A Distant Memory- Chapter 1

Chapter 1

            She sat in the school library watching kids going in and out. She saw that some of them were printing things for classes. It was ten minutes to first period. She sat there lazily thinking to herself.  She didn’t like the thought of doing packets for gym, but she had to. She was on medical after all and the teacher told her to do packets anyway. She had finished her packets for the week so she had free time.

            At first she decided to read the book Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul on Tough Stuff. After two minutes of reading she was bored and decided to use the computer. She was going to use the computer for writing and reading.

            Then after a minute or two a freshmen class came down with a sub. She had a look of annoyance on her face. She didn’t really like freshmen much. She was a junior, but she likes some freshmen. She liked a few and the ones in her band class. The rest she didn’t like. The ones that she liked had a chance not to be picked on.

 

            As the students walked in she locked eyes with one of them. She noticed that he had big brown eyes and shoulder length blond hair. He looked a little bit shy, but he smiled at her. He sat at the computer next to hers and smiled again, but shyly. She smiled back, but she didn’t say anything to him.

            “Hey,” he said.

            “Hi,” she softly. She didn’t really want to talk to him because she didn’t know what to say.

            “What’s your name,” asked the guy.

            “Amaya,” she said.

            “That’s nice. My name’s Johnny by the way,” he said. She had then noticed she had saw this kid before. She saw him hanging out with her friend, Dallas.

            “Your Dallas’ friend aren’t you,” she asked.

            “Yes,” he responded.

            “Then I’ve seen you before. I just didn’t want to talk to you before,” she said.

            “Are you shy or something?”

            “Not really I’m just not in the mood to talk,” she said.

            “You seem to be the shy type,” he said.

            “Actually you are wrong about that I am really talkative. If you don’t believe me ask Dallas,” she responded.

            “Then why are you so quiet,” Johnny asked her.

            “As I said before I’m really just not in the mood to talk,” she said.

            “Awe come on talk to me,” Johnny pleaded because he actually wanted to talk to her. He thought she was pretty interesting since she is friends with Dallas.

            “Fine, fine,” she responded in annoyance.

            “Are you annoyed with me?”

            “No, I just really don’t like freshmen so much anymore,” she said.

            “Why,” he asked.

            “Don’t ask me that question.”

            “Fine I won’t,” he responded.

            “I don’t want to tell him why I don’t like freshmen,” she thought.

            “So I have a question for you,” he said breaking her thoughts.

            “Alright,” she answered.

            “When did you meet Dallas?”

            “A few weeks ago and he is a real nice kid though. He is really sweet sometimes. I don’t think I’ll be talking to him later though. I don’t really know if I’ll be up to it,” she responded softly because she was tired of Dallas lately. She has been kind of on the sick side.

            “Why not?”

            “I’ve been on medical for reasons I don’t want to explain Little Johnny,” she said.

            “Little?! I’m not little I’m taller than you,” Johnny exclaimed.

            “I’m older than you, honey,” she said. He knew she had a point. He was a little calmer because he had been angry when she called him little. He really wasn’t little he is more mature than Dallas.

            “You do have a point,” he responded in a babyish tone.

            “Awe Johnny don’t act like a baby now,” she said smiling at the younger kid. He smiled back softly and he stretched out a little bit. He still was really shy because she was a stranger. He didn’t seem to care at the moment because she was really sweet. He didn’t know much about her yet. He wanted to know a little bit.

            “Can you tell me some things about yourself?”

            “What kind of things,” she asked with a sly grin. She grinned a lot he noticed.

            “I guess that’s a good thing,” he thought to himself. He smiled back sheepishly.

            “Well I guess you’ll find out soon. So what do you want to do for a living,” he asked.

            “Well I want to be a writer or a medical doctor, but my grades suck in science so I can’t get into forensics.”

            “That’s cool. I really want to be a social worker,” he said.

            “That’s a horrible job though. It’s like taking children away from parents who can’t support or abuse them. Children deserve to have a mother and father who love them,” she said with a sad smile on her face. She hated that children get abused. She hates mothers and fathers that did that to their children.

            “I didn’t mean to make you sad,” he frowned.

            “Don’t worry about it,” she said.

            “Do you have any siblings?”

            “No, I don’t have any siblings,” she responded. She frowned because she always wanted siblings, but her mother died a year ago. Her mother died in a car accident. Her mother was pregnant when she died. Now she lives with just her father.

            She was thinking hard about her mother now because Johnny reminded her. Johnny was calling her name, but she didn’t notice because she wasn’t paying attention. He decided to tap her shoulder to break her out of her daze. She broke out of it when he tapped her shoulder.

            “Amaya, are you okay? You were starting to scare me,” he said when she looked at him.

            “I’m okay,” she said, but she got up and went up to the school teacher. She asked if she could go into the bathroom. She didn’t want to worry anybody, but she was sad now that she was reminded that her mother was killed. She didn’t like to be reminded about that. When she is reminded she starts to cry. She normally would be crying in her room. Her father would normally say things about her mother. She didn’t want to hear what he had to say because it hurt too much.

            “Your mother would be really disappointed in you if she knew you were doing this,” her father would say.

            She was crying when she went into the bathroom. She tried to calm herself down, but it wouldn’t work. She needed to talk to someone and she most likely would be talking to Dallas about it. She didn’t know what to do because she didn’t want to talk to Dallas. He wasn’t always there for her when she needed it. She took out her phone and sent him a text message.

            “What,” he texted back and she just rolled her eyes because he always did that. She didn’t like it when he was like that.

