The Deal...

Izabella The wind blew gently as the sun beamed down on the hundreds of students and parents. It was the perfect day to graduate from George Fowler High. Yet the principal, Mr. Gilligan, seemed to have other ideas. I was aware we were probably never going to see him again, but he had a tendency to ramble. He had been talking for at least an hour and no one has yet to stop him. I continued to daze off until the end came to. "Remember to follow your dreams, but your heart also your heart. Live your lives to the fullest. One day you're going to look back at not only your achievements but your failures as well. Dream big. Work hard and..." He trailed off, for us to finish the quote. "Believe in yourself!" We all yelled in unison. Surprisingly, not one student seemed to screw up. Good thing we practiced. "I would like to present and congratulate: the class of 2016!" Mr. Gilligan shouted into the microphone. That was the cue for us to stand up and do the cliché 'throw your caps into the air and never see it again' gesture. I never quite understood that. Screams erupted from the seniors and everyone clapped for us. Finally, the moment I've been waiting for: To finish high school. After countless tests and assignments, I completed high school. As I was in deep thought, I felt a pair of arms wrap around my waist. I smiled as I knew whom they belong to- Grayson Reynolds. He was my childhood best friend. He had black hair and blue eyes and was the captain of the football team. He was the captain of the football team. His girlfriend, Scarlett King, was head of the cheerleader squad. She looked like your average blonde headed and blue eyed girl. Was I jealous? Of course not. Although, she did have the one thing I didn't. The one thing I wanted. "Hey," I greeted. I wrapped my arms around Gray's neck and pulled him down. Grayson has always been taller than me since the day I met him. As we continued to hug, I heard a familiar cough. I rolled my eyes and saw Scarlett. Her arms were crossing her chest, and she looked pissed. I didn't blame her, but I didn't care. "Hey baby," Grayson said and kissed her cheek. A smile formed on her face and I looked away. "Can you believe that we have our diplomas and we're free?" "I don't," Scarlett replied. "What about you Bella?" I knew she was only asking because her boyfriend was in our presence. She knew how much Grayson loathed how we behave around each other. I gave a fake smile and answered her unwanted question. "Same here. It feels like just yesterday was our first day of our freshmen year and now it's our last day of being seniors." "Don't get too comfortable with freedom Bells," Grayson laughed. Scarlett somehow found a way to roll her eyes without Grayson noticing. I used to have a nickname for him, but Scarlett stole it from me, so I started to call him by his full name now. "We only have two months until college starts." "Speaking of college, where are you going again?" I wondered. Grayson shrugged and threw his arm around Scarlett's shoulder. "Just a state school. You know how my parents are," he rolled his eyes, and a hand encountered the back of his head. "Ow!" "What was that supposed to mean?" The owner of the hand questions after she smacked him. "That you guys love me so much that you won't let me leave the state," Grayson answered and turned around to greet by his parents. "You bet we do, but we're proud of you." I recognized the voice as Angela- Grayson's mom. She engulfed Grayson in a hug and then his dad, Timothy, gave him a pat on the back. "Thank you, mom," Grayson muffled, and I laugh. "Oh, Bella! Your parents are waiting for you at the entrance. Congratulations baby! I'm so proud of you. I remembered when you were a little girl. You would come over to our house almost every day. You two adored each other. Now you two are graduating high school and going off to college," Angela said, and I noticed from the corner off my eye Scarlett looking curious and unwelcomed. I loved Angela for multiple reasons. One, she also hated Scarlett. Plus, she's known me for most of all my life. It was hard not to love her. "Me too. Where has the time gone?" I wondered. "Indeed," Angela sighed. "Remember when you fell off your bike when you were five? Grayson carried you like you two were married. That was so adorable and sweet." I smiled and saw Grayson who was red and Scarlett who looked very uncomfortable. I'm guessing Grayson never told her about that yet. Well, now she knew. "How can I not? It's my favorite memory after all. That's when I first met Grayson. He was my first friend. Who knew we would become best friends?" "I know right," Scarlett joined with a murmur. "And that other time when-" "Cut it out you two" Gray warned. Angela and I shared a laughed. "Mom, didn't you say Bella's parents were waiting for her?" I rolled my eyes but stop laughing. "I'll see you later Grayson," I speak. "It was so nice to see you again Ang. Tim. We should catch up sometime before I