Asymptotes

v

-Holden-

As I buy my greasy pepperoni pizza, I spot Eleanor's shiny, perfectly curled light brown hair. Hide, Holden, hide! But, unfortunately, I have a whipped best friend who's attached at the hip to his girlfriend, who happens to be with Eleanor and a tall-ish girl with red hair and freckles.

"June! June! JUNE!" Michael shouts, trying to grab her attention. I drop my head into my hands, discouraged. Eleanor's eyes light up when she sees me and I groan loudly with disdain. Michael laughs at my expression and I sock him in the shoulder.

"And you tell me I suck," I tell Michael, completely unamused. "Every fiber of my being is filled with hate for you at this second."

Michael responds with a smile and I send him a glare. They make their way to our table and I keep my head down. Maybe if it looks like I got super antisocial over the summer, Eleanor will leave me alone. But, alas, my plan doesn't work and I end up sitting right next to Eleanor and Michael. June pulls up a chair for the red-haired girl and then sits down next to Michael.

"This, my dear friends, is Autumn," June declares with a grand gesture with her arms, almost whacking Autumn in the face. Autumn flinches and she turns to look at me. I quickly look down at my food, averting my eyes.

Eleanor touches my elbow and I yank it back to safety under the table where no one can touch it. Eleanor doesn't seem to notice and asks with her honey sweet voice, "So, Holden, what were you up to this summer?" I shrug, not giving her a real answer. Michael notices her face falling a little so he swoops in.

"You should be glad he didn't respond, he's in an extremely cynical mood," Michael jokes. Michael's pretty indifferent about Eleanor but my tolerance level is much lower than Michael's, hence my irritation and his indifference. Eleanor laughs it off and I don't know whether to be happy that she's not hurt or not because she's going to try and pull something like that again. I indiscreetly try and move my chair closer to Michael's because I suddenly feel quite uncomfortable sitting next to grabby Eleanor.

Our student council treasurer, Jake (a sophomore), stops by our table to tell Eleanor she's needed desperately for the back to school bash. She says a sugary goodbye and leaves, but not before she brushes my arm. Woman, you better stop touching me now! Michael and June start conspiratorially whispering on the opposite side of the table so I turn to Autumn.

"Hey, I'm Holden," I introduce.

"Hi, I'm Autumn," she replies.

"Yeah, I know," I laugh. Her cheeks flush a bright red behind her freckles. It's actually kind of adorable. But like in a little sister kind of way, of course.

Autumn asks, "Holden? As in Holden Caulfield?"

To which I respond, "No, as in I think you're a phony."

Her green eyes sparkle with amusement, "Do you read a lot?"

I shake my head, "Nah, more of a physics and mathematics guy myself."

There's a lull of silence I don't quite know how to fill as my awkwardness kicks in.

"Did you know that if the sun was made out of bananas, it would still be as hot?" I blurt. She laughs and I grin. I congratulate myself inwardly, self-five for not embarrassing yourself.

"How does that even work?" she asks, still slightly smiling.

"Well, I mean, it definitely won't burn for billions of years. But it will produce the same kind of heat as hydrogen does because the heat is generated by the internal pressure and if you put billions of bananas, it's still the same amount of pressure. However, since our sun is made of hydrogen, the fusion reaction that keeps the Sun burning wouldn't take place; so the banana Sun would rapidly cool down from the heat it produced at the beginning," I explain, pushing up my rectangular black glasses.