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Description
A set of double doors slammed in my face.
“Ouch,” I muttered, quickly snapping out of my daydream.
“Morning, LOSER!” The jock who had closed the door jeered, his  gang of football-playing friends laughing heartily. I detected a few stray snickers from the kids around me crowding into the school. I sighed. Normal morning procedure.
“Hey. You okay?” My best friend Axel smacked my backpack.
“Yeah. Fine.” I rubbed my head where I’d walked into the door.
“They’re jerks.” He said disgustedly, flipping the jocks off as we passed them.
“Well, we’re designated as the school freaks, so they’re just doing their jobs.”
“Aw, don’t talk like that! We may be freaks to them, but at least we’ll have a life after high school,” Axel said optimistically.
“Yeah. But we won’t get a date until after college.”
“Correction. You won’t get a date till after college. I am a ladies’ man.”
“You’re kidding me,” I laughed, punching him in the arm. “If you’re so smooth, why haven’t you gotten a girlfriend yet?”
“Because I don’t settle. I want someone perfect.”
“Yeah, join the club. The wait’s going to be a while, so sorry.” I commented. We laughed.
“So, did you get asked to the dance yet?”
“Haha. Me get asked to the dance. Good one. You’re a real comedian. As I explained previously, we are the school freaks.”
“So I’m assuming that’s a no?”
“Your assumption would be correct. Besides, even if anyone asked me, I wouldn’t be able to go. I already faced the inevitable and signed the guys up to play at the dance.”
“Maybe that’s why no one asks you out, bro. You’re spending all your time on your guitar and with the band. All that testosterone can’t be good for you.”
I rolled my eyes. “Hey, guitars are perfectly cool. Girls dig guys who play in bands.”
“Okay, Mr. Ladies’ Man,” Axel said sarcastically, “Maybe you should go write a book on dating then!”
I sighed, and the first bell echoed through the lobby.
“Whatever, man. Catch you later.”
“Yeah, later.”

~
I scanned the cafeteria for some kind of good seating. My eyes widened as I saw the table next to the cheerleaders wide open. I made my way over casually, sitting down as I tried to remain a cool façade. I fist-pumped to myself after a quick check around me.  The guys would love me for this.
“Ahem.” I felt a hulking shadow loom over me. I looked up hesitantly as the school’s lead quarterback and most popular guy stood in front of me, clearing his throat. The same guy who’d shut the door in my face earlier.
“Oh, sorry,” I said sardonically. “Is this your table?”
The quarterback rolled his eyes as I left. “Stupid sophomores,” I heard him mutter. I made a face at him when his back was turned. Even though my conscience  told me I shouldn’t have moved for the jerk, I didn’t feel in the mood for a beating today.
I sighed as I joined a half-empty table, spotting one of my friends from the band. I was sitting at the far reach of the cafeteria,  separated from all high school society. Again.
During the middle of a conversation with my friend, I glanced past and noticed someone sitting at the end of the table. Her back was half-turned away from me, and her head was bent as she sketched in a well-worn notebook. She was intensely absorbed in her work, but occasionally her eyes would flick up, settle on me for just a second, and return to her paper. If I was quiet I could hear the skritch-scratch of her mechanical pencil.
“Hey,” I said to my friend, interrupting him in mid-sentence. “Who’s that?” I nodded to the girl at the end of the table.
“Oh… well, no one really knows. She never talks—all she does is draw. Kinda weird.” He shrugged.
“Oh.” I said. I was sure that was all the explanation I was going to get.
Later that day, I was walking down the hall with Axel after dismissal, heading to the buses. Suddenly I remembered I’d forgotten my French book.
“Oh, crap.” I muttered. “Dude, I forgot my French. I gotta go get it. I’ll see you tomorrow, okay?”
“Okay, man. See ya.”
“Bye.” I sprinted down the near-empty hallway, avoiding stray students as I went.
I hurried to my locker, apologizing to a teacher who chastised me for running, and skillfully entered my combination. I grabbed the book quickly, internally praying I wouldn’t miss the bus. I started to run to the exit when I felt a smack and heard the soft fluttering sound of papers.
I looked up, surprised. I’d collided with the girl from the lunch table, and her sketchbook had fallen out of her hands, sending loose papers in every direction. She was already on her knees gathering a countless number of sketches.
I bent over and grabbed a handful of papers. Just as I was going to hand them back to her, I examined the drawings. They were of people—a girl drawing, a boy playing a guitar, three people having a conversation. They were really good-- I could almost hear the sounds of the children’s laughter as they talked.
“Uh, could I have those…?” Her voice was soft. She had finished collecting her spilled pictures and was now standing in front of me shyly.
“Oh, yeah, sure,” I said, embarrassed I had been staring. I handed her the drawings, and a small grateful smile crossed her face. “Thanks,” she said, her volume so low it was practically a whisper.
