Alone in My Mind, With You by My Side

I stared into the sky, watching the blinking light of a passing airplane. The wind blew a cold chill through the night air, and a drop of rain plopped on the concrete of the basketball court. I slowly pushed myself up off of the ground, and turned towards my front door. All of the lights were off, which meant my parents had most likely gone to bed. I trudged up the steps and pushed open the door. Not a sound was audible downstairs. I went upstairs to my bedroom and shut the door behind me. I unzipped my jacket and drape it over the back of my chair. I pull out the chair, and sit in front of my computer. With a thump, it hums to life. It chimes the welcome tone, presenting the message Welcome back, Aerona. I moved the little cursor across the screen to the InstaChat icon on the desktop.

“Wow,” I muttered to myself. “Four new messages.” Two from Haley, one from Josh, and one from an unknown sender. I opened Haley’s first. Where’ve you been? I miss my best friend. I clicked the second message from her. Look, I’ve been here for you since we were 5.Why are you hiding out on me now? It’s terrible, what happened, but you need to be around people. Please call me. I scoffed at the message, hearing her voice whining as I read it. I deleted the messages. I opened the message from Josh. Hey, I’ve been worried about you. It’s been almost a month since you’ve been to school. I know that it’s hard, but you’re going to have to come back at some point. It’s our senior year, mi bella. First semester is almost over. Only a month and a half are left before Christmas break. Please at least call me sometime. I’m here for you, love.

I blinked away a couple tears. I was about to close the lid, but I remembered the last message. I clicked it suspiciously. Hello beautiful, tell me when you intend to come back to return to school. I have missed you in class. I must say Mr. Fisher and Mrs. Gupta are far more irritating when you are not there. A reply would be appreciated, but not demanded. Hope to see you soon. ~A Secret Admirer

I read the message over and over. I couldn’t figure out who it was. This person obviously had English and History with me, but I could not for the life of me think of anyone who even talks to me in those classes. I was about to reply when an alert popped up. XxAbRoKeNhOpExX has requested to chat with you. I clicked accept.

XxAbRoKeNhOpExX says: Hello Beautiful

ABeautifulMind says: hey… who is this?

XxAbRoKeNhOpExX says: An admirer from afar.

ABeautifulMind says: do ik u?

XxAbRoKeNhOpExX says: It’s possible.

ABeautifulMind says: ok… do we talk?

XxAbRoKeNhOpExX says: Not often.

XxAbRoKeNhOpExX says: I was just wondering about something. If, after you come back, you would possible go on a date with me?

ABeautifulMind says: I don’t evn kno ur name.

XxAbRoKeNhOpExX says: I’m afraid…

ABeautifulMind says: of what?

XxAbRoKeNhOpExX says: If you knew who I was, then you might just say no without giving me a chance.

ABeautifulMind says: I wouldn’t say no…

XxAbRoKeNhOpExX says: Well, we’ll just see. Will you meet me somewhere?

ABeautifulMind says: When and where?

XxAbRoKeNhOpExX says: Tomorrow, 12:00, Coffee shop on the corner of 10th and Greenway.

ABeautifulMind says: Sounds great.

XxAbRoKeNhOpExX says: Booth in the corner by the painting of the woman in a blue dress
ABeautifulMind says: Okay, mysterious stranger. I will see you tomorrow.

XxAbRoKeNhOpExX says: :) Great. Well, I will see you then. Sleep well, my beautiful princess.

ABeautifulMind says: Goodnight.

I closed the lid to my computer, and pushed myself up out of the chair. I traded my blue button-up and white tank for an old AC/DC shirt, and traded my black jeans for a pair of great sweats. I threw my hair up into a messy ponytail and laid down on my bed. I glanced at the clock, and sighed at the fact that it was only 11:23. I wanted to meet this mystery man. What if it was Robert Hynes? He was rather attractive, and very popular. Or Taylor Crane, the impossibly cute drummer in the school band? I leaned over, grabbing my pills and a bottle of water from my nightstand. Taking a sip of water, I tossed my head back and dropped the pills in. I set the bottle back down, and leaned back against the pillows. My mind wandered from person to person, trying to figure out who it might be. After what seemed like hours, I slowly drifted into a dreamless sleep.