To start a story you ought to start in the beginning. The “beginning” happened about nine years before and I don’t remember it whatsoever. The first day of school is a great starting point; it marks a new year of school so I’ll just start there. It was August 25th and I was starting eighth grade.
I would be the girl a total of nine times but this wasn’t one of them. I’d gone to the same middle school for the past two years. Both were amazing but I planned to make this year the best yet.
Then I walked in and I saw him.
I hadn’t seen him in nine years but he wasn’t the sort of person you’d forget. He wasn’t a little boy cute like he was in first grade. But the change wasn’t bad. He was actually decent looking, not to mention much taller than before. But that didn’t change the fact that he still had the same tan skin, long hair, and teasing, slightly arrogant smile. I recognized him right away.
He noticed me staring and smiled. I quickly looked away, and walked to the opposite end of the classroom.
I’d known he was coming, I’d expected it. But I hadn’t expected him to be anything like that. That was not how he was! Dorky, little and smiling-- that’s what he was supposed to be like. Not all “cool” with his dumb Justin Bieber hair giving girls like me Aren’t-I-cute? smile.
I could feel his eyes on me and willed myself not to return his gaze. He recognized me too.
As he should! But that fact just made my stomach squirm even more.
The bell rang and I ordered myself not to spend another second thinking about how completely wrong it was that he looked like a boy from a teenage girl magazine. School had started and now it was back to the routine.
I'd purposely sat as far away from him as possible but he came over and sat right behind me. The teacher came in and started talking the usual first day speech; I'm so-and-so, I grade blah blah, I enjoy yada yada.
"Hey," he whispered and poked me in the back with a pencil, "Are you Skylar Periellis?"
I didn't respond.
"Hey you!" he said again, "Are you Skylar Periellis?"
"What do you think you're doing?" I hissed, "The teacher is talking! I'm trying to learn something!"
Not that learning how many years the teacher had taught was highly useful information but still.
The bell rang again and I was up and out of my seat before anyone else. I was tasting freedom, almost to the door- When I felt his hand on my arm, pulling me back.
"What do you think you're doing?" I demanded and pulled my arm back.
"Are you Skylar Periellis?" he asked.
"I don't know you think you are but-"
"Are you?"
"Well, yes I am," I said irritably. I'd considered denying it but there wasn't any way I could really get away with that lie.
"Thought so," he said with a smile that was so typically him. "Why didn't you say hello?"
I thought of what to say. He waited for me to speak. I waited for an epiphany of sorts.
But none came. Finally, I just looked him straight in the eye and said, "Hi, I'm Skylar but..."
"You go by Sky," he interrupted, "I already know that. What? Don't pretend you don't know who I am."
I stared him down before nodding, "Yeah, I remember you Connor."
"Good, I was starting to worry," he said, "Okay, you can go now."
I raised an eyebrow. I wasn't aware that I needed his permission. But as I walked away I realized that unofficially I'd given him control of that. He was already winning. Unacceptable.
"Anyways you want it. That's the way you need it, anyway you want it."
“Anyway I want it?” I said with a half-smile.
He didn’t reply, just continued to sing.
