Nacina was waiting in my living room to walk to school together the next day. There was nothing strange about that.
"How did things go yesterday?" she asked while sipping the tea my mother had given her.
"What? Oh!… the th-things… good. Yes," I replied, failing to hide my nervousness. Nacina has a huge fangirl crush on the Guardian; she'd hate me if she found out we were secretly hanging out. Especially if she figured out how I felt.
"Where did you go?" she inquired.
"The arcade," I answered honestly. I'm no good at keeping secrets—if she asks the right questions, I'll admit everything.
"Oh, how typical of you," she replied. "Why didn't you tell me? I could've gone with you!"
"It was a last-minute decision and I, uh…" I tried to think of how to explain myself when my mom cut in, saying,
"She was with a boy, a very handsome one, in fact!" I glared at Mom, and Nacina squealed excitedly.
"What was his name?" Nacina asked.
"Shion!" Mom answered for me. I turned my back to them.
"Does he go to our school?" my best friend pressed.
"I don't know, does he?" Mom teased. I shook my head 'no' and speed-walked to the kitchen, quickly downing a cup of water. At that moment, my cell phone vibrated in my hoodie pocket. I pulled it out and saw a new message:
"Good Morning."
It's Serco! I quickly changed his contact name to Shion before replying,
"Good morning, let's both do our best today."
I felt like a dork after sending that, but my brain had shut down from the sheer joy of seeing a text from him.
"Yes," he replied plainly.
Oh gosh! He probably thinks I'm extremely boring now… I really hope he doesn't stop texting me.
As I was sulking, Nacina tapped my shoulder and said,
"Time to go."
I nodded and put my phone away. We waved goodbye to Mom as we left the house. With all this early morning excitement, I had forgotten to eat breakfast… I wonder how long water can stall my stomach's complaining.
A short while later, as if on cue, my stomach growled loudly and started begging for food. So water lasts about five minutes, noted.
"So, are you and this guy dating?" Nacina asked nosily, leaning close to make eye contact and detect any deception.
"No…" I replied. "We're just friends," I added, averting my eyes.
"Oh… but you like him," she noted. I gasped and pulled my hoodie over my face.
"You can't hide those things from your best friend, cutie." I suddenly regretted that she knows me so well.
"Of course not," I argued, though I couldn't stop nervous laughter. I kept my face covered while walking, which sadly led to me ramming head-first into a nearby light post.
"Are you okay?" Nacina asked. She helped me up, hugged me, and fussed over me until we made it to school.
I'm lucky I'm so clumsy because apparently, my pain makes the perfect diversion. I'd arrive a little early for class today, so no corporal punishment was necessary. But as I walked down the hall, people kept greeting me, which was nerve-racking. I hadn't done anything special today—I'm sure I looked the same as usual.
I sat in my seat and Kriss smiled and waved like usual, but she was chatting with her other group of friends and didn't say anything.
"Hey," Will greeted, then stood by my desk. "You're early today."
"Yeah… no delays. I even skipped breakfast," I replied. I wished I hadn't.
"Oh? Are you hungry? I have a bag of chips if you want," he offered. I nodded gratefully, and he brought the chips over. He's such a good friend! I managed to open the bag and eat two chips before the teacher entered and I had to hide my snack. At least my next class was culinary—I could hold out till then.
When class ended, Dan—a guy who never spoke to me before—came to my desk with one of his friends. (Dan has short, crew-cut black hair and dark brown eyes so deep they might as well be black. He's pretty popular.)
"Hi," he greeted. I felt trapped since he blocked my way, so I forced myself to speak.
"Hello." My voice cracked a little, and he laughed.
"Don't be shy. I don't bite," he teased.
"I think that depends on the situation," I retorted, deciding to joke to ease the tension. It worked a little. He smirked and nudged his friend.
"So, do you want to spend some time with me after school? I'd love to get to know you better," he asked, leaning in, invading my personal space more than I was comfortable with. His eyes looked right through me—cold—and I was at a loss how to respond.
"Excuse me," Will said, cutting in and grabbing my wrist. "We gotta go." He started dragging me away.
"Wait, my chips are still under my desk!" I shouted.
"I'll buy you some more," he offered, pulling me along. I struggled to keep up, stumbling as he dragged me.
"We're at our class!" I noted. Will stopped, turned 180 degrees, and pulled me inside, leading me to my seat.
"I didn't need help getting here, you know," I stated. He didn't reply.
"And you don't need to buy me anything," I added as he sat down beside me.
"If you're not interested, you should tell guys right away or they'll get the wrong idea," Will blurted.
"Not interested in what? What idea?" I asked.
He banged his head on the table in front of us.
"Why do you have to be so damn oblivious?" he spat. Did I do something to deserve that?
"Well… I'm sorry," I replied with a pout. I just didn't know how else to respond.
"He was only talking to you because he noticed how pretty you were at the party," Will said. I blushed—I hoped not many people would notice me.
"So… don't dress like that anymore. You don't like it anyway, right?"
I scoffed. "I may not like it, but I don't take orders from you."
I've gotten used to Will enough to speak my mind, but my statement shocked him. He looked as if I'd slapped him.
I was about to say more when my phone vibrated. Maybe it was Nacina, telling me a joke or needing something.
It was Serco.
"Sorry my text earlier was so short. I was busy. Hope your day is going well."
It wasn't funny, but somehow his simple text still calmed me and made me smile.
The teacher entered, so I put my phone away and took a few deep breaths.
