Emails

Chapter 3

Liv.

Someone shouts. Someone screams.

I think they are screaming. Everything is so loud.

They are laughing. Why are they laughing?

I feel the rain stop. I can hear it. It reverberates in my ears.

I don't feel it on my skin. I look up.

Someone is holding an umbrella over my head. I frown. I'm confused. He is smiling.

"Are you okay?" He asks.

No.

"Who are you?" I ask.

"You know, I never thought that I'd meet you here." He says, his rosy cheeks showing adorable dimples on full display. His face is turning downward. His smile is being inverted. It matches my frown. "You don't recognize me?"

I'm wracking my brain. He sighs. "Cole. I'm Cole. We're supposed to work on the debate project together."

Cole.

Cole, Cole, Cole.

His name sounds nice, I think. Why am I thinking this?

I try to smile. "Cole. Right. Sorry." My words are half-formed thoughts. I like the way his name feels in my mouth.

His bright, white, teeth beam brightly. He's one of those people who are inherently happy, or just obscenely optimistic. His eyes squint as he grins and I wonder if he can see through his lids when he smiles. Those really wide smiles that take up half of your face and your eyes are rendered nearly invisible. I didn't realize that I asked him that question aloud before his smile grew wider.

He laughs. It's not one of those fake, polite, slightly scared laughs, but real. He's practically in hysterics now. "Sorry... I... don't... get... asked... that... a... lot..."

"I can tell."

Cole practically chokes. I let out a laugh. "So, can you see?" I tease as if I hadn't just learned his name.

"I can see perfectly fine..."

"That's good to hear." He loses it. He's bent over trying to reign in his guffaws. People stare at our interaction, curious as to what made Cole lose his mind in the middle of the sidewalk.

He coughs, flushed. "Sorry about that. Do you want to work on the project now or another time...?"

My smile drops. Falls to the ground. Sinks beneath the ocean. "It's okay. We might have to do it another time though. I was just going home."

"Can I have your number? To text the location and the time and everything. I forgot to ask when we were both partnered up."

My stomach drops. Falls to the ground. Sinks further than my smile beneath the ocean. That seems too personal. I only have a handful of contacts, all of them being either my family or close friends.

He flushes red. It's cute. "Or we can just email each other. You know, here's my phone number and email address. You can contact me on any platform?" He ends this as a question and produces a pen and paper.

I nod. Take the piece of paper with barely determinable writing on it. "Okay. Thanks."

"I guess, I'll see you soon?" He ends on a note of hope.

"See you."

This time I really do end up walking home.