Im and Lar

"OK everyone, times up. Pencils down. Pass your quiz to the front row and I'll collect them," Mrs. Arche announced. After she collected the quizzes she followed up with, "Now, I want everyone to be studying hard for your final in two weeks. I know it's tough with Senoritis and all, but this is the home stretch and your education is really important. I know it's a few minutes before noon, but I'll let you all get to lunch early."

Klark rose from his desk and started for the cafeteria. He was looking forward to lunch right about now. "Hey Klark, can I walk to lunch with you?" asked a female voice behind him. There it is; what he most looked forward to about lunch recently. It was Kimberly, his friend since he was twelve years old. Now his crush, and lately she had been spending a lot more time with him.

Going to the Homecoming dance with her is what had started his crushing. That night he was thinking of how much fun he had, how he enjoyed spending time with her, and how beautiful she looked in her dress. He liked feeling her hands on his shoulders and neck, the excitement of have his hands on her waist, the flow of their bodies as they danced. When they were not dancing they engrossed themselves in conversation that he found fascinating and intriguing. He thought more about why he had asked her in the first place. She was a good friend. He knew that their values were similar as they went to the same church. She was such a good and kind person that he knew he didn't have to feel awkward or insecure with her. As he thought of this while lying in bed after the dance he realized he liked her, and not just as friends.

This was uncharted territory. He had no idea what to do. He had never had a girlfriend, never kissed anyone, he hadn't taken too much of an interest in any of the girls at school. At church and at home he had been encouraged to focus on his schoolwork and only to go on dates for fun and casual socialization. More serious courting could come after he was older and more mature. But he was eighteen now; he was an adult, and so was Kimberly. He knew if he asked his older sister for advice she would tease him constantly about it. And he loved his mom, but she volunteered in the youth ministry at church and he didn't want her to give something away to Kimberly by accident. What ended up happening is that he did nothing about the feelings he had for her.

Hearing her voice in the hallway had conjured up those memories, but now he needed to be in the present. "Sure, Kim. You want to sit with your friends at lunch today?" he responded.

"Actually I was wanting to sit with Brianne and her friends today if that's ok with you. I have some questions about our English assignment that I was thinking of talking with her about."

"Sounds good to me." He opened the door for her, and as she walked past him she gave him a big smile. Seeing her beaming at him like that gave him a handful of butterflies in his stomach. He was starting to think about doing something about this crush he had.

After the two got their food and sat at the table Kimberly started talking with Brianne about their assignment. He listened politely or made small talk with some of the others at the table. He couldn't help but sneak glances at Kim's cute face every once in a while. Sometimes he thought he saw her eyeing him a few times as well. But maybe he just imagined those glances from her. Most of lunch was over by the time Kim and Brianne finished their conversation.

Everyone at the table had eaten and they were now socializing. Kim turned to him and said "Hey, so I know this might be kind of weird, but I thought of this secret code for notes in class. I know there's only like, 17 days to use this but I figured, 'Why not?' So I wrote a bit with it and I want to see what you think." Kim took a folded paper from her bag. As she handed him the note she had a nervous look on her face.

"FYI, you can't read it yet. If I'm with you then you'll get hints from me and that won't be a good test. Ok?" she ordered. He nodded as his smile betrayed that he thought she was being a bit silly with this spy stuff. Then with a grin she asked, "How do you think you did on the quiz in physics?"

-----

Klark was listening to Mr. Baden teaching about US history in the 1980's. Klark had read ahead in the textbook, so this was a review for him. History was one of his favorite subjects, so he had one of the highest grades in the class. His mind started to wander until he remembered the note Kimberly gave him. Something was kind of mysterious about it. The more he thought of it the more curious he became. Mr. Baden was pretty laid back, and most everyone had some paper out to take notes. Klark figured he could pull the note out and see what the fuss was all about. Even if Mr. Baden noticed him not paying attention he would probably let it slide since he wasn't being disruptive and his grades were so good.

When Klark opened the note he could immediately see what Kim had done. She had removed almost all the vowels from the words in the letter. Klark thought about how if he sounded it out and wrote what sounds he imagined he could figure this out soon. So he pulled out a blank sheet of paper and started decoding.

*Author's Note: Below is the text of the letter Klark has. If you wish to try deciphering it yourself feel free. I have also included what Klark writes down in plain English as well for your convenience.

