The First Boy

Noah Carlo.

This was the boy that was my friend at one point, the only boy I could picture being with. He made me feel like I was important, like I could possibly be beautiful enough to be wanted by a man as beautiful as him. I knew he would never see me as the love of his life, but I saw him with so much more. He was the man I pictured growing old with and drinking sweet tea on this wrap around porch when we had kids of our own. This would never happen though because he didn’t even know what my favorite color was.

The thing I regret the most through my first three years of high school was that I never gave any other boy a chance. Every time a boy would ask me to the dance or try to talk to me, I would just ignore them. If I got too close, I knew I would start to like them, and Noah and I would never have a chance together. I always compared the other boys to Noah and how they didn’t measure up to the man he was. I was so scared that I could possibly like someone that wasn’t Noah Carlo.

As we stared at each other soaking wet with pool water, I laugh. I laugh a whole-hearted laugh and can’t stop. I’m not sure if it’s because I can finally breath and feel the summer sun on my skin, or that I am completely mortified that I had to be saved in my own pool. Noah keeps on looking at me like I am insane, but I can’t find it in myself to stop.

“Belly! Are you okay?” Cassie asks me as she is running over to the stairs of the pool.

“Belly?” Noah says with a smirk on his face “I didn’t know that’s what your friends called you.

I stop laughing. I am now not only embarrassed that I fell into a pool and had to be rescued, but now I am mortified that Noah knows that my friends call me Belly. It stuck ever since I was born, and my older brothers and sister couldn’t say the name Isabelle. Gino would point to my baby belly and started to call me Belly. My mom and dad thought it was adorable and ever since then that has been my name at home and to my close friends. No one at school ever called me Belly, and now Noah knows. It’s humiliating.

“I think she said Isabelle,” I say catching my breath and trying to get my breathing back to normal.

“Nope, she said Belly,” JP said smirking at us.

“I think that is adorable. Can I start calling you that?” Noah says with his beautiful white teeth smile.

“Absolutely not, and you have to promise to never call me that again.” I say in my stern voice.

“Sorry Belly, can’t make any promises,” he says laughing a little.

I can’t lie. Hearing Noah call me Belly is kind of adorable. I used to never like the nickname but hearing him say it changes the whole thing. When he says it, it’s like he has been calling me that for years. Every time he says it my belly does an actual flip. I wish he didn’t have that effect of wooing me so much, just like all the other girls at our school.

Noah looked better than I imagined him to look. Since the last day of junior year, I haven’t seen Noah around anywhere. I was guessing that because Lina and him only had this summer left to be with one another. I guess it was too much for both of them and when they took a break, they both went into a hiatus and haven’t been seen.

Noah’s skin is a golden bronze from spending too many hours in the sun from football. His legs are toned from running and his arms are stronger than they have been before. He must be working out and really taking this year seriously since next year he’ll be in Alabama. His teeth are perfectly straight and white like they aren’t real. His eyes are golden honey when he faces the sun, and his short brown hair that is always styled perfectly whenever I see him. He is truly beautiful.

Noah and my eyes get locked into one another. I am so focused on the lines from his delicate smile that I don’t even remember that other people are around us. Looking at Noah and looking into his eyes, he looks broken. His eyes tell me that he has been sad and is trying to find a reason to be happy again. As much as I think he deserves more than Lina, it isn’t my choice to tell him that. He needs to figure that out on his own.

Noah takes both of my hands, and as he is holding onto my hands to lift me up, I look at his strong hands. I can’t help but wonder how his hands must feel when he strokes Lina’s hair or the way he takes her hand into his as he walks down the hallways to class. I wish I could have the feeling of Noah’s hands on my body. I never thought about him this way, so romantically until right now.

As we are walking toward the porch my Nonna looks at me with panic in her eyes. She runs inside and gets my mom who then runs out with a beach towel and wraps me around in it. She hugs it tight around my body and gives me a squeeze too.

“What happened Belly?” She says with panic in her voice.

My Nonna is screaming something in Italian along the lines that she said I was drowning, when I really wasn’t. My mom is checking my ears and throat to make sure I am okay. Noah is watching in amazement how something so little just turned so big. The one thing is about Noah is that he gets it. He understands what it is like to be in a big family and to have things get blown out of proportion. Italian style of course.

“I’m fine mom really, I fell in the pool and my wedge got stuck in the filter at the bottom. Noah helped me out.” I say fixing my hair, so it doesn’t look like a bird’s nest in front of Noah.

Noah is starring at my mom and I intently. Like he’s never seen a mother and daughter interact before. The funny thing is, my mom and I look nothing alike. She has light eyes and dark hair with olive skin, and I have light auburn hair and dark eyes with golden skin. Some say my mom and I have the same bright smile, but I don’t believe it. I think my mom is breathtaking.

“Noah, thank you so much hun. That was such a sweet thing to do for my daughter. Go inside and get something to eat from Jerry, you’re looking a little too skinny.” My mom says pulling me closer to her like it’s the first time I’ve seen her.

Noah lets out a laugh “thank you Mrs. Marino, are my parents inside?”

