Don't Wander

Beep! Beep! Beep! I awoke to the obnoxious noise of my alarm, and began groggily slapping away at the snooze button. Finally hitting my mark, the room filled with blissful silence. As much as I wanted to drift back to sleep, I knew I couldn’t. Today was my first day of my senior year of high school, and it would be really bad if I skipped it. I whipped the warm comforter from my body and slowly sat up, stretching my arms and back. Eventually I stood and wiggled my toes in the plush green throw rug. It was a nice addition to my mostly bare wooden floors, adding a splash of my favorite color while simultaneously insulating my bare feet against the frigidness that creeps in during winter time. I briefly gazed out the large bay window that gave me a great view of our spaceous backyard. The leaves on the trees were beginning to hint at the vibrant colors they would be bearing in only a few short weeks. I took a deep breath to steady myself and then began getting ready for the day ahead. Luckily, I had already chosen what I would wear, so the rest of my preparations were merely reflexive. I fixed my thick blonde hair and applied a little makeup to my fair skin. I don't typically wear much makeup, just some mascara and shadow to bring out the blue of my eyes, and a bit of gloss to accentuate my shapely lips. I ate a modest breakfast of fruit and toast, then brushed my teeth. After packing my bag, I was finally ready. This morning was a carbon copy of every morning of the past nearly twelve years. My mom was sleeping off her night shift as a nurse at the local hospital, and my dad was gone working some top secret job for the government. I had been taking care of myself since the first grade, so getting ready and making it to the bus stop on time was a simple task. As I stepped out into the early September morning, I discovered it was a foggy one, which upset me. Despite the tedious flat ironing I had put my hair though that morning, I knew it would be a frizzy mess by the time I arrived at school. There was nothing I could do about it though, so I shrugged it off. Maine was a beautiful place to live, but I wasn’t always a huge fan of the weather. I lived out in the middle of the forest, and my home was densely surrounded by tall trees and bushes. Mine was the last house on the bus route, so the bus was already full when I climbed on. I glanced around at the familiar faces; some were gazing back lazily and others eagerly. I managed to find a seat near the back, and plopped down onto its cracked surface. The bus lurched forward and we were on our way, journeying to West Ridge High School. I listened to one of my favorited music playlists to drown out the hollering of my classmates, their excitement palpable. Despite myself, I began to grow anxious and could barely wait for the bus to arrive. We finally reached our destination, and as I got off the bus, I scanned the crowd of animated faces for my friends. It didn’t take me long to find my best friend Brittany, who everyone called Britt. We met in third grade when we fought over the same glitter glue. I eventually relented and let Britt have it, and she gave me her special pen in return. We have been basically inseparable ever since. Britt was a super short, curvy red head with large hazel eyes. She was the type that guys found extremely sexy. I sometimes envied her. I was a thin, pale-skinned girl of average height. My eyes were the only attribute that I truly admired. Their color was a vibrant blue. It was a startling contrast against my light skin and hair. We were honestly polor opposites, but it just worked. I jogged over to my friend and said, “Hey Brit! Can you believe we are seniors this year?” “Bek! I know, it’s totally crazy!” Britt exclaimed. My friends Kerry, Morgan, and Ben were also there, along with the boyfriends of both Kerry and Morgan. I greeted all of them, and we were all busy catching up from last year when Britt suddenly gushed, “Oh my God, I must have died and gone to heaven.” I automatically turned to see what she was talking about, and that was when I saw him. He was tall, over six feet, and lean. He looked fit with an athletic physique, but he didn’t strike me as the sporty type. His slightly wavy hair was black as a raven’s, and long, covering his forehead. His skin was olive toned and flawless. He was wearing jeans, a plain black t shirt that hugged his muscular frame, and really colorful Nike shoes. He was gorgeous. As he passed us, I smelled a mix of earthy pine needles and fresh rain. It was a surprising combination, and it made my fingertips tingle. All I could think to say was, “Whoa.. is he new here?” We continued to stare in the direction where he had dissolved into the swarms of students. She put her hand on her hip and said, “He’s definitely new. I would have noticed that hottie if he had been here before.” She raised one delicate eyebrow suggestively and added, “I could show him around.” Ben laughed and said, “Yeah, you’d show him all the make out spots.” Everyone busted out laughing. Ben was skinny and blonde, and wore glasses. He was very bookish, and usually