In-Between The Lines

Chapter 3

        Imagine you're a single seed of a dandelion sitting in a large field. The whole field is filled with dandelions, all packed together with some entwined. Suddenly, a breeze blows your way and some of the seeds, including you, blow off the plant and scatter through the air. As you twist and twirl, you bump into and touch many other seeds as you all blow in different directions. That's what happens in life. You affect and meet other people. Now imagine you're in the field again, and you see that one seed is still stuck to the dandelion, all on its own. I am that dandelion seed.

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      When I woke up, two beams of the morning sun were sifting through the crack in the door of the closet in which I had fallen asleep. Blinking groggy, I slowly stood up and leaned against the doorway. As I found my balance, I walked over to the desk in the corner of my room and stared into the small mirror. The girl who stared back at me looked like me and moved like me, but she was a different person. I peeled my eyes from the not-me, and tried not to think about how I looked as if I had slept in a barn. My mind was still trying to wake up when I realized if I didn't move quickly I would be late for school. Practically running down the stairs, I rushed into the kitchen expecting to see my mother. Instead, there was a note on the kitchen table next to a brown paper bag.
  Had to leave early. Sandwich is in the bag for lunch. Won't make it home in time for dinner, but there's pizza in the fridge. Love you. -Mom

I grabbed the lunch bag and decided I would have enough energy to walk to school without breakfast. And with that, I ran into the big field of dandelions.

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         When I sat down in the cafeteria for the second time this year, I immediately felt uneasy. Something felt wrong, though I couldn't figure out what. It was only when I turned to look behind me did I notice the same boy from my class sitting at a table, all alone. He was staring at me with a mixture of confusion and curiosity. I stared back, with a mixture of fear and annoyance. Why was this boy bothering me? Just then, he stood up and walked over to my bench.

"Do you mind if I sit with you?"

This was the first sentence I had ever heard him say. I was surprised. He had a surprisingly strong voice for how quiet he was. I shrugged in indifference, but I was secretly hoping he would change his mind and sit somewhere else. He seemed to take this as a yes, and he sat down beside me putting his backpack by his feet. After a short moment of silence, he spoke again.

" You're probably wondering why I came to talk to you in the first place. "

I didn't react at all, keeping my face blank.

But the guy still continued on as if I had said yes.

"In the two years that I've attended this school, I've had a lot of time to observe. I know most everyone here. And in all that time of me going here, I've never seen you talk once. "

He looked at me. I said nothing.

"I just wanted ask why. Also, I wanted to give you to this."

He handed me the crumpled up piece of paper that I had rejected yesterday. Curious, I unfolded it. It proclaimed in loud letters: Help Wanted. Participants are needed to donate art pieces that will be entered and voted on in the schools annual art competition. He must have seen my confusion, because he quickly added, "Your friend Haley told me that you liked to draw when I asked her if she knew anyone. We really need participants this year, or else our art program will be cut."

I handed the paper back to him.

"Think about it," he said, pushing it back.

"If you ever need to find me, my name is Nathaniel but everyone calls me Nathan."

Just like that, he melted back into the crowd of high schoolers slowly waking up. I was still confused; no one had talked to me so much in a long time. I looked down at the paper, and carefully tucked it into my book.

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