Before I entered the beautiful architectural building, I took a moment to recap my high school years. I was definitely not an angel, but I had the best 5 years of high school any young girl could ever ask for. The memories flood my mind and soul. Thinking back to my first year in high school, made me smile from ear to ear. I was almost late for my very first day at school. I remember it as if it was yesterday.

It was also the very first broadcast of the rude awakening. A new voice to wake my brain up, a new voice to lead to the time I have to leave home, to walk to school. I was so drawn into the line-up of their show that I almost pooped my pants when I checked the time. I grabbed my bag and ran. The high school was not just up the road any more like my primary school was. It was at the very least double the distance. As I ran, I saw busloads of children driving past me. I tried to keep up but they were too fast for me. I ran into the school yard as the bell rang. I was totally out of breath when I entered the gates of new opportunities, new vibe, new friends and a new beginning. All my close friends had the opportunity to go to another school. I begged my parents to allow me to go to the same school as my friends, but they apologized and explained that there were no funds available to make this possible. The last day of grade 7 was one of the hardest things to do. I had to say goodbye to four of my precious friends. The hardest thing I ever had to do is say goodbye to the four young bright sparks that motivated me to study and brought the best out in me. I had no idea where to go but took a chance to follow a group of kids to the hall. I saw a few familiar faces there so I was definitely at the right place and just in time too. I have never seen a group of children with more confused and scared expressions on their faces. Some of the boys had attitudes expressed in their body languages. Some of them had their hair flat and neatly cut, some of them looked like punks. Then you had a group of nerds. I respected the nerds for who they were. I knew that one day, they will be the rich leaders leading our youth forward some point in time. The girls were chewing bubble gum and glared at each other while they stood in their little groups. The fear in each and every one of them was priceless. They tried to act all touch but their nerves got the better of them. You could see who the well-mannered group were and then you could see the lot that was just there because they had to be. Then there was this one girl. She had this long fringe, thick brown hair that covered half her face. My observation was broken with a very loud voice. I got such a fright. "Keep quiet!" one of the teachers demanded. He was an average height, well-built teacher. He was firm when he spoke and used his hands to direct what he wanted us to do. He looked strict. I think that this teacher will discipline any pupil when needed. I wondered what subject he taught and if I will get any classes taught by him. "I am Mr. Grobler. What I expect is complete silence. You will do as you told. Now walk in an orderly fashion and fill the seats from the front. Girls you are on the right and boys you fill up on the left." I was too scared to lift my eyes off the ground. "Psst... hey..." I heard one of the boys said. "Quiet!!!" Mr. Grobler shouted. We entered the hall in an orderly fashion; quietly. Sitting in the third row from the front I realised that this is the first assembly of many. There will be concerts held here and numerous other things. We will probably have our music class in the hall as well. When the principle welcomed all the new children to the school, he looked straight down to the grade eights and said: “Welcome juniors, this is the first day of your high school years. High school is what you make of it.” While he was informing all of us to make the right choices, I noticed a familiar face trying to get my attention. Looking at him in his school uniform made me realise just how tiny he is. Joe is in grade eight with me. He lifted his hand slightly to wave and I just responded by giving him a slight nod. This is going to be a very interesting day. After assembly we were split up into our classes. My register teacher was Mrs. Cilliers. She was a short middle aged lady. I liked her immediately for some reason. Maybe it is because she reminds me of my mother. She gave us our time tables and explained where all the teachers’ classes were. I sat right opposite the girl with the half covered face. I heard her friends called her Yolande. She sat there staring at me. I did not want to say or do anything. She looks like a real tough cookie. I missed my primary school friends. I am sure they are all together having a total blast. The first day was fun but also an eye opener. It was my first experience where I felt nervous, excited and scared all at the same time. Now that is what I call mixed emotions. The best thing of the first day of high school was that I had the opportunity to meet new people and make new friends. Positive thinking gives you a positive output.

