Ponderings on the Subject of Love

Chapter 2

Carson

It's nice to be alone, for once. I can walk through the hall without being swarmed by people. Well, I'm swarmed by people now, but it isn't the same, because they have no interest in me.

I cover ground so quickly, though, and it's over all too soon, as I walk into Mr. Holcomb's drama classroom. I'm first, like always.

"Hi, Carson!" Mr. Holcomb's head pops up from behind a sofa.

"Oh, hi, Mr. Holcomb!" I say, surprised. I grab a chair from the stack by the whiteboard and set down my stuff next to it. I hear the door open behind me. I know who it is immediately by the sound of cowgirl boots on the hard floor. She always gets here soon after I do; second to arrive.

"Hi, Mr. Holcomb! Hi, Carson!" She's always so cheerful. How can anyone be that cheerful? I wonder if a person can die from cheerfulness...

"Avery! love the dress!" She's Mr. Holcomb's favorite student, even though he'd never admit it. Mr. Holcomb is also her favorite teacher. Who am I kidding? Mr. Holcomb is everyone's favorite teacher. Apparently gay men possess a certain charm.

"Thanks! It's new; I got it this weekend," she says, holding out her arms and giving him a twirl on the toe of one cowgirl boot, making the purple floral skirt balloon around her. She is laughing.

I try to capture the image for as long as I can, so I will never lose it, but it's faded away after a few seconds. I wish I had a photographic memory. "Hi, Ava!" That's been my nickname for her since we met last year. I remember that day clearly; we had first period Spanish together.

I walked into the class nervous; I was the only eighth grader. Everyone else was exchanging summer news and chatting excitedly about what classes they had together. I looked for my name on the seating chart, and followed it back to a table where a girl, only a seventh grader, was reading a book that looked like a romance. She seemed really shy and small, sitting there with her book open like that. She wasn't wearing any makeup, and her brown hair was in a frizzy halo around her head, even though you could tell she had tried to tame it down. She was really pretty nonetheless, for a twelve year old. Her lips were moving ever so slightly as she read to herself.

I sat down in the chair beside her, and she surprised me. She looked up from her book, ever so carefully marked her spot on the page, and held out her hand. "I'm Avery. Avery Hayes."

I shook her hand. "I'm Carson Walker." Her hand felt tiny in mine. She was a lot more friendly than I expected.

"Do you know many people here?" I hadn't expected that question either. I liked how straightforward she was.

"No, I just transferred here this year because my parents say it's the best in the district, which is going to suck because all the other 8th graders already know each other."

"No kidding! So did my parents. Plus, they have, like, the best drama program in the world! Hey, we can be alone together!"

"Awesome! You're into drama?"

"Yeah..." she glances away shyly.

"Oh, no, that's great! I love that kind of stuff. I've always wanted to try drama. I love theatre."

"Yay! Cool. Hey, now we can both say we have a friend here."

"Yeah, I like that."

"Carson Walker. I've already made a friend. Who'd've thunk it!"

I laughed. "Wow, Ava..."

"Ava?"

"Yeah. It's short for Avery, isn't it?" I felt heat rush to my cheeks.

"Ava. I like it!" she smiled. I breathed out a sigh of relief.

It turned out that was the only class we had together, and Señora Hernandez switched the seating chart after about a month. We still talked a lot, though; we both ended up in ensemble for the play, but we had bigger roles in the spring musical. Well, Avery had the lead, and I had a smaller, but fair-sized part. The girl's brilliant.

She's matured. We stopped talking over the summer; we never really text. But when she came back, you could tell the difference. She had started wearing makeup, and she was suddenly a little fashionista. She was flat ironing her hair. She acted older, too. She had a confidence and assuredness, and was more outgoing than ever. All the teachers fell in love with her immediately.

One thing's for sure; she's not your cookie cutter girl. She's so great. But she has so many friends now, I'm not sure she even remembers that I exist.

But, maybe, just for today, she does.

She slides her chair in next to mine. I'm glad her friend, Mallory, isn't in this class; that's all Ava would be able to think about. "Mind if I sit here?"

"Not at all!" I assure her, smiling in spite of myself.

( Author's Note: Hello darlings! And this chapter is dedicated to one of my best friends, Kylie. I know she doesn't like to wait! I love you dear ;D

Love and hugs,

The Ponderer,

Maddi Dever ;) <3 )