leave." "Oh absolutely. You know where we live," Angela chuckled and hugged me slightly. Her husband shook my hand proudly. "It was nice seeing you as well Scarlett. Hopefully, I'll see you later?" Hopefully, you still won't be corrupting my best friend by then. "You know how to reach me," she replied with a roll of her eyes. I mimicked her and Gray looked between the two of us. Before he could say anything, I walked through the crowd of rejoicing seniors. I walked through the back doors and made my way to the front of the high school. I strolled down the very familiar halls until I was finally them at the entrance. I saw my parents' back and called out to them. "Mom! Dad!" They turned around and ran to me, trapping me in a hug as well. Now I knew how Grayson felt. "Congratulations baby!" They responded in unison. "Thank you," I responded after they release me. "Did you see Grayson?" my dad, Henry, wondered. "Yes, I did actually. I also saw Angela and Timothy as well." "So, any plans tonight?" my mom, June, nudged me. I swear, she's such a kid at heart sometimes. "No mom." I mentally rolled my eyes. I rolled my eyes a lot. "What about Roxanne and Staci?" "Staci's going to be spending the day with Sebastian, and I'll see Roxy at work later," I answered. Roxanne and Staci were my best friends. Sebastian was Staci's boyfriend, and Johnathan was Roxy's boyfriend. They were best friends as well. They attended the same college and were rooming together during the school year. "Oh, then what do you plan on doing? Please don't say you're going to stay in your room all day and night "bench watching" The Vampires Diaries," my mother scolded. My jaw dropped at her lack of slang words. "Ok mom first off, it's binge watching. Second, I won't if you try to use "slang" words ever again," I joked, and my mom rolled her eyes. I couldn't help but notice how frequent she rolled her eyes as well. Everything I did, most of it came from my mom. We did sort of look alike. Only I was taller and inherited my dad's brown eyes instead of my mom's hazel ones. "We're serious pumpkin," my dad said in his serious tone, so I knew he wasn't joking anymore. "You're going to college in two months. Don't you want to live a little before you do?" "Fine. One night," I gave in with a roll of my eyes. I had to got to stop doing that. "All right, I have to find Roxy and Staci before they run off with their boyfriends. I'll meet you guys back at the house." Being single sucked sometimes. "Ok, we will see you later!" They hugged me and kissed my cheeks before they walked to their car. I waved after them as they left. I turned around and saw the front doors of George Fowler High. It felt like just yesterday when I was walking through these doors. Now, I'm walking out of them. Permanently. I remembered the very first day when my friends and I stepped through the doors of this school for the very first time. Flashback to: September 5th, 2012 It looked huge. Also, that was just from the outside. I wondered what the inside would look like with all the students who attended this school. I couldn't believe that a 14-year-old girl like me would be roaming halls with 18-year-old adults! At least I wouldn't have to discover it on my own. I have my two best friends with me: Roxy and Staci. Roxy had a petite figure with short black hair and dark brown eyes. She knew some things about sports which was sweet and helpful. That way, if a boy started to make fun of us not knowing anything about sports, which was sexist, Roxy would come in and prove them wrong. Plus, their reactions were always priceless! Stace had long brown hair golden tips. She dyed it because she felt prettier that way. She possessed green eyes and equaled the same 5'4 height as me. Even though we're only two inches taller than Roxy, she's still smaller in other ways. "So, this is it huh?" Staci started. "High school," Roxy continued. "Without a doubt," I agreed under a small breath. "Well, see you guys at lunch," Staci said. I knew she was joking but I still uncontrollably rolled my eyes. It has always been a bad habit. "I'm kidding. We have 1st period together, remember?" "Speaking of," Roxy started to say and glanced at her watch. "We should head inside if we want to make it before the bell." "Do we have to?" I groaned. "It's only four years," Staci said and placed a hand on my shoulder. "Four years in hell," I joked. Suddenly, I was glad we came 10 minutes before school started. I can't wait till I'm free from this place. Back to the present: June 15, 2016 Currently, I was outside. Surrounded by hundreds of celebrating seniors. I looked around and wondered what I was going to do. I had over a month of freedom until I had to start college. What would I do? Maybe I'll go to a party and have actual fun. I'll drink and make new friends. Perhaps I'll find the love of my life. Ok, that last one seemed impossible. I could be wrong. I wish I would be. Though, whatever happens, I knew that I would forever be free.