The Minor Complications of Love

Chapter Twelve: Where to Start?

Drew took a few deep breaths as he leaned over on the couch and put his hands over his head as he stared blankly into nothing while he thought about everything.

"OK, so now you're denying it after all those years of sort of being sure, avoiding your best friend from time to time while hoping she would not notice that you really were trying to stay away from her, and being in love with we-both-know-who? You're not doing yourself a favor Drew. Leaving right now is my way of helping you. Just be honest with Mia and yourself. Please?"

Peggy's voice was so clear in his head and was irritatingly, repeatedly playing itself over and over again. He had to admit though, Peggy made sense, but if there was anything that he had hated so much from her sort of "speech" or "fine motivational pep talk" that wasn't really motivational anyway, it would be the very last part. Just be honest with Mia and yourself. Please? He scoffed. As if that was easy.

Laying his head against the cold table, Drew could never feel more trapped in such a sticky situation like this and it bugged him how Peggy could easily tell him such things like that. As if everything was that easy? 

Drew looked at Peggy with a painfully disturbed expression. "I wouldn't know where to start."

"Well, then start from the beginning," Peggy advised him.

The beginning, huh? Drew closed his eyes as his mind had seemed to fly back to everything that had happened before.

It was supposed to be any ordinary day in middle school -- or so goes the cheesy line that can usually be found at the start of any sudden extraordinary day. Their teacher had decided to throw a game as a little ice breaker before filling the students' head with both necessary and completely unnecessary information. The game? Marco Polo. That one person who just had to be 'it'? Well, it was none other than Drew.

"I can't believe you have to be it," Mia whispered as she stifled a giggle. Drew looked at her with an unenthusiastic expression.

"Just you wait and see," he said before slowly heading towards the front, "I am so going to make you the next 'it' in the next round."

"We'll see about that," Mia mouthed to him as she made an impression of that of an anime character with glasses (Mia used to wear glasses in middle school, but they didn't really have any grade -- as a eleven year old who felt like she could do anything, she just wore glasses to school to do geeky impressions like that.)

"Oh you're on," Drew replied as he was blindfolded by their teacher against his own will and as he internalized the goal of finding Mia in a classroom of twenty-something students completely. Once he was twirled a couple times, Mark went on his way to the battlefield, moving forward a bit with his arms stretched right out in front of him. Once he felt content with his position, he shouted, "Marco!" And after he did, the shouts of children shouting, "Polo," filled the classroom. He felt as if they were bullets hitting right through him and making him feel like losing. Were on Earth was Mia? What was worse about this situation was that she didn't sound like she was shouting.

"Marco!" He shouted again. Powerful shouts of, "Polo," continued to surge within the room. Still no sign of Mia, Drew thought to himself.

"Marc--"

"Oh come on!" A classmate of theirs said as he cut Drew off. "Just move already and get on with it!" 

Drew gulped. He was staying in one position this whole time. He was hoping he could find Mia in one go (and maybe sort of impress the class while doing so), but of course, he was unfortunately failing.

Taking a deep breath, Drew walked forward some more. He bumped into some chairs and desks in the process, earning a few giggles from his classmates here and there.