Unable to fall back asleep, I decide to get up before my alarm goes off, allotting myself extra time to get ready, given my broken leg. Only five more weeks to go with this damn hunk of plaster and then I’m free.
I carefully sit up in bed and gingerly swing my legs over the edge. Grabbing my crutches propped up against the nightstand, I lift myself up from the bed and glance around the room. It looks like a fucking tornado ripped through.
Chase’s duffel bags are haphazardly thrown next to his bed and half of his desk drawers are open, their contents strewn all over the floor.
I sigh in aggravation, maneuvering around all his shit to put some clothes on and get ready.
After getting dressed, brushing my hair and teeth, and applying some deodorant and cologne, I hobble back over to my desk where I already have all of my stuff packed and ready for class, thanks to my lovely girlfriend. On the short trip over, the bottom of my crutch lands on top of a folder and it nearly slips out from under me.
“Fucking Chase,” I growl, bending over to pick up the folder. To my luck, all the papers spill out all over the floor.
Pissed, I throw the folder on his bed and angrily grab my desk chair, dragging it over to at least sit down to pick up the papers so I don’t fall flat on my face trying to balance. Gathering up the papers, I realize they’re notes from our biology class last semester, the class code scribbled in the top corner of every page.
I observe the handwriting, determining it’s not Chase’s. The handwriting is big, bubbly,legible. Yep, definitely not Chase’s. He hardly ever took notes in class anyway. He must have taken them off the girl in our class that he has a massive crush on to study for the final.
Reaching for another paper, I see a bunch of bird names highlighted as subtitles, several bullet points listed under each species. My eyes automatically find the finch and I can’t help but smile reading the notes written down.
Finch:
Darwin’s theory of evolution
Differ in beaks, body size, and behavior
Quiet
Social in their own groups
Need other finches for stability and to thrive
Live in large groups out in the wild and rarely migrate
I remember giving Olivia the nickname Finch at the beginning of last semester just because I thought she was sweet and quiet and never left her hometown. But there’s way more to her than that.
Sitting back, I now realize most of the people around us are just finches living among other finches. Olivia and I found each other because we’re one and the same. Stan and Monica found Olivia because they were all similar. Lexi, Cora, we’re all the same. Connected. While we all may differ physically and emotionally, we’re all parallel.
Just like finches, we thrive together. We lean on each other and understand one another.
When Olivia found me, I was a lonely, miserable individual. And despite being polar opposites, we somehow naturally attracted each other. My life completely flipped when she walked into it, and now I realize it’s because we were just two finches who found each other, finding our niche. Our flock. Everything falling into place.
I gather up the rest of Chase’s papers and throw them on his desk, my heart surprisingly happy.
A soft knock comes from the other side of my door, and I instantly know it’s Olivia. After a beat she slowly opens the door and sticks her head in. “Ready?” she asks.
I can’t help but smile. “Yeah, I’m ready, Finch.”
I shrug on my backpack and grab my crutches, hopping out the door.
She walks me to my first class, making sure I get there all right with my leg.
“I’ll see you later in the Anatomy II lab,” she says, kissing me goodbye at the door of my first class.
I grin. “I’ll see you then. Hopefully we both get good partners,” I tease.
Olivia and I already planned it out last semester that we’d pick the same lab section this year just so we could be partners again.
She smiles, playing along. “I hope so.”
Epilogue
