Nostalgia

o4.oo

1 9 6 3

☙

Summer time finally rolled around and Anette was relieved. She didn't really like school; it felt artificial to her. She would much rather spend her time on her back porch reading a good book or taking Roach on a walk. Plus, seventh grade was hard for her, with transferring to a middle school and all. She didn't like the anxiety change brought. She was a bit mature for being twelve.

She got on really well with almost everyone, but there were very few she considered friends outside of school. The exceptions were Yeah-Yeah McClennan, Chrissy DiMattia, and Emily Thomson. They were her best friends.

Annette sat on an old plastic chair behind her caravan and watched the blazing sun dip behind the faded rooftops of San Fernando Valley. It basked the sky with hues of orange, red, purple, and eventually blue. It seemed to have dyed the clouds pink. She played with the straps of her yellow tank top and waited.

Yeah-Yeah and Timmy Timmons and Squints Palledorous were supposed to come over tonight, along with Chrissy and Emily. She knew Timmy, Squints, Chrissy, and Emily were all together at the movie house, so she was waiting on Yeah-Yeah. Why she and Yeah-Yeah didn't go was quite silly, to be frank.

They all knew Chrissy and Timmy were going to get married someday, even if they didn't realize it at this age. They just got on so well with each other and were often teased for being boyfriend and girlfriend, even though they weren't. They were together, though. In a sense, at least. It was just an unspoken understanding between the group of friends.

Squints and Emily made it obvious they liked one another. Between all the teasing and stolen glances, Annette just knew what was going on. They were both out of their minds with their level confidence. They always made an excuse to touch somehow. It was always pushing or punching or playing footsie under the table. Annette admired them.

And then there was her and Yeah-Yeah. Nobody really thought there was anything behind their relationship other than a genuine friendship. Annette was kind of disappointed that nobody seemed to speculate a childhood romance. She did have a little crush on him after all. And even though nobody thought anything of their friendship, she always felt a weird tension between them. She just didn't know what it was.

Suddenly she was snapped out of her thoughts as she saw Yeah-Yeah ride his rusty red bike up the hill her home was on. He wore a red sweatshirt with the sleeves cut clean off and a pair of jeans. She smiled at him confusedly and tilted her head as she tried to figure out what he was holding between his teeth. What she could conclude was that they were something in a long white plastic wrapper.

He rode to the back of the metal caravan and dropped his bike in the dirt. He took the wrappers in his hands and let out a long breath. It was a good distance from his house to hers. She lived on a little canyon-like hill that was littered with cacti and seemed more like it belonged in Arizona than California.

His red cheeks, dust caked jeans, and the perspiration running down his temples were the only remnants of his day spent playing ball. He looked so gallant with the golden rays of the sunset illuminating his skin. He wore a lazy grin, but his eyes were dancing with anticipation.

"Hey, Annie," he greeted her happily as she bounded down the back porch. He handed her one of the white wrappers. "I figured I'd bring Popsicles since we didn't go to the movies." He brought them because he knew she liked them.