I knew I was slightly under average height, but I still had longish legs, long and gangly I thought to myself. Although all the cycling I had done since coming to Boulder was paying off. I had received enough comments to know that boys weren’t put off with my legs or my height. All in all, I thought to myself, I was far from perfect; but I didn’t think I was a write off either.
Mum would always lament that if only I had been taller, I would have been beautiful. She would have hoped I would have been a model; however, I wasn’t taller and wasn’t a model, therefore by default, I wasn’t beautiful. I smiled as I gave myself a final once over, my tomboy ways were probably all mum’s fault. That made me grin in defiance and then as it always did, thoughts of my mother made me sad and angry at the same time.
My attention shifted quickly from the mirror and swept over my bedroom. I had bought this apartment from money left to me when dad died. I needed to make sure I accumulated no college debts. I had just enough left to pay my tuition, so the apartment though pleasant, was sparse in decoration. God dammit for adulthood and responsibility. I really needed to find a job, just to secure some extra income. I had managed to secure a summer job when I moved here, however, a few weeks spent in retail, emphasised what we all already knew – I really wasn’t a people person.
I reached for the phone again and reread Matt’s text to cheer up. I held my phone to my forehead as I sighed. I couldn’t believe I had seen him and Theo yesterday. My head was still reeling. Of all the luck, Colton decides to change schools and out of all the schools in this country he picks this one. I had purposefully picked this one as it was nothing to do with any of them and no one knew I had ever considered here as a possibility.
I started hauling the sheets off my bed as I thought of Connor.
Of the good times, before everything had gone sour at the end. He’d asked me out on my fifteenth birthday. I had been at a party which was so unlike me, but my lab partner, Susie Black, in Chemistry had learned it was my birthday earlier that day and in a moment of insanity, on her part, had insisted that I go to Matt Landers’ party at his parents’ house that night.
His parents were in Europe and word got out that Matt was throwing a party. Matt probably hadn’t had much say in the matter, but he wouldn’t have cared. He was best friends with the Dawson’s. Connor Dawson happened to be in my Chemistry class and was what I termed astotally dreamy. Connor had been sitting in the front row in full peripheral of the teacher, who wasn’t fooled by the twinkle in his eyes or the one dimple in his left cheek. Nor was he impressed with the wealth of the Dawson’s.
Connor was considered disruptive, so he sat in the front and pretended to be on his best behaviour. My lab partner suggested we go to the party, as it was my birthday. Susie had turned to me and asked what I thought. I had been struggling with an answer when a shadow had fallen over us. I had looked up right into Connor’s face. I’m pretty sure my jaw had dropped. I had definitely heard Susie squeak beside me.
“So, Elle, you taking Susie up on her offer and coming to Matt’s later?” He asked. One eyebrow had been raised in expectancy.
“What?” Yes, that was my fantastically intelligent reply. He had laughed as he backed from the table grinning at me as he winked.
“See you there, Elle.”
Connor turned to Susie, nodded and said “Black” and then was gone. Susie had grabbed my arm and started jumping up and down on the spot; I had shaken her off, but she hadn’t cared. She was babbling excitedly.
I smiled as I picked up a pillow and started fluffing it, I could remember that day so well.
I didn’t play sports, I didn’t try out for the cheerleading, but I also wasn’t a geek. I wasn’t really a pigeon holed kinda person. I also wasn’t that bothered about clothes – jeans, shirt and sneakers usually did it for me. When Susie had asked what I was going to wear toMatt Landersparty – she’d screeched that part – I had looked at myself and shrugged. I had just been about to tell her pretty much what I was wearing when I had looked at her and seen she had already reached that horrific conclusion herself.
I had been dragged, almost literally to her friend Candy’s locker, which was where the whole Connor Dawson asked Elle to Matt’s party on a date rumour had begun. I had protested. I had tried to make sure all those eavesdropping knew Connor had most definitelynotasked me on a date. It was like talking to the lockers. To be fair I may have got more sense out of them.
