Chapter Two: The Day It All Changed

I was looking up into the nights sky, I was sixteen, it still wasn't legal for me to do anything… well drive a car but that's not as fun as all the other age limit stuff …but who cared because I was sixteen. I sat up and began to open another bottle of beer, I noticed eyes on me when I did this.

I looked up to see Chris smirking at me, cigarette hanging lazily at the corner of his mouth.

"Yes, Mr Chambers?" I asked, cocking an eyebrow at him.

He took a drag of his cigarette and gave me a sincere smile that could melt even my heart (not that he knew that), "You're trying to open the bottle with the wrong end"

I looked down and realized what a dumb-ass I was. My shoulders started shaking as I held in laughter, I hung my head down, my hair hiding my face so Chris couldn't see my nostrils flare outrageously as I began snorting laughter. Chris shortly joined and we were both on the ground holding our sides as our laughter mingled together as it rushed into the air.

We would have stayed like that for longer, possibly forever, if Teddy and Verno hadn't suddenly wrestled themselves on top of us. Teddy landed on top of Chris and Verno landed on top of me. I was still gasping for breath, for laughing or the weight of Verno…I wasn't sure.

"Teddy, get off of me you shitheap!" I heard Chris yell, followed by Teddy 'oofing' as he got knocked to the ground.

My laughing began to slow as I realized Verno hadn't made any attempt to move away from the top of me. Which in return made me uncomfortable, no matter how drunk I was.

Our eyes met and he blushed, I then felt something hard against my stomach, and trust me, it wasn't a beer bottle.

"Ewww! Verno!" I managed from new oncoming laughter as I pushed him off, which was impressive to say he was almost twice my size. Well, practically everyone was twice my size. When I'd died my hair a shocking red the summer before, my nickname from the people who 1) Didn't like me or 2) Really didn't like me was "Matchstick".

Verno blushed more as I wriggled away from the three guys, "S-sorry Debbie."

I laid on my side a few feet away from the guys, my arms wrapped around my stomach as my denim clad legs kicked about from the laughter. I was severly drunk.

Teddy and Chris were looking to-and-fro with puzzled faces at Verno and me, which made me laugh harder. Teddy latched on first, his high-pitched laughter kicking in against my own. Chris began chuckling self-consciously and looking at me with questioning eyes. I wiggled my eyebrows at him in response and laughed harder.

Five minutes later the laughing had died down, even Verno had managed a weak laugh. We sat/laid there silently for a few moments, taking drags on our cigarettes, taking sips of beers, playing with our hair…the last one was me…obviously…That was until Teddy broke the silence

"Don't worry Verno," he started in a very sensible voice, "It's a normal part of becoming a man. Just remember to carry a notebook with you at all times in case it happens again."

Chris then latched on, and all of us except Verno began laughing even harder than last time.

"Shut up Four-eyes!" He cried, pouncing on Teddy and they began to wrestle again.

Me and Chris giggled for a few moments after and didn't speak until our breathing had gone back to normal. I looked at Chris to see him looking at me, I looked away embarrassed, until he spoke and I was forced to look back.

"Would you like to wrestle me, Sparrow?" He made suggestive eyebrows and smiled charmingly.

I scoffed and rolled my eyes. "No thank you, Christopher," I said in a sickly sweet voice as I stood up, "But thank you for the offer. I think I'll go and see what our dear friend Lachance is up to."

I walked unsteadily towards the lake where Gordie was sat, falling over only twice, which was a record for me when I'm that drunk and I have that much distance to travel. When I was finally only a few feet away from him I collapsed to the ground and sighed. He was smoking and gazing over the lake in a brood-ish way. Which, with those big brown eyes of his, was how Gordie looked at almost everything.

"Can I bum one?" I asked looked up at him.

"Sure." He threw me his pack of fags and I lit one with my own lighter.

As he took them back and shoved them into his pants pocket, he turned and looked behind to the others, "I'm surprised your not over there wrestling the others."

I gave a soft chuckle and rested on my elbows as I glanced to where Chris had now joined and the three of them were just a blur of arms and legs.

"Nah. Too much testosterone for me." I said, as I laid back down and took a deep drag of my cigarette.

