School had finally calmed down after the first two weeks. Everyone settled into their classes and teachers were already becoming tired of the students. The students became tired of school and the work that came with it. Many had already planned one last hoorah before it got much colder.
A bunch of the seniors was going down to First Beach. Angela had invited me to come along with her. I accepted it because Mom's bad mood lasted longer than usual. I needed a way from that for a while. So I needed Angela's invitation and really appreciated it.
"I hope you don't mind my asking, but why do you always sit by yourself at lunch?" Angela asked as we leaned against another student's vehicle.
I shrugged my shoulders. I knew why I sat alone and I'm sure Angela knew the answer herself.
"I can't say I really have friends. At least none willing to talk to me." I explained.
That's when we heard some of the others yelling for Angela over by the water. She bit her lip trying to decide whether to stay with me so I wasn't alone or go hang out with the others. It was easy for me to be alone. I knew she didn't want to be rude, but she needed people she could talk to without awkwardness.
"You can go hang out with them. I was going to walk along the beach anyway," I said.
"I don't want you to feel left out though," she said.
"It's okay. Being alone doesn't bother me as much as you'd think. Go be with Jessica and others," I said, almost forcing a smile.
She smiled back then, giving a nod as a thank you, then ran off to the others. I walked along the beach alone, which wasn't unusual. I stopped at my favorite spot to look out over the waves. It was nice listening to the waves, drowning everything else out by the ocean.
I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. I was tempted to use my iPod and headphones but resisted the temptation. I zoned out completely for a few minutes. Being in a place of total serenity, I never noticed my friends going back to the vehicles to change. The teenagers from the reservation had just made it to the beach at that moment.
I noticed none of this because of my spacing out. It was interrupted sooner than I would have liked because some reservation boys were throwing a football around. It had hit me in the back of the head, purely by accident. I turned to see the ball on the ground by my feet. I picked it up so I could return it to one of the boys. It just so happened to be Paul that came to get it.
The only reason I ever figured out who Paul, or any of the others, was simply because I am like a fly on the wall to everyone. People hardly ever notice me, which usually works out to my advantage. I like not being noticed; it suits me.
"Hey, I've seen you around here a lot, for years now. You're usually alone. Why be with friends now?" Paul asks as he reaches me.
"One of my classmates, Angela, invited me to come along; otherwise, I would have been here alone," I explained.
That's when my eyes met Paul's. At that moment something about him changed. I blushed and smiled shyly, handing him the football back. I wasn't sure what to say and couldn't meet his eyes again.
"Thanks for giving the ball back," Paul said sweetly.
"You're welcome," I said, still blushing.
That's when Angela came to get me. I'm glad she did, I needed saving because I wasn't sure what to do now.
"Nice meeting you. Will I see you here again?" He asked.
I shrugged.
"Maybe," I told him, looking up to smile at him.
"I really hope so. I will see you later," Paul said smiling back at me. His smile gave me butterflies.
He ran back to his friends after that. I went with Angela to head toward the vehicles, everyone was freezing and ready to go home. I jumped into the car and sat in silence as the others talked.
