When Everything Changes

A Look

It was like any other day. School and work. I was just doing my job when they played one of my favorite songs on the radio. I started dancing and singing through the aisles of Starcore, a local clothing store where I got a job last summer, right after I was dumped by my boyfriend. It had probably been almost a year since we'd spoken one word to each other. He shattered my heart, so I ended up putting all my energy into my job. Somehow, over time, I put the pieces back together. Well, to the best of my ability.

I wasn't the type of girl to be sad or depressed. I was known as the "Goody Two Shoes Happy Child." Everyone knew about the breakup, but they never understood how much it hurt me. I'd actually sworn off boys for the year. Well, more like, I was afraid to even think about dating anyone. 

So, I was dancing and singing to "Hit Me With Your Best Shot," minding my own business, when suddenly, standing at the end of the aisle, was no one I'd ever seen before. He had gorgeous black hair and the most mesmerizing eyes I had ever seen. Who on Earth is that?! I asked myself. That's when one of my coworkers turned the corner and started walking towards me with Mr. Mysterious. 

I awkwardly stood there frozen in place, not knowing what to do or what to say, but luckily John spoke first. "Hey, Mikayla! This is my friend, Zane," he said, motioning to the new guy next to him. Jokingly, he added, "Isn't he cute?"

I'm pretty sure my eyes grew twice as big because I was suddenly terrified and my next instinct was to run. Yes, I thought he was cute, but how weird is that to say to someone I had never met. I looked down at the ground and finally found the words to say, "Uh...I have to get back to work." Then, I gave a quick smile and walked away.

That night, all I could think about was the cute new guy at work. Why can't I stop thinking about him? Will I ever see him again? Maybe we could be friends. I had so many questions, but no answers. Zane...

His name was drilled into my brain the rest of the week, but I hadn't seen him anywhere. There was even a moment when I questioned if he even existed in the first place or if I just dreamed up some guy. But about a week after John introduced us, he showed up again at Starcore.

I could feel my heart pounding when he made his way over to where I was standing. "It's Mikayla, right?" He asked with a voice as deep as the ocean.

Again, my tongue was tied up in a knot and felt unnaturally dry. "Uh...yeah. It's Mikayla."

"How are you doing?"

I DON'T KNOW! was what my brain was screaming at me, but I sweetly responded with a smile. "Good. You?"

"Horrible."

Huh? That response took me completely out of my trance, and I suddenly had the instinct to do something. "Why's that?" I asked, actually wanting to understand what was bothering him.

"Oh, it's nothing. Don't worry about it."

"Well, it's obviously something if it's making you upset."

Zane looked straight into my eyes, searching to see what lied behind the mask. Though, there was nothing there. I actually cared. He looked back down at his feet and proceeded to explain. "Well...work sucked, and I had to get a new phone yesterday because I smashed it on a table. My girlfriend was pissing me off, and I had to break something." Then he looked back at me, wanting to know how I was going to react, but I was speechless. It was obviously not the answer I was expecting.

"Why'd she piss you off?" I cautiously asked.

"She was mad at me for no reason, and she started telling that I'm a horrible human being, that I don't deserve anyone's love, and that I never do anything right."

To be honest, I didn't know what to say. Why would anyone treat someone so horribly? "I'm really sorry to hear that. No one deserves to be treated like that."

He combed his hair with his fingers and said, "Yeah, everyone keeps telling me that, but it's whatever."

"What? No, that's not whatever." It was so hard to hold in my tears because I've been there. No one should ever feel like that.

"Well, considering every other girl I've dated has cheated on me, yes, it's whatever. I'm used to it."

"That's not good, and just because you're used to it, doesn't make it right. No one deserves to be treated like that."

Zane gave me this weird look, that I couldn't really comprehend. "How are you so nice?" he asked.

Uh...I don't know. I just shrugged and gave him a smile.

"I'm not used to this."

"Well." I smiled and shrugged again because I still had no idea what else to say.

Zane and I talked a little bit longer that night which was nice. We ended up talking until both our shifts ended which was probably 30 minutes after he came over. I could actually see a slight smirk on his face at one point. Something told me that he wasn't used to smiling, but part of me knew that I'd change that. 

It was the first time that I looked into those dark brown eyes of his, that everything changed.