Rain. It would be raining today. Giving an extra tug to tighten her ponytail the athletic girl pulled her jacket around her tighter to keep the rain from dripping onto her clothes. Not that she minded wet clothes all that much... just not before school where she would have to sit in them probably at least through second period. Truth be told, she was grateful for the rain. It hid the tears that had formed and fallen from her eyes as she left her house. Just in time too. With a bright smile no one could see through Melinda Ray Dawkins hopped onto the big yellow school bus as it pulled to a stop. Mornings... she gave a soft prayer of thanks for once even as she waved cheerfully to those faces she recognized automatically before finding a seat. Mornings -especially gray, rainy ones- usually meant most high schoolers were not the most active or attentive. Dropping to her seat the girl pulled her bag around to her lap and withdrew a rather nondescript pocket-sized memo book and pen from her bag. Pulling her legs up she had to work around the womanly curves of her body but she seemed to do so effortlessly as she started to write -looking to all who might glance her way to be working on an assignment. And why not? For all they knew she could have been too busy with practices the night before to have much time finish homework.

But it was not homework or anything school related that was penned into the simple black and white speckled pad with its black binding strip as the bus rumbled along its route to the high school. The white space on the front was titled only 'Min D' in perfect, but small, penmanship. It was now opened to somewhere in the middle, and should anyone have the opportunity to glance within he or she would see the previous pages cramped with her clear but tiny writing -as if the teenager felt a need to save paper. Poetry. Prose. It was filled with it. Lines not spread about fancifully but marked only where they would be by the symbol for a paragraph. Single lines of ink all that separated one piece from the next.

This was her catharsis, the reason she rode the bus to school when there was not an early morning track practice even though plenty of friends and teammates offered her rides. As the bus slowed to its final stop in front of the school Mindy smiled and clicked her pen off while shutting her notebook. Her eyes sparkled as she smiled at the other students while slipping the notebook into an outside pocket. The rain was thinning a little. That was nice.

Stepping off the bus she called good morning to another of the girls on the soccer team who Mindy knew was running to meet her boyfriend before school started. She thought that was nice and did not think much more about it as she made her own way into the school.

"Hey! Mindy!" Moist sneakers squeaked on the hall floor as she turned at the sound of her name and backed against a locker. He was an older boy she recognized from some of the games but could not put a name to. It was a brief conversation, one in which the athletic blonde missed every flirtatious overture. She did get his name though (Taylor) and somehow managed to get away -sliding her back along some of the freshman lockers- without inadvertently hurting his feelings or angering him beyond the disappointment he was left with that she had not responded as favorably as he had hoped to his advances.

It was not until she was sitting down in homeroom that Mindy noticed the outer pocket of her bag open and her notebook missing. Apologizing to her teammate Beth for cutting their conversation short she went to the teacher explaining that she needed to find something really important that had fallen from her bag, but that it might take past when the bell rang for her to get back. Mindy had never asked for such a thing before and was almost never tardy for any reason so before the teacher even realized what she was doing she had given the girl a hall pass (just in case) and sent her off with a well wishes and a timelimit, saying that if Mindy could not find it in that time she would just have to report it to the lost and found.

Min hoped she would not have to resort to that. None of her friends or teammates knew about the book. It was always in her bag. She just HAD to find it. Though her eyes belayed a little of her worry she was still smiling as she backtracked her steps with careful watch while replaying in her mind the morning to try and come up with an idea for when the outside pocket could have opened & the notebook fall out.

Taylor. The freshman hallway. Hope flashed over the worry in her eyes as Min sped her pace to reach the freshman hallway. Slightly wavy blonde hair bounced as she moved, just barely brushing the back collar of her simple T-shirt. Though she smiled at everyone that looked her way as she still glanced around in case her notebook was to be found Mindy was completely obtuse to the way many of the boys' eyes slid across her well shaped body -neither highlighted nor hidden by her simple outfit of T-shirt and shorts. Min just did not think that way.

She just had to find her notebook.

