Tammi Lyn [DISCONTINUED]

ii

"Oh no what happened here?" came my mom's frantic voice as she hurried to approach us, my dad at her heels followed by my older brother.

The girl's own family dashed toward us too, worried for their daughter who stood up and dusted her dress.

My dad was the one who lifted me up to my feet. I had to admit I was still dizzy from everything that happened.

I heard voices in the background as I tried to regain my heading.

The girl's parents were still fussing over her, and she insisted that she was fine and had no injuries. It seemed like she was telling the truth anyway since I didn't see any scrapes or bruises.

She had two other sisters, with her being the middle child. The elder one's eyes surprisingly met mine, and I couldn't understand the shiver of fear that crept up my spine. Boy, that was a cold look.

It turned out that the girl that looked my age was jumping on a trampoline in their own yard, and she hopped too high which led to our heads colliding with each other.

Yes, not an ideal first meeting but hey, it was nice for some change every once in a while.

I couldn't remember much since it's been years ago, but after that our parents became acquainted with each other and started eating together to discuss anything, sometimes dragging us along so we could get to know each other better. Playdates, I think that's what they called them.

At first I was fine with that. I didn't have many friends that were my age, so it was nice to be able to play with someone who was at least at my level of thinking. Never mind the fact she was a girl.

While some kids at that age clicked instantly and grew to become childhood friends and deal with complicated crap, we weren't like that.

Well, at least I wasn't.

The girl - wait I'm tired of labelling her as 'the girl' so I'll just go ahead and say that her name is Tammi Lyn Sanchez.

Yup. But most people referred to her as Tammi to make it shorter and easier. Saying 'Tammi Lyn' seemed like a mouthful.

She's a timid girl with jet-black hair and gray eyes, the color something she got from her mom. Thin small frames always sit atop the bridge of her nose, giving her an air of intelligence. Her hair reached almost her midback in a straight horizontal line. She's of average height for her age and has a thick bone structure. She also prefers to blend in the background rather than stand out.

Every time our parents would meet, she'd follow wordlessly and watch me do something even though I'd clearly gesture that I didn't like or want her company.

I was an expressive boy, so I tended to show my true feelings. I'd scowl at her and shove her away when she got too close to my personal space and I'd only grunt in response whenever she asked me a (quite useless) question.

I didn't know if she was just not that bright or she knew but was choosing to stick by me like glue anyway. Either way it was annoying, and I'd usually tell on her to my mom or hers. They just smiled softly and said that it was fine, which really wasn't.

As we got older, I started to like her less. No, she wasn't an annoying and incessant babbler, but quite the opposite.

Her quiet demeanor was somehow spooking me and more often than not, she chose to be by herself instead of other kids our age that were outgoing and eager to make new friends.

My mom usually encouraged me to play with her, but I'd disagree and run off before she had the chance to convince me otherwise. Yeah I know, I was a mean brat to her.

But I just couldn't bring myself to approach her willingly and say cheesy stuff like 'hey let's be friends'. I wouldn't want to come off as too imposing or demanding. So I mingled with other kids my wavelength, leaving her in the dust even though she was my neighbor.

That was partly the reason why I avoided her, but the main one was that she was too quiet and only spoke when asked a question. I really didn't like her that much and you'll have to kill me first to make me admit it, but I was a little scared and intimidated by her.

Yeah yeah I know it's kind of petty: a boy scared of a girl. And because I had my manly pride, the only option was to not interact unless absolutely necessary.

We talked sometimes as the months passed, but we never really had a heart-to-heart conversation. I just knew she liked darker tones of colors, judging by her clothesline, and that she didn't like apples since she thought they were too sweet. That was as far as I got to know her. In turn, she knew I loved robots and piano music, revolting the color yellow with a passion. I don't know, but it was too bright. Like, how can someone stand looking at something so - shiny that can potentially hurt your eyes? Not that I hate the sun, but it's close to something like that.

Oddly enough, on this night where the stars were twinkling softly on our nine-year-old selves, we were seated side by side on the curb, my hands leaned back for me to rest my weight, with her closed in on herself.

She was wearing a dark blue casual dress that reached her knees. On her feet were her house slippers, a shade of pink almost transitioning into fuchsia.

"Ross," she uttered.

Yeah she regarded me with my last name, but I didn't mind much. A little weirded out at first but I got used to it eventually.

"Yeah?"

Sure we may not be interacting much but it was nice to be able to talk to someone familiar. We were both quiet introverts, but I was the one who usually made the effort to make new friends. We were both soft-spoken, but I could get irritated and spit out the meanest of things.

Now? I just wanna relax and be myself in the presence of someone who knew me but won't judge me. She seemed someone who fit both, regardless of my initial opinion of her.

"I don't feel like moving."

I turned to her confusedly.

"What do you mean?"

Her gray eyes locked with my own black ones.

"I mean I can't get up. My legs fell asleep."

A short chuckle escaped me as I stood to help her up, grabbing her hands and hauling her to her feet, a small giggle eliciting from her at the silliness of it all.

"You good to go?" I asked her, letting go of her hands.

She nodded, smacking her legs to kick some life into them.

"I'm okay now. Thanks Ross. Good night." With a short nod, she walked back inside her house, me keeping a lookout till the door shut.

Only then did I move to go inside my own house.