How this Hippie Fell in Love

Early mornings are the worst, a fact everyone can agree on. If I ran for president on this premise only, I would win because early mornings are the worst. *beep beep beep* my alarm chimed for the third time in half an hour. Resigning to the fact I now HAVE to get up I threw my blanket off and climbed out of bed. My warm toes touched the cold floor sending a shock through me. "Oh that's cold!" I said out loud to no one. I let my hair down from the bun I slept in, noting it was still damp from my shower the night before, and headed downstairs. "Morning, Emma." My mom all but sang as I entered the kitchen. She handles morning far better than I. "Morning, momma." I replied through a yawn. She laid eggs and toast in front of me with a warm smile. My mom was the kindest and most loving soul I ever met. She's never known a stranger. Mom has this way of making the most guarded, stubborn person confess their worries to her. "Morning, Mere. Morning, Emmy." Dad said walking in the kitchen. He leaned down and kissed mom before taking the chair opposite me. "Are you excited for school?" He asked, pouring his coffee. I shrugged my shoulders and spread my mom's homemade peach jam on my toast. "Excited it's my last year, I guess." Dad laughed, his green eyes twinkling. He is a lawyer who owns Green Ohio, a non profit organization trying to legalize recreational m*******a. My parents have been happily and disgustingly married for 20 years. They are the hold hands, smack your butt, and kiss you anywhere kind of married. I couldn't picture two people more perfect for each other. After finishing breakfast I headed to my room to get ready for the day. I stood looking in the full body mirror in my room. I'm short and what some would call curvy, I would call chubby. My dark brown hair fell to the small of my back. I have vibrant green eyes and dimples on both sides of my face. My eyes are hands down my best feature. I try to accentuate them as much as possible by applying dark eyeliner and mascara. I threw on a pair of dark washed skinny jeans, mis-matched socks, black converse, and a black t-shirt that said "The future in female" in pink letters. Grabbing my canvas messenger bag I headed out the door for my senior year of high school. I parked my ten year old yellow Volkswagen Beetle just as "Peggy Sue" by Buddy Holly finished. "Senior year" I whispered watching big yellow buses file in the parking lot of Roscoe High School. I have never been one of the popular kids, at best I was ignored, at worst I was tormented. I don't know what made me an easy target. Aiden Gray or AJ, as everyone called him was the worst. He has made my life hell since kindergarten for reasons completely unknown to me. We stuck to our own circles, he with the jocks and I with the artsy outcasts. My favorite things in life are oldies music, art, reading, and psychology. I love getting in other people's minds and finding what makes them tick. Aiden's brain would be an interesting one to pick through. My family tends to be very liberal leaning, which is a great contrast to the Gray's. Like my dad, William Gray is a lawyer. Unlike my dad, he is a corporate lawyer who wouldn't be caught dead running a non-profit organization. My parents and the Gray's actually went to school together. They went off to different universities, but both returned to the small town they managed to escape. For my parents, it was to raise a large family surrounded by friends and a supportive community. Unfortunately, my mom had complications during my birth that caused her to have a hysterectomy. I'm not sure what brought the Gray's back to town, but I imagine it has to do with lording their success over everyone else. They are hands down the most well off family in town causing them to be revered and quite powerful. A fact that would not be true in a big city. A slap to my closed window broke me out of my reverie. "Hello gorgeous!" Lena yelled causing me to jump. She opened my door. "What were you thinking about?" she inquired arching an eyebrow. "How happy I am we are almost done" I explained stepping on the pavement. Lena is my best friend and my other half, she completes me the way a best friend should. Lena is 5'6 and athletic, she has been playing soccer since she could walk. Her piercing brown eyes stared into my green ones. "What's wrong?" She asked her eyes narrowing "Nothing" I lied hoping she would drop it. She arched her eyebrow again and scanned my face. "You are so lying, but whatever." She eventually huffed. The warning bell rang and we headed inside. I hurried to the same locker I used the three years prior and popped in the same combination to open it. While arranging my notebooks and magnets I felt someone smack into my shoulder. "Watch where you're going, freak." A deep voice said. I turned around and saw the pale blue eyes of Aiden Gray looking at me, a mocking smile on his face. I rolled my eyes and shut my locker. He was the one who walked in to me. My first class was math, truly the worst way to start my day. Whose brain can function enough to do math this early? I sat in the front row, grabbed a binder and pencil and calculator from my bag, readying myself for my least favorite subject. Laughter echoed into the classroom and my two least favorite people strolled in, Aiden and Callie. They are the stereotype quarterback and cheerleader couple. Callie is tall, 5'9 and slender, she has shoulder length red hair, blue eyes, and the longest legs I have ever seen. They grabbed seats in the back just as the bell rang. Math was as tedious as one would expect. Mr. Gardner droned on, causing the already half asleep teenagers to force their eyes to stay open. The bell rang and everyone jumped from their seats to leave. I hung back to avoid the rush. There was a tug on my hair and Aiden sauntered out looking back and winking at me. "What was that about?" I thought, but shook it off and headed to art for second period. ❤❤❤ The