in which, selena amorim has never had an easy life, yet when she finds herself crossing paths with an old acquaintance, the first glimpses of hope shine through. as the seasons change, their lives take tumultuous turns and their feelings burn. will...
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Summer had returned once again, bringing the salt breeze from the coast back to our white bubble. The abundance of vegetation aligned every street as the tall, towering trees swayed to that same coastal breeze from the land we thought fictional. Another silent summer spent working and wishing as the privileged youth took to Cape Cod or York. In the afternoons, I would volunteer at the library after sleeping in until the late hours of mid-noon. After that, I'd work at Randy's diner to help put food on the table for Ma' and me. Derry had never been our first choice, but after my father's death, we could only do so much. I didn't stand out from the white folks, as long as I hid my accent and spoke like them They didn't mind my dark hair or bronzed skin.
Derry wasn't a tourist town; then, people only thought of Maine when talking about seafood. We weren't rich enough to travel in the summer, so instead, id spend the summer staring out of my bedroom window as the light blinded my incandescent eyes. On Friday nights like these, I didn't have much to do. Maybe i'd finish a book or watch the kids run down the block. Still, that solidarity overran every corner of the Derry suburbia, and it was terrifying to sit and listen to the ominous silence on afternoons I didn't work.
By sundown, the streets were flooded, and I would spend the night at the corner store. Convincing the old shopkeeper, the cigarettes I was buying were for my ma. "Man, I'm telling you I have a note !" I pulled out the crumpled paper from my coat and slammed it against the counter. The paper in question was a receipt from my recent purchase at the record shop, but I had worked my way around this plan for years. I had folded the paper over at least six times so he'd spend some time unfolding it, and while he did, I grabbed the box.
Unfortunately, today wasn't my lucky day. He grabbed my hand and practically pushed me off the box, "Get out of here !". Ready to leave, I was detained by a pale boy with narrow brown eyes. He grabbed me by the waist with extreme confidence to my displeasure, and once at the counter, he murmured, "take your pick." The blood rushed to my cheeks as I looked up at the stranger, and his grip loosened. "Reds." I let a whisper past my lips as my body began to tremble slightly and push myself off his. He raised a finger, "Pack of Reds." He nodded towards the carton box.
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"You owe me one." The door chimed on our way out, and I shimmied out of his grasp. "I don't even know your name, and don't you ever grab me like that again." I furrowed my eyebrows as I pulled the Golden Square from my pocket. He took a cig from the box, much to my demise, but it was only fair.
"Stanley Uris, we have biology together." Damn right he was. Stan was more of a sit-in-the-back-of-the-class-and-talk-about-nerd-shit guy. The type who tripped over his shoelaces in P.E. So exactly where was this confidence coming from? "Uris hm?" he took a single drag before putting it out. "Born and raised." A smirk unfolded at the tips of his lips.
"Since when do you say more than 'the answer is ?" He laughed, shaking his head, "I'll see you 'round." He walked off while waving. Never in my life had I felt such a way. I was intrigued but disgusted. All of a sudden, this boy had mysteriously waltzed into my life, and who was I to deny fate? I bit my cheek as I watched the boy get into his car and drive off; my instant attraction to him was undeniable. As I stood on the corner and watched him disappear into the night, my resting state awoke in a desperate need to see him again, and I secretly made it my top priority.
