The Promise of Tomorrow - 4

Picture is of Adam!
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The rest of the day went by in an unmemorable haze. I was barely attentive on first days as it was; they all entitled that same boring introductory drone. Adding a Greek god to that non-attentiveness wasn’t something to be taken lightly.

So, it was as I was dreamily skipping towards the cafeteria at lunch that somebody caught up with me and broke me out of my recurring Sir Lancelot daydream. There was a hand on my elbow, and then a familiar, deep voice.

"How’d your first day go so far, doll?" Adam asked affably, steering me towards the double doors. A passing girl gave us a curiously evil look, then opened the left side door and entered before us. The bubble of noise that met my ears was deafening.

And also, I couldn’t believe that Adam had called me doll. It was so sixties America that it was adorable. Seriously.

And by calling me doll did he mean I was cute?

"Oh - it’s been great so far. I’ve liked it." I replied, bracing myself as we pushed through the cafeteria doors. The noise was deafening for a second – before it quickly receded into a hushed whisper as people took in the sight of the hot guy and the new girl. Then everything burst into raucous sound again, and my ears slowly got used to the decibel level.

"Good. Has everyone been nice?" He asked, leading me over to his table – which was, in fact, the A-list table. Hm. I pondered on this thought for a moment before sliding into a seat beside him. I’d worry about my status later.

"Um … yeah, I suppose," I said, but he must have heard the uncertainty and hesitation in my voice because he put the sandwich he was unwrapping down and folded his arms on the table.

"All right. Who was it? Tell me, and I’ll jump them, I swear - no, no; don’t protest - my dad’s a lawyer, so I won’t get prosecuted at court."
I laughed, and he grinned widely in response. Then I looked down at the brown paper bag that I was clutching in my hands and just shook my head, smiling a little.

"No…it’s just - it’s just nobody’s really affable, you know? I mean, of course, you were, and your friends seem lovely, but the others…well it probably didn’t help with me walking in with you, and then Blaze…"

"Me walking in with you?" he laughed incredulously, "What’s that got to do with anything?"

I stared at him for a second. He had a genuine sense of modesty about him - something that could get me to like him very much as a friend.

Then I laughed.

"Everything, Mr Hot Stuff. Don’t tell me you don’t know that half the student body - the female half that is - have been crushing on you from first sight." I scolded him, reaching inside my lunch bag and pulling a sandwich half out.

Adam’s gaze was suddenly very soft and smiley.

"Does that include you, Miss Hot Stuff?" he asked teasingly, and I blushed.

"Me to know, you to find out. Anyways, no. I have vowed out romantic involvement till at least next year." I announced - a remark that was met with exaggerated male groans from around our table. I realized everyone was listening into our conversation.

"Why?" Adam cried, and he was the most exaggerated of all, placing a hand over his chest and wincing like I had stabbed him.
I grinned.

"Because it messes with my studies. I want to get top grades on my final, and that means studying, not," I added quickly as he opened his mouth to say something, "study dates."

He clamped his mouth shut again and a girl with bright red curls - Amy, I think - leaned over to pat my arm.

Her smile was wide, beautiful and, more importantly, genuine.
"I’d watch your back with that one. Once he starts hounding you, he doesn’t stop."

I returned her winning smile and glanced at a pouting, gorgeous Adam.

"I’ll keep that in mind," I replied easily, and Amy laughed as Adam clutched at my hand, bringing it up to his cheek.

"Oh no, my fair maiden! Not you, too!" he cried dramatically, making everyone laugh with his woeful expression.

I smiled.

"It’s quarter Puerto Rican maiden, actually, and I belong to no one as of forever. And yes, me too." I replied, slipping my hand from his and pretending to rifle in my lunch bag with it.

My flippant remark was rewarded with chuckles and giggles, and then Saul, the dark, cheerfully attractive Indian guy, grinned widely.

"I do believe you’ve met your match, Hollister!"
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The following weeks of getting back into school routine were tiresome. They were monotonous, repetitive, and, most of all, boring. I sat through all the classes valiantly, trying my best to seem attentive, but it was hard. Moving schools meant a messed up curriculum, and I had already completed all the work that they were just setting on this campus.

