My Not So Predictable Life

Chapter 9: Summer Happy Crush

The Book Club program is such a great way to spend time with everyone in town. Every neighbor contributes to this event. Auntie Izzy's flower shop was in charge of the decorations, and some neighbors donated books. Authors and book lovers are there to share and connect with people. This event wouldn't work if it weren't for the cooperation of the townspeople.

The event would start at around eight a.m. Harper, Isaiah, some of our schoolmates, and neighborhood friends were there. I was anxiously waiting to see if Thorne would show up. Just when I was starting to lose hope, he suddenly appeared in front of me, holding a bouquet of heather and iris flowers.

"Here," he said as he handed me the flowers and asked, "Am I late?"

The flowers were beautiful and nostalgic; they reminded me of how my mom once told me she named me after them.

"Thank you. You're just in time. By the way, Auntie Izzy's flower shop is closed, so where did you get these flowers?"

"That's actually the reason why I'm late. I dropped by the store yesterday to reserve the flowers, but they told me they’d be closing the shop because of the event. Luckily, I saw the heather and iris flowers in our backyard garden. They must have been planted by my late grandma, so I decided to just make you a bouquet from scratch. It's the thought that counts, right?"

"I love the flowers very much."

I saw Isaiah and Harper standing in the corner. Harper was raising her eyebrows while looking at me—I knew she was going to ask me about this boy.

I smiled nervously at Thorne and told him to sit in the front.

Then I walked over to Harper and said, "There's nothing between us."

"Okay, you said so," she replied with a smirk. That smirk meant she didn't believe me.

"You two look cute. Does my sister know about the two of you?" Isaiah asked.

I missed Ingrid so much. We hadn't really talked this summer because she'd been busy training in dance to prepare for college. We’d only seen each other once or twice this summer.

"Ingrid has been really busy these days, so I haven’t had a proper talk with her."

"The flowers are so nice, sis," Harper said in the most teasing way.

Harper, Ingrid, and Isaiah are always forced to attend these kinds of events. They say it's boring to listen to all the conversations about books. They always tease me for liking this kind of thing. What can I say? I'm a book lover. I knew that Thorne coming here was a good idea, but I hadn’t really thought about the consequences of my actions. And by consequences, I mean the teasing and playful bullying from my friends.

The event was about to start, I asked Harper and Isaiah to handle the registration for this event me on the other hand was busy preparing for everything to be perfect. I just reminded my self "Go with the flow"

The event was about to start. I asked Harper and Isaiah to handle the registration, while I was busy making sure everything was perfect. I reminded myself, “Go with the flow.”

As the event began, I gathered everyone and asked them to take their seats. I gave a short welcome speech to thank the sponsors and the authors who were kind enough to share their experiences with us.

After the speech, I sat beside Thorne to listen to the first author talk. Thorne looked at me and said, "Your speech was amazing."

I might be delusional to believe him, because I knew my voice sounded nervous.

I looked at him and simply said, "Thanks."

The event ended around lunchtime, and most of the people stayed to eat there. I was busy helping with the meals when Thorne approached us.

"Heather, do you mind having lunch somewhere else?" he asked.

I glanced at Harper and Isaiah, silently hoping they would cover for me.

They both grinned and said, "Go! There are plenty of us here. We'll handle lunch and everything. Enjoy your lunch date."

I felt shy, knowing Thorne was literally standing right beside me as they teased me.

"Okay," I said, smiling a little. "Let's have lunch together."

He had actually prepared a picnic basket and asked, "Where should we eat?"

"There's a picnic table beside the hidden lake on that street," I said, pointing in its direction.

We walked quietly, the silence between us feeling a little awkward. I was just about to say something to break it when he suddenly spoke.

"Well… maybe this is the last time we’ll see each other," he said, his voice tinged with sadness.

"Has your family decided to leave town?" I asked softly.

"My mom finished her work here. That’s basically the only reason we came. My brother and I really like this place."

I didn’t know what to say, so I just stayed silent.

When we arrived at the lake, we sat and ate lunch together.

"So… I guess this means goodbye then?" I said, trying hard not to cry.

"Yes," he replied. "It was such a pleasure seeing your exquisite face and hearing your winsome laugh."

We finished our food and parted ways.

I watched him walk in the other direction, feeling a heaviness in my chest. Maybe he was just a boy I happened to cross paths with—but to me, he was someone who helped me discover a side of myself I never knew existed. A not so predictable side.

But then again, maybe he was just my summer happy crush. School would start soon, and maybe… just maybe, I’d forget about him.​