It'd been three weeks since the charity event, which was a smashing success as it always was. Taylor didn't talk about the leaves or the wind again, and I never told him about my revelation with Stamos.

Ashes to ashes. Dust to dust.

I sat on the steps, waiting for Taylor. To avoid constantly being late, we started walking to school together. But it seemed to backfire because we were so easily sidetracked. Even the school gave up trying to whip us into shape.

The sun hadn't climbed above the trees, and the air was dewy despite the fall weather coming in. I pulled my jacket tighter around me, enjoying the crispness of the morning.

The front door closed behind me. "Fourty minutes 'til school starts, and the sun's still low," Taylor said. "Wanna go to the park?"

I nodded eagerly, knowing that going to the park with Taylor before school was our usual routine. "But I can't be late today. I have a test in my first class, and I told Miun I'd help her study."

"Ten minutes?"

"Ten minutes."

As we leisurely strolled down the sidewalk, we felt the rough texture of the rocks beneath our feet as we kicked them along the way. As I caught sight of some adorable bunnies, I gasped and smacked his arm. "Taylor, look!" He stared at it for a second before stomping his feet like a maniac, scaring them away. Then he continued on his way. "What a loser," I mumbled.

We reached the park in a timely manner and went straight for the swings. Staying true to his nice persona, he used his sleeve to wipe the seats from the rain last night.

"So, your birthday is coming up soon," I said after I thanked him. "Anything you want to do? Anything planned?"

He side-eyed me. "You know I don't."

I grinned. "Well, there's still a month left, so you have enough time to think."

"I already know you guys are planning something. You should just go ahead and tell me now."

I kicked off the ground. "Nope."

"You're impossible."

"And you're welcome!" I laughed. "Gotcha."

That resulted in a small smile from him, a phenomenon that happened only twice a day, maybe three times on occasion. This was what I called his morning smile. So far, along with his night smile, they've had a track record of every day for two years now. But his afternoon smile was seen rarely-a total of twenty times, in fact. Taylor never lost the balance he created for himself. He was notoriously difficult to read because of how tightly he guarded his emotions. Like a wall had been erected around his heart, and no one was ever allowed to peer inside. So I secretly cheered whenever I succeeded in making him smile.

The chains holding the swings croaked, filling the silence. Closing my eyes, I lost myself in the familiarity of this playground. I didn't mind this part of my life. This would be the change I was most afraid of.

How little we knew was how little it mattered.

"We should head out now," Taylor said.

I checked the time as I slowed down. "Oh, we're actually going to be on time." I smoothed out my dress as we began walking again.

"Did you feel that?"

When I glanced back, he was wiping his face. "Feel what?" I asked as a water droplet rolled down my forehead. I groaned immediately, staring at the sky. "You've got to be kidding me."

"Do you have your umbrella?"

I shook my head. "I have volleyball practice today. I didn't think I'd need it."

A couple more raindrops hit the ground before the downpour flushed us away. We took cover under a nearby tree, still being soaked in the process. As we huddled under the tree, I couldn't help but laugh at the absurdity of the situation.

Taylor wrung out his jet-black hair. "This sucks."

"Agreed, but we can't just wait this out." The rain beat down hard on the trees, insisting that we should still feel its refreshing dampness. My dress was drenched, and my hair clung to my face.

He sighed. "We should go now. We'll only be about five minutes late."

"What an awful day to wear sandals." To avoid slipping around in them, I took them off.

Taylor joined me and popped his shoes off. "My socks are soaked anyway."

Now, with our bare feet sinking into the damp ground and our clothes clinging to our skin, we pressed on with our walk. As we did, the rain-soaked pavement transformed into a watery landscape making the puddles resemble miniature lakes.

The sight of a sleek, black Mercedes swiftly racing past in the opposite direction caught my attention as we skillfully navigated through the muddy pools. We were completely oblivious to the situation, not giving any thought to it, when suddenly a startling sound of tires screeching from behind stopped us in our tracks. As the car smoothly glided alongside us, I was forced to gaze at the gleaming reflection of my own face staring back at me through the polished surface of the metal. I watched the raindrops jump off the surface of the car. It was as if they knew they had no place on an item of such high value.

An elderly man with a pedophile's beard and mustache emerged from behind the clean, rolled-down window. "Would you be interested in a courtesy ride to wherever you are headed?" He seemed too elegant to be a kidnapper. Still, I was skeptical.

My footing slid out from under me, and I nearly lost my balance as Taylor yanked us away from the man. "No thanks."

Another voice came from the car just as Mr. Predator opened his mouth again, undoubtedly to form another kid-stopping sentence. "For crying out loud, Ollie, you can't assume that no one would mistake you for a kidnapper. People stereotype, you know?"

