•Songs to Stories•

~Annabelle's Homework~

Written by: Alec Benjamin

    "Hey, can I ask you a favor?" Annabelle asked, five minutes before school get's out.
    "Sure, anything."
    "I'm going to hang with friends tonight. I won't have any time for other stuff. Do you think you could do my trig homework for me?"
    Another chance for Annabelle to notice me. Another oppurtunity to show her that I'll do anything for her. What person would deny this oppurtunity?
    "Absolutely!" Of course, Claude. You had to appear overambitious.
    "Thanks." She dashed back over to where Briar and Penny were eagerly giggling while staring at their phones. I knew I shouldn't have even thought about her, but that girl somehow wouldn't stay out of my mind.
    Her bright blue hair struck me first. She was transported from another school, so I met her in fifth grade. I had never seen her normal hair color ever, surprisingly she maintained the color through intese treatments. I knew she loved that hair more than anything. It was a bit natuarlly curly at the ends though.
    Her eyes made her hair stand out even more. They were such a dark brown, it resulted in them looking black, hence the term "demon eyes". When she looked at light, it reflected off, giving her eyes an almost cartoonish look. A cartoon I could watch forever.
    For the past few days, Annabelle has been asking me to do her homework. The only thing about this is that she usually doesn't use the same person more than three times. I took this as a chance. I've liked her since she first stepped foot in this school all those years ago. Always too afraid to make a move, this was the perfect oppurtunity to show her we would be perfect together.
    The school bell interrupted my thoughts, signaling school was out till tomorrow morning. I scurried out the doors faster than usual. At home I could think about Annabelle as much as I wanted without fear.
    As usual, nobody was home. Mom and Dad worked early in the morning until very late at night, hopeful for a steady income. We didn't have much of a relationship which didn't bother me. No need for one.
    Up in my room, I sat in peace solving Annabelle's trigonometry homework. Trig, and most math, came easy to me. Obviously, not Annabelle. A genius and a beauty. Sounds about right to me.
    There was no doubt in my mind that Annabelle was at a party with Penny and Briar. They have probably had a few drinks, but not a whole lot. Arbor is trying to hit on Annabelle, and being a bit tipsy, she takes it all in. All of the attention. The praises. The compliments.
    As I finished up her trig, I wrote her name in the top right corner, making it look like she worte it all along. Though I didn't like to do homework, I would do anything for Annabelle. That beautiful, sweet girl had lots of people who liked her, but I wanted to be the one who got lucky. Dating a girl out of my league.
    Unlike any trig problem, this problem was easy. Simply addition. But the answer was far more complicated. Almost impossible. Annabelle+Claude=? I don't know what the question mark is. It could be nothing. It probably is nothing. The question mark equals nothing.
    "Annabelle, here's your trig homework." She spun around.
    "Thanks." And she left.
    I had to leave quickly. Annabelle didn't need to see my dissapointed face. I knew better than to have fallen for someone I didn't even have a remote chance with. My mom had taught me better than to waste endless time on a girl who didn't need it. She had a million other boys after her. Including Arbor.
    Arbor was every girls dream boy. He had the face, he had the muscular build. He had the eyes. He had it all. Annabelle seem interested at moments, and not the next. He was always going after her, in search of a way to inflate his already large ego.
    All day, I had been thinking about how Annabelle and I would be nothing. Typical thoughts. Just like all those days before, she approached me a few minutes before school was out for the day.
    "Hey, do you mind doing my geography? I don't know how to do any of this, and I need that grade."
    "That's not a problem." Grabbing her paper, I dashed out the door to go home.
    Tomorrow. Tomorrow I would tell Annabelle how much I liked her. I would hope for a chance, even the slightest.
    Surprisingly, the morning came fast. Too fast. Walking through the school doors scared me. How would she react?
    "Claude, do you have my geography?"
    I handed her the paper. It took her a few minutes to notice, but when she looked at the corner for her name, she saw it.
It read: Annabelle, I like you. A lot.