Air Drumming

"C'mon, come to the store with me! It's such a cute little shop you'll love it," my mom called up the stairs to me.

"What about a 'cute little shop' makes you think I'll love it?" I called back, not wanting to move.

"Tommy, it's the last day of summer. Just come and get out of the house. It will take 20 minutes!"

"Fine!" I sighed, getting up from my bed and placing my iPod on the desk next to my bed. I threw on my converse and went downstairs.

"I think you'll really like it there," my mom repeated.

"Whatever. Let's just get this over with," I said unenthusiastically as I walked out to the driveway to get in the car. On the ride over, my mom was talking about going back to school, but I was only half listening, throwing in a "cool" or "mm" when it sounded like there should be one. I stared out the window at the passing houses and shops and leaned my head on my hand. I didn't want summer to be over and I certainly wasn't happy with the way my last day was going. My mom pulled in to a little plaza with a library and a few other shops. We parked and went inside the market; I didn't bother to check the name of it. I wasn't that interested. When we got inside the first thing I noticed was that the radio was playing some modern songs. The song "He Won't Go" by Adele was just ending and a Fun. song had just started. I walked around the store. It really was little; there were only a few isles. Each isle had a different category of food; canned goods, pastas, candy, and stuff like that. Along the back wall were frozen foods in large freezers and in a corner there was a little produce section. At first I thought my mom and I were the only ones in the store, but I was wrong. When I turned a corner, I saw the most perfect girl. She looked about my age, 14 or 15, even though girls my age look so much older than they really are. She had on a magenta t-shirt and faded skinny jeans with brown combat-style boots. She had long red hair and I noticed she had gorgeous green eyes when we made eye contact. She seemed spunky. She was dancing to the music and air drumming while who I assumed was her brother ogled the candy. I couldn't stop staring. She wasn't the most beautiful girl I had ever seen, but she was perfect to me. When she saw me, she smiled at me and made my stomach do a million flips. Her dimples and gap in her teeth were breathtakingly perfect. My heart raced. I wanted to talk to her, but I couldn't even manage a simple hello. When I realized she was staring back at me, probably because I looked like a creep, I quickly turned away and blushed. I heard her giggle. She stopped air drumming and walked over to me. I felt like I was going to faint.

"Hey, my name's Kate," she said to me.

"Uhh, cool... Oh! My name's Tommy," I managed to get out, not looking at Kate. She laughed again. She obviously wasn't fazed by my awkwardness.

"Nice to meet you," she said, still smiling.

"Uhh, yeah," I mumbled, nodding. I felt so awkward, which wasn't usual for me.

"Sorry, I'm not usually this awkward," I said, looking at her with some newfound confidence.

"Oh that's ok. You just have to get to know me. I'm usually not this outgoing. On a normal day I probably would have hid from you." I laughed, feeling even braver and more like my normal self.

"Are you a drummer?" I asked, remembering her air drumming.

"Nah, I've never played. I just felt especially drummy today," she laughed.

"I've been playing since 4th grade, and I can tell you that you didn't look that bad," I said with a smile.

"Well maybe you could show me sometime. Give me your phone I'll put my number it. Text me so I can get yours."

"Oh ok sure," I said, handing her my phone. She punched in her name and number and handed it back to me.

"Kate, it's time to go!" I heard a woman call from the front of the store.

"Sorry, I have to go," she said. I waved to her and as she walked away, she smiled at me from over her shoulder. I leaned on the shelf next to me, in a trance. I probably would never see her again, and I was only 15, but I wanted to marry that girl.