Ten

Three Years Later: December fourth

Alia stood in the middle of the round entrance of her community college on a ladder, trying with all her might to place a large red plastic star at the top of a tall Christmas tree. The room was cold since the doors are usually open. Her light jacket wasn't enough to keep her warm and the ladder wouldn't stop shaking with her.

She cursed under her breath. Cautiously, she began to stand on tiptoe. Alia was aware it was a bad idea and she was definitely regretting telling Ina she could go home and stop holding the ladder. Not a good move on her part.

She held her breath as she placed the star atop the tree. It looked absolutely beautiful and positively festive. She exhaled a sigh of relief a little too early.

The ladder wobbled under her, but it wasn't the ladder's fault she lost her footing. She had a sinking feeling in her stomach as she tried to regain balance. She succeeded in teetering forwards and back twice before she actually did fall.

As cliche as it sounds, someone caught her.

Or, more accurately, just happened to be on his way home when she fell. He extended his arms, eyes wide as he tried to position himself quickly enough. The person hadn't exactly thought it would end the way it did.

Alia screamed as she flew towards the ground. Suddenly, arms wrapped around her. But the stranger didn't exactly 'catch' her.

They both fell onto the tiled floor. His knees buckled under the sudden weight of a second person. He cried out before they both landed on the floor.

Their landing was anything but graceful. Her hair found its way into his mouth and Alia's teeth slammed together painfully. She was worried she'd end up with a chipped tooth when her neck snapped backward, the back of her skull hammering into the guy's nose.

Now, her savior was unconscious. Her hands went to the back of her head where she felt the hot blood. A scream came from her mouth when she thought it was hers. Her heart hammered in her chest painfully.

She turned over to show the stranger be should take her to the nurse or something of the sort ASAP. But she screamed again when she found him unconscious and with an obviously broken nose. She fumbled for her phone in her back pocket.

When she pulled it out she wanted to scream again because the screen was cracked but she refrained. She quickly thanked the Lord when it flickered to life and with an acceptable thirty percent remaining. As fast as she could manage, she pulled off one of her striped gloves and unlocked her phone.

As she punched the last one for 911 the guy on the floor groaned. She shrieked and the dispatcher on the phone calmly said, "911. Police, fire or medical?"

In a rush, she responded, "Medical! Medical!" If the other hand hadn't been gloved she probably would have been nervously chewing on her nails.

"What's the problem?"

"Um, this guy, I don't know his name," She flicked her eyes from the guy on the floor to the glove in her hand. "He-- I fell on him from a ladder. I think his nose is broken and he's unconscious!"

___

December Fifth

Alia greeted the guy who basically saved her life yesterday at the school entrance. He gave her a wary look. "You're not going to knock me unconscious again, are you?"

She flushed. "I'm so sorry!" She blurted to him. A group of people gave her a strange look. She gestured to his broken nose. "If there's some sort of medical bill, I can pay for it! Really, I'm so sorry. I-I didn't mean to--"

He held up a hand, a disbelieving smile that reminded her of someone graced his lips. "Relax, it's fine. I know you didn't purposefully fall off a ladder and almost kill me." He seemed to consider the possibility. "I hope."

"No! Really!" She hid her face in her hands rather childishly. "I'm so embarrassed and really sorry about the whole almost killing you thing!"

He laughed. "Tell you what," She took her head out of her hands and looked up at him. She wasn't sure where this was going but the smile that seemed so familiar comforted her. Or it did until he said, "I'll accept your apology after our date tonight."

"Date?" Alia hadn't agreed to a date.

"Yes. Date." He confirmed with a wide grin. He was seeming less familiar than he had before. He started walking backward and towards the building. "By the way," He turned back around and started walking into the building. "I'm James. James West." Alia could practically hear the smile he wore. "Let's meet here around 3:24."

Her pulse thundered in her ear. Could it really be the guy she'd tutored and lost track of after high school? The same guy who confessed to her around this time of year during her senior year of high school. The same guy who, even after three years, she still sometimes searched the crowd for?

Did he know? Did he know it was her he'd just asked out? And if he didn't, how would he react when he found out his high school crush was going on a date with him tonight? Her eyes grew wide.

3:24. Was it a coincidence? If it was, why was he so specific with the time? Her head spun but she had no answers. But she did have hope. A small twinge of hope that it was him.

___

She checked the cracked screen of her phone for the time. It was 3:20. He would show, wouldn't be? He was the one who had told her to meet him here.

Alia let out a groan. A group of teens turned to look at the struggling twenty-one-year-old woman with concerned faces. She herself felt like a teen. "Aren't you cold?"

She turned around to see James. He was shivering. Alia breathed into her gloved hands to warm them more. "Not really." He didn't have a scarf or gloves on and his coat didn't look like it was very thick. "Where are we going?"

Almost instantly, he responded, "Taco Bell."

Not the classiest choice, but what was she supposed to expect from someone she'd nearly killed. The two started walking. "Okay."

As they stopped at a crosswalk and waited for the passing cars, he asked, "So what's your name, short stuff?"

She was beginning to think he was too charismatic to be the same James from high school. Then again, people change over time. "Oh, I'm Alia."

His brow creased. It was so adorably familiar to her. At that very moment, he looked like her James. They crossed the street, his brow was still creased when he asked. "Alia Night?"

"Um, yeah?"

"What school did you go to high school?" When she answered he said breathlessly. "You've got to be fucking kidding me."

She was slightly taken aback. "I'm sorry?"

"You were my tutor. My cliche as hell crush. Shit, I even confessed to you knowing you had a boyfriend." He laughed. "I wasn't the brightest."

"Maybe not, but it worked."

"What worked?"

She tapped her index finger to her temple. "After you told me, I couldn't stop thinking about it." She corrected herself, "About you. Like two months after you confessed I broke up with Alex." She turned away from him. Her ears burned as she mumbled, "And I have to admit, I did have feelings for you when I did."

He stopped walking. She stopped too. "What about now. How do you feel about me now, Alia?"

Goosebumps scattered up her arms at the sound of her name. She took the first step forward. As they stood in line, James still waiting for a response, she finally said, "We'll see after this date."

*****

End