“Hey,” I said as she walked away. “You’re really good at drawing.”
“Thank you,” She said.
“Hey, you know, I was wondering if maybe I could know your name, cause we sit at the same lunch table sometimes and maybe we could talk or something—“ I  looked up, noticing I was talking to no one. The girl had mysteriously disappeared. I checked both sides of the hall. I was completely alone.
“…Or not,” I said to myself. I shook my head and exited the school, running to catch my bus as it pulled away.

~

“Yo!” I said at lunch the next day, giving Axel a fist-pound.
“I love combined lunches,” He commented. “So where are we sitting?”
“Uh, most tables are full, so I was thinking over there.” I pointed to the far end of the cafeteria where I had sat the day before. “Half of the band’s already there.”
“Okay.” I led him over and initiated a conversation. I sat at the end of the table, laughing along with the rest of my friends. Out of the corner of my eye I noticed the girl I’d crashed into sitting at the very edge of the bench, intensely absorbed in her drawing. I scooched over a few seats, but she still didn’t look up.
“Uh, hi,” I said, trying to make my voice as friendly as I could. Her eyes flicked up only for a minute second, and she never stopped moving her pencil.
“Uhm, I just wanted to say sorry about yesterday. I never got a chance to apologize. I wasn’t really watching where I was going…” She’d finally stopped sketching. “So, uh, what’s your name?” I didn’t want to dominate the conversation.
She waited a second, as if hesitant to reveal any personal information.
“Namine,” I heard her say, barely audible over the dull roar of the cafeteria.
“Oh, hey. My name’s Roxas,” I said with a smile. She nodded, returning to her work.
“Can I see what you’re drawing? What I saw yesterday was really good,” She looked down and at me a few times, then uncertainly handed me her notebook. The page that was open showed a girl with her arms folded, wearing a timid smile and a sundress.
I flipped through, spying a wide range of sketches. I noticed a trend, though; most were people, and a lot seemed to be drawn during school, random candids of sophomore life. Page after page I stared in amazement; each drawing was perfectly proportioned and all the features looked completely real.
“Wow,” I said. “You’re amazing. Are you an Art Major?”
She nodded shyly, taking her book back and continuing to draw.
“So, uh, do you want to hang out sometime? Maybe you can come watch the band play.” I thumbed over my shoulder to my three fellow band members chatting up a storm with Axel.
She shrugged, tearing out a page of her book and handing it to me. I examined the picture; I’d seen it before, when she’d dropped her stuff. A boy was playing a guitar, but upon closer examination, I recognized the similarities between myself and him. The same spikey blonde hair, bright blue eyes, and worn-in jeans.
“Is this supposed to be me?” I asked her incredulously. She only nodded silently. I tried to give her back the paper, but she shook her head.
“There’s a reason I ripped it out. Keep it.”
“I can’t take this. It’s too good—“
“It’s not that good. Really, I drew it for you.”
“Oh. Okay…” I said. I couldn’t believe she’d just given me one of her pictures. I could never draw half that good. The most I could manage were stick figures.
Meanwhile, the band members and Axel were fixated on our conversation.
“So, uh, I’ll talk to you later?” It was more of a question than a statement. I couldn’t be sure of anything with her; it seemed like any second she could disappear.
“Yeah.”
“Oh, and uh, thanks for the picture.” I managed a smile.
“Mmhmm,” She said. I had a feeling she didn’t want to talk anymore.
I moved back to my seat next to Axel and was met with several open mouths.
“What?” I asked at the silence.
“Dude. You got her to talk,” Our drummer said in amazement.
“Uh, yeah, so what?”
“She never talks!” Added our band’s bassist.
“…So? Maybe she’s shy?” I said, confused.
“Hey, Roxas, maybe you’ll have a date for the Valentine’s Dance after all!” Axel elbowed me with a mischievous grin.
“Don’t get any ideas. I just met her.”
“Whatever, dude.” They resumed conversation.
Later that day, I was walking out again with Axel as per usual when from behind me I felt a very light tap on my shoulder.
“Uh, hi,” Namine approached us bashfully.
“Hey,” I said with a smile.
“Hello,” Axel said politely, but her conversation seemed more directed to me.
“Hey, um, I was wondering… were you doing anything on February the 19th? I was wondering, you know… if you wanted to hang out at the dance or something…” She shrugged.
“Oh,” I said. “Right. The dance.”
“What? Were you asked already? It’s okay, I was just wondering…”
“No, it’s not that. The only problem with the dance is that I signed our band up to play for the dance. Saves the school money since they don’t have to pay for a DJ.”
“Oh, that’s cool. Do you play?”
“Yeah. Guitar,” I said.
“Cool. Well, I guess we can hang out some other time…”
Axel elbowed me.
