I cried out with no reply,
But I still feel you by my side.
I'll hold tight to what I know,
That I'm never alone.
- Barlow Girl, 2003
Chapter Two: Reassurance
A yawning Lily Randall flipped through the pages of her binder as she sat in her desk, unprepared for English to start. There were two minutes left until class started, and yet the sandy-haired sophomore kept falling into her subconscious, hardly able to keep her eyes open. She kept staring at her blank pieces of paper, wondering what sort of work they'd be doing this year. As she flipped through the pages, however, a crumpled piece jumped out to her eyes. It was in a handwriting that she couldn't place, and Lily was eager to read the note.
Lily Randall,
I don't suppose you'd have any plans for later this evening? Come to Mickey's at 7:30, just before the fourth act. I'm looking forward to seeing you.
Sincerely,
Secret Admirer
At that moment, Ray Brennan sat the far corner of the classroom, directly opposite of Lily, watching while his heart raced as she read the note he'd written months ago. It had taken him this long to finally give it to her, even though it would have been just as decent to give it to her before. But now he was ready. He had a plan. He could only faintly hear the bell that signaled the start of class, and he smiled to himself as he sat up, ready to learn... Well, not really, but he had an excuse. He was Ray, after all!
The door slammed, and Ray felt his attention drawn away from Lily to his other best friend – none other but Robbie McGrath. His hair was even more floppy than usual today, and as he took a seat next to Ray, he couldn't help but smile. "Hey, haven't talked to you in like... a week!" Robbie grinned, rummaging through his backpack to find his notebook.
Ray shrugged jokingly, but his eyes kept being diverted to Lily as she reread his note over and over, obviously trying to figure it out. She'd always been one to decipher things – one of the reasons that Ray had tried so hard to make his handwriting different than usual. Lily had photographic memory, or so she claimed. "Yeah, and the Brennan residence was so 'happy' without you there," he replied, grinning as he used his salesperson expression. Ray had always been good at expressions, although Lily had always hated them. It kind of hurt his feelings, but he'd learned not to say anything to her about them.
Too bad, though. He could never use Cowboy Slim around her again.
"What're you staring at?" Ray looked up to see Robbie asking him this for the fourth time, and apparently Ray had spaced out while thinking of Lily. The black-haired boy watched his friend grin. "Oh, I see."
Robbie had looked over to Lily as well, mimicking Ray's 'love gaze.' It was at that moment that Lily turned around to see them both resting their heads on their hands, a loving expression on their faces. Ray had to hold in his laughter, but eventually let it out anyway, Robbie joining in. The blonde rolled her eyes, a smile on her face that Ray would always remember.