Riarkle One Shots

Wonder

"Farkle Minkus! You better show your face right now!" I heard her yell.

Oh crap.

She's gonna kill me. On my grave it's gonna say, 'Farkle Minkus. Beloved son and loving friend. If only he had been more careful with the video game.'

If you haven't already figured it out I lost Riley's favorite video game and let's just say when she found out she was a bit upset. You would think I'd be more careful being one of her closest friends and all. Unfortunately I wasn't. I gave away some stuff that I had no use for anymore and I think I accidentally put it in one of the boxes I gave to the donation center.

"Farkle this may be your house, but I will find you!"

Maybe if I come out and surrender she'll have mercy on me. I'm just an innocent little child after all. Right?

I hear footsteps outside the room I'm hiding in and I hold my breath. If I stay very still maybe she'll just leave.

The door bursts open and I hear her gasp. It's a small room, smaller than one of our classrooms at school. It's filled with all the pictures we took together over the years. She lost her camera a few months ago and thought they were all gone. What she didn't know is that I backed up all her pictures to my computer because that's what I learned to do with mine. Last week I printed them and I was going to surprise her on her birthday.

But if it stops her from killing me right mow it's fine that she found them.

I turn on the light switch that's on the back wall since I was hiding in the back behind a shelf with some of the many picture frames. Riley walks in the center of the room and turns just taking everything in. Finally I decide to move out from my hiding place and go over to her.

She looked at me and I stood a few feet away scared she was still mad about the video game. To my surprise she only beckoned me towards her. I slowly went to her still being cautious.

When I got right in front of her she asked, "Did you do this for me?"

I nodded. "I mean of course I wanted the pictured too, but mainly for you."

She walked over to a picture in the center of the right wall. It was a picture of an orange and black butterfly fluttering its wings over some purple flowers. She pointed to it. "Remember this? It's one of the first pictures you helped me take."

"I remember. You said that it makes you feel like there's hope in the world, in each other."

She looked at me and then walked up to me. "How do you remember that?"

I shrugged. "I always try to remember the things you say."

We stare at each other and I felt my heart stop. This girl's my best friend. I can't like her. Can I? Is there something wrong with that?

Just when I'm about to suggest we go back to my room Riley leaps in to my arms. My arms easily snake around her waist almost as if we are made for each other. The world seemed to stop and speed up all at once. I felt like everything that's ever happened to me was leading up to this moment and realization.

Gently I set her down but make sure to keep on holding her close to me. I don't want this perfect moment to end.

I'm scared that when this moment ends we're just going to go back to being friends. I don't want that. I want more.

But I'm a chicken so I bury my face in the crook of her neck and say, "I love you so much Riley. More than you'll ever understand."

"No. I understand... because I love you too," she tells me pulling back a bit just enough so we can see each other's faces.

Looking in her eyes I can't help but wonder. Wonder if she really does understand. Wonder if maybe one day we could be more.