|FIVE|
For some, middle school conjures up memories of embarrassing hairdos, awkward growing periods, and cringe-worthy social media status updates. And, alright, I wasn't exempt from either of those things. I wore too many sparkly green bobby pins, started wearing bras, and-since I was still banned from every social media site known to man-said a lot of cringe-worthy things out loud. But middle school was also where things started to change for Hugo and I. It was a light at the end of the dark tunnel that was elementary school.
The beauty of middle school? It was a fresh start.
There was only one public middle school in the area, whereas there were three elementary schools. When the transition from elementary to middle school came, all three elementary schools dumped their pre-teen graduates into one pool and waited to see who would sink and who would surface.
I intended to surface, and I was dragging Hugo up with me.
No longer would we carry the stigma's our old peers forced upon us, we were free. We would be among other students who had no idea of our past. Hugo would no longer be the quiet kid who stuttered when called on and sat on the bench watching everyone else during recess. I would no longer be the boy crazy Frog Girl. We would be two regular kids, just like everyone else.
I couldn't wait for summer to be over. I couldn't wait for the new life that was waiting for me, and the new boys. The only boy I saw all summer was Hugo.
And, I mean, Hugo was just Hugo.
A new world of Possible Princes awaited me. I daydreamed about the ways we would meet. Our eyes might meet from across the room in slow motion, I might drop my book and he'd help pick them up, we could hate each other and then get assigned to work on a class project together and fall in love despite the odds.
I couldn't wait to find out.
And, even though I barely slept the night before my first day, I bounced out of my bed at the first sound of my alarm, straightened my hair and pinned it away from my face with my favorite sparkly green bobby pins, and waited for Mrs. Guerra to pick me up.
That was the other exciting thing. Now Hugo and I were carpooling to school.
My stomach gurgled, but I was so nervous I feared eating would make me sick. I had to take deep, calming breaths as I waited for the red minivan to roll down the street.
After what felt like eternity, the Guerra minivan stopped in front of my house. I bounded down the sidewalk and hopped into the backseat beside Hugo. I was all smiles and bouncing knees, but Hugo was white faced and doe-eyed.
"Someone looks excited," Mrs. Guerra commented, her eyes meeting mine in the rearview mirror with a quick wink.
I nodded enthusiastically and jostled Hugo's arm. "Aren't you excited?" I asked.
His mouth opened for a second and then snapped shut, his face twisting. "I think...I might throw up," he finally managed to say.
"Pshhh." Maria turned in the passenger's seat to look at us. "Middle school is easy. You'll be just fine."
I grinned, believing her instantly, and looked to Hugo. He just frowned.
"Easy for you to say," he shot back. "Everyone loves you."
She waved a hand and faced forward. "Whatever, Hugo. Be dramatic, but you've got Ingrid."
My smile only grew wider. Nothing boosted my confidence more than Maria's approval. She was going to be a junior in high school-a popular junior in high school. Her words meant everything to me. If she thought I could get us through the day, then I knew I could.
"Hear that," I said. "You've got me. I'll make sure our day is amazing."
He sent me a wary glance and seemed to hold his breath. I got it, he was incredibly tall, he'd stick out like a sore thumb and he hated the attention. But, we were on a mission to make new friends and find new Princes, and if I had to drag him by the hand I would.
The middle school was a giant brick building with multiple floors and a massive entrance. The drop-off area was backed up with cars all the way back to the street. Students wove through traffic with brand-new backpacks on their backs and excitement in their smiles. Groups gathered around the front door, friends hugging each other after the long break and recounting crazy summer stories. I was no fool, I knew the shininess would rust, but right then, in that moment, I was ready to explode from the car and join them.
But, while I unbuckled and prepared to book it, Hugo melted into the car seat with his hands clamped to the armrests.
Mrs. Guerra braked and looked back to see us off. I swung the van door open and jumped out.
"Thank you, Mrs. Guerra," I sang politely. She smiled, and then we both looked to Hugo.
"Off you go," she told him.
"You know," he said breathlessly. "I'm really not feeling all that great-hey!"
Maria had climbed between the seats and unbuckled his seatbelt. He gave her the dirtiest look he could muster.
"They can smell fear," she warned. His eyes grew.
"Come on, Hugo," I whined impatiently. "You're holding up traffic."
And, he was. A car behind Mrs. Guerra honked rather obnoxiously, and I clamped my hands over my ears.
Seeing he was only making a scene-something he usually went to great lengths to avoid-he reluctantly followed me. Mrs. Guerra managed to press a kiss to his cheek as he passed her, and red lipstick smudged against his skin.
"Have a great day!" She called out to us just as he yanked the door shut.
After she drove away, I rubbed the lipstick off his cheek and gripped his hand.
While I led us toward the front door, I squeezed his hand and reminded him, "Time for a second chance."
●════════●♥●════════●
After being in a classroom of twenty kids, give or take a couple kids, I was not prepared for the chaos that was a middle school hallway. They were everywhere. Old faces, new faces, people that looked vaguely familiar-they were there. I tried desperately to drink it all in, but with Hugo attached to my hand, it was hard. He looked shell-shocked. His eyes were darting everywhere, I wasn't sure if he was breathing, and I could feel the pulse in his hand beating at a concerning speed.
Thankfully, when we picked up our schedules and realized we had the same homeroom, he took a breath of relief.
