Mortal Perspective

That boy with the green eyes is really cute. I wonder if he's interested in airplanes, too. Oh, I can imagine us soaring higher and higher into the sky. I'd steer, but he would put his strong hands over mine to help. He'd lean closer and say, "Erika…"

     "Erika."

     "Erika!!"

     "Huh?" I snap out of my daydream. Mr. Smite, our history teacher, is standing in front of my desk, arms crossed.

     "Ms. Harold, do you know the answer to question five?"

     I can feel my ears turning red. "Uhh, no," I mumble.

     Mr. Smite smirks. "I didn't think so." He turns to the object of my affection. "Mr. Jackson?"

     Erika Jackson. That sounds quite nice.

     "Yeah?" Wow, he must work out a lot. His arm muscles are very well defined. It would feel very good to have one of them around me, I bet.

     "Do you know the answer?" Mr. Smite's eyebrow raises.

     'Mr. Jackson' chews his lower lip. God, how cute is he? "Um, 1770?"

     "No! Did any of you listen? As I said…" Mr. Smite starts going on and on and on and on about our history lesson. Good. Now I can start thinking of names for our future children.  

******

I'm outside school now, waiting for the bus to come. 'Mr. Jackson' is a few yards away, and I'm trying to work up enough nerve to go talk to him. C'mon, Erika, man—er—woman up! He's not going to bite you if you just say hi. Oh, but what if I say something stupid?

     Before I can ponder it any longer, my feet start moving. He's 20 feet away…now 10…

     Soon, I'm standing right in front of him. After hearing my footsteps, he looks up. I think my heart just stopped. His eyes are a bright, sea green. I'm drowning in them, and I never want to stop…

     "Hey, you're in my history class, right?" His smile is gorgeous!   

     I can't find my tongue. I think I dropped it somewhere, maybe at the bus stop? "Uh, um, yeah. I'm E-e-erika."

     He grins. "Nice to meet you, Erika. I'm Percy." He sticks out his hand. I shake it.

     His hand is calloused and warm. I'd like to hold it again. "I hope Mr. Smite isn't always so… smiting all the time," I say, trying keep up the conversation.

     He laughs softly. Bonus points for making him laugh. Maybe I can win him over with my humor and charm!

     A pretty blond girl strides over. I don't recognize her from school today. She smiles at Percy, who grins back.

     "Hey, Annabeth!" Percy says, kissing her cheek. Wait, why did he kiss her? She can't be his girlfriend, can she?

     "Hi, Seaweed Brain," She replies. Seaweed Brain? What kind of nickname is that?

     Annabeth finally notices me and her eyes narrow a tiny bit. "Who's this?"

     Percy chuckles at Annabeth's expression. She glares at him. "No need to get jealous. This is Erika. She's in my history class."

      Annabeth blushes. She mutters, "I'm not jealous."


      Percy rolls his eyes. "Suuure, Wise Girl. Whatever you say."

     "Are you calling me a liar, Seaweed Brain?"  

     Honestly, I'm kind of lost in their conversation. The nicknames are just weird, and I'm not really sure what going on.   

     "Um, the bus is here. I should go," I mumble. I'd better get out of here before they start sword fighting or something.

     "Oh, uh, bye. I'll see you later, Erika," Percy calls distractedly.  

     I think I'll reconsider my (fictional) relationship with Percy. Even though he's really good-looking, who would want to marry someone nicknamed 'Seaweed Brain'?

     Annabeth, I guess.