Reinventing the Heartbeat

Gage ;;

It wasn’t intentional. The words just sort of…rolled off my tongue. I can honestly say I wasn’t trying to come off as a cocky asshole. There was just something about this girl. What that was exactly, I couldn’t tell you. I mean, I never really even looked at her. In fact, if I had to pick her out of a group of girls at this very moment, I couldn’t. But something had me drawn to her. In the depths of my mind, some foreign, unknown creature was screaming, ‘Mess with her, Gage! You know you wanna.’

So, what exactly came over me at that moment? I’m still trying to figure that out. Perhaps it was the fact that this was like a new start for me, and I could be whoever the hell I wanted. Or maybe that Caleb kid had just rubbed off on me first period. After all, I couldn’t remember the last time I had genuinely laughed or smiled until conversing with that guy.

Whatever it was, I kind of liked it. It was, in a way, refreshing. As if I was finally realizing there was still some hope for me. However deep that realization may be inside of me. It was still there. Which had to account for something. Sure, this wasn’t the sign I was looking for from Abby. But I guess it was a start…

With that final thought, I twirled the lock on my locker to the appropriate numbers until it clicked open and stuffed my new books into it. It was now time for lunch, and I had no clue where to go. I hadn’t found the cafeteria yet, not that I had tried looking for it or anything, but luckily I wasn’t that hungry. So I settled with finding that bench I had sat at earlier to spend the duration of the lunch period by myself.

I turned and began making my way down the large hallway, full of hungry, bustling students. I had barely walked ten feet in the direction I remembered the tree to be in, when a hand grasped firmly onto my shoulder from behind. It startled me at first, but then I figured it could only be one person, and spun on my heels to realize that I was correct in my assumptions.

“Hey, man!” Caleb greeted me with a huge smile. It made me wonder if it ever left his face. This kid did seem to be smiling a lot… “Where are you goin’?” he asked, walking along the side of me.

“I was just gonna sit down at this bench I found earlier,” I said with a shrug.

Apparently Caleb had other plans for me, though.

“Oh dude, come on. You can eat with me and my friends. Did you ever meet my sister in your class?” It all came out of his mouth at once in one long, stringed sentence. So it took me a second to understand just what he was asking me.

I laughed lightly, shaking my head in response to his question. “I didn’t really talk to anyone,” I told him. Which was pretty much the truth. There was one person I spoke to. But I highly doubted that she was his sister, so there was no point in bringing that up.

“Ugh,” he sighed. “Well, we’ll just have to change that, won‘t we?”

I followed him through the groups of kids around the campus, eating, talking, and goofing around with each other, until we came across one lone lunch table, positioned directly behind a large brick building, which I presumed was either the library or computer lab of some sort. There was already a guy sitting there, and, to be honest, just looking at him intimidated me a little bit. Though he wasn’t very large, his muscles and height were frightening enough. I silently scolded myself for sounding so judgmental. He was probably a nice guy. I shouldn’t base his personality off of his appearance.

“Gage, this is Tyson, but you can call him Ty. Or Spazz… Or Mom.” I watched as Caleb turned to the guy sitting silently at the table, book in hand, and smirk, in which case ‘Ty’ just flipped him off. “And Ty, this is Gage. He’s new here.”

Caleb took a seat across from Ty at the table and motioned for me to follow, as Ty looked up at me and shot me a small smile.

“Sorry you had to meet Tinker Bell, here,” he chuckled, nodding his head in Caleb’s direction, “your very first day. Seriously. I’d run while you still have the chance.”

I laughed, a little worried as to why he would be saying that about his friend. And why he called him Tinker Bell…

“Ty!” Caleb whined, looking at him with an annoyed expression. “How many times do I have to tell you not to call me that?!”

Ty closed his book and placed it in his backpack, all the while staring at Caleb with a stern face. “That depends. How many times are you going to introduce me as ‘Mom’?”

