Fluttering Feeling

“Hina! The bell rang.”

My head jolted up from my desk. I wiped the drool from my mouth as I looked at who called my name.

“Mori. Ah. Um, sorry. I must’ve fallen asleep.” I readjusted my feet, hoping they were firmly planted on the ground.

“Yeah, I noticed. You always do this.” Mori teased. She flashed me a soft smile. “Come on. The school’s gonna be locked up soon.” She started walking ahead.

“Right.” I got up from my desk and started to catch up with my friend.

As Mori implied, it was the end of the school day, and no one else was on campus. Well, almost no one.

We were on the second floor, so the hallway windows gave a clear unobscured view of the school’s track field. The track itself wasn’t much to write home about. It was a single oval red course with grass filling the non-paved areas. However, I would often find myself staring at the track for long periods of time; Or more the person running on the track.

“Isabel.” I unconsciously whispered.

She was running in her usual red shirt and black shorts, training hard. It was sunset and the temperature was getting lower, but sweat still visibly continued to pour down her face as she mustered the strength to go another 100 meters and then 100 more.

Isabel, the cool, confident, intelligent, gorgeous senior who every guy and girl alike in my school was pinning for; Including me. She was the first to arrive for training for her club and was always the last to leave. As a person who put her everything into the things she did, it was no surprise she and her team were a shoo-in for nationals. And although all these factors were more than enough evidence that I, a short junior with average grades, was totally out of her league, I still couldn’t help but get a fluttering feeling every time I thought of her; But for me, that fluttering feeling was more than just something I mentally felt.

Without realizing it, I had started floating again. I had to use the window’s handle to push myself back to the ground.

“Hina, your lagging behind,” Mori called ahead.

“R-right, sorry.” I looked away from the window and jogged to catch up to Mori. I don’t think she noticed.

I guess I should’ve mentioned earlier, but I have this condition per se. When I feel startled, excited, or, sometimes, too happy, I start to float. It’s nothing too insane. I’ve never flown in the sky like Superman before—and thank goodness because I’m scared of heights— I would just float a few inches off the ground. It, for some reason, started a few weeks after my sophomore year, and it was pretty uncommon for me to do. But as of lately, it has been happening more and more frequently, especially when I’ve been thinking about Isabel.

I caught up to Mori, but I wish I could’ve watched Isabel more.

Mori and I walked out to the school’s entrance. Before either one of us could say anything, Mori’s phone rang. She quickly answered, said ‘Yeah’ ‘Yes’ ‘Okay’ followed by a ‘Fine’ then hung up.

“Sorry, Hina.” She rolled her eyes. “I need to run to do an errand real quick. Will you be okay walking home alone?”

“It’s fine.” I put up my hand. “It’s still pretty bright out. Good luck with your errand.”

“Thanks.” She smiled. “Get home safe. And don’t talk to any boys trying to pick up on you.”

I don’t think that’ll be a problem.

But I didn’t say that. I just waved as Mori ran in the opposite direction. I made sure she was out of sight before I stopped waving.

At first, I was kind of bummed Mori and I couldn’t walk each other home. But on the other hand, this would give me the chance to peep—I mean observe Isabel training; At least for a little longer.

I circled around the school to get to the track field. There was a tall chain-link fence surrounding the field. I couldn’t see Isabel due to the high-rise bleachers that blocked off my view of the track; They maybe put them there in an attempt to dissuade onlookers like me. I went to the fence’s side gate, but it was sealed shut with a chain and lock.

“Dammit,” I muttered to myself. I closed my eyes and let out an exasperated sigh.

I just wanted to get a closer look at Isabel practicing. I wanted to see her running. Seeing her long graceful legs and her slender arms pumping against the wind. And if I could see her beautiful face reflected against the setting sun, I’d… I’d…

I was awakened by my daydream by a gentle breeze blowing under my skirt. I opened my eyes and was greeted by the unobscured view of the bleachers; There was no fence in front of me. I let out a yelp then quickly covered my mouth when I looked down and saw I was hovering maybe six or seven feet off the ground. When I noticed how high I was, I started getting a sinking feeling in my stomach. My elevation was sinking as well.

“No.No!”

I grabbed the top of the fence before I fell too far down. I was able to get a grip, haul myself up, and finish my descent on the other side of the fence. I let out a held-in breath the moment my feet touched the ground. My face immediately flushed when I realized someone could’ve seen me, but that sensation quickly dissipated.

What’s done was done. Now was time to take the opportunity to ogle— I mean to admire Isabel. Yeah, admire.

I ran around the bleachers so I could get a better view of the track. I made sure to crouch to make sure it would be harder to see me; Though considering my height, it was probably unnecessary. I peeked to the side where the bleachers ended, but when I saw the track, there was no one there.

