Poetry
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Sixteen-Year-Old Tee Kanker knew nothing about that shit.
All he wanted to do was to ask Anny to go to the Spring Dance with him.
But every time he tried to even get near her, she ran as fast as she could in the other direction or hid in the girl's bathroom or changing room, where he couldn't go without looking like a pervert or a stalker.
So he figured he could write her a note asking her to go with him, but knowing Anny, she wouldn't be satisfied if it was just that.
She'd need drama, she'd need romance, she'd need…
"…Poetry!" Anny said cheerfully. Tee paused and slinked back so he was behind the lockers as the Ans passed him.
"Yes, Anny, Tom Jones was a musical genius." Double-N said dryly, as if they've discussed this topic many times before and she was just going through the motions.
"Like that cat who can play piano!" An agreed.
"It's not just the music, Sockhead, it's the lyrics, their pure poetry, I tell ya!" Anny said excitedly, "Man, if a guy wrote me stuff like that, I'd be all over him."
"Music, Lyrics or Poetry?" Double-N asked.
"Poetry." Anny clarified, "But a song works too." She said with a laugh.
After the last bell had rang, Tee ran to the library and hid in the back, not wanting to wreck his reputation, as he quickly grabbed some random poetry books he found back there and skimmed through them.
Apparently poetry wasn't just 'roses are red and violets are blue'
Tee looked at the pages and murmured, "I'm so screwed."
He tried writing something heart-felt and sincere, but it all sounded so phony as soon as it was written down on paper.
He groaned as he crumpled up the upteenth sheet of paper he stole from the library's printer
Were all women this difficult to please or just the one he wanted?
At this rate, he might as well write,
'Roses come in shades of pinks
I personally think poetry stinks
Go to the Dance with me?
-Tee'
He paused, wrote it down and looked at it, satisfied.
"That's as close to poetry as I can get."
.
Alone
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Six-Year-Old Anny sat in front of her bathroom mirror, remembering what her sister had said to her when they got home.
'You might wanna work on your look, Pipsqueak, you wouldn't want to lose him to another girl.'
Anny looked at herself and wondered what she meant. She looked fine! Better then fine, she was hot stuff, here!
She scowled, her face flushed.
What did Tiffany know about boys anyway?
Oh yeah, she was the most popular girl in her school with boys calling everyday to go out with her…
Anny shook her head and looked at herself in the mirror.
That tall, red haired boy was different then the guys who called asking for her sister.
First of all, he was really cute, unlike all the gross sweaty guys who showed up at their doorstep asking for Tiffany.
His eyes were gorgeous and blue, but the best part about them to Anny was that they looked at her as if she was special.
As if she was pretty.
As if she was everything she always wanted to be.
He wasn't looking at Tiffany like that, like everyone else seemed to, but at Anny.
Second of all, he had come to her rescue when that guard threatened to call their parents, she was used to defending herself and her friends alone, so being rescued was… well, nice.
Then again, everything about that boy was nice.
He had a nice deep voice and a laugh that made her feel all tingly inside, his smile made her heart do flips in her chest. He was so tall and strong but so gentle with her, like a Prince from a fairy tale.
She finally noticed via her reflection that her cheeks were pink and she had a wide smile on her face.
She wished she knew his name.
She wished she had thought to ask while they were holding hands.
She gently placed her fingertips to her lips, remembering how she had felt his skin warm when they touched his forehead and the cute look of surprise on his face when she had pulled away.
She wondered when she'd see him again.
She wondered if she could be brave enough to kiss him on the lips next time.
She turned red and hopped off the stool she had been standing on to look into her bathroom mirror, feeling warmth surge through her chest at the thought of kissing that boy again.
Her sister was wrong.
Anny knew there was no way that boy would leave her alone.
.
Girls
.
Girls.
Who needed 'em?
Not Tee.
At least, that's what he used to think…
That all changed when he met that tiny girl at the Museum.
It didn't happen right away, like with Jay.
Or after she saved him, like with Larie.
It happened when she dragged him towards a lunch line, where his brothers and her friends waited.
For some reason, his hand tingled in hers.
And for some reason, he really liked it.
This tiny creature was loud, sassy, blunt, brave, had a grip like iron and was…
Cute?
Ugh! What was he thinking? Boys don't think things are cute! What was wrong with him?
He looked down at the small girl dragging him forward, wondering what she was doing to him to make him feel…
Feel what?
Good?
Great?
Fantastic?
Like he was walking on air?
All those things?
All he knew was that he liked holding her hand and the feeling he got from doing that.
He liked how she would laugh at almost anything and how she would get loud when she was excited.
He liked that her hair was as pink as her cheeks were when she looked at him and smiled.
He liked how she'd snarl in frustration when things were too high for her or when she'd make fun of the ancient Egyptians.
She was cute, funny, sassy, loud and a lot of fun.
Maybe girls aren't so bad after all.
Then she kissed his forehead.
The moment her lips touched his skin it felt as if the whole world had stopped.
As if they were the only ones there.
As if nothing else mattered.
As if it would last forever.
Sadly, it didn't.
It was brief and they left soon afterwards so he never got to return the kiss.
He never got to tell her his name.
He was gonna find her though.
Then the whole world was gonna know that Anny was Tee Kanker's girl.
.
Smile
.
Anny had no idea why, but that blue tooth of his somehow made his smile all the more charming to her.
.
Blood
.
It wasn't supposed to be like this.
They were just doing their usual game of cat and mouse when Anny had tripped on her shoelaces and she skidded to a stop, scraping the skin off of her palm.
She howled in pain and inspected the damage, not knowing he was looking at it over her shoulder.
Tee had seen blood before, but seeing her blood made his stomach sink.
She was hurt.
And it was his fault.
He quickly swooped down beside her and carefully held her injured hand with his, feeling awful. What kinda guy got his girl hurt?
Anny was surprised he looked so guilty and upset about it.
It hurt, yeah, but she had been through worse.
Yet somehow she knew that telling him that wouldn't make him feel any better.
To her shock, he then opened his mouth and started sucking on her hand, trying to stop the bleeding, his face bright red.
Anny's was too.
They sat there for a moment before Anny said,
"I'm fine, it's just a little blood."
"It doesn't matter." He said softly, "It's still my fault."
Anny looked at him, then sighed and flushed as she let him continue to suck her hand for a little longer until the bleeding had stopped.
It was almost funny, she was the one bleeding yet he was the most hurt by it.
After it stopped he let go of her hand.
"Thanks, Tee." She said, feeling that she was probably gonna regret what she said next, but she hated seeing him like this, "It feels a lot better."
Tee turned the same color as his hair as he let her get up and walk away, then smiled.
He was glad he was able to make her feel better.
.