Ocala Is Calling

"No.. I.. I, just." I tryed to save myself from spilling thoughts.

"Save it, Veronica. I saw the look in your eyes." She said, leaning against the refridgerator.

"Okay! Who IS that?" I questioned.

"THAT is my brother, missy. Paws off." She played, with a smirk on her face.

"He's gorgeous, Maggie. Does he.. like.. have a girlfriend?" I whispered.

"No, Florida girls.. don't exactly go for guys like him."

"Why not?" I questioned.

"Heartbreak, He had love, she left him for a brainless, tan, idiot, and he hasn't been the same since. I mean, he acts happy, he smiles alot, but it's never the kid I used to know. Y'know?" She asked rhetorically.

"How old is he?"

"Sixteen, girlfriendddd." she said, in her best snotty girl imitation

I sighed.

"I have no chance." I said, putting the last spoonful of Lucky Charms in my mouth.

"Didn't I just say paws off?" She said, jokingly as she took the bowl from me, and dropped it in the sink. I put my head in my hands.

-------------------------------------------------time elapse.----------------------------------------------------

It had been a week since I had first moved to Ocala, I had hung out with Maggie almost everyday, but always at my house, since the morning I saw her brother, of whom i still hadn't had the guts to bring back up, or even ask his name. My room was almost all together, excluding a few boxes of clothes and a white dry-erase board, that I hadn't found nails to hang up with.

I had moved here during Broward High's winter break, and today was Saturday.. Monday would be my first official day of High School in Florida, and I had never been more scared in my life.

I went to the bathroom, and looked in the mirror. My straightened chocolate hair hung over my shoulders, and when I think about.. It's almost the same color as Maggie's brother's. I shook the thought from my mind, and re-examined myself.

My browner-hazel eyes were slightly bloodshot from lack of sleep, and my face had taken to a breakout from stress. My hair had extra shine in it, simply from the lack of cleanlyness I had become acustom to with the chaotic week behind me.

I was a mess, but I could sware I had looked better since I moved here. Radiant, and sometimes if I didn't look too hard, I kind of found myself a little beautiful.

I heard the door bell ring, and ran.. even knowing it was just Maggie at the door. I opened to see that my prediction was indeed correct.

"Vee. Tonight is the last non-school night. We have to party." She said in a very serious tone, with an absolute straight face.

I replied in a solumn tone, "Well... If party, we must. Then party, we shall."
and we both began laughing.
She made her way to my room, and sat on my bed. She pulled back my curtains and glanced out the window.

"Hey look, There's my brother." she said, matter-of-factly.
Damn. Why couldn't she say his name. I just want to know his name.
He was sitting on the futon with his back to the window, playing what looked like Halo, with an X-box controller one hand and a bag of cheetos in the other.
I laughed, and Maggie got up, reaching for the white board leaning against my wall.

"Marker?" she asked, as I got up to hand her a marker that was on the shelf beside me.
I watched as she scribbled on the board in cursive hand.
She held it up for me to read.

Nerddd!

I laughed and she held it up to the window, giving the glass a few hard knocks.
He looked back with a look of confusing, and then rolled his eyes as he squinted to read the cursive. He got up and a few minutes later came back with his own dry erase board, probably the one I had seen hanging on the refridgerator in the kitchen. I watched as he scribbled on the board in Green marker.

and proud., it read, as he grinned, kissed his xbox controller, lovingly, and then turned back around to tend to his battle scene.

God, I wanted just to talk to him, so bad. Maggie dropped the curtain and turned to face me.

"So, I figured.. Your mom and that horny guy.."

"Jay," I cut her off.

"Yeah him, they're probably stressed, so my mom said maybe you spend the night at our house tonight, then we can get our party on!" she suggested.

"Sure." I agreed. Oh.. shit. That means I would see him. I threw my clothes in my Hurley bag, and once they were packed, Maggie and I watched TV until my mom got home.

she walked in the door, with grocery bags in hand.

"Mom, I'm spending the night at Magz tonight." I stated.
"Oh, you are?" She asked.
"ugh. Mommmm, can I spend the night at Maggie's tonight?" I asked, knowing that was what she was looking for.
"Yes, you may." she said, smiling.
After helping her put the groceries away, I glanced at the clock. It was almost 8:00.
"Are you almost ready to go?" Maggie asked anxiously.
"Yeah, ready. hold on" I said.
I ran to the small bathroom that cut off of my room, and placed my contacts in both eyes. I threw my backpack over my shoulder.
"Let's go." I demanded, with a grin on my face.
"so eager" Maggie teased, as I put my key in my pocket and laughed.

When we got to her house we went up stairs, somewhere I had never been before. I sat down on her bed, and threw my bag next to it.

"Make yourself at home" she cheered.

She flicked on the tv, and we watched WildBoyz until suddenly someone burst through the door. The first thing that caught my eye, was the towel around their waist. The second was the shirtless chest, and the third his dripping wet hair.

"Yes?" Maggie asked, throwing an M&M into her mouth.

"There's no shampoo downstairs."

"That sounds like a personal problem, Vin." She retorted.

"Deff. Daiz. Quite being a bitch, and share" he replied, with a halfhearted smile.
She got up and got the shampoo out of her shower and handed it to him.

"I wasn't informed we'd be having a guest tonight," he joked.

"Well now you are, get out creep" Maggie said, pushing his shoulder.

"Ginger Lily," I said pointing the bottle of shampoo in his hand, "How masculine." I kidded.
He shook water droplets from his hair with his fingers as he spoke, "I try" he said, with a grin, as disapeared from behind the door, and sprinted down the stairs.

I threw myself back on Maggie's bed, and sighed with my eyes closed.

"You. Are. Pathetic." Maggie teased.

"I know. I know. He was there, though. with NO clothes!!" I said, covering my eyes with my hands.

"This should be interesting" She laughed through the sentence.