Shatter Me

[9] He...Likes Me

It was Monday.

By this time, with the weekend being over and all, I had sort of let the topic of hope fall back down from the top of my worries. I hadn't completely forgotten it though. I would just sort of let it slip from my mind from time to time. But it was still there. In the back of my mind, the topic lingered about, being followed by occasional questions. But I now had something new on my mind. 

I was walking down the hall, after finishing up at my locker. The hallway had been cleared out for the most part by now, the majority of the students had headed to their dorm rooms, or back home. Only those of us who had later classes, were left finishing up in the halls,  and getting ready to end the day.

It had been a long day and I was more than ready to get home and to drift off to sleep...the only place where I could be free from stress. That is, only when my troubles weren't haunting me, even if my dreams.

I had come to the end of the hall, when I heard voices from around the corner. I automatically recognized them as Jason and his roommate, Aiden. They were laughing. And then as they stopped laughing, I heard Aiden say, "So who was that girl you brought with you to the movie on Saturday?"

"You don't know who she is?" Jason asked, surprised.

"Well, I've seen her around here but, dude, she isn't very social, if you haven't noticed. I don't know how you got her to talk you, let alone go out with you."

"It wasn't a date."

"I didn't say it was a date."

"But you were thinking it. You already know that I don't have a girlfriend. Besides, I'm only trying to help her out. She's hurt inside and she need to know that there's someone out there who cares for her."

"So you care for her?"

"Of course I do. She's so sweet and innocent."

"Do you think she's pretty?"

"Well...yes. She's beautiful."

"Do you...like her?"

Jason was quiet a moment. Then I heard him talk again. "I do. I like her very much. She is a beautiful girl inside and out. And she's so very sweet."

"Well, why don't you ask her out? On a real date."

"I'm not going to do that. I told you, she almost didn't even go to that movie with me. I want her to like me, I really do. But she's just afraid. And my goal by hanging out with her isn't to flirt or to date her. I want to help her and to show her that not everyone is a bad person. I mean, she's so scared of just everything and she is broken and stressed and is hurts me to watch her like that. I want to help her."

"Okay, then..."

"And I think she's sort of afraid to talk to me and to hang out with me. Because she's so hurt. And yes, I like her, but I'm going to respect her and to just take it slow with her. And sure, it may take a long time for her to be comfortable with me, if she's ever comfortable with me, but it doesn't matter. I don't want to hurt her anymore than she already is. I told her that we'd take it slow. And that's what were going to do. And I'm going to respect whatever she decides." He paused. 

There was silence then I heard Jason's voice again. "I really gotta go now. I've got a ton of stuff to do."

"Alright, man. Later."

Jason was walking my way now. But I couldn't think fast enough to leave. I just stood there. Thinking about everything he just said. He said he liked me. And he respected me. And that I was...beautiful. I'd never heard that before. No one had ever said anything like that to me or about me before. But why? Why me? I didn't deserve that. But he liked me anyway...

That unexplainable feeling was back.