Serious Mysterious Love - Ch. 3

Serious Mysterious Love - Chapter 3

As a month passed, Alfred and Mary became very good friends, and found time every day to talk to each other. Alfred introduced her to Milo and Camille a week after the bullying incident with Cynthia, and she became very close to them also as far as friends go. And as the weeks passed, Alfred's strange feelings for Mary grew so much that he automatically smiled every time he saw her in the hallways and the schoolyard. Mary's anxiousness grew as well, and sometimes the two would just sit next to each other during recess and not say anything, because both of them were too nervous to speak. It was a very awkward stage for the both of them, but they had gotten very used to it already.

Near the end of April, Mr. Rusard made an announcement about a year-end project for the students. They were to pair up and write about a hobby the two of them shared. It didn't have to be five pages long; it had to be just long enough to describe the hobby and the favored aspects of it by both parties. Everyone thought it was a great idea, and paired up immediately after the day's class was over.

"Milo and I are gonna pair up and write about playing basketball," Camille said to Alfred after class. "How about you, Alfred?"

"Um..." Alfred started. His face was getting notably flushed. "I'll probably be partners with Mary, but I don't know w-what we're going to write about just yet..."

An expression appeared on Camille's face that seemed like a mix of surprise and mischief. "Alfred, you stuttered! You almost never do that!"

"I - I did?!" Alfred nearly shouted out of surprise. He had never done such a thing before. Why was he doing it now?

"Yeah - you did it again just now!" Camille thought a moment, then smirked. "Do you like someone, Alfred?"

"Um... maybe." It was getting so hard to hide the blush on his face.

"And your cheeks are pink - a sure sign of a crush!" Camille said. "Who's the special someone you're crushing on, Alfred~?"

Alfred sat down on the steps outside the schoolhouse - the same ones where he had been given first aid by Mary. He sighed and then said, "Cam, can you keep a secret?"

Camille knew the conversation was getting serious whenever Alfred called her by that nickname. She sat down next to him with a sincere expression on her face. "Sure I can, Alfred. I won't tell anyone."

Alfred sighed again. He had to get this off his shoulders. "Cam... I don't mean it if I ruin our friendship by saying this, but..."

Camille stopped him. "Alfred. You are not going to ruin our friendship. Just tell me."

"I... have strange feelings for Mary. There, I said it." A small burden was lifted, but not a significant one either.

"I suspected as much," Camille responded, the smirk reappearing on her face.

"I just - I don't know how to explain it. I feel like I've seen her somewhere, but I just can't remember. Plus, this weird feeling is getting stronger each day. It's like it won't leave me alone."

"What does it feel like?" asked Camille. She had a feeling that she knew what it was.

"Well, there's always a fluttery feeling in my stomach or my chest, and I can't stop smiling when I see Mary. I don't know what to do about it." Alfred sighed yet again.

Camille put a hand on Alfred's shoulder. "Alfred, you have a case of the love bug."

"The what?" Alfred was a bit confused. He had never heard this phrase before.

"The love bug! It means you really loooove someone~!" Camille said in a bit of a teasing manner. She giggled.

"Um... okay, I think I get it," Alfred said, a bit flustered.

"I don't mean to tease you, Alfred," Camille said in a tone that was a bit more serious. "I'm just trying to be a friend and help you. I want you to experience these feelings for yourself, and find things out along the way. Who knows? Mary might have the same feelings, too!"

Alfred smiled. "Thanks, Cam. You've been a great help." He gave his friend a hug.

Camille accepted his hug. "Anytime, Alfred."

Alfred stood up from the steps. "I'm gonna be going now, Cam. See you!" He then started in the direction of his house.

Camille waved as he went. Then out of the corner of her eye, she spotted Mary following Alfred from a distance.

Well, well, well, she thought. Looks like Mary may have feelings for Alfred like I thought!

************

Alfred made his way home, but he felt like someone was following him. He looked over his shoulder and did see that, indeed, someone was following him from a distance... Mary!

"M-Mary...?!" Alfred squeaked out.

Mary jumped and stopped in her tracks. "I - I thought you couldn't see me!"

Alfred's face flushed a little, but he smiled at her. "Hey, where's your house? Maybe I could walk you home."

Mary's nervous state died down a little and she smiled back, albeit with some color on her cheeks. "S-Sure. My house is in a clearing not too far from yours. The only thing that separates the two clearings is a small patch of maple trees."

Alfred was a little perplexed. "How do you know which house is mine?" he asked.

"I walked by it this morning, and I saw you sleeping." She paused after this and became nervous again: "I - I wasn't trying to be a creep! I p-promise!"

