Two

Aiko gets Leia to talk to the guy she likes and she discovers a bit about him. Leia has a conversation with her teacher that makes her question some things in her life.

I followed Aiko as we walked towards his table, he was laughing with his friends and then looked up at us. A lump formed in my throat and I then realized we finally made it to his table. His friends looked at Aiko and winked, then at me and raised an eyebrow.

   "Hey, can we take your friend for a second?" Aiko asked them and tugged on my--hero's sleeve.

   "You can do whatever you want sugar" one of his friends said with a wide smile. My stomach churned and I was almost sure that I'd vomit everything I didn't eat and then some.

  "Alright, be back guys" he said and came with us.

  "Hey, I'm Aiko and this is Leia" she gestured, I bowed slightly and looked down at my shoes.

  "I know" he said.

  "Oh, you do?" she asked.

  "Yeah, me and Leia have trigonometry and just about all other classes together. I'm Takeru by the way" he said extending his hand outwards.

  I looked up from my feet to his face and slowly lifted my hand to shake his, when they met I felt warmth spread through my body and my face grow hot.

  "So, how do you think you did on the test?" he asked. There was a moment of silence before I realized that he was obviously talking to me.

  "Oh--well. I think I did very well, and yourself?" I asked monotoned.

  "Not too bad, I got at least a passing grade. Well I hope I did" he said and slid his hands into his pocket.

  "Well look at the time, I have to get to class" Aiko said patting my shoulder, she ran past me before I could say anything. I looked behind me, watching as she left me in the cafeteria alone with Takeru, and sighed.

  "You're nervous aren't you?" he asked, I looked back to him and nodded.

  "It--shows?" I asked putting a hand to my face.

  "Don't worry, it's okay. There's nothing to be nervous about just think of me like an older brother" Takeru said.

  "Have I met you before..somewhere else?" I asked. His face looked surprised for a second but it changed as soon as I noticed.

  "Maybe, I don't know. You probably saw me when you were at the store or something-I work at a store. Who knows?" he laughed. I smiled and looked down at my watch, we only had ten more minutes until the bell rang.

  "You want me to walk you to class?" Takeru asked, sounding hopeful.

  "Uh-yes please. That would be very nice" I said, smiling. This was easy, Aiko may have had to jump start it but it's definitely easy. He led the way to our next class and I could already tell that the rest of the school day was going to fly right by.

  After the final bell rang I gathered my belongings and slowly made it to the front of my classroom to my literature teacher, Mrs. Hye. She threw a few pens into her drawer and straightened a stack of homework before finally looking up.

  "Oh, hello Leia. What can I do for you?" she asked giving me a smile that made the corners of her eyes crease. She reminded me very much of my Nana in many ways; the way they smiled, said my name like it was poetry and even their literary taste.

   "I had a question about the writing contest for-for the scholarship" I asked nervously. When I looked up from my hands I noticed a certain look of happiness, as if she were proud to see someone take an interest in such a thing. 

  "Well of course, ask away I'll see how I can help" she said leaning in her chair. 

  "Well I noticed the topic was about life and everything but my life isn't all that interesting. It's simple and dull-there's no vibrancy and it seems as if it's organized and predictable" I said embarrassed. I looked up to see if she was laughing at me, at the fact that boring people like myself never stood a chance against those in baseball or in the 'Gentleman's Honor Society' or even the kids that are on the chess club. But when I looked I saw something totally different, it was as if she were looking at a broken toy that had a chance if it only had tweaks here and there. She looked as if she showed an interest in my life, something no one including myself has ever done before. 

  "I see dear, you feel as if you're doing all you're supposed to do and you're living safe. There's nothing wrong with that at all. However, it is a problem if you don't want to live that way and want to step out and see the world in a different view. Now I'm not saying go out and bungee jump off of a building or anything, I'm just saying let loose" she said crossing her hands in her lap and pulling a tea bag out of her mug. I didn't even know when she got up to make tea, because she didn't!

  "But Mrs. Hye what do you suggest I do, I wouldn't even know where to begin. The most fun I've ever known was reading in bed at night and playing 'what did you learn and do today' at dinner" I admitted.

  "It seems like your friend Aiko is fun" she smiled, pulling her mug to her lips and drinking in small sips. 

  "Well--yeah but she was raised differently than I was. She broke her arm climbing a tree and was kicked out of the mall once for dancing with mannequins" I said trying to hold in a laugh; Mrs. Hye stifled a hearty laugh and looked up at me. 

  "Sweetheart having fun isn't necessarily about how you're raised. It's about trying new, exciting things and if you like them then you like them but if you don't you won't ever have to do them again" she smiled. I nodded to show my understanding but still had the slightest clue where I'd start having fun.

   "So what do you suggest I do?" I asked. 

   "Well for starters, talk to your friend about helping you try new things maybe. Or you can discover them on your on, I'd ask Aiko if I were you though" she winked and sipped on her tea some more.

   "Hm-alright. I definitely have a more broad understanding now. Thank you so much Mrs. Hye" I bowed and smiled. As I made my way to the door I'd realized how much time I spent talking to my teacher and that I missed my bus. At least it was well worth it; I turned the corner and nearly had a heart attack when I saw Takeru waiting for me outside of the classroom.

   "I figured you wouldn't want to walk back by yourself. I had to stay after for a few minutes to work on the rest of my test and noticed that you were here instead of on your bus so-ready to go?" he asked. I smiled at him gratefully and nodded, he smiled back and led the way.

  "So Leia, what are your aspirations?" he asked as we walked down the hallways and to the front doors. There was no point in trying to run when my bus was gone and I was already late. 