“Well, if you want, you could hang out with the band. It wouldn’t be very interesting, but if you didn’t mind, I’m sure it’d be cool with the guys.”
“Oh, yeah. I don’t mind at all.” She flashed a small smile. “That would be cool.”
“Okay. So, do you want me to pick you up, or…”
“Can I just meet you here?”
“Yeah, that’s fine. We’re coming at 8, though, so we have time to set up.”
“Okay. I’ll be here at eight, then.”
“Okay, see you then, I guess.” I smiled.
“Yeah. See you.” She smiled and blushed a little before walking off.
Axel smiled as she left, then punched me in the shoulder as soon as she was out of earshot.
“Nice going, Roxas!” He grinned. “Look who’s the ladies’ man now!”
“Not really. I don’t even know why she asked me.”
“Cause you’re cute. I know someone would realize it eventually.”
“Eww, Axel. You sound like my mom,” I laughed. “So, are you going to the dance?”
“Hell yeah! I’m going solo.” He flipped his arms out in an “I’m cool” motion. “Well, gotta go. Bye.”
“Bye.”
~
The night of the dance came, and I drove to the school tightly clutching my newly-earned driver’s license. Most of my band was already there, and I joined them in the gym as we started to set up. I toted the two heavy cases, containing my electric and acoustic guitars, to the gym and was tuning them up when Namine arrived.
“Hi,” She said, quietly as usual. I looked up from my work with a smile. I took a moment to realize how pretty she was; she sported a white ruched dress and her normally pin-straight hair hung in ringlets around her chin. She beamed at me, and it was the first time I’d seen her smile with her teeth.
“So, could you introduce me to your friends?” She asked. I told her each of my band members’ names; Miles, our bassist, Eric, our drummer, and Dan, our other guitarist. Thankfully, the band was perfectly okay with her being there; they’re nice guys, but they didn’t hang out with girls much.
She sat patiently for the entire half an hour we used to set up. She didn’t really say much, only when spoken to. She watched me in fascination as I tuned the guitars and practiced some popular songs that I knew would be requested. I warmed my voice up as well, and she seemed surprised.
“Do you sing, too?” She asked me.
“Yeah. I’m designated as the lead singer for the band,” I said with a half-smile and a roll of my eyes. “Cause no one else wanted to do it!” I punched Eric in the arm.
“Nah, it’s cause you’ve got the best voice out of all of us, man!” Eric claimed with a smile. “Stop complaining. It gets you girls, at the very least!”
“He’s just kidding,” I said, embarrassed as I turned back to Namine. Her cheeks were tinged pink as she giggled lightly along with Eric. Her expression made me grin.
Slowly, the early students started trickling in sporting their best formalwear. I paid them no regards, casually tuning my guitar for the tenth time. I monitored the amp and we all did a quick sound check, and upon finding no difficulties with our equipment, waited until the dance started.
Even though it was scheduled to begin at 8:30, the dance didn’t really get into full swing until 9. We played song after song; at first, we stuck to popular radio favorites, but slowly more and more kids asked for requests until our queue was 40 songs long.
All the while Namine sat on the edge of the stage, not dancing any more than swaying to the beat or tapping her toes every now and again. After an upbeat Fall Out Boy song, Miles came over the microphone.
“Hey guys, hope you’re having a great night. We’re going to slow things down a little bit here, so grab a dance partner…” Multitudes of sophomores began to leave the cafeteria in search of a less romantic setting to continue their conversation.
I jumped down from the platform and landed lithely next to Namine. She jumped a little, startled. “Roxas? Aren’t you going to sing for this, too?”
“I can take a break for a bit, the band’s got me covered.” I smiled. “Besides, I would feel bad if I completely ignored my date for the entire night.” I couldn’t help feeling more adventurous when I was around her; something about her shyness, her mysteriousness struck a chord in me, made me want to impress her.
“May I have this dance?” I asked as the instrumental intro of the song led by Dan came in.
“I, um, well, I… don’t really dance…” She stammered, arms crossed over her chest and head down so that I couldn’t see her blushing. She instinctively swiped a hand by her head, but her normally long hair couldn’t hide her this time.
“Aww, come on. It’s easy.” I smiled, holding a hand out. “There aren’t even many people in here anyway.” It was true—there were only a few couples left in the gymnasium—the rest of the grade had fled in a mass exodus to the food in the adjacent cafeteria.
“Oh...okay,” She conceded, allowing me to take her by the hand and lead her to the side of the dance floor. Dan expertly strummed the fast-but-slow pace of the song. I’d heard it before, but couldn’t recall the name.
“Okay. So all you have to do is put your hands like this…” I cupped her hands together and directed her to place them on the back of my neck. I placed my hands gently at her waist, afraid that she would flinch away. She blushed a little, but didn’t resist.
“Oh, I like this song,” she commented quietly as Dan and Eric crooned a unison.