I entered the venue, totally stunned with the beauty that surrounds me. Every lady looked beautiful and sparkled in their own unique way. Most of the girls wore blue… and some black with dainty sequence. I decided to go with the colors I love the most in a nightgown. I entered the room in my elegant black and gold dress; it had a very low cut at the back trimmed with a thin gold wire. It was skin tight black velvet and had a v-cut neck. It had black and gold velvet puffy shoulders. It had a long slit on the right leg, so long that it almost reached my hip bone. I had beach bronze stockings on with an extremely dainty high silhouette that complemented the gold tip of the suede shoes. My hair is done in an up style with beautiful flowy curls. My eyes had natural evening eyeshadow on with glitter just below my eyebrows. My eyeliner was black that made my eyes look even bigger than they really are. I had light blush on my cheek bones to ensure that they seem very high and my lip liner was complimented with my light dust of gold-brown shimmer lipstick. I wanted to look as natural as possible yet elegant so I decided to add a beautiful gloss to it, to make sure that they’re not missed.

I took a deep breath as I prepare myself for a wonderful glitter evening. I am ready for this evening. It comes to mind that it is the last night with all my friends together before our final exams begin. Beauty as far as the eye can see. The ladies were dressed to the “T” and the men that accompanied them had sashes on with their suites and tux’s. This is really a night to remember.

The grade 11’s has outdone themselves and so did everyone else that were involved in making this evening as spectacular as it is. There was a piece of my heart that melted when I saw my ex in his catering attire, ready to serve the matric’s of 1995. He stood with his champagne cloth over his wrist, serving another table, non-alcoholic drinks. He is a smart looking youngster with a smile that will melt any woman’s heart. If he only knew how much I still adored him…

I cannot believe the glitz and glamour at the Turffontein Race course this evening.

The evening started with some thank you notes and blessings from a couple of teachers that had the fortunate or misfortunate of teaching a bunch of rebels. The moment finally set in… the moment has arrived… the magic has begun and it is time to party!

After all the exquisite foods and drinks, we started dancing. Now that is one thing I love to do. I can shake this skinny body as if it’s no one’s business. I danced with everyone and all the time. I could feel his presence… I could feel his eyes on me, yet I chose to ignore it. I watched him stare at me in the reflection of the mirror on the dance floor. I realized that what once was will never be again. But on the lighter scale of things, nobody will be able to damper my mood or damper this special evening with the people I basically shared five years of my life with. We are all here to celebrate the end of our last year, as school pupils, together before our final exams start. Oh how I wish my date was here. He was my friend for many years, one that understood me better than anyone else. Oh’ how I wish Joe was here. “I miss you Joe” I whisper to myself thinking of what we would have done on the dance floor. We were not shy at all. We took over a dancefloor in seconds. At the end of the evening we all had a lot of fun and we enjoyed ourselves thoroughly.

On the way back to the school everyone was all very excited about the after party that they were going to. I decided not to go because I heard of too many things that happen at these places. For the first time I do not have a curfew, yet I chose not to take advantage of it either. My friend’s father dropped me off at home. As I got out the car he asked me again if I did not want to go out with the group.

