EDEN'S KITCHEN - Carmen Berzatto

The Meet Cute

JANUARY 10TH, 2010 - CHICAGO, IL.

There was no meet cute. No wonder play or fantastical string of fate. It was no work of a god or a pray. No crossing of paths or manipulation of the universe.

Ophelia Iver and Carmen Berzatto simply met by coincidence.

They would not have met, if Ophelia hadn't been moved up a grade two years prior.

They would not have met if Timothy Iver had not died.

They would not have met if the empty spot next to Carmen Berzatto's desk had been filled at the beginning of the school year.

They would not have met if the Iver's had moved three houses to the west and would have been placed in a different school bracket.

Many factors went into the reason behind the introduction of these two souls. But at the end of the day, it was pure coincidence.

When all of these factors had lined up in a specific formation to create this path.

Ophelia Iver first met Carmen Berzatto at the pack of classroom 203 in 7th grade. Despite her name, Eli did not leave a vast impression on her new classmates after the underwhelming introduction from her new teacher.

The only empty seat was directly next to Carmen Berzatto. At the back of the class next to the window. The exact place where Carmen had been going unnoticed for the past four months without trouble.

Until today, when the arrival of the new student caused more eyes to drift towards the empty spot next to him. And in turn himself.

Carmen was not the sharpest tool in the shed and barely understood the meaning of school-based education. Quite the opposite of his new desk partner. Who had nothing else to distract her in her life at the moment and put all her effort into school? The force that jump-started the gears of these two's intertwined paths, was dishonesty. If dishonestly came in the form of Eli sliding her answers to the math packet into Carmy's view.

Besides the start of a monumental story, the day passed by uneventfully and forgettable.

The first time the two children spoke was after school. When they both started their walk home, in the same direction. The two started, literally and figuratively, down the path towards their futures. Intertwining and crossing along the way. Filled with love, sadness and memories that would crawl themselves into the crevices of the two's souls. 

you're the only friend I need

              sharing beds like little kids

                        and laughing 'til our ribs get tough

                                            but that will never be enough 

...

this dream isn't feeling sweet, we're reeling through the midnight streets

                                                    and I've never felt more alone, feels so scary getting old

(Ribs)