A captivating pair of eyes met my gaze as I cautiously peered through the rear window, their deep blue hue wrapping me in a captivating fascination. As soon as Blueberry Boy caught sight of me, a rush of warmth flooded his cheeks. I turned back to Mr. Predator, or Ollie, as he was now known. But I was sure Blueberry's stare would last until next Friday. "I swear he's not going to kill you guys. He's my driver," he said, bringing my attention back to him. "The rain came out of nowhere, and I felt bad seeing you guys in it. I know you're going the other way, but wherever you're going, we can get you there faster and a lot drier."

Maybe it was the warmth coming from the air vents or the intensity of his gaze, but this car ride didn't sound too bad. I turned my head upward towards Taylor to check if he was okay with it. He carefully observed Blueberry before giving me a subtle nod. With a gentle gesture, he motioned for me to climb into the car, allowing me to feel the smoothness of the seat as I hopped in.

"Where were you guys going?" the boy asked.

"Emerson High," I said, knowing that whenever Taylor was around other people, he fell back to his quiet, small hole.

"Ollie, take us to Emerson."

Smoothly, the car glided down the street. I glanced out the window, trying to distract myself from the uncomfortable silence. The passing scenery blurred together through the rain as we continued on our way.

"Thanks for the ride." Introductions, I figured, were the easiest way to avoid a sense of awkwardness. "I'm Icelyn, and this is Taylor."

Blueberry's mouth curled into a floppy grin, the kind that sent a playful tingle down your spine and created a vivid image of skipping rocks, their smooth surfaces creating mesmerizing ripples that swam through a river. As his words flowed, my mind painted a vivid scene of the fish gracefully dancing, their glamorous colors swirling beneath the glistening water.

