The New Kid

Stephanie first saw him as he stood in the main hallway of the high school, seemingly lost. There was something different about this boy, foreign perhaps, maybe innocence, a shyness or even worldly.

She couldn’t tell. However, she rushed over anyway to ask if she could help.

“New here?” she asked.

“Yes,” he answered.

“Stephanie.”

“Howie.”

“You look lost. Can I help?”

“Do you know where this room is?”

“I sure do. That’s my home room.”

She led him to the door. He opened it and allowed her to enter first.

It was like that through much of the first few weeks of their junior school year. She met him at the front of the school each morning and they’d sit in their home room chatting.

“Would you go out with me?” Stephanie finally asked.

“Sure, but I don’t have a car or my license.”

“That’s okay. I have both. Will Friday night at six be okay?”

“It would be great.”

“Super! Then we have a date.”

“She’ll be like puddy in my hands,” Howie thought as the class bell rang.

Friday night finally arrived and Stephanie pulled up to the curb in front of Howie’s home. He came out and got in the car the moment he saw her.

“So, what’s the plan?” he asked.

“I thought we’d go for a dip in the ocean off of Kellogg Beach.”

“Oh, I can’t swim.”

“Really? I can teach you.”

“Okay.”

Once at the beach, the two stripped down to their underwear and headed for the water. True to her word, Stephanie showed Howie how to swim, though he wasn’t very good.

Afterwards, they returned to the vehicle where they retrieved the towels Stephanie had brought, then started to redress. As Howie stood next to a half-dressed Stephanie, he felt his excitement rise and he leaned in and kissed her.

She pulled back in surprise. Then she checked her partially-naked self, then looked up at Howie, who stood there dumbfounded by her actions.

“Mom and Dad have always told me to beware of the change as I become a woman,” she offered sheepishly.

“Does that mean you didn’t like me kissing you?” Howie asked.

“No! I loved it,” she giggled, “And I want you to do it again.”

The two pressed themselves tightly to together and engaged in a lengthy time-forgetting french-kiss. Suddenly Howie jerked from her away with a frightened gasp.

Stephanie had changed. She was a greenish glob of goo that spilled out of his arms and oozed its way to the ocean.

Howie turned and ran, forgetting the rest of his clothing. He spent the remainder of the weekend in his bedroom trying to figure out what had happened.

Monday morning, a still confused Howie learned that Stephanie’s family had abruptly moved out of state over the weekend. That evening, while preparing for bed, he allowed himself to relax into his natural translucent-red blobulous self.

“If only Stephanie knew how perfect we’d be together,” he thought, falling asleep.