Soft-spoken

Hello, my name is Emilie. From my first day at school I had been the geeky girl sitting in the corner. I always had my nose stuck in a book and I didn’t talk to anyone. My mom used to say that I would have tons of friends if I tried to talk to people. Easy for her to say, she was the social butterfly, the popular cheerleader in school. I think the fact that I had no friends was kind of disappointing to her. My life was fine, not the best, but I had a loving family, and in my mind that was all I needed. Unfortunately, it didn’t stay that way.

 

      It was my sophomore year in high school and I was sitting at one of the tables outside of the school, before school started. I absentmindedly brushed a strand of my shoulder length black hair behind my ear as I read my book. I must have been really absorbed in it or I would have noticed earlier a group of people walking over to me. I almost had a heart attack when someone plopped down next to me. I raised my, now wide with shock, bright green eyes to the person next to me. Oh God, it was Braden Linwood. It’s not like he was the most popular boy in school but he was reasonably well-liked. I stared up into his deep gray eyes for a minute before blushing and dropping my gaze back to my lap.

 

“Hello,” he said happily.

 

“Um, hi,” I mumbled, cursing myself as I fumbled over the words. I looked up at him to see him smiling, like there was nowhere on Earth he would rather be.

 

“My friends and I were hoping you could settle something,” he told me.

 

“What is it?” I questioned quietly.

 

“Well, we were having this debate about Lord of the Rings, because Rick says that Legolas sliding down the stairs on that shield in The Two Towers wouldn’t have been possible and I disagreed with him, and then we saw you over here and I remembered that you gave a report on Lord of the Rings last year so you must have seen them, so I thought we’d come and ask you,” Braden explained, still keeping on that “nothing in the world can get me down” smile.

 

I stared for a second, contemplating the question and then answered, “Well, I don’t think it would be possible for a Man, but Legolas is an Elf so I don’t think the rules apply to him.”

 

Braden was nodding like that made all the sense in the world. “See, I told you Rick.” Braden said spinning his head to look at his brunette friend.

 

Rick seemed to have the same look on his face that I had on mine. He seemed to be questioning why Braden thought what I said counted as some kind of inarguable proof. Before he could protest, however, one of the teachers poked their head out the door and called us all to come inside.

 

      As I slipped my book into my backpack Braden smiled brightly at me and said, “Bye Emi, see you tomorrow,” before walking off with his friends.

 

      I just stood there for a second, thinking, what have I gotten myself into?