“Yeah. Me too.” I said, the corners of my mouth twisting upwards. I was happy when a brightly shy smile crossed her face. It was the second time I’d seen her smile with her teeth. I internally hoped that I’d have the chance to see it more.
We talked softly, and of unimportant things. I wondered that if someone passed us, would it look like we were going out?
I broke from the trance of her tinkling laugh and gentle hands when I realized we’d swayed our way through four songs.
“Oh, I uh…” She said after I’d finished my sentence. “You should probably get back to singing now. I think they want you back.”
“What?” I asked, snapping out of the trance her eyes held on me. She jerked her head in the band’s direction, and all of them had their eyes on us. I looked around me and noticed we were the only people left in the gym besides my friends.
“Oh. Yeah, I guess so.” I laughed to break the tension. I took my hands off her hips, and her arms quickly fell to her sides. We looked at each other for a long awkward moment.
“Well, I, uh, should probably get back to the band…”
“Yeah. I, uh, have to go to the bathroom…” She pointed vaguely and headed off. I made my way over to the guys, who had stopped playing the song when Naminé had left the cafeteria.
“Um, hello? Could you maybe bear to keep your prying eyes away from us while we’re dancing?” I rolled my eyes as I clambered onto the makeshift stage. “It’s awkward enough between us. I don’t need your help, too!”
“Sorry, dude,” Miles shrugged. “But everyone left. We played four slow songs. We need you to play and sing for the others.” I sighed. He did have a point, but I had been having so much fun.
As we started playing more of the songs from our extensive request list, people started to come back. At first, it was a slow process, but groups began to return and soon the gym was filled to capacity.
I pressed the foot pedal as I began to strum the opening for the next song, earning a generous cheer from the crowd. Naminé was sitting on the edge of the platform, but I saw her lips moving as I sung the words.
“I gotta feeling…. That tonight’s gonna be a good night, that tonight’s gonna be a good night, that tonight’s gonna be a good, good night, a feeling…” She was smiling, tapping her toes as she watched us play. I smiled and held out my hand to help her up. She laughed, shaking her head violently at the prospect.
“Come on!” I mouthed during a rest. “Sing with me!”
She grabbed my hand and I pulled her up on stage. “…that tonight’s gonna be a good night, that tonight’s gonna be a good, good night, a feeling…” I sang.
“Woohoo,” She sang the harmony quietly into the mic. I smiled and nodded.
“That tonight’s gonna be a good night, that tonight’s gonna be a good night, that tonight’s gonna be a good, good night, a feeling. Tonight’s the night, let’s live it up. I got my money, let’s spend it up. Go out and smash it, like oh my god, jump off the sofa, let’s get, get off…” I couldn’t helo but feel butterflies in my stomach when I looked at her. She was smiling, swaying to the beat and looking at me, saying the words as I sung them. Every once in a while, she’d join in with the female part. I could tell she was having fun.
“I know that we’ll have a ball,
If we get down and go out and just lose it all.
I feel stressed out, I wanna let it go,
Let’s go way out and space out and lose all control!” I watched her as she grabbed the mic and just… had fun. I smiled once more, for what must have been the hundredth time that night, as we joined into the main verse of the song.
We only played a few more songs. After her solo, Naminé sat down. The smile on her face couldn’t be wiped off for the rest of the dance. After we finished the last song, we received lots of clapping and cheering from the audience and we began to pack up.
It was quick, shorter than it had taken to set up. I packed my guitars into my car. She offered to help, but I refused.
“A lady shouldn’t have to carry anything,” I laughed. “Besides, I can handle it.” I closed the trunk of my car and leaned against it. The February night air was cold, and I saw her shiver. Her teeth chattered a bit.
“Here, take my coat.” I said, instantly taking off my sports jacket and handing it to her. It was a little big on her, but she accepted it gratefully. “You can give it back to me in school on Monday.”
“Thanks.” She said quietly. “Oh. I got you something.” She handed me a single white rose.
I smiled. The school always made it a tradition to hand out roses at the end of the Valentine’s Dance. “Thanks,” I said. We spent a long moment staring into each other’s eyes.
“Well, I have to go.” I said. “It’s past 11, and my mom will have a fit if I’m not home exactly on time.” I laughed a little.
“Okay,” She said, giggling. “I’ll see you on Monday, then?”
“Yeah.” I froze up a little. I wanted to give her a hug, but I didn’t know if she’d feel comfortable. She was shy, after all.
“Thanks for a great time.” She said, wrapping her arms around my back. I was taken by surprise; I hadn’t expected her to do that. I hugged her back. “You too,” I said.
“Okay, we’ll I’ll see you later.” She smiled once more and waved as she walked off.
“Yeah. Later.” I whispered to myself, grinning as I got into my car.
I was looking forward to later.

