Up on the Overpass, Omar was standing alone looking up at the sky waiting for the person he talked to last night before Craig arrived. However, nobody seemed to be coming as Omar pulled out his phone to check the time, which changed from 12:05pm to 12:06pm. He let out a deep sigh as he put his phone back into his pocket. "Guess she's not coming," he said with a frown as he leaned onto the stone bridge side and looked back up at the sky.
"Who said I wasn't?" a voice from behind Omar asked. Surprised, Omar turned to see his old friend, Michelle (aka the original Green Poncho) standing in her green poncho, big round glasses over her eyes, and her bow over her shoulder. "Hey Omar, sorry I'm late." Michelle apologized, walking up to her friend. "I had to deal with something at home. So, you said last night that you have a problem? About this Craig of the Creek kid?" Omar didn't respond so he just nodded before he turned away and stared down at the Creek river. Michelle sent him a worried expression as she joined him and placed her hand on his back. "Omar, if there's something you wanna tell me like you said, now's the time. You can't keep it all bottled up forever." she said as Omar turned to face her. "Sorry Michelle, I'm just nervous to tell you because you might not understand this stuff." he admitted, as Michelle encouraged him. "Don't worry Omar, I'll understand what you're going through. I'm your friend, and I'll always listen to what's on your mind, even if you don't feel like talking about it."
Omar took a deep breath and went for it. "Alright. But let's make this conversation quick, because I asked Craig to come here yesterday and he'll be coming here to meet me any minute." Michele nodded and began to ask "Okay. So, about your problem about Craig? What's going on with you two?"
As Michelle asked, Omar felt his throat drying up so he couldn't say it until he swallowed some saliva to moisten his throat. Finally, he found the courage to say what he needed to tell his friend. "Well, days ago, Craig and I were hanging out at the Creek together. Just the two of us." he explained, just when Michelle sent him a smirk. "You guys were hanging out together? Like a date?" she asked teasingly, as Omar heard that and blushed. "What?! No! It's not like that! We were just hanging out, you know, like friends!" he shouted as Michelle chuckled and playfully smacked him on the back. "Don't worry Omar, I'm just messing with ya.' Please continue." Omar stopped blushing as he continued, "Anyway, we were just hanging out at the Creek, having snacks, and talking like old friends when… Craig asked me if I was okay, and I was. Only I wasn't." Michelle's eyes widened with concern. "You weren't? Why?" she asked. Again, Omar couldn't speak until he forced himself to. "Because I wanted to tell him something, and so I did," he explained. "I told him that I like hanging out with him because he was the first kid in the Creek to be my friend ever since I was still the Green Poncho, and that he made my life much more fun than before when he said that the two of us can hang out while his other friends, Kelsey and JP, were helping the other kids rebuild the Creek after Xavier was defeated." he added. "But that's not all. After Craig and I met some roller skating kids and received one of Kenneth's puzzle cubes from their leader for saving the Creek in the Capture the Flag war, he asked me to join his crew to find the other cubes."
Michelle looked intrigued at this experience Omar was in. "Oh, so you've joined the Stump Kids to help them find the cubes for this Heart of the Forest treasure? That's cool. About time you've made some new friends and joined a cool crew like them." She sent Omar a smile of approval. "Yeah, I felt honored to join. And we've found three or four of them so far." he said excitedly. "But on top of that…" Omar stopped to clear his throat as Michelle prompted him, "Go on." Finally, Omar managed to say while blushing again "I told Craig that I… I like him!"
When she heard this, Michelle's eyes widened behind her glasses. "Whoa! Really? You actually told Craig that you like him?" she asked in surprise while holding back a snicker. Omar heard the snicker and shot a glare at Michelle that she had to clear her throat to quiet down. "Sorry. Couldn't help myself. But wait. When you told Craig that you like him, do you mean that you like him, or like, like him?" she asked with another smirk as Omar looked away from his former mentor and bit his bottom lip. "Like, like him, that's all." he confirmed.
"Oooh! Sounds to me like you've got yourself a crush on the hero." teased Michelle before letting her friend resume. "Um… yeah I guess." Omar said as a dreamy expression formed on his face, before perking up in alarm when he realized what he just said. "I mean, who wouldn't be?! Craig's a great kid to have around. He's clever, creative, never afraid to say what's on his mind, always has someone's back, and he's full of motivation! And he's also a good listener when I told him my origin story." he added.
