A Love Story

Chapter One

         Andrew leaned forward and pushed Midnyt’s hair back behind her ears. His gentle hand pushed the bottom of her chin up, until their eyes met. Even though she was wearing high-heel shoes, Andrew was still many inches taller than her.
         Midnyt was dressed as a queen. She had the tiny, dark blue dress that she saw in the window of Water’s department store. It was covered in tiny, glowing sequins that reflected the moonlight. She had silver shoes that matched perfectly.
         Her hair was twisted into a million braids. “Hollywood style,” her friends would say.
         She had waited all her life for a moment like this. The wind was gently blowing. The stars lay above. This was straight out of a fairy tale. She’d spent hours dreaming of his kiss. Was this all just a dream?
         Andrew looked like a knight. He had a loose tan shirt with faded writing on it. If you squinted hard enough, you could almost read it. “Luke’s Diner and Pub,” it stated. A dark blue shirt, almost the exact color of Midnyt’s dress, was underneath that. Only the collar and the sleeves were visible from under Luke’s advertisement.
         “You’re beautiful,” Andrew whispered, as his eyes stayed locked on hers.
         She couldn’t dare speak. Any words she could sputter from her mouth would purely ruin this moment. She just smiled. “Kiss me, kiss me,” she thought.
         “I’ve waited months to tell you this, Midnyt,” he spoke softly. Midnyt realized that she was biting her lower lip. It was a habit that she developed years ago. She immediately stopped.
         “Yes, Andrew?” she spoke. Her voice, normally harsh and squeaky, now sounded feminine and smooth. She didn’t blink. She knew exactly what Andrew was going to say.
         “I… well,” Andrew muttered. “I don’t know how to say this,” he continued, taking his eyes away from Midnyt’s and staring at this shoe.
         Andrew took the tip of his right shoe and drove it into the ground. Bit of gravel and dirt came shooting into the air. Midnyt noticed the bottoms of his pants were slightly worn away from dragging on the ground when he walked.
         “Don’t be afraid. You can tell me anything!” she wanted to say, but she just stared down like Andrew did.
         “You’re a really great girl,” he said, quickly looking up at his expression and then his eyes returning to the ground.
         He actually looked scared. Andrew Morrison actually looked scared. His eyes darted from her face to the ground again and again. “Please don’t be scared, Andrew!” she screamed in her mind. She had to say something. She just didn’t know what to say.
         Before she knew it, her arms were wrapped around his neck. It was a swift, quick motion. She couldn't even remember how she got there. His body was warm. This was the best moment of her life.
         “Midnyt,” he spoke loudly, slightly pushing me away. “I…. I lo...” He sighed.
         “It’s alright, Andrew. You can say it,” she said.
         Andrew's eyed grew wide. His mouth dropped open, and a loud, annoying, "WA WA WA!" escaped from his mouth. Midnyt could feel sweat forming at the back of her neck. She couldn't breathe.
         Her eyes darted open. The alarm clock was going off. She was late for school.

