The Spring

Chapter 1

Sitting in my usual lunch time spot in the shade of one of the big oak trees that sometimes made the campus seem like such an inviting place, I didn’t notice that my body was draped in a random pattern of light and shadow. The warm sun, now at its highest point in the sky, poured down its light, bathing most of the world in brightness. Even the oak trees, with their new spring time leaves now almost fully formed. The sunshine and shade made some blades of grass grow, and insects blinked as they buzzed back and forth. The light both scattered and direct, fell on the other teenagers eating their lunches in the warm spring time air. In this warm season, when the rest of the world tried hard to become as one in the light, I alone resisted.

I sat with my back against the wall of the auditorium building.This was my regular spot, chosen because it was in the shade at this hour of the day. The trunk of the oak tree was a few feet in front of me, not close enough to hide me from my classmates, but near enough to offer me a sense of security and shelter. My backpack that had been slung over my shoulder was now set beside me. I opened the bag of chips that I had in my backpack and quickly popped a chip in my mouth, fixing my eyes back towards the way I had just come: towards the corner of the auditorium, beyond which stood the flagpole and the entrance to the main school building.

I decide that if Keith wanted to act like a jerk, then so let it be.I had sat in this spot since my sophomore year and i would do the same today. Nothing would be different except that for the third day in a row, I sat alone. Until recently, I and my best friend Keith had always sat in the same place and ate lunch together. But on Monday, we had an argument that quickly turned bitter, and in response, Keith didn’t show up for lunch on Tuesday. She was still on campus, of course (I sometimes saw her between classes), but today was Thursday and we hadn’t spoken to each other since our argument. Apparently Keith has decided she didn’t want to spend her lunch hours with me anymore.

We had argued before and sometimes Keith had stormed off in anger but I couldn’t remember a time when we had been apart for this long. I’ve thought that Keith was just being stubborn, and I knew that if Keith were to return right now, there would be no questions asked and all would be forgiven. A few people came around the corner, either on their way from class or looking for a place outside to sit and eat, but Keith was not among them. I ate my chips slowly and continued to watch, and wait, but still there was no Keith. When I finished my bag of chips, I got up, threw the bag to the nearest trash can, and returned to my place against the wall. Fine I thought to myself, If Keith wants to sit somewhere else, that’s all right with me.

Fortunately, I had come prepared for this. Opening a pocket in my backpack, I pulled out my mp3 player and my headphones. I put on the headphones and turned the player on. Taking one last look towards the corner of the auditorium, I saw no one appear, so I pressed “Play” and a voice sang into my ears:

“Circles, we're going in circles

Dizzy's all it makes us

We know where it takes us

We've been before”

The song belonged to a band called One Direction. I was probably day dreaming, but I was pulled back to earth when the song came to its slow and somber end:

“Yeah, yeah, that's what crazy is

When it's broken, you say there's nothing to fix

And you pray, pray, pray that everything will be okay

Why you're making all the same mistakes”

I smiled. Who needed Keith? This wasn’t so bad: listening to One Direction, sitting in the fresh air, watching the birds fly down from the trees to search for food in the grass. I decided I was happy.

In between songs, I heard a familiar voice. I turned my head and saw my friend Rebecca and a girl named Harriett walking her way. I hadn’t known Rebecca for as long as I had known Keith. Rebecca had always sat down outside at a nearby table with some other students from the senior class. I and Keith had never mixed with Rebecca’s circle of friends, but they saw enough of each other to expect each other’s presence. As Rebecca approached, she stared at me and noticed that, once again the girl with the mp3 player was sitting alone. As she and Harriett passed, Rebecca stopped and I turned off my music.

Rebecca smiled and said, “Hey Emily, is Keith not gonna show up today?”

I looked around her, pretending to notice her solitude for the first time. “It doesn’t look like it,” I replied.

Rebecca shrugged, still smiling, “Oh well, no big loss.” Rebecca and Keith had never really gotten along, although I dint know why. Everyone else seemed to like Rebecca; she was very approachable and always seemed to have a positive attitude about everything. I never understood what it was in her two friend’s personality that conflicted.

“Who are you listening to?” Rebecca asked, pointing to my mp3 player.

“One Direction!” I said proudly.

Rebecca’s smile turned into a mix of disgust and amusement.

Rebecca was no fan on One Direction, and I knew it. “You need to listen to some real music for a change.”

Harriett went on towards their table, and Rebecca started to follow, but then she turned around and said, “Oh, I almost forgot, Emma and I need a ride home this afternoon. Will you wait for us?”

“Sure,” I said, “I’ll wait.”

“Thanks.”

I pressed the “Play” button again and behaved as I was enjoying my music a little too much. Rebecca just smiled and shook her head. She followed Harriett to their table, which was closer to the rear of the auditorium building. The rest of Rebecca’s regular circles of friends were there already: Harriett, four girls and one other boy. I knew them all by name, but I wasn’t friends with any of them, except Rebecca.

As I sat and listened to the music, my eyes would settle on Rebecca and her friends from time to time. I wondered what I must look like to them as I sat all alone. I probably looked like a looser, like I dint have any friends at all. I knew that wasn’t true, but what else could people assume? This part of the campus beside the auditorium wasn’t very busy, even though there were a few students having lunch at the other nearby picnic tables. But sometimes students on their way from one building to another, or custodians passing along the campus, would pass by. If I dint know them, then I ignored them, but if I saw someone I knew, I suddenly felt embarrassed. What was worse, no one even looked at me when they walked by.

Although I tried to concentrate in my music, my attention was drawn again and again to Rebecca and her friends. They were all laughing now as someone, probably Rebecca, said something funny. After a moment two members of the group; a guy and a girl, broke away from the others and sat on the lawn a few feet away from the table. After a moment of talking quietly to each other, they began to kiss. As I watched them, I decided I wasn’t going to spend the rest of my senior year of my high school sitting by myself during lunch that would be like letting Keith win. If Keith wanted to act like a stubborn jerk, then I would let her, but I wouldn’t let Keith dictate how she spent her lunch periods. Tomorrow would be different.

The lunch hour passed quickly, and finally One Direction’s singing was interrupted by the sound of the bell, calling the students back to class. I turned off my mp3 player and returned it to my backpack. I stood up, brushed the dirt and grass off my jeans, and followed the other students back indoors.