Hey Romeo, Don't You Think You're Just a Tad Overrated?
Above the Clouds
"My window, a small square of blue infinity. It reaches further than any eye can see, and sometimes I believe that I can take my wings and fly, up where the angels sing and the rainbows glow, high above the clouds."
-excerpt from Camaxtli Gallagher's blue notebook
_____________________________________
"Um…hi," I began nervously.
"Idiot," Cam mumbled under his breath as he strode over to a desk in the front row and sat down.
I raised an eyebrow. "Excuse me?"
He looked at me. "Not you, Max. He's the idiot."
"Oh." We both fell silent. I fidgeted with the hem of my jacket. "Uh…I guess I'll just…go then," I muttered, turning around and preparing to open the door.
"Wait," Cam suddenly interrupted. I stopped, my hand inches away from the door handle. "Can we…talk?" His voice sounded pained.
I hesitated, my hand dropping to my side. "Fine," I agreed, walking back over to the center of the room and leaning against Mr. Harbing's desk.
Cam faced me, but he was silent again, looking down at his hands. I picked up a pencil off of Mr. Harbing's desk and started playing with it to keep my mind off the current situation that Max had placed both of us in.
"Look, Aurelie," Cam finally said, looking up.
I felt my breath catch in my throat. I couldn't help it. Every time he said my name, every time the word just rolled off his tongue, it would make me flutter like an idiot.
"Hmm?" I asked, trying to be nonchalant, keeping my eyes on the No. 2 pencil in my hands.
Cam sighed audibly. "You really do love all of your friends, don't you?" he asked softly.
His question kind of threw me off. "W-what?" I asked, startled. I glanced up at him. He was leaning forward, watching me attentively.
"Your friends…you love them. You care about their feelings more than you care about your feelings," Cam repeated slowly. "And they all treasure you, Aurelie. Even though sometimes they seem detached…you can see that there's something deeper."
"Where are you trying to go with this?" I asked sharply, apprehensive.
"Max is happy," Cam stated.
"I don't understand," I replied firmly.
"He really does love you, you know," Cam continued.
I dropped the pencil. "What?" I asked in a whisper.
One week ago, Christmas Break, Borders on Michigan Avenue, Chicago
"Molecular Biochemistry? Is this really what you read when you're at a bookstore?" Max plucked the book from Cam's hand, and skimmed through it, a scandalized expression on his face.
"Give it back," Cam scowled and took the book back, stuffing it back onto the shelf.
Max laughed as he browsed the book titles on the shelf. "Ooh, look, The Chemistry of Love," he said in a singsongy voice.
Cam read the title of the book engraved on the spine of the book. He stayed quiet.
Max's laughter faded away, and he carefully observed his silent best friend. "Do you love her?" he unexpectedly asked.
Cam snapped his head around. "What?" he asked incredulously.
Max gazed up towards the ceiling, avoiding Cam's eyes. "I know I do," he began.
"What the hell?"
"But I think it's a different kind of love. The kind of love that friends have…or maybe something more…like a brotherly love," Max continued. "I've thought about it for a really long time and I think…I've been confusing it with the kind of love that you have for her."
"Confused?" Cam questioned.
"You know when there are two brothers, and the younger one always wants to do what the older one does, and tries to do it better? And he wants everything that the older brother has?" Max said.
"Yeah," Cam answered easily, "sibling rivalry."
"Even though the younger one may actually have different interests, he pursues his older brother just because he wants to prove that he's just as good as him?"
"Max, speak in English," Cam demanded.
Max laughed, seeing the confusion written on Cam's face. "Let's just say, I'm the little brother…and you're the older one."
"What?" Cam repeated, even though in his mind, he was beginning to unravel all the aspects.
"Cam, you know everything I do, you can do better. No matter how hard I try and how hard I try to prove myself, you're always above me. You always were. So when I got Aurelie before you did, it was like a big 'ha ha' to your face. We both liked her, but we both like her in different ways. It took me a really long time to notice that, but I did," Max started to say.
"You were jealous," Cam stated.
"All little brothers are jealous."
"A lot of little brothers hate their older brothers."
Max shrugged. "That's true too. But it doesn't matter, because the little brother…no matter how overshadowed he is…he always looks up to his big brother…and he's always proud of him."
Present Day, Mr. Harbing's Classroom
"Are you sure you didn't get brainwashed by The Chemistry of Love book or whatever?" I demanded. Cam flashed me that grin that I loved and hated so much at the same time. I blushed. Even though it sounded like a whole load of bull, it made sense. I could see the reasons behind Max's feelings, and I began to see the way they differed from Cam's. Cam went out of his way to care for me. Max cared too, but it was never to that extent. It was different.
"You don't need to read that book to know how I feel," Cam said softly. "Because if you do, then your brain is seriously wired wrong."
I laughed, and he smiled. "I know," I replied.
After a few moments of silence, he spoke again, a strange desperation laced into his voice. "Then there are no more obstacles. So…please…can you give us a chance?" His voice was pleading, and I looked into his dark eyes, seeing the real Cam Gallagher, under all those layers of icy perfection. It didn't matter that he had a grade point average higher than four-point-oh. It didn't matter that he was the championship captain of the lacrosse team, the school prefect, or every teacher's favorite. Because underneath it all, he was just like any normal boy.
"I think," I began slowly, "I'll take that chance."
When I looked up again, he was standing in front of me, smirking his famous smirk, his nearly black eyes burning with a mix of triumph, happiness, and something else almost unidentifiable. I felt heat spread across my cheeks again; I didn't even see him get up from his seat.
