Message In A Bottle

Aug 27 (Part 2)

Alex had a special connection to the Lynn Building because that was where the library used to be when she was a middle schooler. She'd spent hours holed up in that cozy space, stacks of thick books next to her. There was something about it that drew her in— the quietness, the gracefulness, the worn yet welcoming walls. A lot of good memories were associated with that place. It was her shelter during Alex's lowest points.

It was suddenly announced last year that the Lynn Building would be taken down which caused a huge uproar. While all of the students were furious, it was Alex who rallied them. It was Alex who had the leadership and capabilities to unite the students to form a front. 

(And it was Alex, that out of everybody else, could not bear to see it taken down the most.)

The school was announced that they would take down the building because the maintenance costs were too high. While longtime members of the faculty were also attached to the building and cited it as a place of "school spirit" and "collective memory", the practical issue of money topped everything else.

So naturally, Alex started a fundraiser.

It was insane. Till now, Alex could hardly believe what she'd done. In a short amount of time, she'd started petitions and emailed government officials. Her schoolmates chimed in by filming videos and going on social media. Alex's goal was to get on local news so more people would be aware of it.

In the beginning stages, Alex didn't have a lot of support. Of course, Conner and Fred helped her, but Conner had after school tutoring and Fred was busy with sports.

And that was when Rook came in.

Initially, most people scoffed at Alex's idealistic dreams. After all, it was like fighting a losing battle. It had already been decided. It was a huge shame, but there wasn't much anyone could really do about it, right? And besides, even if it was an important building, it was just a building. Everyone had more important stuff to focus on.

But Rook listened to Alex's ramblings and ideas. When Alex lacked confidence, Rook would bring her up. He was kind and gentle and Alex couldn't help but he attracted to him. He was the one who convinced Alex not to take up every responsibility and that he would contribute too. So Alex trusted him.

(It was, unfortunately, a mistake.)

Alex was shy and felt disconnected from the majority of her peers, but this was a project that required a lot of interaction with the students. So while Alex emailed representatives and tried to wrap her mind around the logistics, Rook contacted their schoolmates with his connections.

Slowly, slowly, they got more and more attention. Students started to believe their pipe dream might be possible. Alex and Rook got closer and closer, and they could both sense something was blossoming between them.

When Rook kissed her, it felt like a thousand butterflies had taken off from her heart.

Alex's heart was thumping and all sorts of unfamiliar emotions were overwhelming her. This was new, this was strange, but it felt nice. Rook felt nice.

They started dating in secret. Not even Alex's own twin brother knew of it. They never made it public, but they knew they belonged to each other. They exchanged secret smiles when they passed by each other in corridors. Alex was anxious about being in a relationship when she had so much to focus on, but Rook reassured her.

The honeymoon phase lasted for a while until it was time for Alex's masterpiece— a segment with the local TV station. Alex had even overcame her anxiety to call representatives and managed to convince the TV station to come round and film. The plan was for students to gather at the building and share their stories about it to raise attention.