Let's Be Friends

5:

      I had decided to take a bath, rather than a shower because I'd hurt my ankle walking home (thanks Kaya), and I wanted to soak it in hot water for a while. My parents weren't fighting so there was no need to keep the water running. My dad was somewhere. I don't know, a bar or something. Who cares?

      I'd brought a book in to read, it was A Wrinkle In Time, I swear I could read that book over and over forever and never get tired of it. I feel like each time you read it, you get a new understanding of the story and the world and the way it works. Somehow, though, it lost the same magic of reading it the first time. But not enough that I'd stop reading it. I dog-eared my page and sat there, thinking about the book. I really liked the first one, but I hated the others. I felt like there was no need for a sequel. No need to be repetitive. It was over. Mission accomplished. So why were there more?

     Given, they were very well written. But still. I found them annoying and not magical in the slightest.

     I set my book down on the floor and let myself sink beneath the water. Listening to the the sounds of the outside world through a little protective bubble of H2O. I was safe here. Nobody could bother me. Here, the only thing that could hurt me was myself.

     Like if I suddenly just decided to drown myself. To just lay here forever and breathe in the water. Maybe I'd learn I had some magic powers and I could actually do that.

      No, more likely I'd just die.

      Or like if I used the razor blades we stored in the cabinet to slit my wrists or something. Again, I'd die.

     But nothing else could hurt me. It was just me.

      I resurfaced, I had almost run out of breath. 'No, not yet.' I thought,'No point of drowning right now.'

----------

      At school the next day, I was sitting through my math class, just barely tolerating it. Finally, it was passing period. I got up from my desk, faster than anyone else, threw my things into my backpack and booked it out. I was watching people in the hallway.

      I had decided to take another approach to meeting new friends; I was going to study the way other friends interacted and how friendships formed and then I was going to try it out myself. It reminded me a bit of the Scientific Method and I felt very pleased with myself for being so smart.

      I stood there, watching a group of guys nonchalantly. They were grinning and shoving each other and making extremely  inappropriate jokes. 'So, if you insult someone's mother, they will want to be your friend?' I was confused at this. Let's be honest, I don't know much about people.

      "Stop staring at people it's weird." I nearly jumped out of my skin and turned around to see Finn giving me this look, like he thought I was ridiculous.

      "I'm not-" I started and then closed my mouth, flushing mildly.

       He rolled his eyes,"Honestly, what are you doing?" I noticed that he was actually making eye contact.

       "I'm taking data. I'm trying to figure out how to make more friends by seeing how they behave towards one another." I'd lowered my voice a bit.

      Finn looked like he was gonna laugh but he just looked down at his feet and then back up at me,"What even are you?" He shook his head in amusement. "You know your life is sad when the kid who nobody likes knows how to make friends better than you."

      "Well I've never wanted  to make friends so I've never bothered to learn how." I said defensively, he started walking away slowly and I moved to catch up with him."And if you're so good at making friends why hang out with a weirdo like me?"

      "I never said I was good- just better than you- which isn't saying much." He replied and I caught him smirking a little.

      "You're mean." I said, mimicking how Kaya sounds literally ever time she talks to me.

      "Not just me. That's why I  don't try to get friends. Kids are flipping jerks."

      I knew that was true but I couldn't contain a laugh. Flipping?  I mean, I don't swear much, but c'mon. Flipping?

      "Better not make fun of me, other wise you'll have to start all over with making friends." Finn said, but I knew he didn't mean it.

      A thought came to my mind and I wondered if it was weird. Finn was my friend now. Granted, we'd only been friends for a couple days, but hey- friends were friends.

      "Can I have your phone number? Since we're friends now?" 

      Finn looked up at me as we were walking,"Oh sure." He stopped walking for a moment, set his backpack on the ground and pulled out a pen. "Gimme your hand."

      "Ink is bad for your skin-" he rolled his eyes at me and grabbed my hand before I could protest again. He wrote down a string of numbers on my hand and then let it go and put his pen back in his bag.

       I looked at the Sharpied numbers on my hand and tried to memorize them, just in case. "Thank you." I said and he shrugged. "I'll text you after school." I added.

      Finn stopped and I realized he'd reached his class. "Seeya later." He said with a faint smile. I gave him a thumbs up, feeling very cool and then he opened the door and I was left by myself in the hallway.

     I got hit by another realization, I was probably late for P.E.

     "I guess we're even."