Her Laugh

Chapter 1

She has this laugh that sounds like running water. I’ll do almost anything to amuse or entertain her just so I can hear it. But she’s not laughing anymore. Ever since her life changed, ever since she lost everything when her parents were killed, murdered. The police know it was a murder, but there were no suspects. The police closed the case and that was it. She was left with a foster family because none of her relatives wanted her. I don’t know why no one wanted her.  She has long silky black hair; her eyes are a dull gray blue; her skin is pale and it matches her complexion perfectly. Her name is Luna.

She always sits alone at lunch and people treat her as if there is a permanent storm surrounding her. It’s like, if you get too close, you are sucked in and live in complete darkness. I glanced over at her and saw her put her head down. She seemed almost mad, but as I looked closer, I could see tears gather in her eyes. I looked back at my friends; they all knew about my innocent crush. Jack, my best friend, saw her crying and nodded.

“Go to her, Nick. She needs a friend.” I picked up my empty lunch box and walked over to her table. Many people at my school, Dragon Hill High School, call me popular so it’s no wonder that all eyes are on me sitting with her. She looked at me,

“What? Are you here to make fun of me?” She said sharply, “I’m already hurt enough, so just leave.” She turned away from me, but I grabbed her shoulder before she could walk away. What am I doing?

“I’m sorry if I came off as rude.” I spoke slowly trying to not offend her, “I’ve seen you sitting here and didn’t think you should be alone.” She turned slowly and I winced, preparing to be slapped. Instead, she smiled,

“You shouldn’t be sorry. I’m the one who was rude.” Then she looked at me closer, “Wait, Nick? Is that you?” She said, clearly remembering that I used to be her friend.

Luna was my elementary crush. My friends said I was stupid, but as we both grew I never stopped loving her. We were best friends and just drifted apart when we got to high school. She was always the shy one while I was outgoing and an extrovert. Even though we drifted, I never stopped loving her gentle persona.

When we got into high school she hardly knew me. I tried to make conversation, but she didn’t know my name. As the other girls grew older and more girly, she stayed shy. She didn’t have many friends and I had only seen her talk to one person out of class.

There are different groups at our school and almost everyone fits into one. There are the popular girls, the nerdy girls, the sporty girls, and Luna. She is different than the rest. She isn’t nerdy, but she is smart. She isn’t popular, but she can act like them if she wants. She isn’t sporty but is one of the most athletic people at our school.

“Nicky, you in there?” Beth, the captain of the cheerleaders, was standing in front of me. Luna must have left as soon as she showed up because there was no trace of her behind Beth.

“I was wondering about something,” she said while batting her eyelashes. Oh no she’s going to flirt with me. Ever since I became popular, the girls have been flirting with me every second they can. Beth is the worst because she was always around and followed by her friends.

“What?” I said, dumbly pretending to not know what’s coming.

“Prom is coming up and I was wondering who you were going with.”  She continued to bat her eyes and try to look cute. Not you, of course.

“I haven’t decided,” I said quickly and walked away, making my escape. I walked out into the hallway and towards my locker. My next class was advanced science. I grabbed my textbook and my binder and headed in the direction of my class.

After my classes, I walked home. It was almost the end of the year, so I didn’t have much homework; only studying. I sat down on my bed and prepared to start when my phone chimed. It was a text from an unknown number.

Hey! That was all it said. I started to put down my phone prepared to ignore it, but something told me to respond.

Hey! Who is this? I started studying until it chimed again.

You don’t remember my number?!? Hah! You’re an idiot. It’s me, Luna! I immediately texted back surprised she knew my number.

How did you know my number? Also, can we call? Texting and studying doesn’t work that well. I waited a bit, but no response came. I set my phone down and opened my science textbook. A few minutes passed as I tried to study, but all I could think about is what she’s going to say. Suddenly my phone chimed and I pounced on it.

Let’s meet up at the park instead. It took her a few minutes to type that! I had no reason to say no so I typed a quick yes grabbed my books and went downstairs. My mom still wasn’t home so I left a note saying I needed some fresh air and was going to the park.

The park was mostly quiet. There was a cheerleading squad on the opposite side of the park and their yelling was just a hum in the breeze from where I was. The grass was a lush green with little weeds poking up here and there. Flower beds surrounded the silver bench I was on and a small tree was behind me. It wasn’t huge, but it shaded the bench. Everything was peaceful and almost perfect.

