"I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship."

***

"Did you hear me?" a voice interrupted me from my physics assignment.

My pencil froze on the middle of my paper.

"What?"

I peered up from my Physics assignment at Annabel's face. Asami was watching right next to her, a peach in one hand and her phone in her other. Their brown eyes were both watching me with strong curiosity.

I found it strange that Annabel and Asami requested to do work in the library instead of sit in our usual table at lunch, considering the fact that Asami hated doing schoolwork and preferred socializing. I agreed for the sake of friendship until I realized it was to get me alone.

"What do you think of the people here?" Annabel asked, ignoring her assignment that was in front of her.

Asami wrinkled her nose. "Everyone is calling you the hot girl. Great for you and all, but some of these guys are way below your league and the fact they think they have a chance with you is just offensive."

I shrugged. Nothing about the school was anything eye-catching. First week of senior year was just as uneventful as I anticipated for it to be.  It reminded me of when I was transferred to private school six years ago.

Being the new kid meant being bombarded by new faces and assignments.

"Yeah they seem nice..." I trailed off, peering down at the first AP physics assignment of the year. Despite the simple statement, it was simply the truth. The people I met seemed fine but there was nothing about them that intrigued me. Some tried to keep conversations with me, but it stopped when they realized I had nothing to say. "I can't tell if people here are sincere or not."

"Eh most are not," Asami answered. "If you are asking specifically about the girl that kept talking to you all week, then I don't think she is. I'm pretty sure Emily is just hanging out around you to get into Archy's pants. She has had a crush on him since freshman year."

Annabel nodded with agreement.

"She was my friend only until she realized I was not as close to him as she thought I was," Annabel added, her face wrinkling with mild annoyance.

"Archy is nice, so I guess it makes sense why she likes him," I admitted.

Archy introduced himself to me again later in the week and apologized for his friend's behavior. Out of the few people in the class, he was the only one that managed to rouse a reaction out of me. It was obvious right away he was the popular one because many different group of people always go up to talk to him and laugh like he belonged to all of them. Even the teachers seem to have liked him and constantly bring up how he led the team to victory.

I didn't blame them. He is fun. Disarming. Carefree. Charming.

Asami raised an eyebrow.

"So you guys are friends now," she mused, her fingers rapping on the table. Her black nails vibrated on the table, echoing her deep thinking of this new information I was sharing with her.

I shrugged, quickly trying to finish a quick calculation for a physics assignment. "Yeah, I guess. We have Calc together."

"So by association you are friends with Alex then," Annabel concluded.

I frowned.

"By association?" I repeated.

She nodded.

"Archy and Alex are really close. I think their parents went to medical school together or something so they have been friends since birth. They even live five minutes away from one another. That is why if one of them is doing something stupid, the other one is usually right next to him. When I mean the one who does something stupid, that's usually Alex," Annabel elaborated.

It made sense why I spoke to Alex a lot as well then. Usually he joined when I was talking with Archy. He was obviously more cocky than Archy. It was clear he is the mastermind behind the "stupid" things they did, and that was confirmed when I was told learned he was the one who started the bet that resulted in one of them trying to steal from my house.

"Alex is alright too," I finally agreed.

"Both are pretty good looking guys I would say," Annabel dropped casually.

Asami rolled her eyes. "She means just Alex. You are going to learn she has the hots for him."

"Shut up," Annabel cheeks turned slightly red, and her eyes shut for a brief moment.

"So you know Devon, Archy, and Alex. What do you think of Akito then?" Asami asked curiously.

"He's nice as well," I admitted to them.

Avoiding them was out of the question since they were friends with Asami and Annabel. Akito hangs out with Asami so he spoke to me as well. He apologized again and we actually had things in common. Out of the guys, he was the easiest to talk to since we had similar interests.

"What about France?" Annabel asked, referring to the person I was have been trying to push out of my mind. "Did you talk to him?"

France Santos. I learned a little about him from people speaking about him though I have tried to avoid bringing him up. We haven't spoken throughout the week, not that he tried to. I didn't either. Seeing him only brought anxiety. At the sight of him, my chest tightened and every instinct was telling me to avoid him.

So I did.

"Not really. I need to reach out to him for the assignment in AP Literature due tomorrow," I admitted. "He hasn't reached out either though."

"I think he feels bad about what happened," Asami said.

"Then why would he do it?" I snapped suddenly, feeling myself recoil along with Annabel and Asami from my harsh voice. Even though I was aware that it was an overreaction, there was just something about him that left my uneasy.

The fact that another person can make my body tremble to the point it could shatter like glass was terrifying.

"Because these boys were doing something stupid," Asami explained, running her hair stressfully, playing with the end of the red tips. "France is one of the nicest guys I have met. He did something stupid for sure, but I know he regrets it. He's so nice."

I felt being closed in by her words. My ears rang with from the logic that only made me want to back away.

"Why are you telling me this?" I asked lightly, trying conceal my nervous tendencies.

"You forgave the rest of the boys and their stupidity. What is different about France? Akito was in the room too but you're not judging him for the same thing." Asami pointed out.

