Colors // Joshler

// 51. The World Is Your Oyster //

Most mornings, Tyler woke up, painted, and got ready for school. There were some feelings and emotions in this routine--sleepiness, and hunger. But so early in the day, Tyler normally didn't feel a whole lot.

The morning after going to Josh's house, however, Tyler woke up and felt different. There was sunlight streaming through the window, breaking through the dark, heavy clouds here and there, sending streaks of light down to earth. The sunlight looked concentrated, almost, as if it was being filtered through small holes in the sky.

Tyler wondered why he felt different, and then he remembered the previous evening.

A strange thing happened, then. Tyler smiled. His smiles were rare, something that rarely cropped up in his life. But now, Tyler felt like smiling. He felt like laughing, and talking, and singing, and jumping around. It was kind of ridiculous.

He slipped out of bed, his feet feeling cold on the bare hardwood floor, and walked out of his room and downstairs. As per usual for that time of the morning, his parents were both drinking coffee in the kitchen, his father reading the newspaper and his mother absent-mindedly taking the occasional bite from a piece of toast. Upon entering the kitchen, Tyler's mom seemed somewhat surprised to see him. Any other day, he'd still be in his room, sleeping or painting. Today, though, he wanted to wake up early. The sooner he left, the sooner he'd get to see Josh.

Tyler made himself a frozen waffle and ate it quickly. Just as he was putting his plate in the sink, the doorbell rang.

"I'll get it!" Excitement grew in Tyler's chest as he slipped down the hallway to the front door.

Opening the door revealed Josh, just as Tyler had hoped. Josh was wearing his school uniform, and there was a bright smile on his face that matched Tyler's. "Hi."

Tyler felt a little underdressed in his worn t-shirt and pajama pants. "Hi."

"You want to walk to school together?"

Tyler's smiles grew wider. "Yeah, just let me get ready really quick. Do you want to come in?" he added, opening the door a little more.

Josh shook his head politely. "Nah, it's okay." He leaned closer, then hesitated, as if debating something. Then, he leaned in the rest of the way and gave Tyler a tiny kiss on the forehead. "Go get ready, I'll wait."

Pink affection bubbled up in Tyler's chest, and he beamed. "Okay." He lightly closed the door, and then happily headed down the hallway to the stairs.

It didn't take him long to get dressed into his school uniform, and soon, Tyler was going back downstairs again, backpack slung over his shoulders. His father was no longer in the kitchen; he'd probably gone to get ready for work.

Tyler often didn't say goodbye to his mother when he left in the morning, but today he felt like doing it. "Bye, mom, I'm heading to school."

His mother stared at him with her head tilted slightly, as if she were confused. "What's gotten into you?"

He knew what she was talking about, but pretended that he didn't. "What do you mean?"

"You came sauntering down the stairs this morning like the world is your oyster, and now you're stopping to say goodbye to me before leaving. You're smiling, too."

Tyler shrugged, but a big smile was still plastered to his face. "Just feeling good."

She continued to look puzzled, but went back to her coffee and toast. "Okay. See you later."