“Thank you very much for your concern, but my gut feeling says I need to stay home tonight” I answered him politely. I wave goodbye as I entered the front door of our house. I made sure that I locked it and walked straight to my bedroom. My feet were killing me. As I sat on my bed I realized that the big world awaits me. I am almost finished with school and to top it all off, I have no idea what I want to do when I am done. What a combination; Rubbing my feet, staring at the radio that is playing softly and thinking of my future. My future holds nothing, I have no direction but I do have one desire; computers. I always wanted to become someone who helps others so I guess going into customer services in the Information Technology industry will be the best bet. Sliding the shoulders of the dress off and standing half naked in my room all by myself. Girls have boyfriends that desire their bodies yet I chose to stay single for good reason. I need to focus on my finals and to do that; I had to ensure that I had no distractions whatsoever. Lying in bed, my mind wondered back to the best times of my high school days. We had Mr Odendaal for one of our subject. I gave him another name, one that suited his appearance; I used to call him Mr Ore-bal. He had big ears, a bald head and was a stocky man. The one day he went out the class to see another teacher. I used to sit right at the back in the corner, the furthest away from his desk. One of my friends, Michelle, sat right in front of his table. While sitting all quietly, I was pondering on my next move. Munching away at the apple that Nicholas gave me, sparked my next bright idea. I am going to throw the half eaten apple at Michelle. She was fun and I loved her personality. Mr Ore-bal entered the room some time while I was pondering and for some reason I did not realize it. The next moment, I stood up quietly and just threw the apple at Michelle. I sat down, faced another direction and waited for a reaction. “Who was that?” I heard Mr Ore-bal said. I put my hand over my mouth, lifting my head off the desk and looked towards him. “Who threw this apple?” he asked again. I could not help it. I burst out laughing. His glasses were skew, he had apple bits on his forehead, nose and glasses. “I am not going to ask again, WHO THE HELL THREW THIS APPLE?” he yelled. Everybody was laughing at this point. Michelle looked straight at me and I just gave her the evil eye. The entire class knew to keep quiet or I will take revenge on their little butts. “So, because you are covering for someone, you will all stay in for break. I have a lot of work to do.” He said and sat back down. He took his spectacles off and cleaned the apple juice off it.

I stood up and said “It was me, sir.” He did not even hesitate and yelled; “Out, get out of my class!” I had to sit outside, in front of his class in the blithering sun.

I burst out laughing at myself while lying in bed. That is a moment that I will never forget. That was the very first time I was thrown out of a class. Note to self; brilliant effort but poor aim. Yawning away, staring at the clock and wondering what tomorrow will bring… Falling asleep at the early hours of the morning was worth every memory that ran through my head.

It is Monday morning and time to leave for school. The 1995 click first met at our friend’s house. He lived across the road from our school. I had a total blast this weekend, my sister and I had good laughing sessions and there was no fighting. Abby normally walks to school with her best friend Angela. They were truly inseparable.

During our high school years, Abby and I drifted apart. She stood up for herself, had her own flaws and she had her own circle of friends. I admired her; from a scared little girl, she blossomed into a beautiful sunflower. She was a petite and feisty teenager that took no nonsense from anyone. She showed no interest in the boys even if she was head over hills over him. She use to tell me all about them, but as soon as one of them showed interest in her, she rejected them as if they had a plague. I knew she was scared to bring a boy home because our father was so strict.

I, on the other hand thought there was a very cute boy in the grade ahead of me. He was short with blond hair and blue eyes. Even though he was short, he had a nice muscle line to complement his stove pipe school pants and yucky mustard shirts.

