New Faces // New Love // Axel

[Emma]

Keelan Faye

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There are places I remember all my life
Though some have changed
Some forever, not for better
Some have gone and some remain

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Quite the sight within my head. A raging swirl of nothing. Nothing meaning everything. And everything meaning something. Thing. The colours are not colour, and the shapes are not shapes. They are simple emotions. Of whom, I have no clue. But they belong in my head. My head to hold. My thoughts to think, everything belongs, like a little puzzle. A puzzle that never actually fits together, pieces missing, probably under a couch from the last time someone tried put it together. Pieces, many pieces, all lost beneath couches somewhere, and I am on a journey to find them all, to find myself.

Couches and I have a lot in common you see. We are both used to being sat on, used as a stop to rest, until we are off to another better place. Sometimes we look worn out, our fabric torn and our cushions deflated, and people walk by and think “Ew. That’s not a very nice couch. I won’t sit on that couch.” Or “It’s the wrong colour.” It hurts. But look at me, comparing myself to a couch. Pphht. That won’t help your reputation Keelan. Shut up. Stop.
Sorry about that. She’s a bit of trouble sometimes.

The sight inside my head is quite the thing to see. Stop Keelan, you’re going in circles again. Okay. Let’s start where I am. There we go.

I sit on a hill, crested in the center of a field, the field the shape of the moon, perfectly round and speckled, moving in a massive wave like no other, the wheat head moving in sync to the gentle breeze that had begun to pick up, my hair swirling around my body, flashing across my clouded vision. The field was empty on a day like this. It was a day off, a rarity, and a gift. I was alone on this hill, rocky and infertile, has been left unseeded. In the center is the single most beautiful tree in all of Panem. It’s an ancient oak, its limbs so strongly binding it to the sure earth. We call it “The Witching tree” since it is one of the only trees for miles of flat prairie. It has been a mark for lovers for many years. Initials carved into the rocks at its roots, because nobody would dare hurt the land mark. So many kisses stolen beneath these very leaves, and many loves sparked. It’s atmosphere is a perfect environment for a budding romance to flourish into a fully blooming flower of love. And so I sit, alone beneath this tree.

Almost alone. A I see a figure walking out towards the tree, hands trailing the wheat as they come, taking their time. They grow closer, and I can see its a female. Blonde. Her hair running clean down her back, over a simple white shirt. She looks young, as in my age perhaps. She grows even closer. Suddenly I realize I am alone at the witching tree, staring at a stranger. Panicked, I begin to climb a branch, leaping and grasping and grabbing branches, failing to gain any height. She grows closer and climbing is no use. I'll just have to use my terrible socials skills and tell her this place is occupied, and if she was coming over to make fun, then to go home back to her own turf.

Panting , I sat against the back side of the tree, and tried to look preoccupied. I began twirling duck-weed grass between my fingers, staring at it as I listened as her footsteps grew closer. Shit, she must have seen me. She comes walking around the side of the tree, poking her head out. The world stops.

She was the single most beautiful girl I had ever seen. Her blonde hair accenting perfectly with the rest of her features. The amount of self control it took to keep my jaw attached as exorbitant, but i couldn't keep my eyebrows from rising behind my bangs. I recognized her, but never to this detail. She was in my year at school, and we worked in the same field, and lived in the same neighborhood. She was the Ember daughter. Bella I think. I have seen her around but I never really noticed her. I don;t know why, she was stunning under this tree. Maybe it was the tree.

"H... Hi there... Made your way out to the tree I see?" I stamper. She was too gorgeous. My lips tight, my gut dropping with the instant attraction to the forbidden girl in front of me. Calm down Keelan.

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[Anna Banana]

A long, winding blue snake traveling through an endless sea of green, twisting and turning until it finally escaped from the sea of green only to slide again into its prison. That's sort of what my life was like here, I was that winding blue snake searching for escape only to taste freedom for a brief second before being thrown back into the confines of my cage. How often had a waited for my knight in shining armor to come riding through the fields and pull me onto his horse and ride away into the sunset with me. Of course it was all just a fantasy, my whole life was filled with fantasies at this point, at least there could be happy endings to them. I think that's why I read so much, because in those books I'm transported to a different world, a world where I can make the decisions...a place that I can be happy.

