Still Best Friends at Sixteen and Seventeen
The Story of UsHeartbreak #4
July 16, 2011
“He’ll be here soon.” I told myself. I was sitting alone at the fountain outside the shopping center near my high school. I played with the ends of my hair as I waited for Kai to arrive, he was ten minutes late now. No big deal.
“Hey, wanna catch a movie this weekend?” Kai casually slung an arm around my shoulders as he walked me home from school.
“With all of us?” I asked.
“No, just you and me. Best friend bonding time!”
“What movie?”
“You know, that new horror movie. It looks kinda fun!”
“Horror movie…? I don’t know about that…” I trailed off reluctantly.
“Don’t be a scaredy cat, I’ll be right there next to you.”
“Okay, promise?”
“Of course, I’ll never leave you alone remember?” Kai laughed.
I pulled out my phone, “Where are you?” I texted to Kai. I put my phone back into my purse and waited. I watched moms pull their children around into different stores, bribing them with treats to behave. I watched loving couples walk by, looking at each other as if they were the only ones in this public place. I sighed, I wonder what it would be like to be in a relationship.
It was now noon, we had planned to meet up at 11:30. He was late by half an hour now. I brushed it off, he must of slept in late, he does that a lot lately. I giggled remembering the many times he’s ran into first period late, his hair in a tousled mess and his shirt buttoned in correctly. I would always have to come over and fix it for him during breaks.
“See, what am I going to do without you?” He winked as I reached up to fix his hair. I just shook my head and smiled.
“This is nice,” Kai commented, “It’s like we’re married. You’re the housewife and I’m the busy working man. I wonder what that would be like…”
I blushed and bit my lip.
“Let’s get married.” He looked at me seriously. I blinked and smacked him on the shoulder.
“So violent,” He pouted, rubbing his arm, “I take that back, I don’t want to marry a husband beater.”
“Don’t joke about things like that.” I said sternly, now fixing his wrinkly shirt.
“Okay, wifey.” He grinned. I just rolled my eyes and hid my reddening face behind my curtain of hair.
My stomach growled, I had skipped breakfast this morning to save room for popcorn and junk food. It was now 1:15. I bit my lip as I watched a child skip by, hot dog in one hand. My stomach growled even louder at the sight. Okay, I had to eat. I glanced around, looking for a food stand.
“That’ll be $5.34 please.” The acne ridden teenage boy smiled politely. Sometimes I even forget acne exists, the boys and I all have relevantly clear skin, luckily for us.
I handed him the money as I took the meal from him. I thanked him and told him to keep the change. I then made my way back to the fountain.
Fries, a bottle of water, and a chicken sandwich. That’s what I bought for lunch. I almost considered buying more just incase Kai showed up, but I had a feeling he wouldn’t.
I pulled my phone out again, no new texts. I bit my lip as I dialed Kai’s number. I was sent to voicemail after a few rings.
Anyone would call me stupid if I told them I waited for him for three and a half hours in that same spot, only getting up to buy lunch, throw away the remains of my lunch, and to use the bathroom.
It was 3:00 now, still no sign of Kai. The sky has progressively gotten darker and I was worried that it would rain.
And just to my luck, it did. 3:15, it began to sprinkle. I rubbed my bare arms (I was wearing a sleeveless top and jeans) to keep warm. I sighed and took cover under one of the shop’s canopy. Just give him 45 more minutes, I told myself. Then you will walk home and ask him what happened tomorrow.
“Here.” An old woman, I assume who was the shopkeeper handed me a jacket. I shook my head and smiled, “It’s alright.”
“Take it,” she insisted, “You’ll catch a cold if you don’t.” She shoved the coat onto my body.
“Thank you ma’am.” I bowed slightly.
“Are you waiting for someone?” she asked, “I saw that you’ve been sitting here for a while. What happened?”
“I think I was stood up,” I admitted, “Now I just feel silly for waiting so long.”
“When you love someone, time is no issue.” she told me finally, “Stay as long as you’d like.”
“Thank you.” I told her again as she walked back into the shop.
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