Chapter 3
As soon as I stepped down the tarnished stone steps, I thought to myself. "What if Johnny isn't here.. What if he forgot about me..? What if he never comes back..?" I walked down the path, heading towards the dance hall. My stomach twirled and twisted into knots inside me. I suddenly felt really nervous. The sun beat down on my neck as I walked up the very long flight of stairs. My curls bounced as I lightly jumped onto each step. My heart was almost in my throat, when I reached for the knob. I didn't hear anything from the outside, so I wasn't sure if anyone was even there. I pushed the door open.
It was completely empty. I figured so, since no one danced until nighttime. But Johnny was known to hang around there during the day. I figured today must have been an exception. As I turned and walked back down the long steps, I remembered something. How stupid of me! He taught lessons during the day! Of course! I grinned and headed for the dance studio. That's what it was called, but it was just a big, hard-floored room with lots of windows and mirrors. It was Johnny's pride and joy, though. That's where he absolutely loved to be. Whenever he could, he'd be there, making up new dances and routines.
"I remember how the light would hit his sandy brown hair, making golden highlights in them.." she thought as she slowed down her pace to daydream. "..Those strands would shine.. And the way he—" I shook my head slightly. Right now wasn't the time to daydream…
It was on the opposite side of Kellerman's and it would be awhile before I'd get there. I hated the fact that it took so long! It only gave me more time to think up daydreams, that and the worst possible scenarios. Both wouldn't make me move any faster. I sighed heavily and picked up my pace. I could finally see it in the distance.
That's when my heart started to really pound. I was sure that anyone that within 10 feet of me could hear it. I'd envisioned that studio many times in my head. It reminded me of everything I loved. Johnny, dancing, music, last summer... That little building amongst the trees was a place where my dreams had turned into reality. I couldn't believe I was seeing it again.
As I walked up to the door, I closed my eyes. I silently prayed I'd see him in there. I must have stood there for half a minute. I then opened my eyes, and slowly knocked on the door. I could hear soft music coming from the outside. My stomach did a flip-flop as I heard footsteps. I saw the knob slowly move to the left. The door slowly opened… A man, about 6'0 opened the door. He had jet-black hair and brown eyes. His complexion was darker than most white people were, and he had a goatee. He looked either Italian or Mexican. This surely wasn't Johnny.
"Yeah?" He said with a heavy Mexican-American accent.
"Is..Is Johnny here?" I said, my voice was somewhat shaky.
"Nah, he's not." He obviously sounded annoyed, either that or he was always this ornery. He then shut the door.
I blinked slowly, and then felt a stingy sensation rush quickly to my eyes. I turned and walked down the stairs. My chin quivered slightly as I continued downward. I fought back the tears, but it was a hard battle. The tears were blurring my vision. I blinked once again, but the dam broke abruptly. I made my way down a hill and continued walking. I had no idea where I was going. I didn't care. This whole summer was now officially a waste of time.
I made it through a heavily wooded path, through the brush. I saw a small creek down the small slope. Rocks were everywhere around it. I walked to a large flat rock on the creek's edge and sat down on it. The tears started to sting my eyes, but they continued to run down my cheeks. I then pulled my knees up to my chest and set my head on the top. I sobbed softly onto my blue jeans, a wet spot soon tainting the dryness. I only heard my soft cries, and the sound of water falling onto more water further down the stream. A few birds chirped back and forth, and the occasional squeaks of insects were also echoing through the dense forest clearing. After a few minutes, the sadness turned to rage.
"Why was I so stupid? I should have known that he wouldn't be here! I should have told myself not to come. Deep inside I knew that I shouldn't have come! I knew it! Johnny probably has forgotten all about me!" I thought.
I stood up and grabbed a few stones from the ground. I started throwing them in the creek. They plopped in with a small splash. Plop! Plop! Plop-plop! Plop!
I continued to toss the small stones into the shallow water. Tears were still streaming down my face, and I had to sniffle every once and awhile to keep myself from choking on my tears.
My stones landed sloppily in the water, without skill. I was just so mad that I needed to keep myself from going nuts on something. It was soothing to hear the splashes. I started to calm down, but I was still crying.
I tried skipping the on top of the water, but I wasn't that talented. I continued to try. It was keeping my mind from crying harder. All of a sudden, I was able to skip the rocks. They hopped across the water perfectly. I stopped for a moment… I then started to realize it wasn't me that was skipping them…
I turned around slowly, and right behind me, was Johnny.
