Together For A Day In My Life
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The next day, I went to the dining hall with my friends. The cafeteria was filled with people who were eating breakfast and chatting away happily as they did so. It seemed like everyone had gotten over their hangovers from yesterday’s party.
“Good morning!” I greeted them cheerfully as we walked in together. “How are you feeling?”
They all looked at me strangely for a moment before returning my greeting and answering that they felt fine. They didn’t seem too hungover either; it must have been because of how much water they drank last night or maybe just good genes? Either way, I wasn’t going to complain about having such healthy students around me!
As soon as we sat down at our table, one of the girls sitting across from us called out: “Hey Mike.” She sounded cheerful enough but her eyes were red and puffy… Was she still drunk?
I turned towards her curiously. “…>Julia?”
She nodded back at me, looking embarrassed. “Mike,” she said again more quietly this time. Then she put on an awkward smile and added: “You’re really popular here aren’t ya?”
“…Yeah…” I replied awkwardly. What could I say to that…?
“Oh right, sorry about yesterday!” Julia suddenly exclaimed. Her cheeks flushed bright pink when she realized what she’d done. “Sorry if I got carried away! You know how it is after a few drinks…”
“No problem,” I reassured her quickly. “It happens sometimes.”
Her face relaxed into a relieved grin as she continued speaking. “But anyway, thanks for inviting me along yesterday! That was fun!”
“Of course! Glad you enjoyed yourself.”
After exchanging pleasantries with each other for a while longer, we started talking about school stuff. We discussed our classes, clubs, homework assignments, etc. until lunchtime came around. As usual, I ate alone in my room afterward.
When I returned to the classroom later that afternoon, there was already some new faces present. One of them was a tall girl wearing glasses and carrying a book bag. She gave me a friendly wave as she entered the class.
“Hiya!” she greeted me. “I’m Alice.”
Alice smiled brightly at me as she introduced herself. I responded by giving her a small nod. After that, she took off her coat and placed it neatly on her desk before turning to look around the classroom.
There were only three desks left unoccupied. Two of those belonged to boys, which meant that one seat remained free. When Alice noticed this, she immediately moved toward it. But then she stopped short, frozen in place.
“…Huh?”
A second later, she let out a surprised yelp. There was someone sitting behind her. Someone familiar.
My heart skipped a beat. My breath caught in my throat. And yet, despite everything, I couldn’t help but feel excited.
He was here. He was actually here.
And he hadn’t even seen me yet.
Just thinking about him made my blood rush through my veins. I wanted to run up to him and throw myself at his feet. I needed to see him. To talk to him. I had to be near him.
Then, just as I opened my mouth to call out to him, something happened. His head snapped upwards. Our eyes met.
His gaze pierced straight through me.
I froze in shock. I stared wide-eyed at him as he slowly rose to his feet and began walking towards the door.
***
That evening, I decided to go for a walk outside. It was getting dark now. The sun had set completely, leaving nothing but darkness between the buildings. I would normally take a shortcut home via the forest path, but today I headed instead for the lake.
The moonlight reflected off its surface, creating a beautiful sight. I stood there silently watching it for a little while.
Eventually, I heard footsteps approaching from behind me. I turned around to find a boy standing there.
“Hello,” he said politely. “Are you enjoying your stay here so far?”
I blinked in surprise. Who was this guy?
“Uh… Yeah, I am,” I answered hesitantly. “Thanks for asking.”
“Ahh, I’m glad to hear that,” he replied with another polite smile. “Well, I’ll leave you to enjoy the view. Have a nice evening.” With that, he turned and walked away without saying anything else.
I watched him disappear into the distance. Then, once he was gone, I sighed softly and turned back to the lake. I gazed upon it for a long time.
***
The next day, I went to school early and waited for everyone to arrive. This time, however, I chose not to sit at my normal spot. Instead, I found a quiet corner where no one else was likely to come and sat down.
Once the bell rang, I looked over to see who was coming in first. Just like the previous morning, it was a boy entering the classroom. He seemed to be heading in my direction.
“Good morning,” I greeted him cheerfully.
“Morning,” he replied.
We exchanged greetings for a moment. Then, he glanced around the room briefly before finally settling his gaze on me.
“Um… Do I know you?” he asked.
“Nope. Not at all,” I replied confidently.
His expression darkened slightly. “Really? Well, anyway, have a good day.”
With that, he turned and walked towards the front of the classroom. A few seconds later, I saw him enter the teacher’s office to report for duty.
I breathed a sigh of relief. At least he didn’t seem too hostile.