“Hey!” Luna shouted behind me, almost scaring me off the bench. I turned around and Luna was there smiling. Now it was absolutely perfect. For the rest of the afternoon we studied.

I looked up from the textbook and saw the sun setting in a breathtaking array of colors. I looked over to Luna. She looked up at me with a smile, but as I looked into her eyes I saw the fakeness of the smile.

“You aren’t really happy are you?” I said without thinking. Suddenly, the smile was gone; replaced with what was inside her. Her cheeks glistened in the last bit of light and I realized she was crying.

“I… I didn’t want to make you sad.” She sobbed, “So I tried to be happy.” She bowed her head, clearly sad that her ruse had failed. I placed my hand on her back and tried to calm her down.

“You don’t need to hide anything from me. If you’re sad, I want to know because I will always be here for you.” I said this without a doubt in my voice. I had always been there for her; why stop now? She looked at me, tears rolling down her face. Her eyes were red from crying, but as she looked at me, all I saw in her eyes was hope.

Chapter 2

I woke with the sun shining across my face. After talking with Luna, my whole world seemed brighter. Even if she was sad, I knew I would find some way to make it better and maybe, if I do, she’ll return my feelings. If I’m lucky, maybe she’ll go to prom with me.

The school is white with trees lining the path to the building. In front of the building is a fountain with benches around it. I walked down the path and into the school trying to avoid the group of popular girls. I stepped inside and breathed a sigh of relief. The popular girls annoy me every morning and I didn’t want to deal with them today.

Suddenly, I saw Luna beside me. She didn’t see me because she was more focused on weaving through the crowd. I walked beside her until we made it to a quiet place.

“Luna!” I said, excitedly. She turned around, startled, and stared at me.

“You’re talking to me?” She asked slightly confused, “I thought you’d rather talk to the popular girls.”

“Yes, I’m talking to you.” I said, “I wanted to know if you wanted to hang out at the park again tonight.”

“Of course.” She said quietly, “I’d love to.” After that, the bell rang and she quickly hurried to her class.

The day went by quickly knowing that she would be at the park waiting for me. I got home and finished my homework as quickly as I could. When I was done, I rushed to the park. She was sitting, looking around waiting for me. When she looked over at me, her eyes filled with excitement. She waved and beckoned me over. I walked over and she smiled a mostly fake smile. I opened my mouth and said,

“Tell me about the murder.”  

Chapter 3

Her eyes widened and she started to talk.

“My parents just came home and they were really nervous for some reason. They kept looking out the window. Suddenly, we heard the roar of a car motor. My parents both turned to me, their eyes filled with fear. I looked out the window and saw a man with a dark hoodie standing in front of the door. My father ran to me and grabbed my hand. He dragged me upstairs and pulled me into the attic. I turned around and he shut the attic behind me. Darkness enveloped me and I heard a knock at the door. I heard the door open and yelling. I couldn’t make out anything they said, but I heard my mother's voice get more and more panicked. Then two shots echoed through the night. I heard the door open and the car drive away. Then silence filled the air and I feared the worst. I sat in the attic for what felt like an eternity until I felt brave enough to venture downstairs. What awaited me was burned into my mind. My parents were collapsed on the floor with a bullet through each of their necks.” She stopped for a moment tears starting to spring from her eyes. “I… I called the police and sat on the front step until they came. I told them what I knew, but they still couldn’t do much. I… I saw them carry their bodies away. When I went to the funeral they had pictures of them, but all I wanted was to see their faces. I wanted to hear them laugh.” She broke down, sobbing, and I held her until she stopped.

“Are you okay now?” I said and she turned to look at me.

“Yeah, I think I am.” She said dreamily and she looked into my eyes. “I think everything will be okay, now.” I looked at her and saw she was smiling. This smile was different than all the others. For once, it was real.

“I think you’re right,” I said and we leaned toward each other. The space between us grew smaller. First 12 inches, then 6, then 3, and then we were breathing the same air. I grabbed her chin pulled her towards me and we kissed. Nothing else in the world existed at that moment in time. We were in our own world where only we lived. I wished that we could live in that moment forever because I felt like we pulled apart too soon.

“That was amazing,” She said, dreamily.

“Will you go to prom with me?” I said.

“Of course I will!” She said with no doubt in her voice. I was filled with happiness and we kissed once again.  

          I went home and everything seemed brighter. I felt lighter know I wasn’t hiding how I felt. As I slipped into bed, I smiled knowing she would be waiting for me at school.