Description
A set of double doors slammed in my face.
“Ouch,” I muttered, quickly snapping out of my daydream.
“Morning, LOSER!” The jock who had closed the door jeered, his  gang of football-playing friends laughing heartily. I detected a few stray snickers from the kids around me crowding into the school. I sighed. Normal morning procedure.
“Hey. You okay?” My best friend Axel smacked my backpack.
“Yeah. Fine.” I rubbed my head where I’d walked into the door.
“They’re jerks.” He said disgustedly, flipping the jocks off as we passed them.
“Well, we’re designated as the school freaks, so they’re just doing their jobs.”
“Aw, don’t talk like that! We may be freaks to them, but at least we’ll have a life after high school,” Axel said optimistically.
“Yeah. But we won’t get a date until after college.”
“Correction. You won’t get a date till after college. I am a ladies’ man.”
“You’re kidding me,” I laughed, punching him in the arm. “If you’re so smooth, why haven’t you gotten a girlfriend yet?”
“Because I don’t settle. I want someone perfect.”
“Yeah, join the club. The wait’s going to be a while, so sorry.” I commented. We laughed.
“So, did you get asked to the dance yet?”
“Haha. Me get asked to the dance. Good one. You’re a real comedian. As I explained previously, we are the school freaks.”
“So I’m assuming that’s a no?”
“Your assumption would be correct. Besides, even if anyone asked me, I wouldn’t be able to go. I already faced the inevitable and signed the guys up to play at the dance.”
“Maybe that’s why no one asks you out, bro. You’re spending all your time on your guitar and with the band. All that testosterone can’t be good for you.”
I rolled my eyes. “Hey, guitars are perfectly cool. Girls dig guys who play in bands.”
“Okay, Mr. Ladies’ Man,” Axel said sarcastically, “Maybe you should go write a book on dating then!”
I sighed, and the first bell echoed through the lobby.
“Whatever, man. Catch you later.”
“Yeah, later.”

~
I scanned the cafeteria for some kind of good seating. My eyes widened as I saw the table next to the cheerleaders wide open. I made my way over casually, sitting down as I tried to remain a cool façade. I fist-pumped to myself after a quick check around me.  The guys would love me for this.
“Ahem.” I felt a hulking shadow loom over me. I looked up hesitantly as the school’s lead quarterback and most popular guy stood in front of me, clearing his throat. The same guy who’d shut the door in my face earlier.
“Oh, sorry,” I said sardonically. “Is this your table?”
The quarterback rolled his eyes as I left. “Stupid sophomores,” I heard him mutter. I made a face at him when his back was turned. Even though my conscience  told me I shouldn’t have moved for the jerk, I didn’t feel in the mood for a beating today.
I sighed as I joined a half-empty table, spotting one of my friends from the band. I was sitting at the far reach of the cafeteria,  separated from all high school society. Again.
During the middle of a conversation with my friend, I glanced past and noticed someone sitting at the end of the table. Her back was half-turned away from me, and her head was bent as she sketched in a well-worn notebook. She was intensely absorbed in her work, but occasionally her eyes would flick up, settle on me for just a second, and return to her paper. If I was quiet I could hear the skritch-scratch of her mechanical pencil.
“Hey,” I said to my friend, interrupting him in mid-sentence. “Who’s that?” I nodded to the girl at the end of the table.
“Oh… well, no one really knows. She never talks—all she does is draw. Kinda weird.” He shrugged.
“Oh.” I said. I was sure that was all the explanation I was going to get.
Later that day, I was walking down the hall with Axel after dismissal, heading to the buses. Suddenly I remembered I’d forgotten my French book.
“Oh, crap.” I muttered. “Dude, I forgot my French. I gotta go get it. I’ll see you tomorrow, okay?”
“Okay, man. See ya.”
“Bye.” I sprinted down the near-empty hallway, avoiding stray students as I went.
I hurried to my locker, apologizing to a teacher who chastised me for running, and skillfully entered my combination. I grabbed the book quickly, internally praying I wouldn’t miss the bus. I started to run to the exit when I felt a smack and heard the soft fluttering sound of papers.
I looked up, surprised. I’d collided with the girl from the lunch table, and her sketchbook had fallen out of her hands, sending loose papers in every direction. She was already on her knees gathering a countless number of sketches.
I bent over and grabbed a handful of papers. Just as I was going to hand them back to her, I examined the drawings. They were of people—a girl drawing, a boy playing a guitar, three people having a conversation. They were really good-- I could almost hear the sounds of the children’s laughter as they talked.
“Uh, could I have those…?” Her voice was soft. She had finished collecting her spilled pictures and was now standing in front of me shyly.
“Oh, yeah, sure,” I said, embarrassed I had been staring. I handed her the drawings, and a small grateful smile crossed her face. “Thanks,” she said, her volume so low it was practically a whisper.
