happenstance

• one •

"Just kiss me..."

"What?" I open my eyes.

"I said just kiss me. I know it's what you're thinking." His lips don't move, but it is his voice. I turn around and he stands there wearing his trademark wrestling sweatshirt and shorts. I turn back to the bed and he's still laying there too, unmoving.

"H-how? Are you..." My throat closes up and my eyes well with tears. I breathe in, deep and shaky. My voice comes out steady and unwavering, cold like a rock.

"Are you dead?"

"No." His voice is soft and he grazes my hand with his transparent, ghost like fingers, but they don't pass through me like a ghost's would. For that I am grateful.

"Just barely alive."

Then he's gone, disappeared. He leaves me with his unconscious body and the rhythmic beeping of the heart monitor.

I hope it never stops.

I start to bend over to sit back down in the chair next to the bed.

"Do it."

It's his voice again. I push off the arm-rests and take my time, slowly running my fingers down his jawline. Remembering the time I seduced him a bit and told him he could take me on a date.

Friday, August 20, 1999

I run a hand nervously through my hair while I cautiously walk down the street. I am in the middle of the annual summer festival. Just ahead of me is the gym where I can find some refreshing cool air. It's almost ninety degrees outside, a typical summer day in the tiny town of Tylo, Kansas. Right now I had to go get changed into a bathing suit so I could work the dunk tank. A job which I regretted signing up for at first because who knows what curveball mother nature could throw at us in the last week of summer vacation? In years past we have gotten flash floods, blizzards, tornadoes, you name it we've probably had it.

This is the one day though, that I was actually grateful for being stuck with dunk tank duty which, thankfully, deals with ice cold water. I get stuck on dunk tank duty about every other year because I procrastinate and don't sign up for my volunteer station on time, and the job isn't really that fun anymore when flurries start to fly.

The reeking stench of sweat gobbled up all the clean oxygen in the air from the moment I was within ten feet of the gym. Like every year, there was a wrestling tournament going on that lasted the duration of the festival. I sucked in a breath and stepped into the gym, hastily stepping my way toward the girls' locker rooms. I turned and pressed the door open with my back, not expecting to see the many shirtless...and some pants less boys, on the other side. They all started laughing while I shielded my eyes, "This isn't funny," I growl,"what are all of you even doing in the girls' locker rooms anyways?"

Slowly I step forward trying to make my way across the room into the bathroom. A rough, calloused hand steadies me as I stagger from hitting a hard object. I can only guess that it's one of them.

"We were just changing, we didn't think anyone would be coming in here...you can open your eyes now by the way." The voice is soft and gentle, like he's talking to a child. Hesitantly I remove my hand from my eyes and open them one at a time. The boy who still has a hand on my arm from steadying me is looking me in the eyes, somewhat crouched down to my level, seeing as he is a good five inches taller than me. His eyes are blue, somewhat plain, but when I look closer I can see hints of green and swirls of gold...interesting.

"Are you alright?"

"Yeah..." I draw my eyebrows together, brush his hand off me and take a step back. Blue eyes, brown hair and some pretty good looking abs...not to mention the v-line. He clears his throat about to say something more, but I step around him, "Now, if you all don't mind, I would like to change."