Coded Note:

Dear Klark,

I hv cnfsn t mk. Evr snc we wnt t Hmcmng tgthr I hv hd rmntc flngs fr u. Iv nvr flt lk ths bfr nd Iv nvr ksd a by or hld hs hnd. S I ws scrd nd ddnt no wht t d, s I dd nthng. N Snd u dd tht uth srmn n chrch n Mthrs dy abt hw imprtnt mms r, hw mch u lv ur mm, nd hw mch she hs hlpd u nd tot u. Lstng t tht I hd sch a rsh v adrshn nd rspct fr u tht I nw I hd t d smthng abt m flngs. I hp u fl smthng smlr fr m, nd f u d I wd vry mch lk s t t fnd ot wht ths mns. F u d nt fl th sm wy, thn jst prtnd tht u cdnt mk ot ths cd. I no ths cd s spr ez, bt I wd b s mbrsd f u dnt fl th sm wy nd u nw abt m flngs nd I nw tht u nw. I wd stl lk t b ur frnd f u dnt fl th sm. U cd jst chlk t p t m bng a sly tng grl.

Your Friend,

Kimberly

Decoded Note:

I have a confession to make. Ever since we went to Homecoming together I have had romantic feelings for you. I've never felt like this before and I've never kissed a boy or held his hand. So I was scared and didn't know what to do, so I did nothing. On Sunday you did that youth sermon in church on Mothers' Day about how important moms are, how much you love your mom, and how much she has helped you and taught you. Listening to that I had such a rush of adoration and respect for you that I knew I had to do something about my feelings. I hope you feel something similar for me, and if you do I would very much like us to find out what this means. If you do not feel the same way, then just pretend that you couldn't make out this code. I know this code is super easy, but I would be so embarrassed if you don't feel the same way and you knew about my feelings and I knew that you knew. I would still like to be your friend if you don't feel the same. You could just chalk it up to me being a silly teenage girl.

From the first sentence Klark's heart started beating faster. As he decoded more of the letter his breath started coming in faster as well. He could hardly believe this was happening. He was always wary that her behavior was not flirtation or showing interest but only kindness and friendliness. This note though; it was like a gift from Heaven. He began to become impatient waiting for classes to be over so he could see her again.

-----

Finally school was over for the day. Lately Klark and Kimberly met under a certain tree after school so they could walk most of the way home together. They only lived about a quarter mile away and their houses were across the street from each other. Klark was coming closer to the tree and he saw Kimberly was talking to Bethany, one of her girlfriends. When he was start to hear their conversation he called, "Kimberly," in a serious tone of voice.

She turned to see Klark walking towards her with a determined look on his face. She didn't know if that was a good thing or a bad thing, but either way she was going to face the consequences of her actions so she started towards him. As they approached each other they both started walking faster. When they came together Klark hugged her and spun her around. Kimberly squealed as she knew this meant he felt the same way as her. When he put her down they started looking into each other's eyes. She felt like she could get lost looking into the verdant fields and dark windows of his eyes.

After several seconds she noticed his eyes glance down to her lips. She knew what that meant. She had imagined this moment for almost a year. Her heart started beating faster. He started moving his mouth towards hers and she closed her eyes. She felt his lips touch hers, their cheeks touching, their arms embracing each other. She could feel her whole body flushing from her lips, to her face, all the way down her torso and to her legs. The sharp fragrance of his deodorant thrilled her, and the taste of his chap stick was amusing. Hearing his groans of satisfaction made her vibrate with excitement. This was better than she had imagined. Too soon he pulled his lips away and she opened her eyes. He was looking at her with such affection that she nearly crumpled to the ground.

"I like you too Kimberly," he said. "I really, really like you."

"It makes me so happy to hear you say that," she said as she squeezed him harder around the chest.

"Bow-chicka-wow-wow!" Bethany yelled as she started laughing. The couple turned towards her with sheepish looks on their faces. "I was wondering how long you two were going to dance around each other."

"I plan to keep dancing with her for a long time," Klark said as he turned back to Kimberly to look deep into her eyes again.

"I would like that," she said. "I would also like another kiss."

"As you wish," he breathed as their lips came together once more.

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This is my first time writing a story, so critique my work as best you can. I hope the story was entertaining and uplifting even if it isn't a best seller.