Not good. So very not good, Besnik thought as he raced down the street. Rain poured down around him, and his clothes had become damp within moments of stepping out of his house. His father had left early for work that day and hadn't woken him up before leaving. By some unfortunately twist of luck, his alarm clock had failed to go off, making Besnik later than usual. He had missed the bus, and with no other means of transportation, he was forced to run all the way to school.

By the time he reached school, Besnik was out of breath and hoping to at least make it to his second period before the tardy bell rang. He knew his father wouldn't be happy that he missed a class, but there was no way around it. This is a horrible way to start the day, he thought as he dashed through the hallway toward his locker to pick up the textbooks he needed. He turned down the freshmen hallway, the fastest route to his locker. With no traction on his shoes, he ended up skidding on the tiled flooring and stumbled to the floor.

"Urgh, maybe I should have stayed in bed today," Besnik muttered, wondering how much worse the day could get. He started climbing to his feet when he noticed something on the floor. Walking over to it, he bent down to pick up the notebook. "I wonder who dropped this," he mumbled as he stared down at the notebook. He knew he should take it to the lost and found, but-

I don't have time for that, he thought with a sigh. He was late enough already. I'll just have to hand it in at lunch or something.

It was a good thing the halls were clearing out before class. Less distractions and easier to look for her missing notebook. Rounding the corner to the freshman hallway she only saw a single lone figure holding...

My notebook! At least Mindy hoped it was her notebook, but even so her heart swelled with hope and her smile shone with it as she trotted towards a fellow student she had never noticed before. Not surprising really -and certainly not anything against the boy. Min simply often did not notice anyone outside of her social circle. She did not even realize she was doing it; she just tended to overlook people. In some ways it was nearly as bad as how she missed the romantic advances of her male friends & acquaintances. It was not as if she did not see them... simply that they did not register as being more than background. Sometimes she could recall their face having been around later, after someone had introduced them. Even though they were 'background' other than being unobservant Mindy was never mean to anyone.

Either way, because of the empty hall and the notebook in his hand that looked just like hers Min noticed this boy now. "Hey! Did you happen to find that?" Her tone was open, friendly, & hopeful. Trotting towards him she realized he was soaked and her instinctive concern and helpfulness bubbled to the surface. "Goodness! You're soaked! Here!"

Not even waiting for a reply to her first question Mindy shifted her bag as she reached him and pulled out a fluffy white hand towel that smelled of being recently washed and dried, handing it to him with her trademark vibrant smile. Min might overlook people she did not know most of the time but when she did notice you, you knew it.

About to hurry off to class, Besnik stopped when a girl approached him. A fluster of nervousness bubbled up inside him, afraid this girl would yell at him. Until he noticed the friendly tone she used, and he relaxed a little. Other than Charles, not many of the other students approached him for a friendly chat. Most of the others simply ignored that he was even there. Except when he did something embarrassing, and he felt very glad that no one had been in the hallway to see him fall.

"Uh, yeah," he mumbled, dropping his gaze to the notebook in his hands. "It was just laying on the floor. I was going to take it to the lost and found, but uh," he glanced up at the girl. "Is it yours?"

"Haha, yeah." Besnik chuckled weakly. "I had to run all the way here." He blinked in surprise when the girl produced a towel from her bag. "T-Thanks," he mumbled, accepting the towel so he could dry off a bit.

Her gaze went to the front of the book, and spotting the familiar script of her name on the front Min sighed in relief. "Yes! Thank you!" She blushed the tiniest bit, taking the notebook and hugging it to herself. How close she had come to someone seeing...

Lightly she shook her head. "No problem. I always bring my own towel for after practice. Least I could do." Again that smile, making her face come alive. "Sides... you found this for me."

The book was cradled against her chest, the action inadvertently showing off more of her feminine figure. There was a slight air of secrecy around her where the notebook was concerned, but there was no denying her attachment to it. "You ran? All the way here in the rain?" One could almost see the wheels moving in her head. "Then you're late! C'mon! I'll walk with you to your class while you dry off, 'kay? Guess you missed your ride, huh?"

It was so casual, so easy the way she struck up conversation with a total stranger. Perhaps more so, the way Min thought nothing about how odd that really might be.

