It was her eyes that drew his attention, like two clear blue pools. Then that bright red hair down to her shoulders caught the light. It was thin, maybe not quite growing out evenly, nevertheless he stared.
That is until his parents made him look away from the window. Dinner was ready and despite wanting to stay where he was Max got down off the back of the couch, put his feet on the floor before toddling over to the dinner table.
Looking at his plate wasn't nearly as good as looking at her. Max moved the pea around with the end of his fork, his attention still otherwise occupied. He wanted to ask mommy who that girl was, but didn't know how to say it right. He tried a few times, but they didn't get what he was trying to say. Adults always did this in Max's opinion then they would say something like 'you'll understand when you're older' which never made any sense because it seemed to Max that all growing up meant was being bad at understanding things.
And then they were talking about tomorrow. Max wasn't excited about it and he really didn't want to talk about it, but still his parents went on. Whatever this 'preschool' thing was Max wanted no part in it. He didn't understand why he couldn't just stay here. It was where he'd always been as long as he could remember and Max could remember quite a way back he was sure. Why Max could even remember when dad's couch had been under the window instead of the back wall! That had been quite the change around here. Yes, Max was sure he was old enough to decide not to go to this dreaded preschool.
So how was it that he still ended up standing on the front steps of that strange building watching his parents walk away. Didn't they want him anymore? Why were they leaving?
He wouldn't go inside. He'd stay right here and wait for them to come get him. Because they would come back, right?
Another grown up told him to come inside with a smile on her face, but Max just sat down firmly on the ground. He would not be moved. Despite his determination the next moment he found himself being lifted up into the air and carried inside. He was wiggling with all his might, trying to make her put him down. What if his parents came back and he wasn't there? How would they find him?
By the time his feet touched the ground, Max didn't know how to get back to that front step. The way they'd come through was closed now and there was more than one door it could have been. His parents would look for him, right? They wouldn't just give up if he wasn't sitting right where they left him?
"There isn't that better," the grown up who called herself teacher said. "Now take your shoes off and then you can go play with the other children."
Max was fully prepared to leave his shoes on and sit down right where he stood, never to move again, when he saw her. That girl with the curly red hair was just on the other side of the room, playing with some blocks.
For the moment distracted, Max ditched his shoes and walked over to her. He didn't get that close but instead starred at the block she was moving with her hands.
"See they go in holes that right shape," the girl said as if speaking to him. And then she put a square block into a square hole. "You try."
And Max did. First he looked at them, making sure he got it right before lifting a shape with a few extra sides than a square and placing it in a hole with the same number of sides. It went in easily.
"You got it!" the girl said with a little giggle.
As he listened to her laugh Max realized he wanted her to be happy all the time and always laugh just like that.
"I'm Max," he said to her looking up at her face instead of the blocks.
"Zoey," she replied.
"Will you be my friend?" he asked.
"Uh huh," Zoey said with a nod.
"What do friends do together?" Max asked.
"I think they draw," Zoey said, pointing to a table on their right.
"I draw at home sometimes," Max said. "But today is my first day of preschool. Is drawing different in preschool?"
"Don't think so," Zoey said. "But we could go find out." Max agreed and they made their way to the table.
Max picked up a red crayon and tried to make marks on the paper in the same shape as Zoey's hair, but it just looked like lines to him. Zoey didn't look like lines. So instead he decided to make lines on purpose, picking up a purple crayon when he was done with the red because it was the closest.
"I like yours," Max said looking over at the lines on Zoey's paper.
"Thanks," Zoey said beaming. Max liked it when she smiled.
"Preschool drawing is just like home drawing," Max said happily.
"Only more colours," Zoey remarked. "And no annoying brother." Zoey stuck her tongue out and made a raspberry sound to show her appreciation for said brother.
"How he annoying?" Max asked.
"Gets all the best stuff," Zoey whined. "Cause he's older. Always picking me up when I don't want hugs."
"Sometimes adults don't understand stuff," Max agreed.
"He no adult," Zoey added. "Just thinks he is."
"I'm glad I don't have a brother," Max remarked. From what Zoey said it seemed like Max had it good at home with just mommy and daddy.
"Yeah you lucky," Zoey agreed. She looked down at her drawing. "I'm done." She got up and Max followed behind, more interested in being near her than whatever his drawing looked like.
"Best part of preschool," Zoey said, pointing to the only other table in the room apart from the drawing table. "Wa'er. And the boat go across, you make path so boat don't get stuck."
"Like this," Max said as he lifted a plastic flattened block and put it in a slock. The effect was that the flowing water on the table changed direction to avoid the block.
"Yeah," Zoey said. "Again like that until boat goes one side to other side."
"We can do it," Max agreed as they got to work.
By the time the teacher called everyone to come to the circle for sharing time, Zoey and Max had built a very effective water way if he did say so himself. Max felt very proud of their little creation as he followed Zoey to the center of the classroom. Max sat beside his friend in the circle before the teacher started talking.
"I'm going to go around the room and get everyone to share their favourite thing about preschool today," the teacher said. "Starting with you Zoey."
"Water table," Zoey said right away.
"Blocks," the kid next to her said.
"Drawing."
When they'd been around the whole circle it was finally Max's turn.
"And what about you Max," the teacher said with a smile. Teacher lady actually seemed quite nice now that Max had given her a chance. "What was your favourite thing about your first day of preschool?"
"Zoey," Max said.
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Thanks for reading the first chapter of my new story!
This story starts, as you can tell, with Max at about age three or four and will keep going all the way past college. It's a story of a lifelong friendship slowly turning into something else.
All chapters will have a year at the top to let you know if there has been a time skip. Some chapters will have a significant time jump while others only a year or matter of months.
I know this chapter is very short, but as their lives get more interesting (because how much can you really write about three year olds) the chapters will get longer.
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Sneak Peek Chapter Two
On a sudden impulse, Max jumped up off the side of the road and began walking along the every edge of the curb, holding his arms out to keep his balance.
"It's only like what three inches to fall," Zoey giggled at him. "What's with the balance beam arms."
"Don't knock it till you try it," Max replied.
And like he knew she would, Zoey complied, walking behind him with her arms out. Zoey had always found time to tease him, though in the end she followed where he led the same way he followed her.
"Fun right?" Max asked. Zoey agreed and they walked like that all the way till the end of the block until the curl ended and they were forced to walk on the road again
Beta: Tina Geller from fanfic.net