His pants were very tight and showed off his cute butt. He was a real looker, a very handsome lad and obviously he had a few girls that lined up for him. At break, I used to stand on the benches looking to see if I can find him. He used to play hand tennis at a certain spot on a daily basis. This particular day I decided to sit with my friends on the benches. A tennis ball hit me square on my right eye and trust it to be Franks ball. The boy that I thought was so cute. Frank Williams… no no no, this is not happening right now. Why? Why to me? I put my hand over my eye, closed my other eye and just wished I could disappear right now. Some of the kids gathered to see what the fuss was and I could not see how many there were but my ears confirmed it. My eyes were watering. I stood up to walk to the girls bathroom and he walked next to me every freaken step of the way. “I am fine Frank.” I said trying to get him away from me. “Gabriella, let me see.” He said all humble. “Will you please not make a fuss over nothing?” I said irritable. “Just beat it before I beat you.” I warned him. I felt so embarrassed. Oh my word, people will think that I was in a fight. My father is going to think I am being bullied. Some of my friends followed me to the bathroom to make sure I was ok. My friend Chantel knew that I liked Frank and she giggled while I was rinsing my face. I started giggling with her. “I threatened him.” I said. By this time we could not hold it in, we screamed with laughter. “You threatened him.” She said. “I know. What on earth was I thinking? Oh well, maybe I scared him off for good.” I said. Thinking back of a time when I was just a young pip-squeak myself, I remember a funny story. “You know what Chantel?” I said laughing out loud even more. “When I was small, I visited my aunt while my mother was resting for her nightshift. It was a couple of my cousins, my sister and I, and we played outside for hours.” Giggling as I try to to her this funny story, she started laughing too. “My cousin picked up a small bottle that looked exactly like eye drops. So I opened it and tested to see if there was anything inside it.” I said while washing my hands. “What did you do with it?” she asked. “Abby said I must throw it in her eyes and first I said no and then my cousins also said to throw it in her eyes.” I continued my story; “So as silly as I am, I dropped it in one eye and then the other.” This is when I started laughing even more. “Abby complained that she cannot see and I tried to force her eyes open. Even my aunty tried and we just could not get it open.” I said leaning against the basin where I washed my hands. “I thought that she was really joking around until the next door neighbor read the label on the little bottle.” “Keep out of reach of children. No woman, what is the name on the bottle? My aunty asked her time and time again and all she could read was keep out of reach of children. When my aunt took the bottle from her, she was so shocked and terrified and angry with me too. Take her home immediately my aunt said. I was so confused. Tell your mother that you put superglue in your sister’s eyes. Now go!” We could not help ourselves but laugh non-stop. Was there any other given time that I was so silly? I could not even answer my own question in my head. Walking out of the bathroom, I could feel the blood rush to my head. There he was standing, waiting for me to come out so that he can make sure that I am fine. “Nope, you did not scare me at all.” He said. Oh gosh, earth swallow me now. What on earth is he doing waiting for me and to top it all off, he heard me? “I told you… I am fine.” I tried to brush him off but he was not catching the hint. “You don’t remember me, do you?” he said. Loads and loads of memories scrambled through my mind. I would remember such a gorgeous face. No, seriously, I cannot place him anywhere in my life. “We were neighbors.” He said. Now this is even more puzzling. Neighbors? I would remember living next to such a cute boy. “No, you must be mistaken. I lived in our current house since I can remember.” I said. He could see that I was serious when I said I don’t remember. “Let me refresh your memory. We were very small and you lived next door to us. Remember the houses behind Pick ‘n Pay? We lived there; in one of those houses.” I remember vaguely living there but I do remember the snow. He rambled off about my siblings and his siblings and then he said: “Remember when it snowed? We were riding our bikes in the snow.” Now he has my attention. I could not believe what he was telling me. He was reminding me of my youngest memory. I was about three years old. It was snowing outside and I was riding my little bike outside. My mother and brother were wrestling in the snow, when my mother told Suné to take me inside. Abby was still very young. I stood still for a moment. He stopped in his tracks too. “You do remember me. I can see it on your face.” I did not know what to say to him. Oh my soul, Frank Williams; who would have thought that he would remember me. I was so young. “Yes” I said. “I do remember you now. We started chatting and before we realized the bell rang and it was time to get to class. That break felt as if it was never going to end and for obvious reasons, I did not want it to end either. Walking into our English class, the teacher had her ruler ready to tap me so that I can move a little bit faster. “Aha, I beat you today Mrs. Botha.” I said with a bright wide smile on my face. Frank really cheered me up tremendously; I was in the best mood ever. Entering Mrs. Botha’s class, made me realize that school days are full of opportunities and gifts. We do not always realize it, but if we look carefully, we will see it. Take my English class as an example; I loved Mrs. Botha. She was old but somehow she understood the children. “Come, come, come Gabriella. No chit-chat today. We have a lot to cover.” She was not joking about the amount of work we had to cover. Bradley Wilson was the bright spark in our class and Lesley Essence was right on his tracks. I studied hard enough to ensure that I am not stuck with the dummies but I did not want to be known as a nerd either. My average was about 60% and that for me was the safe zone.

