He Made Me Amaze Myself

“We’re Justin’s ride everyday to and from school ok?” my mom said to me to break the silence while we were eating breakfast.
“What?!” I asked. Justin was a guy I didn’t hang out with. In fact I barely knew him. All I knew was that he was a good singer, he lived next door, he was amazingly cute, and the fact that his last name was Bieber made girls go crazy at the sound of it.
“You heard me. He’s gonna be over any second now,” she said putting her plate on the counter.
I looked at the clock it said 7:04. School started at 7:45.
Just then the doorbell rang.
“Will you get that please, Sara-bear?” my mom asked me. My name is Sarah but she always calls me Sara-bear.
I groaned loudly and got up to get the door.
I opened it and Justin smiled when he saw me.
“Good morning!” he said cheerfully.
“Good morning, oh and you don’t have to ring the doorbell you can just come in since you’re gonna be coming over every day now,” I said nervously as he walked in. I always felt nervous around really cute guys.
“Oh, ok!” he said setting his backpack down by the coat and shoe rack we had by the door.
“Hello Justin!” my mother said cheerfully, finishing up rinsing off our plates from breakfast.
“Hello Mrs. M!” he replied walking into the kitchen. Our last name is McKinley.
He must have been used to seeing my mom over at his house. Since he and his family moved in our moms have been attached at the hip. They go shopping together, they play cards, and I’m sure they tell each other every embarrassing detail about their children. Mrs. Bieber probably knows me as well as my own mother and I haven’t even met the lady twice!
So the morning went on as if Justin wasn’t even there. I wouldn’t know if he talked because I napped in the car on the way to school with my iPod playing, like I do every morning.
When my mom rubbed my shoulder to tell me we had arrived at school, I turned off my iPod, grabbed my things, told my mom I loved her and to have a good day, and I hopped out of the car. Justin followed me to the door and opened it for me when we got there.
I smiled and quietly said, “Thanks.”
I walked down the hallway to where my locker was and Justin followed me all the way there. He leaned against the other lockers while I did my combination. Once my locker was open I glanced over at him and he was watching my every move ever so intently.
“Um, if you don’t mind me asking, what are you doing?” I questioned hanging my coat on the hook in my locker.
“I’m trying to get to know you,” he said simply.
“You can just talk to me ya know,” I said, closing my locker gently like none of the other idiots did in this school.
“You didn’t strike me as one to talk to new people very much,” he said, looking all over my face as if he was looking for one single blemish to stereotype me.
“Well, you didn’t strike me as one to care about being my friend in this lifetime,” I stated, because it was true.
“I understand how you would think that, but I do, if that says anything,” he said smiling sweetly. It almost made me melt, but I had to hold my ground! I was not going to fall for anyone anytime soon.
“Well, I have a feeling we are going to get to know each other weather we wanted to or not,” I said looking back into his soft brown eyes. I clutched my books to my chest trying to keep a hold on reality.
“Well, since I want to, would it be a problem if I sat with you at lunch?” he asked, his face lighting up.
“What lunch period do you have?” I asked. I was just wondering.
“B, same as you. I see you sitting all by yourself at that table you always sit at. You just eat and read a new book every day,” he explained. So people did notice I sat alone.
“Oh, well, I guess it’s not a problem. As you already know I have no one to bother me at lunch on a regular basis so you can join me if you want,” I said turning my head and laying my back against the cold lockers.
“Ok, cool, well I’ll see you then, kay?” he said walking away from me down the crowded hallway.
“Okay!” I said smiling and he smiled and turned and disappeared into the fog of high-schoolers arriving for another Monday of school.

I walked to second period and sat in my assigned seat as usual.
“Hurry up class, I have an announcement to make!” my unusually always cheerful English teacher said standing up from her desk. Everyone sat down and she cleared her throat.
“There’s a school talent show being held in two weeks! You can enter with anything special you want to perform with! Of course it’s optional and purely for student enjoyment. Here are the forms to turn back into me, Mrs. Carter, if you want to perform,” she handed out the paper and I scanned over it and put it in the back of my folder, like I, of all people, was going to be in a talent show. I had nothing special to show anyone and my stage freight was too unbearable to overcome.

