The Year It All Changed

Chapter 2

JOSH'S POV

"I feel so bad for Christine," I said as my best friend Spencer and I left the auditorium after the awards ceremony.
"Why?" Spencer asked casually.
"She's such an amazing dancer, but the dances Miss Darbie give her are never first place material."
"What do you mean dude?"
"I mean, she could get first place if she had better choreography. And I'm no expert at dance, but I can tell Miss Darbie is just setting Mallory up to win. You've seen the dances, Mal's are always way better."
"Well maybe Mallory is just a better dancer." Spencer replied only half listening as he checked his phone.
"She's not." I said to a now completely preoccupied Spencer, purposely not mentioning how I know Christine is actually a better dancer. Every year, Christine secretly learns Mallory's solos. Around competition time, she will perform them for me and ask me for critique (why she asks me, I have NO clue, but I don't mind.) I never have any criticism for her except to be confident. She is a beautiful dancer and although I'd never say it to Mallory, Christine is a much better dancer. It's so hard watching her do the boring solos Miss Darbie gives her, when she is capable of so much more. She learns Mallory's solos to try and prove to herself she's a good dancer but lately she's been questioning her ability. She didn't even try to learn Mallory's recent solo, and honestly I have been really worried about her. Christine thinks I don't know, but I can tell her self esteem is low and it keeps getting worse.
On our way to find the girls, we came across a table with flowers for sale. "I'm going to get Mallory some flowers!" Spencer said abruptly, "She'd like that right?" He asked unsure.
I laughed running my fingers through my short brown hair, "You should know, she's your girlfriend."
"Well she's your twin!" He countered jokingly.
I shrugged my shoulders smirking at him. He's so clueless. He never pays attention to subtle hints or remembers simple things. He's just a happy go lucky kind of guy, without a care in the world, and Mallory's the same way. Oblivious. I guess that's what makes them such a good couple.
"Well I'm going to get her some!" He exclaimed, clearly proud of his decision.
"Ya know, I think I'll get some for Christine too." I said.
He waggled his eyebrows up and down and made kissing sounds.
I playfully punched him in the arm. "As a friendly gesture." I added.
"Whatever man," he said with a wink.
I rolled my eyes as we walked up to the flower vendor.
Spencer grabbed the first flowers he saw, a bouquet of red roses. "She'll like these right? Red's a good color isn't it?" He questioned.
"She's not my girlfriend," I said reminding him that he was the one who needed to make the decision, not me.
"Yeah, red's good!" He concluded and bought the flowers.
Now it was my turn. I carefully looked through the flowers until I found the perfect bouquet. It was a subtle peach colored carnation, peach is Christine's favorite color.
I know everything about Christine. Every last detail. Not because I'm creepy or anything, but because I'm naturally an observer. Christine and I are alike in that way, we pay attention to details, behaviors, and context clues. We aren't oblivious like Spencer and Mallory, we're observant. By the tiniest movement or facial expression, I know exactly how she feels. Not just happiness or sadness, but I can tell when Christine is jealous, anxious or even hungry, and she can do the same for me. The only thing I can't figure out is how she acts when she's in love. I don't know of she's ever even been in love. I wonder if she can tell I'm in love with her...

Authors note

Sorry for the short chapter! Thanks for reading!! The next update will be longer I promise!