Dreamcatcher

“Look, I’m sorry about yesterday,” Jacob spoke quietly to the girl Mr. Brodie was trying to introduce her, speaking to her back. “I didn't mean to come off so angry.” Each syllable felt like it was taking forever to roll off his tongue. The seconds after that felt like years before the girl turned around to face him, her hair gently falling around her face.

An extended hand and smile weren't what Jacob was expecting, but he shook her hand and grinned back. “My name is Hannah Whitehawk,” she shrugged her shoulders, “and about yesterday, it’s okay. Coming to a new school can be hard, so I understand that you might have felt ambushed back there.” She seemed nervous, but didn't let it show all that much. Her smile was gentle as she pulled her dainty hand out of his.

The two girls she was talking to had gone off, likely to class, without a word. Now it was just Hannah and Jacob standing in the parking lot, clouds offering sprinkles of water. “I guess we should go to class, but I’ll come find you at lunch and we can discuss a schedule,” Hannah smiled.

Jacob was left standing by himself, watching a wisp of a girl walk toward her class. Familiar feeling that was. As he retrieved his books from the rabbit the falling water picked up pace. Nothing like a good sprint to class. Loud footsteps in the hall became the only sound despite class not technically being started. Luckily for him, he made it right into 13A as the bell rang in the same exact fashion as the day before. The lights were off and a menu for The Crucible was pouring out of the projector at the front of the class.

Sixty minutes passed at high speed when you slept, which wasn't the best quality to show in the first few days of school. Especially at a new school. He found himself slipping into bad habits like falling asleep or spacing out for the three periods it took until lunch hour. When that sixth bell rang signifying the end of period three and the start of lunch he nearly jumped from his seat, loping over to the cafeteria to find a quiet corner table to himself.

Instead of eating Jacob had turned to reading an old book full of Native myths and legends that he had found during a trip to Port Angeles. School food paled in comparison to Emily’s cooking, which he couldn't wait to get home to. Juicy burgers would be the main course for dinner, that he was sure of. Reading words that sounded so familiar to him was weird at first but then if he tried hard enough he could imagine his mother sitting with him in front of a fire, reciting such tales from memory; her long, black hair flowing in a braid down her back to reveal beautiful caramel eyes.

“Jacob, hi.” A light voice brought him back to reality. It seemed he was missing the past a little too much lately, spacing out as often as he did. As he turned to face Hannah he couldn't help but smile. The radiant way in which her own smile shined was actually really nice. There was no judgement when she looked at him; no fear or hatred or any sign of other negativity.

Though it was only day two of meeting her he could swear he saw happiness in her eyes, which he admittedly also felt this time around. “Hey. Hannah, right?” He nodded to the seat next to him, watching her glide into it with ease. She pulled a filofax from her purse and slid it over to him before pulling out another one. Talk about being a perfectionist. “What am I supposed to do with this?” he asked, picking it up by the opposite end and holding it out between his thumb and forefinger.

Hannah’s laugh was gentle as she took it from him and opened to a blank calendar page. “It’s just to keep organized,” she said as she slid it back to him. “You use these pages as a calendar, but there are other ones to make to-do lists or write down important things.” Jacob was trying hard to concentrate on her words so he wouldn't mess up something so nice when he used it. “The binder design is so you can take out pages you don’t need and add ones that you do, but I think this should be a good start for you.”

She began to flip through her own looking for the calendar she had created for days they could study together as he mumbled a thank you, and placed it on top of his. “I’m not sure this will fit your schedule, but it fits mine, so we can eliminate whatever dates don’t work for you. I just thought that the more study time we could get in, the better for both of us.” As his eyes skimmed over the dates she had marked ‘Jacob’ on in pink pencil, he chuckled. There were five or six days out of each week starting with after school the next day. “We don’t have to do Friday nights if you don’t want,” the excitement in her voice had faded.

“I wasn't laughing at you,” Jacob said. “I’m just surprised that you’re willing to put so much time into someone like me.” The words left his mouth before he could even think about them. Someone like me. What did he mean by that anyways; was he destined to continue on in his failure? “I mean, I’m only a junior. If I enroll in a few night classes and take summer school I should be all caught up by the end of the year.”

He was looking down but so was she, which he noticed through the top of his lashes right before she caught his eye. “You won’t be caught up if you can’t keep up with the classes you have now, so I just want to help you stay on top of everything.” She smiled, and began to mark the dates on his calendar with little red dots. He didn't even bother to object to the Friday study dates.

“Thank you,” he said again, but louder to be sure she heard him. “This is really nice of you, Hannah.” In a weird way she was acting almost like a sister or a mother to him, but somehow she didn't seem that way at all. He was reminded of girls that would use studying as an excuse to get closer to boys they liked in films Leah would watch when he was hanging out with Seth. He didn't think she liked him, but she was definitely showing that she didn't dislike him.

When she handed back his filofax, their hands brushed. Without meaning to he smiled at her, causing her to blush. “Anyways, I have to turn in some papers for a scholarship program,” her words were rushed as she gathered her things back into her purse, hair falling all over her shoulders and face. “I’ll see you tomorrow, friend.” The cheerful tone in her voice made his whole body light up with a warmth he had never felt before. A new friend. Just what I need, he thought deciding to retreat to the library to study before his next class; something he hadn't done in a while.