Seeing Grey

1. Noah Chase

Grey Winters was like a hit and run.

I mean, she hit me hard like a ton of bricks. So hard, I imagine it to be similar to the giant earthquake of San Francisco in 1906. Yeah, she hit me hard and boy did she rattle me.

I guess Grey Winters changed my life sometime in September of the year 2003, when we were both eight years old. I had always lived in our medium sized, quaint town but that year my parents decided to have another child. This lead us to buy an even bigger house. So there we were: me, my mom, my dad, my grandma, my two sisters moving to a huge house across town. For my eight year old mind that was the equivalent to moving across the planet. I had to go to a new elementary school. I practically lost my best friend Jacob. My life indefinitely sucked and it just about got worse when Grey Winters stumbled onto my white, creaky porch.

I had been hauling moving boxes in and out of my room for the past hour, and was beginning to get tired. My body couldn't quite keep up so, I did what any kid would. I begged my mom for a glass of lemonade and a sandwich. She was the only one who would sympathize with me at this moment. My dad isn't evil, no, but he did like to get things done quickly. With my lunch, I made my way to the porch and settled onto our new swing set that would forever share the happiest and most horrible moments of my adolescence. I was studying the design on its hand rest when I sensed motion across the street. I looked up and that was when I first saw her. Even at eight Grey was gorgeous and had me short of breath.

She crossed the street moodily and ran up my walkway. I was so shy as a little boy, and I almost dropped my lemonade out of nervousness. She was beautiful in a way that people usually don't make a big deal about and ignore. But I always made a big deal. Her bright, gem- like eyes were wide and alert. I learned later that they change colors with her emotions.

She also had a huge smile that was paired with the roundest and fullest lips I had ever seen on a little girl. Her eyebrows danced, and her beautiful dark honey hair swung with her every step. What got me most about her beauty were her freckles . From a short distance it looked like her face was dirty but, when you got close you could see they were beautiful freckles. They seemed to be carefully thought out and perfectly placed onto her face. I could definitely spend all day counting them. At least that's what I wanted to do before I got to know her.

She was perfect in that first moment. All of my views on her perfection disappeared within the course of her next actions.

Eight year old Grey made a grab for my sandwich. It was quicker than I had ever seen any kid my age do. She stole my sandwich. Then, without shame, she took a huge bite out of the sandwich that was supposed to be mine. I swear though, her bite was bigger than anything I had ever experienced. I was impressed but my anger trumped that.

"Hey! That's my sandwich!" I shrieked in a very annoying, girly way. Let's just say that was not my manliest moment. Grey never let me feel manly.

She polished it off right before my eyes. She then proceeded to say, "my name is Grey Winters. I live across the street in the blue house! Let's go play."

She yanked roughly at my arm, and I concluded she had double the strength that I could ever muster up. Without looking both ways she pulled me across the street to the blue house that also happened to be the hugest on the block. Before I could register what was happening, I was inside her house and she was telling me I couldn't leave. Crazy girl, right? That's what I thought.

After that moment Grey was not the same kind of gorgeous I had thought earlier. No, she was some kind of freak of nature that I had to somehow get away from. I thought she would be the death of me. I was very, very wrong.

After that day, when I got home, I made it my prerogative to stay away from the threatening Grey Winters. To say she hit me like a ton of bricks is an understatement.