I remember my first report in high school. I have never failed anything in my life, but my first term I failed 4 subjects. I was so scared to go home. I was terrified of my father. I had to get it signed and I had to take it back on the first day of school. We luckily had a scape goat. We had to pack for a church camp. I accompanied my friend, Lené, home to fetch her bags. She had a little case with all her toiletries in; brush, toothpaste, toothbrush, soap, facecloth and tampons. It was jam packed and hardly closed. Her kitbag was filled with underwear and clothes for the next couple of days. Well, Lené did not stay around the corner. We took a slow stroll to my home. I decided to carry Lené's kitbag because what I was afraid what would happen, just occurred. During our slow paced walk, Lené decided to swing her little case. She did not swing it severely but enough for the clip to pop open and scatter everything everywhere. I could not help but break down with laughter. There were tampons everywhere, her toothbrush was covered in sand and brush captured grass like it would hair. "Help me you daft chick" she said panicky as she gathered all her goods that's spread across a two meter diameter. Tears were running down face, my stomach was hurting with all the laughter as I watched her pick up one tampon after the other. As I turned around I realised why she turned purple in her face with embarrassment. There he was, Frank and his click of friends staring at her this entire time. They also laughed and pointed their fingers. "You missed one" he said. It was ok to laugh at the ordeal but I did not agree with him embarrassing her even more. "She left that one for your nose bleed" I responded to his snotty remark. "What nose bleed?" he asked. "The one I am about to give you if you don’t make like a tree and leave!" He could see the seriousness in my eyes. I picked the last tampon up and threw it towards his group and they scattered like scared dogs with their tails tucked between their legs. "It makes me so angry when boys turn everything into their stupid little games." I said while helping Lené to close her little case again. "Stupid boys" is all she said while giggling at herself. My thoughts wondered while we walked the last stretch to my house. What am I going to do with my report? I was too scared to leave my report in my room in case they scratch in my stuff and find it and I was scared to take it with because my little sister likes scratching in my stuff too. So, for my own sanity, I decided to take my red ringed report to camp with me. The church camps were always fun and fulfilling. We played games and learnt life lessons that we can cherish till our dying day. Our group had a little radio playing Michael Jackson softly in the background. We were youngsters and what else did we love than music. Our pastor’s son complained about the music and told us to switch it off. Brandon was a nag bag and complained about everything. This particular afternoon after we had our gathering and afterwards we had some free time. We popped in to visit Brandon and his sister Mal. They were so rude to us and made us feel very uncomfortable that we decided to leave. Not knowing that my sister took their cool aid, I walked out and she followed. The next moment Brandon stormed into our room without knocking. “Where is she?” Brandon demanded. “She took my cool aid and I want it back.” He said angrily. Not knowing what he was talking about, I defended our girls and asked him to leave. “I am not going until I find her.” He said. “Who are you talking about?” I asked. “I am looking for Shirley.” He said. Now I am even more puzzled. “What do you want with Shirley?” I asked politely. “Why? What is going on?” “She stole my cool aid and I want it back.” He demanded. He was going through our stuff, pick this us, looking under that, just basically messing up our room. He stormed to the door, turned around and gave a cute nod to Abby. After leaving our room, he shouted “Tell her to stay away from our room. The PIG!” I was totally stunned. I sat on my bed trying to get my head around what just happened. Abby burst out laughing. I looked at her all confused. “And now?” I asked her. “He was so flippen rude to us, basically talking to us as if we are lower than snake poop, so I took their cool aid.” I could not control it. This noise just belted out of my belly. I fell back onto my bed and cried with laughter. “My little sister got angry? This is the funniest thing I have ever experienced.” I could not believe my ears. She stood there in disbelief. Poor child was terrified that something bad is going to happen to her. When I finally stopped laughing, I told her to do what she think is best. We never spoke of it again. We did not drink it and I know she did not give it back to him either. That really made me realise that Abby is a no nonsense girl. I am so proud of her.

