5Teddie Boxer had never been particularly popular with girls. His best friend was a girl, his little sister adored him, his mother, grandmother, aunts and female cousins loved him... But he'd never known of anyone to have a crush on him. Nor did that bother him. However, this is why he was confused by the note he found after morning classes on Monday.
It was typed – so he wouldn't be able to figure out who sent it by handwriting comparison – on a piece of sky-blue paper, a small piece neatly cut out and tacked to his locker. Furrowing his eyebrows, he plucked it off and looked at it.
I know that you do
Not see me, and yet I will
Still never relent.
Utterly befuddled, he shrugged, stuck it in his pocket, and put away his books. He grabbed his lunchbag, and slid into a seat next to his best friend in the lunchroom.
Emily Baxter was, had always been, and would always be Teddie's best friend. She had long blond hair down to the bottom of her shoulder blades, light skin, bright green eyes, and a smile that would melt the heart of any evil entity (or so Teddie described it). When Teddies sat down next to her, she ruffled his longish, messy black hair and, cocking her head, asked, "What's up?"
His frown deepened as he took the note out of his pocket and dropped it on the table. "This."
She smiled. "You're so cute when you're baffled." He scowled, but she was reading the note. After a moment, she said, "Haiku."
"High who?"
Rolling her eyes, Emily explained, "It's a haiku. A Japanese style of poetry, if I remember correctly. The format is three lines – first line has five syllables, the second has seven, the third has five again."
He pulled the note toward him and read it again. "Hey, you're right."
"Well of course I am, dummy. I'm me."
"Ah. Yes. That would explain it." Teddie agreed with a smirk. The two of them unpacked their lunches and began to eat.
"Hey, do you think that means she's in the Poetry Club or something?" Teddie asked suddenly.
"...What makes you so sure it's a she?"
"EH?!"
"Well, I'm just saying. I know some of the guys in this high school are... Bent."
"...Bent. What kind of word is that, for this situation?"
"Well, they're certainly not straight."
"Yeah, I guess... ANYWAY, do you think that she-slash-he-slash-it might be in the Poetry Club?"
"I dunno. You could try it, I guess."
Teddie nodded. "I think I will."
After a moment, Emily asked curiously, "Hey, why're you so curious anyway? You've never really been into girls – or guys, I'm not saying you're bent or anything..."
Teddie looked at her, a bit of his spaghetti hanging from his mouth. He chewed for a moment, swallowed, and pointed out, "Well, if you had a secret admirer, wouldn't you want to know who they were?"
"Yeah, that makes sense."
Exactly one week later, Teddie found another poem on his locker. This one read:
You go in search of
Poetry lovers, but I'll
Not be among them.
Emily came up behind him. "Ready for class?"
Ignoring her question, he asked, "Hey, are you leaky?"
"Oi!" She exclaimed, clearly expressing that she thought the question was uncalled for. "That's none of your business, Teddie Noah Boxer!"
"Oh – I didn't mean... Ew," Teddie looked disgusted. "What I meant was, did you tell anyone about the Haiku, or our conversation about it?"
"No..."
"Because there's another one, and it seems to... Uh, acknowledge my... Suspicions, I guess..." Unable to find the right words, he handed her the note as they walked toward their first class, which they had together.
"Hmm. Seems you're right."
"Well of course I am, dummy. I'm me." Teddie teased her. She rolled her eyes and handed the poem back.
For the third Monday in a row, Teddie found a poem on his locker.
Black hair, hazel eyes,
Pale skin, and freckles, you have
Always been perfect.
"At least this one is straightforward," He said as he passed it to Emily.
"Yeah, I guess." She glanced up at him. "And not so far off the mark, either," She added.
"Eh?!" This comment surprised him.
"Well, you're not quite perfect. If you were a bit smarter, you may have figured out who it was by now," She pointed out, completely smothering any inkling suspicion he may have had.
