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Friday, 15th of March 2019, 08:30pm
The rain is relentlessly drumming against the windows of the theater group's rehearsal room. The pupils around me are all chatting with one another, stating how excited they are about the senior prank meeting. Great ideas here, great ideas there.
And then there's me. I'm sitting in the middle of the room, wishing to be somewhere entirely else. Far away from this place, far away from all this nonsense.
Why am I even here? I hate meetings, the last time pranks were considered cool was in primary school and I certainly don't like hanging around school after 8pm on a Friday evening. Friday is Highday. What did I do to deserve this?
Okay, point taken, the weed issue is on me since I was the one who put it into Amira's bag at the party, but still. Why can't she just give it back to me like every other normal person would do?
Not that I'm afraid that Abdi could murder me while I'm sound asleep – he reminds me more of a turtle than a tiger – but he's my friend after all and I don't want him to get into any trouble just because I panicked and made the weed disappear like some Uri Geller apprentice on their first day.
Amira is glancing at me from the top of the stage that's situated in front of us. Next to her is Kiki who's trying to calm herself down. Wanna bet she's failing?
“Where are they?,” Amira's asking me by silently moving her lips and I just shrug my shoulders, because why would I know where Jonas, Carlos and Abdi are? It's not my fault that they are late again for a meeting.
I sigh and grab the phone from my pocket to open the group chat. Maybe they've answered by now.
Great. Just great. Whenever I need them they fuck up. Or in case of Jonas: fuck someone else.
“How about 90's fashion? Or rather Flashmob dancing?,” asks Kiki, too thrilled for her own good. It's cute that she's super excited about all this but at the same time I could roll my eyes the whole time. Flashmob dancing? That shit was cool back then in 2007 together with Fall Out Boy and Panic! At The Disco, but who's still into that nowadays?
“We could also hug some teachers… or each other.”
What? Okay, shit. Time to go.
They are slowly creating a circle, while I'm trying to reach the door to freedom at the back of the room without someone noticing me. Once I'm out on the hallway, having closed the door behind me really carefully, I breathe a sigh of relief.
That was close. What was even going on in there? If I tell this to the guys no one's gonna believe me.
I'm just turning around and taking a few steps when someone is approaching and my heart almost stops beating for a second. This black-haired guy that I saw on Monday in the hallway upstairs is walking by again. Like last time I follow his every move. He's wearing his signature headphones – or at least that's what I associate with him now – and an outfit that's pitch-black from head to toe. Maybe he would actually enjoy those flashmobs with emo music. Thnks fr th Mmrs.
I don't know where I get the courage from but before he can press the door handle I find my voice again and say: “I wouldn't go in there.”
And this is how it all starts. How I invite him to smoke pot with me in the cellar after agreeing upon the fact that holding hands is kinda premature, and how I find out that he killed someone and had to move places to lay low. (Seriously: What the fuck?) But the most important thing I learned so far? – His name. He's no longer “the guy from the hallway”. He's no longer just someone. He's David now.
“You've got an eyelash there,” he says and I almost miss it, which shows how lost I was in his brown eyes right from the moment our gazes met for the first time.
I cautiously touch the skin below my eye and soon enough have the lash stuck between my fingers. It's small and you can barely make it out, but it's certainly there. Fragile like my heart that time has left its mark on.
After observing the lash for some more time I lift my head and look David dead in the eye again.
“Can I make a cool wish now?”
Can I wish for being happy for more than just 3 minutes? For not thinking about Jonas and his one night stands for once and how each one is piercing my heart all over again? For Sara to stop sending me silly pictures that I don't even wanna take a look at? For me to find out what I really want?
“And what do you exactly wish for?,” David is asking while taking a drag from the joint.
“Dunno.” I shrug my shoulders and lower my gaze to look at my sneakers. “Maybe some world trip. New York, Hawaii, Paris.”
He's laughing. “Yo, chill. That's just an eyelash.”
He's then handing me over the joint again and I take a drag as well.
“What's in it then?,” I'm asking while watching the white smoke in front of me that I just exhaled.
“Rumor has it that Marzahn, Zehlendorf and Neukölln are pretty nice places when having the right people around,” he replies, wearing a big grin on his face and there's nothing I can do but to return it.
We're staring at each other and my eyes are roaming over his fine features. Eyebrows on fleek, septum, slightly curly hair and a smile that absolutely kills you? Sign me the fuck up. Why wouldn't he murder his parents earlier and move here already last year?
I'm just about to ask him about his old school when there's suddenly Sara standing right next to me, grinning like a Cheshire Cat. Jackpot. Not.
“Oh hey, not in the mood for senior pranks?”
Rather: Not in the mood for you and those crazies up there. But that's something I can't really say out loud right now, can I?
Instead I give her reluctantly a kiss. And, as if on cue, David's handing Sara the joint and then turning his attention back to me to say goodbye with one last smile.
“Well, I have to go now. See you around.”
I don't even have the chance to respond as he's already left the cellar before I find the words to say.
“That's him,” Sara says excitedly.
“Who?,” I'm asking.
“Duh, the guy Leonie has a crush on.”
I don't really get at first what she's talking about but then I remember the talk we had yesterday. Fuck. David's the guy from the advanced PE class?
I bring the joint to my lips and take a long drag. I almost have to smile about this shit show. How high are the chances that Leonie and me have a crush on the same guy? First it was Jonas and now David? I guess in case of a zombie apocalypse we should never be put in the same room together with a bunch of guys only. That would probably end in a blood bath like Game of Thrones. And we all know that no one's gonna survive. Spoiler Alert!
I slowly exhale the smoke and lift my gaze to the ceiling from which a single neon tube is hanging, bathing the surrounding walls in a bright white light.
“I think that's someone else," I say. It's not Leonie. It's me.
Later on, I make my way back to the S-Bahn station with Sara. Fortunately, she has to take a different connection to get to her parents' house. To be honest, I wouldn't be able to endure more of her rambling on about her best friend and her soon-to-be-boyfriend.
“Well, see ya,” I'm saying and am already turning around when Sara is grabbing my arm.
“Don't you wanna meet up on the weekend?”
I'm lowering my gaze, shortly considering what my best options for a credible excuse are.
“Tomorrow I'm with the guys and I wanted to visit my mum on Sunday.”
I think I played my cards right. The one with “mum” printed on it always takes the win.
“Oh, well, okay then.” She's obviously disappointed, letting go of my arm and waving at me before jumping into the carriage of the S7 which takes her away – along with my thoughts about her.
I sit myself down on the wooden bench on the opposite platform and grab my phone. Spotify is open and I type something into the search bar on top, which is fairly successful. Didn't I carry some headphones around with me? Once I find what I was searching for, I put in the In-Ears, press play and close my eyes already after the first few chords.
I'm gonna make you bend and break (It sent you to me without wait)
Say a prayer, but let the good times roll
In case God doesn't show (Let the good times roll, let the good times roll)
I completely black out the world around me, even let the S-Bahn pass by that I could easily take to finally get back home. Right now, the only thing that I can see before my inner eye is David's smile when he was happily talking about Detroit not so long ago.
One night and one more time
Thanks for the memories even though they weren't so great
He tastes like you, only sweeter.
(Fall Out Boy- Thnks fr th Mmrs)
Shortly before the song is over I open my eyes again, a smile being plastered on my face.
My dream just came true.
Mission DaWeed™ has officially started.
