Shit, I'm so late.
I rushed out of my English class. We had been watching Romeo + Juliet, and I loved all things Shakespeare. Some of my buddies gave me a hard time for it, but I never cared. Something about poetry amazed me.
I've lived in this town my whole life. My kindergarten class was just down the street, every school I've ever been to was just around the corner. My family had a house on the other side of town; my mother had to argue with the principal to let me come here when high school started. This district said I was zoned for the rival school, but all my friends were coming here. I knew everyone at this school.
One of the perks of the baseball team, was the popularity that came with it. Or so I was told, I didn't enjoy a ton of attention. I very much enjoyed the team. This is my junior year, but I was placed on the varsity team at the end of last season. The varsity players were under close watch of college scouts, so they played with much more intensity. That made the game even more fun. The other varsity players were seniors, so that meant their last class of each day was baseball. They would spend the time between the locker room and the sports medicine class; getting arms and legs wrapped in athletic tape, massages, ice, or lifting weights. Instead of leaving class early to join my team, I decided to watch just a little more of the film. I was probably the only guy in class who actually paid attention anyway.
Mrs. Gertrude appreciated that. I liked to make people happy. I also really liked the books she assigned.
I believed that was why I had as many friends as I did; I tried my best to be nice everyone. Well, almost everyone. There was an incident last year with a few guys who decided to talk badly about my brother. That wasn't the first time I had gotten in a fight to defend someone else, and I'm sure it wouldn't be the last.
Just then, I heard a deep voice coming from the library. Across the hall, two boys jumped on their skateboards and rolled over to me with their arms up in the air.
"Tony! Where you going man?" It was Brett, my best friend. He recently buzzed his hair off, and the newly bald tan line was glaring in the sun. He adjusted his tank top, exposing his tattoos. He was the only kid at our school with visible tattoos, and often got in trouble for them and his largely stretched ears. He hopped off the skateboard before dapping me up. Close behind was John, our other best friend. We were a trio of trouble makers for our teachers. John was a bit more quiet than Brett and I. He zipped up a bright green windbreaker, holding tightly to his binder.
"Come on, dude. I really gotta write this paper." John complained. He needed to get really good grades this year so that he could follow his girlfriend to their dream college in the city. It became his sole focus in the last few months. Having the goal was good for him, John really shaped up. He stopped smoking and started reading a lot, even when he would hang out with us at the skate park.
I nudged my friends, "You got this, man. Hey, you guys coming to the game this weekend?"
"You know it, brother!" Brett replied with a goofy grin.
It meant a lot to me having my close friends come to all of my games. They were good at embarrassing the girls when the cheerleaders got annoying. It felt good having people in the crowd cheering for me, but it was also really uncomfortable to know I was being watched. Socialization wasn't my strong suit, but those girls followed me around anyway. I pulled at the collar of my white t-shirt, the tag was itching me all day. I couldn't wait to change out of it and get my work out clothes on. The smooth, cool, fabric always felt better against my skin.
I said my goodbyes and continued my hustle across campus when suddenly, everything changed. I saw a girl, someone I have never seen before, and she looked like no one I have ever seen before. Time stopped, the world around me froze.
Everything about her was small; she was shorter than most girls, her facial features were delicate. But her eyes- looking a bit pink from crying- Those big glowing eyes stole all the blues and greens from the ocean. She bit at the edge of her round, rosy pink lips. Her brows twisted with worry. Light brown hair fell in front of her as she wrapped her arms around herself, pulling her sweater closed over her tight blue shirt. This girl's body language was heavy with sadness. I was hypnotized.
It felt like electricity coursing through me. All at once, every cell in my body was screaming: hold her, protect her, don't ever let go.
Instinctively, I reached out. I wanted to feel her smooth, milky skin. She skidded to a halt when my hand came up. Like a frightened little bird, she turned to hurry away. I was unmoved, watching the golden sunlight through her hair as she walked away.
In an instant, I was obsessed. I was in love. Who is she?
***
By the time I got home from practice, my body was exhausted but my mind was still buzzing. I had a new mission: find this mystery girl, meet her, make her fall in love with me. And I knew just where to start.
After a quick shower, I wiped the condensation off the mirror to look myself over. Brushing my cheeks to check if I needed to shave, I watched my dark brown hair begin to curl as it dried. I quickly toweled off as much as I could before sliding my baseball cap back on. I could see my tired hazel eyes through the foggy mirror. It might have been a better idea to stay home and sleep.
I got on some new clothes and ran out into the dark. I put in my headphones and queued up my favorite music before hopping on my long board to skate to my friend's house at the bottom of the hill. Jenifer Altman.
Jenny and I had been friends since third grade. We had been in the same class ever since. She tried to be friends with my little sister before me, but they couldn't seem to get along. Since her family lived so close, Jenny and I would play together after school. I taught her how to ride a skateboard, and she taught me how to manage my thick curly hair. It used to frustrate me to the point of shaving it all off, but Jenny's parents were both hair dressers and she planned to follow their career. She loved doing everyone's hair, including mine. Most recently she had dyed her hair jet black and tried to convince me to dye mine blue.
I made my way down the street quickly. As luck would have it, Jenny was already outside. To my dismay, she was hanging out with her best friend Monica. I could not stand Monica.
As my board coasted into her driveway, I kicked the board up into my hands and jogged across the lawn. Jenny and Monica were sitting in the grass. It was getting late and I couldn't stay out long without getting in trouble, I decided to start questioning Jenny immediately, "Hey, I need your help."
"What's up, chuck?" She teased.
"There's a new girl at school, do you know her?"
Monica interrupted with a groan, "Ugh, her? What do you want with her?"
"I didn't ask you," I barked back, "Besides, it's none of your business."
"If it involves Jen-Jen, then it involves me." Monica said with a pouted lip, wrapping her arms around Jenny. They kissed each other's cheeks playfully.
"Jenn, please." I pleaded.
Monica moaned, falling back into the grass. Jenny looked up at me with a smile, "I don't really know her, but Maddy does. They're like friends or whatever. I don't really get it. She doesn't talk much, but she usually sits with us at lunch."
I felt my heart skip a beat. This girl got my feelings twisted up so quickly, and all along she has been having lunch with my best friends. There's no way I am going to spend any more lunch breaks on the baseball field. I couldn't hold back my smile as a wave of joy washed over me.
"Okay. I gotta go. Thanks, Jenny! I'll see you guys at school!" I yelled as I started to run backwards.
"Wait!" Jenny called out to me as I hopped on my board, "Why do you want to know?"
I spoke from my chest, with full confidence, "I'm gonna marry that girl!"