Painting Flowers

Chapter 2

As soon as I got off the bus, I ran home, quickly giving the usual 'Hi! Yeah, it was good. Nah, not much. I'm going up to my room, bye!' to my parents, before whisking the phone out of its socket and carrying it upstairs with me as I rushed into my room. 

  I sat on my bed, shrugging off my school bag and shoes as I stared at the phone, waiting for it to ring. It was ridiculous how impatient I could be; meet a new friend, give him my number, look at the phone til it rings. 

  Sighing, I lay back on my duvet covers, gazing up at the ceiling which was covered with posters of Blink, New Found Glory, Good Charlotte, Green Day and The Offspring. I tried to amuse my racing mind by counting how many guitars there were in all of the combined pictures, but I knew there was 42. I always counted when I was waiting on something to happen, but there would just always be 42 inanimate guitars staring back down at me. 

  Suddenly, the shrill ringing dragged me out of my thoughts, and I grasped desperately at the covers underneath me until my clumsy hands found the vibrating phone. I brought it up to my ear, pressing the green button and hoping it was the call I'd been waiting for. 

  "H- hi, is this Jack?" a voice said quietly down the line, and I grinned.

  "Yeah, hi," I said, lying back down again and instinctively going to count the guitars again. 

  1.

  2.

  3.

  4.

  "Hi, um, it's Alex... from school? You gave me your phone number?" he stuttered, and I smirked at his shyness.

  5.

  6.

  "Yeah, hey, Alex," I said into the phone. "So... How's it going?"

  7.

  8.

  9.

  10.

  11.

  12. 

  13.

  "Um... Y- yeah, it's alright. I, uh, didn't call right away because I had to feed my dog, Sebastian, he's just a puppy," Alex said. "It's sorta a chore, but he's a really cute dog, so... y'know..."

  14.

  15.

  16.

  17.

  18.

  "Yeah, I get you," I laughed. "Did you walk home from school? I, um, didn't see you get on the bus."

  19.

  "Yeah, actually, I just walk home, since my house is on Walker Street in Towson, and it's only a few blocks away from Dulaney High," Alex said.

  20. 

  21. 

  2- 

  Wait. 

  "What?" I said. "You live on Walker Street?"

  "Um... Yup? 23 Walker Street. Why?" he said. 

  I smiled. "No way. I live in 21 Walker Street."

  "What? Really?" Alex said, excitement evident in his voice. "That means... That means we live right next to each other! How come I've never seen you around?"

  "How come I've never seen /you/ around?" I corrected him, my eyebrows raised, and my gaze drifting from the ceiling to the window, and to number 23 Walker Street. "I'm out loads, on my skateboard and stuff. You must have seen me fall at least once!"