It was a welcome change to how my life was in the real world, sad and alone, a freak. I was quiet and kept to myself because as a general rule I didn't like people. Rather I liked to look at people and learn about them, write down notes about their personalities and then make them a character in my dream world. Of course eventually people learned about it, all my little notes and things, I tended to fall asleep in classes at school, and when I did people would steal looks into the pad I always carried around with me. Suffice to say not everyone was pleased with my notes, and that led to a lot of anger and resentment...so yeah...I was alone. Why should today be any different, after all a new day didn't mean new people, they were still going to be bullies. A pity that as the days changed there weren't new people to greet you at the sunrise.

It was for that reason that I decided I would avoid all the main roads, today I would travel through the fields of wheat. Today I would be that snake searching for a way out, even if I knew a large fence would greet me at the end of my travels. I ran my hands over the wheat, letting each fiber run against my skin causing goose bumps to form and a giggle to escape my lips. It was nice to be out here, nice to be away from everyone and everything and not have to worry about anyone ruining this private little world of mine. Oh how wrong I was, by now I should have known that assuming things was bad for you, after my whole note pad incident you would think I would have learned my lesson. As I walked a little further on, towards a large tree, I became aware of the fact that I was not alone. Someone or something was around here...and whatever it was also had their eyes on me.

I scanned the area around me and spotted a shadow, half hidden away up in the branches, whatever it was it's features were to difficult to make out at this distance. Walking any closer may be suicide though, after all I had no idea what it was up there, it could be a ferocious animal for all I knew, unlikely but not unheard of. I crept forward and looked around the tree cautiously, my head poking around the side of it to find myself face to face with a girl. She was thin, similar to myself, but of course who wasn't in this district, it's not like food could be found around here, at least not in high amounts. Her hair was a beautiful brown that reflected the sun that broke through the branches of the tree, and her eyes seemed sad...with so much feeling to them. No, I couldn't do this, not again, far to many times had I gone down this path only to be met with bitter disappointment.

So instead I used her own statement, brief as it may be, as an excuse to think about something else. I looked from the tree to her and then back at the tree devising a responce that wouldn't sound completely stupid. I made my way out to this tree at least once a day and had never seen her around her, infact I couldn't recall ever seeing her at all, but that didn't surprise me. I was so oblivious to everything that went on around me, unless it was in a classroom or in the schoolyard it wasn't uncommon for me to run into walls because I was in a state of complete oblivion. "I come here a lot actually, this is my favorite place to hang out and just get away from everyone and everything. I used to think it was just my spot, but I guess since you're here it isn't. Uhhhhh my name is Bella by the way, Bella Ember, I don't think I've ever seen you around before, and definitely not at this tree before. Do you come here often?"

Good Bella, keep going, you're doing a great job, don't analyze her just keep a decent conversation going and you should be fine. Don't look at her too close, keep your notepad away, just focus on being polite and friendly and maybe if you're lucky she'll go away before you make another enemy or something. "Sooooooo, what's your name?

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[Emma]

Funny how people work, ain't it? The way the work just doesn't sit well in my stomach. They are all striving to be perfect. There is no such thing as perfect. And putting down someone because they are further from that impossible goal isn't going to make them any closer. Stupid world. Who really cares? Obviously you if your over-thinking it like this. Don't remind me. Especially girls. Why must I like them so much? Why must I like them like this. They are confusing and complex. So simply complex, and impossible to grip. Boy-oh-boy are they pretty though.

Especially the one in front of me. She looks like a girl. Just a girl. A perfect girl. One without those surprises, or differences. She speaks, her voice like a perfect tone, a perfect note off of a wispy instrument, perhaps a flute, and ringing out. This attraction was like no other. I hadn't even noticed her before. My hormones are flaring, raging. This is ridiculous. This is simply a girl Keelan, calm down. What has gotten into you? She isn't THAT pretty. But shes perfect.

