Little Talks

A Story by JLily98

When I met a guy that ended up meaning more to me than I ever expected

In early March on a Wednesday, we ran into each other in a McDonald’s
I quickly learned your name after asking my friend, “Who’s that?”
Let’s be honest, who would want to forget a name with such a face?
I assumed you’d forget me after that encounter, so I didn’t bother saying mine

A few weeks later I received a friend request from you
Surprised you remembered me or maybe it was because of our one mutual friend
Either way, I accepted

About a month later on a Monday, I went to your college to visit that same friend who told me your name
Unexpectedly, we made eye contact both times you showed your face for thirty seconds before leaving to wherever it was you were going
We exchanged only smiles until you left for the second time with a “Goodbye”, but my voice blended in with the rest saying goodbye back
Once you left, I started asking general questions about you like “So, does he just show up for five seconds and leave?” “Yep, literally,” my friend replied. Kind of disappointed, I didn’t want to ask much more in hopes that neither my friend nor any of hers would know I had an interest in you

The following Tuesday I came by again with no intention nor expectation of seeing you, but of course I had a little hope I’d get to see your face even if it was for only five seconds
Pulling out an infamous card game out of my bag, that’s when I noticed a tall shadow over me
It was you
From small talk about the game to cracking jokes, I was hoping you couldn’t see through my clammy hands and hesitant articulation how nervous I was around you

We played the game for a while until your next class started
You asked how long I’d stick around for and told me you’d be back in time to see me again
Having to reassure myself that you’d stick to your word, I asked my friend if she thought you’d actually follow through
Expecting a positive answer, her response left me with doubt that replaced the seat you once filled across from me

After counting the minutes that had passed by, my doubt surrendered at the sight of you walking towards the seat next to me
The nervousness I felt earlier that day suddenly vanished
With one empty seat next to you, you offered a seat even closer - your lap
Even with all my hidden insecurities you’ll soon learn about, I didn’t feel any creep up on me until we both decided to get up to find out how numb our legs were

I must say, the time spent on your lap was one of the best moments I’ve ever experienced
Anyone who truly knows me, knows I have a hard time expressing my affection in public
But with you, even with all eyes on us, all mouths speaking about us, all I could do was focus on you and didn’t care who was watching

I must be honest, I’ve never had a connection like that with anyone
Especially on the first day of actually meeting someone for the first time
And there’s a part of me that wants to believe it was new for you too