We made deep-dish pizzas today, and I was pleased! I think our team did especially well. The class flew by, and soon the bell rang.
Will didn't walk me to Calculus, even though it was on the way to his next class. He sped ahead, wearing an incredibly displeased expression. I know I upset him, but I don't know what to do. I think if I talk to him more, we'll fight—and I don't want that.
Talking with Nacina in Calc was a nice change of pace. I helped her with our assignment, then remembered I hadn't replied to Serco. Before class ended, I quickly messaged him.
"It's okay, I've been busy too. With school."
He replied quickly this time.
"Are you having fun?" he asked. I smiled at my phone. I wanted to say no, but I didn't want him to worry.
"I'm at school, so of course I'm having fun," I sent.
A few seconds later, he responded.
"I know what sarcasm is. What's wrong?"
Maybe my text did sound sarcastic… how should I reply?
"School. People," I answered vaguely. I don't know if he'll understand, especially since he doesn't socialize much with humans.
"I understand. I can't see you for a few days, but when I do, I hope I can help put a smile back on your face."
I'd been smiling the whole time, which isn't like me, and my face was cramping. Yet I couldn't stop.
"What were your school days like?" I asked after erasing and rewriting multiple messages.
"It was hard. I was always pressured to be the best, and when I was, I was hated for it."
His reply made me sad, and I managed to stop smiling.
"Who are you texting?" Nacina asked, shocking me and causing me to drop my phone. She picked it up and grinned mischievously.
"Oooh, I see."
I took my phone back, blushing madly.
"You didn't read the texts, right?" I asked defensively. Serco had shared something private, and I wanted to keep it that way.
"I just read the name," she said.
A wave of relief washed over me.
"Have you finished your work?" she asked. I gasped, remembering I was still in class, and hurried to finish my online assignments.
I replied to Serco during a video tutorial.
"That sucks," I wrote.
"Yeah, it does," he sent, then added, "What profession are you studying for?"
"I'm undecided," I responded.
The bell rang for lunch. He replied, but I couldn't check—it was time to pack up and rush to the cafeteria before they ran out of meatball subs. I checked my phone once in line.
"Life is short. Think about what you want for yourself."
I stared at his text for a while. Have I not been thinking about myself? I guess not… what do I even want to do? I wish I knew.
"Hey, girl!" Kriss tackled me from behind. I laughed a little on impact.
"Good afternoon," I replied.
She poked my cheeks and looked at my hand.
"I don't think I've ever seen you use your phone before… We should exchange numbers! I can't believe I just now thought of that."
I added her number to my contacts and sent a text for verification.
During lunch, everyone was lively as usual, but I felt completely out of it. Will ignored me, which kept the peace, and my mind was elsewhere.
I'd never considered what I want to do with my life. I'd been so busy thinking about everyone else that I neglected myself.
At the end of lunch, I texted Serco.
"You're right. I'll give it some thought."
That was all I could come up with.
I checked my phone during Biology but no reply. Same during Apparel Design.
I left school without hearing from Serco again.
It's weird—I never cared about texts before. Why am I suddenly so anxious?
After school, as we walked home…
"You look upset. Are you okay?" Nacina asked. I was shocked she noticed and spoke. She'd been walking silently beside me until then.
I clutched my bag strap and answered, "Yeah, I'm fine."
She nodded, then swiftly snatched my phone from my hoodie pocket and ran off.
"That's an unwarranted invasion of privacy!" I shouted, struggling to catch up.
Once she FINALLY stopped, we were both panting. She handed me my phone with a smug look.
When I saw what she sent, I was horrified.
"Send me a picture for your contact photo. It'll make me miss you less."
I quickly began texting that Nacina had impersonated me, but then I received a picture from him—and I froze. He looked amused. Wow, that was fast. I was jealous of how photogenic he is.
Nacina leaned over my shoulder and said, "Wow… he really is cute… how did you meet him? Does he have a brother?"
I was too dumbfounded to respond right away, distracted by the message with the photo:
"I miss you too. And I hope you return the favor."
My hands shook, and I deleted what I'd typed to instead say,
"Okay… I'll send it later."
I felt like I'd run a marathon. Oh yeah, I kind of had.
I flicked Nacina's forehead vengefully.
"Ow!" she complained.
"Never do that again!" I scolded. She frowned.
"Well, you were waiting for a message from him and I got you one. You should thank me," she argued, then stuck her tongue out and rushed off toward her house.
My phone vibrated then. I checked it.
"Were you pressured into asking for a picture?" Serco's text read.
"Why do you ask?" I replied.
"You're not the type to ask, even if you want something," he sent back.
He's right… but how does he know me so well?
"My friend really wanted to see you, I guess," I replied. Should I explain? Would that seem weird?
"Have you been talking to your friends about me?" His question made my heart panic, and I frantically tried to word a response.
"I haven't said anything private. My mom did most of the talking. Sorry," I sent, sitting on my porch steps.
It seemed to take forever to get a reply.
"Can you also send me an audio message with the picture?"
Did he change the subject? Was he bothered—or not?
"What should I say?" I replied. I decided to play along.
"Say 'It's me.' I want to personalize your text message tone."
I wanted to ask why, but instead I took a picture and recorded the message. I had to retake the selfie 23 times before I was satisfied enough to share it.
The rest of the day he didn't respond—until right before I was about to sleep. At least I thought it was him. Secretly, I hoped it was him.
It wasn't.
It was Will messaging me.