❝I'm trying, I really am. But, I feel so.. let down. It's like I'm falling, and there's no way to get back up.❞
Oceana Bloom, a writer and an artist, can't seem to put her pain into words and her sadness into art. It's not that everything hurts, but...
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When Wednesday came along, I waited for Thursday.
And, Wednesday had stayed for a little too long.
School went on, it was a day like any other. In a couple of my classes, I received tests that I needed to study for. As I got up from my desk, I scribbled down the information about the Biology test into my planner, shoving a pale, pink sticky note in between the pages. Once the bell rang, I put my things into my backpack and I walked into the hallway, heading to 4th period. 4th period was one of the classes that I actually looked forward to, French.
Bonus: Cameron and I both shared this class!
So, it shouldn't have been a surprise when I showed up in class with a small smile playing on my face. I sat down a couple of seats behind Cameron, who smiled in my direction, and then turned around and gave his attention to Mr. Joseph Blanc. As Mr. Blanc started to speak, I pulled out my binder and laid down my French homework, grabbing my pencil bag, and then quickly looking back at the teacher.
"Bonjour à tous." He greeted in his American accent, his voice barely showing any signs of his French background. As if on cue, everyone responded back in French. He nodded his head in approval and said,"It's good to see all of you today. Let's start by passing down the homework that was assigned to you yesterday. We've got a lot to cover today, so we can't waste any time!"
As he finished his sentence, strands of his messy, blond hair fell across his eyes, and he pushed them back, revealing the dark brown eyes behind them. He smiled, though it looked a bit forced. And, it effectively hid the tiredness that I could hear in his voice.
Once he collected our homework, he started to teach the next concept in this lesson. I fiddled with my blue pen, scribbling down notes, and occasionally taking glances at Cameron. He was also busy taking notes, looking up at the teacher every once in a while, and nodding each time. I shifted my attention back to Mr. Blanc, as many of us had started noticing that his voice was starting to sound a bit hoarse. He coughed a bit, heading back to his desk and drinking water from his water bottle.
"Sorry guys, I'm jus-" He continued to cough, not being able to finish his sentence. Everyone's eyes were soon on him, as they waited for what would happen next. We watched as he swallowed a tablet, drowning it with some more water.
He cleared his throat and started to speak,"I apologize, everyone. I was just having a bit of a sore throat yesterday, and it's been getting worse." He coughed some more and attempted to finish his sentence,"So, instead of continuing this lesson .. I think I'm just going to give everyone some time to work on the project that was assigned to you yesterday. I'll have to save my voice if I want to get through the rest of the day. So, please keep the volume down."
After he received a few nods, he opened his laptop and started to work. I grabbed my laptop from my backpack, as everyone else did, and opened up my google slides. I started typing on the presentation, referring to my online French textbook for information that I needed to add in.
Our period ended quickly after that. And, once I finished putting away everything into my backpack, I walked up to Mr. Blanc, saying his name to get his attention. Once I had his attention, I continued,"Um..I'm sorry that you a-aren't feeling well. I really hope you get better soon." I gave him a small smile, hoping he would notice it.
He cleared his throat and said,"Oceana, you're so quiet, I barely hear your voice in class. Yet, you've been the only one who came up to me to make sure I was okay. That means quite a lot to me, je vous remercie," He lowered his voice, and gave me a kind smile, and said,"Now, go on, you're going to be late for 5th period."
I nodded, this time, giving him a bigger smile, as I said,"De rien." You're welcome. After waving goodbye, I rushed out the door into the hallway. I started heading to my next class until I heard a voice.
And, it was calling me.
"Oceana..wait..!" Cameron. His voice was distinct in my mind, and as I heard it, the smile stayed on my face. I turned around, facing a black-haired boy in a light blue shirt running up towards me.
"Hey.. h-how are you..?" He asked, gasping for breath.
"Uh..I-I'm good, how about you?" I stammered, my face heating up a bit. That's unusual .. why did he come all this way to ask me how I was doing?
Or was there more?
"Um..actually I need to ask you something.." I nodded, waiting for him to continue. "Uhh..yeah, so actually I have a lot of tests on Friday, which means I'm going to be needing to do lots of studying on Thursd-"
"It's okay if you can't make it.." I said, as my smile faltered a bit. Although I did understand where he was coming from, I could feel my heart sinking. Perhaps a little a piece of me had hoped that maybe he would actually stay and go along with whatever Mrs. Harp had planned. Perhaps a little a piece of me had hoped that we could actually become friends.
Maybe I was wrong.
Maybe that's always how it has been.
He looked at me, a bit startled by my answer, and decided to continue,"-No, no..It's not like that. I can still make it, but I can only stay for around 20 minutes. It's a bit shorter than what we originally had planned, but I hope it's okay." He gave me a small smile, waiting for my response.
And, maybe things were about to change.
I let out a breath, and responded, the smile returning to my face,"Umm..yeah, that's okay with m-me! I didn't mean to assume ..I-I just thought.."
He laughed, shaking his head a bit,"It's okay, Oceana. Anyways, if I didn't show up, I just know you would miss me."
My face heated up even more, but still, with a smile on my face, I said,"..Cameron, I've got to go. I'm going to be late for class..I'll see you around..?"
He nodded, waving at me as I started walking to my next class,"You will."
And, as we parted ways that day in the hallway, I looked back and I saw something that I hadn't seen in a long time.
I know it's been literally a month since I've updated .. but school has got me BUSYYY! :( anyways, hopefully you liked this chapter lol.
man, this book is soo awkward..what the actual heck. i know some of you have been waitingggg for thursday when oceana gives cameron a tour..and i promise it'll come soon! ♥♥♥
also, I've got some good news.. :) yesterday night, "Trying to Fly" reached 1k reads..and I'm so happy and thankful to everyone who read & supported my book! I'm so grateful that you guys have showered this book with your love (and votes! hahah), and for that..i will forever love and remember you lol
