The Face of Love

Chapter 1

Love makes up the journey in life that is never taken seriously the first time. But there is an exception to many of the world’s rules. I was the exception of this rule. My love for someone was never false, but at the same time, never pure. My heart didn’t speak up to tell me what love is until I saw her. Still, to my mind it makes no sense what love really is…

Maybe it will make more sense if I looked back farther; to when I didn’t know her. The latest in my life that was is when I, Brad Nickel, was just starting the eleventh grade in August 2006. Starting my second year at Mono High School was easier that the first because I moved to Mono, California during the summer going into tenth grade. It was in the tenth grade when I met Sheldon Miles Max. He was perhaps the slickest smooth-talker in California, so everybody just calls him Oil.

I was only 5’ 7” with dirty-blond hair and blue eyes with a very light skin tone.

Oil and I always sat down at the lunch tables every morning before school, so I knew where to find him. I almost didn’t recognize him, because he dyed his hair from dark brown to black. But when I finally recognized him, I had to shout, “Not too sure about you, but you are just trying to be slick aren’t you?”

He flipped his hair revealing his brown eyes. “You cannot smooth-talk me Brad,” re responded. “But yes, I am too slick for my own good.” He then stood up showing that he is almost a foot taller than I was.

“Did you get your schedule?” I asked. He waved his arms around humming, then slipped his hand behind my ear, and yanked his hand back. “your hand holds nothing!” I said.

“Did you check your pockets?”

I reached into both and felt a piece of paper in each one. I pulled them out, revealing two schedules. One was mine, and the other was h is. “How do you learn this?”

“Summer camp, now compare them!” I did as he asked and notices that we had the same room and period for first period Algebra 2 and fifth period Physics. “Two classes together, that is awesome”

“And I will always be there before you!” Just then the bell rang, and I looked up toward the ringers. When I leveled my head again, he was running to class. I ran after him, but I could not catch up in time to beat him to room 176.

Nothing important happened in first period, but I was seated only two seats behind Oil. We were close to the back of the room and we were allowed to share out summers for the first half out with each other. I told Oil, joking with him, saying, “Oil, someday your wife will smack you for smooth-talking so much!” He had no wife at that time, so he knew I was joking.

He responded with, “I figured that out over the summer, but thank you for the complement.” We both laughed, then he said, “Don’t you think it is strange how they only tell you the name of your P.E. teacher?”

“How else will we find our where we are supposed to go? It’s an out-door class.” After the first half our, we had to pay attention, and that was the worst part of the day. When I went to German History next period was when we really first met.

I bumped into Melody Cath not too far from the class door. She didn’t fall, or drop her books, but I did say, “sorry” and she said that it was okay. My heart pounded faster, and I could feel my pulse in my chest without putting my hand over it.

She had the most beautiful blue eyes, but they were almost hidden beneath her bangs. He dark hair rested on her shoulders. Her white, semi-loose shirt covered her slender figure until her blue jeans started coverage on the waist and went down to cover her socks. Her skin tone was between brown and white to the best of my knowledge, and I also remember her skin looking softer that silk.

I drew a picture of her, and wrote down her name. She was seated in the middle of the second row. I was seated three rows to the right of her. The picture I drew was not great, but you could tell that it was she. I named the picture “A Sweet Melody” and signed it. I had never felt like this before, and I almost didn’t realize that the teacher left year plan and behavior agreement papers on everybody’s desk.

I met up with Sheldon at lunch after P.E. third period. I said, “I cannot describe how I feel, but I think I fell in love today.”

He said, “Yeah, me too, about six times.”

“Oil! Yeah is improper grammar, say yes—!“ He did. I continued, “and no, this is serious.”

“You cannot be serious about a girl you just met man. I bet that you do not even know her name.”

“Her name is Melody Cath,” I said with my hand out, palm up. “That will be five bucks please.”

Daydreaming, I started to ignore him. He said, “I think Cath is a big name. Maybe it was the same last name—“ I didn’t hear the rest. After a few minutes, he looked at me and noticed me staring into the sky. “Are you listening?” he asked.

“Yeah.”

“What’s my Uncle Robert’s name?”

“Yeah.” He snapped in from of my face and seized my attention. He started to talk but I aid, “The bell is about to ring!” It was true, and it was only a guess. I had only said it to make him stop talking.

I went to Computer science, Physics, and then English. Oil and I could not talk in fifth period because we were seated at opposite ends of the room. The teacher randomized his seating chart. By the end of the day, I had many “Year Plans” and “behavior agreements” to take home and get signed by my parents.

I told them I had a story, but they wanted the serious stuff first. After having both, Lyle and Barbra nickel, sign them, mom had to leave for work. I told dad the whole story over dinner. He then started telling me a story. He speaks figuratively all the time because he majored in philosophy before going to a Christian college. My whole family is of the Christian faith, but nobody ever understood him. I just said “Thank you for the advice.” and cleaned up. That was just the first day of the eleventh grade.