

Henry was on the school bus when he noticed a slight tingling in his abdomen. He shrugged it off and chugged his water bottle, as he was always thirsty in the mornings.


He arrived barely on time and rushed to his first hour class. Still thirsty, he quickly drank the rest of his drink and threw the bottle away. He once again ignored the small urge to pee.


In second hour, he decided he should use the restroom soon but knew his strict teacher wouldn't let him go. He managed to sit through the hour with minimal squirming.


Third hour, he had to go pretty badly. The bad thing was that this class was Spanish. "Excuse me ma'am, may I go to the restroom?"


"Pregunte en español, por favor," his teacher told him. What was the word for bathroom again? He couldn't remember.


"I dunno how to say it. Please, I-"


"En español."


He bounced in place. "I-I don't remember!" he exclaimed, then continued quieter, "I really gotta go."


"Lo siento, pero no," she said unapologetically.


He went back to his seat. Why did he have to go this badly? He suddenly remembered that, in his hurry to catch the bus this morning, he had forgotten to pee.


He crossed his legs and bounced a little more. Looking around at his classmates, he noted that about half were snickering and not one of them was helping him. "Are you okay?" the quiet girl who sat behind him asked.


"Yeah, I'm fine."


"I'm sorry, but I don't know the word either or I would tell you."


"Nice to know," he said while continuing to fidget. He didn't mean to sound snarky, but it came out that way. The girl was quiet the rest of the hour.


By the end of the hour, he was bursting. Fourth hour, he knew, was his most strict and mean teacher of the day.


Groaning, he got up and walked towards the bathroom. He was stopped in the doorway. Crossing his legs, he whined, "Jake, get outta the way."


"We're gonna be late to Mrs. Thorne's class. You know you'll get detention if you're late!"


Before he could say "I don't care," Jake was pulling him down the hall. They made it to class on time, which was a plus, but Henry's need to pee had greatly worsened. He grabbed his crotch and raised his hand.


"Yes, Henry?"


"Uh, m-may I p-please use the restroom?"


"You know my policy. Not until the lesson is over."


"But I-"


"No buts. Get to work on your notes."


He whimpered and Jake poked him with a pencil. "Hey, are you alright?" he whispered.


"No, I'm not alright," Henry hissed back through his teeth, "You stopped me from going to the bathroom!"


Jake took note of Henry's position. He had one hand buried between his crossed and shaking legs and the other holding onto the desk so hard his knuckles were turning white.


"I'm sorry... I didn't realize..."


"Oh God," Henry mumbled. Jake looked up to see that Henry's face was red. He looked down. There was a growing puddle under his friend, who was still trying to stop the flow. Jake reached over and put a hand on Henry's shoulder. Henry exhaled and moved his hand away from his pants. Urine forcefully poured out of him, soaking his pants and pooling on the chair, dripping onto the floor. "Mm..."


"Henry, you may use the restroom now that the lesson is over," said Mrs. Thorne. Henry didn't move a muscle. "Henry? Mr. Jones, are you listening?"


Tears of pain and embarassment streaming down his face, Henry ran out of the classroom. He heard snickers from other classmates and saw the flash of a cell phone camera.


An arm went around his neck. Jake said, "C'mon. I got some extra pants in my P.E. locker."


"Thanks," Henry said, "You're gonna get in trouble for leaving class, though."


"I know."


"I'm, uh, getting your pants wet..."


"I know," Jake said again. He didn't move his arm.


Word count: 675

Comment