I sighed, rubbing my face of any unease that was emitting from the surface.

"I don't know. Akito was there too but only to look for his friend. But he..." I emphasized on him. "He-he-he invaded my room. I know it's a party, but it was just my room. My privacy. When life goes wrong, that was the place I could go. I don't know...I just feel like it was violated. It reminded me of something in the past that made me feel..."

My voice dried up before I could finish the sentence.

It was a party, so this was going to happen, but I didn't expect the strong reaction to come out of me. Something when I look at him made me feel unwell. I never let anyone into my room. Not since my privacy was last invaded. It was the only place for me to just have peace with myself.

Asami put her phone down to reach out to put a hand on mine. I looked up to her sympathetic smile.

"He isn't Joey. Joey was an asshole who didn't deserve you. He was the one who betrayed your trust. France isn't Joey. France is just stupid." Asami squeezed my hand tightly and her smile became pained.

"It's not easy." Even with all the walls she build, thoughts of him tainted my mind like a toxin. Dying lungs. Unable to breathe. Mind rotting. Blurry vision from the salty tears. Those were only some of the symptoms I endured for almost eight months. "We were dating for two years...and he didn't even care about me. And what he did, and the worst part-" I clamped my jaw shut when my voice broke.

Annabel reached out and put her hand on top of Asami's and mine. Annabel didn't know the extent of Joey, but I was grateful that she did not push. Reminding myself that they are on my side, pushing the darkness away for another day. Using their strength, I managed to pull myself together.

"The worst part about Joey is that I miss him. I want to forgive him so badly. If he asked for it right now for it, I would say yes. I just want to ask why."

My friends look at me with sympathetic smiles.

"This is normal to feel the way you do." Annabel agreed, her smooth voice soothing over my words like a balm. "But it's not your fault. He's gone. It's hard to accept that but he's gone."

The pain, instead of pushing back, scattered like shattered glass.

"Yeah," I said, pulling my hand away from them.

"We are going to have a good senior year no matter what happens now," Annabel reassured me with a warm smile.

I only wish I could believe that.

The rest of the day was boring. My mind landed on Joey for the rest of the classes. I felt like junior year. After he left the school, I spent the classes thinking about along with the rest of the class, who bombarded me with what happened to him.

The minute the final bell rang, I immediately got up to shove all my stuff into my bag. The anxiety from thinking about Joey was getting the best of me, and I needed to go home.

"Going off somewhere?" Archy asked, still sitting in his desk. His muscular arms crossed over his chest, his hair slightly frayed from the hot day. He was watching me with mild interest as I was determined to leave the school.

I shrugged. "Just want to just get out of here."

He got up slowly.

"I wish I could go out with you," he stated glumly, pulling both his school bag and a sports bag partially unzipped. "I need to work out, and go to practice. I rather lay in the sun all day and take a nap."

"You'll be fine. You love football if I heard," I reminded him. He ran his fingers through his hair and wrinkled his nose.

"So people keep reminding me," Archy chuckled to himself before holding his items closer to me. "I will see you around girl France."

I couldn't help but smile at the nickname. After much debate, Alex and Archy couldn't figure out what to nickname me to differentiate from the other person who shared name and agreed to just refer me as "girl France."

I picked up the remainder of my items and hurried out of class. I told Nonna that I would come to her home to visit after school ended. If I knew anything about my grandmother was she was not a person who liked to wait around for anyone.

I thought about what Asami and Annabel spoke about, and thought about the real reason that I wanted to escape into my grandmother's home. I felt the truth building it as anxiety. The muscles in my chest squeeze in a way that I imagine a heart attack would feel like. The more I spoke about Joey, the more I couldn't get the negative feelings out of my mind.

I, along with my mind, froze when I saw France.

He exactly looked the same. Every time I saw him, I anticipate for him to look different - more devilish in fact- but he looked exactly the same as when I was him in AP Literature this morning. I kept imagining him being a large shadow that loomed over everything.

But he wasn't.

He seemed...normal.

His hands were shoved in his gray hoodie and jeans. Despite my earlier conversation with Asami, anxiety cascaded my entirety in place of any ounce of relaxation I felt. I watched him frown at the girl speaking to him.

The girl across from him was pretty, her hair was a dark shade of brown that reminded me of mahogany. Her mouth was moving so fast that I couldn't make out a single word, but France's eyes were wider than I have ever seen him. His mouth slightly parted before they formed a tight line and he shook his head hard. The girl head's hung low and he took two steps away.

I turned my head away, realizing that I might be watching a private moment unravel.

Focus on yourself not him.

I mentally shook off the scene and continued walking towards.

"Wait up!"

The familiar voice stopped me at my feet. My spirits were doused before I could turn and seeing him walk fast towards me as if I would escape within the crowd if he walked too slowly. He eventually slowed and stopped a few feet in front of me. My body was frozen, unable to move with only enough energy to take a few steps back by the locker.

"Can we talk?" he asked softly, shoving his hands in his pockets.

