Once upon a time, there was a boy.
This boy was unlike any other boy.
He had an extraordinary imagination.
Yet, most important…
He had an amazing friend…
That he would never truly forget.
This friend would help him realize…
Even after years of being apart…
That being different
Was okay.
A low, stifled yawn emitted from the angular face of a pale young man as vibrant rays of sunshine shone through the dirty window of his room. Just as the rays hit his face, a loud, obnoxious knock banged upon the cheap wooden door of his room. "CALVIN…CALVIN GET UP!!!" A woman's voice yelled, "YOU'RE GOING TO BE LATE FOR SCHOOL!!!" Immediately upon hearing this soul shattering yell, his eyebrows perked up and bony hand reached up to rub his eyes. "I'm up, I'm up…" the young man muttered beneath his breath. Scrawny legs swinging over the side of his bed, he precariously stood himself up, reaching his arms up high to stretch, back cracking noisily in the process. Another loud knock on the door and Calvin merely ignored it this time and made his way over to his dresser, pulling random articles of clothing out and haphazardly placing them on his thin frame. Though all of this seemed frantic and unreasonable to the average passerby, this was his daily morning. Everything was always rushed and hurried, thrown together at the last possible moment. With much haste and very little hesitation, he slid on a pair of loose fitting jeans, barely taking time to thread a black belt through its loops. Rushing out the door with a red and black striped polo shirt, he grabbed his backpack and threw his shoes on before running out the door for his dear life.
It was obvious to see the frantic look upon his face as he sprinted down the street at full speed. Each step pounded against the sidewalk, causing vibrations to shoot up his legs as though they may shatter his knobby knees. Just as luck may have it, the bus was pulling up just as the panting young man tripped over the curb and directly into the doors of the large yellow vehicle. Laughter roared from the bus as he blushed in sheer embarrassment. Something told Calvin that today was not going to be a good day; not a good day at all. To top it off, as the doors opened and he stomped up the black and white lined steps, the bus was entirely packed, or people scooted over as to show that there was not an inch of room upon their seat. Cursing under his breath, the short blonde haired klutz made his way up and down the isle until finally spotting an empty seat next to someone he assumed would immediately reject him. Nevertheless, he needed a seat, and he needed one fast.
"Umm...excuse me…" his voice came almost inaudibly. People on the bus around him were shouting and yelling for him to sit down. After all, the bus could not mobilize itself if all passengers were not seated. However, the girl before him seemed far to distracted by a book entitled "The Folk Keeper" to notice that she was being beckoned by a boy mere inches away. A few more minutes and Calvin was still trying to get her attention, yet the brunette remained entirely oblivious. Finally, without further hesitation, a familiar chubby hand shoved him down into the empty seat next to the girl as a deep and threatening voice bellowed, "Fucking worthless Twinkie." Immediately after this short action however, the brunette looked over to the now trembling blonde haired boy.
Switching his blue-eyed gaze to that of the girl, Calvin's breath caught in his lungs and refused to release at any cost.
She was beautiful.
It had been awhile since Calvin had been this close to a girl of this intense beauty. Large, doe-like brow eyes scanned every single one of Calvin's features. He felt as though a hawk was watching him, yet he enjoyed every second of it, feeling as though he was important to this stranger, at least for a little while. Her chocolate brown hair cascaded gently to her shoulders as she cocked her head to the side, still examining the young male with a bewildered expression. Marveling at her porcelain skin, he attempted to speak, attempted to verbalize himself in someway, but failed greatly, seemingly at a loss of words. Once upon a time, when he had known a girl well enough to date, he recalled this welling feeling within him, a want, a need. A boy of 17 did indeed have some raging hormones, that couldn't be denied. This girl however seemed to have quite a different effect on him however, something about her seemed strangely familiar, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it.
It was now that he realized he was staring at her lightly freckled face.
His face grew to be an ungodly shade of pink…
Make that red.
"Sorry…" he muttered quickly, trying to regain any composure and dignity he might have left. The girl giggled…she giggled a familiar giggle that irked him to the very marrow of his bones. He couldn't quite figure it out though, he couldn't pinpoint where that familiar vocal chime stored itself within memory. He did know, that that mere ring of laughter melted his heart.
When had he become this calm and emotional?
Oh yes…
The day Hobbes left.
-Flashback-
"Calvin…you really are too old for this now"
"Dad…I…I love Hobbes though…He's my best friend…"
"Son, it really is time you get rid of it, it's all torn and ragged and you need to start making real friends."
"BUT HE IS REAL!!!"
"No Calvin, we've gone over this before, Hobbes is only a stuffed animal."
"No he's not dad! Hobbes is as real and you and me!"
"Son, please, you're 10 years old. You're too old for this now, it's time to move on."
"Dad! Please…I'll…I'll clean my room every day!!! I'll eat my dinner!!! I won't flood the house ever again…Just let me keep him!!!"
"Son…it's time to move on…"
"…"
"Son…?"
"Where will he go?"
"What?"
"I said, where will he go? Where are you going to take him?"
"Somewhere where he's needed Calvin, I'm sure some little boy or girl will play with Hobbes all the time, and your cardboard box too…"
"Transmogifier."
"What?"
"The box…it's my Transmogifier…"
"Right… Look, I really have to get going…"
"Dad…please…"
"Son, have a backbone."
"…"
"Besides…
It builds character."
-End Flashback-
Everything from then on had been pills, pills, and more pills. His mother claimed that he needed them to focus and survive; Calvin figured they were just a way to mindlessly control him. They calmed him down, and let his emotions run on a rampage, just like now, with this oddly familiar girl on this overly familiar bus. "I…I'm…" Yet his voice trailed off, but thankfully, the girl finished for him…
And right then and there…
Calvin's heart was crushed a thousand times over.
"Susie…Susie Derkins, it's a pleasure to meet you."