Tom
When I first saw her, she was helping Mrs Scott hand out plastic cups of red cordial and pieces of cake in serviettes to the kids after the church service. I was following Gram, introducing me to all her old church friends at my first church experience.
It was quite nice, starting over. Not having people look at you awkwardly, disgustingly, judgingly. Having old ladies fond over you, touching your “lovely soft hair” without any judgement.
This was all before Gram got sick and stopped talking. Before she had to use a walker out in public. When she was still young, the tender age of seventy-one. Oh, how people grow old quickly.
It was when one of Gram’s friends popped the question that I happened to notice Meela.
‘So, does Thomas have a girlfriend?’ Mrs Kaplan was directing the question at Gram but they both awaited my answer. I didn’t hear anything they’d said because all I could see was her.
Meela.
She was smiling brightly and talking to the kids, unaware that anyone was observing her from a distance. I couldn’t tear my eyes away from her, her long brown hair falling in her eyes and her thin lavender puff-sleeved top falling against her skin.
I noticed things like this. From my old days.
She did not once notice me.
Of course my grandma and her little circle of old lady friends noticed me staring at Meela.
Mrs Richards piped up, poking me in the shoulder. ‘Eyeing off a girl already I see?’
‘That’s Hugh Paterson’s daughter, Milla.’
’No, you bat! It’s Meela!’
‘Of course she’s the first one he notices, she’s very beautiful and young!’
Meela. If Gram’s friends were anything like her, in the next ten minutes Meela probably would have found out that I had been watching her. Lucky for me I shyly made the ladies promise they wouldn’t say anything.
Gram dug me in the ribs once we’d left her little circle in search for some other friends she had to catch up with. ‘So, why don’t you chat to this Meela?’
‘Gram!’ I shushed her; we were walking past Mrs Scott and Meela, laughing with a little blonde girl, tiny ponytails bouncing around as she explained something to them.
Just looking at her for five minutes made me feel like I already knew everything about her. The way she would smile if I caught her by surprise, the way she would throw her head back slightly and laugh with her lips parted, eyes squinting as she concentrated on me.
I didn’t talk to her. We went back home before I could muster up the courage to. But in all honesty, I didn’t really want to say anything to her. I was quite content just looking at her.
And that’s how it was for the next month, until somehow or rather we were introduced. The pastor at the church was having a conversation with my grandma and happened to be a relative of Meela’s, bringing her over as she was passing to introduce her to Gram. I was standing off to the side, checking something on my phone and was suddenly dragged by the arm into the conversation by Gram.
‘Ah! This must be Thomas!’ Pastor Ethan smiled, holding out a hand in greeting. ‘I’m Ethan Matthews, a pastor here at this church. It’s truly lovely to meet you, Thomas. Your grandmother never spoke about the rest of her family when she used to come, so it’s lovely to see you.’
I couldn’t risk looking at Meela in fear I wouldn’t be able to look away, so I trained my eyes on the pastor’s face, finding myself smiling back.
These church people were actually really lovely. They’d surprised me. At the last church my grandma dragged me to, they’d been a bit more arrogant and stuck up. Maybe it was because these people didn’t know about me.
‘Nice to meet you too, sir.’
Gram spoke up. ‘Yes, Pastor Ethan, it has been quite some time hasn’t it? I’m really glad I live close enough to come more often now.’
‘Yes, what a blessing it is.’ The pastor touched Meela’s shoulder and she smiled. ‘My niece, Meela, is really investing her time into the church, dedicated to the children’s program and the youth group. I believe she’s about your age, Thomas?’
‘Tom is almost eighteen,’ Gram said with a smile. She knew I wasn’t good with words and new people.
‘I’m still seventeen as well,’ Meela said, holding her hand out to me as well. ‘I’m Meela, nice to meet you.’ It took me a second to realise she was actually talking to me.
When my eyes flickered over to hers, I couldn’t take them away. I was worried about this. Her smile was bright, showing her perfect teeth and creating tiny dimples in each cheek. I swallowed and then eventually took her hand and shook it.
‘Yeah, you too.’
‘How long have you guys been coming to the church now?’ Meela asked my grandmother. She was really good with people.
‘Oh, about a month now. I used to come here all the time, but you probably wouldn’t remember. You would’ve been too young. I’ve only just started bringing my grandson with me now since he’s living with me.’
‘A month! I can’t believe I didn’t say hi before,’ Meela said kindly.
After more boring chatter of which I did not participate, Meela said goodbye to us, mainly to my grandmother since I didn’t speak. The pastor had a brief private chat to Gram, and someone came up to me, introducing herself to me.
‘Hi, I’m Nicole. What’s your name?’ She had long red hair and was a whole head taller than me. Probably in her twenties.
‘I’m…Tom.’ My old name almost spilled out.
Nicole smiled brightly. ‘Is that your grandma talking to Pastor Ethan?’
I nodded and she stood beside me assessing the main foyer area of the church as if we were old friends.
‘Are you…out of school?’
‘Yeah.’
‘Nice, what are your plans for your future? Are you working or studying…or what?’
I hated this topic. I said what Gram had offered for me to tell people. ‘I’m just working full-time at the moment.’
‘Nice, earning those bucks,’ she laughed. I pretended to laugh and she eventually left after a moment of awkward silence. No matter how much she wanted to talk to the newbie at church, I would not talk. This was not my scene.
