A Perfect Paradise

 “Lexis…Lexis… LEXIS!” I snap to attention in my seat, almost like in one of those naval movies. The voice that yells my name has a very enraged expression.

“Yes, Mr. Tanner?” I replied as sweetly as I can. I hadn’t been asleep or anything, well maybe not physically. My mind may have wondered when I was staring out the window where the rain poured down heavily. It went to that sweet, beautiful place where everything is just perfect, and of course, he ruined it.

“Can you answer the question on the board, please?” His smile is wicked. The question on the board isn’t part of the curriculum, it's not even math. It’s a random little riddle, like trying to find the pattern stuff. Gosh, does he think I’m that stupid? I mean, sure, I wasn’t paying attention to the actual class, but it was stuff I knew anyway, so why bother? Nevertheless, the problem goes like this:

1, 11, 21, 1211, 111221, 312211, 13112221, ?

“Well, it’s not a math problem at all. You just have to find the pattern rule.”

I see his face fall a bit before he asks, “And what is the rule?”

“Each number describes the one before it. You start with one because you need to start somewhere, but eleven is one 1 in the last number, then twenty-one describes eleven saying there are two 1’s, and you just continue. So, the number you have asked me to find would be 1113213211.” Mr. Tanner frowns as the rest of the class snickers and looks at me & the board in awe.

I look over to the boy sitting in a row and two seats away from me to my left. His dark cobalt eyes watch me carefully, almost like they’re asking me a question I don’t understand or he’s keeping to himself, his lips turn into a playful smile and he turns away as if he got some kind of answer from me.

I sigh deeply thinking about the way his bronze tan matches gorgeously with his dark golden brown hair that is swept perfectly swept to the side, how his eyes are so spirited and mysterious, I love how they make me feel like I’m floating away from where I am and into that perfect paradise. His sharp jawline and pale lips always made me shiver when he smiled at me.

I watch him for a bit longer until I see his girlfriend and my ex-friend walk up behind him and tap his shoulder lightly. She turns her attention in my direction, her emerald green eyes making contact with mine, flashing me a devilish smile. Her long light auburn hair seemed to curtain their faces as she turned to talk to him, privately. I roll my eyes, just to think that this bitch used to be my closest friend.

Delilah and I ended our friendship the day she asked him out. Not him asking her out, she asked him. Let me say it one more time. She asked him! I told her everything, she knew I liked him, and still asked him out. I hadn’t had that slightest clue she fancied him at all. We haven’t talked since, but every now & then our friends will hang out together and we are forced to be in each other's presence for an hour or two. Most of the time I’ll just watch him while everyone talks, saying something every once in a while so that I’m lost in paradise.

In that paradise though, I’m the one who sits beside him, I’m the one who rests my head on his shoulder, he brushes my hair out of my eyes, he’s kissing my…

She moves away from him, laughing. It was a hysterical, annoying laugh. One of those evil witch ones that aren’t scary just vexing.

“Alright class, alright!” Mr. Tanner yells, “Everyone back to your seats.” Once everyone is seated, they continue the class. I go back to that perfect paradise where he is mine.

Twenty minutes later, the last bell goes off and everyone rushes off to outrun the light rain. I quickly walk over to my locker grabbing my chemistry textbooks out for my homework and shoving the math & calculus in. I close the locker door and see the dark-eyed, bronze-tanned boy leaning against the lockers beside me.

“Hello, Lexis.” He says lightly.

“Hey, Madden.”

“The way you solve that riddle was… magnificent.”

“You think so?”

He nods, “You’re smart, Lex, a lot smarter than Delilah.”

I can feel my lips forming one of those sly, teasing smiles, “Smarter, then Delilah.”

“That girl can’t even do her math homework, and whenever I ask her for help she just laughs. She’s stupid, nothing like you.” He brushes a stray piece of hair out of my face and behind my ear. My heart seems to stop and I can feel the blood rushing to my cheeks.

“H-help? You said you asked her for help.”

“Yeah.”

“If you wanted,” I start, a plan forming in my head, “you could come over to my house sometime after school sometime. I could help you with your homework.”

“That would be great! I can’t come today, I got work, but I could pick you up from school tomorrow. If you want, maybe we could hang out afterwards, you know,” his smile becomes flirtatious, “Netflix and chill.”

“What about Delilah? Isn't she still your girlfriend?”

He brings his mouth down to my ear, “not for long,” he says mischievously. My breath catches in my throat and I feel that same type of smile spread across my face as he had before.

“That sounds perfect, I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Bye Lex.” He walks backwards his eyes still on me until I lose him in the crowd of teenagers. I take several deep breaths before turning to walk to the exit I parked my car by. Me and Madden, just the way it was supposed to be. My smile widens as I walk out of the building.

I can feel my heart dance inside of me as I think about Madden, my perfect paradise falling into place, becoming real. I join in with my happily beating heart, skipping and spinning around as I walk to my car. I can hear a song playing in the back of my head.

I'm singing in the rain

Just singing in the rain

What a glorious feeling

And I´m happy again

I'm laughing at clouds

So dark, up above

The sun's in my heart

And I'm ready for love...