Besnik was glad that he found the owner of the notebook. It took a weight off his shoulders. He knew he probably would have worried for the rest of the day about whether the owner found it or not. As he scrubbed at his hair trying to get it somewhat dry, he glanced up at the girl. He blushed lightly and quickly turned his gaze away, not wanting her to think he was staring at her body.

"Practice? You play a sport?" Besnik lowered the towel to hang around his neck. For a brief moment, he almost forgot about school as he talked with the girl. "Y-Yeah, I missed the bus this morning. What a way to start the day, huh?" He walked through the hallways with the girl as he used the towel to dry off as much as he could.

There was the barest hint of a flicker of something behind her smiling eyes. "Yeah. Total bummer. Especially with this rain." Min looked at the boy with sympathy, glad to see he was starting to look a bit more dry. It made her happy that her towel was useful. A little something she was able to do to return the favor of him finding her notebook for her. And not having read it. That was just a bonus. Min would rather that no one knew anything of what was inside that notebook, even if the cryptic flow of her words probably would not give anything away as to what exactly she was writing about.

It was just something Min figured no one would understand. Not that she particularly wanted anyone to understand it. Better no one knew at all. At least... so she had decided.

She did not seem at all disappointed that he might not recognize her. It was not like she was one of those cheerleaders at every game and the pep rallies too or anything. Mindy knew not everyone could know everyone -she certainly did not- and with a variety of students and extracurriculars not everyone could even see everything. Even if they were interested. Which she knew not everyone was. Her dad was a prime example of that: never even coming to State Championships. "But yeah, sports. I'm on the girls' soccer team & track too. It's fun."

Casual, like there was nothing more important about it than the fact that she liked it. No bragging that it was the best thing there was to do -though more often than not Min believed it was in her life- and no degrading tone for anyone who might not look at the sports the way she did. No bragging about how good she was either, which really she was being on the Varsity team & nearly always placing in track. Probably could go far with it given the right support and putting in enough dedication. But right now they were simply things she enjoyed and happened to be very good at doing. There was the sense of the joy her activities gave her, shining about her freely. The smooth toned look of her legs gave evidence she was a runner. He could probably stare at her body & the only thing Mindy might do is wonder if she had a rip or a stain. "What are you into?"

It did not occur to Mindy the possibility that he might not be in anything, but she did sound genuinely curious.

"Yeah," Besnik agreed with a small sigh. If he didn't have to sit around in wet clothes for next few hours, he probably wouldn't have minded the rain so much. At least he could get mostly dry, thanks to the towel the girl had let him borrow.

"That's gotta be cool," he said, though his experience with the jocks of their school had never been all that pleasant. Besnik glanced at the girl. Perhaps the jerkiness of jocks only applied to the male sports stars. He hadn't really met with any female sports stars. Unless he were to count cheerleaders, in which case, most had been overly snobbish to him.

"M-Me?" Besnik stuttered, surprised anyone might think he was on any sports team at all. He certainly didn't have the appearance one might expect from an athlete, even if he did run around a lot. "Well, I've never really paid all that much attention." He stared down at the floor as he walked.

Laughter bubbled from her, warm & light. "Of course you. Do you see anyone else?" Speaking of which, they had better hurry or he would be late. She still had time, what with her pass and all. Thanks to him she had not needed to scour the halls.

A perplexed look fluttered onto her pretty features untouched by make-up. Blonde brows crinkled beneath wisps of silken bangs. It did not dawn on her he was thinking merely about sports. "What... nothing? There's gotta be something you like. What do you do with your friends?"

Now why was he looking at the floor like that? Hazel eyes with a hint of blue in them today showed a glint of gold from the reflection of the lights above them as they widened, one hand leaving her book to go to her mouth. "Sorry! We just met and here I am prying...!" Min dropped her hand, looking apologetic. The corners of her lip lifted sheepishly. "You don't have to answer anything you don't want to, a'right?"

Her smile was both reassuring and still asking for forgiveness. It was just like her to forget things like that. They should be about to his class, right? She did not want to leave on an odd note like that.