He must want to talk about the assignment that was due tomorrow. That makes sense. That is logical...what I'm thinking is not logical.

I nodded slowly, gripping the straps of my bag tighter. "Uh sure. We should probably talk about the writing assignment due tomorrow."

He shook her head, his face remaining unfazed. He started to rub the back of his neck before his hand went to touch the red mark on his head.

"I actually wanted to apologize," he stated, looking at me with such intensity that I almost flinched.

"For what?"

His eyebrow arched.

"I think we both know the answer to that," he responded with a light tone with an uneasy smile.

I shook my head, refusing to hear the apology. Every ounce of energy I had to have this conversation left.

Anxiety replaced it.

"Then really there's no need to say anything," was all I muster before looking at my shoes on the ground.

There was a moment of silence. I looked up at him and studied what he at his reaction. His tan complexion suited his thick brows that always seem to be position as a frown. The bruise on his forehead shrank slightly, the dark blue color began to transition to a red color.

"I just wanted to say sorry and I feel bad about what happened," he repeated, his cheeks turning slightly red.

"Then why did you do it?" I bursted out, biting the tip of my tongue at the realization. So much for trying to stay cool and under control. I did not want to sound like a naive, little girl- like some naive, Bambi-eyed female who did not know any better.

He pursed his lips, and his eyes washed with an undecipherable feeling that I could not detect. Sadness? His brown iris was dawned with a shadow that appeared black.

"To be honest?," he began softly. "I don't even know. At the time, I just wanted to do something interesting. I just wanted to break away and I wanted to prove-" his voice stopped as lines marred his forehead. "I was just an idiot. I don't expect you to forgive me because I was an asshole. I hope what I did could make it up to you."

He rubbed the back of his neck again, something I realized he did when he was not sure how to say it to my face. "I wrote the paper due tomorrow. Make any comments necessary and turn it in for the both of us. I trust you."

Before I could process what he said, he opened his bag to hand me the small pile of paper.

"Take it," he insisted firmly.

I took the paper silently, not looking at what he wrote. My eyes were glued on him, trying to figure him out. His brown eyes flickered to the papers in my hand before on his face. His eyes frowned at my silence. I wanted to move- to do something to prove that I was fine.

"It looks great," I said quickly, clutching the unread paper closer to my body and not even looking at it. "Consider it as a way of making it up for me."

He shook his head.

"No. We need to figure this out," he insisted, his posture suddenly growing uneasy and his eyes averting from me. He made a hand gesture that motioned between us.

"Figure what out?" I asked.

"Devon and Asami are dating, and in general, our friends hang out together. I get...I get you don't like me, but we will be seeing each other a lot. We have to learn to coexist."

"Coexist?"

France looked at me and nodded with an unsure smile. "Yeah, coexist. Be in the same room together without you wanting to pull my hair our and me, to be frank, not to be terrified to speak to you," he stumbled out roughly before clamping his mouth into a hesitant smile, watching me for any reaction.

I stood there.

Terrified to speak to you.

That was how he felt about me.

I stared at him. Looking at the uneasy boy in front of me, I only focused on his smile because it seemed...genuine with the right touch of shyness that left an unexpected warm in my body. Any notions I held before slipped away.

All because of that hesitant smile. 

He's not Joey. He's not Joey. He's not-

"Sure. Let's coexist, France," I finally conceded, battling the anxious feelings that were slowly receding back.

"Sounds great, France."

Hearing our names out loud, I couldn't help but chuckle. He gave a questioning look at the sudden burst. I didn't blame him. I would've also given the same response.

"Hearing both of our names out loud sounds a little funny," I confessed, feeling silly for feeling this way.

He laughed along.

"Agreed. What's your actual name again?" he asked.

"Francesca."

He nodded, repeating the name out loud to himself. He rubbed his chin before making a noise followed by him shaking his head.

"I think I will call you Franny," he teased.

My eyes almost bulged out before they narrowed at his smirk that crept across his face. I sputtered, trying to figure out what the hell to say to this man. All the hours of socializing with friends, I never stumbled so much in a single conversation in my life.

"You are not going to call me that," I demanded, the fire I felt earlier coming back to life.

"What are you going to do about it?" he asked with amusement.

"I will give you another bruise that matches the one I gave you to your head."

His face dropped, his hand immediately reaching out to touch the bruise. The bruise was the same as before with its bright purple undertones but this time, a yellow rim formed around the bruise to show that it was healing rather fast. It will be gone within a couple of weeks.

I would know. I had some that took longer than that to heal.

"On that note, I will head out. I will see you around," he imagined to slip out one more time before slipping away from the conversation before I could give him a piece of my mind. I watched him as he scattered off down the hall, peering back once more before exiting out the door.

I didn't know how to react -- what to make of it.

I was even plain dumfounded.

I couldn't believe I have to coexist with him.

Author's Note: I know some of yall are going to hate on girl France for the way she acted but it will make more sense later on the story. Anxiety doesn't make you think clearly, and something very obviously triggered her.