A Thousand Oceans Wide

Magdeburg was cold. It was a chilly autumn and Bill and Tom decided to walk to the mall from school when they passed a street they used to stay on. Bill thought of checking out their old house and when they approached it, they saw a girl on her front yard next door. It happened to be their old neighbor called Heidi, and Bill was surprised she still lived there.

Bill, Tom and Heidi used to be very close when they were younger, the three of them. It was awkward for them when they realized she was growing up. She was taller than them by a few inches, and it was quite obvious she was growing elsewhere. Tom always tried to spot the color of the bra she was wearing but Bill didn’t like to hear the verdict. The real reason they hardly ever hung out anymore was because the boys moved uptown with their stepfather when they were eight. Bill hesitated for a moment as the girl was raking the leaves that were scattered all over the front porch of her home, back turned to the twins. The thirteen-year-olds were simply watching as they walked before Bill decided they could actually lend her a hand.

“Come on,” Bill spoke, approaching Heidi who looked up at him. “We’re no strangers.

Tom raised both eyebrows in slight disinterest when Bill went forward. The girl immediately grinned. Usually, Bill would avoid her or Tom would start mentally looking through her blouse, making Bill cringe at the thought.