The Wonders Of You

5 - Arden

"So, what do you think about the new girl?" Benjamin asks me as we sit down on the benches in front of the school. Poetry Slam club just ended so we're waiting for Benjamin's mom to pick us up.

I roll my eyes.

"Hello? You didn't answer meee," he teases, getting up in my face. I shake my head and push him away.

"Shut up."

"You think she's cute, don't you? Honestly, if you don't then you're delusional." He takes a bag of skittles out of his backpack, offering me some. 

I shake my head. I don't like candy unless it's caramel or chocolate.

"Yeah, she's pretty, I guess." I feel my cheeks get warmer and I clear my throat, looking away.

My mind goes back to her curly hair and freckled cheeks. I smile at the thought of her sweet brown eyes looking at me.

"She gives me bi vibes. Plus, she had a rainbow shirt on." 

I give him a look. 

"Hey, I'm just saying," he continues, "I have a feeling she's not straight. I would know," he points to himself, smirking. 

"You think so?"

"Yes. Trust me." 

There's not many out gay girls in my grade. Just Julie Clark, Lin Nakano, Kam Meadows, and me.

There's only a couple out gay boys, including Benjamin. He's bi. 

He and I came out at the same time. We don't get bullied or anything, but when we first came out, we did get a some weird looks. We'd always kept to ourselves so no-one messed with us.

I just want to meet someone that I really like, not settle for the only other gay girl I know. 

"You should talk to her..." he says, wiggling his eyebrows as he pops a skittle into his mouth.

"Well, technically we did talk to each other."

Benjamin perks up. "Wait, really?"

"She asked for a pencil."

"Oh." 

He reaches into his bag, taking out two honey buns, and hands me one. 

"Thanks." I say grinning. I love honey buns.

We're both silent for a few seconds as we eat but, as expected, it didn't last long.

Benjamin eyes go wide as he gasps loudly, he looks like he's just made a ground breaking discovery. 

"You should invite her to the Poetry Slam performance next week!" 

"Benjamin, you know I'm not going to do that."

"Don't be a coward, Ar! You're great at it. You'll impress her and everything."

Before I can reply, a cherry red Volkswagen pulls up in front of us. A middle aged women with the same red hair as Benjamin waves at us. 

"Shotgun!" Benjamin yells, darting towards the front. 

___________

I wave goodbye to Benjamin and his mom as they pull out my driveway.

I feel my body get more and more tense with each step as I walk up my rickety porch steps. I take the house key out of my pocket and unlock the door, smelling vanilla incense as I enter. 

My mom is sitting on the couch, smiling. I wait for her to speak because something incredible must have happened for her to be looking so happy.

"I got a gig. It's a babysitting job. I start Friday," she says. 

"That's good. How much will you be getting? How long will y-" 

"You don't need to know all of that." she interrupts standing from the couch. 

I hold back the urge to roll my eyes. 

Well, I need to know if I have to pick up extra shifts.

"Alright." 

I watch as she leaves the living room.

I feel my shoulders loosen as she disappears around the corner. 

Ever since I came out, which was several months ago, she's been acting different around me. Avoiding me most of the time. We haven't talked about me being lesbian since that day. She barely talks to me now, let alone about that. She only talks to me if she needs to.

We didn't have a perfect relationship before but at least she didn't treat me like I had a plague. I used to feel sad about how things went but now I feel more numb than anything. 

Sighing tiredly, I head towards my room. I throw my backpack into a corner, grab a hair tie off my dresser, and lazily pull my hair into a ponytail. 

My bed squeaks as I fall onto it, sighing once again.

 I close my eyes and imagine that I'm not Arden, the unwanted gay kid. Instead, I'm Arden, the powerful, gracious leader of a kingdom that accepts everyone. 

I hope you enjoyed this chapter! - Gabbs <3