~*~A few weeks later

"George and... Julia," called my teacher. She had said my name as if she had been looking for someone else, although I was the only person left in the classroom without a partner.

She had assigned us all a partner to do a research paper together. We will all have to study at least one element on the Periodic Table and do a paper on it.

I turned and smiled at George at the sound of us being partnered. He smiled back, but turned his attention back to the board as the teacher further explained the assignment.

A few minutes later, I felt something hit the back of my head. It wasn't very heavy. I turned around and there was a crumpled up ball of paper laying on the floor. I picked it up and flattened it out without trying to make too much noise.

Written in it was, what looked like very fast, messy handwriting. It was so messy that it was hard to decode.  What was written on it was:

Ditch class. Next Period. -George

Kaithlyn, who also happened to sit next to me, was one of the few that noticed the note. "What is it?" she questioned.

"Oh, It's nothing," I replied.

"It can't be nothing if you're hiding it," she urged.

I tried to hide it casually in my folder to make it look like it really wasn't anything. "It really is nothing. It's just a note saying... you look nice today."

She gave me a look that told me she didn't believe my lie, but she didn't pester me with anymore questions.

~**~

"I can't believe we're doing this," I say, as I walk down the street.

"Don't worry about it, I do this all the time," said George, walking beside me, taking a drag from his cigarette.

I'm skipping class. Me. Ditching. Missing. Bailing and all the other words used to describe it. My mother is going to go absolutely insane when she finds out.

That is, is she does find out.

"We're we going exactly?" I questioned. "It's like we're just walking down a road that leads to nowhere."

And it did. There are a few houses near the school, but when you go far enough, it's mainly fields and farmland with all kinds of wild flowers and birds.

"Well, ye see," said George, "that's just it. Life is a big road, and it will lead ye to nowhere. Ye can run around looking for something, but it's all the same nowhere as before. We are all just nowhere men living in our own nowhere land."

I never thought about life like that. It didn't make sense; but it did. It's rather hard to explain.

"Well, surely there's something somewhere in that nowhere land," I say.

"Of course there is, but it only lasts for a while. Nothing can really last a lifetime, now can it?" He questioned.

That was true. Now that I think about it, nothing really does. Eventually Elvis and Buddy Holly and Eddie Cochran's rein of popularity will end eventually. Not even our own lifetimes can last someone else's.

"I guess not, no."

We walked in silence for a bit. It wasn't awkward, it was more peaceful.

"Wha' do ye want to do for the research paper?" George asked.

I looked at him. He was concentrating on balancing on the curb. "I don't know, honestly. I never cared much for the elements that practically create our world," I say, laughing a little.

"I must agree."

There was a minute of silence between us.

"It never dawned on my that it isn't the 1950s anymore. It's the 60's. A new decade. So many things can happen between now and the rest of 1960," I say.

"So many things. I'm really hoping that the band will get more notice, more... publicity," he says.

"I do too," I concur.

George turns to look at me. He steps down from the curb and comes closer. "I haven't told ye this yet, but we may be going to Hamburg."

"What do you mean?"

"Some big music publisher saw us perform at the Cavern, and he wants to send us to Hamburg," he explains.

I let out a squeal and gave him a hug. "Congratulations! When did you learn about this? When are you leaving?"

The questions wouldn't stop flowing. I couldn't help it. I was so happy for them. They're finally getting the big break that they deserve so much.

"Well, it's not finalized yet, but when it is, we're goin' to be leaving in August," he said.

August. That's only a few months from now.

"I'm so happy for you guys!" I squeal.

~**~

I go to the park long after George went to his house. I wasn't ready to face my mothers wrath, because, and I'm sure of it, she found out.

I climb the tree and sat down on the highest branch. I probably looked like a fool smiling like I was. A fool on the hill.

John. George. Pete. Stuart. Paul. Those are going to be the big names that everyone's going to know. Everyone's going to want to have a piece of them.

I couldn't get my mind around anything else. I didn't even care about how long the lecture I'm going to get from my mother is going to be; I walked home.

I thought about what it would be like to know such accomplished people. To have befriended them. To have even dated them. I was so excited I didn't even realize that I was walking in the wrong direction.

Everything seemed so pleasant. The world was at peace and the birds are happily chirping as the sun start to slowly dip back into it's quiet desolation. This must be what it feels like to be happy.

I turned the key and pushed against the door. Surprisingly, my mother was waiting there for me.

"What do you think you're doing skipping class like that!" she shouted.

~~~~~~~~~~~*******************************************~~~~~~~~~~

Word Association With Lauren:

They're - They are

There - referring to a place

Their - referring to a person

All right- commonly used as 'alright' but correctly used as all right

You're - you are

Your - belonging to someone

I hope you have enjoyed this lesson. Please use it because it really annoys me when people misuse them. Although I probably don't use them correctly, either.

We'll see you again on the next Word Association With Lauren.

I'm Lauren by the way.