  "Well, I wish to become a writer maybe. I'm not really sure yet-I was hoping to get more into things that involved helping people" I said playing with the strap on my satchel.

  "What about journalism? You're definitely helping people by bringing news to them, or advice even" he suggested. I shrugged and let my thoughts ponder on what it'd be like to work for a newspaper or a blog even.

  "I guess, but I'd want to be more interactive with people and really put in an extra effort. You know what I mean?" I said looking up at him as we walked through the doors and down the steps. He ran his hands through his dark hair and looked down at me smiling. 

  "Yeah, you could always be a photojournalist and volunteer. I mean you wouldn't get paid but I suppose that's what you mean, or even run a charity to promote whatever company you'd work for. Just some thoughts" he said. People were always thinking for me, it seems as if all ideas I had weren't my own but were suggestions from people around me. I went to Mrs. Hye for advice, I always look to Aiko for help and now Takeru.

  "What about you? Do you have an aspirations?" I asked, just to change the subject and understand him more.

  "Singing" he said, I already had a feeling deep down that I knew the answer. 

  "Oh, so you are on the Gentleman's Honor Society?" I accidentally said out loud, he laughed and looked down at me as a breeze swept by and sent chills through my body. 

  "No, never. Wait-you really thought I was on the GHS?" he asked with a smile. 

  "For a second, and they're always in those annual choir competitions so it only added to my suspicion" I joked.

  "Never, I'm not astute enough to be on the GSH" he said and gazed at me for a second. I looked over at the horizon and then down at my watch, I was about a half-an-hour late. My parents work awfully late so I'd be home in time to cook dinner and go to bed. 

  "So will you sing for me?" I asked, hoping he would. 

  "Heh-well.." he said and trailed off.

  "Please?" I said biting my lip. 

  "How about I make you a deal. If you and I stick around and have a long friendship, you know get really close and have meaningful conversations, then you can hear me sing" he said and extended his hand.

  "Deal" I nodded and shook on it. We were turning the corner of the sidewalk and the school was finally out of view, it began to get a bit colder outside so I reached into my bag for my cardigan. 

  "Cold?" he asked, and I nodded. Cold was starting to become an understatement, riding in a bus made the distance from my house to school seem quick.

  "You want me to call for a taxi?" he asked. 

  "No, that's fine. I enjoy company, it's not every day I get to talk to someone after school. Aiko and I don't even really get to talk after school unless we're studying for homework" I said. 

  "I could always come to your house" he said, stuffing his hands in his pockets. I thought about it for a few second before thinking about how scary being home by myself truly is.

  "Alright" I said. He smiled and pulled out his phone to begin dialing for a taxi to pick us up, I rubbed m hands together as I felt them begin to go a bit numb. 

  "There's one coming in about three minutes" he confirmed. I shivered as cold winds began to pick up and whip through my hair, it send tremors of shivers through my entire body. 

  Takeru stood closer to me and wrapped me into his arms, the embrace felt personal but I knew I was just reading into it wrong. Being this close to him had not only made me warmer but it also made the feeling that I knew him from elsewhere stronger. The taxi finally pulled up and he held me at arms length. 

  "After you" he said, opening my door for me. I slid into the uncomfortable seats and he came in right after me, closing the door behind him after doing so. 

  "Where to?" the driver asked, I gave him my address and we were on our way.

  The ride to my house was awfully quiet so I was happy when it was over, we'd have more privacy and it would be a hell of a lot warmer inside. I thanked the taxi driver and gave him some money from out of my bag, then I proceeded to slide out of the cab after Takeru. 

   When we entered the house we immediately took off our shoes and headed into the kitchen, I figured Takeru was just as hungry as I was. 

   I sat my satchel and cardigan in one of the dining room chairs and slid an apron over my head to begin cooking. I grabbed some noodles and vegetables so that I could make some yakisoba-it was my absolute favorite. 

  "Would you like anything to drink Takeru?" I asked as I grabbed a pot from the cabinet. I felt him watching me but made no effort to turn around and look back.

  "Yes, water please" he responded. I turned the stove on and put the pot of water on top with the noodles in it. I took out a glass and ran it under the tap, then I turned and slid it to him on the table. I leaned against the counter top and watched him as he ran his fingers around the rim of the glass.

  "So-you have a very beautiful home" he said and brought the glass to his lips to drink.

  "Thank you" I said smiling. 

  "Where are your parents at?" he asked looking around. 

  "They are out at work, it's like this almost everyday" I said, looking down at my apron.

  "Do you ever get lonely?" he asked. 

  "All the time, I mean I remember coming home when I was six and making my own dinner. I'd sit my dolls in the chairs and have them eat with me just to keep me company so-I guess I'm use to it now" I said and looked back up at him. 

  He stood up from his chair and made his way over to me, my eyes widened and he smiled. Then, he reached behind me and took a wooden spoon from the dish rack. I watched as he went to the pot and looked inside, he reached over to the spice rack and pulled some herbs off. As he poured some spices in swiftly I prepared the cabbage, corn and chicken in a bowl. I'd tossed them all together for a few minutes and then went to Takeru to give him the contents. When he poured it in, he mixed it a few times and then let it sit so that everything could blend together. 

  "Thank you so much, the last time I cooked with anyone was when I was at the soup kitchen volunteering" I said with a smile on my face, and bowed to Takeru to show my appreciation.

  "It was my pleasure cooking with you Lei. Now we wait until we may enjoy our wonderful creation" he said. When he called me Lei it finally brought back the tiniest of memories. I not only recognized Takeru from trigonometry, but he was also one of my best friends back in pre-grade school.

Author's Note

What can I work on in terms of dialogue, writing and grammar/punctuation? Feedback is much appreciated