It seemed like his comment only supported the reasons for why he would call him that, which made me laugh a little. These guys were pretty cool. I think I could along well with them.

As Caleb ran a hand stressfully through his hair and ‘humph’ed at Ty, I was met by the sound of an oddly familiar voice. I panicked for a second, unsure of what to do. Should I apologize for being a dick? Act like nothing happened? I then chuckled a little at hearing what they were talking about.

“Holy crap! Commando? He actually said that to you?” a girl, whom I was guessing was the other girl from the class I heard talking about me, said fairly loudly.

I found it a bit ridiculous how gullible these two were. Hilarious, but ridiculous all the same.

“What the hell? What are you doing here?!” There was that voice. The one I’d barely heard, but was still familiar with.

I turned in my seat casually and looked behind me at the two girls stood there, jaws dropped and confusion etched clearly across their faces. Smirking, I did a once over of the girl I was sure was the one sat in front of me last period. She was actually quite pretty. I was surprised I hadn’t really paid attention in class. Her dark hair was perfectly straight, with bangs falling into her flawless face and hiding most of her right eye from view. Her friend stood at least half a foot taller than her, and, if I knew better, I would say her hair was quite similar to Caleb’s. They both walked over to the table, sitting on the opposite side next to Ty, who was watching the three of us with wary eyes.

“Well well well. Look’s like somebody missed me. Back for more, are we, love?” I could not seem to wipe that damn smirk from my face. But I think it was only fair, considering she was wearing the same glare she’d had on upon noticing my presence.

“Wait…I thought you said you didn’t talk to anyone in that class…” Caleb said, scratching his head in a confused manner and looking in between the two of us suspiciously.

“Well, not really,” I started to explain, unsure of what exactly to say. Was she his sister? Because if so, I don’t think my comment to her earlier would pass by him easily. I mean, I’d be pretty pissed if some guy said that to my sister…

I looked over at the girl, whose name I was still unaware of, now noticing a smirk that matched my own plastered across her pale face.

All was silent at our small table as I struggled to get words out of my mouth. I cleared my throat a few times, then finally sighed thankfully when Caleb spoke again.

“Uhm, well this is my sister, Melanie,” he told me, and I glanced up to see the other girl smiling at me. I smiled back in response, though mine was a little more forced. Since the two of them had arrived, things had gotten a bit more uncomfortable for me, in case you hadn’t noticed…

“And this lovely lady here is Ms. Blakey-Cakes,” Ty cooed, leaning into the girl next to him and wrapping his arm around her shoulders, only to have it shrugged off.

“Actually,” the girl started, now setting her stare on Ty, whom simply beamed in response, “it’s just Blake. For you, anyways.” She glared back at me.

I couldn’t help myself. I grinned at the girl across from me, biting my tongue to save me from saying something I might regret saying in front of my new friends. Leaning into Caleb, my eyes remaining on Blake’s, my smile turned back into that smirk as I said, “I think she digs me, man,” purposely louder than normal so she would hear. Like I said, there was something about her that kind of made me want to annoy her. And I’m pretty sure it did. Considering she rolled her eyes and shook her head at me.

Caleb’s reaction was, well, not what I was expecting it to be to say the least.

Smacking my arm rather roughly, he abruptly turned to me with his jaw hanging open. “Dude! I already told you! The babe with purple hair is mine.” He shook his head as he dug into a bag of chips in front of him, though I could detect the hint of smile now gracing his lips.

Ahh, so Blake is the one with the purple. Does that make them a couple then? Because they certainly didn’t seem to be acting like one… I mean, I don’t care or anything. Just ya know, curious.

As the day went on, I found out that I wouldn’t be alone in my following two classes either, seeing as how Ty was in my third period ceramics class and Ty, Melanie, and Blake were in my psychology class fourth period.

This year may not be as terrible as I was imagining it to be. So long as I was careful this time around. Any repeats of what happened to...her and, well, I dont think I could handle that. At all.