Notre Univers Ensemble

Chapter One

           Isreale sat crisscross beneath a tree re-reading her favorite book, "Fan girl". Levi had just told Cather he loved her. The book had always made her feel the rush of romance in her stomach. She'd read it too many times to remember.

Someone stepped around the corner and stopped. She was hoping they'd just stopped to look at their phone, or something. Isreale always hated conversing with strangers. She looked up. It was Dylan, knelt down, taking a picture of her through his camera. She smiled at him, and stood up.

"How many times are you going to read that book?" He asked, while walking across the street, the camera hanging by its strap. His Brown hair was bouncing on his forehead. He was walking with abnormal confidence. 

"As many as I can," Isreale responded. "why so confident?"

"I just got a girl's number." Dylan stood next to Isreale, then gestured towards his truck.

"What's her name?" They started to walk to it.

"Sophie. She's really cute, and sweet, and smart, and I really like her," he sounded just like he did when he met Mia. She broke his heart. He cried for days. Isreale didn't want that to happen to him again.

"Sounds like you really like her. When are you going to ask her out?"

"That's what I was going to ask you. Well, slightly." They got in the car, and Dylan started driving. "When's the proper time to ask her out?"

"How should I know?"

"You're the one dating a girl!"

"They're non-binary, actually." Isreale sounded a tad sarcastic, unwillingly.

"Sorry, Pelton," he looked up, as if saying 'sorry' to some god, instead.

"Hey, eyes on the road. You have to stay alive long enough to go on a date with that girl."

"Sorry, sorry," he quickly looked back at the road. "And her name is Sophie," he added. Isreale rolled her eyes, and pressed the on button to Dylan's stereo. An album by Queen started to play, and she continued her book.

The truck pulled up into a parking lot. Isreale put the book in her lap, and looked at Dylan. His face looked serious, unlike the playful look he always gave her. His hair held the sun's glow, reflecting it, almost.

He looked at her, the playful look back on his face, a sparkle in his eye. "Lets have an adventure." He got out, and opened the door to the back seat to grab his camera, but Isreale was still. "You coming?"

She cleared her throat, and said "Yeah. Yeah hold on." She climbed out with her book, and walked around the truck to walk next to him. They walked past a sign that read, 'Academy Hills Park.' Dylan's favorite park for a photo shoot. He says it always has the best lighting, any time of day.

Isreale and Dylan sat on a bench at the park. Her, reading a book, him fidgeting with his camera, taking pictures of everything around him, some of her, even. Isreale could hear the click, click, click of his camera in the background of the movie playing in her mind. The warmth of Daniel and Sara's love, with Cedar admiring them in the doorway. The faint sound of clicking, a comforting sound, like her mother's typing when she was little.

Dylan got up, and started to walk around, taking pictures of almost everything. 

"Is it okay if I turned in some pictures of you for this project?" He asked, referring to the 'nature' project for his photography class. 

"I'd like to see them first," Isreale said, putting her book down.

"Yeah, of course," he replied, cheerfully.

About thirty minutes and two rolls of film later, Dylan said, "I'm out of film."

"Okay," Isreale finished the last sentence in the chapter and put her bookmark in. "Let's go." 

Dylan dropped Isreale off at her house, and he went to develop his film. Isreale couldn't wait to see his pictures. His others were some of the best she'd seen. 

She said hello to her mother, and went to her room, upstairs. She put a record on, and started to tidy her room up a bit. It was mostly just making her bed and putting clothes away. She didn't have much to do, besides reading or sketching. She eventually decided to text Pelton.

Hey

Hey. How's it going?

eh, idk. Ive almost finished my book. How's life?

meh. Mine's not very interesting without you

awe. hey, can i come over tomorrow? I feel like i havent seen you in so long...

definitely. its been too long

okay, cool

love yous

love yous toooo! ♡

Isreale turned her phone off, and got up to grab her book. She'd planned on finishing it tonight, and besides, there was only a couple chapters left. She read until her mother called from downstairs. Just another chapter, and Cedar would be sixteen, but life can't pause forever. Not like the books on her shelf, frozen in time.