Turtle

I rested my hands on my trombone case and looked down at my feet. My heart was racing, my face was warm and tears streamed down my face slowly. I couldn't believe what had just happened. It was like my life was going down the toilet, spinning more and more out of control with each passing moment.

Class was over now and people started to file into the back storage room slowly. I brushed the tears offf of my face and crossed my arms over my heavig chest, trying desperately to compose myself. As people shuffled past me the whispered apologies and asked if I was okay. I never spoke, only nodded and stared at the floor.

"Hey," Allen called out. I looked up at him, his hand were jammed into his pockets sheepishly and he looked up me from underneath his brow line.

"Hi." I responded quietly. There was a beat of silence before Allen spoke again.

"I thought what you did back there, standing up for yourself, that was really cool."

He said it like he was nervous, which was strange. Allen was one of the bravest people I'd ever met. I'd never seen him so unsure of himself. I smiled.

The storage room was starting empty out, Allen and I were practically alone. He glanced around before leaning down, wrapping his arms around my waist and tried to kiss me. I turned my head away, his lips brushed against my cheek making my back tingle. Allen chuckled.

"What are you doing?" He asked quietly.

"...What...what are you doing?" I responded.

"Well, right now I'm trying to figure out why you stopped me from kissing you."

"I just," I started to reply, he looked down at me curiously, his brows furrowed. "I don't understand what's going on here."

"Uhm...what do you mean." Allen shook his head. His arms slid off if my waist as he took a step back.

"I mean...are we..dating?"

The word lingered between us for many moments. Allen's eyes shifted to a far off place and I stared at his shoes, wishing I'd just let him kiss me.

"We," Allen began, choosing his words carefully "aren't dating...no."

My heart sank, I was hoping he wouldn't say that.

"What are we?"

"Friends? I don't know Eve." Allen looked at the door and readjusted his pack on his back. He was getting frustrated.

"Friends don't kiss eachother, do they? What was that kiss?"

"It was just a kiss, Eve. Why does it have to be something? I kissed you because I knew I could. That's it."

I stood perfectly still. My entire body was numb all of a sudden and I could hear a buzzing in my ears. My face got warm all over again, and I felt dizzy. Allen wasn't even looking at me anymore, he was looking through me.

"I'm going to be late for class" I blurted before rushing away, tears stinging at my eyes. If my day wasn't alteady bad enough, he had just made it worse