Angel Boy

It was the first day of summer school. At fifteen I was working my plan to graduate a year early. Going to school in the summer would ensure I reached my goal. I got to class early to get the right seat, not too far up or too far back in the rows of desks. Getting the right seat made a difference if you wanted to be invisible to the teacher.

Yes, my experience was paying off, the class began to fill in around me. The class was about to start, “eager beavers” in the first row, “woe is me” in the back row. The middle included those of us who were accepting our fate to reach our goals, my goals were just a little more aggressive than my peers.

I wanted to get this started and over with. I looked at the clock wishing the bell to ring. As my eyes returned to the class room I saw a boy I had never seen walking through the door. My first thought was that this is what an angel from heaven would look like. He was beautiful, tall, tight jeans that made my tummy feel funny, shiny blonde hair and big blue eyes. Wow. He didn’t go to my school, he had to go to a neighboring high school but which one?

The bell rang as the boy stared off into space. The teacher came in and began to set the ground rules. I couldn’t bother to listen to the common sense rules all teachers gave. I was too busy looking at how long that boy's legs where. There wasn’t enough room under his desk for those legs. I had to point my toes to get them to reach and Angel Boy over there couldn’t fit his under the desk.

We started with chapter one of World History. I turned to page one and watched Angel Boy do the same. His page did not fall before he was day dreaming again. What was he thinking about? He’s got to stop making his inattention so obvious, it will annoy the teacher. “Mr. Jones?” the teacher asked as he looked at Angel Boy.

Angel Boy wasn’t paying anymore attention to the lesson than I was. He looked at the teacher with confusion, so quick was his descent from his heavenly thoughts. I wanted to save him but didn‘t know how. I leaned over and whispered the first thing that came to mind, “Just guess.” He turned those big blue eyes to me, it was easy to read the a question mark in them. “Just guess the answer.” I smiled at him,clarifying my suggestion in another whisper. His eyes twinkled with magic as he smiled. Those twinkling eyes and big beautiful smile would melt my heart, make my soul soar and give me the giggles for the rest of my life. Well, at least it still does 30 years later; I don’t see that changing now. He will always be my Angel Boy.