“Hey,” I said as she walked away. “You’re really good at drawing.”
“Thank you,” She said.
“Hey, you know, I was wondering if maybe I could know your name, cause we sit at the same lunch table sometimes and maybe we could talk or something—“ I  looked up, noticing I was talking to no one. The girl had mysteriously disappeared. I checked both sides of the hall. I was completely alone.
“…Or not,” I said to myself. I shook my head and exited the school, running to catch my bus as it pulled away.

~

“Yo!” I said at lunch the next day, giving Axel a fist-pound.
“I love combined lunches,” He commented. “So where are we sitting?”
“Uh, most tables are full, so I was thinking over there.” I pointed to the far end of the cafeteria where I had sat the day before. “Half of the band’s already there.”
“Okay.” I led him over and initiated a conversation. I sat at the end of the table, laughing along with the rest of my friends. Out of the corner of my eye I noticed the girl I’d crashed into sitting at the very edge of the bench, intensely absorbed in her drawing. I scooched over a few seats, but she still didn’t look up.
“Uh, hi,” I said, trying to make my voice as friendly as I could. Her eyes flicked up only for a minute second, and she never stopped moving her pencil.
“Uhm, I just wanted to say sorry about yesterday. I never got a chance to apologize. I wasn’t really watching where I was going…” She’d finally stopped sketching. “So, uh, what’s your name?” I didn’t want to dominate the conversation.
She waited a second, as if hesitant to reveal any personal information.
“Namine,” I heard her say, barely audible over the dull roar of the cafeteria.
“Oh, hey. My name’s Roxas,” I said with a smile. She nodded, returning to her work.
“Can I see what you’re drawing? What I saw yesterday was really good,” She looked down and at me a few times, then uncertainly handed me her notebook. The page that was open showed a girl with her arms folded, wearing a timid smile and a sundress.
I flipped through, spying a wide range of sketches. I noticed a trend, though; most were people, and a lot seemed to be drawn during school, random candids of sophomore life. Page after page I stared in amazement; each drawing was perfectly proportioned and all the features looked completely real.
“Wow,” I said. “You’re amazing. Are you an Art Major?”
She nodded shyly, taking her book back and continuing to draw.
“So, uh, do you want to hang out sometime? Maybe you can come watch the band play.” I thumbed over my shoulder to my three fellow band members chatting up a storm with Axel.
She shrugged, tearing out a page of her book and handing it to me. I examined the picture; I’d seen it before, when she’d dropped her stuff. A boy was playing a guitar, but upon closer examination, I recognized the similarities between myself and him. The same spikey blonde hair, bright blue eyes, and worn-in jeans.
“Is this supposed to be me?” I asked her incredulously. She only nodded silently. I tried to give her back the paper, but she shook her head.
“There’s a reason I ripped it out. Keep it.”
“I can’t take this. It’s too good—“
“It’s not that good. Really, I drew it for you.”
“Oh. Okay…” I said. I couldn’t believe she’d just given me one of her pictures. I could never draw half that good. The most I could manage were stick figures.
Meanwhile, the band members and Axel were fixated on our conversation.
“So, uh, I’ll talk to you later?” It was more of a question than a statement. I couldn’t be sure of anything with her; it seemed like any second she could disappear.
“Yeah.”
“Oh, and uh, thanks for the picture.” I managed a smile.
“Mmhmm,” She said. I had a feeling she didn’t want to talk anymore.
I moved back to my seat next to Axel and was met with several open mouths.
“What?” I asked at the silence.
“Dude. You got her to talk,” Our drummer said in amazement.
“Uh, yeah, so what?”
“She never talks!” Added our band’s bassist.
“…So? Maybe she’s shy?” I said, confused.
“Hey, Roxas, maybe you’ll have a date for the Valentine’s Dance after all!” Axel elbowed me with a mischievous grin.
“Don’t get any ideas. I just met her.”
“Whatever, dude.” They resumed conversation.
Later that day, I was walking out again with Axel as per usual when from behind me I felt a very light tap on my shoulder.
“Uh, hi,” Namine approached us bashfully.
“Hey,” I said with a smile.
“Hello,” Axel said politely, but her conversation seemed more directed to me.
“Hey, um, I was wondering… were you doing anything on February the 19th? I was wondering, you know… if you wanted to hang out at the dance or something…” She shrugged.
“Oh,” I said. “Right. The dance.”
“What? Were you asked already? It’s okay, I was just wondering…”
“No, it’s not that. The only problem with the dance is that I signed our band up to play for the dance. Saves the school money since they don’t have to pay for a DJ.”
“Oh, that’s cool. Do you play?”
“Yeah. Guitar,” I said.
“Cool. Well, I guess we can hang out some other time…”
Axel elbowed me.