Knowing that the church camp has to come to an end, I started packing my bag. The bus is departing at four o'clock. I am dreading it. We all gathered to have a last prayer before our final journey home. Everybody knew that I was always up to mischief. I was sitting on the seat in front of Shirley. I have been suffering with a nasal drip for a couple of days. I started coughing and coughing. After I eventually stopped, I had this huge green ball of phlegm in my mouth. My window was open so I did what came to mind; I spat this green thing out of the window. Next best thing I know is that Shirley started screaming. Her window was also open and something flew into her ear. She put her pinkie into her ear and when she pulled it out I saw the most disgusting thing ever. It was slimy when she pulled her finger out. I handed her a tissue. "Is it moving?" I asked all concerned. "No, I think it is dead." she answered. Shirley twisted the tissue so that it could fit into her ear like an earbud. As she pulled it I started laughing and elbowed Lené to look. Lené started laughing and by now Shirley has seen what she pulled out of her ear. My green geely that I spat out of my window entered her window and jetted into Shirley's ear. Shirley almost hurled with disgust. We could not stop laughing. Shirley started laughing with us at the end. This was a crying ordeal; one that was set by laughter. Eventually getting my laughing under control and wiping the tears off my face, clearing my vision again, I realised just how close to home we were. We were literally a minute away from home; just thinking of my red ringed report and fear set in.

I finally built the courage to hand my disgraceful report to my father. The look of mixed emotions waved over my father’s face. He did not show one bit of anger, but the disappointment in his eyes was enough to bring me to tears of my own. It streamed down my cheeks even more when he signed it and gave it back to me in silence. I hurt him, I disappointed him and I felt like an utter failure. It was as if I was invisible, see through... lost.

I picked my report up and walked to my bedroom. I did not like this silent treatment for one bit. Rather scream and shout at me so that I can know what is going through your thoughts. I would prefer it if I knew how angry he was and what the punishment was going to be. I disappeared into my room to start a sketch... I needed to express my anger at myself. One red circle after the next is what I drew. The red and white mixed really showed how disappointed and angry I am at myself. The red is anger… how can I do this to myself? This is my own future that I am jeopardising. This stupid silly mistake will haunt me until I receive my report for next term. While I make the red darker and darker I imagine how my veins in my eye pulsate; my right eye more than the other. Putting the red pencil down I realise what people must be thinking of me; she is so stupid, she failed 4 subjects. This type of thing could have been prevented. I feel like a total failure.

There was a soft knock on my door. My eyes were filled with tears and I just did not want to talk to anyone. My dad entered slowly and asked if he could talk to me. I know that I am going to be punished; it is just the severity that will have an impact on me.

He was quiet and his voice was very low. I could hear in his voice that what he was about to say, is not something that he wants to say, but has to say. This is not a position that he wants to be in. What he said made the tears flow.

Every Tuesday and Thursday from seven o’clock to nine o’clock in the evening, I was at Korfbal practise. Korfbal was my absolute passion. I remember when I was in grade 7; I was invited to go with the Gauteng league to represent the Gauteng primary school category. I loved every moment. I played my heart out. This was the first time that I was away alone from my family. I did not have any other friend with me because they unfortunately did not make the team. I was in a room with some of the girls of my team. We had a beautiful sea view. The manager of our team was a very responsible young man. His daughter was also in my team. We both played shooter and we played fantastic together.

