High School Treachery | ✓

02 | Reacquainted

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Reacquainted

"Hi, Lyndon! How are you?"

Malia's voice travels across the line like a damn siren song. It's velvety and smooth and confident, everything my embarrassing stutter of the simple word hello wasn't.

"Um, I'm, uh, I'm good. Yeah, I'm good," I say, nodding my head as if she can see me trying to reassure myself that I am indeed good. "Uh, you?"

She lightly laughs, probably at my clear awkwardness. "I'm great. I was just thinking of you. My mother said you were moving back and coming to Arlin. How do you feel about it?"

I pull the phone away and sigh heavily. She doesn't really want to know how I feel about coming back to her town and going to her school. "Good."

I grimace. Can I think of any other word to say right now?

"I'd be really nervous to start all over, especially for senior year," she comments, but something tells me this girl would never feel nervous about anything.

"Well, yeah, it's only natural," I say and then immediately grimace again. Who am I right now?

She hums an agreement. "True. At least you'll already know someone. Actually, two people. Noah's enrolling too, right?"

I nod my head, then smack myself on the forehead because she can't even see me. "Yes, he is. So is Knox. Remember him?"

She laughs again, and this time I know she's laughing at me. "Yes, I remember Knox. He's a freshman now?"

"Mhm. The little boy's all grown up," I say with a smile, instantly remembering the times we'd force him to be the dog when we'd play with Malia's fake kitchen/living room set at holiday parties.

"I can't even picture Knox as a teenager." She laughs again, and now I know she's laughing with me, and it actually feels good.

Our giggles mend together, as we briefly exchange stories we remember, of all the stupid shit we'd make Knox do because we had no one else. Noah never hung out with us, and Malia's sister was way too young, even though she wanted to be with us.

"Remember when Blair went crying to Abuela and got us in trouble?"

"Yes!" Malia says over her laughs. "And then we blamed everything on Knox, saying he didn't want to talk to her!"

Mirth gathers at the corners of my eyes at the image of Knox's pissed off face. He was only around six years old at the time, but I'm sure he was cursing us out in his mind.

"He was so pissed. She started crying so much and yelling at him because she even believed it was him," I say, cackling like a fucking hyena.

Malia's laugh is much more contained than mine, but I can hear it in her voice that she's finding this all as hysterical as me. God, can she do anything without sounding like perfection? It's almost annoying.

"Blair was always so gullible," she says wistfully.

"What grade is she in now?" I ask after calming down a bit, eyes still watery from the laughter.

She pauses to think. "Oh, she's starting middle school. Scary sixth grade."

I make a tsk noise. "Yikes, the dreaded sixth grade. What a whirlwind."

Malia makes a noise of agreement. "Definitely."

The line goes silent for a second, a comfortable silence. Then she speaks again, quieter this time.

"We were supposed to go through it together."

"Yeah," I breathe out. "Things just got in the way. The funny part is that we both didn't even go to MS 187."