A Year Around the Sun

t w e n t y-e i g h t - i'm just gonna say it

i want to feel your love like the weather,
all over me, all over m e . . .

🌊🌊🌊

Standing up from my lunch table which was taken up by all of my friends, we bid goodbye to one another and headed our separate ways to whatever class we had next. Sadie and I had English on the other side of the building, so we took off at a fast pace to make it on time. Being back at school for a little more than two weeks, it's still hard to get used to running around to different classrooms, versus stores on the boardwalk.

It seems like just days ago, I was thoroughly enjoying my summer, with my only worry being needy customers at the diner or the pier. Now, I'm on my way to forty minutes of bad Macbeth impersonations by my classmates and my absurdly energetic English teacher, Ms. Geller. Even though it's Friday, that doesn't help my next few classes to go by any faster.

Senior year so far was a breeze, although of course it's still early. But over the summer as I hung out with more people from the grade above me, they gave me some good advice on my last year of high school since they'd just finished up theirs a couple of months ago. One of the most important things being that it goes by fast. Right now, with just sixteen days of school under my belt, it doesn't seem like that's possible.

Sadie and I got to our English classroom in time, taking our seats next to each other in the circle of desks our teacher created on the first day. They all face the middle due to her brilliant idea of having us volunteer to act out scenes from Macbeth for extra credit. Sometimes it's torturous, sometimes it's really entertaining. Either way, it helps us understand the centuries-old tragedy a little better when a familiar face is playing the part.

Ms. Geller came flying into the room right before the bell rang, her dark hair falling out of its bun that was just above her neck. "Okay guys, we have a lot to cover today," she said out of breath, dropping her giant tote onto her desk. She pushed her flyaways out of her flushed face, sighing deeply as her eyes darted around her. "I just need to find my book, I don't know where I put it. Grab yours in the meantime."

As she frantically searched the room, we all reached under our desks and pulled out our giant, dusty classroom copies. She took a couple of minutes, tearing apart the closet and the bookshelf, so we took the chance to talk.

Sadie was showing me something on Instagram when a hand lightly tapped my shoulder. I turned in my seat to face Liam Bosley, a curious smirk on his face. He's one of Noah's good friends, but we don't talk much unless it's through a mutual hangout. He sits next to me in this class and I'm pretty sure this is the first time he's initiated a conversation.

"Can I ask you something?" He questioned.

I hesitated a bit with my answer, my brows knitting themselves together. "Sure."

"You still with Brody?"

Somehow, I resisted the urge to roll my eyes at the inquiry. Staring back at him with a blank face, he clearly didn't see my annoyance in him asking me that.

And it's not just because he asked it. It's because ever since we've come back to school, apparently my relationship is the only thing people want to talk about. They didn't get enough information during the summer, so now they can badger me in class.

"Yeah, I am," I answered sharply. Keeping it short and sweet is the best way around this conversation, I've learned.

His inquisitive expression slowly vanished, doing nothing to hide the bewilderment in his eyes. "And how is it?" He asked then.