“Gabriella…” my father said sitting on my bed facing me. “I never thought that I would ever have to punish you but it took some time for me to realise that it is only fair that you get punished for the bad results on your report.” I nodded softly trying to avoid eye contact with him. “Gabby, you are not allowed to play Korfbal for the rest of the season.” I sobbed as he said it. “You are also not allowed to visit your cousins around the corner. I want you at home straight after school.” He got up and walked towards the door… turned to me and said with a very husky voice “I am sorry my girl.” I was totally shattered. They can take everything away but my Korfbal. They can even take my food away, I would not care a bit. I laid on my bed, crying till I eventually fell asleep. For a person who was extremely active in everything I did, and now it feels as if I was in prison, took a lot out of me to stay at home. When my dad was outside, I was outside. If he was sitting inside watching T.V, take a guess who was in the same room as him? I stuck to his side like a fly to poop. He eventually gave in and asked if I was going to follow him everywhere. “If that is what it will take to lighten my punishment, then yes daddy, I will follow you everywhere with my pretty little sad face.” He smiled and shook his head in disbelief. “Gabby, if your report ever looks like that again, you will leave me no other option but to give you a punishment ten times worse.” I did not want to smile in case he decides to keep me inside for the rest of the holidays. “Yes daddy, I promise not to disappoint you like that ever again.”

“Okay, so remember that you promised. Now please, for heaven sake, stop following me around.

You make me feel so uncomfortable in my own house. Go, please just go…” I grabbed him around his neck and kissed his cheek and said “Thank you daddy, thank you! Thank you! Thank you!”

I could not get out of there fast enough.

During the school holidays, I could not wait to wake up, do some chores and ran out of there as if lightning was about to bolt at my butt. Note; I only did some chores. Some were done, some were hidden and the others were not even touched. My mommy and I fought a lot. I guess it was because I went through a lot of changes entering puberty and my mom hasn’t had a teenager in the home for over eight years. Suné is eight years older than me so to become strict again, to protect me, took a lot out of her. I was not innocent in any of it at all. I went out of my way to upset my mommy at times and most of the time was just for her to say go.

I loved the recreation centre. I met new people and we had soo much fun the entire time. We played pool, badminton and even tennis there. We went on little road trips to Gold Reef city for the day and we even visited other recreation centres with different cultures and diversities. I was head over hills in love with a boy. He was really good looking but he knew that too. He was a real player. Warrick could just look at me and it sent fluttering butterflies to the core of my little body. While the group of teenagers were at the club, we knew that it closed between twelve o’clock and one o’clock. They locked all of us outside while they could take a break from our rowdy bunch.

We did not leave the premises so we played on the Korfbal courts with tennis balls and chased one another, but home was not the destination for any us and was not thought of either.

Warrick called me one side and as I walked towards him I realised that he was alone. “What does he want with me?” I thought to myself. He was never alone. I did not know how to approach him so the next best thing came to mind; “Are you going to teach me how to play tennis?” I can’t believe that came out of my mouth. What the hell was I thinking? I had no interest in tennis! Oh my freaken word! “If you wantmanny me to.” He answered. That was not the answer I expected. He took my hand and pulled me closer to him. This must be a total dream. Pinch me someone, save me from embarrassment. I pulled away and said “So, get the racquets. Let me kick your ass.” Firstly, I don’t even understand the rules of tennis to begin with. All I know is that you hit it over the nets and not outside the “single” lines. “No” he said. “I want to ask you something first.” “Not until I beat you in tennis.” I knew that could and would take forever. I am definitely not going to be an easy girl that he meets today, kiss tomorrow and ignore the day after that. I will play hard to get. I will not give in to any boy just to be noticed. The doors of the recreation centre, we call it club, opened and we all stormed in to pick up where we left off. The music was back on and the pool table was set up for the next match. It was just fantastic. Ronald taught me how to play pool and he also taught me how to play badminton. I loved both sports. We were all very good friends and respected one another. At times, one boy will challenge another because they would like the same girl, but after the fight she would walk away with a total different guy. That to me was the funniest thing. They fight over something that was not theirs to begin with. The boys thought they were players and got played at the end of the day.

The fun continued for days and Warrick and I grew closer.

I remember how he would take my hand and kiss it and I blushed because all eyes were on us. Warrick was extremely well known between the girls so I was scared of falling in love and getting hurt at the end of the day.

