Forget Me Not

Chapter 1: The Invitation

No one ratted Chris out because he was everyone's source and if he disappeared there would be a lot of angry people ready to punish whoever dobbed him in. And I don't think anyone was ready for that kind of beating. It really wasn't worth it.

I had a few of my classes with two of Chris' friends, Brielle and Tom. They always sat together, keeping to themselves just talking and laughing. They'd been dating since forever and I don't think I remember a time when they weren't. Brielle was slim and sported godly large breast for her size, which I'd kill for but she covered them up with long shirts and denim jackets. She had short blonde hair which would look gorgeous without the mess of pastel blue and pink streaks. My Father would flip if my hair looked like that but it suited her.

Tom was quieter than the other two. He wore long sleeves all year round and had quite a large collection of patterned socks. But what interested me most about him was that he was never far from Brielle and not in a possessive or psycho way either. The two of them just stuck like glue and you could easily see he truly loved her just by the way he looked at her. His face softened, eyes watched her carefully and his smile was contagious. I always wondered what it was like to have a love like that. To look at someone and see the entire universe...

Then there was Chris stuffing another wad of money into the pockets of his dirty ripped jeans. I had History last year and his clothing always bugged me. He always looked like he'd just got out of bed when he came to school; wrinkled clothes, stained shirts, and odd socks. And to top it all off, his long brown hair always looked as if he never brushed it. Knowing him, he probably didn't. Thankfully, he covered it most days with a red beanie, even in summer. In History, he sat up the back alone and mostly slept. One time he slept through an entire school day and no one bothered to wake him. It became a sort of running joke for a while, people thought it was hilarious.

I sat and waited for Lottie to appear again. I just wanted to get home, put the kettle on, and change into my favourite track pants. There was a mountain of homework on my mind and plenty of meetings to prepare for.

I looked back over at Chris and his friends. Chris leaned lazily against the bricks talking to Tom and Brielle who sat on the wall next to him. Tom had his hand rested on Brielle's thigh and she was laughing, waving her hands around like she was acting out some kind of dramatic story. My eyes wandered to their friend Kitt. The fourth person in their 'gracious' little group. Strangely, I hadn't had any classes with him. Ever.

He wasn't in any sporting teams, social groups, or school clubs like his friends. Brielle and Tom did photography together and worked on the school magazine. Hell, Chris was even in a group helping backstage on school plays. Not that he did much. But Kitt did nothing. I don't even recall hearing him speak more than a few words in all our years together at Hampton High.

He always wore black or white t-shirts, black jeans and was definitely the quietest one of them all; mostly just watching, listening to his friends with the same placid look on his face. Sometimes he smiles but never a real full smile like Clay or Lottie. Something tells me he only does it to be polite. Other than that, I knew he was a smoker, which I hated. After school, while they waited for Chris to finish, Kitt would whip out his cigarettes and lean against the wall smoking. I don't want to imagine what he'd smell like. I crinkled my nose just thinking about it.

I grabbed headphones out of my backpack and plugged them into my phone. I pressed shuffle and looked out the window one last time. Tom was helping Brielle down from the wall. Chris was openly counting cash in his hands and Kitt was looking straight at me.

Oh Shit.

I looked away quickly, feeling his eyes still burning into me through the bus window. I stuffed my headphones into my ears suddenly feeling embarrassed for staring at them so long. I could feel my cheeks getting warmer and my stomach turned.