Falling For You

Chapter 1

"See you guys next time!" Tim said enthusiastically to the camera as the recording ended. Tim sighed and looked to his computer to begin editing his video. He enjoyed the fact that somehow, he was helping thousands of kids around the world, even if their questions sometimes made him wonder how the education system had degraded so much. 

Tim wondered what it would be liked to have a partner, someone you could rely on. Tim had always relied on his plan but, his plan was beginning to tire him out. Between his extracurriculars and his videos, his life had become so convoluted. 

Tim closed his laptop after pondering putting out an ad for a partner. I can't do this, he thought. The plan has never failed me before. Recklessness will only lead to catastrophe. Tim hurried down the stairs before his partner-hungry fingers could begin to post the ad.

Tim's parents saw him run down the stairs and called out to him. "Tim!" his mother, Maria, called out. "Look at what your father and I have whipped up!" Tim stopped and walked into the kitchen. He saw what appeared to be enough food to feed an army.

"Woah. Did your grocery order get tripled?" he asked with an obvious tone of sarcasm. 

"Ha, ha," his father shoots back. "Actually, we have new neighbors and we decided to invite them over."

"We actually thought that you would have realized that after the moving truck pulled into the driveway," his mother stated. Tim's eyes widened as he turned his head to face the gigantic window to his left that faced the old neighbors' house. He saw the big moving van that read "Dan's Moving Co." in big block letters. I really need to find a way to get back on my toes. I really shouldn't be this blind.

Tim sighed and headed towards his room. Maybe a little time to myself will give me time to think. I haven't realized how off I've been. He thought about how it was when he knew that what he put out on the internet didn't matter, how it felt to be free. Free of all the pressure, free of all the responsibility. 

Back when thousands of children didn't look to him for information when they needed a study tool. Back when teachers didn't look to him for a nice 5-minute excuse to teach kids something. Back when it seemed like a faraway dream, an illusion, to even be one-third as influential as he is now. 

Not to mention how much he had to worry about his school. He had midterms coming up and he needed to study. He couldn't be researching 'the best ways to teach kids prime and composite numbers.' He needed to study. Being a junior, he had so much on his plate that sometimes it seemed unfathomable to even sit down to write a script and conceptualize a video.

Editing videos seemed to take up 50 percent of his schedule. And considering how his grades have been doing recently, schoolwork should have probably been taking up 80 percent.

Maybe a partner wouldn't be such a bad idea, he thought. I need all the help I can get, and a partner could be the best way to free some time in my schedule.

Tim opened up his laptop and began drafting an ad for a partner, preferably one that would be comfortable being in his videos. He worked on the ad for multiple hours before he was satisfied with the finished product. Tim looked the ad over for a final time, before taking a deep breath and posting it.

Tim sat and waited for a couple of minutes. Maybe I shouldn't have done it. I mean, it's not like anyone would want to be in one of my videos. No one over the age of 12 even knows who I am. 

Tim was about to give up when a chime from his laptop startled him. He looked over to the notifications and saw that someone had messaged him. "I am interested", the message read. Tim felt elated to even have someone considered in his offer. "Let me know any other details I should be aware of."

Tim felt giddy as he began to type his reply. Maybe I can finally catch up on my school work. Maybe, I'll even have enough time to meet someone. Or make friends. Man, friends would be nice. Tim typed back, "I am looking for someone to help edit and script my videos. Let me know if you would like to be in them, too. Thank you so much for responding." 

Tim pressed send and saw as almost immediately, he got a reply. "Sure, when can I start?" Tim paused for a moment. This was all moving a little too quickly. "My name is Moby by the way. I'm currently moving into a new place so my schedule right be a little busy."

"Of course," Tim replied. "I'm looking for whatever help I can." After a few moments of no reply, Tim heard the doorbell ring. His parents' voices came not too much later. "Tim, come downstairs! The neighbors are here!" Tim reluctantly got up from his computer and hurried down the stairs. He waited near the front entryway while his father opened the door.

"Hi," a short lady on the other said if the door greeted them, holding a 3-liter soda bottle filled with Coca-cola. A taller man was to her left and a large, orange robot was behind them. "I'm Martha, this is Dan and our robot, Moby."