Manipulated

The last ray of sunshine.

  She walked into the bar with confidence in her mind. Her hands were a bit sweaty and her feet were in pain by the tight shoes she was wearing for the first and -last- time. 

As she walked into the warm room full of the smell of food, alcohol and the sound of laughter, her eyes finally fell on the group of people across the room. Her old high school peers. 

Melanie was never much for reunions, wether it was family reunions, work reunions, she never really enjoyed any of them. But for some reason, she was actually quite excited for this reunion. To see old friends, to re-connect old connections. Even though 70% of the people in her school were complete ass holes, there was still that 30% she enjoyed the presence of so much. And gladly, she was going to be able to take time off work for a 10 month trip to California with a whole bunch of people from her old school. It was a long time, but she was so excited to hang out with her friends again. 

Melanie was a very strong girl. She moved out of the house at around 19, and went off to college at an arts school down in the USA. At around 23 she got her degree, and become and arts teacher at a University in British Columbia, Canada. She loved her job so much, art was her biggest passion. Melanie was an extremely happy person, always smiling. Always laughing. She had many friends and an extremely loving family. She was probably the happiest 25 year old girl ever. 

She ran up to her old high school peers, and gave them all a big hug as a whole bunch of people came running up to her. 

"Oh my goodness it's so good to see you guys!" Melanie said hugging many of the people she was extremely close to. Sabrina and Sadie came darting up to her. Her best friends from high school. God she missed them. 

"Holy shit,  Melanie  you have Glowed the fuck up!" Screamed Sadie. She was more of the, really open kind. 

"Oh cmon, aren't i still that bag of trash I've always been?" Melanie and Sadie laughed. Sabrina came up and starred Melanie dead in the eye. "You owe me a dollar from the day I bought you a soda from the vending machine in the hall way on the second floor" Sabrina then started laughing "I'm kidding! I'm kidding! Come on, lets go see everyone else."

The three girls walked over to the couple tables full of 21-25 year olds. Then she spotted someone, someone she didn't recognize.

"who's he..?" Melanie whispered to Sadie and Sabrina. 

"Oh, he was in the late french classes. We didn't really see him much because we were in english. His name is Felix." Sabrina explained."

Melanie stood there staring at his messy dirty-blond hair and his big brown eyes.

"Melanie? Melanie, hello?" Sadie started waving her hand in front of Melanie face. "You look extremely interested in him, now doesn't she Sadie."

"Go talk to him, whats the worse that could happen." Sadie pointed at the empty chair beside him, as he was talking to the man across from him. 

"I'm alright. I don't exactly need another relationship go to shit. If he's the one, he'll come to me. Let the universe do its thing."

"Alright then, miss witchy." Sadie and Sabrina said with a giggle from Melanie.

The girls went to the table two down from the table Felix was sitting at. Melanie looked back at him to find Felix staring at her. To make things interesting, she winked at him. She turned around to quick to see his reaction, but she felt suddenly very flirty. 

Melanie and her friends all we talking, as she was sitting with people she used to be friends with. Felix had completely slipped her mind. She was having a great time with her old classmates. They all buzzed about the trip in Cali. Melanie had never been.

About twenty minutes later, her friends were all going over to the bar for shots. Melanie was never much for shots, but she thought "Fuck it, whats the worse that could happen."

Her and her friends were all sitting at the bar, and they all took their first shot. 

Suddenly beside her, a man sat in the chair on the left from Melanie. It was Felix.

"Sorry if I'm interrupting you and your friends, but i just couldn't not go up to the prettiest girl in this bar." His smile was bright and he was so hot. Melanie couldn't help but blush.

Melanie and felix flirted back and forth, until they ordered two shots. They clicked instantly. They talked about how they never saw each other at school, and how they wished they did because they had so much in common. 

They had the exact same taste in music, the same way of looking at the world, the were perfect for each other. 

He made her smile so bright.

Little did she know it was the last smile she would have in a very, very long time.