Adorable Confusion

Chapter 3

"Hey, remember the first project we did? The "Traveler"?" I said, smiling, hoping to bring the mood up from this depressing tone.

"Yea." he smiled, now standing in front of me.

"That really was the most fun project we did this year." I said, looking up at his sad eyes.

"Yea." He has the box in one hand, and he's holding the camera bag by the strap in the other.

He stands about five inches taller than me, with a twelve inch gap between us.

I start laughing out of nowhere.

"What?" He starts laughing too.

"Is all you're gonna say is 'yea'?" I ask, moving a lock of my hair behind my ear.

He responds in a high, whiny tone, "I don't know what else to say."

"Here, let's sit down. We don't have to leave yet." I say to him, walking over to one of the chairs at the long desk.

"Ok. We have about nineteen minutes left." He informs as he follows me and sits in the chair right next to mine.

"I remember when we first started doing the "Traveler" project," I started, watching as he set the prop box on the table next to the computer, and put the camera in the box.

"And Emma told me that there was a kid who didn't have a group to work with," I motioned my hand to him.

"And she asked me if it was okay if you joined our group. I remember being a little sad cause I didn't know you, and I kept thinking 'what if this kid is weird and mean?'" I laughed.

"At first, you were a little weird, though." I joked. "But it was only cause you didn't care about what people thought of you..and I guess I'm completely the opposite of that. I care too much."

I looked down at my feet, and moved them around a little bit.

"I just think it's stupid that people let what other people think matter more than what they think." He says.

I nod.

"Yea, well that's just the way I am. I'd change if I could," I say.

"Just like how I'm so awkward and shy and boring. I don't wanna be like this, but it's really hard for me to just be myself and have fun here. I mean, at home I'm so outgoing and wild, but then here at school I'm completely different."

"You're not that bad though." He says. "I know some people who don't even have personalities at all."

"I have a personality! ..Don't i?" I smile, but try to sound hurt.

"Yea, I mean, I don't know if I know you well enough though..." He says fading out.

"Yea, it's kinda hard even if you wanted to get to know me. We don't have any classes together, you don't have a phone, and it's not like we could ever hang out outside of school..."

"Yea cause my parents are like hitlers." He says.

"Yea, that's what I meant. I know they're pretty bad, but are they really THAT bad where you talk about them so much, and refer to them as "hitlers"?" I ask, laughing.

"Well they're not THAT bad; like, they don't starve me or anything, but they never let me leave the house! It's like a concentration camp!" Niall smiles.

"Yea, you've mentioned that once or twice." I sort of roll my eyes in a jokingly way.

He has literally told me about his parents over six times just in a month, and always finds a way to somehow bring them up again.

"Cause they're the only people I'm ever with." He smiles, playing with the camera bag zipper.

I take this opportunity to get a quick glance at the clock.

Shit, we only have eleven minutes left.

I try to think of something else to say, but then I start to feel a pain in my right eye.

"Ow. I think there's something in my eye." I say, putting my head down while I have my fingers fish around in hopes to get whatever is in there out.

"Can you see if there's like, an eye lash or something in my eye?" I ask Niall, lifting my head up to reveal my red, watering eye.

"Uh, yea." He says, moving in a little closer to my face.

He gets so close, to the point where our faces are now only about an inch and a half away from each other.

I watch his eyes with my eyes. I instinctively get nervous by him looking at me right in the eye, so I look away.

I focus my attention on the plain white wall behind him.

He lifts his hand up to my face, and I flinch a little as his skin brushes over my cheek, ever so delicately.

I get over my fear and look into his eyes, which are looking into my eyes.

I can see the loneliness behind those emotionless blue walls.

I can only imagine what shit this kid has to go through everyday; with his insane mom, step dad, and hateful sisters.

"I don't see anything..." He says.

When he speaks, his warm breath instantly hits my face and lips, causing my heartbeat to lose control.