At The Iron Gates

Scarlet leaves swirled gently in the light autumn breeze as Finley walked in the street. The sidewalks were crowded with groups of people chattering and laughing, and Finley was not one to partake in such things. She stayed in the middle of the road, directly on the pale yellow center line. Her eyes stayed fixed on the beige school building she was headed for, not breaking concentration.

Finley enjoyed walking alone, as it gave her time to think. To enjoy the serene peace of solitude. While most people find the idea of being completely alone discomforting, Finley found tranquility in the silence.

"Hey, Finny." someone said from behind her. She turned to see who was talking to her and smiled slightly- it was Xander, one of the only people she could talk to without stumbling over her words.

"Hello, Xander." she greeted with a small wave. He grinned and ruffled her already-frizzy brown hair before taking off at a run towards the school. Finley shoved her hands into her pockets as she arrived at the front steps and looked up at the towering building.

"Get a move on." Someone pushed past her roughly. Then another, and another, until eventually she was being shoved into the flow of students pouring into the building.

Finley finally freed herself from the herd of people and rushed to get to her class on time. Her hand turned the knob just as the bell rang and she burst into the classroom. She winced at her hurried entrance for a moment, then went to her desk. As she sat down, she heard a giggle. The tips of Finley's ears turned red and she carefully moved her hair so that it formed a curtain in front of her face. The giggle had come from Ella Marie, a short girl with curly blonde hair. Finley could never figure out why Ella Marie made her so nervous and flutter stomached.

"You were almost late." Ella whispered, leaning forward to whisper in Finley's ear. "Again."

"Yeah," Finley nodded, feeling the blush creeping from her ears into her cheeks and neck. "I've made a bit of a habit out of slipping through the door about two minutes before class begins."

"Mhm!" Ella agreed, leaning back into her chair. Finley let out a breath she hadn't realized she was holding and put all her focus towards the front of the classroom. She wasn't going to let Ella bring her grades down. Finley was going to have to ignore her sparkling blue eyes and fair skin.

She had a sinking suspicion that this day was going to be a long one.

~*~

After three periods of boring classes, Finley practically flew to the cafeteria. She grabbed a salad and sat down at the table, dousing it in ranch. As she raised a fork to her mouth, Ella Marie slid into the seat beside her.

"Hey, Finley! Oh, sorry, you're eating. I'll wait!" she said quickly, proceeding to turn everything on her tray to a certain angle. Finley quickly chewed and swallowed her mouthful of lettuce and ranch.

"Hi, Ella." Finley smiled, not looking at the other girl. Ella grinned.

"I never noticed you had dimples! You should smile more often, you look really cute!"

"Oh, thanks." Finley felt her heart flitting violently against her rib cage and scratched the back of her neck.

"We should eat outside! If you want. It just looks really nice outside. There isn't a lot of people- I know you don't like too many people around you." Ella spoke in a quick and flighty manner. Finley nodded, thinking how cute it was that she knew that about her. The girls picked up their food and pushed past everyone, heading towards the doors leading to a small courtyard. Once they were out of the building and into the crisp air, Finley relaxed slightly. Just being away from the confined school made her happy. Especially with Ella, she noticed. Strange.

"Oh, there's a table over there!" Ella pointed to two stone benches surrounding a concrete table, somewhat hidden by foliage. Finley sat down immediately, but Ella brushed the layer of dust off her bench before sitting. They ate quietly, exchanging only a few words every so often. Finley was sure her face was brighter than a ripe tomato, but she deemed it vain to pull out a mirror and check.

After what seemed like forever, Ella looked around.

"We should go on a walk." she said. Finley followed her line of sight and noticed an almost completely overrun dirt path.

"I don't know, we still have class." Finley bit her lip, staring at the trail.

"It'll be fine!" Ella insisted, already skipping towards it. Finley hesitated for a moment before following the blonde.

—

yeyeyeeyeyeyeyeyeyey

i should edit but ugh