Forbidden High School Romance: A Night of Passion and Self-Discovery It was the greatest night of our young lives. Our predetermined existences have finally come to a close, and we were all finally in the drivers seats of our own destinies. The first decisions most of us made were to celebrate in an alcohol-fueled frenzy. Not you, though. You’ve always been more elegant and mild-mannered. The decadence and irreverent nature of teenage years had seemed to pass you by. You always were the quiet one, frequently blending into the walls, the type of girl John Green would model his novels after. It would be a lie to say that I never noticed you, though. In the fleeting moments of the day where my brain wandered, it always seemed to wander towards you. I’m such an outspoken and brazen guy, an active participant in the world around me and I’ve wondered how you can be content to be an observer. I’ve wondered what your life was like outside of these walls, what your sense of humor was, what your hobbies were. I’ve usually dismissed these thoughts as mere idle noise within my mind. You were the girl that I never talked to, that sat at the desk on the other side of the room. That’s why I was surprised when you invited me to your graduation party. We were strangers passing by each other in the halls all four years of our adolescence. I felt like I would be out of place there, a deer caught in headlights. I didn’t know you, any of your inner circle, or your family, but something in me just couldn’t say no to your soft-spoken voice, so I decided to go. You told me to bring my bathing suit, it was a pool party. I arrived at your house later that night, and your backyard appeared to be a ghost town. There was a table whose only company was a six pack of Coors Light, and sun chairs left to tan alone. There you were, in a navy blue bikini, lounging in your pool. I assumed everyone else deserted you, but you didn’t appear to be upset at all. You waved to me and told me to come on into the pool. I took off my shirt so that I only had my swim trunks on, climbed the ladder, and got in. The water was just right. My mind was right. …the next moment changed everything