Besnik flushed a little upon hearing her laugh. He felt that same awkwardness coiling about inside him that he had felt whenever Charles had laughed during their first meeting. He still hadn't gotten used to people laughing around him without cruelty in it. I really shouldn't that everyone is the same just because there are a few jerks in our school, he thought.

"Ah, well," Besnik mumbled, reaching up to scratch his cheek. "You see, um, I don't really have that many friends." That must make me sound kind of sad, he thought with a wince. Saying that might make people pity him.

He lifted his head and glanced around the hallways. "Ah, my class is at the end of this hall," he said as he turned the corner, leading the way.

"Really?" She said softly and more than a little sadly. A bit of the light dimmed in her eyes, making them seem darker than a blue-gray. For a moment she looked off, distant, as if thinking something far away. Then it was gone, her smile returning gently as if the moment had never occurred. Ever so lightly, Min touched the fingers of one hand to his elbow. "Never too late to start."

A dimple showed on her cheek as her eyes & nose crinkled with a playful grin. "C'mon! If we hurry you'll make it before the bell!" A slight tug before her hand fell away and she was jogging down the hallway, the waves of her blonde 'tail bouncing behind her with a smiling look that reiterated her words as she glanced back at him. If they did not make it and he was late, perhaps she could say something nice to the teacher so he would not get in trouble. Min would rather it did not happen though. Not that she did not want to say something nice -in fact she did- but that it would be better if it was not needed. Better he was on time.

Besnik nearly jumped in surprise at the gentle touch to his elbow. He blinked at her as he watched her jog down the hallway. If people like Charles and this girl existed in the school, then perhaps it was true. It wasn't too late to start making friends. A small smile stretched over his face.

Then he remembered why they had been in such a hurry. Panic flashed in his eyes as he raced down the hallway to catch up with her. If he didn't hurry, he would be late for class. He would already be in enough trouble without adding to it. He skidded into the classroom just as the bell rang.

Min's smile bloomed as he made it into class. Oh good! Stopping at the door she waited a moment to catch his eyes. When she did Mindy waved and mouthed 'Catch you later!' before turning and taking off with a light easy run -being mindful that with the rain there could be wet spots in the hallways- back to her own classroom.

He was such a nice boy. Later, Min would wonder what his name was and whether she had missed it or managed to forget it while thinking it was a gap in her memory rather than having forgotten introductions entirely. Now however -notebook happily & safely in hand- she had a day to get back too. Idly she wondered if it would still be raining at track practice after school.

Some time later...

Besnik sighed as he took the long way around the school. He knew if he took the quickest route from his locker to the front entrance of the school that he would run into some jerks from the football team. Today, he didn't really feel like dealing with them, or trying to out run them. Why do they always pick on me? he wondered as he shifted his bag to rest more comfortably on his shoulder. I never do anything to them. He shook his head, knowing it was pointless to try and understand the thinking that went on in the jocks' heads. He probably wouldn't like knowing.

As he past the track, Besnik paused when he noticed the team out practicing. He leaned against the fence surrounding the track and watched them for a while. The more time he gave the jerky jocks to clear of the school the better. He remembered that girl - had he ever found out her name? - saying she was on the track team. Scanning the runners, he tried to find the girl who he had met. I wonder if she even remembers me, he thought as he searched. It wouldn't surprise him if the girl had forgotten him, but he hoped she hadn't.

"Baggel, Dawkins, Evans, Kritcher, Lewis, Smith. Finish stretching and get to the line in 2."

