Page 16 of Collided

Marie nods. “It works for me.”

“Okay then.” I look past her in the crowded hallway. No one pays attention to both of us. We might as well be invisible to them. I get why people avoid me. I’m the nerd, the girl who’s always reading books and getting A’s. I don’t talk and avoid human interaction as much as I can. I’m also shy, awkward, and quiet. All the things people probably don’t like.

Marie, on the other hand, she’s someone who’ll fit perfectly in the popular group. I’m surprised she doesn’t already have girls flocking behind her. She is friendly and also beautiful.

“What class do you have right now?” Marie breaks my chain of thoughts.

I don’t speak a lot, but my mind is always having full-on conversations. I swear, it’s not creepy. I just think a lot.Sometimes so much that I want to escape it and find quiet somewhere.

I take out my phone to check my schedule. “English.”

Disappointment flickers through her hazel eyes. “That’s a bummer. I have computer science. It’s my elective.” She explains while I think I’ve never seen her around school. She said we share classes, but since my eyes are always fixed on a book I might’ve missed her.

The second bell rings and the hallway gets crowded.

“I’ll see you during third period at the library.” With that, I leave.

Marie is right on time as she walks into the library. I take in her outfit; a white top and a pink skirt, paired with white sneakers that are decorated with art. Cherry earrings, a gold heart necklace, and beady bracelets complete her look. There is so much color and fashion, which suits her.

She nears me with a dazzling smile.

“Hi.” Her smile is her best accessory.

I quickly close the novel. “Hi.”

She puts down her bag and takes out a notebook. Her eyes land on my novel. “You read.”

I nod.

“That’s great. I don’t read books, because coding is my thing. I’m always learning and experimenting with it for hours.”

“You must be great at it.”

She blushes and shakes her head. “My teacher says I’m brilliant, but really I play a lot with it. Coding seems easy to me. I want to do it for the rest of my life. And since you read books,I bet you’d join a publishing house or something. I don’t know much, so please don’t mind me if I’m wrong.”

Mom’s words echo in my head. Instantly my heart drops into my stomach in despair.

I answer in a neutral tone, hiding my pain, because what good is there to show it? “It’s fine, I don’t mind. There are various things you can do besides joining a publishing house. But I won’t be able to, because I’m going to med school.”

A gasp leaves her mouth. “Med school? That’s excitingandterrifying.”

I agree with the terrifying part. Studying for so many years just to do long shifts. I don’t like how absent Mom is from home. Days go by before I get to see her. We spend little to no time with each other. All we have are messages and calls that are too short. I don’t want the same to happen to me. I want to do things, read books, and visit places like Hogwarts—the film set in England. I won’t be able to do any of that if I become a nurse or doctor. I’ll be bound to the hospitals and patients. While it’s a noble profession that saves lives, I just don’t think it’s for me—a high-strung person who gets anxious and lives inside her head.

“I’m good at science,” I repeat Mom’s words.

Marie beams. “No wonder you are. Mr. Carlie mentioned you’ve never gotten below A-plus. That’s amazing!” She sighs heavily. “Here I am flunking that class when it’s the last time I have to study it.” She leans back into the chair. “I’m not an overachiever, but I like getting good grades, and it’s not because of my parents. They’re cool with anything, as long as I'm happy.”

It must be good to not feel pressured to follow a certain path and do whateveryouwant to do.

“I can make you some maps that’ll help you memorize information.” I change the topic to slide away the gloominess weighing on my chest

She nods enthusiastically. “Yes! That would be helpful. Also, I talk a lot, so stop me if I ramble.”

It’s the most anyone has ever talked to me.

I offer her a genuine smile. “I don’t mind.” I mean it.

For the next forty minutes, I explain the topic to her and fill pages with summarized notes and web diagrams. Once I’m done, we solve a few questions together, and she answers most of them correctly. I help her when she needs a hint, but she does well on her own. I realize her weakness lies in a lack of understanding, and not learning.

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