My Autumn Days with Brielle

(Part 2)

I remember my summer days with Chloe, those days when the sun beat on my back all day and the moon lit my path all night. That one particular night replays clearly in my head, a warm evening with Chloe and Skipper, my friend. After a full afternoon of hanging around the beach, we decided to stop by the Mango Hut, our favorite place to grab a quick smoothie.

"Aww, I forgot about Smith's homework!" Chloe choked over her strawberry blend.

"Yeah, you might want to do that," I warned. "Some of it is review, but most is new stuff, and I'm sure he'll check it in September."

"Don't worry about it yet, bro," Skipper slurred as he pulled out a cigarette and lit it. "September is, like, a whole month away." He inhaled, then blew, the smoke floating in the air. "Besides, it would be a lot easier to get your boyfriend to do it for you." He looked at me mischievously, and I rolled my eyes playfully.

Chloe batted her eyelashes and pouted her lips. "Can you, please?" She slid her chair closer to mine and placed her warm, nail-polished hand on my arm. "Pretty please, with sugar and ice cream and a cherry on top?"

I laughed. "As in sugar crystals and ice cream together? That sounds gross!"

She tilted her head downward, her bright brown eyes still watching me, and pouted even harder. "Please?" she begged.

I smirked and raised an eyebrow. "It would be better for you if you did it yourself..."

She continued her look, unfazed by my comment.

"What about my handwriting? It looks nothing like yours."

She batted her eyelashes again, her eyes wider.

"You won't know how to do it in class!"

She quivered her lip.

I sighed, knowing that I couldn't win. "Alright, I'll do it."

She grinned, her mood completely changed. "Thank you, thank you, thank you!" she sang. "You just made me the happiest girl in the world!"

I smiled. A little extra work didn't matter anymore.

Skipper glanced at the watch on his wrist and made a face. "Oh jeez, I gotta go." He grabbed his bag and stood up from the table. "You guys want me to drop ya off real quick?" he asked as he looked to Chloe.

"That's okay," I said, trying to hide my grimace. Riding in Skipper's beat-down truck with the music blasting my eardrums out seem like a comfortable way home. The fact that Skipper's license was taken away weeks ago didn't help either. Burning rubber and cheating death countless times was his idea of a drive, so walking home was much safer. "I have to stop somewhere first," I lied, tapping my fingers together.

"I'll ride, Skipper," Chloe said. She, for one, liked the way Skipper rarely toed the line. She turned to me, her long brown hair blown back behind her. "I guess I'll see you later, Ty." Then she turned to Skipper. "Let's go!"

"Wait," I said, "you're forgetting something." When she gave me a puzzled look, I pointed to my cheek.

"Oh, of course." She stepped over to me, kissed me on the cheek, and fell into step with Skipper, waving behind her. "Bye!"

I waved back, the feeling of her lips still there. Though I couldn't help but notice how closely my friends were walking together.

Then I blinked at another table as they passed by it. The person sitting there, her eyes fixed on her phone, was Brielle. Deciding to say hello, I walked over and sang, "But look at me! I'm breaking free!" Brielle looked up from her phone to see me, smiled, and sang, "Just look at me, singing joyfully!" Then we harmonized, "I dare you to come to stop me! I'm breaking free, free, free!" We turned some heads and earned a few claps, and we laughed. Brielle actually snorted, and that made us laugh harder.

This was how we greeted each other (yes, that included public places) because it's what happened when we met for the first time. Long story short: We were both in the young adult section of the library, looking for books to read, when Brielle sang a few lyrics to her favorite song, unaware that I could hear every word. Recognizing that it was also my favorite, I sang along, which caused her to peer around the shelves to see me. We talked, even exchanged phone numbers, and became friends in record time.

I sat in the seat across the table from Brielle as she put her phone away. "Hey, Ty. I didn't expect to see you here."

"Me?" I said. "I come here all the time."

"Really?"

"Yeah, I was just with Chloe and Skipper over there." I pointed to our seats.

"Oh." She glanced over her shoulder at the two climbing into Skipper's car and watched them leave. "Okay."

I tilted my head slightly to the right. "What's the matter?" I asked.

She paused, then said, "Your friends, are they...do they..." After a moment, she gave up. "Nevermind," she sighed.

"You sure?"

"Yeah, I'm sure." She perked up suddenly, pushing it out of her mind. "So, if you're not busy or anything, you wanna come to my house? My dad's picking up pizza."

"Sure, as long as there's pepperoni."

She smiled. "Of course there's pepperoni! When is there not?"

And so we left, wondering what crazy escapade of life we'd find ourselves in next.