"It's nice to finally meet you. I'm Tao."

~~~

Tao and I talked the entire ride. He seemed like he'd already lived a full life, and his thousands of stories made it easy to strike up a conversation. It was inspiring to listen to someone who had truly embraced life to the fullest.

"So, what do your parents do? " he asked, after explaining how his mom could top Jeff Bezos' fortune all by herself. Without boasting, of course. He clearly cherished his mother.

"Well, I'd love to compete, really, but I'm actually an orphan." I let out a small laugh, and his hands flew to his mouth.

"Sorry. I didn't even think," he stammered.

"It's alright," I reassured him. In comparison to the typical challenges of being an orphan and with albinism, which he didn't seem curious about, this was manageable. "There's plenty of things people don't talk about. Like Taylor. Except he just doesn't talk at all. But he's working on it, right?"

Taylor gave me the fiercest side eye as I teased him. He was probably silently swearing at me.

Tao eyed us. "You guys seem close. Are you just friends?"

I nodded. "He's my best friend. We live in the same home."

As friendly as Tao's tone was, I knew from all the romance novels I'd read that he was asking the question for himself.

We had just met, and yet he liked me already.

And I wasn't going to deny the fluttery feeling in my stomach either. But this was too soon, too fast. After this, he and I would get back to our own lives.

The car came to a stop, and with it, the conversation. I smiled awkwardly as we said our goodbyes and thanked them for the ride. As we slid off the red leather seats, Taylor nodded in appreciation and helped me out of the car. I couldn't help but laugh because of the trail of water we left behind.

"Well, thanks for letting us ruin your seats," I said, slipping my shoes back on while Taylor squeezed his socks out beside me. The sun's rays, which were now shining through the murky clouds, had taken control of the sudden rainstorm. "See you around, maybe?"

His smile radiated warmth and joy. "I'll keep my fingers crossed." After acknowledging Taylor, he signaled for Ollie to roll out.

And he was gone.

I briefly remembered Stamos, realizing I let a lot of things walk away from me. But sometimes it was necessary to let go. As I watched the car disappear into the distance, I made a silent promise to myself to embrace the future and not dwell on what could have been.

"Have you guys ever met before?" Taylor asked.

I shook my head. "I can't even think of when I would've."

He hummed, his favorite way of responding. "I think it's time you own up to that revelation of yours."

My gaze landed on him. "And that is?"

"Change." He spun around, hands in his pockets. "But you already knew that." His gaze stunned me into silence, and I scoffed, flabbergasted.

"How'd you even-"

"Come on, they're about to close the doors," he said.

Then I remembered my test. "Mrs. Shirley's going to kill me."

In a swift motion, I snatched my bag from its resting place, then promptly trailed behind Taylor towards the entrance. As we hastily rushed towards the doors, I couldn't help but think about how he came to be aware of the fact that I was starting to embrace the idea of change. But maybe that just showed he was paying far more attention to me than he let on.

The front desk lady paid us no mind as we stumbled in, squeaking. She was too engrossed in her own work to notice our hurried entrance.

"I'll see you at lunch," Taylor said, taking off to his class after I nodded.

I left our conversation behind as I became more focused on not getting an earful from Mrs. Shirley. Taking a deep breath, I boldly entered the classroom, breaking through the quiet atmosphere. "Good morning, my favorite teacher ever. As you can see, I got caught in a storm. So, if you excuse my tardiness, that'd be-"

"See me after class, Icelyn."

People snickered as I trudged to my seat. I didn't pay attention to them because they were probably failing this class anyway.

My exam was waiting for me at my desk, so I grabbed a pencil and started writing. The girl sitting next to me flicked me, and when I turned to face my friend Miun, I noticed she spiced up her look today. She opted for black make-up and the darkest color she was able to wear-purple.

"You look like you had a fun morning," she whispered.

"That stupid rain came out of nowhere. We were going to be here on time, I swear."

She grinned. "It's okay. Seeing you drenched makes up for it. Is Taylor the same way?"

"From head to toe."

"Damn, I hate missing the opportunity to make fun of him."

Mrs. Shirley cleared her throat, and we stifled a laugh. "Let this be a reminder that this is a testing environment. I should not be hearing voices, especially when so many of you are failing my class."

Everyone else ceased their conversations, and the rest of the period was silent. Miun and I finished early, so we chatted on paper. And after the bell rang, a collective sigh came from the class. I was sure no one studied for this test.

Miun packed up her stuff. "I'll wait for you outside." I nodded, and she left. "See you tomorrow, Mrs. Shirley."

Our teacher gave a tight smile before settling her eyes on me. She gestured to the desk front and center. "Shall we?"

I let my bag fall to the ground with a heavy thud, collapsing onto the seat beside me. Exhaling heavily, I crossed my arms. "In my defense, I was going to be on time today."

She stacked her papers, clearly unimpressed. "There's a forecast for a reason, Icelyn."

"Well, it's not like my first thought every morning is to see if the rain gods favor me or not." I leaned back in my chair, slightly annoyed. "But if you'd rather I do it from now on, then I'd take it more into consideration."

She shook her head. "It's not entirely about that. It's also about responsibility." If she was frustrated with me, she didn't show it. "Be sure to remind yourself that you made the decision to attend this school rather than pursue a home education. You possess outstanding academic abilities, although it is important to address your occasional lapses in responsibility and the occasional use of a sharp tongue. I'm not going to touch on the issue of carelessness that I have noted, but I would advise you to grow some tact. You should see that it would be applicable in most personal situations and often others as well. Like today, for example."

She held up someone's test paper. I looked at the test paper, realizing that it belonged to Miun. The sight of all the red markings made me feel a pang of guilt.

"Your friend could've used a study buddy today."

Her mother's excessive focus on academic performance was the cause of Miun's test anxiety. She'd told me about it before. It wasn't like I wanted to be late on purpose. It seemed like we both just ran into some unluckiness.

Mrs. Shirley gave me a pointed look. "Have you started to see my point?"

I was quiet for too long.

More students filed in, and I gathered my belongings. "Thanks for the chat, but I've got to get to my next class." I threw a smile at some of my volleyball friends. "Don't wanna be late again. See you tomorrow."

I made my escape to where Miun stood, drawing on her arm. She turned to me, smiling. "All set?" she asked, and I nodded. "She kept you longer than usual. What'd you guys talk about this time?"

Miun and I had developed a strong bond of friendship during our time in middle school. As the years went by, we became very familiar with each other's quirky characteristics and imperfections. I had always been known for my own behavior of perceiving the world with a more optimistic view, while she had her own distinct characteristics shaped by her mother's strong influence on her life. A lot of aspects of ourselves became defining traits of our friendship, adding depth and complexity to our connection. Although these two particular things were different from each other, they had a similar impact on us. We became good friends because we always treated each other well.

Well, I really dropped the ball today. Her test score would stress her out, knowing that her mom was going to lose her mind. And Miun wouldn't even think I was at fault.

I needed to make it right.

Though, for now, I forced a smile at her. "Ah, you know. Just the weather."

~~~

I waited outside Taylor's class after fourth period, then caught up with Miun before walking to lunch together. Joisephina, our other friend, claimed our table by laying atop it. People stared as she rolled away, and we all took our seats. Josiephina distributed all of the meals she had prepared. It was Thursday, so pasta was the order of the day-veggie pasta for me.

