✓ | falling ➝ j. cade

ix. here, there, everywhere

❝I NEED MY LOVE TO BE HERE, CHANGING MY LIFE WITH A WAVE OF HER HAND. NOBODY CAN DENY THAT THERE'S SOMETHING THERE.❞
- THE BEATLES, HERE, THERE, AND EVERYWHERE

×

It was a cloudy Thursday when Theodosia walked into the diner with Lilli. As much as she loved going to the diner, Theodosia never quite understood why it was called The Turn-Around. Maybe James knew. She thought about asking him.

Taking a seat in front of the counter where James was, Theodosia smiled at him. She sat down her books in front of her. He was wiping down the counter around the girls.

"Well, what can I get you girls?" James asked, keeping his eyes glued to the task in front of him.

"You don't have to address us like you don't know us, James," Lilli giggled.

Theodosia watched as James cracked a smile at her, glancing up at the girl. The sound of the bell rang through diner. She looked to see who had entered. Bailey and Josiah. Theodosia turned her attention back to James as Josiah took a seat next to her.

"I don't want anything," Theodosia answered James's question.

James frowned at her,"You need to eat. You haven't eaten anything all day."

Theodosia shrugged, silently appreciating her friend's concern.

"I'm not hungry," Theodosia murmured.

James opened his mouth to respond, but Lilli cut him off with her order of a strawberry shake and a thing of fries. Theodosia glanced down at her books, her eyes falling on Romeo and Juliet. She, Johnny, and Cherry were almost finished with it. Most of the time, though, Theodosia only read it with Johnny. She had to explain most of it to him, but she didn't mind. It was amazing to see how much meaning he could get out of it. He was a lot smarter than Theodosia realized.

"Theodosia," Josiah's voice broke Theodosia out of her thoughts.

"Yeah?" Theodosia asked, looking over to Josiah as he pushed his brown curls out of his eyes.

"We've been thinking-"

We've been thinking. It was never a good sign for Theodosia if someone started off their conversation like that. They were probably going to corner her about Johnny once again. After all, it was no secret Theodosia and Johnny were hanging out a lot more than anyone expected. Heck, even Two-Bit went as far to make jokes about them. Theodosia loved her friends, but they hovered too much. Yes, Theodosia knew Johnny was a Greaser. No, she didn't care. She could handle herself.

"Well, what'd you say? You'll go?" Josiah asked, his eyes lighting up.

"Wait, what? What am I agreeing to? James?" Theodosia looked over at James for the answer, the way she always did when she panicked.

"The football game tomorrow night. Will you come? You haven't gone to one since sophomore year," James explained calmly.

Theodosia felt a sense of panic rise in her chest at the invitation. She never considered herself an anxious person or a social awkward person,-maybe a little reserved-but Theodosia avoided football games at all costs. They held too many memories as well as too many of Markus's friends. If Theodosia had anyone to go with, she would but she didn't. Marcia and Cherry were cheerleaders. James, Lilli, Bailey, and Josiah were all in the marching band, and the marching band only had third quarter off. That left plenty of time for Theodosia to be alone and for bad things to happen. In fact, one of the first football games during Theodosia's freshman year was where she met Markus. He seemed so sweet back then. Theodosia always wondered what happened to that Markus, during and after their relationship. Obviously, after that experience, she had learned that not all bad things started off as inherently bad things, but it was always lurking in the back of her mind when something new began from then on as if to say When will this bite me in the ass?