Last Year of Seventeen

Chapter 17 - I Knew You First

I've never seen anyone as calm as August inside the eye of the storm. When we arrived at the hospital, she knew exactly where to go, knew who to talk to, knew what to do.

Apparently, her mother ruptured her appendix while she was doing volunteer work, giving free consultations in the lower edge of the city. She suddenly fainted and luckily they got her to the hospital in time for an immediate surgery. The Doctor that August was talking to said that it could have been much worse if she was even five minutes late.

"You're mother is my friend, I won't let anything bad happen to her." Dr. Wakovski said and then he gestured to me, "You go ahead and relax and wait this out with your boyfriend."

"Oh," August started to say. But the doctor was back inside the operating room before she could explain anything more. I tried to hide my smirk, but it was too difficult especially after seeing August blush over that comment. "Stop it." She said firmly as she walked past me.

We haven't eaten anything since this morning so when I heard August's stomach grumble, I took it as a sign to buy both of us lunch. Luckily, the hospital also had fast food restaurants inside, so looking for a good meal wasn't too difficult. I handed her a take-out order of pesto pasta and iced tea, while I had a burger and root beer.

I didn't know what she liked but she seemed pleased enough with what I ordered for her. "Ohh, I love pesto. Thank you." She said gently.

"I have to commend you. You are the calmest person I know in an emergency." I told August as we were eating.

She scoffed, "That was calm?"

I nodded. "It's like you knew exactly what you were supposed to do. If that was my mother, I don't think I could even act unbothered."

August laughed at this and said, "Well, my mother's a doctor too and she's running her own clinic. Even if it's small, we've seen enough emergencies so I guess, I'm kind of used to it."

I told her that I don't think I've ever seen her panic in the four years I've known her. I remember seeing her on that first day of freshman year. Giving out an opening speech like she'd been doing it for the longest time. There was no stutter, no shaking of voice, no uneasiness. Ever since then, she looked like she'd always been sure of herself. I told her how even then, she has already left a mark on me and that I knew about her before she even figured I existed.

She was quiet for a moment, her eyes looking forward. And after a while, she asked, "Was that the first time you saw me?"

I didn't know where she was going with this. Where else would I see her apart from school right? So I said, "Yup. On the first day of freshman year."

She gave me a side-glance and smiled cheekily, "Well then, I knew you first."

I rolled my eyes, thinking that her competitiveness was acting up again. She's probably going to say she saw me first in the hallway, or by the fountain, or in the cafeteria, or–

"I remember meeting you when we were eight." She said nonchalantly. As if what she just disclosed wasn't a whole freaking revelation.

"Excuse me– what?" I started to consider she might actually be my stalker. But she seemed to have read my mind and she punched me on my arm.

"I'm not a stalker. Idiot."

I racked my brain, for any memory I have when I was a child. But I couldn't see August fitting anywhere in there. "Are you going to tell me? Or are you just going to leave me hanging, wondering for the rest of my life, where the hell I met you when we were eight years old?"

She laughs, soft and breathy. Then she told me the story.

It was the time her father brought her to Star Kingdom. The one she talked about during our first fake-date. How they were only able to afford the entrance fee but not the rides. She was so happy just to be there that she was skipping so fast and didn't realize she had lost her dad. When she turned around and didn't see him, she thought he was only playing hide and seek. But then minutes passed and her dad didn't show. And the place felt terrifyingly larger the longer she didn't find him. Finally, she figured she was lost and did what any eight-year old would do. She cried.