Stage Fright

Chapter 1 ~ First Day Of Senior Year

Josh

Senior year.

Growing up this wasn't exactly how I pictured it, it was probably more Disney Chanel than what my reality is. I saw myself walking the halls, saying hello to people, having a pretty girl walking by my side. Instead I drove my beat up Honda to school and wore last years shoes on the first day of a new school year.

I wasn't exactly popular at school. I wasn't a complete loser either, I had plenty of friends and I was involved in plenty of clubs at school. But I wasn't 'jock popular', I didn't go out much or chat-up girls in the lunch line. I had my crowd and I stayed in my lane.

I was simple, plain. I didn't come out of my shell in high school, I didn't turn into a butterfly. I stayed a geeky caterpillar and this year wasn't looking much different. Sometimes I wish I was more social, that I had taken the chance to reinvent myself. But I had to settle with what I was, Josh Baxter. I stand in the lobby waiting for the bell to ring, to officially start another year of hell. 

That's when I see her. Heather Sanders.

Heather was really the most fitting name for her. She was absolutely gorgeous, I'd spent years falling in love with her. It seemed possible until high school, before that she was so quiet and smart. We used to be friends, but she probably doesn't even think about that now. We used to be in the middle school choir and music club. She played the piano, she was so good at it too.

We'd catch rides to and from school, sometimes we'd hang out on the weekends. But she made it clear that we were nothing more than friends back then. When she wasn't looking I'd watch those two lines come up on her forehead, deep in concentration. If I let my eyes wander I catch her eyes. Green, deep green like a pine tree. Nobody had eyes like Heather. She was blonde, thin. Her hair flowed down over her back and shoulders. I could stare at her for hours. 

Of course it was just puppy love, she'd never feel that way about me. Since high school, Heather and I had fallen out. She made new friends, started to date different boys. She'd gone from being this quiet book worm to the most popular girl at South Shore High School. I knew the guys she dated were usually flings, they didn't mean enough to last more than two months. But her newest boyfriend Zeke was the worst by far. 

He was more rough than the others, mean and nasty. He has a temper that gets him thrown from class frequently. I'm sure he'd get suspended if he didn't carry the men's lacrosse, basketball and field hockey teams. Even with all of his flaws, I knew he'd go to some university or college on an athletic scholarship.

I knew it was her, she's been riding on the back of Zeke's motorcycle since last spring. She hops off, but when she pulls the helmet from her head I feel my eyes widen. She'd chopped off her hair into a wavy bob. But it suited her, she looked completely stunning. Watching her smile was a favourite pass-time of mine, she did it so often it was hard to miss. 

The moment is quickly broken, watching her getting drawn in close to Zeke so he could give her a kiss. I had to look away, it was too much to bear. Then he slid his leather jacket over her shoulders, whispering something in her ear.

"Dude, give it up." I hear and snap out of my trace, feeling someone's hand close around my shoulder. I turn and see Owen standing behind me. He was one of my best friends, we'd become friends in freshman year. "You've had a crush on Heather Sanders since the sixth grade, maybe that would be you out there if you'd made a move after her last break-up." I roll my eyes at that.

"Who said I wanted that to be me?" I ask and he chuckles.

"Because your eyes a practically falling out of your head." He teases. "So, Miss Young is-"