Alfred chuckled. "It's okay, Mary. You weren't being creepy."

With that, Alfred started to walk Mary home.

On the way there, Mary was humming a song to herself to lessen the silence between her and Alfred. It was a song she had heard recently, and she had really liked it. As she hummed it, it soothed her and made her calm again.

Alfred heard her humming and recognized the tune. He said, "Hey, I know that song!"

Mary stopped a moment and looked at Alfred, astonished. "You do?!"

"Yeah! Owl City, right?" he beamed.

"Yep!" Mary responded. She was starting to feel relaxed around her hedgehog friend.

It was silent for a moment. Then Alfred asked, "Mary... do you mind if I sing it with you?"

Mary shook her head with a smile. "Not at all, Alfred!"

Both of them beamed like stars and started to sing together:

Asleep in our warm cocoons,
We dream of lovely things
We're both gonna wake up soon,
So we hope that tomorrow brings
Us our butterfly wings!

If I was a grain of sand,
Would you be Miami Beach?
So dusty with starlight
Close your eyes and cuddle close to me
I'll try not to wake you,
Or make a sound while you're dozing off
But in the night should the high tide
Sweep me away from you,
Tell me again, my dear...
Will you be waiting here?

Whenever we leave the ground
And take to the sky,
I'll smile as I'm gazing down
'Cause I've always wondered why
We won't need feathers to fly...

"You've got a great voice, Alfred!" Mary commented. "It kinda sounds a bit like Owl City!"

Alfred blushed. "Aw, thanks, Mary. You didn't sound too bad yoursel- Wait just one minute!"

Mary was startled at Alfred's shouting. "What is it, Alfred?"

"I just got an idea for the year-end project we're working on!"

Mary got flustered once again. "W-We?!"

Alfred slapped himself. Darn it, he'd forgotten to ask! "Oh... right. Do you want to be my project partner?"

"I surely wouldn't mind it," Mary said with an awkward smile.

"Then it's settled," Alfred said, quickly getting over his embarrassment.

"So, what's your idea?" Mary asked Alfred.

"What if... we wrote about how much we like music?" he asked with enthusiasm evident in his voice.

"That... would be a good idea!" Mary replied with equal excitement.

"...So, what are we waiting for, Mary? Let's start on our project!" Alfred nearly shouted. He could've sworn that he heard his words echo in the forest around where they were standing!

Mary giggled. It seems she heard the echo too - either that, or she was laughing at his exorbitant display of excitement. Then she asked, "So, whose house should we start out project at?"

"Hmm... I think my mom should be okay with us going to your house, but I'll ask her just in case," Alfred answered.

"Good idea," Mary replied. "In fact, I think we're coming upon your house right now!"

She pointed to the house that was standing proudly in the clearing they had just entered. It had a wooden red roof, yellow siding, and a sea-blue door. The yard around it was enormous; perfect for growing children.

Alfred confirmed Mary's speculation. "Yep, that's my house. I'll go inside and ask my mom if it's okay if I can visit your house, Mary."

Before Mary could reply, Alfred rushed into his house faster than... well, I guess it seemed that he was faster than a cheetah at the moment.

Mary sat on the porch and began to lose her mind in her thoughts. She wondered if Alfred suspected anything about what she was hiding. She speculated on what his reaction could be if he found out - and how it might not be a pretty reaction. But most of all, she thought about her ever-growing feelings, and possibly affections, toward Alfred. Even though it was hard for her to hide the fact that she clearly knew him from her childhood, she couldn't help but wonder if he could return her feelings. He seemed so kind, gentle, intelligent... something that she was beginning to be attracted toward. Neither brawn nor beauty was important to her... and it didn't look like those things mattered to him at all, either.

"C-Could this..." Mary said to herself, "Is this... lo-"

Before she could finish her thought, Alfred came outside with a grin on his face. "Mom said I could go over to your house to start on our project!"

"That's... great!" she replied, managing to hide her faint blush with a smile. She started to stand up, but tripped over a tree root by the porch.

"So... what are we waiting for?" Alfred asked wtihout noticing his friend trip at first. He turned to her and held out his hand. "You need help standing up? Heh... that tree root has tripped me a lot, too."

Mary blushed a little, but took Alfred's hand as he helped her stand up. He seemed to linger while holding her hand for those few seconds. But he finally let go and said, "Let's get to your house before it gets dark! Race ya there!"

He took off like a bolt, and Mary said in return, "Don't mind if I do!" And she began to chase after her friend while they laughed all the way.

END OF CHAPTER