"Oh really?" replied Michelle in a sly, playful tone and grinned mischievously.
"Yeah. And besides that, I even asked him if he could be my… ya know, my 'more than just a friend' friend." Michelle raised an eyebrow at Omar and gave a small laugh. "Heheh. I think the word you're trying to say to Craig is 'boyfriend,' Omar." The blush on Omar's cheeks deepened when Michelle said that. "Uhh, yeah. Same thing." replied Omar and he smiled softly as stopped blushing before his face formed a sad expression. "But the problem is that Craig is not sure if he wants to be my 'more than just a friend' friend or as you put it, boyfriend. Because he's worried that people will think that we're weird, and that his friends will think the same thing. So now, I'm starting to think what Craig thinks too." he explained in a solemn tone as Omar hung his head and looked down at the Creek river again.
Michelle slightly nodded in understanding. "Oh, that is a problem. But why are you telling me all this?" she asked curiously, raising an eyebrow. Omar let out a sigh and turned to face Michelle. "Well, because you're a teenager, and teenagers know this kind of stuff more than kids do. So I thought that you'd help me with my problem." Again, Michelle nodded. "Oh. It sounds to me that you don't just like, like Craig. You're in love with him."
Omar didn't look up at Michelle, but he nodded back while grinning nervously. "Yeah, I guess. But still… Craig is unsure if he wants to like, like me back or just like me when he gets here to tell me his decision." he stopped to let out a sigh of depression. "So what should I do? Even if Craig says that he'd rather like me as a friend, should I just keep like, liking him, or just go back to liking him as a friend? Or if Craig says that he does want to like, like me as much as I like, like him, will that be… okay?" asked Omar, taking one last look down at the river before closing his eyes and feeling tears form in them. Michelle sighed in sympathy. "Well... to tell you the truth Omar, I don't know much about love– yet." she replied admittingly with a small frown before turning to Omar with a smile. "But I do know now that your interest in Craig seems very important to you. So I think you're free to like him– whether as a friend or more than just a friend. And if he does say that he'll like you more than just a friend, then you can still do that. No matter what you guys think."
"Yeah, but what if people do start to think we're weird?" Omar asked anxiously. "I mean, I don't want to start rumors in the Creek, or get us in trouble! It's just that I wanna hang out with Craig more like I used to hang out with Maya before she became Xavier's BFF when he became king of The Other Side of the Creek. Only much different than before." he added as he calmed down for a moment.
Michelle sensed his anxiety and placed her hand on his shoulder, then kneel down. "Omar, listen. I know you're overwhelmed about what you're going through now, but look at me." she advised as she smiled comfortingly at Omar. "Whether it's friendship or love, hanging out with a boy or a girl, life is about hanging out with the person who is most special to you, even when you're afraid. Sure some people will start teasing you or judging you guys for your relationship, but they and what they say or think won't matter anyway. Because there will be more people to support you than people who'll tease you, so don't worry what will happen next. If some people will start to tease you, stand up for yourself, your friend, and for your beliefs, just as you've always stood up for your belief in Maya not wanting to be Xavier's BFF." Omar opened his mouth to speak again, but closed it as Michelle continued.
"Cause' between you and me Omar, you have very strong beliefs. I've always believed that." she said soothingly. "Really? You think so?" he asked with his eyebrow raised. Michelle nodded. "I know so." Omar stared into Michelle's eyes and although she was still wearing her glasses, Omar could see that there was some meaningfulness in them as a sign that Michelle really did mean what she said. After a minute of silence, Omar glanced down and looked back at Michelle, then smiled as her words sank into him. "You're right. Thanks Michelle, I think I know what I wanna do now." he said, feeling better now.
"No problem, Omar," replied Michelle with a chuckle. "And I'm glad you told me all this. You wouldn't have if you didn't call me last night." she added before turning to walk away, but stopped to face Omar once more. "Oh. By the way Omar, if you ask me, I think you're lucky to have Craig in your life. Just as I've been lucky to have you– not as an apprentice, but as a friend."
Omar blinked when Michelle said this. "You mean it?" he asked, and Michelle nodded before heading out as Omar smiled contently after she left. Just then, a voice behind Omar greeted him "Hey Omar. I'm here." And as Omar spun to face the person behind him, he was once again face to face with Craig, who stood on his spot clutching his staff and staring at his friend. Soon, the atmosphere surrounding the two boys became quiet with the sound of the summer wind blowing.