            “Your friend reminded me of my Mom, stupid,” she responded to him.

            “Which one,” he asked.

            “Johnny,” she responded.

            “How are you talking to Johnny,” he asked.

            “First period I am in the library and his class is in there,” she said.

            “I’ll talk him about this later. Are you okay?”

            “I will be. I’ll talk to you later,” she responded. She turned her phone off before she got another text from Dallas. She really didn’t want to talk to Dallas that day.

---

            Dallas was really worried about her after he got the text from her telling her what Johnny said. Johnny didn’t really have any idea that her mother was dead. Dallas had just found out himself.

He had gone to her house and had asked her. When he went over to Amaya’s house he asked about her mother. She just looked down sadly and told him the story. He remembered it like it was yesterday when she told him.

“My mother died last year. She was in a car accident,” she had said in a really sad voice. Then he felt bad that he asked the question.

“I’m really sorry that I asked you.”

“There is more to the story than that. My mother was pregnant with my little brother. She was only three months pregnant when she died.”

            Dallas hugged her when she had told him the last part because Amaya had started crying.

            “Johnny, I need to talk to you about something before you see Amaya again,” Dallas sent Johnny a text.

            “What is it,” he asked.

            “Did you ask her a question?”

            “Yeah, but why are you concerned about it,” Johnny asked.

            “What did you ask her,” Dallas asked.

            “I asked her do you have any siblings. Why,” he asked.

            “Well she lost her mother last year and she lost her little brother as well. Her mother was pregnant when she died. That is why I am worried about her. I think she was crying and that is why she sent me a text. When she comes back just give her a hug for me,” Dallas said.

            “I really didn’t know that I hurt her like that. I didn’t mean to. She is really nice and I don’t want to hurt her. I will apologize and hug her for you,” Johnny responded. Johnny really felt down after he asked that question.

            He knew he should have never asked it. He shouldn’t have, but he didn’t want to hurt her again. He was going to give her the hug she deserved. He saw her come back into the room. Her eyes were red, but she wasn’t crying anymore which was really good.

            “Hey Amaya, I’m really sorry for what I asked. Dallas sent me a text and told me. I am really sorry. Can I give you a hug?”

            She nodded and he hugged her because he still felt really bad about what he had done. Johnny was frowning when he looked into her eyes.

            “Don’t worry about it,” she said. Johnny smiled because he never liked to be sad. Lately he has just been sad.

            “Thank you. I know you didn’t do it on purpose. Text Dallas for me okay,” she asked.

            “Sure, what do you want to say?”

            “Can I just text him off your phone?”

            “Okay you can,” Johnny said.

            “Thanks for telling Johnny for me,” Amaya said sent to Dallas.

            “Is this Amaya? What are you doing with Johnny’s phone,” he asked.

            “I asked him if I could text you off his phone,” Amaya said.

            “Why didn’t you just use your phone?”

            “My phone is off that’s why,” she said.

            “Oh that’s why you didn’t text me back. Well can you text me later,” he said.

            “Maybe, I’m giving Johnny back his phone,” she said. She gave Johnny back his phone and didn’t read what Dallas said after she stopped texting.

            Amaya just sat there quietly because she was still thinking about her mother. She didn’t like thinking about her mother because she missed everything about her. She missed her mother’s smile. She missed her mother’s laugh. She missed her mother’s face. She missed her mother’s pregnant belly. She missed what her mother’s perfume smelled like. She has the perfume still, but she wasn’t going to use it. If she had put the perfume on then she was going to cry.

---

            Johnny and Dallas were both walking down the hall after school. Johnny was being extremely quiet which wasn’t normal when he was walking with Dallas. If he was walking with anyone else he would only talk a little bit.

            Dallas was surprised at how quiet Johnny was being. Johnny wasn’t really paying attention to anything Dallas was saying. Dallas looked at Amaya who was standing at the end of the hall. She had a smile on her face.

            Dallas was not surprised that she was able to smile so easily after crying for a while. She waved to them and Johnny waved back. Dallas then knew why he wasn’t talking. Dallas knew it was because he hurt the girl he just met. Dallas hurts her when he is in a bad mood which makes him feel horrible. He knows he shouldn’t hurt someone that he cared about.

            He remembers the big fight that they had a while ago. It was because of his girlfriend, but he still talks to Amaya after that. She was really hurt and he never meant to hurt her like that. He really felt like she was the only person that understood him. He tried to understand her, but most of the time he didn’t.

            She didn’t care if he didn’t understand though. Dallas smiled back at her and she came up to them.

            “Hey Amaya,” Johnny said shyly. She hugged both of them and she whispered in Johnny’s ear.

            “Johnny, don’t be shy,” she whispered. Then she smiled at him and then he pulled her into another hug. He deserved a hug since he had tried to help her. She loved him and she loved Dallas, but she didn’t want to tell them that. Dallas already knew though because she had told them that once.

            “Well boys, I’ll talk to you later,” she said. She ran out the door after she talked to them. She wanted to get home before her dad. She wanted to start dinner because she didn’t want her Dad to be hungry. Amaya wasn’t the type that let people down. She wanted to help anyone that she could when they needed to be helped.

            She put dinner on and she sat down to relax. She really had a long day. What she didn’t realize that it would get harder the next day.

Author's Note

I hope you enjoy.

Reviews

[PaperHearts]

This was a really great start! I thought that you did a great job in introducing the characters, and capturing their individual personalities. The dialogue was really relatable and genuine, and I loved the way you described the scenes where Amaya and Johnny interacted with each other. A great first chapter! :)
~PaperHearts