"For that answer, you get an A plus," he whispered, leaning in, wrapping his arms around my waist, and kissing me again.
I felt like flying.
-excerpt from Camaxtli Gallagher's blue notebook
_____________________________________
"Um…hi," I began nervously.
"Idiot," Cam mumbled under his breath as he strode over to a desk in the front row and sat down.
I raised an eyebrow. "Excuse me?"
He looked at me. "Not you, Max. He's the idiot."
"Oh." We both fell silent. I fidgeted with the hem of my jacket. "Uh…I guess I'll just…go then," I muttered, turning around and preparing to open the door.
"Wait," Cam suddenly interrupted. I stopped, my hand inches away from the door handle. "Can we…talk?" His voice sounded pained.
I hesitated, my hand dropping to my side. "Fine," I agreed, walking back over to the center of the room and leaning against Mr. Harbing's desk.
Cam faced me, but he was silent again, looking down at his hands. I picked up a pencil off of Mr. Harbing's desk and started playing with it to keep my mind off the current situation that Max had placed both of us in.
"Look, Aurelie," Cam finally said, looking up.
I felt my breath catch in my throat. I couldn't help it. Every time he said my name, every time the word just rolled off his tongue, it would make me flutter like an idiot.
"Hmm?" I asked, trying to be nonchalant, keeping my eyes on the No. 2 pencil in my hands.
Cam sighed audibly. "You really do love all of your friends, don't you?" he asked softly.
His question kind of threw me off. "W-what?" I asked, startled. I glanced up at him. He was leaning forward, watching me attentively.
"Your friends…you love them. You care about their feelings more than you care about your feelings," Cam repeated slowly. "And they all treasure you, Aurelie. Even though sometimes they seem detached…you can see that there's something deeper."
"Where are you trying to go with this?" I asked sharply, apprehensive.
"Max is happy," Cam stated.
"I don't understand," I replied firmly.
"He really does love you, you know," Cam continued.
I dropped the pencil. "What?" I asked in a whisper.
One week ago, Christmas Break, Borders on Michigan Avenue, Chicago
"Molecular Biochemistry? Is this really what you read when you're at a bookstore?" Max plucked the book from Cam's hand, and skimmed through it, a scandalized expression on his face.
"Give it back," Cam scowled and took the book back, stuffing it back onto the shelf.
Max laughed as he browsed the book titles on the shelf. "Ooh, look, The Chemistry of Love," he said in a singsongy voice.
Cam read the title of the book engraved on the spine of the book. He stayed quiet.
Max's laughter faded away, and he carefully observed his silent best friend. "Do you love her?" he unexpectedly asked.
Cam snapped his head around. "What?" he asked incredulously.
Max gazed up towards the ceiling, avoiding Cam's eyes. "I know I do," he began.
"What the hell?"
"But I think it's a different kind of love. The kind of love that friends have…or maybe something more…like a brotherly love," Max continued. "I've thought about it for a really long time and I think…I've been confusing it with the kind of love that you have for her."
"Confused?" Cam questioned.
"You know when there are two brothers, and the younger one always wants to do what the older one does, and tries to do it better? And he wants everything that the older brother has?" Max said.
"Yeah," Cam answered easily, "sibling rivalry."
"Even though the younger one may actually have different interests, he pursues his older brother just because he wants to prove that he's just as good as him?"
"Max, speak in English," Cam demanded.
Max laughed, seeing the confusion written on Cam's face. "Let's just say, I'm the little brother…and you're the older one."
"What?" Cam repeated, even though in his mind, he was beginning to unravel all the aspects.
"Cam, you know everything I do, you can do better. No matter how hard I try and how hard I try to prove myself, you're always above me. You always were. So when I got Aurelie before you did, it was like a big 'ha ha' to your face. We both liked her, but we both like her in different ways. It took me a really long time to notice that, but I did," Max started to say.
"You were jealous," Cam stated.
"All little brothers are jealous."
"A lot of little brothers hate their older brothers."
Max shrugged. "That's true too. But it doesn't matter, because the little brother…no matter how overshadowed he is…he always looks up to his big brother…and he's always proud of him."
Present Day, Mr. Harbing's Classroom
"Are you sure you didn't get brainwashed by The Chemistry of Love book or whatever?" I demanded. Cam flashed me that grin that I loved and hated so much at the same time. I blushed. Even though it sounded like a whole load of bull, it made sense. I could see the reasons behind Max's feelings, and I began to see the way they differed from Cam's. Cam went out of his way to care for me. Max cared too, but it was never to that extent. It was different.
"You don't need to read that book to know how I feel," Cam said softly. "Because if you do, then your brain is seriously wired wrong."
I laughed, and he smiled. "I know," I replied.
After a few moments of silence, he spoke again, a strange desperation laced into his voice. "Then there are no more obstacles. So…please…can you give us a chance?" His voice was pleading, and I looked into his dark eyes, seeing the real Cam Gallagher, under all those layers of icy perfection. It didn't matter that he had a grade point average higher than four-point-oh. It didn't matter that he was the championship captain of the lacrosse team, the school prefect, or every teacher's favorite. Because underneath it all, he was just like any normal boy.
"I think," I began slowly, "I'll take that chance."
When I looked up again, he was standing in front of me, smirking his famous smirk, his nearly black eyes burning with a mix of triumph, happiness, and something else almost unidentifiable. I felt heat spread across my cheeks again; I didn't even see him get up from his seat.
"For that answer, you get an A plus," he whispered, leaning in, wrapping his arms around my waist, and kissing me again.
I felt like flying.