“Please call me Giulia, and yes sweetie, your mom is with Liz Beth and your dad is with Jerry.” She says walking Noah and I to the French doors that lead into our kitchen.

“Thank you, Noah. Really.” I say with a genuine happy smile.

He gives me his bright and big Noah smile and walks into the house. My mom looks at me with her oh my god look and just keeps on smiling. I smile back all embarrassed at her. I can’t believe what just happened. I can’t even think straight to realize that my mom thinks Noah and I will become a thing. I hate to break it to her, but it will never happen.

Stella and Cassie come over to me and my mom with the biggest smiles on their faces. JP and all of his friends from our school are in the pool playing with the water volleyball. Stella, Cassie, and my mom are all thinking the same stupid thing, me and Noah. I wanted to tell them that Noah was just that guy to help others. He didn’t jump into the pool to look like a hero, he did it for me and to make sure I was okay.

I don’t even remember seeing Noah coming in with his family. I wondered if Jesse came with them, or was he hiding out at his house. You could definitely tell that Jesse and Noah were brothers. They both looked alike except I think Noah was a little more handsome than Jesse. Jesse was the bad boy that always got into trouble, but the teachers still loved him for being Jesse Carlo.

He was the amazing star of the football team, just like Noah and their dad. He is a sophomore that goes to a school in Florida where he plays football as well. Jesse and Giovanna used to hook up when they were both seniors at our high school. Giovanna used to think he was so hot but broke it off because she found out he was sleeping with her friend. Talk about a vicious cycle.

“I can’t believe Noah is here right now,” Cassie whispers to Stella and me as we are on the couch swing. “I was sure he was going to stay in hiding until tomorrow.”

“I’m telling you, he came to see Belly,” Stella says as a matter of fact.

“Guys please stop talking about it, he could come out any minute.” I say frantically looking at the French doors.

The last thing I wanted was for Noah to walk out and see us talking about something so childish. I didn’t want him to think that I was making this a big deal. He was the type to be turned off by a girl that was overly obsessed over him. I knew it helped his ego, but he never wanted that in a girlfriend.

I also didn’t want to talk about this because I was sadly getting excited over the fact that Noah was at my house. Granted, he has come here for parties before, but always with Lina. He never came just as Noah Carlo, this was special and different. It was different seeing him here and getting along with my family and friends. That’s who he was thought. Noah was always sweet and kind to everyone and anyone.

After I am dried off, Stella, Cassie, and I walk over to where JP and the other boys are. The pool is getting packed and all of my siblings’ friends are starting to come outside. For my siblings, coming home is like a high school reunion all over again. My parents like to think this is their Labor Day party, but in reality, it is a bunch of high school and college kids getting together to end the summer.

Cassie and I are sharing a lounge chair while Stella and JP are making out in the pool. My little cousin Emma comes over and keeps on making barfing faces at her sister. This makes Cassie and I laugh, and Emma keeps on doing it until Stella notices her. Stella takes a volleyball and whacks it at Emma’s foot. Emma runs in and starts crying for her mom. Cassie and I are still laughing because we know how dramatic Emma is.

The sun starts to dip into the night and the moon rises up to the stars, the party is not dying down one bit. Cassie left a couple hours ago to go see Sal before the first day of school tomorrow, Stella is still in the pool with JP, Noah, and all their friends. I decided to go over to the other side of the yard and sit on the swings and just toss myself back and forth.

As much as everyone wanted to get rid of the swing set, I never had the heart to get rid of it. I always knew since mom wanted it, I wouldn’t have to worry. I used to always come out here during the summer with my favorite book and sit on these swings and just sway and read. It was relaxing with the summer sun and the heat on your skin. It was the thing I enjoyed the most while my brothers and sister went out.

I’m looking down at my bare feet and realizing I should’ve gotten a pedicure before the first day of school. I got these cute new sandals I wanted to wear and I’m considering not wearing them anymore.

“Are you ever going to go into a pool again?” I hear that familiar manly voice. I look up and its him.

Soon as I see him, my familiar smile tugs on my lips, he makes me want to smile at all times “I will, just not today.”

“You should have your hair curly like this all the time. It suits you,” He says taking a curl in his hands and plays with it.

I look up at him and smile even brighter. Is this just a really great dream? Noah Carlo at my house, talking to me, and playing with my hair. I’m sorry this just can’t be real.

“I wanted to say good night to you before I left,” he says placing the curl where it belongs. My smile falls a little.

“Oh, okay goodnight Noah,” I say looking up at him still. I try to take my eyes of his face, but I can’t.

“I’ll see you tomorrow then,” he says as he turns around and walks to the front yard.

I decide to go inside and say goodnight to the few of my family and friends that are still in the house and I run upstairs. I decide to take a nice long shower, while the smile still tugs on my lips. I can’t believe today turned out the way it did. I was not expecting for Noah to show up, and actually talk to me like old times.

I blow my hair out straight, so it looks just like my mom’s. I put on my baby doll and jump right into bed. As I am starring at my ceiling, I can’t help but to still smile. Noah will not leave my mind even if it’s for a second. I drift off into a deep sleep still thinking about Noah and senior year starting tomorrow.

I am finally ready to start this school year.