Final bell rang signaling the end of the seventh period. I packed away my sociology textbook and made my way to my locker. I felt a looming presence behind, before I could turn to face him, he whispered in my ear "those jeans make your ass look huge." I stopped dead and watched Adien Gray's figure walk ahead of me, turn, wink at me, and saunter away. "Asshole." I muttered under my breath. I don't know what his deal is. It's as though he searches me out and tries to make me miserable. Every time I turned there was a tug in my hair that was almost playful, he would walk away with a wink. Let it go Emma. Just let it go. I swapped out the books I needed for my homework, closed my locker door, and headed to the football field to wait for Link. Link is Lena's twin brother. Despite being fraternal twins they looked almost identical. They both had blond hair and brown eyes, the same hooked nose and narrow jaw. Link is six feet tall and Lena stands at 5'6, both are athletic and have similar taste in men. I sat in the middle of the bleachers working on ELA reading waiting for football practice to be over. Lena has an away field hockey match so I offered to take Link home. High pitched giggling rings in my ears, I keep looking at my book. The cheerleaders taking the field give me no cause to look up. A few seconds later the rough baritone of the coach Phillips can be heard barking orders at the team. Still no reason to look up. "Eyes on the game, Gray!" The coach yells. I look down and see him whip his head just as Callie blows him a kiss. Apparently he can't keep his eyes off her. I turned my attention back to my book trying to drown out the commotion below me. A little over an hour later and practice is over. I shuffle down the stands to find Link so I can go home. I felt yet another tug on my hair. Turning, I found the guilty party staring me right in the eye and not looking the least bit guilty. He raised his eyebrow, almost daring me to say something. My eyebrows knitted in confusion, trying to figure him out. Aiden smirked and winked at me before walking away. I stood there watching his back disappear. What is he all about? Aiden Gray has gone out of his way to make my life difficult. Unnecessarily difficult. A bear hug from behind snapped me out of my thoughts. "Let's go, gorgeous!" Link chimed. His big brown eyes held a familiar emotion. Link is in every way my big brother. He loves and supports me the way anyone would hope their big brother would. "Let's go, beautiful!" I chimed back. "Am I taking you to Taryn's?" "No, he has tryouts for the Christmas play." Link boasted proudly. He is such a supportive boyfriend, Taryn is a lucky man. "Shakes on me!" Link shouted, climbing in the passenger seat. "Deal!" I smiled starting Ruth up. I pulled in the parking lot of Pinkies. The best shakes and fries you will ever have. You can quote me on that. The building is a pale pink and bright blue. It was just repainted this past spring. The sign on top of the building illuminated Pinkies! Open 24 hours, from left to right. We entered the familiar hang out, greeted by the velvety crooning of Elvis Presley and the laughter of our peers. The sweet and smoky smell of ice cream and burgers filled the air. Link grabbed a blue booth, I filed across from his toothy grin. "You look way too happy." I groaned "Because I know something you don't know." He sang, his grin becoming mischievous. "What is it?!" I asked giddy. Link was awful with gossip, the moment he had it he had to spill it. He shook his head and drew an invisible zipper over his lips before locking it and throwing away the key. I rolled my eyes at his dramatic response. "What can I get you two?" Caroline, a new server asked. She looks young, close to our age. Baby blue curls framed her round face, bright orange glasses drew attention to her big doe eyes. "A strawberry peanut butter shake and a large fry for the table, please." I responded smiling at the uneasy waitress. "Good afternoon darlin'!" Link crooned in the thickest, fakest, southern accent I have ever heard. I glared at his antics. He just smiled and continued. "I'll have a chocolate shake and pinkie burger with a large fry." He drawled out. "I guess my large fries are just mine then." I rolled my eyes at him. He feigned hurt, illisisting a laugh from Caroline. "You two are too cute." She smiled and walked away. "You hear that? We're cute!" Link smiled. I rolled my eyes at him. Our conversation was interrupted by a high pitched laugh. Callie and Aiden entered the establishment and she wanted their presence to be known. As they walked by our table Aiden fist bumped Link and I felt a gentle tug on my hair. Link raised an eyebrow at me in confusion. I shrugged not understanding either. I am happy someone else saw it though. When our food arrived we munched and chatted about our day. I closed my eyes in pure pleasure after biting a fry dipped in my shake. When I opened my eyes, they were met with the dazzling stare of Aiden Gray biting his lip. I blushed and looked down. Thankfully my companion was busy looking at a text from Taryn and missed the exchange. I would have died were he paying attention. We finished our food and settled the bill before heading home. Lena and Link are my next door neighbors, though they may as well just move in. Link and I hugged before retreating to our respective homes. Neither of my parents were home. The house was in complete silence. I pulled out my laptop and started working on college applications. I tried for a couple in state schools, Ohio State and University of Cincinnati; I also decided to try my hand at Columbia and Dartmouth. Both of them were pipe dreams, but a girl can hope. My phone buzzed next to me, a new text from mom. Dad and I decided on a last minute dinner date. Don't wait up. XOXOX Mom Sandwiches for dinner it is, I sighed. After dinner I showered and went to bed. Day one is complete- only nine more months to go. I thought before drifting off.