Day 7: The Right Moment
Yesterday’s event in the chain booth became so popular that girls who paid hundreds just to get chained with me expected that I dance to each and one of them under the raging sun. My wrists, both left and right, are all red from all the chains that are being placed on me nonstop after the dancing incident.
Often times she passed by me and smile. She did once, when I was chained with a girl who talks mostly about hair and nails. She smiled, and pointed on the girl chained to me, she raised her hand and gestured that the one chained on me is talkative. I couldn’t agree more. When we both pass by with each other we just smile, it was as if we are sharing some secret jokes.
When I am already chain free, I ran towards Kyle’s jailbooth and begged him to let me and my poor wrist take a rest.
“I don’t get you man.” He said shaking his head, as if I did something really bad. “I chained you with her, you didn’t ask her name. And now many girls are already piling in front of you and you still look at her and smile.”
“Supposed you’re in my position, for some weird circumstances Samantha Reese got chained to you, and somehow you felt that certain connection. You’ve seen her all the time and never got the chance to know her name. and you talk to her as if you’ve known each other forever and then at one certain moment you ask her name all of a sudden. What will you think might happen next?”
Kyle looked at me and raised his eyebrows, the thing he always does when concentrating on something. “Ok I got your point. But how can you not research something about her. Coz dude really, a name is such a basic thing.”
“I know. I’ll find a way.” Just then, Lauren, our batch’s governor walked straight to the booth with Samantha Reese.
Kyle looked at me, his eyes displaying some vague expression that I could almost associate with hurt and betrayal.
“Sorry Kyle but I think Aiden will be the one here in the jailbooth for a while.” Lauren snapped the chains in Kyle’s wrists too hard that he yelped in pain.
“Watch it Sinclaire.” He said, red with embarrassment.
“No talking Fitzburg, you know the rules. And oh.” Lauren then looked at me, well not really since her gaze isn’t focused really on my eyes. “I just want to warn you that I will be chained to you after 30 minutes.” She stopped and then played with her hands, “Nothing to w-worry about really. I- I mean my friends knew I had a huge…” stops and fidgets,“You know, crush…”
I laughed. “Wow seriously? Lauren Sinclaire? This is the very first time I’ve ever seen you fidget and stutter!”
She slapped me hard on the arm and I pretended to be hurt. She just smiled. “I just… you know want to tell you that.” She looked at me one last time then left.
I laughed, I can’t believe Lauren Sinclaire has a crush on me. Seriously all I ever thought is that her love will always be Math. I gazed at Samantha and Kyle who are now just a few meters away from me.
I try hard not to laugh all by myself really, more often than not they walk to the opposite direction and all of a sudden the chain comes yanking them both back together making them scratch their heads and (you wouldn’t believe this) smile.
And then I saw her. She’s chained with Luis Sandrov, but you know what I don’t mind. Well, a little I guess. But nothing really terrifying unlike before. I saw him offering her a hand and gesturing her to dance. She shook her head in reply.
Luis sat down furiously and started to write something on the ground. This guy doesn’t really have a sense of originality. She must be really interested in me, you know, we wrote short conversations on the ground, we laughed together as if we’re actually talking, we even danced.
Maybe she just doesn’t want to associate with the enemy and it’s just a nice thing to do to be polite to people, especially, me.
I sighed. Thirty minutes had passed and Kyle almost rushed towards me, his hands extended in front of him. It took me a few minutes to realize that he wants me to look at it. Written on his arm is Samantha’s name, under it, her number.
“WOW DUDE!” I said and offered him a high five.
He just smiled there foolishly without even talking. This must’ve been the happiest day of his life.
Lauren was chained to me after that. This time, we texted. Lauren is one of the few girls whom I respect. She beautiful, nice and smart so it has always been a mystery to me why we never dated. When I was chained to her that’s when I realized the answer, Lauren was too shy to even start a conversation with me.
“Sorry.” She texted, I looked at her and her face is almost apologetic.
“No biggie Lauren. We’re friends you know that.” It took her about 2 minutes to read that.
“I noticed you’re always staring at the new girl.”
“You know her name?”
“No. Sorry. You know I’m not always friendly.” I laughed.
“Well, yeah, but I’m having a hard time confronting her.”
“Why would you be? It’s obvious that she likes you too.”
I sighed. “You think?”
“I’m a girl Aiden. I know when one of my specie has a crush on another different species.”
Thirty minutes seem to pass by so quickly with Lauren, all we ever did was talk about the new girl, joke about the students and laughed about almost everything. I tried to compare the time being with Lauren and the time with her. Both have been fun, but there’s something about Lauren that makes everything felt platonic.
The long ride to the train stop seems to move particularly slowly. When I reached the stop the train doors are almost closing. Fortunately I made my way in.
I’ve been thinking too much about what Lauren had said when our thirty minutes are over.
“You should ask her name Aiden, you should tell her how you feel before someone else did. There was one time when I didn’t tell someone I like him and now he’s crushing on to someone else. I often wonder what if I came first before her, but you know the saddest thing about what ifs? They will never happen no matter how much you try.”
When I reached my stop I felt a hand on my arm.
It was her.
“Hey Aiden. Have a safe trip on your way home.”
She waved at me and almost left, Lauren’s voice echoing in my head.
“Wait.”
She stopped and looked at me.
“You too.”
Fvck! Wayland!!!! Why are you acting like this!! Ask her name!!!
“Take care.”
I slapped myself strongly in my head that it almost felt real. She just nodded and walked away. I was silently cursing when all of a sudden she turned back to me again, almost hesitant to even speak.
“It’s Lian by the way…”
she stopped and looked way past me.
“Lian Greene. In case you don’t know.”
