I Never Dreamt Because I'm Just Too Busy

The week continued to progress, and the boy from the coffee shop actually tried to hold a conversation with me. On more than one occasion too. Stephen, I’d learned, was his name. When I say he tried, I mean he tried and I made the best of effort to talk with him. He was really nice to be honest, so that wasn’t the problem. It was more so that, I’m really shy around those I don’t know. As well, it’s awkward for me at first. Though, if you keep speaking to me, I usually end up being friends with you.

I was actually starting to warm up to Stephen. In the couple days he’s attempted to talk to me, he never tried to pry a response out of me. He’d just smile to himself and let me be when he’d figured I’d gotten too awkward.

I kind of appreciated him for that.

Right now I was dragging myself out of my fourth period alongside Jessica. Time was passing extremely slow today, for some odd reason. For a Friday, it wasn’t a very good one So far, I had arrived to school late and somehow managed to totally misplace my Psychology notes.

Yeah, today really wasn’t all that great.

Walking to lunch both of us were silent. Jessica looked about as tired as I felt. And that’s bad.

We met up with Echo and Chantel somewhere in the over packed cafeteria. Lunch sucked, and there was a reason that I always brought my own food. There were so many kids come lunch time that getting in line was just too much of a hassle.

Waddling our way through the mass of people, we finally made it to a line Chantel wanted food from. Naturally, it was the one furthest from the entrance we’d came in through.

Echo and I stood in what seemed to be the only spot that no one was near. Things were silent until she poked my side.

“Heeeeey.”

“Hi, Echo.” I noticed her tone of voice and laughed, “What is it you want?”

“Gimme your phone so I can get a picture of Chantel for the fat booth thingy!” Echo laughed, “We’re out in the open, so she wouldn’t expect a thing!”

“Echo, no.” I shook my head.

“Please? C’mon please?”

“No.”

“Pleeeeeeeeease?” She pouted.

“Echo, you know I don’t give in for pouting.”

She continued to pout and resorted to fake crying. I only laughed at her because of how unrealistic she sounded. She couldn’t keep her face anymore and busted out laughing with me. “But Anaaaaaabelle!”

“No.”

After three minutes of her persistent bothering, I caved.

“God, you’re such a kid! Here!” I laughed, thrusting the phone at her.

“Yes!” She fist pumped the air.

She walked over and nonchalantly as she could, but Chantel knew better. She stuck her middle finger in the air and both began to laugh.

“I got it!” She said, faking. I looked at the screen and there wasn’t a picture of Chantel. Echo was just messing with her.

I laughed at her because Chantel was now glaring at the back of Echo’s head.

“What the hell are you doing taking pictures for?” The lunch lady growled at me.

Echo and I stood there wide-eyed in silence.

When you think lunch lady, you probably think of either a woman as creepy as the night, or a nice plump and pleasant woman who doesn’t really talk but smiles when you smile at her.

Well, this lunch lady was neither. She was my height, and probably somewhere smack dab in between my mother’s age and my grandmother’s. Old enough to where you wouldn’t think she’d yell at you with the power she did.

She had more piercings than I’d seen on anybody. One in her nose, one in her lip, she even had her collarbones pierced. To top it all off, she had about five in each ear. I’m not even kidding you.

“Uh….facebook?” Echo said in a way that sounded more like a question than an answer.

The woman glared at me, nose piercing glinting from the overhead fluorescent lights. She stomped over and made a bigger scene than I thought was necessary.

“Bullshit.” She snatched the phone from Echo and held it high, “Whose phone is this?!”

I walked over and meekly said, “Mine,” attempting to grab it back.

Honestly, who else’s would it be?

She went off on a little tirade, and by now I was getting way more attention than I’d have liked. All the eyes in this section of the overcrowded lunch hall were on me.

It registered in my head, that Stephen was watching this scene play out, along with everyone else.

That made this all the more embarrassing for me.

She put the phone on the table and I grabbed it back.

About a second too late, I realized that probably wasn’t the best idea.

She got up in my face, pierced nostril flaring, “You’d better delete that photo.”

“There’s nothing there! She didn’t even take one!” I said, looking her straight in the eye, “I swear! It’s not there.”

After all, Echo had just pretended.

She continued to yell at me, and I’d ended up backing up about four feet from her. The last thing that registered in my head, was her voice booming, “I swear if I go home tonight, get on the web, and see that picture, I am going to sue you!”

Echo and I were already running out the door when I’d heard that.

Once outside we both looked at each other.

“Did she…did she think that picture was of her?” Echo asked me.

We stared at each other for a moment, then both busted up laughing.

“Why,” I said between hysterical giggles, “Would I want a picture of her over-pierced face?”

“I don’t even know,” She barely managed to say back, “Whatever though, she’s crazy.”

Angel, who had not witnessed the embarrassment that had taken place, asked us why we were cracking up so hard.

I explained, and in the end we all had a good laugh.



Art rolled around again, and I sat there waiting for the bell to ring, as the multitude of people filed in.

Stephen ended up sitting next to me like he had for the past week. I glanced up from my nails that were folded neatly in my lap and he shifted his stuff around.

“Hey,” He said, shooting me that same smile.

I actually smiled back for probably the first time this entire week. “Hi.”

“So, uh, I saw that little scene in the cafeteria…” Stephen was trying to hold back a smile.

“Don’t remind me,” he laughed ,“Oh my god, that was embarrassing.” I said, slapping a hand over my face. “I can’t even figure out why she blew up on me.”

"It might have to do with the fact that she's slightly insane, or maybe she thought the picture was of her."

We shared a look much like the one Echo and I had earlier, and I began to laugh for what felt like the millionth time today. Stephen laughed along with me, and I couldn't help but notice how cute he looked as he did.

"Why would I..." I trailed off as I laughed,"why would I even want that?"

"Beats me," he chuckled.

As our laughter died down, I think he realized that this was the most I'd spoken to him this entire week. Genuinely, I mean. The other conversations were tiny and filled with small talk.

I think he'd realized because he looked at me, then smiled to himself averting his gaze to the desk.

"What?" I asked Stephen, still grinning.

He shook his head, smile still in place. "Nothing."