He looked at me with serious eyes, "Come on. Verno's more pussy than you."

I started to choke on the cigarette smoke and a small smile played across his lips. He passed me his beer and I gratefully downed the rest of it in two gulps. I threw the bottle aside and watched as it gently rolled to the lakes edge.

"Hey! We could do a message in a bottle to celebrate my birthday!" I cried as if I were the most cleverest person in the world at that moment for thinking of such a great idea.

Gordie laughed and looked at me. "Why? So the people who can be bothered to walk around to the other side of the lake can read it?"

I shrugged and let out a 'meh'. I was wondering why Gordie hadn't been himself today lately, and then I remembered the night before. It had been 'Parents Night' at High School, I was accustomed to my mother never attending shindigs like that. But Gordie was still finding it hard to cope with. But then, I was filled with hatred and bitterness, Gordie was filled with longing and remorse.

He stood up suddenly and my train of thought was broken. "I'm going to go get another beer." And then he began to walk over towards the others, who had still not finished wrestling.

Boys, I'd never understand them.

I turned and looked at the bottle. I grabbed my pen from the back pocket of my jeans, and a scrappy receipt I had from a magazine I'd bought earlier that week. I sat upright and used my knee to lean on as I scribbled onto the piece of paper.

Boys. Does anyone understand them? – The Sparrow

I rolled it up and placed it into the bottle, and then used some damp clay sand stuff near the waters edge to block it up. I threw it as far as I could towards the centre of the lake. Ignoring which way the current was going.

I laid back down, wondering how many stars I could count before Gordie got back. The answer: 14.

"You did a message in a bottle you?" He said peering down at me, holding two beer bottles.

"What makes you say that?" I was suddenly curious to know if Gordie was psychic.

He pointed to the water's edge and, leaning upwards, I saw that my bottle had comeback.

"Ah! F-udge!"

"By the way, Chris said he wanted to talk to you about something." Gordie said as he sat down.

My eyes instantly lit up. "Maybe it's my present! He said he'd give it me tonight!" I did a little dance as I sat there.

Gordie rolled his eyes at my dancing.

I playfully punched him in the arm, "I'd like to see you do better."

"Okay," he said in all seriousness and began to do this strange wiggling/sliding extravaganza all while sitting down next to me. I laughed and was glad to have the fun Gordie back.

I began to stand up, "Please," I paused. "Do that more often."

And then galloped away before he could respond. I reached our main little party zone where all the beer was to find Chris wasn't there, and I fell over nine times. Maybe that time earlier had only been a fluke…

"Hey, where's Chris? I think he's going to give me my present!" I did a little jump of glee and Teddy and Verno looked at me and then at each other.

"I'll never understand the deal with chicks and presents." Teddy said shaking his head.

I nudged him gently with my foot, "I resent that!" I took the last drag of my cigarette and then stomped it out in the grass.

"Anyway, where's Chris?" I asked, hands on hips.

"He's over in those trees having a slash." Teddy pointed to a small gathering of trees about gazillion feet from where we were stood. Well, more like a hundred or something more realistic…

"Thanks for the details." I said before I began to skip over to the trees.

And I only fell over once! Maybe the skipping was doing it, I should skip more often, probably build up more thigh muscles too…What was I thinking? Presents!

I walked into the middle of the gathering, where there was a clearing. But no Chris.

"Chris? Hello! Present?"

I heard him call out. "Close your eyes."

I ignored his statement and looked about, "Where are you?"

"Close your eyes!"

I closed them, "Fine," I said as I heard his footsteps approach, crunching leaves and snapping twigs, "no need to get all huffy about it." He stopped in front of me. "Can I open my eyes yet?"

He chuckled, "Not yet. You want to spoil the surprise?"

"Oh no," I took on a mock-sincere voice, "Wouldn't dream of it."

"Keep them closed."

I nodded.

"Ready for your present?"

I nodded more eagerly.

"Happy Birthday"

And before my eyes began to open, his lips met mine. They were warm and slightly wet, they tasted of beer and cigarettes. And I knew, before I began to kiss back, that this was how I'd always wanted my first kiss to happen.