oNe//n.h

c.1
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     I'm a pretty forgetful person, surprisingly. I forget my books, lunch, and sometimes even assignments at least twice a week. So, it wasn't much of a surprise that day when the curly haired boy, who sat in the corner of the room in Art making jokes that made the people around him laugh for most of the period, came rushing to me with a book in his hands.


     What was a surprise was how fast he talked, and how he grabbed me to get my attention. It took me a second to realize that the kid didn't know I was deaf so, I told him. The look of shock that overcame his features was one that should've been photographed but was even more surprising was what he did afterwards.


     Instead of the awkward conversation that would normally follow which included the person talking beyond slow, next "signing" or at least doing gestures that would kind of give me an idea of what they were saying, before they disappeared with an awkward smile which led to them avoiding me in the halls.


     As I was saying though, this boy didn't respond in this way. He just held out the book with that wicked grin of his before speaking slow enough for me to understand but not slow enough to drive me crazy, and then he signed. Like the real stuff.


     "Yeah, well, I'm hearing." He said, turning his finger in a circular motion, close to his mouth with a grin. I mean, sure, it was a little weird, and he didn't seem 100% sure, but he didn't speak to me like I was an idiot and gave of this friendly vibe that told me he was totally cool with this.


     "Is this yours?" He asked, once again only signing a word out of the sentence as he held his hand out, palm facing me as he did two quick motions, the sign for 'yours.'


     "Yes, that's mine." I said with a slight nod as I signed the sentence also. The boy handed me the book with a friendly smile before, watching me closely.


     He placed his hand on his chest, tapping it twice before raising an eyebrow.


     "What's that mean?" He asked, as I slid the book into my bag, swinging it over my shoulder. I began to walk and motioned for him to follow me, it was nice to walk with someone for once. It made me feel, normal.


     A hand waving in front of my face broke me out of my little inner monologue as I raised an eyebrow at the curly haired boy, completely forgetting his question. He tapped his chest twice once more asking what it meant.


     "Oh! Mine." I said, once again tapping my hand to my chest twice. He nodded, looking at me before smiling.


     "Mine," he said, placing his hand on his chest, lightly tapping it twice. "Yours." He once more held his hand out, palm facing me as he did two quick motions.


     I laughed, nodding as I walked beside the boy, focusing on his lips, not wanting to miss anything he would say. It was nice to have someone to talk to even though I had to work a bit harder to listen to them.


     "What's your name?" He asked me, as he signed it although he completely did it wrong. I smiled at him, shaking my head as I signed the question back to him.


     "What's your name?" I asked, correctly signing it as I stuffed my hands into my pockets and he nodded, trying once more to sign the fairly simple question. After succeeding I nodded in approval.


     "Niall, Niall Horan. Yours?" I asked, as he nodded before answering my question.


     "Harry, Harry Styles." He replied and I began to pick up the pace as I shot him a grin over my shoulder.


     "Nice to meet you, I'll see you around." I called out, signing it as I did with everything and he smiled at me widely.


     "Where are you going?" He asked as I stopped walking, focusing on his lips as he signed only a word out of the question.


     "Math, see you around, Harry Styles." I waved, turning my attention back towards the school building as I made my way inside, walking down the hallways and getting into the math room just in time for the bell.


     That Harry Styles kid really surprised me, and I liked it.

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