I have never even come close to this feeling before. I have lust, I have obsessed, but this is something else. Suddenly my mind clicks. I can feel the rusty gears grinding again. I am going crazy. Love at first sight is a myth, right? Of course it is Keelan. But I can't stop from gaping. I feel nothing. My limbs are numb and my face feels frozen. Her words impossible to swallow. Her place This was my place. I still fell nothing. But a feeling, a tiny feeling of butterflies in my stomach, begins to creep into me. Suddenly it starts to grow. It travels in my veins, and creeps to my head, my finger tips, and my toes. It extends beyond my body. I am glowing. The feeling recedes, and returns to my stomach. But remain there. I want nothing anymore. Nothing but the girl in front of me and a mug of hot liquid. Tea would do. Something steaming to burn my throat and make me use my head instead of my heart. Something hot to scold the wings of the butterflies in my stomach. To burn holes in their colourful wings and drown them to death until they were gone.

Well, it's funny to see you here, because I come here often too. But you must know, that this isn't just yours, or my spot, many people come here. To you know, do stuff. My last syllables hang in the air until I break the awkwardness with a smile. She smiles back, and the world stops. Perfection. I seem to blink in slow motion before I remember her other question.

"I'm Keelan by the way. Keelan Faye... Whats yours?" I had an idea of her name before it rolled off my tongue, but I wanted to confirm so I wan't calling her the wrong name, and to make sure I didn't seems bizarre. That, and to hear her reply in her pitch perfect voice.

[Anna Banana]

She wasn't saying anything, I had made a mistake, I had said something stupid hadn't I? Wait, I had barely said anything, how could I have possibly made a mistake, maybe this girl was just crazy. I mean she seemed pretty strange, in a cute huggable sort of way...stop that Bella, thinking like that will not make the situationany better at all. Infact I think it would be better if we just walked away quietly without another word, it's not like she's making an attempt to talk to us. I slowly began to back away from the tree keeping my eyes trained on the strange girl that I had never seen before. I had given her a name, and explained that this was my tree that was enough, and she wasn't leaving so that was enough of a sign for me to leave her, and it wasn't like she was talking.

Of course as soon as that thought crossed my mind she opened her mouth, and I let out a breath I hadn't realized I was holding. Why was I so nervous around this girl, what was different about her than anyone else? I wanted to know more about her like I did with everyone else, but there was something more about this yearning, there was something more to her. Maybe that's why I found myself taking a few tentative steps foward closing the distance between us. I could feel the gears in my mind beginning to analyze her, process what she had said to me, and creating an image in my mind...the last thing I had wanted to do while I was here. The only trouble was, once I heard her name, I was locked in, I had to know more about this strange girl that was in my tree. Whether I liked it or not I was going to be staying here and painting a picture of this girl that she would probably hate.

I crawled onto one of the lower branches and responded to her question, oblivious to the fact that I had already given her my name not five minutes ago. "It's very nice to meet you Keelan, my name is Bella, Bella Ember. This tree is mine though, or at least it's been my place to hang out since before I can remember, and I've never seen anyone else around here before until today." I know the glance I cast in her general direction was very accusing but I couldn't help it. Before today this tree really had been my place to hang out and I had failed to ever see anyone around here before, now there was some new girl here that was vexing me greately. Her statement confused me to no end, and on top of that I couldn't look at her face for very long without feeling lost.

Something about those eyes and her messy hair it made me feel like rubber, like my mind was traveling through a thick fog. Her thin wiry frame was even a match for me, but her thin body didn't seem to reach her face, it seemed full and happy, beautiful if only one word could describe it. She looked so soft, at least in comparison to all the other people that lived around here, even the other girls around here were rougher than most. She was different though, something special, not out of place but not exactly fitting in...like me. It was a feeling that I felt we were both very familiar with, so maybe that's why I found myself staring at her with such intensity. Way to go Bella, creep out the girl, stop staring at her like a hungry lion. Hastily I rolled over and closed my eyes hoping that the next time I opened them she wouldn't be there any more.

One...two...three, I rolled over to the spot I had last seen Keelan to find her still standing there, the only difference being the odd expression on her face that made my face turn a deep shade of crimson. What was it about this girl that was affecting me this way? Why was I letting it affect me this way? So many questions rolled around in my head, and yet there was one question that was louder than the rest. What would be so wrong with learning a little bit more about her, would it really kill me to just answer a few questions and ask a few myself?

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