A Dream by Noon.

Chapter 12. Monday afternoon.

Chapter 12 – Monday afternoon.

Ryan ran into the bathroom to get in one quick check before heading out. He looked at himself,

but saw her. Every moment of the day, every moment since the party, since the haunted house actually, he thought of her. He couldn't explain how he felt such an intense draw towards someone. He was only 17, but he had been in love before. Or at least he thought he had been. This was even more, and he worried that what he felt was too much, knew it was too much, but he couldn't stop it. Couldn't stop thinking about how it felt to have her next to him, how good her body felt lying next to his, kissing her... He felt fierce the need to protect her, but from what, he had no idea, told himself she didn't need to be saved... his mind wandered and now he realized he was about to be late. He splashed some water on his face and dried it, brushed his teeth and then headed out the door.

Once in his car, he turned the key and heard the click click click noise that he had become accustomed to. He tried again. Click click click and a mild hum. C'mon! he yelled back at the engine and the failing battery. He waited, willing the engine to start. Again, click click click and then finally, a loud hum and a roar as the engine started up. Ah, thank you. Relieved, he put the car into drive and pulled out of his driveway.

The drive was less than 10 minutes, but he wished it were closer. He already worried that she

might leave thinking he wasn't going to show up. Houses whizzed by as he drove the route he knew without having to think about. Instead, he thought about her face and smiled to himself. Remembered the first time he saw her. Out exploring on one of the many afternoons his mom dropped him off at her brother Mark's house while she worked. Ryan was exploring the woods and trails, picking up sticks to help clear the trails as his uncle had asked him to do. No doubt a job meant to keep him busy for the day. He didn't mind though, instead, making a game out of it, throwing most sticks into the woods off the trails but keeping all the birch sticks in a perfect white bunch. A voice startled him that day and he dropped all of those precious white sticks across the trail. She giggled at his clumsiness and he looked over to see a very small girl, close to his age, sitting on the side of the path in front of him. Her giggle was contagious, and his frustration turned to a big smile. He looked around where she sat, and wondered what she was doing out here alone. As if she heard his thoughts, she stopped giggling and looked right at him.

"Co'mere." She said, her voice both soft and raspy at the same time. She was motioning for him to sit next to her.

He did as he was told. He still remembered his heart beating as he approached her then. "What are you...?"

"Shhhh" she interrupted. "Look." She pointed to the ground a foot away from where she sat.

He looked, but saw nothing at first and thought she might be insane, then as he focused, tiny specs of black began to move. "Ants?" he asked, seeing the pile of tiny creatures scavenging wildly for what looked like tiny crumbs. "Are you sitting here watching ants? He asked again, intrigued but still thinking she might be crazy.

"Yup." Was her only reply.

So, he sat there, mesmerized, as she rolled something in her hand, crumbs of an old donut perhaps, and sprinkled more on the ground. They both sat there, in silence, watching the ants grab at the food, moving the pieces that were 10 times their size into the den in the ground.

The silence of the woods was broken by a voice shouting, "Ryan! Ryannnnn!" he heard his aunt calling for him.

"That's for me, I have to go." He told her, not wanting to leave and not sure why.

"See ya." Was all she said and smiled, as if this moment were nothing.

And he smiled, even bigger after he turned around, a mix of curiosity and something else had swept over him. He turned back to see her again. She wasn't looking back, but down at the ants instead.

They had seen each other lots of times after that. Never interacting much, just a 'hi' here and there as Ryan had wandered into her part of the woods, hoping for another invite to sit and watch ants. A friendship that Ryan waited for, but it never came, and he knew he couldn't keep wandering through the woods searching for her, so he let it go.

Now, on the drive over to meet her, he felt all of those feelings that he had tucked down deep over the years bursting back up to the surface, but now he wanted more than just friendship and again, the smile spread across his face that he couldn't erase.

He made the turn into the hospital property and looked around to see if he could see her before parking. When he didn't, he pulled his car around the corner of the buildings and cut the engine, hoping that it would restart again when it needed to. He got out and walked around the side of the building, touching the stucco walls and looking up at the broken windows, waiting for a ghost to pop out.

From where he stood, the large bushes that lined the entrance were visible, and he watched them waiting for her to arrive. Time passed and he decided to walk out into the field and look around. Surrounded by woods on three sides, the field was massive. He walked to a path at the edge, two black birds on the trees above cawed what sounded like warning signals. Ryan walked back to the buildings and opened his passenger door and took a seat, staring again at the entryway, and continued waiting.