Stretching out, getting ready for a practice run on a dash, Mindy's mind was quite far away from the morning's encounter and she nodded at the couch's 2 minute warning. She was focused, alternately jogging in place and then stretching her legs every way she could while the other girls chatted about her. She heard them, but was not really paying much attention to their gossip. Min simply did not understand how they could talk so much about boys and make-up. Really... they weren't cheerleaders. Laughing inside at that thought Min went down into the splits just for fun -just because she could- just before her friend & teammate Debbie bent down to comment in her ear. It was the fall of Debbie's poofy, dirty-blonde long ponytail touching her arm that first got Mindy's attention before the words registered. "I hate when people watch from the fence like that. It's weird."

huh? Getting up Mindy followed her friend's more stealthy head nod in the direction she was supposed to look with all the secrecy of a stampeding rhinoceros. That is to say Min lifted her head and looked directly over. Well what do you know... someone IS there. I wonder if other students watch our practices often. Her mind wondered over that, silken blonde curls hitting her shoulder as her head tilted to the side. There was something about that boy that seemed familiar. "Oh!"

Realization struck and Min's face broke into a wide smile. "Nothing weird, Debbie. I know him! He found my book this morning." As if that settled the matter Mindy smiled at her friend, missing how the other runner blinked as she waved brightly to their observer still grinning before getting into place for the start off. "Min..." Debbie shook her head in confusion, glancing at the boy by the fence as she found her own place. "You just don't even see how this could be bad, do you?" It was murmured softly though, too softly for Mindy to hear.

The signal to go was given with a loud bang. The handful of girls were off, racing down the length of the track. In a particularly good mood now, Mindy pulled ahead and beat the other girls. Not a record, by any means but winning even in practice was nice. She seemed both surprised and pleased, going around congratulating them all on a good run and taking their congratulations & praise in blushing stride. Giving directions for them to keep moving but otherwise relax for a while the coach gave them a quick break while he went to check on the discus and shot-put throwers while the assistants set up hurtles on some of the lanes on the track. With a friendly wave to her teammates Mindy jogged over to the fence. "Hey! See you dried off!"

Ah! There she is, Besnik thought when he caught sight of the girl who had offered him the towel that morning. A small smile started to creep over his face until he noticed the girl next to her. This girl wasn't as subtle as she probably thought she was being. Besnik caught the look on her face, one of mild disgust like she was unhappy to be watched by an outsider.

Is it not allowed to watch practice? he wondered even as he waved back. Frowning, he watched the practice race. Enough time had passed to allow him safe passage to leave the school without the football jocks catching him. But he remained at the fence to watch. He whistled his amazement as the girl led the race and applauded when she won.

"Ah, yeah," Besnik said, rubbing the back of his neck. "The towel really helped." He blinked and hunted through his bag. "I should probably return that." He laughed weakly as he offered the towel back to its owner. "Thanks."

Although Mindy could not know it, her friend's dislike of others watching their practices came from a shaky self esteem mixed with more than a pinch of jealousy. Boys did not look at her the way they did Mindy -she was less endowed and barely had a waist. At least in comparison. Even though Debbie was jealous of Min for how she looked and the boys' whose interest she managed to get, it was hard for her to harbor more than the basic jealousy of wishing she were more like her friend. More often than not, Debbie worried about her. Like now, sighing and shaking her head as her bubbly, 'Barbie' of a friend went to talk to some nondescript boy where anyone could see them. Debbie was more worried about how the boys that liked Min would react, seeing or hearing about this.

Min of course not knowing her guy friends might be anything more than guy friends thought nothing of any of this. It simply did not occur to her. Nor did she think that her new friend might be upset by Debbie's not liking to be watched. She took that aspect of Debbie as an unchanging fact and did not really think about it. Besides, right now Mindy was thrilling that her new friend had applauded for her -it was only a practice, but it felt good. Her eyes crinkled warmly. "I'm glad." She giggled in reaction to his laughter and accepted her towel. "Anytime! Um..."

Her mouth and eyes opened, then her face went through a series of pondering & confused looks in a matter of seconds before settling on a crinkled and worried brow with apologetic eyes and a mouth whose corner was twitching upward in a sheepish & embarrassed smile. "Sorry... what was your name again?" The 'I forgot' unspoken but implied on her tone.

Besnik tried to ignore the obvious glare from the girl's teammate. The other girl's glare seemed to bore a hole right through him, and it left Besnik feeling rather uncomfortable. Did the girl really hate him that much? He didn't recognize her, so he didn't know what he had done to make her dislike him so much. He shook the thoughts from his head as he focused back on the girl in front of him.