Chapter 2

         Midnyt didn't think school was as bad as what she portrayed to her mother. Every morning, she whined and complained to her mother, practically begging her to let her stay home. Eventually, Midnyt caved every day and got dressed.
         This morning she put on a knee-length skirt that her grandmother had given her. It was yellow and had small blue flowers. The bottom slanted, and had a small frill on the bottom. It wasn't exactly cute, but it wasn't ugly. It would have to do. She matched it with a lavendar three-quarter length shirt that dipped down a bit too low in the front. Her favorite pink flip-flops completed the outfit.
         Midnyt hated walking to school, but to her it was her only option. She refused to ride in her mother's car. Bob would surely be there right next to her mother, and Midnyt hated no one more than she hated Bob. Bob was her mother's boyfriend.
         Bob and Midnyt's mother had met at a club. At least her mother called it a club. Midnyt knew it was a single's bar. Bob was the kind of guy who would play the part of a hero in a movie, or that's what Midnyt thought. His hair was on the long side, but it outlined his face well. He had a goatee, but Midnyt often noticed that he misses the tiny hairs below his side-burns on a regular basis.
         Bob dresses like any veterinarian would. When he didn't have his medical coat on, his neck was adorned with a tie, his feet with ugly, plain dress shoes, and his body with the ultimate in old man clothes. In Midnyt's opinion, his outfit alone failed the "Is it alright for me to date your mother?" test that she detects everytime her mother brings home a new lover. Bob was one of the few men that failed even before he spoke a word, but his words certainly didn't win him any Oscars anyway.
         Midnyt refused to take public transportation either. Not only would it give Central High another reason to tease her, but it wasn't safe. Winston wasn't a bad city, but whatever local slum that did exist in Winston surely exposed itself through public transportation. Out of the handful of times Midnyt had subjected herself to a dreaded busride, she had gotten her butt pinched at least ten times.
         Midnyt sighed as she slowly walked down the stairs and headed for the front door. A few seconds later, she would be joined by Melinda, her best friend. I guess 'best friend' wasn't the best way to describe Melinda. Melinda was her only friend. They had been friends since the years of diapers, and vowed to be friends until they returned to them.

Chapter 3

         Melinda was the "It Girl" of Cental High. It seemed she could come to school in pajamas, her hair unwashed, and her face missing her daily makeup ritual, and she would still be the most beautiful girl in the world. She was the girl all of the guys wanted to nail, and she was the girl all of the girls wished they were. She was prettier than Midnyt, cooler than Midnyt, and more popular than Midnyt, and Midnyt wished she was Melinda in everyway.
         Midnyt's mother often told her that things like looks and popularity didn't matter. Midnyt knew this, and she accepted it. However, Melinda wasn't just pretty and popular. She was also perfect. Her father is a minister, her grades soar above everyone in the class, she's more street smart than anyone known to mankind, and she always sticks up for the little guy. If Melinda was a word, beside her in the dictionary it would have read, "flawless."
         Midnyt, on the other hand, wasn't like that. She couldn't walk five steps without tripping over the air. Her grades were average, like most things about her, and she was a ditz. She felt as though she just blended in the crowd, and that no one knew the name of the small girl that sat quietly in the back of the classroom. She wished she could just vanish away.
         Today Melinda was dressed like always, as a queen. Her full chest showed off her new button-up shirt. It was girly, with tiny pink flowers in random places, like everything she wore was. Her shapely legs were barely covered with her short, short, short pink skirt that matched perfectly with with her shirt. Her hair was pulled back into the perfect bun. Just one look at Melinda and Midnyt felt like the ugliest person in the world.
         "Why can't I look like that?" Midnyt wondered as she tried to look happy to see Melinda. Midnyt often wondered why Melinda was her friend. Melinda could have kind of friend she wanted, because everyone loved her. She was worshipped by all the small, middle schoolers. So, why would such a goddess choose to be friends with a lowly, acne-posessing, unmatching, dweeb like Midnyt? Midnyt wasn't sure, but she couldn't imagine not having Melinda in her life.
         "Hey, babe," was the first thing Melinda said to Midnyt when she walked out of the door. Midnyt wished that she could walk to Melinda's house, instead of the other way around, to meet up to walk to school. Melinda's house was big and impressive. Meanwhile, Midnyt's house was dull and ugly. Midnyt felt embarassed every single day that Melinda saw her house, and wished her mom could hold a steady job so she could move into a better house. Midnyt had mentioned before that she would feel more comfortable walking to Melinda's house, but, because her house was not on the way to school, it didn't seem practical.
         "Hi," Midnyt squeaked out in return. Even when it came to voices, Midnyt thought that Melinda was greater than her. For once, she just wanted to be better than Melinda at something, even if it was small and insignificant. "I don't feel like talking much today." Midnyt wasn't sure what posessed her to say that, but Melinda, being the perfect person that she was, understood that. Melinda responded by giving her a hug, and walking to school silently, with her arm around Midnyt's shoulder.