First Kiss
When I was ten years old, I had a crush on a classmate of mine. To my eyes, Iris was as cute as the day was long. My fantasies ran from us laughing together in class, to us even holding hands while we were walking. None of this blossomed into reality, though, because I was just too shy. Fear of being rejected was the biggest problem. Coming in as a close second did not know how to approach the whole subject of "achieving a girlfriend." It all seemed so easy for my parents. They always seemed so happy. "Where was my second half?" I'd say to myself.
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As the bell rang and everyone walked out of class, I found that Iris was getting ready to pass close by to me. I drummed up all my courage and dared to smile in her direction. She kept her eyes down and walked past me. Could it be that she didn't notice or maybe she just didn't like me? I watched as her ponytails walked out of the classroom, and she never turned around. At first, I was disappointed, but soon it didn't matter. I found myself to be smitten, and there could never be another. Or so I thought.
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One Saturday afternoon, my mother took my brother and me to visit a lady that I had never met before. This new friend and my mother sat at the dining table, and they proceeded to laugh and run their mouths a mile a minute. In contrast, I sat uncomfortably on the couch between my eleven-year-old brother, Louis, and this mystery girl who had to be the daughter of my mother's friend. M.G. (mystery girl) was sitting close by on my right, and of course, I was feeling awkward. The thing that saved me from embarrassment was the three coloring books and a giant box of 64 Crayola crayons on the coffee table. Lou and M.G. were making a natural mess of their pages, but this situation was a child's play for the artist. As the two of them spent most of their time attempting to choose the right colors, I showed them both how to use a darker color crayon to outline around the lines to add more definition and then how neatly I colored within those new lines.
"That's nice," M.G. said. "How do you do that?"
I proudly gathered my thoughts and prepared to give a smart-sounding answer, but my more experienced brother was much quicker on the draw.
"Oh, he always colors good," Lou said. That's because he knows how to draw.
"Please draw me something," M.G. begged while she pulled on my right arm.
Now, she had thoroughly inflated my ego. I felt like I had a new fan. In the open corner of the page, I drew a picture of a little girl holding a pot of pretty flowers. I then quickly added colors that seemed to match. M.G.'s eyes got big as I finished, and she grabbed my arm again.
"That is so cute," she said, and then she gave me a quick peck on my cheek.
I'm not sure which shade of brown I was turning, but it felt like beet red. I nervously glanced over to my mother, but she or her friend seemed to notice what had happened. My brother did, though. He thought the whole thing was hilarious. He kept one eye on the two women who were talking about dress patterns or something and the other on us. He quietly spoke.
"I think she likes you, Lloyd," he chuckled. He then picked up a newspaper that was also lying on the table in front of us. He proceeded to hold up the paper wide so that it blocked the view of the three of us from the parents.
"Kiss, kiss, kiss, kiss," my brother said to both of us.
I proudly gathered my thoughts and prepared to give a smart-sounding answer, but my more experienced brother was much quicker on the draw.
"Oh, he always colors good," Lou said. That's because he knows how to draw.
"Please draw me something," M.G. begged while she pulled on my right arm.
Now, she had thoroughly inflated my ego. I felt like I had a new fan. In the open corner of the page, I drew a picture of a little girl holding a pot of pretty flowers. I then quickly added colors that seemed to match. M.G.'s eyes got big as I finished, and she grabbed my arm again.
"That is so cute," she said, and then she gave me a quick peck on my cheek.
I'm not sure which shade of brown I was turning, but it felt like beet red. I nervously glanced over to my mother, but she or her friend seemed to notice what had happened. My brother did, though. He thought the whole thing was hilarious. He kept one eye on the two women who were talking about dress patterns or something and the other on us. He quietly spoke.
"I think she likes you, Lloyd," he chuckled. He then picked up a newspaper that was also lying on the table in front of us. He proceeded to hold up the paper wide so that it blocked the view of the three of us from the parents.
"Kiss, kiss, kiss, kiss," my brother said to both of us.
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I turned my head to look at M.G., and to my shock, she pecked me flat on the mouth! I gathered up my courage and decided to pucker my lips. With my brother urging us on, we pecked about six or seven more times. By this time, Lou cracked up with laughter and tried to hold the newspaper as steady as possible. The trembling paper caught the attention of my mother.
"What are you boys doing? Stop acting so silly. We're getting ready to leave soon, so behave." |
Louis put down the newspaper, and we all giggled at each other. Five minutes later, the three of us headed home. As we walked through the crisp, fresh air, I had only one thought. "I was in love!" I had had my first kiss, and she really was my girlfriend." This feeling of floating lasted for two weeks until me, and my mother bumped into M.G. and her mother on the street.
To my shock, M.G. didn't say a word to me. It was like she didn't even recognize me. As the two mothers said goodbye, I felt crushed. How could my girlfriend treat me like this? Funny how that crushed feeling only lasted for a day. Iris began to look cute again, but then again, so did a lot of other girls. Growing up was starting to be fun.
To my shock, M.G. didn't say a word to me. It was like she didn't even recognize me. As the two mothers said goodbye, I felt crushed. How could my girlfriend treat me like this? Funny how that crushed feeling only lasted for a day. Iris began to look cute again, but then again, so did a lot of other girls. Growing up was starting to be fun.
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