Almost Got Her

I had never met her.

That was probably the strangest part of the entire story.

She wasn't my girlfriend.

She wasn't my best friend.

She wasn't even someone I could claim to know.

She was simply someone I had noticed.

And somehow, that had been enough.

It began on an ordinary Monday morning.

The kind of morning no one remembers.

The school grounds were already crowded when I arrived. Students moved in groups, some hurrying because they were late, others standing around talking before the bell rang.

My friends were arguing about something completely pointless.

I wasn't really listening.

I was looking around, still half-awake, waiting for the morning to end before it had properly begun.

Then I saw her.

She was walking across the school grounds with a few of her friends.

I don't know what made me notice her.

Perhaps it was the way she laughed.

Perhaps it was the way she seemed completely at ease, as though she didn't care who was watching.

Or perhaps, sometimes, your attention finds someone before you understand why.

I looked at her for a second.

Then another.

Before I knew it, I was still watching her.

"Bro."

I didn't respond.

"Bro."

I finally turned.

"What?"

My friend was staring at me with a grin.

"Are you all right?"

He glanced past me, then back again.

"You've been staring over there."

I frowned.

"Where?"

He laughed.

"You know exactly where."

I shook my head.

"I wasn't staring."

"Of course not."

He gave me the look friends give when they've figured something out before you have.

I tried to ignore him.

But when I looked back toward the crowd, she was gone.

For some reason, I felt disappointed.

It didn't make sense.

I didn't know her.

I didn't even know her name.

Still, my eyes searched the crowd for another glimpse.

Nothing.

The bell rang.

Everyone began moving toward their classrooms.

My friends started walking ahead, calling for me to hurry.

I followed them.

But while my feet were taking me toward class, my mind remained somewhere on the school grounds.

I kept thinking about her.

Not in some grand, dramatic way.

It was simply a thought that refused to leave.

Who is she?

That was all.

At least, that's what I told myself.

---

The rest of the morning passed normally.

Lessons.

Notes.

Teachers speaking.

Students whispering when they weren't supposed to.

Nothing particularly interesting.

But every time the classroom door opened, I found myself looking up.

I wasn't expecting her to walk in.

She had no reason to.

Still, I looked.

By lunchtime, I had almost forgotten about the entire thing.

Almost.

I was sitting with my friends, listening to them argue about something once again, when I heard laughter coming from across the courtyard.

I recognized it.

I looked up.

There she was.

The same person.

The same laugh.

A different place.

I looked away almost immediately.

My friend noticed.

He didn't say anything this time.

He simply smiled.

"Don't," I warned him.

"I didn't say anything."

"You were about to."

He laughed.

I shook my head and looked down at my food.

For the next few minutes, I tried to focus on the conversation around me.

It didn't work particularly well.

Every now and then, I glanced up.

She was still there.

And each time I looked, I wondered the same thing.

Should I go and talk to her?

The answer was always the same.

No.

Not yet.

I didn't know what "yet" meant.

I only knew I wasn't ready.

Maybe tomorrow.

That sounded better.

Tomorrow, I would find a reason.

Perhaps we'd end up in the same place.

Perhaps someone would introduce us.

Perhaps she would speak first.

It was easier to imagine those possibilities than to actually walk over.

So I didn't.

---

After lunch, the day slowly dragged toward the final bell.

By the time school ended, most people were already thinking about going home.

I packed my bag and walked outside with my friends.

The sky had begun turning orange, and the noise around the school was finally fading.

For some reason, I looked back.

She was there.

Not close.

Not looking at me.

Just standing with her friends near the entrance.

I slowed for a moment.

My friend noticed.

"You could go and say hello."

I looked at him.

"You really think I should?"

He shrugged.

"Why not?"

I looked back at her.

He was right.

There was no real reason not to.

I could walk over.

Say hello.

Introduce myself.

That was all.

Three simple things.

My heart still disagreed.

"What if it's awkward?" I asked.

"Then it's awkward."

"That's your advice?"

"Yes."

I laughed.

He started walking again.

I remained where I was for a few more seconds.

I watched her talking with her friends.

Then she turned and began walking toward the opposite side of the school.

My opportunity was disappearing.

I could have followed.

I didn't.

Instead, I caught up with my friends.

As we walked home, my friend looked at me.

"You really should talk to her."

"I know."

"So what's stopping you?"

I thought about it.

Then I gave the only answer I had.

"I don't know."

But I did.

I was afraid of discovering that the person I had spent the entire day thinking about wouldn't want to know me.

So I made a deal with myself.

Tomorrow.

Tomorrow, I would do it.

Tomorrow, I would finally say hello.

I didn't know that tomorrow would become a word I would regret.

Because tomorrow sounds like a promise.

But sometimes, it's only an excuse.

And at that moment, I had no idea how much time I actually had.

I simply kept walking home.

Thinking about her.

Someone I had never met.

Someone who didn't know my name.

Someone who, without saying a single word to me...

had already become the person I hoped to see again.

And somehow, that was only the beginning.