By Maple Baby

“Hey, have you ever dissected an owl pellet?” asked Edward with a soft smile.

“Can’t say that I have. But there’s a first time for everything!” 

Bianca, the queen of the school, kept making some not-so-sneaky glances over at us while we talked. 

“Okay class, let’s begin! Owls have no teeth, and they eat small animals like voles or mice whole. Anything they cannot digest, like bones or fur, is spit up in these pellets. Let’s explore what’s in the pellets on the tables in front of you.”

Edward and I both reached towards the forceps at the same time, and our fingers briefly brushed against each other. “Oops, sorry about that.” I uttered.

“No worries! Guess we’re both just so excited.” He handed me the forceps, and I began to pick through the pellet.

“Yeah.”

“I can’t believe that you’re in school with me now! I really thought that I would never see you again after that summer all those years ago.”

“Same… remember that sunset by the lake?” I prodded at the pellet and extracted a mandible.

“Yeah! We were each other’s first kisses,” he whispered, sneaking a glance around the room to make sure that nobody heard. 

I passed him the forceps. “That was such a magical night. I snuck into the cabin on my tiptoes so the girls couldn’t hear me.”

He extracted a maxilla. “Hey, we made a jaw! How cool!” He nestled the two bones into each other.

Mr. Brunswick came over to our table. “Great job guys, looks like you found a vole! Did you know that some voles are monogamous?”

“I did not know that! How wild.” said Edward.

In my heart, I knew that we had found something more than a vole. We were rekindling our romance from five years ago. “YOOOOOO, EDWARD!” shouted a student, barging into the room.

“Jimmy, why are you so late?” asked Mr. Brunswick.

“Sorry man, I was up so late watching Twitch streamers. This one guy got really into Minecraft, and even though I don’t even play that game—like, ‘cause it’s for kids—it was so exciting.”

“Enough Minecraft talk. We are dissecting owl pellets! Edward and Maple, the new student, just found a vole skull!”

“Maple? Edward’s little girlfriend? No way!” teased Jimmy.

“Excuse me? Girlfriend? I’m his girlfriend!” snapped Bianca, throwing her pellet to the floor. The class looked away from their tables and started watching the drama unfold.

“Well, you might be his girlfriend now, but back at camp, those two were lovebirds,” said Jimmy. 

“Edward. Why didn’t you tell me that you two dated? Why can’t you be honest with me? You told me that I was your first kiss, your first girlfriend!” She began to run out of the room, and Mr. Brunswick raised a hand to stop her. She ignored him. 

First kiss? The audacity. 

“Bianca, wait! Come back! Please!” pleaded Edward. He was too late. Bianca was already out the door.

“Edward! What am I, nothing to you? You’re like an owl, and I’m like a vole. You chewed me up and spit me out. You took what you wanted from me, and now I’m not good enough for you?” I was leaving a great impression on my classmates.

“Settle down!” Shouted Mr. Brunswick.

“Maple, that was so long ago. We were only together for two weeks. That’s not dating.” 

I tried to hold back my tears. “Then why were you acting so nice to me today?”

“I was trying to be a friendly face and welcome you to the school. Why would I flirt with you when I have a girlfriend? Except now I don’t even know if I have one anymore.”

“Hey, if you don’t want Bianca anymore, can I date her?” Jimmy asked Edward.

“Absolutely not! In your dreams.”

“Edward, thanks so much for being so nice to me this morning, but you really hurt my feelings.”

“Sorry you feel this way,” Edward said coldly.

The bell finally rang for the next class. “Well, I’m off to history. Speaking of which, you and I are over.”