A Time And Place

Part 4

Tuesday, September 10th, 2019
3:20 PM
Northwood High
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Before I knew it, school finally ended for the day. It felt like it's been an eternity since I've last seen Remy. She has this strange effect she leaves on people. She makes you feel lonely and lost when you are not with or talking to her. No one has ever made me feel this way. I walked out of the study hall and almost jogged outside the front doors to meet her on the curb. Part of why I'm so anxious was because I really want to know what's going to happen once we arrive at the bookstore. Especially what will happen when we get there at 3:56. It makes no sense at all but makes complete sense at the same time. It's like I put the jigsaw puzzle together but I don't know what the image is.
I looked at my watch on my right wrist and it read 3:25. I walked out the front glass doors and I saw her sitting on the sidewalk curb looking at the sky. Some of the girls walking right past her making strange looks. I see another group of girls staring at her and whispering to each other. I don't know why they would. She's just sitting there minding her own business. It doesn't look like she notices the girls talking about her, but she doesn't seem to be the type of girl who would care about what others think.
I walked past the gossiping girls and sat down right next to her. Remy doesn't make eye contact with me. She's just staring at the sky with a smile on her face. I rested my arms on my knees and decided to stare at the sky as well. I never really realized how beautiful today was. The sky was this pretty light blue color with tons of fluffy white clouds. You hardly get days like these anymore since fall is right around the corner. Soon, all the pretty green leaves will turn into warm yellows and oranges. The weather will be cooler and the wind will pick up more than what it usually is. Fall is a beautiful season, but nothing can beat the warm summer nights with the occasional warm rain storms and the clear blue sky much like today's.
"It looks like a boat, doesn't it?" Her voice snapped me out of my thoughts. I looked over at her and she had wide eyes looking at the clouds. I looked back at the sky and looked at the clouds.
"Hmm, more like an animal of some sort." I say as I tilt my head to the left. She shoots me a dirty look like I insulted her. I looked back at her very confused. "What?"
"No way that's an animal! That is a boat and only a boat." I put both of my hands up in shock at this side of Remy. She starts laughing then grabs both of my wrists and puts my hand down. "Don't worry, I'm not going to hit you or something." I laughed a little and looked at the clouds again.
"You had me worried there for a second." She smiles and scoots closer to me. At first, I was a little scared. I've never sat this close to a girl before. In kindergarten, maybe, but it's different nowadays. I've isolated myself from others for as long as I can remember but here I am with a beautiful girl who knows nothing about me and yet, she is investing all of her time in me. Most people I would let them go but with her, I don't want her to leave. I don't want her to lose interest in me and move on to more outgoing, friendly people.
She stretches her arm out and points to the cloud we're debating over. I lean my head closer to her to see exactly where she was pointing out to me.
"See that? That's the sail of the boat. And that," She lowers her arm down a few inches. "is the deck." Now that she pointed everything out to me, I could see how that could look like a boat. But, where's the fun in that.
"Nope, don't see it." She snapped her head at me with a shocked look.
"What! How can you not see that!" I smiled and pointed up at the cloud again.
"That, so called sail, is an animal's head and the deck is definitely the body." I had no idea what I was talking about but It is really fun to mess with her.
"No way! That looks nothing like an animal. I think you need to get your eyes checked." I look back up at the sky and tilt my head.
"Now that you mention it, it kinda does look like a boat."
"See! I told you!" She slaps my arm lightly and I started laughing. She rolls her as and giggled a little as she stands up suddenly. I look at her for a second, I was a little confused at first. "Hey, aren't we going somewhere?" The bookstore! I had completely forgotten about it. About everything. All that was on my mind was Remy and what's the next thing to say. I stood up and took a quick glance at my watch. 3:31 PM. It's almost time.
"Oh, right. I totally forgot about that." I laughed a little. She smiles and shakes her head at me.
"So, where is this bookstore you mentioned?" I looked to my right and left to try and remember exactly which direction the store is. "Please don't tell me you forgot where it was."
"I'm pretty sure that it's this way." I pointed to the left and began walking in that direction. She hesitated for a second but then began to follow me.
"You sure this is the right way? You seem pretty unsure."
"I'm positive this way. I'm not as clueless as you might think." She jogged a little to catch up with me and started to walk alongside me. I slow my pace down a hair so it's easier for her.
"Haven't you been down there before?" She looks down at her feet as she walks.
"Only a few times. I haven't been there in a while actually." She looks back at me.
"Then why did you ask me to come with you?" I froze a little. I can't tell her the truth behind it. Just had a dream about you last night where you were at a bookstore, that's all.
"I just thought it was a good time to go back. And I also wanted to spend some more time with you." She smiles and looks back down at her feet.
"That's nice of you. I'm happy you asked me to go. It's nice to have a friend already, thank you."
"Of course. You seem like a really cool girl." She looks at me and smiles and I couldn't help but smile back.