"Ah, I guess we forgot the introductions," Besnik said with a chuckle as he scratched his cheek. They had been in a hurry that morning so it wasn't surprising that they had forgotten it in their rush. "It's Besnik Rosenford."

A look of relief spread over her features just before Mindy laughed gently. The other girls moved around in place, glancing their way sometimes. Debbie looked more worried than upset now, and glanced between where Mindy stood talking and their coach. From the corner of her eye Min did notice at least one thing her friend did: that the hurtles were nearly set up. "Besnik Rosenford. I like that!" There was no room for lying on her honest face. "I'm Mindy. Mindy Dawkins. Thrilled to meet you, Besnik."

There was an almost teasing twinkle in her eyes about the 'double' meeting, what with their meeting being that morning with names not exchanged until now. Then her head turned to check on the track, the gold waves of her ponytail swinging quickly with the sudden motion. The beginnings of a pout tugged the corners of her lips down. "I gotta go do hurtles now. Hopefully I'll be able to catch you later?" The smile was not as sure but still warm. Mindy did not mean today -she would not assume to ask someone to stay through practice that she had just met- just, sometime. Friends were precious to her, and she now considered Besnik Rosenford a friend.

"Really?" Besnik asked, fighting off a flush of color threatening to rise to his cheeks. "Most people think it's a weird name." The smile on his face faltered as the corners of his mouth tried to turn downward in a frown. He knew it was an odd name, but it was the one his mother had given him.

"It's nice to meet you too, Mindy," he said as his smile returned. He committed the name to his memory. "I should probably get going anyway." He sighed tiredly. "I have tons of homework to do. I'll see you around then." He offered a smile and a wave.

"Really," she answered with a grin and an emphatic nod. Mindy did not care much for her full given name (okay... she despised it) though she liked her nicknames well enough. Still, original names that probably were not shared with anyone else in the whole world were most interesting and something Min loved to hear. Plus... it made them easier to remember somehow.

Her smile shifted to both sympathetic and an odd accepting disappointment. For a moment she regretted that she had to go back to practice and Besnik had homework. Min was curious to learn a bit more about her new friend. That would have to wait. Until when, Mindy could not know.

"Sure! Around!" The full brightness of her smile returned as she waved back. Just in time too, for the coach's voice boomed over the field a moment later. "Dawkins!"

Jumping, Mindy turned and sprinted gracefully back to the track. She did not register anything amiss as her teammates looked to see why her name was called -that was normal after all, anytime one of them were singled out- & only paused a moment to twist halfway and give Besnik another wave before getting into place. Her friend with the long poofy dirty blonde ponytail looked more than a little worried, especially as she glanced at a few of the nearest track boys' faces and saw a mixture of expressions from curiosity to jealousy. At a sight of Mindy's grin the coach couldn't stay upset; it had been more of a reminder call, not anything for her to be in trouble over. That Mindy came right over made him nod. Better than most of the other girls when they chatted with someone off-team during practice. Huh.... first time Dawkins has done that though, without being with some of the others. With a shrug the coach cast the worry aside and gave instruction for the runners and hurdle jumpers, reminding them this was practice & wouldn't be timed, that those jumping hurdles only needed to go fast enough to clear the hurdles. "I don't want any injuries today. Not with the big meet with Antioch this weekend. Now go!"

Smiling at all of her teammates and getting them to smile back, Mindy glanced one last time where she had left her new friend before setting off happily to take on the hurdles. She was looking forward to the meet this weekend. Early practices for Soccer started that afternoon too and there was talk among the girls about hitting the local arcade for some DDR if they were not exhausted afterward.

That should be enough to keep her busy. And now she had the excitement of new friend to dip her mind into. Easily clearing the white bars of the hurdles, Min wondered if he was just being modest in saying he did not have many friends. He certainly seemed nice enough to her.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~

Friday after school and Mindy had the rest of the day free, except for needing to run to town on an errand for her mother. The shop was between school and home so it was just easier for Min to grab what was needed than for her mom to make a special trip for it. There was no practice after school today, Mindy having opted to do her two laps around the track that was all the coach asked for the day before a meet in the morning before school rather than after. The other girls had been silly about asking about Min's new friend so that even Debbie & Beth were telling them to lay off when it became clear Mindy was getting confused about their questions. He was just a new friend. Min didn't see anything particular about that they should be so nosy. Just because he wasn't one that they usually saw around!

