Are You The One For Me?

CALLISTA'S POV:

I haven’t really seen Eric or Jessica in any of my classes yet. I wondered if they were even still in Staten Island or not. Somewhere in the middle of summer, Eric had mentioned something about moving back to where they came from, but I’m not too sure if that’s true or not. So, they were either absent or maybe even finally out of my life for good.

But, I knew that that was a little too good to be true.

The next day, two periods before lunch, I was trying to remember the combination to my locker when I felt a body behind mine. Their hands squeezed my shoulders and turned me around.

I sighed. “Dylan, what do you want?”

“Do you need some help?” he asked me.

“No.” I told him bluntly.

I put my very red fingers back on the lock and tried in total vain to open it.

“Well, it looks like you do,” he moved my hands away and placed his fingers on the dial. “But, not just with your locker, but with other things too, huh?”

I lowered my eyes and tried not to feel bad about what he said.

“What’s your combo?” he asked me.

“Six, twelve, thirty-eight.” I stated.

And with a few turns and clicks, the locker swung open and a very enthusiastic Dylan turned back around to face me.

“Told ya I could help.”

“Yeah, thanks.” I muttered.

“Don’t mention it.”

I noticed his eyes turn soft then and a small smile replaced the wide one on his face. He seemed to be coming closer to me then.

“You miss him, don’t you?” he brought it up again.

I didn’t know how to respond back without having to practically start bawling again, so I just stayed silent.

“Well, I know how to get back at him.” Dylan continued.

This time I couldn’t help myself from speaking out loud. I looked up and looked to see if he was serious.

“H-how?” I stuttered.

“It’s simple,” his hands moved up to my shoulders again. He pushed me up against the locker on the other side of Dylan’s and locked his eyes with mine. “You should just get a new boyfriend. You know to make him jealous and then he’ll feel bad for ever letting you go, and he’ll wanna get back with you, but it’d be way too late.”

It sounded pretty simple to me, but as I saw it in front of me, it looked pretty complicated to me. I knew Dylan wouldn’t understand something like this and that he was only doing this to help me get over Eric, but it was just not going to work.

He was a guy and he doesn’t know how it feels to love someone who could never love them back or even think of doing so. And I know he means well, but his idea would just never work, because Eric never even loved me in the first place. So, there was not even like a 1% chance that he could even start liking me. That’s just how it was. And that’s just how it’ll never change.

"It won't work, Dylan, no matter what you do, it just won't." I whispered.

I waited for his reaction to what I had just said, but he just stayed silent. I looked back up slowly and into Dylan’s eyes. My heartbeat started thump loudly in my ears and I couldn’t look away after that. My brain started to play a cute little daydream in my head just like it used back in the old days. A soft smile started to appear on my lips as I stared at the sweet one plastered across Dylan's.

Even though I would never admit this out to anyone let alone Dylan himself, he actually got a lot cuter and handsomer over the summer. He was no longer as pale as before and was actually developing sort of a tan. His chocolate brown eyes were still as soft and small as ever – which actually reminded me of my own eyes. His hair had grown a little longer and his bangs covered most of his forehead. I knew that he had already grown a lot taller and I guess he got a lot nicer as well.

But, I couldn’t help feeling that there was something up about the way he was acting towards me right now. He’s never acted like this with me and it really confused me.

But, for some reason I actually really didn’t care, because the longer that we stood there staring at each other, the less upset and depressed I got and the more happier my heart seemed to be getting. I didn’t really understand the feelings that were starting to arise in my chest, but I knew for sure that they were good ones and nothing to hate.

This moment felt almost perfect. They kinda felt like those times that Eric and I spent together. The air filled with love and warmth as our eyes stayed on each other while the time passed by so quickly, but to us it felt like the whole world was frozen underneath our glance.

There was usually only thing that disturbed moments like these and they were either the day ending, or mostly likely annoying friends here to steal the spotlight.

So, I really figured that the one ending this moment was either going to be the bell ringing or someone like Mahruk walking in on us.

But, it seemed to be neither. The one who came on us was the one who started it all and also ended it all.

Eric.

My Eric.