"Thank god," he muttered. "I didn't want to find that all by myself."
Not that it would have been much trouble, anyway. Each grade had their own floor. The eighth graders were on the third, the sixth graders had the first. Everything we needed was pretty much all in one hallway. That helped with the stress, too. Now, I could focus on the new people I was surrounded by.
Unfortunately, nobody really got to talk much all day. Except for icebreakers and short introductions, the teachers had the floor, and they used it to discuss class expectations and explain the curriculum.
I had four of my seven classes with Hugo, and so between passing time we decided to meet by his locker before heading down to lunch. That way, we wouldn't be alone.
The cafeteria was way bigger than the one we had in elementary school. And the tables were different too. We used to have one long table for our entire grade to sit at, but here multiple small tables that could seat about six filled the room. Before getting in line for food, kids were claiming tables with hoodies and lunch boxes.
Following their lead, Hugo and I found an empty table and did the same, leaving my pink sweater draped over the shiny gray surface. However, when we returned with our food, we found a few people sitting at the table we claimed.
"Sorry," a girl with curly red hair said as we approached. "Hope you don't mind. There weren't any empty tables when we got here."
Confused, I frowned down at the two people sitting there. Were they kicking us out? I was used to that kind of thing.
Hugo hesitated, but then set his tray across from hers.
"Um, sure that's okay, Josie," he told her in a soft voice as he sat down.
I paused, unable to do anything but blink. What?
I mean, I wasn't going to say no to an opportunity to make new friends, but...what? Since when did Hugo know a Josie? When did he have time to make friends?
Noticing that I wasn't sitting down beside him, Hugo looked back at me, jolting when he realized I was gazing at the scene in puzzlement.
"Oh-uh, Ingrid. This is Josie, and her...friend?" He guessed, and then shrugged. "We have civics together."
Josie smiled up at me with a shiny, metal smile. Nodding, I sat down across from a dark-skinned boy with a shaved head and pretty brown eyes. Those eyes made my heart flutter, and I could feel the blush burn my cheeks.
"It's Joslyn, actually," Josie informed me, pulling my attention back towards her. "But people call me Josie. Oh, and this is Micah."
Both Hugo and I nodded at the boy as he was introduced, and I couldn't help but smile my warmest smile. He was making my stomach do all sorts of gymnastics. He kept his eyes on Hugo while Josie talked, though.
"Like I said, sorry for just inviting ourselves over. I recognized your girlfriend's sweater and thought you wouldn't mind. You seemed nice in class," she explained further, spinning her water bottle between her hands.
Girlfriend...wait, did she say girlfriend?
My eyes unglued from Micah's face and my head jerked towards her, mouth agape. Hugo was struggling for words, too. Except his face turned blank and his ears started to change color. Our wide eyes were both on hers.
"Excuse me," I choked. "What?"
Josie looked between us, her smile faltering a little. "You guys are a couple right? You were holding hands this morning...I thought..."
Hugo and I both started shaking our heads in frantic unison. He started stuttering nonsense the way he did when he was asked a question he wasn't prepared for, and I laughed nervously, glancing at Micah.
That boy needed to know I was single.
"We're just friends," I assured him-them.
She looked from Hugo's blushing skin to my stiff posture and back. "You don't look so sure..."
At this, Micah laughed. My attention found him, again. He had a slightly silly laugh, and I lost my words, embarrassed that that laugh was directed at me-us.
Hugo coughed, answering in my momentary absence, "We're not not sure, just together-not together, I mean....Not...together."
Both Josie and Micah were laughing, now, and I wanted to fade into the walls, melt to the floors, disappear into the void.
I smacked a hand over my face, and slowly lowered my forehead to the table. Hugo's entire face was so red I thought he was going to burst into tears.
"Aw, how cute." Josie giggled, pointing at Hugo's flushed face. "You totally like her, then."
No. NO.
I sat straight up and shook my head furiously enough to make up for the fact that Hugo was frozen.
"Sorry, nope," I told her, a bit of frustration edging into my voice. This was going to end, and it was going to end, now. "Hugo doesn't have a crush on me, he doesn't have crushes on any girl. He's shy and you're embarrassing him."
Josie blinked a couple times in stunned silence, and then nodded. "Okay then, whatever you say. It was just a joke."
In the uncomfortable silence that followed, I glanced at Hugo, and when he met my eyes, he let out a breath of relief and then laughed a little.
"So, this is fun..." he offered, to which everyone chuckled.
I caught Micah's smile as he propped his chin up in his hand and looked from Josie to Hugo. He wasn't paying much attention to me, maybe he was one of those people that couldn't make eye contact with someone they thought was cute-I hoped that was the case-because I thought he was really cute. I felt tongue-tied just sitting in his presence.
And sure, I didn't get my perfect first meet-cute in middle school. No slow motion, no book dropping, no school project to kick off our inevitable love affair. But, I knew myself well enough to know that not having a perfect meet-cute wasn't going to stop me.
I just needed a clever segue.
"So, either of you have gym with Mr. Nicholson?" I asked, hoping my charm was enough for them to forgive my little outburst.
And, then, fate's design put Micah and I at a crossroads.
"Yeah, I do," Micah answered with a slight smile. "See you there?"
I made sure my eyes met his pretty chocolate ones with a flirty twinkle before promising, "Absolutely."
If that didn't make his heart race...I was doomed.