Around seemed to be the only way she had seen Besnik since they met too. Min tried to at least wave at him with a smile when she caught sight of him in the halls between classes. They didn't share any, and Min wondered sometimes what he was taking. She knew what all her other friends were taking.

That made her wonder if he could really not have many friends again. Certainly Besnik had to have some interests. Re-shouldering her school bag Min wondered when she might run into him again to find these things out. Just simple things friends knew about each other she figured. Because she never asked about families. Only fair, in her mind. She would not ask anyone else about something she would rather not answer herself.

The end of her blonde ponytail swayed against the collar of her plain white T-shirt as she walked. It was matched with white socks and sneakers and tucked into simple khaki colored sporty shorts with pockets. Though a tomboy, Mindy liked white. If it got dirty she could always bleach it.

Besnik shoved the rest of his unneeded textbooks into his locker before slamming the door shut with a clang. Since their first meeting, Besnik had only caught sight of Mindy a few times between classes. And there wasn't much time between classes to hold any type of a conversation, but he was glad when he caught her waving to him.

He hoisted his overly stuffed bag onto his shoulder and headed down the hallway. I wonder if Mindy has practice again today, he thought as he shoved his headphones into his ears and hit the play button on his mp3 player. His dad had surprised him with the gift the other night. Besnik wondered why, when it wasn't his birthday, but he decided not to question it. It wasn't often that his dad decided to give him a random gift, so he decided to simply enjoy the present.

Hands stuffed into the pockets of his black plaid pants, Besnik turned down the main hallway of the school. He halted when he saw the familiar blonde. "Mindy!" he greeted, yanking one of the headphones from an ear as he smiled.

Besnik shoved the rest of his unneeded textbooks into his locker before slamming the door shut with a clang. Since their first meeting, Besnik had only caught sight of Mindy a few times between classes. And there wasn't much time between classes to hold any type of a conversation, but he was glad when he caught her waving to him.

He hoisted his overly stuffed bag onto his shoulder and headed down the hallway. I wonder if Mindy has practice again today, he thought as he shoved his headphones into his ears and hit the play button on his mp3 player. His dad had surprised him with the gift the other night. Besnik wondered why, when it wasn't his birthday, but he decided not to question it. It wasn't often that his dad decided to give him a random gift, so he decided to simply enjoy the present.

Hands stuffed into the pockets of his black plaid pants, Besnik turned down the main hallway of the school. He halted when he saw the familiar blonde. "Mindy!" he greeted, yanking one of the headphones from an ear as he smiled.

Blinking at the sound of her name, Mindy at first did not recognize the voice. Most of those who she would expect to call her name had headed out to prepare for a Friday night party at one of their homes –which Mindy was hoping would not be a late party or Coach would be pissed at their lowered performance in tomorrow’s early meet. It rang enough of a bell that even though Min could not place it right away she turned with a huge smile. A smile that only widened spotting the tussled brown hair and smiling face of her newest friend. Of course she had not recognized his voice by the way he said her name –Besnik had never called it out in such a way before. So it sounded different.

“Besnik! Hey!” Just like at the track meet, even if her usual friends were around Mindy would not have treated him any different –or been any less pleased to see him. Coming to a complete halt she shifted her bag and lightly jogged part of the distance between them. “I was just wondering how you were doing!”

"Really?" Besnik asked as he flipped off the mp3 player and walked over toward her. He left one of the headphones shoved into his ear while the other dangled in front of his chest. It felt strange and unusual to hear someone say they had been thinking of him. He mentally shrugged it off.

"And I was just wondering if I should head out to the track field to see if you had practice today. Were you about to head off to it?" He didn't know what kind of schedule the track team had.