I walked towards the ladies the one day and realised that he was behind me. I was not scared that he would take advantage of me because I could defend myself very well after the horror bathroom ordeal. “Gabby…” he said as he took my hand and swung me around to face him. His nose was literally touching mine. By this time, the butterflies were having a party in my stomach. My hands were sweating and I could feel that I stopped breathing for a couple of seconds. It felt as if it was forever. His one hand was in the middle of my back and the other cupped my face. As he attempted to put his lips on mine, I put my finger on his lips and the words that exited my mouth was; “Wait! Your turn will come.”

I walked into the bathroom completely shaking. My legs felt like jelly and it was completely wobbly. Oh my soul, wait your turn. Really Gabby, really? You have never kissed a boy with passion before and now he thinks you’re a pro. I could really slap myself with a wet fish right now. What the hell was I thinking? I really put my foot into this one… or shall I say I committed for my lips to touch his. This is not happening. How am I going to get out of this? Tripled up and down… “Urgh!!! What the freaken hell?” is all I could mutter to myself. Washing my hands before leaving the ladies, I looked at myself in the mirror thinking, I am a teenager and yes I have to experience things like this so let us see what follows.

As I opened the door I looked straight into Warrick’s face. “Hey…” I said as I walked out. “Hey…” he said. Platting his hands with mine we walked to the foyer of the centre. I broke loose from his grip and wondered ahead towards the door. There were a couple of people that played tennis. I moved to the corner where there was no wind. He stood next to me for a bit then stood in front of me, facing me. He cupped my hands with mine and moved closer. “I will not kiss you if you do not want me to.” He said softly. “and I do not want you to.” I responded softly. “I do not want to turn such a wonderful time that we are having, into something awkward.” I whispered in his ear. I thought he would break loose and move away from me all upset but he didn’t. He stood there with my hands in his and just watched the people play tennis.

Walking back into the hall where the pool table was, I could feel eyes on me. Like I said; Warrick was a player and everyone had their own thoughts. The guys were standing with smirks on their faces while the girls were shooting fired up arrows at me with their eyes. I always say; let them think what they want as long as I know the truth.

Days became weeks and before I knew it, we only had a few more days left before school started. Warrick and I were in different schools so a relationship between us sounds non-existent. I loved it when Warrick waited for me at the door. This particular morning, I had to rush to the loo. I gave him a half-hearted hug and ran to the loo.

Walking into the hall, he was standing with the group of boys. I stood with the girls and we chatted and made jokes, teasing the boys and just had clean fun as normal.

Warrick stood behind me and hugged my midriff. He picked me up and swung me around and around. I am so scared of heights, I giggled nervously. “Put me down, please put me down.” He laughed with me and both of us felt a bit disorientated. Next best thing I knew is that we fell and everyone was laughing at us. I did not care because if it had to happen to others, I would have laughed too. We just laid flat on my back in the middle of the hall, giggling.

It was almost lunch time again and I decided to go to the ladies first before our ball session outside. Warrick walked behind me and as I walked towards to loo, he called my name and locked his lips with mine. He kissed my lips so gently. Butterflies did front flips in my stomach. He touched me so softly. I did not even realise that I was against the wall and he was controlling my every move. His breathing was so controlled as if it had its own beat. I touched his neck, running my fingers up his well-maintained stylish hair. I opened my eyes and turned away. I was shy… I felt the blood rush to my head and I glowed like an over ripe tomato. I turned to face him again and this time I put my lips on his. Opening my lips slightly for our tongues to mingle, he moved in closer. I felt his one hand behind my back and the other moved down my arm onto my hip. I have never in my life been touched in such a seductive way. This is one memory that will last for a very long time; my first kiss.

The last day of the school holiday has finally set in and this was the last time that I would see Warrick.

He left a sensational memory.

I was in such a daze as I walked home. All I could think of was Warrick.