I woke up the next morning with Hannah still on my mind. Laying back on the two couch pillows, my mind traveled back to our graduation day, almost 3 years prior.
~*~*~*~*~*~
The air was so saturated with humidity, it made the dark blue robe cling the backs of my legs. Wet spots were beginning to show around the collar, which I had dubbed as a nifty napkin.
"Yo Lansten!" JC called, waving his hands up in the air.
I wanted to crawl into a hole right then. Whoever invented the graduation outfits needs to be shot. Come on, dresses and ugly hats? What was the purpose of it...to make us look like complete fools, and then when our parents took pictures, we'd have blackmail devices for eternity?
"Hey C. Where's everyone else?"
"Oh I think they're hangin with mamma and poppa Bass. Dude, they are really proud of you." that meant a lot coming from him.
"Thanks man." I looked up at the building that had been my home for the last 4 years, "You know in a way, I'm really gonna miss it but I'm not. Does that make any sense?"
"Totally dude. When I graduated, I couldn't WAIT to get out of there. No more final exams or research papers to hold me down. Yep, that was a good day." he sighed, lost in thought.
He had a thing about saying dude. No matter what the subject of the sentence was, he always managed to sneak it in there. Kind of his trademark, I guess.
Just then, one of my friends tapped me on the shoulder and motioned towards the gym doors, "Well I guess I'd better get inside. See you afterwards, okay?"
Once inside the air conditioned building, the hallways were buzzing with anticipation. Knowing I was near the front of the line, it wasn't hard to find the person who was ahead of me. Our class wasn't that big, maybe 350, but it sure seemed like it was more.
"Hi Lance." Danielle said, wagging her fingers in my direction as she walked by with a group of her friends.
I could feel my face getting red. Danielle was one of the more popular girls, although we had gotten to know each other pretty well when she sat next to me in Calculus sophomore year. Then my eyes traveled over to the curly-haired blonde to her left. Hannah Jamison.
It was freshman year, about two weeks in, and I was just getting to know my way around Clinton High. Books in hand, I glanced down at the small white index card.
"Hmm, E253."
Before I knew or could stop it, I had walked right into the path of someone else, and now we were both on the floor. Yes, I had a real tendency to fall or be pushed over... I'm learning to deal.
"Oh my gosh, I'm sorry!" I kneeled down to help the girl with her books.
She waved me away, a scowl plastered across her face. I couldn't help but get lost in her eyes.
"What are you looking at?" she snipped, pushing her hair out of the way.
For some reason, I was smiling. It shouldn't have happened, but it was like... like... whoa.
~*~*~*~*~
"Yo Lance! Bro... bro, come back." JC called from somewhere out in the stratosphere. Slowly the images from my mind began to fade.
"Come towards the light!"
Chris and JC were standing above me, Chris' face contorted in a goofy smile (like that was uncommon, but whatever). JC looked confused. He held his hand out, and I got up with a groan.
"Me thinks our Lansten was on a trip down the yellow brick road." Chris nodded knowingly.
"You are a fruitcake."
"Oh I know," he slung a hand around my shoulder, "But that's why you love me so!"
"So man, care to share as to why you were smiling in your sleep?"
"Uhh, I plead the fifth?" I questioned, raising my eyebrows in hope that it was enough to get me out of answering. No such luck.
"I keep telling you C, he's dreaming of Meg Ryan. You know, now that she's single and all that junk."
JC shot him a look, then motioned for me to continue.
"I can have some secrets too, you know." I said. Chris rolled his eyes and sat down on the couch.
"Hidden playboys on the bus are not secrets." he blurted out, covering his mouth just as the words escaped. JC's jaw dropped to the floor. He glanced between Chris and me. "What?! I'm weird, you should come to exPECT that from me. I can share if you want." Chris replied nonchalantly. He picked up one of the coasters from the table and swung it back and forth a couple of times, "This would make a killer frisbee. Perfect size for the puppies."
"Not exactly what I was hoping you'd say," JC said, trying to muffle his laughter. It didn't work. Soon he was on the floor with tears streaming down his face. To escape more humility, I walked over to my bedroom and closed the door.
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