“Well, if you want, you could hang out with the band. It wouldn’t be very interesting, but if you didn’t mind, I’m sure it’d be cool with the guys.”
“Oh, yeah. I don’t mind at all.” She flashed a small smile. “That would be cool.”
“Okay. So, do you want me to pick you up, or…”
“Can I just meet you here?”
“Yeah, that’s fine. We’re coming at 8, though, so we have time to set up.”
“Okay. I’ll be here at eight, then.”
“Okay, see you then, I guess.” I smiled.
“Yeah. See you.” She smiled and blushed a little before walking off.
Axel smiled as she left, then punched me in the shoulder as soon as she was out of earshot.
“Nice going, Roxas!” He grinned. “Look who’s the ladies’ man now!”
“Not really. I don’t even know why she asked me.”
“Cause you’re cute. I know someone would realize it eventually.”
“Eww, Axel. You sound like my mom,” I laughed. “So, are you going to the dance?”
“Hell yeah! I’m going solo.” He flipped his arms out in an “I’m cool” motion. “Well, gotta go. Bye.”
“Bye.”
~
The night of the dance came, and I drove to the school tightly clutching my newly-earned driver’s license. Most of my band was already there, and I joined them in the gym as we started to set up. I toted the two heavy cases, containing my electric and acoustic guitars, to the gym and was tuning them up when Namine arrived.
“Hi,” She said, quietly as usual. I looked up from my work with a smile. I took a moment to realize how pretty she was; she sported a white ruched dress and her normally pin-straight hair hung in ringlets around her chin. She beamed at me, and it was the first time I’d seen her smile with her teeth.
“So, could you introduce me to your friends?” She asked. I told her each of my band members’ names; Miles, our bassist, Eric, our drummer, and Dan, our other guitarist. Thankfully, the band was perfectly okay with her being there; they’re nice guys, but they didn’t hang out with girls much.
She sat patiently for the entire half an hour we used to set up. She didn’t really say much, only when spoken to. She watched me in fascination as I tuned the guitars and practiced some popular songs that I knew would be requested. I warmed my voice up as well, and she seemed surprised.
“Do you sing, too?” She asked me.
“Yeah. I’m designated as the lead singer for the band,” I said with a half-smile and a roll of my eyes. “Cause no one else wanted to do it!” I punched Eric in the arm.
“Nah, it’s cause you’ve got the best voice out of all of us, man!” Eric claimed with a smile. “Stop complaining. It gets you girls, at the very least!”
“He’s just kidding,” I said, embarrassed as I turned back to Namine. Her cheeks were tinged pink as she giggled lightly along with Eric. Her expression made me grin.
Slowly, the early students started trickling in sporting their best formalwear. I paid them no regards, casually tuning my guitar for the tenth time. I monitored the amp and we all did a quick sound check, and upon finding no difficulties with our equipment, waited until the dance started.
Even though it was scheduled to begin at 8:30, the dance didn’t really get into full swing until 9. We played song after song; at first, we stuck to popular radio favorites, but slowly more and more kids asked for requests until our queue was 40 songs long.
All the while Namine sat on the edge of the stage, not dancing any more than swaying to the beat or tapping her toes every now and again. After an upbeat Fall Out Boy song, Miles came over the microphone.
“Hey guys, hope you’re having a great night. We’re going to slow things down a little bit here, so grab a dance partner…” Multitudes of sophomores began to leave the cafeteria in search of a less romantic setting to continue their conversation.
I jumped down from the platform and landed lithely next to Namine. She jumped a little, startled. “Roxas? Aren’t you going to sing for this, too?”
“I can take a break for a bit, the band’s got me covered.” I smiled. “Besides, I would feel bad if I completely ignored my date for the entire night.” I couldn’t help feeling more adventurous when I was around her; something about her shyness, her mysteriousness struck a chord in me, made me want to impress her.
“May I have this dance?” I asked as the instrumental intro of the song led by Dan came in.
“I, um, well, I… don’t really dance…” She stammered, arms crossed over her chest and head down so that I couldn’t see her blushing. She instinctively swiped a hand by her head, but her normally long hair couldn’t hide her this time.
“Aww, come on. It’s easy.” I smiled, holding a hand out. “There aren’t even many people in here anyway.” It was true—there were only a few couples left in the gymnasium—the rest of the grade had fled in a mass exodus to the food in the adjacent cafeteria.
“Oh...okay,” She conceded, allowing me to take her by the hand and lead her to the side of the dance floor. Dan expertly strummed the fast-but-slow pace of the song. I’d heard it before, but couldn’t recall the name.
“Okay. So all you have to do is put your hands like this…” I cupped her hands together and directed her to place them on the back of my neck. I placed my hands gently at her waist, afraid that she would flinch away. She blushed a little, but didn’t resist.
“Oh, I like this song,” she commented quietly as Dan and Eric crooned a unison.
