April 21st, 2021

I had a friend tell me that she felt so sorry for Beau in The One Who Sees Me. It isn't easy loving someone who has you firmly in the friend zone. Hannah Anderson spends a lot of years completely oblivious, and not just about her friend Beau . . .

   Hannah Anderson was a giggler. Her sister, Kate, was not. As a matter of fact, even as children, Hannah couldn’t recall her sister giggling. Laughing, yes- I mean, her sister wasn’t completely stoic or anything. Just serious. Giggling, however? Kate just didn’t giggle. 
    So at first, Hannah didn’t notice her sister coming down the hall. Hannah was kneeling in front of her locker, switching out the books she needed between second and third period. Freshmen got stuck with the worst lockers - half size and on the bottom. When she was a junior, like Kate, she would get a full locker. Right now she just prayed the sophomore above didn’t drop anything on her head. 
    So she heard the girls before she saw them - their giggles, that is. When she stood, she saw them, her sister in the middle. They were all dressed the same - in bright blue Lightport High cheerleading uniforms. The sleeveless top and pleated skirt accentuated her sister’s curves. Her fine, shiny, strawberry blonde hair was pulled into a ponytail and swung fetchingly behind her, catching the light. The bright blue ribbon wrapped around it only highlighted Kate’s perfectly smooth hair - like a shampoo commercial. 
    Hannah sighed as she reached up and patted her thick, red hair. Unlike some girls with red hair, hers didn’t curl. It just got big and poofy. She usually straightened it with a hot iron, but that morning, she’d overslept. She had thought the barrette she had pinned it up with looked cute, but seeing her sister’s smooth, perfect hair made her doubt her choice. 
    The crowd seemed to part for the cheerleaders. One of her sister’s closest friends, Tessa Julien, tossed her wavy black hair and laughed as her brown eyes sparkled. Tessa had made homecoming court every year. The boy Tessa was dating came up, pressed a kiss to her cheek, and took her backpack from her shoulder. Hannah frowned as she watched. When would boys ever notice her like that?
    “Hey, Hannah.”
    She didn’t even glance at the boy who had come up behind her. After all, she had known him since preschool.
    “Hey, Beau,” she said as she closed her locker and stood.
    “Where’s your next class?”
    “Math.”
    “My class is that way, too. Mind if I walk with you?”
    She shrugged. Kate noticed her, smiled, and waved. Hannah rolled her eyes and waved back. She didn’t need her sister looking out for her; it was embarrassing. Beau shuffled his feet next to her, and she finally craned her neck up to look at him. He’d hit a growth spurt over the summer - a massive one. Suddenly his shoulders were broad and he towered over her five foot, three inch frame at almost six feet fall. Of course, most people towered over Hannah. 
    “So . . . “ he muttered awkwardly. And . . . was he blushing?
    “Oh, sorry, yeah. Let’s get going.”
    Hannah tugged on the strap of her backpack as they walked to class, self-consciously glancing around at kids who were cooler than she would ever be. She didn’t notice the way Beau’s hand kept hovering near the spot between her shoulder blades. 

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