Sweetheart Boulevard

Chapter 1

The mind is the most precious part of an individual. It is a diary full of one's deepest  and darkest secrets and desires. The question is what do you do when your own mind betrays  you? What do you do when it makes you feel like, no matter how hard you try, you are never  enough? 

A feeling of anxiety resided in the soul of the young Noelle Harding. She was a beautiful  girl, with long hair that looked like honey and a pair of golden-hazel eyes that would glow in  the sun, but there was one downside to this seemingly perfect exterior, her mind had betrayed  her. The feeling of never being enough became a part of herself that she carries like a weight  every single day. Noelle's past made her shut herself in, believing there was no one out there  for her. Her bedroom became her safety net, the only place where the broken girl felt safe to  be herself. Few things managed to bring a smile to Noelle's face these days: drawing in her  sketchbook and her loyal companion, a dachshund pup named Leeroy; odd choice for a name,  isn't it? 

Ever since she was little, Noelle found herself intrigued by drawing. Her favorite part  of the day was when, after every meal, she would get to play with her colors and put on paper  whatever was on her mind. It did not come as a surprise, this fondness of hers for drawing, as  her mother was also an artist, making quite the name for herself. Noelle had just started her first  year of studies, marking a fresh start, and a chance to follow this inborn passion. New  colleagues, new teachers, new surroundings, an overall disastrous anxiety-inducing  combination for the unfortunate Noelle. The first couple of days are always the hardest. You  have to introduce yourself, to say a few things that might make someone want to be your friend.  What would Noelle say? "Hello, I'm Noelle, I like to draw and I get overly anxious about  everything. Oh, and I also have a dog named Leeroy!"

She wakes up every morning hoping it will somehow get at least a bit easier to not over think every little thing and hold a properconversation, and hopefully one day it actually might, but for now it was still a struggle. Talking in a big crowd was a struggle, being surrounded by one too many people was a struggle, having to talk on the phone with someone unknown was a struggle, any type of new, out of her comfort zone, encounter was a struggle.

"Hi, I'm Noelle. I'm 19 and I like to draw." is how she actually introduced herself for  the Art History course. Her voice was almost like a whisper getting lost through the air.  "I'm sorry hun, I couldn't quite hear you. Could you speak up?" Mrs. Greenwell, the  teacher, asked of Noelle.

With a shaky voice and rosy cheeks, Noelle managed to repeat herself. As she finished  introducing herself once more, the girl felt out of breath and her hands started shaking rapidly. Noelle closed her eyes and started counting in her head. "1, 2, 3, breath, 1, 2, 3, breath" This  was almost like her mantra. It helped her cope with her anxiety. Noelle's breath slowed down  and her hands were resting on her thighs. She tried to focus on what the teacher was saying and  pretend like nothing happened. The rest of the course went on with Mrs. Greenwell presenting  what they would have to do for the course and paring the students up for their projects. Despite  her wish to somehow be able to work on her own, Noelle found herself paired up with a certain  Ray. When the teacher called their names, Noelle saw a head turn towards her. Such rich dark  hair and piercing blue eyes. "Ray?" she thought to herself. 

"That's gonna be interesting." the so-called Ray said as the mesmerizing eyes moved  back to the front of the class, leaving Noelle in shock. 

"Excuse me?" Noelle wished she could've managed to say out loud as Ray wrote  something down, not paying any attention to her anymore. "It is indeed going to be  interesting..." she thought to herself.

The rest of Mrs. Greenwell's course flew by, as well as the other classes Noelle had that  day. The whole day seemed to be over in the blink of an eye, as the young student could not  help but think of the icy blue eyes of her partner the whole time. Noelle did not know why she  was obsessing over this, but it was somehow comforting, having something to think about. As the courses ended and the students were heading home, Noelle heard someone  shouting her name from afar. She stopped for a second and looked back only to be greeted by  the same pair of blue eyes she came to be so fascinated by.

"Noelle, right? I think you're my partner." the dark-haired one greeted her.

"Yea... I mean, yes. Yes, that's me." Noelle replied with a crack in her voice.

"Hi, I'm Ray! Nice to meet ya, Elle! Do you wanna meet up sometime this week to figure out what we're gonna do for Greenwell's class?"

Noelle found it difficult to focus on the words that were coming out of the blue-eyed mystery. It was almost like the world had stopped and all she could focus on was the movement  of her partner's lips and how the light made those eyes look like ice. She was wondering how  come she remained so calm. No increased heart rate or trouble breathing, no shakes. Normally  this would be an encounter that would trigger her anxiety, but somehow Noelle found herself  at ease. Trying to unravel the million shades of blues, greens and greys made her feel calm.

"You still with me Elle?" wondered Ray softly grabbing Noelle's arm and pulling her back to reality.

"Yes, I'm here, sorry. I drifted off for a second there."

"Don't worry about it. Happens to me too." Ray comforted Noelle with a soft smile.