Miun dug into her bowl of meaty noodles with pleasure. "Honestly, I'm surprised you've done this for an entire year. I couldn't even find time for something like this."

"Once it's part of the routine, it's easy," Josie said before turning to face me with a cheeky smile. "But I'm more interested in this guy I heard about."

Miun slapped my arm, eyes wide. "You met a guy today? Girl, why didn't you tell me?"

"It seems that someone is talking a lot more these days." Taylor said nothing as I stared him down.

Josie scoffed. "You think I wouldn't get it out of him after you guys came to school looking like naked rats? Hell no. Now spill."

A smile suddenly formed, an unwanted reaction. I didn't want to appear lovestruck for a stranger I'd probably never see again. "Well, I mean, it was super cliche. You know, me and Taylor getting caught in the rain, and then this rich hottie-"

"Give us a good visual," Miun said with her mouth full.

Josie nodded. "Yeah, I need to know everything. Hair color. Eyes. Voice Range. The smell of his arm hair."

I laughed. "Only you would smell someone's arm hair."

"Duh. It lets you know if they use lotion properly."

"Sure, sure." I rolled my eyes. "Anyway, so his name was Tao. He had fluffy, dark hair almost as long as Taylor's, but it didn't really reach his shoulders. But it was definitely enough for a man bun. His voice was pretty deep, and he had this really cute smile. Swoon-worthy. Oh, and his eyes were like a dark blue."

They gasped. "Dark blue?"

"Dark. Blue." I swallowed some food before speaking again. "Taylor thought we might've met before."

We all turned to him, anticipating an answer. "He said it was nice to finally meet her."

"Finally?" Miun tapped her chin. "Seems like you have a handsome stalker."

"I swear I've never seen him before."

"Interesing. What was his name again? Tao?" Josie asked before whipping out her phone. "Pretty sure I can find him."

Knowing her, she probably would. She had connections everywhere. After all, she'd lived here her entire life, like I did. But she was a little over a year older than me, like Taylor. So, we'd only met by chance last year due to her being Taylor's partner for a project at the time.

"You have practice after school today, right?" Miun asked.

I sighed. "Unfortunately."

Josie nearly choked to death, and Miun dropped her fork. They exchanged glances with one another before focusing on me. "Unfortunately?"

Their confused faces didn't surprise me. I was the fun one, after all. I put my all into the things I loved, and volleyball was one of them. As were art and my friends. I still had a soft spot for these things, but I was fed up with the same old song and dance.

But, even though Taylor somehow figured it out, I still found myself not quite ready to address my revelation of change. After having the opportunity to meet Stamos, an intense surge of excitement and inspiration ignited an unrelenting fire within me. That said, I couldn't bring myself to share just how deeply I wanted that chance due to embarrassment.

"What do you mean by that?" Josie's voice fell with concern.

I waved it off. "Nothing. I'm just tired today, and I heard Coach is going to change our usual play. I'm just not looking forward to it."

"Well, change is fun sometimes," Miun said.

"I agree."

I kicked Taylor under the table.

"Yeah, you never know what it can do for you or who you'll meet," Josie said. "I used to be goth before I met Icelyn. I swear I was only one day shy of practicing dark rituals in my closet. But then I met Icelyn, swinging in the shade in a flowy sundress and the ankle boots I stole from her."

Laughter bubbled out of me. "I remember that day. Taylor passed out from exhaustion that night."

"He's such an introvert," she teased, shouldering him.

"Speaking of him," Miun said, "have you said anything about his birthday party? I know we settled on something in our separate chat."

Taylor looked up for the first time, sighing. "You guys always talk about me like I'm not here."

"To me, that just sounds like you're curious about our plans." I squinted my eyes at him. His blank stare actually held some curiosity for once. "Just admit it, and I'll tell you."

Taylor's eyes narrowed as he considered my words. Then, "Nevermind."

I scowled. "You're awful." He opened his mouth, but I cut him off, already knowing what was going to come out. ""You're welcome," my ass."

He almost smiled, and I laughed in victory.

The bell rang a couple minutes later, and everyone dispersed to their next class. Pushing through the hallway, someone bumped me.

"Hey, watch it," I said to the idiot. Tanner Unik, to be exact. A guy who failed pre-algebra in his freshman year. Now, he was a junior taking sophomore math classes.

"I must be hearing ghosts since I can't see who said that."

I rolled my eyes. "I hope you weren't racking your brain all day to think of that. Gotta leave room for your stupidity too."

His friends laughed, and I pushed him aside, walking into my class-advanced algebra. A junior class. Being a sophomore, I chuckled to myself and threw his words out the window.

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How's your flat iron?