On reconsidering, he decided he could stomach someone popular if he had to. His options were limited. Saint Seb’s was separated from its sister school by a shallow ravine, a border Saint Mary’s girls rarely crossed other than to the track behind the old gym — and track girls were tall, somber, and reportedly stuck-up. Charlie decided on a theater girl. Twice a year the two schools staged a joint play, and by early September the cast was staying late for rehearsals in the Saint Seb’s auditorium. Rebecca Lampwick was Mrs. Higgins in this year’s production of My Fair Lady. She had big boobs, which she referred to as “the twins,” and a laugh that started high and avalanched into her lower register. Charlie first saw her last year when, after basketball practice, he had crossed the auditorium to use the Coke machines. Then she’d been Mrs. Lovett in Sweeney Todd, and her big laugh and black eyes seemed to follow him from up onstage. After two days of reconnaissance, he made his move.
