At Midnight

1

"...every love story is beautiful, but ours is my favorite..."

To begin an introduction into our love story, it seems simply right to start where she and I first met one another. Unlike some starts to an everlasting love, we didn't bump into each other in the street, or meet in a coffee shop, or land eyes on each other and automatically know we were meant for one another. I met the love of my life at a bus stop.

At six thirty on a foggy Wednesday morning, I trudged from my house and down the block. My entire body screamed that I was terrified of what the day held.

It was there where I noticed a girl standing at the corner. She was dressed in sweatpants and a tank top. When she saw my figure approaching, she tugged out an earbud.

"H-Hi," I stuttered. "Hennsbrook Central?"

"Yeah. Freshman?" she wondered.

I nodded.

She laughed. "You're new, huh?"

"How did you tell?"

"Haven't seen you before," she said simply.

"Right..."

"And you're nervous," she observed with a sigh. "I am, too... But, anyways, have you made any friends here yet? You know anyone?"

"Oh, no. No. I tried and failed. Never doing that again."

A smile lit her tired face. "I might be of some help there. What kind of stuff are you into?"

"Movies, stuff like The Avengers, " I said instantly.

"Superheroes, okay. Sweet. Can't say I've seen any," she said.

Around the corner, the rumbling of a yellow bus engine slaughtered the silence of our street. Both the girl and I slouched significantly with its appearance.

"You can sit with me on the bus. I'll introduce you to Holly and Cole. They're twins. Same age. They're into that stuff," she offered.

"Thanks..." I paused, awaiting her name.

"Oh, Mara. I'm Mara Carrow."

And for as long as I can remember, that was the name my heart was stuck on.