Phoenix Montgomery

As soon as my eyes fell on Taekwoon's face, all my feelings of love at first sight ended and I felt nothing. It was like a switch had been off, then , and then switched back to off again. I blinked a few times, surprised at how suddenly my feelings changed. He wasn't even looking at me, so I turned away, now feeling like a huge idiot.

What the hell was all that? I thought to myself. Did I fall asleep for a few minutes or something? I sighed in relief. Certainly it was a dream. A very oddly vivid dream, but a dream nonetheless. I turned my body almost completely away from Taekwoon, feeling so embarrassed I could die. If spontaneous combustion were to ever just randomly happen to someone, now would be the time.

I sighed again, this time in frustration, barely even able to pay attention to the lesson. My notebook was open in front of me, loose-leaf paper completely bare aside from the stock blue lines and red margins. I was embarrassingly good at math, so a quick glance at my textbook later tonight would give me all the information I needed, however I always enjoyed the way Mr. Brown taught so I felt bad for not even glancing at the board he was writing on once. I just couldn't shake the gripping feeling of being out of control, of not knowing what was happening to me or if anything was happening to me at all or I was just crazy—

“Miss Montgomery?” Mr. Brown's voice cut through my inner-monologue. Dread filled my body and my stomach starting churning like a boat's propeller as I realized everyone in the room was staring at me expectantly. “Miss Montgomery, could you come to the board to complete this equation?” My teacher then gestured his arm toward the whiteboard, showcasing a particularly tricky problem. Within a few seconds I had it figured out in my head, so I begrudgingly trudged to the front of the classroom.

I grabbed a pink dry-erase marker and solved the problem with little effort, of course making sure to “show my work”. I was just about to head back to my seat when Mr. Brown stopped me and said, “That was no easy problem, Phoenix. Would you mind telling the class how you solved it?”

Without even thinking I automatically quipped, “But you're the teacher?” I immediately realized my mistake and added a forced laugh, not wanting to get in trouble for sassing him. In a lower voice, I asked, “Do I really have to? I... I'm really uncomfortable being up here in front of... everyone.”

Upon saying “everyone” my eyes trailed the linoleum floor to the two desks in the back in the top right of the classroom. One, empty, where I had just been sitting. The other, where Taekwoon was sitting, his eyes boring into me, as if they were scanning my very soul. My stomach twisted, feeling almost like it could break in two. I couldn't take my eyes off his. It was like I had been put in a trance.

He was such a beautiful creature. His shoulders were godly, perfectly chiseled and broad, perfect for protecting or defending. His skin was completely flawless and dewey, so healthy and smooth-looking, the type of skin that deserves the lightest caress. His hair was a mix of blacks, dark browns, and lighter browns, swept back from his face in a handsome fashion.

Our eyes were still locked. This interaction couldn't have taken more than five seconds, but it felt like an eternity. Looking into his eyes gave me the strangest feeling, like staring into a million futures but also... nothing at all.

Thankfully, the bell rang and I basically shoved the marker I was still holding into Mr. Brown's hand. Hopefully I would feel less weird if I could get away from Taekwoon. Some normalcy from today would be much appreciated.

I made a beeline straight to my desk, quickly grabbing my backpack off the floor and shoving my plastic binder inside. Taekwoon was calmly putting his things together. His notebook was still on the desk, lying open. I noticed he hadn't written anything either. However, there was a drawing. A girl in a nightgown, standing next to a bed. A door, slightly ajar, light spilling from behind it.

I gasped, recognizing this from the countless dreams I'd had. I knew if he had finished the drawing, there would be a balcony facing the sea on the right, and a smoldering fireplace on the left. Suddenly, the notebook slammed shut. I lifted my eyes to Taekwoon's, fear gripping me like a vice. He was already looking at me, expression unreadable. I started shaking my head and backing away, wondering how that was possible. Then, he stood up, almost as if to stop me, but I quickly turned away from him, bumping into someone in my rush to leave. Today had already been so weird, I didn't think I could handle anything else. All I wanted was to find a nice, comfy hole and stay there for the rest of my life.

I kept my head down as I walked toward my 3^rd period class, Racquet Sports & Leisure Activities. Maybe a little exercise would help clear my head. Or maybe a fifth of vodka, I thought cynically. By some amazing of luck I made it to the locker room hallway without hallucinating or running into anyone who knew what I dreamt about.

Typically the first day of any P.E. class was spent assigning lockers and giving an overview of what we'd be doing, so instead of going into the locker rooms, which would forever smell like sweat, I headed into our school's maroon and gold gymnasium. My classmates were already sitting in small groups on the bleachers, so I did a quick scan to see if anyone I knew was in this class, much to my disappointment. Well, I thought, not everyone is here yet, so hopefully I'll know at least one person. I found a nice, dark corner and sat around looking at my pathetically chipped nail polish and waiting for someone I knew and liked to come in.

I suppose I got what I wished for because at the last minute, Taekwoon and Hongbin walked in, seemingly deep in discussion.

“You've gotta ing be kidding me,” I muttered to myself.

Much to my surprise, both Hongbin and Taekwoon glanced up at me when I said that. I froze. I was completely taken aback in disbelief that they could have actually heard that, but also not putting it past them considering the day I'd already had. First, I looked at Hongbin, who was smirking and looked so good it almost hurt, and then I turned my attention to Taekwoon who, upon making eye contact with me, rolled his eyes and grabbed Hongbin's elbow, leading him to the other side of the gym.

“ you, too, then, I guess,” I said to myself.

This is going to be a great semester, isn't it?