Teddie's eyes widened when he read the next one. "Wow, that's a bold move!" He exclaimed. Emily snatched it and looked it over.
I am four inches
Shorter than you and blond. Have
You figured it out?
"That is bold. So, have you?"
"Have I what?"
"Figured it out, doofus! You were just given a great whopping clue!"
"Umm... No...?"
Emily whacked him in the back of the head. Under her breath, she mumbled, "You are so thick if you don't know who she is yet."
"What was that?"
"Oh, nothing."
One more week, and one more haiku – another one that Teddie could use to identify his admirer.
I am also a
Person you know well. Do you
Know who I am now?
"So do you?" Emily asked expectantly.
Teddie was silent.
"Well?"
"...No..." He admitted sheepishly, earning another whack.
She sighed exasperatedly. "She-he-it is going to give up soon."
"What makes you so sure?"
"Your density. She-he-it is starting to think that you're about as smart as the object you're nicknamed after, I'll bet."
Come on, Teddie, please.
Just figure it out, I want
You to notice me.
Emily glanced at it. Teddie narrowed his eyes at the top of her head – she didn't seem to have looked at it long enough to have read it, but then he shook his head, because that was ridiculous.
"It sounds like she-he-it is getting desperate, Teddie. Better hurry up and figure out who they are."
"Yeah, I guess, I just... Can't think of who it might be..."
"Well then, you're an idiot," She said. Under her breath, she added, "Is it really so hard to see her?"
"Why, do you know who it is?"
"I haven't thought about it that much, Teddie. I thought, with how obvious she-he-it is being, that you'd get it. Maybe I should look into it."
"Oh, would you?" Teddie sounded happy at the thought.
"You try a bit more first."
"Aww, c'mon, Em..."
"Nope."
Teddie, you are so
Dense. Just look around! I'm right
In front of you, dolt.
"In front of me..."
"I'm behind you, smarty," Came Emily's voice, and he turned around. "But points for trying!"
"Look at this one. They're getting more and more... Desperate. But I just don't know."
"Then you're still an idiot, stuffing-for-brains."
"It's getting to the point where I'm just gonna yell out, 'I'm sorry, I don't know who you are!'"
"...If she-he-it is right in front of you, what's the need to yell?"
The next poem Teddie found did not come on Monday, but Friday, after school. This one was the most confusing of all.
I've given up on
You figuring out who I
Am... So turn around.
Slowly, he turned around. He looked up from the little blue sheet of paper to see that Emily was the only one left in the hall with him. "Oh, hey! This one is really weird... I don't suppose you decided to figure it out for me? 'Cause I'm really lost-"
"You are so very, very stupid," She said quietly. There were tears in her eyes. Teddie stepped forward and put a hand on her shoulder.
"Hey, are you okay?" He asked quietly.
"No, I'm not, Teddie Noah Boxer," She answered, wiping her eyes on the sleeve of her jean jacket. "You are so, incredibly stupid..."
"What...?
"Who do you know well, that blond and four inches shorter than you?"
"Umm... Uh..." Teddie paused for a moment, tensing. "You?"
"Who's right in front of you, Teddie?"
There was a painfully long silence. "...You...?"
"Yeah, me. I can't believe you're so thick. I thought that the fourth one would have done it. But no, I had to keep writing those haiku poems..."
The only thing Teddie could think was what an Idiot he was, with a capital I.
"You never even wondered, did you? Did you even read the words?"
Stupid. Dense. Thick. Stuffing-for-brains. Idiotic. How could he do this to her?
"I don't know why I thought I could tell you in poetry. It would have been easier to say it out loud, to your face."
Suddenly Teddie regained control of his thoughts. "Maybe so, Em, but then I might not have realized this." Swiftly, he stepped towards her and kissed her, putting one hand behind her head and the other around her waist.
Emily tried to gasp, but found she couldn't. She hugged him, and when he pulled away, she said quietly, "...Maybe it wasn't such a bad idea after all, then."