Hold Me Closer

Chapter 1

Clare was seated in the back corner of the classroom beside a broad window that seemed custom-made for absent-minded drifting. That wasn't a good thing, for Clare's top priority in school was to stay focused and attentive, as she always wanted to pursue with the best grades possible. Meaning, if Clare wasn't either at school or working, she was at home hunched over her desk covered in textbooks and papers.

As Clare's focus wandered from a paragraph Mr. Howley, the teacher, was reading, she noticed how elegantly the leaves of the trees rustled in the wind outside. The way the branches bent and came back up like elastics everytime the wind came and went. She also noticed the bushes and flower beds. Both were popping with color and just as much liveliness.

All the fresh and clean greenery made the school courtyard of old Withwood High School feel much more lively than it was. Their school was the seventh oldest in all of the United States and it deserved the title. Bricks were falling from walls; concrete was cracking; wood floors were warping; it was a mess. But Clare liked it in a way. It held such a nostalgic feeling, almost as if they went back fifty years.

There were few people walking around outside, considering classes were still ongoing. One person was slumped over on a bench scrolling through their phone, clearly not wanting to be at school; another was walking from table to table, swiping a swab and rubbing it on a petri dish. Clare was jealous she never got to do that project for her biology class last year, as they hired a new teacher for the freshman.

Out of the few people, she couldn't help but notice one boy in particular, who was running around frantically. It looked as if he was searching for something, checking in bushes, under picnic tables, even in trees. Clare was decently popular, so she knew everyone around, but she had never seen that guy before.

The waves in the boy's hair bounced with every step, his feet light on the grass and concrete; it felt as if Clare was put in a trance. Even from so far away she could tell the boy was handsome.

"Clare?" Mr. Howley asked booming over the whole classroom. Slowly but surely, every head in the class turned to face her. "What did I just say? Are you paying attention?"

Clare startled at the sound of her name in Mr. Howley's resonant voice. A pang of regret twisted in her stomach for allowing herself to become so distracted that he singled her out. Beneath it all, a flicker of annoyance simmered within Clare. She hadn't devoted hours to studying just to be called out for losing focus for a mere forty seconds. "I'm sorry. I was thinking about... my homework for another class," she forced the lie out of her mouth, her voice cracking with each word. "I'll make sure to focus."

He gave her a slim grimace of disapproval, but continued with his reading. Clare felt belittled after being called out in front of everyone. The sensation of having all eyes in the class turn towards you at once was far from pleasant.

And for the record, Clare was not the most distracted out of everyone in the classroom. The boy to Clare's right had his phone open and was scrolling through videos. Now maybe it wasn't obvious at first glance, but the blue hue of the screen still covered his face. If you took a few seconds to look at everyone, you could easily single him out.

In her peripheral vision, Clare saw the boy outside pick something up from the ground. It looked like a piece of paper, and it was so important he put it to his chest and gave a tight embrace. A smile split her face at how something so little could bring someone that much joy. Unfortunately, Clare couldn't share it, but she dreamed about it.

Not wanting to make Mr. Howley even more upset, she tried to ignore the boy as best she could, though there was something about him pulling her eyes in his direction.

~~~~~~~

Bring!

A sigh escaped Clare's lips as she rested her head down on the textbook in front of her, glad the class was finally over. Ever since Mr. Howley called her out, she had been on high alert to stay focused, and she decided the best way was to sit with perfect posture. Her back ached as she bent over to put her book in her backpack, feeling as if someone had just shoved needles into her spine.