“What? Where did she go?” I asked no one because there was no one here.

However, it was then I noticed the door to the school was slightly ajar. Isabel must’ve finished practicing and went to get her stuff. If I remember correctly, I think I heard one of my classmates say the teachers trusted Isabel with the school’s keys because she was a star student and her training would keep her till late. The rumor seemed far-fetched—even for me to believe— but I was starting to think there was some truth behind it.

Without wasting a second, I started bounding toward the door. For what purpose, I don’t know. Was I planning on stalking Isabel for the rest of the day? Was I going to ask her for an autograph or just make small talk? Was I going to finally confessions my feelings for her? Was I going to say that she was the coolest, smartest, most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen?

I don’t know.

For some reason, I felt lighter on my feet than usual. It was like each stride I took lifted me in the air for three seconds before my feet hit the ground once more. I was going faster than usual, and for that, I had less control, so when I saw a random tin can in the middle of my path, I could do nothing to stop my momentum.

Tink

The can was launched ahead as my foot came into contact with it. The can flew up then came crashing down, colliding with the door I was making my way toward. To my dismay, the door swung open slightly, then loudly slammed shut. A few seconds later, I stopped in front of the door. I tried the handle, but it was definitely locked.

“You have to be freaking kidding me!”

A shiny glint from one of the windows caught my eye. I squinted at first, but when my eyes adjusted, I saw her. Isabel was walking along the hallway of the second floor. I also noticed an opened window not too far away from her path.

I could feel myself slowly floating up again.

What was I doing? Why am I doing this? Is this feeling in my chest something that’s good; This feeling that’s making me so irrational? I might get caught doing this. But I wanted to see her. I needed to see her. Her beautiful brown eyes. Her long curly hair. I want to know more about her; More than just what people say or think about her. I want to know the foods she likes, the foods she dislikes, what books she reads, what she thinks of life and what it means to live, if she believes in love, who she thinks she is, who she wants to be, if she loves dogs, what makes her laugh, what makes her cry, her favorite word, her favorite number, her favorite freaking color!

I didn’t need a see myself to know I was as red as a tomato. But I was glad I opened my eyes because when I did, I realized I had just about passed the open window.

“Yipes!”

I was able to grab the ledge from the top of the window before I got too far up. My legs were still floating up like a balloon trying to drag me up with them. Looking down from where I was, I started feeling sick. I got carried away—literally—thinking about her, and now I was paying for it. Even as fear was engulfing my entire mind, my body stayed floating. My grip was weakening. If I let go now, I don’t know how far I’d go before I eventually dropped.

I closed my eyes as tears started falling down my cheeks to the Earth below.

“Woah! I gotcha!” I heard her voice.

I felt a soft, firm hand. I opened my eyes and saw Isabel leaning out the window, holding my wrist. She was clenching her teeth as she tried to pull me into the school. My heart was beating like dumb tumbling down a cliff, but I could feel myself slowly descending. Isabel was pulling me in. When I was fully inside the school, Isabel quickly closed the window then pulled me into an embrace.

I was no longer floating. My two feet were firmly planted in front of the beautiful woman who had saved my life.

“Oh. Sorry, Hina.” Isabel let me go the moment she realized I wasn’t floating anymore. Her cheeks were red. “I um, I held you for a little too... Sorry.”

She knew my name?

Never mind that. This was my chance; It was now or never. I needed to do this right.

“I—I—I,” I stammered before getting my sea legs. “I’ve always admired you. I— I think you’re really cool when I see you run and— I mean you’re always cool and cute— I mean you’re pretty, and I wanted to… I wanted to maybe ask if you wanted to talk or hang out sometime… maybe?” I fiddled with my fingers. “Or maybe exchange phone numbers?”

I could not have messed that up any more than I did. I wanted to shrink down and fold myself over until I could blend in with a speck on the ground.

But when I looked at Isabel, she looked just as flustered as I felt.

“Heh, I…” Isabel was slightly covering her face with her hands. “You… Do you really think I’m pretty and cool? No one has ever said that to me before.”

“I… I have a hard time believing in that.” I could feel myself trembling.

“Really? Ha. Ah. I guess now’s the best time to say I think you're cute too.” Isabel got closer. “I’ve… I’ve seen you around before, but I’ve never had the courage to talk to you. Ah.” She bashfully rubbed the back of her head. “I bet that kind of ruins your cool image of me, huh?”

“No! I mean… I think you’ve just made it better.”

We both stood gazing into each other's eyes as the sunset bathed the school’s hallway in a dazzling amber glow. She was taller than me, but our heads were leveled with each other.

“So,” Isabel chuckled. “I guess that explains why you looked so tall every time I’ve seen you.”

I giggled, knowing that my feet were no longer on the ground.