James x Citric
The paths of our lives crossed for the first time one ordinary day, early in March, as we sat down to eat lunch with a mutual friend. It wasn’t really planned, and none of us ever sat together before. We had all individually grown tired of the people we normally grouped with, and the three of us found each other, relocating at a new place in the back where no one would notice us. It was a refreshing switch, and it fell into place seamlessly. Of course, having grown up together throughout our childhood, we knew of each other, had passed each other in the hallways or been in the same classes. So it was strange that we found ourselves here as seniors in high school having our very first actual conversation.
In the beginning, I mostly listened as the other two spoke, preferring to hang back quietly and observe, as was my nature. I liked to gather information and remain generally unnoticed while I formed my opinion of new people, before I let them see me. This was how I sorted out the human beings from the waste products, as I liked to say. James, however, seemed very easygoing and complacent. Though he looked big and strong, he had a quiet voice that drifted pleasantly through one’s ear. He had a sort of gentleness about him, and it won me over in the end. Sarcasm seemed to be his most fluent language—something we shared—but he was never impolite, always joking, always smiling. This was a personality I had never seen before in someone, but I found it quite appealing. And thus, I began to participate in the conversations as well.
I looked forward to lunch time now in a way I never had before. Our three personalities mixed in such a way that it was uplifting to our moods, a nice change from the idiots we all spoke to the rest of our day. James and I found that we had more in common than we thought, and we bonded over conversations about food and old TV shows from our younger years. We shared jokes and stories, and I even paid him two dollars to eat some brown mystery slop one day. Disappointingly though, the contents of it remained a mystery.
A few weeks passed by smoothly in our existences, and one day in my painting class—the last one of the day—I ventured next door to the photography room, and spotted James seated alone at one of the computers on the far wall. It sent a pang of sadness to my heart; I knew all too well about loneliness, and I hated being by myself in a room full of people. I snuck up behind him and pulled up a chair, offering a quick “Heywhat’sup” as greeting. That was how we always said hello; it was a humorous thing really. He was surprised to see me, and yanked out one of his ear buds, turning the volume down on his iPod.
“I had a funny dream last night,” I told him with a smirk. “You broke up with your girlfriend because you hated her so much, and then
we were dating instead! And then I walked past her in the hallway and there was a weird slow motion moment; we just gave each other death glares, it was so dramatic!”
“Oh that’s hardly a dream though,” he laughed, “I really do hate her!”
Of course he didn’t truly—he loved her to death, but she got angry with him almost daily for seemingly no reason at all, and every time he spoke to me about her, he seemed to be so frustrated. It was a poisonous relationship; it wouldn’t last much longer if it continued this way.
But as we chatted, my dream kept popping back into my mind—I had never thought of James as anything more than a friend up until this point, it just wasn’t something I wanted. But all the encounters we’d ever had were pleasant and positive, and it was nice to talk to a real human being. He wasn’t a grade A stud—he was a little shorter and a little heavier than most of the other guys. And he
did smoke occasionally, something I was completely against. But the more time we spent talking, it began to feel like we’d known each other for years. James was great company, and one of the only people I looked forward to seeing each day.
However, there was no need to overcomplicate things with a different kind of relationship. A great friend was all I needed at that point in my life. It was just something to think about.
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: His username was Dragonperson
: Her username was Princesslilyme
: His username was Princethecooly 
: His username was Dragonperson
: Her username was Princesslilyme
: His username was Princethecooly 
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