The one who made me believe he was mine, until he went and broke the news on me – hard. The one who didn’t even think before speaking and ended up spilling out the truth about himself. The one that who could barely care less about my feelings let alone for the love I had for him. I used to practically worship him and I could never thank him enough for giving me so much love. The one that made me feel so special at first and then totally killed me in the end.

He was just like God to me in the beginning and even in the end now.

First, he gave you happiness behind your wildest imagination and loved you and cherished you after so long. And then, he came upon you and stole everything that he created for you telling you that you never even deserved all this and it was all an accident that you received it all. And that he was taking it all back and giving it to the one who truly deserved it -- who just so happened to be your worst enemy.

And just like that, that’s the end of your happy ending of your story. You don’t know how to live anymore and you can’t even believe how quickly time passed by since you had your happy ending.

You don’t believe that it could possibly come back again and after thinking like that for so long, you become immune to it and can live without it.

And maybe I will too one day.

He didn’t really say anything that broke us out of this little moment, it was actually the sound of him clearing his throat that made me move back and slam my body against the locker behind me and snap my head in the direction of where it came from.

And there he was. He looked more perfect than ever. Eric. My Eric looked so much older and…evil than before. He had a cold and serious look on his face, one that scared me a bit. I wondered if he remembered me, remembered all those times we spent together.

'Would he recognize me?' I wondered. 'Would he wonder why I've suddenly become like this? Would he care? Would he stop and ask? Would he take me back if you knew the reason for it?'

Even though I already knew all the answers to these questions, I couldn’t stop my heart from asking my brain.

‘Was it all true? Could it become true?’

“Excuse me, but you’re, um, blocking my locker.” he said.

And that’s when it all came raining down on me with that one simple sentence.

‘NO!’ that’s what the answer was. ‘NO!’

And it could never be.

We were together again, but not exactly. Our lockers may be together, but our hearts were not.

I stopped staring at him, because I knew the tears were about to start arising and turned my gaze back onto Dylan. His eyes seemed to be half on Eric and half still on me. I slipped away and underneath his arms and moved to the side. He didn’t say anything, but just followed after me.

“Thanks.” Eric muttered.

He walked over to his locker and began turning the lock working his combination.

I felt numb in my spot as I just stared at his back. I barely felt Dylan wrap his arms around my neck from the side and rest his head against mine. He was beginning the plan, even though I didn’t agree or disagree to it yet. But, apparently he didn’t really care. He was doing it and he wasn’t going to stop it either.

“Hey Eric, how was your summer?” Dylan asked him casually.

“Good. Spent a lot of time with the girlfriend,” he answered. “How was yours?”

I noticed that they both seemed to be totally ignoring me as if I was just simply thin air and that’s just the way I liked it. But, I think that it would’ve been a lot better if I was no where near them when all this was happening.

“Great, went to Disney World with the rents and little brother. Also got a new girlfriend.”

I gulped, feeling heat rise up to my cheeks. I bit down on my bottom lip so hard I was afraid it was going to start bleeding.

Eric turned around and I could feel the corner of his eyes on me. I looked down at my combat boots and didn’t dare look back up.

“Cool. Who is she?”

When I heard that remark, I almost snapped my head up angrily, but I controlled myself, because I knew that if I looked up it would’ve proved rather fateful to me.

I looked up a little through my eyelashes and found a confused look flashed across Dylan’s face.

“Uh, that would be Callista.” he answered, nodding his head towards mine making it hit softly against mine.

Eric walked up to us and stared straight at Dylan as he said, “Well, I hope she doesn’t turn out to be like Mahruk and end up running away with someone else.”

And with one wink, he strolled away.

I thought over what he just said and felt myself melting in Dylan’s arms. And not in a good way, it felt almost as if I were the Wicked Witch from the Wizard of Oz after Dorothy had splashed water on her. All my insides felt jiggle-y and like melted ice-cream. My heart felt cold and hard and my body creamy and wet. I didn’t like it.

I found a sick feeling in my mouth that made my throat feel dry like the desert. And what only made it worse was when Dylan turned to look at me. At that same moment, my whole body felt like it was on fire or something.

“See, I told you, it wouldn’t work.”

I pulled back from Dylan and walked to my next class, even though I was already really late for it.