“Yeah. Me too.” I said, the corners of my mouth twisting upwards. I was happy when a brightly shy smile crossed her face. It was the second time I’d seen her smile with her teeth. I internally hoped that I’d have the chance to see it more.
We talked softly, and of unimportant things. I wondered that if someone passed us, would it look like we were going out?
I broke from the trance of her tinkling laugh and gentle hands when I realized we’d swayed our way through four songs.
“Oh, I uh…” She said after I’d finished my sentence. “You should probably get back to singing now. I think they want you back.”
“What?” I asked, snapping out of the trance her eyes held on me. She jerked her head in the band’s direction, and all of them had their eyes on us. I looked around me and noticed we were the only people left in the gym besides my friends.
“Oh. Yeah, I guess so.” I laughed to break the tension. I took my hands off her hips, and her arms quickly fell to her sides. We looked at each other for a long awkward moment.
“Well, I, uh, should probably get back to the band…”
“Yeah. I, uh, have to go to the bathroom…” She pointed vaguely and headed off. I made my way over to the guys, who had stopped playing the song when Naminé had left the cafeteria.
“Um, hello? Could you maybe bear to keep your prying eyes away from us while we’re dancing?” I rolled my eyes as I clambered onto the makeshift stage. “It’s awkward enough between us. I don’t need your help, too!”
“Sorry, dude,” Miles shrugged. “But everyone left. We played four slow songs. We need you to play and sing for the others.” I sighed. He did have a point, but I had been having so much fun.
As we started playing more of the songs from our extensive request list, people started to come back. At first, it was a slow process, but groups began to return and soon the gym was filled to capacity.
I pressed the foot pedal as I began to strum the opening for the next song, earning a generous cheer from the crowd. Naminé was sitting on the edge of the platform, but I saw her lips moving as I sung the words.
“I gotta feeling…. That tonight’s gonna be a good night, that tonight’s gonna be a good night, that tonight’s gonna be a good, good night, a feeling…” She was smiling, tapping her toes as she watched us play. I smiled and held out my hand to help her up. She laughed, shaking her head violently at the prospect.
“Come on!” I mouthed during a rest. “Sing with me!”
She grabbed my hand and I pulled her up on stage. “…that tonight’s gonna be a good night, that tonight’s gonna be a good, good night, a feeling…” I sang.
“Woohoo,” She sang the harmony quietly into the mic. I smiled and nodded.
“That tonight’s gonna be a good night, that tonight’s gonna be a good night, that tonight’s gonna be a good, good night, a feeling. Tonight’s the night, let’s live it up. I got my money, let’s spend it up. Go out and smash it, like oh my god, jump off the sofa, let’s get, get off…” I couldn’t helo but feel butterflies in my stomach when I looked at her. She was smiling, swaying to the beat and looking at me, saying the words as I sung them. Every once in a while, she’d join in with the female part. I could tell she was having fun.
“I know that we’ll have a ball,
If we get down and go out and just lose it all.
I feel stressed out, I wanna let it go,
Let’s go way out and space out and lose all control!” I watched her as she grabbed the mic and just… had fun. I smiled once more, for what must have been the hundredth time that night, as we joined into the main verse of the song.
We only played a few more songs. After her solo, Naminé sat down. The smile on her face couldn’t be wiped off for the rest of the dance. After we finished the last song, we received lots of clapping and cheering from the audience and we began to pack up.
It was quick, shorter than it had taken to set up. I packed my guitars into my car. She offered to help, but I refused.
“A lady shouldn’t have to carry anything,” I laughed. “Besides, I can handle it.” I closed the trunk of my car and leaned against it. The February night air was cold, and I saw her shiver. Her teeth chattered a bit.
“Here, take my coat.” I said, instantly taking off my sports jacket and handing it to her. It was a little big on her, but she accepted it gratefully. “You can give it back to me in school on Monday.”
“Thanks.” She said quietly. “Oh. I got you something.” She handed me a single white rose.
I smiled. The school always made it a tradition to hand out roses at the end of the Valentine’s Dance. “Thanks,” I said. We spent a long moment staring into each other’s eyes.
“Well, I have to go.” I said. “It’s past 11, and my mom will have a fit if I’m not home exactly on time.” I laughed a little.
“Okay,” She said, giggling. “I’ll see you on Monday, then?”
“Yeah.” I froze up a little. I wanted to give her a hug, but I didn’t know if she’d feel comfortable. She was shy, after all.
“Thanks for a great time.” She said, wrapping her arms around my back. I was taken by surprise; I hadn’t expected her to do that. I hugged her back. “You too,” I said.
“Okay, we’ll I’ll see you later.” She smiled once more and waved as she walked off.
“Yeah. Later.” I whispered to myself, grinning as I got into my car.
I was looking forward to later.