• Jack

    ... Their blonde ponytails were dancing with the rhythm of the wind. A slight, graceful melody of air and mysteriousness. The one sharp glance in my direction from her beautiful blue eyes of wonder. One look and both your mind and body are clasping into her endless pools of wonder. But her hair; it had a mind of its own. As her soft body ran with such ezz… her hair just followed close behind, carefully copying each motion….

    Smack.
    The warm, gooey feeling of spit hit my cheekbone. Right below my eye but close enough to my nose that I could smell the sour tang of his gum.
    “ Comon’ mate.” It was Slader, I could tell by his rough yet careful voice. “ Jack get your a** up, they need the field now.” I heard the football team behind him snicker. I opened my eyes and the blue sky spun around me. As I got up from the grass I was still dizzy so I wiped the minty spit off the side of may face. “What the hell was that for?” The guys seemed to find this just as amusing as the first joke. Slader wiped several loose grass clippings from the side of my shirt and said, still snickering, “ hey, sorry mate, but we aren’t the only one who saw your whole episode.” I looked around expecting to be on our field, but was I wrong. I was standing in the middle of the girl’s varsity hockey field. And to my surprise, the whole team was sitting directly across from me on the bench, laughing; and of course she was spinning her blonde locks around her right index finger.

    I still had the faint memory of them running, with their ponytails. But I was still so sure that it was not a fantasy. But how the hell did I end up in the middle of their field? And how long was I passed out for? The day after the incident, I met up with the lads at lunch. I sat next to Kale and Peter but across from Slader. In the first two minutes of that Thursday morning I was pretty convinced that the whole high school had heard about it. “So, Jacko, what were you staring at? Their boobs or their bums?” everyone broke into laughter except for Kale.
    “If you don’t mind Slade, could you tell me what actually happened?” I was getting a bit angry at everyone laughing at something that I was clueless about.
    “Okay. We were walking through their field like we do everyday at 3 o’clock. And you, for some reason stopped to a halt and just looked at that one poor girl. Oh, what’s her name guys?” He stops and asks Rob, another guy from the team. “Oh yes, Shea. Yes that’s right you stare right at her while her and her mates are running and bam. Flat on your bum in the center of their field.” He looks satisfied with his description but Kale just stares at both of us like he just slapped me in the face. All this information took the rest of the day to absorb completely. “I don’t see how you find fainting hilarious actually.” Kale said sounding pissed off. After lunch I was walking down the hall skimming the many faces of my peers for her… At my locker I slowly and carefully spun the knob to the three random numbers 15, 9, and 23. My three textbooks seem to be getting heavier everyday and the titles just looking like multicolored blotches. Out of the blue, the face of my girl, my dream came to life, took another sharp, pounding look in my direction. I swear, even if for only millisecond, our eyes locked.



    Shea

    “…And that wraps up today’s lecture.” Mr. Burge’s finial monotoned words of accomplishment relaxed us all. He scratched his grey beard and that was it. The class piled out of the tiny classroom, only to fight the tight crowds of the hallway. “Hey Shea.” I turn and see Mike.
    “Um…Hey, what’s up?” I must have sounded surprised because his blonde eyebrows lifted in embarrassment. I gave him a friendly grin to ease the newly set tension.
    “I’a, was wondering is you wanted to go see a flick with me, you know, tonight?”
    “I’m sorry.” I said “But I have hockey until at least 5. And you know the homework amount.” I was trying to find every plausible excuse to use against his offer. Since we were in grade school, Mike has asked me to a flick at least two times a week.
    “Will you ever go with me?” Mike sounded like he just figured out that this was the 10th consecutive year that his plans had failed.
    “Mike, don’t get me wrong. I really like you as a friend but nothing more. I’m sorry but I really have to go. To tell you the truth, Mrs. Rue will have my head if I’m late for practice again. Bye Mike.” And I leave him standing in the hall with a beat.

    “…And guess what he told her!” it was Jessica, the most popular girl in the high school. Every boy wanted to be with her and every girl wanted to be her. She had the most perfect hair on the planet. Woven from glorious brown silk, with the eyes that would drive any sane boy blizerk, just the most perfect shade of green. Jessica, however, was my best friend since 6th grade. The conversation picked up once again when the yelled who it was. “Shea!! Is that you darling?”
    “Yup. Does anyone have pre-wrap?” Meena tossed me the role of pink hair wrap. “Thanks.” Jessica, without hesitation started her pointless babbling once again that echoed through the locker room as if it was a cave. I slowly pulled on my spandex shorts and slipped my favorite pare of Manchester United football shorts over. I rolled the cuff of the waistband a few times and tugged my new Polo sweater over my head. Lizzi was next to me on the bench tying up her cleats.
    “Shea?” her pleading brown eyes looked up at me as if I had gone missing for a month. “Aren’t men such a bother?”
    “A bother? Why do you say that?”
    “Oh nothing. Tom dumped me this morning though.” She looked disappointed at herself but not angry at the though of being single once again. Probably because Lizzi had been dumped by all her boyfriends in a matter of weeks. I’m pretty sure her record for a relationship was 10 days. As for myself I have had only one boyfriend in my existence. But he was when I was in fifth grade and still lived in France, so he doesn’t count. I was finishing up my second cleat when coach Rue came in.
    “Today’s lug! Ok for the water bottles I want Lizzi and Meena to bring them and don’t forget them up at the fields again. The rest of you, the equipment is in the middle school lockers, don’t forget the cones. As for Shea and Jess I want to talk to you.” The girls in their red plaid skirts were shuffling around whatever space there was and rushing to get the lighter lug. Jessica just looked at me.
    “Are we in trouble?”
    “I don’t know. I can’t think of anything we did wrong.” The coach came over to where we were standing
    “Girls I want you two to be the captains of the varsity team this year.” My mouth must have dropped to the floor because coach laughed and shoved me on my shoulder.
    “Comon’ ladies move it!”

