Stacey had always been curious about boys. She was now entering her junior year, but, unlike her peers, she played it safe and avoided getting into relationships. Her mom constantly told her that once she fell in love, she won’t be able to focus anymore. And because of that, Stacey never understood the jittery and fluttery feelings her friends always talked about. Their words were bizarre to her. She would always chuckle at their chitchat.
But there was one guy she was curious about: Mark. Since the 8th grade, she caught him stealing a few glances at her which made her flustered and confused. She shrugged it off that time. But as they grew older, she watched as the good, old puppy love turned to obsessiveness. Whenever she smiled directly at him, he would snap his head back to look away, but she could always catch a quick glimpse of his delighted expression. At these kinds of times, she looked down to smile to herself. What exactly was she to him?
She sighed as she situated herself in her seat for her first class as a junior. She looked around the classroom to see her classmates talking and mingling about. It was good to see them again. It was not long after she felt the warmth of someone taking their place next to her, she turned around to see who it was. Mark. She was just about to turn away, when he began to speak.
“Did you have a good summer?” he asked.
She smiled to herself. She was actually happy to hear his voice again.
“Yeah, I had a lot of fun.” she hesitated, asking herself if she really wanted to continue the conversation or not. After some thought she asked, “How about you?”
Stacey watched as his eyes gleamed with excitement. When she thought about it, she realizes that she’s never paid attention to him this close. He was charming and she loved how he was always smiling. She found that attractive about him.
“It could not have been better. I got a job at McDonald’s, and I bought a car.” he answered.
“No way!” she exclaimed.
The bell rang as soon as she said that. He turned away probably going to his own little world and so was she. She was in a world where she felt electricity running through her veins, making her feel dizzy and giddy for no reason. She suddenly felt her face getting hot, quickly she took out her compact mirror in her pencil case and checked on her complexion. Rosy cheeks. She brought her cold hands to her face to try to cool herself, as she heard the silent, rapid thump of her heartbeat. She tilted her head in bemusement. What in the world were these cluster of feelings?
She snapped back into her real world and shrugged it off.