Hope

Day One

The very next day, I decided. This time for sure; this time I’ll talk to her for sure. To hell with my dignity, if I can’t even talk to her today, then I don’t deserve any, then again… No, today for sure. It took all the strength I had just to get my feet moving towards her. And when I finally got there, I drew a blank. Nothing, absolutely nothing came to mind. And now she was just sitting there staring at me, probably wondering what the heck I’m doing hovering over her. I tried to open my mouth but it was no use, I was just too tongue-tied and terrified to say anything. I was just about to back up slowly when she stood up all of a sudden, smiled at me and said

“Finally; took you long enough.”

“What?”

“Don’t think I didn’t see you spying. But really, you’ve been waiting three days. What was your game plan? Wait for me to die of old age then confess to my grave?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. I wasn’t spying.”

“Who put you up to it? I bet it was those kids in the park, I knew they’d pick on me someday.”

“I’m not here to pick on you! Swear! I… Uhm… wanted to meet you, actually.”

“Why? So you could think of funny nicknames you could tease me with? Just leave me alone.”

I knew it. I knew she’d shoo me away as well. They always do.

“No, I’m not like them. Fine, if you want me to go, I’ll be on my way. Oh, and just so you know; they call me Cabbage Patch.”

            I was about to walk away. I was about to just lock myself in my room and think about her words for days on end. I was about to let myself sink back into that all-too-familiar state of depression. But I’m glad I didn’t.

“You want to sit down beside me, Cabbage Patch?”

“I’d love to.”

            I sat down beside her, trying my best to hide my happiness. I was trying to keep it cool on the outside, but on the inside, for the first time in my life, I was all rainbows and fuzzy warmth. We sat there for hours, trading stories of how we were bullied and how we managed to survive it all. We talked about Star Trek, Pillars of the Earth, Hamlet, Dungeons and Dragons, Harry Potter, and everything else that made other people want to call us nerds. But then, we heard yelling; coming from inside her house.

“I have to go inside now… Those are my parents.”

“Oh, I’ll be on my way then.”

            She stood up and reached for the doorknob. And before she could turn it, I managed to blurt out the most important question that I forgot to ask.

“Oh yeah, I don’t believe I got your name.”

            She smiled that enchanting smile of hers, fiddled with her glasses, and said

“Hope. Valerie Hope.”