Candy had done the whole screeching and jumping on the spot thing Susie had. I had been taken by each arm and dragged to Candy’s boyfriend’s car. He was to take us all to Susie’s to get ready for mydate. I had seriously wanted to die. Ben had smiled at me in a kind of ‘I have your back and you have my sympathy’ way. Ben and I could be great friends, I decided there and then.
He’d dropped us off and promised to be back at eight thirty. Susie had bounded into her house like a puppy on steroids with Candy racing behind her. I had seriously contemplated running at that point, but puppy number one had bounced back out and grabbed me again. I was going to bruise. Her mum had fed us sandwiches and snacks whilst laughing at my expression as short skirts and skimpy tops had been flung at me.
I laughed to myself as I finished making the bed, about how exited they had been and how totally out of my element I had been at the time.
I think Susie’s mum had been close to adopting me when I offered to wash up. At that point I would have offered to make the plates, anything to get away from the pink glittery thing Susie was waving at me. Thankfully Mrs Black had taken charge and ushered Susie to the shower to give me peace. She had told Candy to go downstairs and phone her parents to let them know where she was and where she was going. I’d already texted my dad.
Mrs Black had then selected a black short skirt that settled mid-thigh on Susie, but on me, would be just above the knee. It flared out slightly from the hips that gave me room to move. She handed me a black tank top with a subtle silver thread running through it and then wrapped a thick black belt round my waist. It completed the outfit and kept the skirt on my hips.
My own black jacket had already been deemed appropriate for outerwear, as had my black flats. Susie emerged from the shower, screeched again and demanded my hair and makeup be left to Candy, who was apparently a genius. When I informed them that I didn’t wear makeup, Candy had almost fainted. We agreed on some mascara and some lip gloss before I was finally allowed to sit back and breathe.
My hair which at the time was shoulder length had been brushed to a natural shine and left alone.I was still chuckling at the memory as I scooped up the bed linen from the floor and headed to the washer. As I thought back on that day, even though I had been so out of my comfort zone, it had been nice to be included like that.
The girls had taken ages to get ready which was bewildering as they had their outfits planned. However, when Ben had turned up at precisely eight thirty, both looked great. Candy had the whole natural beauty look going which had taken an hour and a half to achieve. Susie looked equally good but had gone for smoky eyes, bright lips and a faint blush to the cheeks. Ben had whistled when we went out to the car. Before I knew it, I was staring up at Matt Landers’ house with a solid knot in my stomach.
Reluctantly, I had entered the house only to be ushered to the back pool area where the party was in full swing. The pool was shaped like a kidney and was lit up. I noticed some of the older girls from school had bikinis on and were lounging like swimwear models on the pool furniture. Susie mumbled something to me and darted off. Candy was hanging onto Ben’s arm trying to see further back in the garden. I remember I felt his approach before he spoke.
“Arielle! You are looking HOT!” Connor had shouted. I had turned around and glowered at him.
“Arielle? You know it’s just Elle.” I remembered demanding to him, bristling at the attention from onlookers.
“Oh my, is this the girl who told the whole school you asked her on a date?” I turned to the Amazonian goddess that stood slightly behind Connor. She was looking at me like I was a bug. I felt myself bristling more.
Connor had laughed, flung his arm round my shoulders and declared, loudly, that Iwashis date, and when her mouth dropped, he had laughed and walked away from her...with me.
We hadn’t gotten far when I had forced him to stop and asked him what he was doing. He told me he was taking me back to hang with his friends, to which I asked him why. He had looked at me like I was an idiot and told me because I didn’t know them. I had narrowed my eyes at him and he had grinned that grin that meant trouble. I didn’t know Connor that well, but even I knew that grin.
“Because, despite your numerous and loud, may I say very loud, protestations, you are in fact my date,” his smile softened. “I have been waiting to ask you out for ages but you’re so difficult to get hold of. I heard Black earlier and thought this was the perfect time for you to fall in love with me.”