Paper Thin

• 13: Her •

Carson

She was a mystery. The beautiful brunette hair on her head, the emerald green eyes that were shaped like almonds, the perfect curve of her nose and her bow-shaped lips fit together like a perfect puzzle. She walked around with an air of confidence, though her small legs shook slightly, the only thing giving away her bravado. She beamed at everyone she met, though there was a part of her eyes the smiles did not reach. She was a set of contradictions pulled together to form a complex human being.

From the first day I met her until now, she never ceased to surprise me as she always did the opposite of what I thought she would. From the moment I saw her stand up to Rose in the hallway, I knew things at this school would get interesting.

Then she hit me with a door. I didn't even care that my nose was bleeding, I was just curious about her haste to get away from the cafeteria. Two days in a row she left the cafeteria before lunch really started, and two days in a row she said she had eaten something already. I knew it didn't make much sense, but she always left with such haste that I didn't remember how to speak.

When we were together just one on one, she joked with me and she laughed. Melody. That's what her laugh sounded like: a song. It was a cheesy and pathetic cliché, but it was true because it was beautiful. Only, she didn't laugh very often, or even smile, which meant that I rarely saw her green eyes light up, or the dimple in her left cheek show.

I knew that it pained me to see her cry since the moment I saw her at the park. I'd been in my room and glanced out of the window to see her vomit into the garbage and continue to exercise. I began pulling my shoes on to go outside and ask if she was okay or stop her – I wasn't sure what to do – when I saw her collapse. In that moment, I wanted nothing more than for her to be safe.

She wanted to be left alone. Not to be seen. Her panic set in when she noticed I was there, and she looked so small and fragile in a baggy, oversized shirt with tears in her eyes. I didn't understand what she was trying to do.

She also had not wanted to be carried, recoiling at my initial touch, but her legs didn't give her the luxury to choose, as she'd worked them so hard she couldn't stand. We never spoke about it after that but the feeling of carrying her soft, warm body in my arms never left me.

Over a week later, she appeared in the cafeteria for the first time since I last saw her leaving it, and I watched as she eyed the lunch line and then sat by herself. I was about to get up, when I noticed this girl with purple hair talking to her. It made me happy to know that there was someone looking out for her too. When she sat down with this group of people, she began working in that sketchbook of hers. It had such beautiful drawings in it, but it confused me that she didn't eat anything.

At my house that night she had refused pizza. I don't know what teenager doesn't like pizza, but it seemed like more than displeasure with the party food. There was a look of sheer terror in her eyes when I'd brought it up, and it spread to her face when I later brought up that fact that I noticed her lack of appetite at lunch.

For two days I watched her sit and draw in the cafeteria while the people she sat with didn't ask or seem to care as to whether she ate or not. While it confused me, it was mostly at the back of my mind, as I dwelled on the times she let her guard down around me.

Like when she made little jokes with me in the hallways when she saw me. Or showed me her sketchbook, and then nervously asked for me opinion. Or when I sat with her in the park for the second time, and she let me buy her a slushy. It put a little smile on her face and I watched as the pink in the tip of her nose faded, because she was no longer crying. It even made me happy when she asked about my "girlfriend or whatever" because it meant that she cared (and was even a little jealous... I hoped), though I didn't have one.

I liked the way that she drew me in without trying to. I found myself telling her stories that I didn't usually tell people, because for some reason I knew they were safe with her. She was shy and quiet, but I knew that once she let me in, once she broke out of her shell, around me she'd fully show me the little flickers of her personality that I saw. I knew she was feisty, funny, and creative, though she hid it.

She was a mystery – a kaleidoscope of paradoxes and enigmatic riddles. Melody Reese was a mystery that I wanted to spend every day trying to understand. There was no denying it any longer. She was now etched into every part of my mind and heart and I hoped I could make her feel that way too.

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Author's Note: This is a really short chapter, but it's in Carson's point of view!! Tell me what you think! I had a lot of fun writing this chapter! Also, I wanted to say that I'm entering Paper Thin into the Watty Awards so I hope you guys will support it and me by voting and commenting!

Also, I'm dedicating this chapter to my lovely boyfriend who is my first comment on this book and because it's out 2 year anniversary today! 💖 (comment and you might get a dedication too!)