Over the following days, I kept seeing him around the school. Sometimes he’d pass me by, or occasionally he might say hello to me. On several occasions, we ended up having brief conversations during break times.
One thing I did notice though, was how much more reserved he was compared to last week. Nowadays, whenever he spoke to me, it felt less like an actual conversation and more like a monologue delivered to himself rather than anyone else.
It wasn’t until Thursday that things started changing again. That morning, I woke up feeling unusually energetic. I got ready quickly and arrived at school earlier than usual. As soon as I stepped inside, I spotted him waiting for me in the hallway.
“Hey,” he greeted me. “You’re looking well rested today.”
“Yeah, thanks,” I replied. “How are you doing?”
“Oh, fine,” he shrugged indifferently. “What about yourself?”
“Pretty good.”
As we chatted, I suddenly realized something. Something important.
This was the first time we had ever spoken alone together.
For some reason, I felt nervous. Nervous and excited. I could barely contain my excitement. So many thoughts raced through my mind. What if he rejected me? Would I be able to handle it? How should I act? Should I try to make eye contact with him every chance I get?
But most importantly, what exactly do I want from this encounter?
All these questions swirled around in my head. But then, just as I was about to ask him why he was talking to me, he abruptly stopped mid-sentence.
“Bye!” he shouted loudly.
My heart skipped a beat. My face instantly flushed red. And I didn’t even realize it.
When I finally managed to calm down, I took a deep breath and tried to compose myself. After taking care of whatever business he had been attending to, he left the building.
The rest of the day passed in a blur. All I knew was that I couldn’t stop thinking about that single interaction. Every time I closed my eyes, I pictured us interacting again. In fact, I spent pretty much the entire day fantasizing about our future interactions.
And yet, despite all those fantasies, I still hadn’t made any progress. No matter how hard I tried, I simply couldn’t think of anything to talk to him about other than the weather or the food in the cafeteria.
On Friday, I decided to take matters into my own hands.
After school, I headed straight home. Once I reached my house, I changed out of my uniform and prepared dinner. While I was busy cooking, I listened intently to the radio. It was playing a song I really liked.
Then, after a while, I began to feel anxious. Why was I getting so worked up over this? Wasn’t it obvious that nothing would happen between us?
In response to my internal voice, I forced myself to relax. The only way to find out whether there was a possibility of a relationship developing was to actually meet him outside of school. There were plenty of opportunities for that to occur, but unfortunately, none of them came close enough for me to reach him.
So, I resolved to go to bed early. I needed to wake up extra early tomorrow to prepare breakfast.
However, just as I was about to lie down, I heard someone knocking on the door. When I opened it, there stood my neighbor. She smiled warmly at me.
“Hi! You must be the new girl,” she said.
She continued speaking, “Well, I’m glad to see you’ve settled in already. If you need anything, don’t hesitate to come to me.”
I nodded politely. “Thank you very much. I’ll keep that in mind.”
Before leaving, she gave me one final piece of advice. “Don’t forget to lock your windows tonight. Especially since it’s going to rain heavily overnight.”
Once her footsteps faded away, I went back inside. Then, I locked the door and switched off the lights.
Just before lying down, I checked the clock. It read 10:30 PM.
***
A little past midnight, I awoke to the sound of thunder. I sat upright in bed and looked out the window. Sure enough, it was raining quite heavily. However, unlike yesterday, the wind was blowing strongly against the glass pane.
I grabbed a towel and wrapped it around my shoulders, then hurried downstairs to open the curtains. As expected, the sky was dark and gloomy. Thankfully, the storm seemed to have subsided by now.
There was no sign of lightning or thunder anywhere nearby. Just as I turned towards the front door, I noticed something strange.
Something was moving across the street.
At first glance, it appeared to be a person carrying something heavy.
But upon closer inspection, I realized it was not human. Instead, it resembled a giant lizard creature with long arms and legs. Its body was covered in thick scales, which glistened under the moonlight.
It slowly walked along the road, heading towards my house.
Instinctively, I moved backward.
“Whoa!”
The monster stopped in its tracks when it saw me.
Its large eyes stared directly at mine. They were filled with curiosity and hunger.
Without warning, the beast lunged forward.
With lightning speed, it leaped onto the roof of my house.
I screamed in terror.
Although I wasn’t sure what kind of animal it was, I knew instinctively that I had to escape. So, without hesitation, I ran upstairs and hid behind the bedroom door.
As soon as I did, the creature jumped down from the rooftop. It landed right beside my room.
I could hear it scratching at the wooden floorboards.
