I'm Sorry, Stefan

Chapter 2

Maya leaned her back against the tree, arms crossed in front of her chest. Her long, wavy red hair fell past her shoulders, creating a curtain that could hide her face. Her green eyes were piercing, and bright. She took a deep breath, and then her face split into a smile. She turned to the boy next to her. His blond hair shone in the sunlight, his blue eyes glowing with his full-toothed smile.

“How’s school?” He asks her quietly, moving over to lean on the tree next to her. Maya shrugs, pursing her lips.

“Same as always,” she says, flashing him a smile over her shoulder. “How about you? I saw your last game.” He grins back at her, pleased.

“Wasn’t it amazing?” He exclaims, happy that she was watching. He then jumps into a full blown rant, analyzing every detail of his last soccer game, giving Maya time to lean her head back against the rough bark and close her eyes, needing only to add the occasional “Yeah,” to the conversation.

At first glance, Maya looked happy enough. With her flaming red hair and her glowing green eyes, she didn’t give off an impression of sadness or dreariness. If you looked at her closely however, as almost nobody did, you would see the tired bags under her eyes, the frown that her mouth would so often fall into, the nervous way she wrung her hands and shifted her feet. Her shoulders were hunched over, making her shorter, as if she were hiding, or ashamed. Maya was a bigger girl, she wasn’t a runway model, and she was short. The way she carried herself was so different from her best friend it was almost comical.

Stefan’s shoulders were held high in confidence. His smile was self-assured. His posture, his facial expression, even his neatly styled hair depicted confidence. He was tall, and broad shoulders, with a handsome face and well-built body. Maya and Stefan were utterly different, but sometimes opposites attract.

“Maya, did you hear what I said?” Stefan asked, after a pause in the conversation. Maya snapped her head back up, opening her eyes and looking back towards Stefan.

“Sorry, what?” She says quietly, apologetic.

“Did you see my last goal?” He asks eagerly.

“Yeah,” Maya says, smiling sweetly at him through her eyelashes. “It was amazing. You’re really good,” she smiles at him, eyes wide and happy. There’s a moment of silence, then Stefan phone rings, a loud, contrasting sound in the silence of the forest. Maya face sags, and she turned away, as Stefan fumbles through his pocket, and pulls out a phone. Reading the message, His face breaks into a smile, and he texts back rapidly.

“Katherine?” Maya asks stiffly, glaring at the phone. Stefan nods absentmindedly, making faces at his phone as he texts. “How is everything going with her?” Maya asks again, hoping to keep up a conversation, or at least steal his attention away from his phone. Stefan glances up for a fraction of a second.

“Um, yeah, everything’s great,” He answers, meeting Maya’s eyes for a brief second. Then he looks down again, and continues to text. Maya sighs almost inaudibly, leaning back into the tree, her shoulders sagging. She glares at him out of the corner of her eye. Stefan glances back at her, confusion on his face.

“What’s wrong?” He asks her, closing his phone with a snap.

“Nothing,” Maya mutters. Stefan raises his eyebrows.

“Seriously! I can tell you’re upset, what wrong?” he asks her, stepping in front of her and looking her in the eye. Maya looked up at him, hopeful and pleased that he had noticed. Glad that he cared, she opened her mouth…

Stefan’s phone rang.

“Shit,” he said quietly, reaching back into his pocket. Maya shook her head, closed her eyes, and started to walk away, back towards their houses. Stefan opened the phone, glanced at the text, then looked up, after Maya. “Maya! Wait up!” He ran after her, grabbing her shoulder and spinning her around. Their eyes met. His eyes frantic, worried, and confused. Her eyes sad, lonely, and wishful. The only sound was the breeze and the movement and rustle of the forest.