Amara Holland is ready to fly by senior year as painlessly as possible. Isaac Coleman is ready to graduate and leave a town that thinks he's someone he's not. They've been at the same school since they can remember and yet have never had a real conv...
5:18 AM I am crouched down putting books on the bottom shelf of the historical fiction section when someone speaks to me. "Hi stranger." Looking up, I see Isaac who appears to have just woken up. "Hey," I greet, getting up. "What are you doing here so early?" "Couldn't sleep." "Do you want to try to sleep in one of the rooms?" I ask. He shakes his head. "I just uh, I just wanted some company, is all." My eyes slightly widen in surprise. "Oh, uh okay yeah. It's pretty dead right now except for the few people over there," I point to where the couches are, "So I'm free to be of company." He smiles. "Great."
Being in each other's company was peaceful and quiet, which was rather nice. I had gotten him a cup of coffee and a donut before we sat down at the back of the store. We didn't really talk about anything - just picked up whatever book was left on the table near us and read it; hence the quietness. I could tell that something was bothering him, but I didn't think that I should ask him about it. Even though I wanted to, I knew that if he wanted to tell me about it, he would. I glance over at him and find that he fell asleep. I smile softly and get up to get a blanket for him. When I return, I see Tyler standing over Isaac. "What the hell are you doing here?" I whisper-yell. Tyler rolls his eyes. "You know, I'm pretty sure you say almost the same exact thing every time you see me, and you always get the same answer." "Look, it's really early right now and - " "And there's no time like the present," He grins. I'm really not trying to fight him on the matter this time around, so I signal for him to be quiet and put the blanket over Isaac. "Okay, come on." I say. Tyler extends his hand to me which I ignore and walk past him, going to our destination. 7:00 AM "Isaac. Isaac," I gently try to shove him awake. Slowly, he opens his eyes. "Where am I?" "Books & Beyond. You fell asleep around like, 6:30 ish." "What time is it now?" "Exactly seven o'clock." Isaac blinks. "Shoot. Sorry, Mara. Did I interfere with anything?" I smile. "No, you didn't. You have nothing to worry about." "Did everyone else leave?" I nod. "Well, there's only two other people here right now. On Saturdays, the main crowd starts coming in around noon. By that time I'm usually done with my shift." "What time do you get off today? "Around ten." He smiles. "Great, I'll wait for you." "Um, are you sure? I don't think that's necessary." "C'mon, it'll be easier this way than having me come back later so we can hang." "Gotcha. So that's what's happening." "That's what's happening." Isaac repeats. I just shrug, because I have no real problem with that, and I can't really stop him even if I wanted to.
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"It must be eventful having two younger siblings." Isaac comments when I finish telling him about how annoying Xavier and Rosie are. I shrug. "It really just depends on the day," I pause. "Do you like having an older brother?" Instantly, Isaac smiles. "Yeah, yeah I do. It's honestly not that bad, or maybe I'm just saying that since he's away at college so there's not enough time for real conflict. But, he's always there when I need him." Silence falls between us, but it's not uncomfortable. We've been sitting on a bench just outside of Books & Beyond for quite a while. In the time that we've been sitting here since my shift ended, we've gone more in-depth about school, music, siblings (as opposed to the light conversations we had about them last time) as well as the two books he finished while I was working. It's easy to talk to Isaac; it's comfortable. It makes me aware of just how crazy high school can be, and how long it can take people who have been in the same school to have a real conversation with each other. It's almost twelve when I glance over at Isaac. We're sitting a good distance from each other to where if I shifted slightly, I wouldn't even be able to bump me knee against his. I've noticed that that's how he usually tends to sit with those of the opposite gender. Wondering why, I begin to open my mouth to ask him about it when he speaks. "So, are you hungry? We can head into the mall and eat at Cheesus." "Pizza sounds like a must have right now. Especially since we've been sitting out in the cold for like, two hours." I reply. Isaac blinks. "Okay..." I curse internally at my complicated response when a simple "yes" would have sufficed. "Right then, let's go inside." Isaac stands and I follow suit. We order half-cheese, half-pepperoni. Excruciatingly basic, I know. We sit at a table near the window and dig in. "What college does Derek go to?" I ask. "NYU." "NYU? Well dang." I say in surprise. "He