By Kylee Day
LifeAtStart.com reporter
Not wanting to go home, Aryn decided it best to use a payphone to call Rory. She debated on waiting to call her newfound friend, maybe until the next day or possibly the next week, but she knew she had nothing better to do, nowhere better to go than a payphone that sat outside a gas station not too far from the park she had just visited. She inserted the quarters, dialed the ten numbers, and took her finger, tracing the numbers on her arm as the phone rang. Her attention was suddenly brought to a voice on the other end, greeting her.
“Hello?” The voice asked. Aryn couldn’t tell who it was or if she had even met this person the day before.
“Uh, yeah, is Rory there? It’s… her friend? Aryn?” The redhead silently wished for the person on the other end to know who she was talking about. What if Henry had given her a fake number? Or the wrong one? How had he known Rory’s number by heart anyway? Is self defense even a good excuse for keeping a pen in your back pocket? The thoughts ran through Aryn’s head as she waited for the person on the other end to respond.
“She is not my girlfriend, Charlie, give me the phone before I tear your arm off with it!” Aryn heard from the other end. Her mind went blank as there was now only one thing on her mind. Girlfriend. Why would Charlie call Aryn Rory’s girlfriend?
“Hey Aryn, it’s Rory. Sorry it took so long, little brothers can be so annoying.” Then, Aryn’s head cleared once more at the sound of Rory’s voice. She could practically hear Rory roll her eyes through the phone.
“We’re three months apart!” Aryn heard Charlie yell from the other end. She laughed, remembering when her and her older brother used to argue like that. But that was years ago.
“Yeah, sounds like it.”
“Anyways, what did you call me for? Wait… how did you even get my number?” Rory asked in a confused tone.
“Oh, ya’know… just to hang out. And from Henry, did you know he keeps a pen in his back pocket?” Aryn was genuinely concerned about the fact.
“Yeah I did, he’s weird like that. I think all teenage boys are. Also, I’d love to hang out.” Rory breathed out from the other end. Aryn smiled to herself.
“Got any ideas as to where? I’m still pretty new here…” The redhead asked.
“Uh, yeah. I mean, we could always hang out at the diner, or the arcade.” Rory told her.
“Okay, yeah, we can meet at the diner in like… five minutes? Unless it will take you longer to get there.” Aryn suggested, playing with the phone’s cord.
“No, five minutes is good. I can just ride my bike there.” Rory thought aloud.
“Okay, well, see ya, then.”
“See ya.” Rory mirrored before hanging up. Aryn put the phone back on the hook and smiled, setting her skateboard on the ground and heading in the direction of Maeve’s Place.
Aryn arrived and immediately knew Rory had gotten there before her. A pink and white bike was propped up against the side of the building. Aryn got off her skateboard and walked in, finding Rory in a booth next to the front window.
“Hi.” Aryn breathed out. Rory smiled up at her as Aryn set her skateboard under the table, setting her feet on it when she sat down.
“Hey.” Rory greeted her.
“It’s, um, it’s a nice diner.” Aryn didn’t know what else to say. What a dumb topic, she thought.
“Yeah, it is. It’s been here longer than anyone can remember, I think in the fifties it was built? I’m not entirely sure, but, yeah. It’s pretty nice.” Rory elaborated. From this alone, Aryn guessed that Rory is an observer, like her, noticing things and looking at the world around her rather than ignoring it.
“What can I get for you?” The waitress had walked up without either of the girls’ knowledge, causing them to jump a little as she began to speak. It was the same waitress from the day before. Leonie, Aryn remembered.
“I’ll have a burger and a Pepsi.” Rory told her and the waitress wrote it down. Rory then looked over at Aryn, waiting for her to order.
“Uh, I don’t have any money.” Aryn stated.
“No worries, I’ll pay.” Rory offered and Aryn shook her head.
“I’m not hungry, anyways.” She said.
“You sure?” Rory asked. Aryn only nodded.
Humans are very complex creatures, their thinking being completely different from any other animal’s. They say things they don’t truly mean all the time. For instance, when Aryn said “I’m not hungry, anyways”, she really means “I don’t want you to spend your money on me.” Another example would be with Rory. When she says “You sure?”, she really means “I want to spend money on you, Aryn, I like you,” but she’d never admit that.
“Alright, I’ll be back in a few.” Leonie smiled, left their table and walked over to another, asking the people sitting there the same question.
“So, what’s your family like?” Aryn changed the subject.
“Uh, well, my dad adopted me a few years ago and married Charlie’s mom last year. Oh and uh Charlie has a brother, well he’s my stepbrother, I suppose, but his name is Shawn and right now he’s in New York with his girlfriend, Jenna.” Rory didn’t seemKy to be guarded at all, she was an open book, and Aryn was baffled by how it was possible. How could one ever not want to just secure themselves in a blanket of half truths, Aryn did not know, but Aryn also did not know there was so much Rory was not telling her. “What about you?”
“Well… my mom married this guy, like five years ago and they’ve been together ever since. The guy had a son, but he, uh, stayed in California.” This wasn’t a lie, but it wasn’t the entire story. Rory nodded and their conversation moved along.