Maybe Memories

I remember the very first time I ever saw that girl with the light blonde waves cascading down her shoulders and those stunning emerald eyes. I was so young, a good four and a half years younger than her, with her being four grades ahead of me. But none of that seemed to matter as she marched up to me, that beautiful grin on her face. Naturally I was shocked silent, who was this beautiful girl wearing a black shirt with a skull and bat wings coming out from it, with her much-worn blue skinny jeans with numerous holes in them and grass stains? And more importantly, why was she coming over to me, the girl with the geeky glasses, unruly wavy brown hair, drowning in her mother’s Ozzfest’99 shirt?

I didn’t have anymore time to think about it because she was here, standing right before me on this little platform outside of our school, waiting for the buses to arrive. She was a bit taller than I was at the time--about five foot seven--but she wasn’t much taller than me to the point where it was awkward. Later I’d find out that there would never be anything awkward between us, not even now did it feel awkward as she just stared at me.

“I really love your shirt!” She finally exclaimed, her eyes soaking in the designs of the shirt. It had tents on fire in the background, and there was this little animated boy with thin black hair. He was holding a fishing rod with a chicken’s head attached to the end. It was a little gruesome but I even as a little kid I liked it. What can I say? I never claimed to be normal.

“Thanks, I like yours too,” I answered back nervously. I was just a little fourth grader talking to this eighth grader who was obviously a little out of it if she was honestly wasting her time with someone like me.

“Really? It seems like no one does! Do you know what it means?” She asked excitedly, like she was really happy that she found someone who liked her shirt. I felt the same way, because all day I was getting side glances and little whispers about my shirt.

I didn’t answer her verbally this time, I just shook my head silently still studying her shirt. The white skull in the center was intricately drawn, along with the two skeletal bat wings sticking out from the center. Around the picture of the skeleton bat where two words written in bold white letters, forming a semi-circle around the bat. The first word on the top and the second around the bottom. The words were: Avenged Sevenfold.

“It’s the very first Avenged Sevenfold Tee shirt. Avenged is my favorite band, you should hear them one day. They seriously kick ass,” Lisa was now grinning from ear to ear. Who ever this Avenged Sevenfold was, she seemed to be really passionate about--it only took me about a week to figure out just how far that passion went. “I’m Lisa, by the way,” She introduced herself, extending a hand toward me.

“Audrey,” I retuned gripping her hand. While she shook my hand she stared straight into my eyes, like she was trying to read me, and figure out all my secrets. I did the same to her, as I really tried to see past the wall of thick beautiful emerald into the gorgeous girl standing in front of me. And in that second it was like the entire world around us just dulled and al there was, was Lisa and I trying to break each other down in order to know each other.

A wicked smile worked its way onto her face, and it was like that little handshake had just determined both of our futures. It was like she was able to read me, and was able to tell that I was someone she’d want to be my friend, even though there was a defiant age different. It was like none of that mattered as she turned around back to her school. Before she disappeared completely in the chaos that was the bus platform full of screaming kids, she called out to me, “See you tomorrow, Audrey. Same place same time,”

Those were the first words that Lisa ever spoke to me. And those very few words changed my life forever. I didn’t know it at the time, all I cared about was that someone so much older and cooler than me had gave me the time of day. But now that I look back on it, I can see how those few promising words have changed my life so defiantly. And I look back on it now, and I know that I wouldn’t change it for the world.