Panicking, I rushed to the window. From where I stood, I could clearly make out its silhouette.
It was huge. At least twice as tall as me.
I quickly shut the blinds.
Now completely hidden, I waited for several minutes until it eventually disappeared.
When I finally calmed down, I returned to my room.
My heart was pounding furiously within my chest. What if it had been a real monster? Would I ever be able to sleep peacefully again?
After taking some deep breaths, I lay back down on the bed. But even though I felt exhausted, I couldn’t fall asleep. My thoughts kept racing.
What was that thing? How big was it? Could it climb walls? Did it eat people? And most importantly… why didn’t it attack me?
Eventually, I drifted off to sleep.
***
The next morning, I woke up late. By the time I got dressed, it was almost noon.
By the time I finished preparing lunch, it was already 2 PM.
And by the time I cleaned up after dinner, it was 9 PM.
That meant I’d spent all day indoors.
For the rest of the week, I made an effort to get outside more often. On Monday, I took a walk through the park near my house; Tuesday, I visited the library; Wednesday, I went shopping at the supermarket.
On Thursday, I decided to visit a bookstore.
Unfortunately, I ended up spending too much money.
Not only did I buy books, but also magazines, comics, stationery, and other miscellaneous items.
To top things off, I bought two slices of cake from a bakery.
Needless to say, I didn’t have any change left over.
Still, I enjoyed browsing through the shelves and reading various book reviews online. Afterward, I browsed the second-hand section, looking for interesting titles. Eventually, I found myself buying a few old novels.
All told, I spent close to $100.
Since Friday was payday, I decided to treat myself to a movie night.
So, I headed to the cinema complex, purchased tickets, and watched Guardians of The Galaxy Vol. 2.
In hindsight, I should’ve chosen another film instead. Although I liked the storyline, it wasn’t exactly a feel-good flick.
Nevertheless, I thoroughly enjoyed watching Chris Pratt’s character interact with his fellow superheroes. He really is one of the best parts of this franchise.
Afterward, I treated myself to a meal at a nearby fast food restaurant.
Then, I took a taxi home.
Saturday followed suit.
This time, I went to the mall.
I wandered aimlessly around the shops, stopping here and there to browse. When I spotted a shoe store, I picked up a pair of sandals and tried them on. Unfortunately, they weren’t comfortable enough to justify the price tag.
Next, I checked out a clothing shop. There, I bought three new shirts and four pairs of socks.
Once again, I didn’t have enough cash to pay for everything. Fortunately, the sales assistant gave me a discount.
Finally, I went to the supermarket. Here, I stocked up on groceries. Then, I paid using my credit card.
Before leaving the parking lot, I decided to stop by McDonald’s for a quick bite.
While waiting for my order, I noticed a group of teenagers sitting at a table nearby. One boy was wearing a black t-shirt with a picture of a cat printed across the front.
He looked like he was having trouble eating his burger.
Unsure whether or not to help him, I glanced around before approaching the young man.
“Excuse me,” I said. “Do you need some assistance?”
The teenager turned to face me. His eyes were bloodshot.
His cheeks were flushed red, and beads of sweat dripped down his forehead.
Perhaps because of the heat, he seemed to be struggling to breathe.
“Are you okay?” I asked.
The teen nodded in response.
“Can I ask what happened to your shirt?”
The boy pointed to the image of a cat printed on the front.
Apparently, it was supposed to be a joke. However, judging by how poorly the kid was doing, I doubted anyone would find it funny.
“You don’t look well.”
The teenager shook his head weakly.
As soon as we reached the exit, I called for a taxi.
At first, the driver refused to take us.
However, when I showed him the address written on my phone screen, he agreed to drop us off.
From there, I escorted the boy into the building where I lived.
We entered my apartment, and I led the way to my bedroom.
There, I helped the young man remove his clothes. Once naked, I sat him down on the edge of my bed.
“Here, drink this,” I said.
I handed the teenager a glass containing water mixed with lemon juice.
It wasn’t the tastiest concoction, but it was refreshing nonetheless.
Soon, the teenager began feeling better.
“Where are you from?” I asked.
“New York City,” the youth replied.
“Is that right?”
The teenager nodded.
“Well, I’m glad to see someone else has come from overseas.”
With no further questions, I returned to my room.
A short while later, I heard footsteps coming toward my door. It opened, revealing the teenage boy standing in the hallway.
“Thank you so much!” he exclaimed.
“No problem. You’re welcome anytime.”
I smiled.
My heart felt warm inside.
The End