Hello, Again

Chapter 6

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To live my life as it's meant to be

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Amelia In Another Lifetime kept journals.

Our Amelia didn't.

But as it was, Fate didn't reserve itself to those who kept careful stock of it. It spun out yarns for believers and disbelievers alike, shifting pieces into position, aligning stars and crossing paths of its own volition. If Amelia were only so inclined, she would've looked back at a certain day in her life and reflected upon her tendency to stand on the precipice for far too long and the consequences of her lingering, on several occasions. But as it were, 11th April remained unobtrusive and seemingly unimportant, while she continued to teeter on the edge. On many 11th Aprils, in fact.

(2007)

Amelia had pictured this scene countless times - but in no world had she found herself so inexplicably distracted.

Well, not completely inexplicably.

However, it still made very little sense that she was thinking of a stately printed sheet of paper as Jeremy Warner looked at her lips.

But we're getting ahead of ourselves.

An hour and a half ago, Amelia checked her integral equation against her textbook's answer key while Bethany chewed the end of her pencil, fretting about French (of all things) and Wes and her brittle nails.

"Ugh, I hate them", she'd exclaimed with appropriate vehemence and Amelia had silently reminded herself that people at Syracuse would be above all such nonsense. Loyal friend as she was, though, she dutifully reminded Beth to stick to her rosewater routine and not chew on them so much. Jenn and Ed continued to whisper under their breaths and make sappy faces at each other, lost in their own world, while Jeremy scratched his head and waited patiently for Amelia to finish checking for answers so he could inquire after her method.

It was fairly routine, to be honest.

Which is exactly why it made very little sense that Jeremy would stick around an hour later even as Amelia attempted to pick up her books and promptly spill them on the floor.

"I've got it", he said lightly, readily dropping to the ground and picking up her books at a pace so furious that her binder fell to the carpet again. Not missing a beat, he grabbed it and got to his feet, if a little awkwardly, biting his lip for no apparent reason and smoothing back his hair as Amelia stood by uncertainly, looking up at his perfect blue eyes and melting on the spot.

Beth watched from the coffee table with a smirk on her face.

"Thanks", Amelia breathed, shy in the face of such unprecedented chivalry, and took back her books, hugging them to her chest. Jeremy smiled in response.

"That's quite a lot of books you've got there."

"Yeah, calculus isn't my strongest subject."

"I don't buy it - you solved that integral equation in a hundred seconds."

"I'm sure I took longer than that", Amelia replied uncertainly, frowning up at him in confusion, unsure of where this was headed, "but I'd practiced that formula beforehand, so I suppose -"

"Oh don't be coy! You'll ace the exam too, just you see."

"O-okay."

And just like that the conversation died, with Amelia and her thudding heart and Jeremy and his unabashed smile. Even before she could thank her stars properly, Jeremy spoke again, "I was thinking - only if you have time, I don't mean to impose - that maybe you could help me out with matrices too? Maybe a couple hours this weekend if you're free?"