Nacho Average One Direction Story

Back in time: Senior Year

April

LIZZ MAYBERRY

     I don't remember much from the accident that ended my high jumping career. Ended my chances of doing my favorite thing in the world. Ended my life, as far as I was concerned. I only remember small bits and pieces.

     I remember hearing Zac call, shriek rather, my name and run out of his one mile race, quitting immediately. I could only hear him and even that was muffled. I tried,  ut couldn't open my eyes. There was too much blood..

     I remembered Zac picking me up in his arms and carrying me to the ambulance before the paramedics could even get the stretcher out of the back.

     I was told I soon passed out from the pain. I didn't wake up for a week. The last thing I remember before passing out was trying desperately to open my eyes. And when I finally did, I saw Zac's face very close to mine. His brow creased with worry. His lips begging me to stay with him, telling me how much he needed me. His nose scrunched with with anger and frustration. And lastly his eyes, condoning pure and fierce love. And then I blacked out.

May

     Today was my first day going back to the hell hole called school. I really didn't want to go back, but my mother insisted after missing a month of school, I still graduate with my class in June.

     With the worst day of my life exactly one month past, the event was fresh in everyone's minds. And I was sure I'd be asked roughly seven trillion times what happened. And I don't think I could get through the story even once without bursting into tears.

     I had done more crying in the last month than I would care to admit. The first two weeks were the worst. It would be just Zac and I in my hospital room and I would just sob all day until I fell asleep. The second two weeks, Zac would come lay in my bed with me and we would watch Psych reruns on the crappy television. I was infinitely grateful that for a few years every birthday, Christmas, and any other significant event for that matter, my brother and I bought each other a box season of the show.

     I had Zac with me here today, though, so I guess it can't be that bad. But it will still be bad.

     I tried to list things I was haply about. I was happy I was wearing sweatpants. But I had to cut one of the legs off to fit around the bulky cast on my left leg. I was happy I didn't have to walk all day and my lazy side was being indulged. But I was in a wheelchair, which meant more staring, more attention, and more questions.

     "Stop looking so grumpy or I'll dump your somber ass on the sidewalk and you can crawl around like a pathetic person," Zac grumbled as he pulled me up the curb to the sidewalk outside of the school.

     "Harsh," I commented. I hid my head in my hands. People were already staring. Zac swatted at my messy bun with one hand. I shook my head and laughed. He reminded me of a cat.

     "But necessesary," he amended and I shrugged.

     "Sorry."

     "I know."

     Zac pushed me in through the front doors to see the worst thing ever. Hundreds of people were gathered at the entrance with banners welcoming me back and flowers and cards and girls hoping to get Zac's number. Everyone was clapping, cheering, or not paying attention. I only spotted a few people doing the latest. I didn't blame them to be honest. Why would you get up earlier to welcome a socially anxious, grumpy girl with a broken leg back to school for a month? I sure as heck wouldn't be there if I were them.

     It was almost two much. I almost started crying. But this isn't a story about that one time I almost cried in front of my whole school. This is a story explaining the ways in which Zac is the best person in the universe. Taking everything in stride, he calmly pushed me through the crowd, which had parted with an isle down the middle like the Red Sea. Perfect. I smiled politely and waved to some people. This sucked. I couldn't see his face, but I could tell Zac was being the perfect gentleman. I knew he was nodding towards people he knew, smiling at people he didn't, glaring at people I didn't like and were only there to spread rumors: because there were definetly a few girls I spotted that would drop dead before doing anything nice for me.

     Zac rolled me to our first class, physics, and sat down loyally beside me. Like a golden retriever. We had almost every class together and it was glorious. The teacher smiled at me and I waved and willed her not to say anything. She did not bend to my will. Cue awkward small talk and beating around the bush because it was clear I didn't want to talk about what happened, but her curiosity was also killing her.

     Halfway through class, I realized I had drawn several woodland creatures in my notebook instead of notes about light. "How fast does light travel?" The teacher asked. Most kids gave her blank stares. Nobody said anything. This is usual.

     "Hella," I answered the question under my breath to Zac and he stifled a laugh. Our teacher whipped her head to look directly at me. I quickly looked down and began drawing a tu-tu on the bear on my paper. I swear the woman has the hearing of a bat.

     As Zac rolled me to my second hour he spoke up, "So I signed your cast when you weren't looking."

     I was confused. My cast wasn't really signing kind. And it was black, so no colors would show up. I leaned my head as far back as it would go so I could see Zac's face. It was closer than I had thought because he was pushing me throught he empty halls with his forearms rested casually on the handles of my wheelchair. There was that look again. The one I remembered right before I passed out. The one of unconditional love. Partly it made my heart hurt. But partly it made me haply because I knew I looked back at him with the same look.

     "I can see your nose buggers when you do that," Zac said childishly as he stood upright again, rubbing his arms where they had been resting on the handles.

     "I can see yours, too!" I scoffed as I looked ahead again.

     "Nice comeback. But really. Look at your cast," Zac urged.

     I finally found a little patch of white plastic where the brand name of the cast was written in large black block letters. Very small, in blue pen, was "Prom, best friend? Zac." in Zac's almost illegible scrawl. My handwriting is bad, but his is actually chicken scratch.

     "Please tell me you are kidding," I deadpanned once I realized what the note meant. No way in heck was I going to prom especially in a wheelchair.

     "So that's a yes? Awesome, can't wait," Zac smiled smugly.

     "You have to me joshing me right now. Is this some sort of sick prank? Let me guess. That's an actor," I pointed at some freshman boy I didn't know. He saw me pointing and scurried away. Zac caught the boy's backpackers strap and pulled him into his side.

     "No, this is Steve," Zac gestured to the small, terrified boy. "He ran cross country with me. Isn't that right Steve?"

     Steve nodded quickly and ran away.

     "Steve the actor maybe," I grumbled incoherently. Zac understood it perfectly.

     "No, Steve from cross country," he told me like I didn't hear him before. "Anyway, you'll say yes to prom. I know you will."

     "Confident, are we? What makes you so sure I'll say yes?"

     Zac shrugged. "Because you can't say no to me." Well he was right about that.