Falling

Chapter 6: Eyes

Quick Note: I updated the last part of chapter 5, check it out if you didn't see it as it's long and important. It starts with a bold and says "Where's your kitchen?" 

November 4th

Aren't you proud of me May? I finally got over November 2nd! It was a long discussion, but that's because so much happened on that day. Now I have to talk about the grill out, and my birthday party, not to mention the almost date, but I'll get to that when we get there.

For now, let's talk about Axel's first day of school.

Axel kept his word, sadly, and we didn't see him come out of his house once for the rest of that Saturday, and only saw his fleeting image on Sunday when both of our families went to church. By this point, I still hadn't seen his father, and I was growing very skeptical over who Jack Oray really was, or if he even existed. I would soon find out he didn't. More on that later, but for now, back to school. 

By the time Monday rolled around, my whole being was aching with longing, though I didn't know why I was feeling that way. I had just met Axel after all, but my eyes needed the connection. I promised myself that I would stare at Axel the entire bus ride long, but when I got to the stop, I saw his car drive right past it, probably to check him into the school officially.

5 minutes into my 1st period, I started to accept that I would never see him again when the door opened.  

"This is your transfer student from Ohio," I heard a voice say from outside. I immediately perked up in my chair and turned towards the door, ready to see him at last. 

"Yes of course," My history teacher, Ms. Cowart said. She is easily my favorite teacher, and I'm lucky to her as my homeroom. She understands our struggles in life as well as school and isn't afraid to show us that she is having a bad day. "Hello, would you like to tell us your name?"

Axel finally stepped in, ears turning the tiniest bit red when he saw everyone staring. Every girl in the room took him in and started to check him out in unison, though if he noticed he didn't say. His eyes swept the room, looking at his audience, and stopped when they got to mine. He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw the empty chair next to me. 

"Hey," He started, his voice cracking at the most embarrassing moment. He blushed and cleared his throat to start again. "Hey everyone, I'm Axel Oray. I just moved to Georgia from Ohio because my dad got a new job."

"Well that's great Axel, have you gotten the chance to meet anyone yet?" asked my teacher, trying to diffuse the awkwardness. Axel's shoulders visibly relaxed, and his eyes turned to mine. The girls around me looked back when they saw him smile, wondering who was the one he was smiling at.

"Yeah, actually. I've met my across the street neighbors, Autumn and Austin, and their best friends Olive and Hunter." The class started to whisper, as rumor after rumor emerged, and to say I was surprised would be a complete lie. 

Though all of us were social and each had our own friends, the four of us had never broken apart from one another. We had been together since we were in 2nd grade, and we knew each other better than anyone else. No one had ever gotten between us, whether to separate or join us. Everyone at Carris High knew and respected this. Now that we had introduced someone new, and a complete stranger no less, the student body was going to go crazy.

Sensing this as a moment to get the class under control, Ms. Cowart clapped her hands in a simple rhythm of quarter, quarter, eighth, eighth, quarter, which we all repeated back to her as it had been drilled into our heads at such an early age. "Amazing Axel! Since you already know her, and it's the only seat in the room, why don't you go sit beside Autumn?"