    Being the captain has been my fantasy for a few years now, but I’m sure that Jessica couldn’t care less. When I was walking up to our fields behind the school I stopped and watch the guys football team running. There is this one boy who keeps watching me, I’m not quite sure why. When they are out of site I check to see if my shorts are on or if I remembered to put on my sports bra. Nope, checks to both but I am pretty sure his name is Jack, I heard his mates calling for him yesterday in class.

    I caught up with the rest of my crew and Jess, of course was still babbling on about her new boyfriend Slader. Slader was the Jessica of the guy’s world. Good looking, and as popular as it gets. They are pretty much cookie cutouts for each other. Ella and Meena were Jess’s little handbags, as Lizzi and I call it, they pretty much live on either side of her. But I cannot get over that Jack kid; I mean he is really good looking. Jade green eyes and a pale complexion; his body was slim but still in good shape, or however much I could see from under his white t-shirt. I sometimes catch him watching me, but not in a weird creeper way, but a trying to understand me sort of way. I don’t know why but I sometimes catching myself watching him as well.

    Once we are at our hockey field, Jessica finally stops for a breath from her chatting. The girls take the time to drop the equipment and roll up their skirts for when the football team crosses our field like they do everyday. I don’t see why every time a guy is in the mile-radius of a female, our instinct is to get flirty and make out best efforts to show as much skin as possible. But not me. I must be the outsider, the reject of our species because my mind doesn’t run on the thoughts of men, sex, and impressing everything that walks. The guys even make their best efforts to look tough and buff while they cross. A few of them actually take their shirts off before they cross the halfway line.

    Today they are walking across the field and it is our turn to be running. I am on my last corner of the field and getting ready to sprint. And Jack, his eyes are glued to my face but all of a sudden he falls back onto the grass. His mates keep running and crying with laughter, except this one little scrawny boy, with a head full of thick brown waves. “Oh my gosh. Did that guy just pass out? Shea was he looking at you?” everyone was questioning everything but no one had any answers.
    “Ladies! Get ready for stretching! Lizzi tie up your runners!”

    Our typical stretches seemed impossible today. But I couldn’t help watching that boy that fainted on our field; it looked as if Slader just spat on his face. What a jerk, he was always a jerk to everyone. Probably just because of who he was, the most powerful kid in the school. Some of the guys continued to their fields still discussing what had just happened but others stayed and watched the dazed boy get up and take note of his surroundings. Once they had cleared everything up, jack followed his mates to the football practice they had delayed. In the corner of my eye I saw him give me one more glance at me but I made no effort to turn.

    After practice, we all headed back into the locker rooms, sweaty and tired from the two hours of running and training nonstop. I decided to wait and take a shower at home. Jessica was complaining about the blister on her heal, but she didn’t believe me that part of it was because she forgot her socks. Ella was even more bubbly than usual because Rob the football player asked her out. They all just kept going on and on about the subject of men. I quickly changed into my sweats and a t-shirt, threw my bag over my shoulder and bolted out of the locker room door. Thank god, Maks was in his brand new Porsche, waiting for me right in the parking lot. I threw my bag in the boot and hopped in the passenger seat. “How was practice?” I was surprised that my older brother cared about my life for once.
    “Just fine.” He turned and the car flew onto the road. “What’s wrong?”
    “Oh, nothing. Hey, dad left on a business trip to Paris this morning, it was an ‘emergency’. Do I’m watching you and Ty for the weekend.”
    “That’s cool, I don’t mind.” I giggled and he gave me a slight smile. Maks and I have always had a special and/or weird relationship.

    When I got home, I immediately ran up to my room, threw my exercise clothes in the hamper and jumped in the shower. My mind kept racing back to Jack, those big green eyes. Could I ever get over them? The first thing I ever look at in a person were his eyes, I believe you can tell a persons personality just by looking at them for a few minutes. People with green eyes are always the quietest, the calmest and coolest. But brown eyes are fierce and wild, they ALWAYS have something to say; either if its good, bad, negative, or offending, they always tell what’s on their mind. But blue eyes are just plain unpredictable, a mystery. I remember hearing somewhere that people with blonde hair and blue eyes are a different species of human. As for me I had boring blond hair. The one shade that will catch no ones attention and will just morph into the crowd with the brunettes, but I have always liked my eyes. They were a soft blue, almost a grey. And they would change occasionally to a green. I laid on my bed looking up at the posters of my favorite bands on the ceiling, but under that I was thinking about Jack.


    Jack


    Thank goodness it’s Friday. But sometimes I don’t even like Fridays, even if it is that last day of the school week. Because after today is Saturday and after that its Sunday. Sundays are the worst day, sometimes even worse that Mondays, because its usually homework day or thinking about the worst day, Monday. This weekend I have to write a 10 page essay, finish 4 textbook pages of math, and do my chemistry lab questions. I am in for the worst weekend of my school history.

    The memories of Shea keep on flashing though my head. I’m not sure if its love or hatred, either way it’s not good. Shea Deschanel arrived in Manchester High School in 6th grade. I have been here since kindergarten. When she came, Shea was popular for about half of middle school, than people finally left her alone. She hasn’t caught my attention since this year, but i have always noticed her and her blue eyes. If I remember correctly I have NEVER talked to her, I have never had the chance, or even the courage. “Jack,” Mr. Anderson said, “ are you going to answer the question or not?”