𝐁𝐎𝐘𝐈𝐒𝐇// 𝐄𝐃𝐃𝐈𝐄 𝐌𝐔𝐍𝐒𝐎𝐍𝐗𝐎𝐂

𝐥𝐢𝐢𝐢. ✭ 𝐄𝐍𝐉𝐎𝐘 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐒𝐈𝐋𝐄𝐍𝐂𝐄

SEPTEMBER 1, 1985; DUSTIN
11:50-11:58 a.m.

"I'm Gareth." A guy with a crooked smile held out his hand, introducing himself to Mike, Lucas, and me. He had fluffy brown hair that sometimes drooped over his eyes a little when he motioned backward to name his friends. "This here is Jeff and Charlie."

The guy called Jeff made a point to gesture toward a pale, gangly boy across the cafeteria. He looked like a rocker, with his long fringed hair and dark clothes, one incredibly metal dude.

"And that's our buddy, Eddie. Y'know the guy who's trying to talk to that girl who is wayyy out of his league."

Eddie was sitting with a girl. A pretty one at that. She had shades resting on her forehead, a crisp white top on, and a birthmark on the side of her face. She was almost Suzie pretty. That pretty.

"Is that his girlfriend?" I asked, furrowing my brow as I tried to envision the two together.

"What do you think?" Gareth snorted.

A crowd of jocks soon swarmed around them, answering my question. Animosity clung to their cafeteria area and the girl was forced up and away from Eddie, and carted off to what I assumed to be the popular kid's table.

She looked back at him as she left, sneaking a secret glance that he matched right back to her. A warm smile dimpled Eddie's face as he watched her go. He was nothing but excited. A strange quality for someone to possess after seemingly being ditched.

Maybe.
Maybe...
There might
just be something there.

"Girls don't like Eddie," Charlie added, leading the way over to his abandoned friend. "Hell, most people don't. 'Cept us." Mike, Lucas, and I tentatively followed our new upperclassmen acquaintances.

"Did you see that?" Eddie beamed as we approached him. "She looked at me. You saw, right? How she looked?" Tearing his stare away from the girl who was sitting with her back to him, he turned to us with his eyes alight. "Freshmen!" He gestured for us to sit before jabbing a finger toward his chest. "Eddie Munson. How about you guys?"

One by one we each gave our names.

"Mike...Wheeler."

"I'm uh- Lucas Sinclair."

"Dustin Henderson." Flicking my eyes toward the girl he had been sitting with, I asked. "Who's she?"

Background Music
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-Mississippi Queen by Mountain-
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"She, Henderson," Waving his hands around flourishingly, Eddie leaned in to divulge. "Is only the Chance Stargrove. An old friend of mine." A touch of softness blessed his eyes. "A very good friend."

"Never seen her before." Voicing my observation, I squinted over at Chance. She flicked her hair when she shoved her chin back. I caught one of her glances, analyzing it as finely as I could.

"She's freshly moved," Eddie explained, sipping from his carton of chocolate milk. "All the way from good ol' Texas."

"Southern girl?" I queried.