80s imagines/preferences

River Phoenix imagine for @riverjudehaimx

March 25, 1987
I sit at my tiny plastic school desk, nervously tapping my pen against the desk.
2:15 pm
Five minutes left of school.
Gosh, I just hate school. Why does it even exist? I'd really like to meet the inventor of school and have a little chat with him.
High school is even worse than school in general. It's full of teenage delinquents who think it's really cool to go around flashing their leather jackets, and perky girls with sway when they walk and satin pink ribbons in their hair.
The only good thing about school was seeing Lila, my best friend who's heart is made of gold. She's there for me no matter what, and would take a movie night while I'm on my ladie's days rather than anything. Seriously, I don't know how she can do it.
A loud growl from the back of the classroom snapped me out of my daydreams.
"Would you please shut up?" A boy snarled, sticking out his teeth while he talked.
Everyone in the classroom suddenly glanced up from their textbooks.
"Oh, yeah..uhh..sorry," I nervously stutter, my cheeks turning scarlet.
I flip my head back around, continuing to read form my textbook.
"Don't worry about him," The girl who sits next to me, Winona, "his name is Wil, and he's totally an asshole."
(a/n: oooo sassy Wil)
"It's okay, I'm used to it," I gave a little fake smile at her. I'm used to it, because I've put up with all the people at my school. I've already spent 3 years at high school, eleven all together, I think I'm gonna be alright.
I can't handle it, I can be pretty shy at times. I wish I could act like Lila, who sticks up for herself or others no matter what.
2:20 pm
The school bell chimed, signaling that today's school day was done and over with.
I picked up my mountain of books from my desk, trudging over to the exit door.
Why couldn't the school bell sound like a church bell? I mean, the church bells sound much more beautiful and less-annoying. I can always hear them in the middle of the day, normally sitting in my science class. It's a great way to make dissecting harmless animals more interesting.
"Hey, Callie. Wait up!" A voice called after me, causing my head to snap around and my eyes move in all different directions.
"Hey, uhh..did you get anything Mrs. Anderson was saying?" It was River, some guy from my English class. I never really understood him, mainly because he would stare at me sometimes when I'm not looking. I always pretend to play it cool: he's not staring specifically at me, he's just zoning out, and he's not the only one who does that a lot. River was definitely different than the other guys at school. He stuck out in a crowd of denim jackets and greasy raven-tinted mullets, with his sandy blonde locks and thick-rimmed glasses.
His whole vibe reminded me of a relaxing beach, hot sand between my toes and sea salt stuck in my auburn locks.
River was definitely smart, and you can easily tell. He just refuses to pay attention during class, which plummets his grades to a dead end road.
"Yeah? I mean, I could help you if you want.." I answered, my voice cracking a little. I held my books right against my chest, and I could feel my racing heartbeat throughout my whole body.
"Like a tutor?" He asked, walking beside me down the busy hallway. We kept walking until we joined a huge crowd of juniors. I felt so insecure, at the fact that I stuck out so much from the cheerleaders with tiny red skirts and feathery blonde bangs, but I would much rather where my floral dress and denim jacket than pom poms and mini skirts.
"Sure," I offered him a sweet smile," just like a tutor." I felt my cheeks begin to heat up. God, I hate it when I blush. My lungs fill up with thousands of butterflies and my heart runs a marathon.
"I'll meet you at your locker after I'm done getting my stuff. Wanna go to that coffee shop down the street? We could discuss how to write mystery novels while sipping chai tea lattes," He asked, his voice low and smooth, like pulled taffy. I nodded, giving him another little smile, then waving as he turned the corner to his locker. God, how could he remain so calm in a situation like this? I was practically dying on the spot.
My heart fluttered. I have a date with a cute boy. Well, kinda a date. But still,
I have a date with a cute boy.
I turned in my locker combination, my fingers shaking with nervousness, anxiety sitting in the pit of my stomach.
What if I end up spilling my drink all over my outfit? Or what if I spill it on River?
Relax, Callie, I told myself, the only thing you should be worried about is if you accidentally have a heart attack.
"Ready?" River walked up to my locker, gripping his fingers to the straps of his navy blue backpack.
"Yeah, one second," I dumped my stack of books into my purple backpack, then slung it around my shoulder," Now I am."
3:45 pm
I didn't know what I was expecting to happen today on this little study date. I was sure I would end up embarrassing myself, but I was definitely wrong about that. River makes me feel happy, safe, and secure. He would crack little jokes at times, causing a giggle to escape from my mouth. There was never an awkward silence on our date, he always had something to talk about, whether it was how incredible the employees made this coffee, or how mystery novels were his least favorite. I can't help but agreeing with him, realistic fiction is a much better genre.
Realistic fiction makes you feel a connection to a character, makes you feel like you could be put in their shoes. To me, this date only seemed like realistic fiction. It seemed like this was just another one of my little daydreams, but better than any one I've ever had. It felt like I was put in this tiny plastic coffee shop chair, sipping a sugary drink, sitting across from a boy with features as sharp as a blade. I don't know how this could happen to me, but I wish it would never end.

"This was fun," River smiled, lifting his books from the coffee table," wanna do this again next Friday?"
"Of course," I sipped my last drop of coffee from my mug," I'll see you then."
"See you, Callie," he said, walking out the shop. My cheeks heated as he said "Callie." It was the way he empathized the "lie" and the way his voice poured out like syrup on pancakes.
I sat by myself in the coffee shop, lost completely in my thoughts. River passed the big glass window at the corner of the shop, and I studied how the radiant sunlight hovered above him, glistening onto his hair.

God, what just happened? I asked myself.
God, can you make it happen again?

***
And..that's the end! Hope you liked it, Callie! Just let me know if you want me to hangs anything. I spent the whole night writing it while watching Stand By Me, lol.
Comment requests, I'll be checking! xx
-Regan