really nice, which made the jab even more hilarious. Britt slapped his chest and said, “Shut up Ben! You wish girls wanted to do that with you!” Ben raised his hands in surrender, and glanced at me with a grin. “Don’t take it so personally, I was only kidding,” he said. “You’d better be, if you know what’s good for you,” Britt said halfheartedly. She was already distracted with searching for the new guy again. The bell rang to signal everyone to get to class, and we all headed for our lockers. At registration my friends and I had chosen our lockers together, so we were all in the same area. Britt and I had practically the same schedule, so after saying farewell to our friends we walked to first hour English together. We took two seats next to each other near the front of the classroom. The tardy bell rang after a moment our teacher walked in. He was robust with silver hair and a matching mustache. He introduced himself as Mr. Mitchell and immediately announced that there would be assigned seating. We all groaned in aggravation. I turned to Britt and said, “This sucks. Wait for me after class.” “Tell me about it. Sure I’ll wait, no problem babe,” she replied. Her last name was Clarkson and mine was Williams, so we would be on opposite sides of the room. I hated being in the back, but of course that was where I ended up. What shocked me was who lounged in the chair behind mine. It was the new guy from that morning. I turned to gape at Britt across the room and her eyes got big. She mouthed, “Lucky skankface,” and turned away. I laughed quietly at the nickname. She called anyone she was jealous of a skankface. I turned back to the new guy and said politely, “Hi, my name’s Rebekah, but everyone calls me Bek. What’s your name?” He just looked past me like I hadn’t spoken. I sat down and tried again, “Are you new here?” He still said nothing, and kept staring at the front of the classroom like there was a juggling one-legged dinosaur up there or something. I noticed that his hair had been brushed back, so I could now see his eyes clearly. They were a strikingly beautiful emerald green with a gold halo in the center around his pupils. As the silence stretched on, I blushed and turned to the front of my desk and muttered, “Okay, don’t tell me. Not like I care.” I heard him chuckle under his breath at this, which irritated me. What was so funny? Did he find it amusing to make me feel awkward? I didn’t turn around or speak to him for the rest of the period, and when the bell rang he quickly stood and left. I joined Britt at the door and she asked, “So? Who is he? What’s he like? Does he have a girlfriend? Wh—” I interrupted her tirade with, “You can ask him yourself, because he didn’t say one word to me. I asked him if he was new and what his name was, but he just stared at me like I had two noses or something.” “Sheesh, harsh. Oh well, I like a guy who’s mysterious.” “Face it honey, you like a guy who’s smokin’, whether he’s mysterious or not,” I joked. “True, but mystery always helps,” She giggled. My next class was the only one Britt and I didn’t share. It was advanced algebra, and this time the teacher was a woman. Her name was Mrs. Blue, and she had a haggard look. Seeming very put out, she paired everyone up and told us to find out three things about each other, which we would then share with the rest of the class. The whole thing was asinine, considering we had all been in school together for years and knew practically everything about one another. I couldn’t believe my terrible luck when Mrs. Blue paired me with the rude new guy. I made my displeasure obvious as he sat down in the desk beside mine. I faced him and said abruptly, “Listen, just tell me three things and I’ll leave you alone.” He leaned back comfortably in his chair and said, “My name is Eden. I hate stereotypes, my favorite hobby is going for runs, and no you cannot have my number.” I couldn’t believe the ego of this guy. “What makes you think I even want your number? Because I don’t,” I said haughtily. “I meant that as a general statement, but obviously you must want it since you assumed I was talking about you.” Then to my amazement, he stood up and started to walk back to his desk. I called after him, “Wait! Aren’t you going to ask me anything?” He said simply, “No need,” and continued to his seat. I crossed my arms and scowled at the floor. He was such a jerk. When the teacher pointed at me, I stood and shared what I had learned. The class cracked up at the number thing. I simply rolled my eyes and sat back down, smugly waiting to see what Eden would say. He stood up, looked straight at me, and said, “Her name is Rebekah, but everyone calls her Bek; she rides the bus, she's reading Pride and Prejudice, and she wants my number.” He sat back down and continued to look at me. People snickered and turned to stare at me. I could feel heat in my cheeks and knew my mouth was hanging open moronically, but I couldn’t help it. He had managed to make me feel completely stupid twice in as little as ten minutes. I knew that Eden and I were going to hate each other before the school year was over.