Class went on and once half was over it was time for lunch. We were dismissed and I went to my locker to grab my lunch box. Then, I headed to the cafeteria with book in hand to sit and read. I doubted Justin was going to remember to sit with me when he had so many other hot girls to sit with and guy friends to hang with.
I arrived at my table in the far back corner and opened my lunch box and got out my ham and pastrami sandwich. I opened my book to my page and began reading. I had read about 5 pages when the chair next to me was suddenly occupied.
“Hey,” he said happily.
I glanced over my book then back down and mumbled, “Hey.”
“Whatcha reading?” he asked taking a bite of his piece of pizza.
I lifted my book up higher so he could read the title on the front. The book was Uglies by Scott Westerfeld.
“I heard that was a good book,” he said, taking a sip of his juice.
“It is a very good book,” I said, and I took a bite of my sandwich.
There was an uncomfortable silence that I knew was going to occur.
“So did you hear about the talent show?” he asked breaking the silence.
I shut my book, “Yeah, why?”
“I don’t know. I think I’m gonna be in it,” he said crossing his arms and pondering about it.
“I’m sure you would make many girls at this school very happy if you did,” I said, taking a drink of my water.
He chuckled, “Yeah, but it’s not that I like to make the girls happy as much as being on stage makes me feel good.”
“Being on stage or in front of any large group makes me feel nauseous,” I said chuckling, and lying back in my seat.
“So I take it you wouldn’t want to sing with me in the talent show?” he asked. I almost spat out my water.
“Me? Be in a show with you? How would that even work?! You are so much better at singing than me I would ruin the whole act,” I said looking down at my shoes.
“No you wouldn’t. Ok I have a confession to make. I have heard you sing before,” he said, eating his last French fry.
“What?! When?!” I quickly sat up in my chair.
“It’s not my fault you had your window open ALL summer! You have a very pretty voice, Sarah,” he said sweetly. My heart was pounding and I could feel myself blush.
“I do?” I squeaked.
He chuckled, “Yes, you do. Very much so,” he reached out and caressed my cheek with his warm hand. I swear my heart was either going to stop or it was going to pop out of my chest all together.
Then the warning bell rang to get back to class and leave the cafeteria. It snapped me out of my daze and his hand moved away. I stood up shoving my stuff back into my lunch box.
“I have to go,” I said, shakily, “I don’t want to be late for class.” I was already walking away.
“Wait! So are you gonna perform with me?!” he said loudly back to me.
I turned to face him, “I’ll think about it.” And I walked out of the cafeteria and down the hallway back to my locker. My heart and stomach were still fluttering.

“Students! I forgot to mention that student council voted for a dance right after the talent show. So the talent show starts at 5:30 and ends at 7 and the dance is from 7 to 10,” Mrs. Carter said after everyone arrived back from lunch. I wonder what Justin was going to say about that!

The rest of the day went by quickly. Once the dismissal bell rang I walked out of study hall and downstairs to my locker. Justin was already waiting for me.
“Well hello! Did you think about it yet?” he asked as I spun the combination for my locker.
“Not enough. I’m still trying to think of what I’ll get out of it,” I said shoving my books into my backpack that I needed. I didn’t have any homework luckily. I shut my locker and locked it.
“Well, there’s the benefit of conquering your fears and having fun!” he said following me as we walked out the back doors of the school to find my mom. I got out my cell and dialed my mom’s number.
“What if I suck at conquering fears?!” then my mom answered her phone, “Hey mumsy where are you?”
“I’m at the football field entrance by the band room,” she told me. So I headed down the hallway to the exit by the band room.
“Ok we’ll be there soon,” I told her and we hung up.
“Come on! Please? Pretty please? I’ll be there with you! It’s not like you’re gonna be all on your own! I’ll help you ok?” Justin said standing in front of me looking me directly in the eyes. His expression told me he was serious and he really wanted me to do this.
I sighed, “Fine, I’ll do it. But I have the right to stay right by your side the whole time and get a hug whenever I want!” I bargained.
He chuckled, “Ok that’s great!” He stood by my side and wrapped his arm around me to hug me.
By this time we were outside and walking up to my mom’s car. He’d let go of me seconds after the hug and we got in the car. I got shotgun!
“Hey mom,” I said buckling my seat belt.
“Hey Sara-bear, hey Justin,” she replied.
“Hello,” he replied and then he whispered in my ear from around the seat, “Sara-bear?”
“That’s ma nickname don’t wear it out,” I said proudly. He chuckled.
“Hey Mrs. M,” Justin said and my mom interrupted.
“Call me Michelle or Mrs. Michelle,” she said.
“Ok Michelle, me and Sarah are going to sing in the talent show!” he said triumphantly!
My mom looked over at me with a look of ‘Really?’ I nodded, and shrugged.
“Well that’s great! Maybe you can get her to come out of that bubble she lives in,” she said, I rolled my eyes. I didn’t live in a bubble, just a figment of my own imagination where nothing went wrong and I was always right.
Justin laughed, “She does live in a bubble doesn’t she?!”
“Oh, shut up Justin!” I growled.
“Come on Sarah, we’re just kidding around!” he replied.
“Yeah, I know,” I said, leaning against the window. I got into my backpack and got out my iPod. Hey, Soul Sister by Train came on. I paused it and asked if I could hook it up to the car stereo. They didn’t mind so I plugged it in. I immediately started singing along.
“Hey, soul sister! Ain’t that mister mister on the radio? Stereo? The way you move ain’t fair ya know. Hey, soul sister! I don’t wanna miss a single thing you do, tonight,” I sung softly.
I heard Justin singing along, his voice was amazing…
Then Two Is Better than One by Boys Like Girls with Taylor Swift came on. I sang along with that one too. Taylor’s part was what I sounded good at.
“Hey, did you hear there’s a dance after the talent show?” Just said to me.
“Yes I did, I was wondering when you were gonna ask about that!” I said, chuckling.
“Oh, haha,” he said, “So we gonna go to that too?”
“Sure, why not? I’m already doing something I wouldn’t normally do,” I said sighing. I had to admit I wasn’t exactly sure of myself right now. Knowing me I was probably going to screw something up that night.
“You wanna come over tonight to pick out a song to sing?” he asked me again.
“Okke dokee,” I said cheerfully.
We sat in the car singing along to whatever came on my iPod.