Excerpt--
Take a breath, Lana.
Everything will be okay.
My stomach churned when I noticed his perfectly combed chestnut hair walking through the corridor by himself, just like any other day. I basically jumped out of the bush, nearly tripping in the...
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After countless hours of pretending to learn, it was finally my favorite time of the day also known as lunch. When class ended, our teacher requested a few students to talk to him before leaving for lunch. Meadow and Catalina were a part of that group, leaving me to wait for them on a bench.
The morning sky is mostly cloud, deep steel blue-greys that mirrored the hues of the highway. Everything appeared muted, like a black-and-white photograph in dim lightroom. Rolling my shoulders back, I sighed, releasing the tense feeling in my chest. Slowly I reached into my bag, pulling out the red-colored letter with his name on it.
Seeing his footprint on it left a permanent scar on my heart. How could he be so rude enough to completely ignore me and the letter? Even if he had taken the letter; I would've felt much better. I poured my heart and soul into this letter to be discarded like the first piece of toast. Maybe Catalina and Meadow were right; I am too naïve.
"Lana!" Catalina screamed, catching my attention.
Quickly, I shoved the letter back into my bag. "What did Mr. Griffin have to say?" I asked, getting up and meeting them halfway.
"Nothing important." Catalina shrugged, wrapping her arms around my shoulders. "Now let's go eat," she added, imitating slurping sounds.
"The only thing keeping me from banging my head against my desk was lunch period," Meadow said, rubbing her belly.
Jokingly we forced each other into a race and I won as I should! Huffing and puffing, I had to catch my breath before attempting a full sentence. Days like this made me realize how unathletic I was. Good thing I never tried out for cheerleading. Catalina and Meadow joined the lunch line, and I accompanied them to avoid being left alone at the table.
"Is your new house ready to move into yet?" Meadow asked.
"Yeah, after months I think the constructors have finished building it," I answered.
For years, my father and I lived in our two-bed apartment, which was more than enough. My father worked years at his restaurant to save up a sufficient amount of money to buy a bigger house. Sometimes I wondered why; it was only the two of us and with a bigger house came loneliness.
But I couldn't say anything without knowing it would hurt him. My mother always wanted a house but didn't last long enough to achieve that goal. To be honest, she didn't accomplish any ambitions because of me. In a way, I felt responsible to take on her goals and complete them for her.
"Think about it, maybe moving into a new house will bring loads of good luck," Catalina added, gradually moving up. "Something good is bound to happen to you."
"Ah, gee thanks," I sarcastically replied.
I softly smiled, staring down at my fingers, and felt hopeful again. So what if he rejected me! That doesn't mean my whole life was ruined. There were still so many things to do in life that didn't involve a boy-- like a sleepover with my girlies.
