AM, PM

chapter 1

AIDEN

       There she is, walking down this broken down hall of the broken down building called George Quentin high school. An old place named after an old man with great achievements. With her long black hair and radiant smile, greeting everyone she comes across.

On the contrary to her, I am not popular or a badass or anything else anyone would think of me. I have a vinyl player, a punching bag and I read. I am stuck somewhere between average and nerdy, but it doesn’t make me uncomfortable in my own skin.

I have never really liked any girl and I don't consider myself liking Layla either.

I find her beautiful? Yes.

Interesting? Yes.

But the conclusion of 'liking' is much more complicated. According to my friends and to my younger self, it is to think that your stomach is having an earthquake, because it has agita. Your heart beat is too fast to be remotely normal and you often embarrass yourself.

Someone pokes my shoulder. "Hi, Aiden". A small voice say that I know all too well.

 She smelled like gasoline and chocolate, a smell that I am strangely attracted to. “Hi Layla, how are you?”I say hesitantly. Shy with no one, except her. Coincidence? I brush it off as one.

“I'm great!” She exclaimed brightly, wincing at her own overly cheery voice. “Listen, I was wondering if you could come over after school and help me fix my car. There are some things I just cannot do.”

 My heart starts to quicken its pace, “Me?”

“Of course! Who else? I'm not looking at Fred am I?”

I look over at Fred, a freshman. He had big glasses with red frames and waved at us. I liked the guy, I tutored him for a while when he was in middle school and I learned to like his weirdness.

“Yeah, sure, I'll come over,” I say, getting back into conversation. “What time should I be there?”

“I'll come and see you at your locker after school and we'll walk to my house. Sounds good?” she chirps.

“Of course it does.”

“Later." She winks at me and leaves.

 She is quite something this girl.

A little annoying, but quite something.

-

"So, I have an idea,” she starts while we walk in the weather Florida calls normal. “Since we don't know each other that well and it is a shame,” she says while rubbing her left index on the right. “We are going to play a game. I say a word and you say a word that mine made you think of. Okay? Got it? Okay?”

“Okay,” I sigh, just to shut her up.

 “Let's go. Tree."

“Green.”

 “Pea.”

 “Princess.”

“Princess?”

“What the hell?” she says, laughing.

“Well the princess and the pea, obviously,” I answer instantly and I realized; I was being myself. I wasn't testosterone filled shy guy.  I was Aiden. This side of me; I never revealed really.   

“Okay, whatever,” she says with a grin on her face.

 “My turn to talk. Tell me about you. I think there is more to you than everyone thinks,” I say with a retrospective look thinking of the day my father came in telling me my sister hadn't made it. I guess figuring out her secrets brought back mine.

 “Really?” she says, bringing me back to life. “Well, I think time will permit you to figure me out. For I am a mystery.”

 “Okay, don't tell me, but you know time is only an excuse to not to take action,” I say with a playful smile.

-

 She sat on the stool by her car carefully watching me play with the motor. Her 2010 Honda Civic is in horrible shape, but it just occurrs to me that we are only fifteen. We aren't legally allowed to drive, let alone have money to buy a car.

 "Hey Layla, how come you have a car?”

 “Early sweet sixteen present, I guess. It is horrible though,” she says laughing.

“Can I ask why it's in this awful state?” I ask wondering if "awful" was a polite understatement or if it was so low, it could be an insult.

“Well you obviously are capacitated to.”

I laugh out a snort. “I meant that may—”

“I know what you meant,” she interrupts. “I don't know what happened to it. My uncle gave it to me as a challenge to fix it.”

I sense she isn't telling me something. As if there is much more meaning behind the simple fact that her uncle bought the car. There is this look in her eyes.

“I'm guessing you like a challenge,” I say.

She says fiercely, “I devour them.”

At that moment, I don't really know what today was. Layla asking me to fix her car, Layla sitting and watching me like that. I dismiss her playful behavior as her usual attitude, but the feelings of confusion I have are inevitable.

I don't know what will happen tomorrow, but I hope this isn't the last time I am able to see her in this state.

-

written by sarah, edited by yas