Plus, I was in a lot of advanced classes, so most of the time, the teachers just didn’t know what to do with me. And I, unable to concentrate for even two full minutes, drifted off into a lengthily, lovely daydream most of the time.

About Sir Lancelot, of course.

Which brings me nicely to Blaze. I seriously didn’t know what was up with him; he was nice and kind one day, surly and bitter the next. I had tried to talk to him in morning and afternoon registration for the first few days following our conversation, but he was either unresponsive or sickeningly polite.

Our short friendship was suddenly very formal, and looking back, I realized that he probably didn’t think of me in that way anyway - that he had been nice that first day simply because I was the new girl. He was polite, after all. A never failing gentleman.

I had noticed that about him.

Not that I went around intentionally noticing things about him of course, just that … oh, I couldn’t seem to help it! My full blown crush had faded a little, I’ll admit, but the attraction was still there. I was always admiring him from afar; noticing the little, adorable things that he did like running his fingers through his ebony coloured hair and staring broodingly into space for ages, with his music plugged in, just getting lost in his own world.

I wished, more often than not, that I could join him in his world. But then I remembered the strict promise I had made myself. Crushes from afar; fine. Anything more; not fine. I didn’t want anybody to get hurt after all.

So Blaze was partially ignoring me, Adam was being really sweet and attentive, the girls were new close friends (especially Amy) and schoolwork was a piece of cake. To tell you the absolute truth, none of the good things really mattered. Because I was becoming increasingly aware of the first, bad thing, and it was beginning to cancel all the other things out.

So you imagine my surprise when, one bleak Monday morning, Blaze took his regular seat and turned to me.

"Hey," he began, his face strangely flushed. I remembered that he hadn’t been on the bus that day, and wondered if he had had to run to get to school on time. "Look, I’m really sorry for being off with you these past weeks. It was incredibly rude of me."

I just stared at him, momentarily stumped. Then a small smile of realization lit up my face. Blaze was speaking to me. Blaze was actually speaking to me!

Then I realized what I sounded like - a silly, teenaged girl totally infatuated with her latest crush - and groaned inaudibly.

"Um - it’s all right. You don’t have to explain yourself to me," I smiled good naturedly, even though I really wanted to grab his black jacket lapels and pull him towards me and demand in an anguished tone that he explain why he was off with me. To explain, I tell you! And then just kiss him senseless. But I restrained myself from doing that, and just said the polite, right thing to say.

I must say, this seemed to sit better than my tactic number two, so I decided in the future to act on my own good advice and keep all tactic number twos to myself.

"No, but I really was very rude. And I wanted to ask, if you’ll still come, whether you’d like to accompany me to the woods with me this weekend? I mean that in every non-hormonal way possible." The corner of his mouth tugged into a lopsided, heartbreakingly beautiful smile as he said this, and I sighed in reverence.

The lord hath sent thy angel.

So, with a tiny smile of my own, I nodded.

"Well, yes, I suppose. Yes." I stammered, and then blushed because I sounded like such an idiot. I was never tongue tied around hot guys (i.e. Adam and my very famous witty shot down remarks) but Blaze totally had that effect on me. I never thought I’d be that silly, stupid girl who falls head over heels for a guy and then proclaims that her tongue turns to mush every time he so much as smiles at her, but I totally give up.

Mushy tongue, people.

"Sweet. I guess I’ll pick you up at twelve in the afternoon." He replied pleasantly, but the smile was gone. I had come to realize that every one of those smiles were precious, and that I needed to treasure every one of them when they came around.

But even though every time he smiled, he was just so beautiful that it broke my heart, I’d come to like the fact that he didn’t smile much. Well, not that he didn’t smile much, really, but the fact that I had to earn those smiles. Every time I saw one and it was there because of me, my heart turned cartwheels and I got a warm feeling inside. Earning his smiles made me feel worthy to be of company, and that’s all I could ever take from him.

I vowed myself that.