The Lives We Made

concert

Trying to get a hefty start on this book for the next few weeks while I'm home! 

Let's hope.

xx - phoenix

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December 2019

James made his way through the row of decades-old seats to get to Gio. Gio was excited to see him, he had missed James more than he'd care to admit. In fact, a lot of the guys who graduated from their section missed James, he was always such a light to be around.

Gio didn't understand why Alessia didn't want to be around him, but then again, Gio had missed a lot of high school focusing on getting his Associate's Degree. Friends were a deterrent in his mind, and as a result, he was completely at a loss for nuances like whatever happened between Alessia and James.

He vividly remembered them being close to each other, always together after school at the library, showing up and leaving everywhere together, it was a relationship Gio often found himself jealous of. The pair even referred to each other as hermano and hermana as a joke for the freshmen. Alessia's junior year, half of the freshmen, including Jaclynn, thought James and Alessia were siblings. 

It was that chemistry, the undeniable fit they had when they were together, people thought they were siblings or dating, always something closer than friends. The two were kind of like puzzle pieces, now, obviously, Gio saw that the puzzle pieces had morphed. 

James and Alessia were far from who they were two years ago, but anyone could still tell, Alessia looked at James like he put the stars in the sky. If you looked past her initial fear, her anxiousness, there was that noticeable part of her that lit up whenever he was around. Some may call the obvious glint young, naive love, but depending on perspective, others would call it pure adoration.

As Gio enveloped James in a hug, Julyssa sat awkwardly between two ends of a stressful reunion while Alessia whipped around to strike up a conversation with an old section mate. Julyssa knew she did this to avoid James' attention, she did this on instinct. Alessia could tell herself for four months that if she saw him again, the meeting would be full of her own control and emotional maturity, but when it came down to the moment, Alessia was scared to her core of facing James.

Interrupting a conversation Isaac was having, Alessia fought her immaculate fear, tried to ignore the slow burn wrapping its way around her neck and ears as she attempted to find interest in anything Isaac had to say. Isaac, Alessia's former second chair in their Wind Ensemble, knew only parts of the story of James and Alessia. He only knew what bothered her about James.

He was there every day she walked into class senior year different than the beginning of the year. When he first met her, she pushed for Mr. Maxwell to let him play for the section she was set to lead next year. He was a fantastic saxophonist and she knew he'd inspire the rest of the section who struggled to improve. 

Halfway into the year, he observed as Alessia avoided James. Every day, James would try to catch her gaze in class or make a face at her as they used to and she'd pretend not to see. But worse, Alessia stopped engaging in conversation with anyone, Isaac watched as she slowly folded in on herself and pushed everyone else away. Isaac knew she was different, knew she was battling something, he wasn't sure what.

It was his job to make her happy when he could. He made her laugh, annoyed her, angered her, but importantly, he took her mind off of James and the problems she was having, even though he was younger than her, he felt compelled to protect her in his own unconventional way. Maybe it was the fact that she was the only person who pushed to have him in her life or that she just didn't deserve the treatment she received from James, either way, Isaac wanted to help.