must've been excited when he first got the news." Isaac nods. "He was. He really wanted to get in and he did." "Do you want to go to NYU? I know we talked about the colleges we applied to at Brett's, and NYU wasn't there." I comment. Isaac puts down his pizza and doesn't say anything for a second. "I think it'd be nice, but I also think it's good for us to have different scenes and experiences. So, I guess not." I nod and take a bite out of the cheesy delicacy that is my slice of pizza. "What about you? You're the first one to go to college since you're the oldest." "Indeed." "Well," Isaac continues, "Do your parents care where you go or how far it is?" "Kind of. There is that pressure of getting into a great school since my grades have always been good. But that's mostly because as the oldest, it's expected that my grades are always high to set an example for the siblings. And since I'm basically the back-up parent, I worry a little about if Xavier is going to step into that role. So distance wise, it matters in case of emergency." Isaac doesn't say anything. He just looks at me. "Sorry," I apologize, "that was kind of a word vomit. Let me try again. They don't particularly care too much about distance. As for specifically what school I go to, I wouldn't say that they don't care, it's just that they're too busy to pay much attention. Personally, I try to think about my siblings and what it'll be like when I leave." Isaac nods. "I can't imagine what that must be like - the siblings part since I am the youngest." I shrug. "It is what it is." 3:12 PM I hung out with Isaac for a surprisingly long amount of time. Never in my life did I think that I would willingly spend hours with him more than once, if ever. It's not bad that it happened, just out of the ordinary. When I get home, I notice mom and dad aren't home. I know that Rosie is at Kayla's house and that it's going to be a sleepover so I don't have to wonder where she is. Xavier however is a different story. Walking in, I hear laughter in the living room. Female laughter. Confused, I approach the area. I stop when I see that it's Abigail - the girl Xavier likes. They're sitting next to each other on the coach and she places a hand on his chest as she laughs. Xavier smiles at her with adoration. By the way they're acting you'd think that they're a bit older, not Sophomores. I clear my throat. Immediately they turn to face me and the smiles that danced across their faces were gone. "Um, hello?" I say. "Uh, I - Abby this is my sister Amara. Amara, this is Abby." Xavier introduces us. "Yeah, I know that." I ignore her and stare at him. Out of the corner of my eye I notice her shift uncomfortably. "Xavier, can I talk to you in the kitchen?" I ask. "Why?" He questions. "Just come to the kitchen." He sighs and whispers an apology to Abigail before following me into the kitchen. "What?" "What do you mean 'what'? What is she doing here?" "I invited her over." "Yeah, I can see that. Why? You know mamas rules." Xavier rolls his eyes. "She's not here so it doesn't matter." I give him a stern look which does not affect him. "Whatever Amara. I don't have to listen to you." He goes to leave but I grab his wrist before he can. "Let go," Xavier says in a frustrated tone. "We're not done talking Xavier. You need to tell her to leave." "Stop being such a bitch." My younger brother tells me, yanking his wrist out of my grip and going to the living room. I close my eyes and groan. It's going to be a long rest of the day. 9:30 PM "Knock knock." "I know who's there." "Would you just please go along with it?" I roll my eyes even though she can't see me. "Fine, okay yes. Who's there?" "Your." "Your who?" "Your best friend in the whole world who has yummy cupcakes." Emery opens the door showing me the box in her hands from Quinn's Cupcakes. My eyes widen with excitement as a huge grin begins to form across my face. "No way. You didn't. You did not!" "I did," She smiles back. She sets them down at my desk and pulls up a chair next to me. "So, did your parents find out about Xavier and Abigail?" Emery asks as she opens the box. "Yeah, but Xavier somehow convinced them that they had agreed to it earlier in the week." "How'd he do that?" "He pulled the neglected middle kid card. As you can see, it worked." "I still can't believe he called you a bitch." "Mm," I bite into my cupcake. "Well, believe it because it's true." We eat in silence until I bring up her brother. "He's good I think. We haven't really talked much since he went back to school. Even before he came back for Thanksgiving...I don't know. He just doesn't talk to me as much as he used to. But, he comes back soon for break anyways so we'll see." "So...how're things with Brett?" I change the subject. "Brett? Why are you asking me about Brett?" "Come on. You don't think he's cute?" "I mean, I guess yeah. But uh, there's something I need to talk to you about. Please don't freak out."
