Chapter Two – Something New

The sound of the blaring bell fills my head as I make my way to the cafeteria. I grab a plate and fill it with corn dog nuggets and low-grade tater tots. My sneakers smack the hard-grey tiles as I make my way to my favorite lunch table; the table furthest back. My world has returned to grey and my gaze slowly becomes dark once again. My vibrant reds were again traded for dull blacks, my exhilarating blues to greys, and luscious greens to whites. I am once again, stuck in my little world of dull stains. I sit, alone, in the back if the cafeteria, just eating my slop, as someone sits down beside me, her amber hair falling over her shoulder.

"Hey!" An angelic voice coo from besides me. I turn to look at her, and my world regains its color.

"Uh." My heart is racing so fast that I think I will have a heart attack. "Uh hey. I saw you in class today. Your name was, Re…."

"Rebecca!" she giggles, "But you can call me Becca. Rebecca is way too long." She giggles once more and her face lights up; her ocean eyes shining even brighter than before.

"So, you know my name but what's yours?"

"Um," Why am I startled by this question? My is my heart racing, my head winding, my words tangling, and my mind running. Why now? Why her? Why am I all of a sudden seeing color? What the fu-

"H-h-e-e-l-l-l-l-o-o!"

Dammit, I spaced out again. "My name is Aria." Snap out of it!

"Oh, that's really pretty! It's little in letters, but large mouthfuls." She, once again, delivers giggles that ring in my head and startle my heart. "You need a nickname! All close friends have nicknames for each other! So, for you, maybe, um…."

Why did that piss me off a little? All she said was close friends have nicknames. Dammit, what's wrong with me. But, for a nickname, maybe….

"Maybe, A?" I murmur. What am I saying? That's not good at a-

"It's perfect! That's settled! Your new nickname is A! It's only mine though, okay? Because we made it together!" Becca smiles, happiness overflowing her every word. I can't help but smile back; her happiness is so contagious. She turns to her food and begins to eat, but she turns to me again. "Hey A, can I get your number, we can hangout then!"

Oh shit. DON'T FREAK OUT! WHAT IS WRONG WITH ME?!

"Of course! Of course!" Stupid, stupid, stupid! Start to reach into my bag, as she stops me right into my tracks.

"Here A, I have a pen and such."

Becca hands me a ripped piece of paper and a pink pen with a little teddy bear on the end.

"You like my pen? I thought it was super cute!"

"Yeah! Its super cute, just…. just like you!" CRAP! Now you screwed it up Aria!

"Awe, you're so sweet!" I feel blood rush to my cheeks and I almost drop her pen. What is it about Becca that makes me so, so, is it, happy? As I recollect, the bell rings, signalling another class full of nonsense.

"Well, nice meeting you, best friend A! Hopefully I'll call you soon, and of course I'll see you tomorrow!"

And just like that, Becca runs off to her next class. I just sit there, like an idiot, contemplating why my world suddenly turned grey again.