The Yellow Umbrella

Chapter One: Fire

I fell in love with a flower.

There was just something so undeniable about Mia James, the way she tossed her head back when she laughed, how gently her copper coils fell in front of her face when she doodled in class. Let's not forget that smile; god I loved the way she smiled.

Not that she knew that, of course.

Because for three years, 1,095 days, I had been terribly in love with her.

And she had no idea.

It all started near the end of freshman year. The school year was almost over and I was ready for summer, to put down the textbooks, pick up a gaming controller, and sit in my garage till my eyes went bloodshot. I was sure of what my summer was going to revolve around: video games, beach days, bonfires.

You know, the usual summer stuff.

Wrong.

Because the second that green eyed goddess walked through the door of algebra class, everything changed. The moment she sat in the only open desk in front of me, everything changed.

It's absolutely mind boggling to think how one event, one icy patch on the road, one missed date on an expired can, could shift our world. Big or small, this event changed everything.

Mine was Mia James.

I remember it all so vividly; I could tell you everything, from our first kiss to the sweater she wore on Christmas. But I'm getting ahead of myself.

She whipped her thick red hair over her shoulder and flashed me a perfect smile. Okay, near perfect, she did have a slightly crooked front tooth, but who really paid attention to those kinds of details?

"Is this seat taken?" Mia asked in a sweet voice that instantly made me melt on the spot.

Was she real? Could someone this perfect actually exist? Courtesy of my parents spending the entire night in a screaming match, my sleep deprived brain convinced me that Mia was a manic pixie dream girl and I was dorky love interest in a horribly directed teen flick. But I noticed a few other kids checking her out too, so I knew she had to be real.

I was absolutely speechless.

"Uh," was all I could manage to say.

She cocked her head. I was losing her, I could tell. I had to think fast.

"Alyssa Barnett used to sit there, but then she got knocked up," I blurted.

"So, I can't sit here?" she asked, a thick red brow furrowing downward.

She stared at me, waiting for an answer, any answer. I blinked back, forgetting every single word I had learned since birth. I had absolutely no idea how to talk to girls in general, let alone this girl. The silence was making it awkwardly worse. A confused look lingered on her face, as the heat continued to rise in mine. Before I could try to save myself from looking even more lame or manage to say at least one syllable, the world's worst person had to cut in.

Brandon Roberts, also known as the spawn of Satan by some, football star douche by others.

"Don't listen to Joke." Brandon laughed.

"Jake." I muttered, even though correcting him never stopped him from calling me that.

"That seat's reserved for a special lady and it looks like you're here." Brandon grinned, ignoring me.

Relieved, she nodded. "Thanks, I'm Mia."

"Brandon." He bragged, as if his name were only allowed to be spoken by our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, or in his case, star quarterback of the Philadelphia Eagles, Nick Foles.