That Girl's A Trick

I always saw him, but never really talked to him. He was just there. Sort of like the he was part of this picture but as soon as he was gone, there was something was different.

One day he wasn’t there.

I’d let my eyes wander around the class and noticed something was wrong. My forehead crinkled and I frowned as I tried to guess what was wrong.

David Blaise.

Where was he? I wondered. Then I thought nothing of it and turned back to my work.

***

He came in the next day. Again I thought nothing of it.

Finally, it was the end of another school day and I walked out there feeling hugely relieved. We’d have a long weekend and that was one extra day for an assignment. Brilliant. As the sounds of other students called goodbye to one another, it was silent. I was thinking about the work that was to be done and felt even worse. I was so lost in my thoughts that I didn’t hear someone behind me.

“Um, hey,” said David. He smiled nervously and I blinked. Why was he talking to me?

“…Hi,” I replied with a confused look.

He chuckled. “So I saw you and thought I might, like, walk with you?” he again smiled and I was momentarily stunned.

I had never spoken to him before really and now this was happening? Oh well, life can be full of surprises. I smiled in return. “Alright.”

It was awkward. Really, really awkward. Just as I was about to comment on the weather, he stated, “Nice weather.”

Weather, what a great conversation starter. What people said weather was a bad way to start a conversation, they were oh so wrong. But they never said how to reply to it.

“Looks like it’s going to rain,” I responded. Right after I said that I was mentally horrified at myself. Why did I say that? God, I was so blunt sometimes.

He smiled weakly and the conversation stopped. And it was all my fault. About a minute or two later as we were near my house I decided to ask, “So um, why weren’t you in school yesterday?”

He started and looked surprised. “Er, I didn’t know you noticed me…but er, yerh I had to go to this thing so, I took the day off.”

The way he said it out loud did seem kind of, like I was like, stalking him or something. And i was surprised too, since when had i noticed him? I've known since we were ten and now this? Awkward.

I coughed. “Well, you know…role-call…”

By then we had reached my house and we said our goodbyes. I hoped I would never run into him again. Too awkward.

But as I sat down on the couch and aimlessly flicked through the channels, I thought: he’s pretty cute.