Oranges: A Short Story

Part III

The next day, his gran had to leave town for a funeral of a friend of hers. If it had been a week earlier, that would mean he could eat all the food he wanted and watch TV, but now it meant he was going to go into town to find Anastasia.

He wasn't going to leave unprepared, so he spent at least 15 minutes in the bathroom cleaning himself up, something he'd never done. He slicked his hair back and washed his face, making sure nothing was out of place. He hadn't needed to shave for a while and only had a few wispy hairs on his chin, but he still made sure to get rid of them.

Shoving a folded paperback into his back pocket, Alex made his way to town. The weather was still foggy and gray, but Alex didn't mind. Inside he was yellow.

His headphones played a new group he'd gotten into, Walk the Moon. His MP3 player rested in his jacket and savored the time it got to play. The second he saw Anastasia, Alex would be turning it off.

Once in Apetvet, he sat at his regular bench and began to read. He hadn't expected to get so into his book, but he did, and only looked up when someone sat down next to him.

Turning his head to the left, he saw Anastasia staring at him.

Oh no, better look sociable, thought Alex as he took his headphones out and slung them across his neck.

"Hey," he said cooly.

"Hello," said Anastasia, folding her arms and leaning against the back of the bench. He'd spent a combined amount of many days on this bench, but with Anastasia there, those all faded away.

He tried to think of a topic to talk about. There wasn't much, considering the minimal amount of people living in this town. "What kind of music do you listen to?" He asked.

Anastasia didn't have to think about it for a second. Swiftly she said, "Alternative and classical. There are a few rock bands I'll listen to also."

Alex nodded. "Do you like Walk the Moon?"

"I like some of their songs. It depends."

"I have them playing on my MP3 player if you want to listen with me," he invited. As she nodded, he pulled out his headphones and gave her one of the earbuds.

She fitted it into her right ear and looked at him expectantly.

You've got a look in your eyes.

I knew you in a past life.

One glance and the avalanche drops.

One look and my heartbeat stops.

The middle of Avalanche turned on and Anastasia looked out into the fog as it strolled down the street. 

Alex watched her. 

He watched the way her eyes flickered in certain parts of the song. He watched the way she smiled during the chorus. He felt the way she put her head on his shoulder.

His heart began to pound faster and it took him a second to calm it down. 

Leaning back on the bench, he let the music fill his ears and Anastasia fill his heart.

.  .  .

The next day, Alex told his grandmother he was going out to town. This, of course, made her suspicious.

"What business do you have in town?" She asked harshly as he ate his waffles.

"It's a nice day," he said in between bites. "The rain is gone and the sun is coming out. I think it's good for me to set an example to other young boys my age to go outside and be active."