Shield Me From the Storms

At exactly 5:30 in the morning, the alarm on my phone went off, the screen shining its bright light in my face. I blinked several times, rubbing my eyes. Finally, I sat up and shuffled out of my room to take a quick shower. Hot water pelted against my back, relaxing my muscles and officially waking me from my restful slumber.

After getting dressed into skinny jeans, a red and black checkered flannel shirt, and red high top sneakers, I fed my two parrots, Pauley and Patty, my rabbit,Phil, my newly rescued kitten, Girdy, and my ferret, George. I made sure to pet everyone of them.

Upstairs, I ate a quick bowl of cereal, throwing a banana in my bag for later. I then proceeded to our barn outside to feed my horse Stevie. I know, I own a lot of animals, but what can I say? Son of a vet.... It's in my blood.

"Good morning, Stevie," I say as I pet his nose.

He rests his head on my chest for a moment before turning to eat the oats and hay I put in his bin. I quickly brushed his coat and left to pick up Sophia for school.

I pulled up in her driveway and she came out with a big ol' smile on her face. Not believing she was that excited about school, I asked her if she was on drugs. Soph giggled.

"No, you goof. I was chosen to be the guide for the new kid! His name is Doug or Dennis or something. "

"How can you possibly be excited about showing around some nervous kid about to puke?"

Sophia hmphed defiantly. "It could be fun."

I laughed sarcastically. "Yeah. So could having a seizure."

Her smile completely deflated. "That's not funny, Joshua. "

I instantly regret the remark the moment the words left my mouth. "I know. I'm sorry. "

She shrugged it off, turning on my radio rather loudly. In only 30 seconds, she was bouncing in her seat again, a smile on her face as she rambled on about some random thing. I was glad such a tense thing could pass so easily between us. That was one of the great things about our friendship.

We arrived at school too quickly for my taste. Sophia walked with me to our lockers, which were conveniently side by side. After checking my schedule again, I grabbed a pencil and a notebook, closing the metal door as I turned to Sophia. She half smiled at me, thrusting her thumb behind her.

"I gotta go to the office for the guide thing. See ya at lunch?"
I nodded. "Usual table. "

Her smile turned into a gorgeous grin. "Kay!" And just like that, she bounded off, her happiness bouncing off her like the sun on aluminum foil.

Thankfully school was like it was every other first day of the year. Teachers explained the rules, wen over the quota for the year, and gave out personality worksheets to do or have us talk about our summers. It was really relaxed and I liked it.

Four hours passed in what felt like five minutes. Before I knew it, I was getting my lunch of pizza and apple juice and meeting Sophia at our table. I was about to set my tray down when I saw the boy she was with. Light blue eyes contrasting against brown hair and pale skin shook me to my core. He was... Beautiful.
Luckily, I snapped out of the stupid trance before they noticed the drool hanging from my lips. I set my tray down with a plop and sat lazily, stretching my long legs.

"Hey Joshey, this is Daniel. Daniel, my best friend, Joshua."

Daniel gave me a half, very timid smile. "Dani," he corrected.

I returned the smile with a nervous one of my own. "Josh."

A long silence stretched. I took a large bite of my pizza, decided it was more cardboard than greasy goodness and sipped at my apple juice, leaving back in my chair. Sophia, however, didn't appreciate the silence and began rambling about some teacher she didn't like. Somewhere during the rant, Dani and I met gazes. I rolled my eyes teasingly and he but his lip to suppress a giggle. It was unbearably adorable.

Suddenly, the bell rang and Sophia magically stopped talking. Knowing Soph and I shared the last three classes together, I followed her out of the cafeteria. Daniel walked on her other side, twiddling his fingers as we walked. He seemed to like his shoes, he kept staring at them.

We entered the class and took out seats in the back by the window. I sat between Soph and Dani, which I wasn't too happy about. I like having the seat closest to the windows.

Class started and the teacher began the annual first day ritual. Throughout his monotonous rants, I couldn't help repeatedly glancing at Dani and scolding myself every time.